how can i solve a game based network problem

[andreasaspenberg]

my problem is that when i host in the settlers 3 or warcraft 3 nobody can connect. i have no problems sharing files or hosting command and conquer 3 or red alert 3. the problem is specific to certain older games and maybe certain newer games. anybody here that can help me out?

 

[LordDz]

http://makemehost.com/
http://www.gameranger.com/
http://world-editor-tutorials.thehelper.net/firewall.php

 

[Dr Super Good]

It is due to the NAT (Network Address Translator) which you are using to get your internet through. If this is a private NAT (you own the router and the bridge IP is a public IP address) then you can fix it using the router's port forwarding options. Consult your router's user manual (usually bundled with it or available free online) for instructions how to do this.

If your internet connection is through a Carrier-grade NAT then you probably will never be able to host. Even if you contact your ISP the chances are they will be unable to allocate you a suitable port mapping for the incoming connections required by the games. Your only option in this case is to get a contract with an ISP that offers its customers unique public internet IPv4 addresses. Most cheap ISP packages (eg BT's lowest internet bundles) generally use Carrier-grade NAT due to the rarity of public IPv4 addresses.

Some games do not have problems as they either use a remote host (eg Diablo II/III) or have a STUN server (Session Traversal Utilities for NAT) to help generate appropriate port mappings in the NAT.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

you are mistaken as what you are referring to is internet. my problem is on local area network. please help me out.

 

[edo494]

are you sure your game version is the same as theirs?

 

[Dr Super Good]

my problem is on local area network.

A physical LAN? Eg, wireless or Ethernet?
In that case it is likely caused by the computers not being in the same work group or that software firewalls are blocking the require communication. It could be something as simple as setting the LAN network from public to trusted in some antivirus software (consult their user manual to find out how or if the feature is supported).

Or are you talking about a VPN LAN?
In that case consult the VPN administrator after trying the above. It could still be that software firewalls are set incorrectly but it could also be that the VPN has some firewall that is blocking the required traffic and hence only the VPN administrator can fix it.

If you are using a LAN network consisting of multiple routers (eg, what a commercial building or academic institute would use) then you should contact the network administrator.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

it is very game specific as i have problems in some games(watrcraft 3 and the settlers 3) while i have no problems in others(command and conquer 3 and red alert 3). i am using file sharing so all of my pcs are on the same work group because of that. i have already checked firewalls and they are not blocking the games. one thing i have noticed is that command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 seems to run on a much higher port so maybe the lower ports are damaged as i can connect from the pc i have problems with to others but they can not connect back. i am using a lan established by using pcs connected through a router but the problem is independent on what router i am using.(even a switch does not solve it.) i believe that it is something local on one pc that cause the problem but the big questions is what.

 

[IcemanBo]

Do they see it if you host and can't join, or they actually don't even see opened games?
Does hosting not work for noone, or only for you?

 

[andreasaspenberg]

in warcraft 3 the games i host is visible from other pcs but they are unable to join. that could be the case with other games i have problems with as well. other pcs can host though and i can join their games.

 

[edo494]

what is the message they get when they try to join?

 

[Dr Super Good]

one thing i have noticed is that command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 seems to run on a much higher port so maybe the lower ports are damaged as i can connect from the pc i have problems with to others but they can not connect back.

Ports are virtual and part of the TCP stack. As such there is no such thing as a "damaged" port. If the network stack is damaged in any way then no ports will work as no packets will be received/sent.

in warcraft 3 the games i host is visible from other pcs but they are unable to join. that could be the case with other games i have problems with as well.

This is caused by the host port being blocked as no join requests are received by the host. It is either being blocked at a router level (not forwarding packet on) or at a software level (firewall).

other pcs can host though and i can join their games.

This leaves me to believe that your firewall is incorrectly setup. Try forcing it to allow incoming traffic through TCP port 6112 (or whatever you set in game options) explicitly. Giving the application permission for all traffic might not be enough as global policies could still block the required traffic depending on how the firewall works. It might be a good idea to read the firewall user manual (usually available from the software developer for free) to get a better understanding as to how it works.

