marc_256 wrote:Hi Nituvious,
I like to test this for my game,
but I know nothing about server side software ??
What have I to do to test your soft ?
Do I have to install something on the server side ?
Marc,
Hi marc, you don't need do anything for the master server, the only thing you use is the packaged DLL.
Currently, this phase of testing is just to see if there are any inconsistencies with the master server holding data, such as incorrect data when being saved(if you send a server with the name servera and the masterserver records it as serverzyx, then there is a problem). I've tested by querying/posting several hundred servers all at once with no errors so far. I just mainly want to test for stability and those inconsistencies.
When this phase has finished testing there will be a new version of the apnetml.dll which will require an additional parameter in both functions, it is a "Developer key" authentication key used to separate lists into their own groups so one developers game will not be listed with the games of another developer. This is to ensure easier parsing for both the developer of the game/software that uses the master server, and the server itself.
I will go into more detail when the point comes, though.
So just remember that the master server currently will list everyone's project on the same list. You can make your own identifier for now by sending your own identifying string using dExtra.s in PostMasterServer(), such as "marcsawesomegamev1", this will make servers that come from your game have that string in their extra.
Here is a rough explanation of how to use this:
The SERVER version of your game:
When you need to create a server you simply call the apnet_PostMasterServer() function with the parameters specified to show players the server options. You will also need to call apnet_PostMasterServer() with the parameters once every 60 seconds(ideally once every 30 seconds) so the server will stay on the list for players to join and connect to. You will call apnet_PostMasterServer() to update game statistics such as the current player count when a new player joins.
The CLIENT version of your game:
The client should never use apnet_PostMasterServer(). The only function the client should use is apnet_QueryMasterServer(), this will return the entire master server list in memory(see the example for details on placing the contents in an array for parsing) which will be used for viewing servers.
If you have any suggestions, please let me know!
) when I was attempting to make a completely different project. This software is designed for any online project such as games or chat rooms.