If it is not the firewall then there is a slim chance it is an IP conflict. Make sure your DCHP server (usually provided by the router) is setup correctly so each computer is allocated a unique IP address.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

ip address conflict would prevent connection completely and i already know that each pc have their own ip address.(it is assigned by the router at pc startup.) windows will also alert me if that happens. the pc that i have problems with have all of its firewalls disabled except windows firewall which is broken. if it had been blocked by the router it would have worked with the switch but it does not. the error message i get is simply: unable to join the specified game.

 

[IcemanBo]

Idk, then. But:

other pcs can host though and i can join their games.

Then if you make lan, let others host. -> no problem.

 

[Dr Super Good]

the pc that i have problems with have all of its firewalls disabled except windows firewall which is broken.

This leaves you with two possible causes.

The "broken" Windows Firewall could still be blocking incoming packets to the WC3 host port (6112 by default, can be set in options). Try fixing the firewall and then adding the appropriate rules to it or use a different port which is known to work.

If some other process on the computer allocates a TCP socket for port 6112 before WC3 does then it will get all traffic meant for WC3 and so prevent people from joining. Changing the host port used (done in main menu options inside Warcraft III) would fix it in this case.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i already tried plenty of different ports for warcraft 3 and the result have always been the same. the windows firewall is broken because its service is broken but i do not know how to fix that kind of issues so if i were to fix that i need information on how to do that.

 

[Dr Super Good]

i already tried plenty of different ports for warcraft 3 and the result have always been the same. the windows firewall is broken because its service is broken but i do not know how to fix that kind of issues so if i were to fix that i need information on how to do that.

Windows XP is no longer supported so you are on your own with that. I guess you will just have to get used to not being able to host on the LAN.

A Google or Bing search might be able to help but it is also possible all help has long been pulled down.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i am using vista and not xp. i have 3 pcs connected at all times. one have xp, one have vista and one have windows 7 64 bit. it is the vista pc that i have problems with. please help me out.

 

[Dr Super Good]

i am using vista and not xp

Since you did not mention that I had to assume you were using what you were in another thread.

i am running windows xp with service pack 1.

This is why it is important to mention what operating system you are using.

With Windows Vista this makes it even more likely to be the firewall since the firewall cannot ever really be turned off, even if it is broken.

Try reinstalling the operating system and installing all service packs. That will fix the firewall.

Alternatively try Google or Bing for help related to fixing the problem with your firewall (which you have not described).

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i described the firewall problem but since you refuse to accept it here it is again. the firewall is broken because its service is broken. windows is made up of a bunch of services and one of them is windows firewall. as i have stated before, windows rejects any attempts to reinstall it from cd. as a result i need a solution that does not require that. it should however be possible to solve the problem. please help me figure out how.

 

[Dr Super Good]

the firewall is broken because its service is broken

Services are software and so cannot be "broken". You need to explain more clearly what is wrong with it. For example it could be that the service is not listed in the list of Windows services. Or that the service logs an error (which contains important details as to the cause) when started. Or even that the service has simply been turned off.

Without knowing the cause of the "break" it is impossible to suggest to you a solution other than reinstalling the operating system.

If worst comes to worst you could always upgrade it to Windows 10 later this year for free. Hopefully that will not be necessary.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

software can be broken. the windows firewall service is unable to start.(i get no more information than that.) windows vista is all it can handle.(newer versions of windows requires better hardware in order to work well than older versions.) maybe you could tell me what other services windows firewall requires.

 

[edo494]

just for your information, software always does what it was programmed to do. Logical bug in the software != broken software, in a way that you would say broken hardware(burned or shit).

Also, if you are just so smart, why dont you help yourself but spam this forum?

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i do not spam this forum but try to get help on a forum where i am a member. software does break if important files gets deleted or damaged. i do not however know what files make up windows firewall. if i knew that i could have copied working files from another vista pc to replace those that are broken. what does seaport do by the way?(i have it turned off.)

 

[edo494]

missing file != broken software. The only reasonably broken software is when your driver BSODs on you, everyhing else is the fault of programmer(even that is programmers fault, but this is kinda severe program failure)

 

[andreasaspenberg]

blu screens happens only when there is a critical problem in windows and windows firewall is not a critical problem in windows. windows firewall is an app that comes with windows and like all apps it is unable to work properly without all of its files. some apps needs to be run as a service while some do not.(windows firewall do.) i could have fixed it by transferring working versions of its files but, i do not know what those files are. please either inform me what files and services it needs or give a different solution.

 

[edo494]

reinstall brain

 

[Dr Super Good]

blu screens happens only when there is a critical problem in windows and windows firewall is not a critical problem in windows. windows firewall is an app that comes with windows and like all apps it is unable to work properly without all of its files. some apps needs to be run as a service while some do not.(windows firewall do.) i could have fixed it by transferring working versions of its files but, i do not know what those files are. please either inform me what files and services it needs or give a different solution.

I assume you have already checked Event Viewer in case it has logged some error.

I recommend you search online for the service that makes up the windows firewall and all its perquisites. I would help you but as I use only Windows 7 now I do not know what services it needs.

It is important to note that the Windows firewall will not operate if other firewalls are installed on the system. For example installing Kaspersky Internet Security will disable Windows firewall until it is uninstalled. This is to prevent conflicts and excessive resource usage as only 1 firewall is enough.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i do not have event viewer. it is however unlikely that the problem is firewall based as then other games would be blocked as well. could be that the ports used by warcraft 3 is somehow hijacked as command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 runs on higher ports. microsoft security essentials for example is damaged(it does not scan for viruses but simply accessing the harddrive).

 

[Dr Super Good]

i do not have event viewer.

You do have Event Viewer.

it is however unlikely that the problem is firewall based as then other games would be blocked as well.

One cannot make that assumption. Not only might the other games use different ports but their way of establishing connections might be very different.

could be that the ports used by warcraft 3 is somehow hijacked as command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 runs on higher ports.

Yes that would certainly do it. If another application opens up a TCP port at 6112 before WC3 does then WC3 will likely fail to open the port so no one can join. As I mentioned before you can change this port in the main menu options to any port you like. For example I set one computer to 6112 and another computer to 6113 so that both could host on BattleNet at the same time.

microsoft security essentials for example is damaged(it does not scan for viruses but simply accessing the harddrive).

Try reinstalling or repairing it. Search the internet for how to do that as that is basically the answer to most problems.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

i tried to reinstall microsoft security essentials but the problem still remains though i did not delete it. i do however need to remove its registry keys to be able to reinstall it and i do not know where in the registry those are.(i know how to remove registry keys.) i have tried plenty of ports in warcraft 3 but, none of those are as high as those used by command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 which uses ports that warcraft 3 does not support as they are too high. what kind of software could hijack ports?

 

[Dr Super Good]

what kind of software could hijack ports?

Software written by people who did not make good port choices. If you changed the port of WC3 and tried to host and it still did not work then clearly this is not the problem.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

the ports used by command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 would likely work but, they are outside the port range of the warcraft 3 control panel. is there a way to alter settings manually to use a higher port?

 

[Dr Super Good]

the ports used by command and conquer 3 and red alert 3 would likely work but, they are outside the port range of the warcraft 3 control panel. is there a way to alter settings manually to use a higher port?

Try with regedit.exe and modifying the following entry which stores the main menu port setting.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Blizzard Entertainment\Warcraft III\Gameplay
netgameport

Like with anything modifying registries it is possible to critically break the OS if done incorrectly. Additionally since the value you input is not supported by WC3 game options it is possible that it could have undesired side effects when used. I am not responsible if any such side effects or damage occurs and I leave it to your discretion.

 

[andreasaspenberg]

that only caused warcraft 3 to change the port to something that is supported. i tried the other games and they are not bound on a specific port but instead finds one that is not blocked. any way to do that with warcraft 3?

 

[Dr Super Good]

that only caused warcraft 3 to change the port to something that is supported. i tried the other games and they are not bound on a specific port but instead finds one that is not blocked. any way to do that with warcraft 3?

No as that requires code level support.

You could try redirecting the WC3 traffic via a proxy to another port. No idea if that will work or help though.