Downloading garbage from servers

(Machine for to kill) #1

The junk that I’m downloading from servers is starting to cause me problems. First of all many of them have old maps (betas) and are not updated frequently, but many times the stuff that i download into etmain corrupts my game files. I get all kinds of errors when trying to run the game and especially when trying to use devmap commands. These errors aren’t fixed until I go through etmain and do some cleanup or reinstall the patch.

The easiest way to avoid these kind of problems is for the server’s etmain dirs to be kept up do date and junk free. Since that’s not likely to happen, can someone tell me what are the default game installed files that are supposed to be in etmain so when I clean it up I don’t erase important game files.

(Rippin Kitten) #2

I think all you need are pak0, pak1, and mp_bin for pk3s. Common, astro_skies, and lights are all installed with the Radiant editor, I believe, so you don’t need them to play.

You can turn off autodownload (cl_autodownload or Have Server Send Missing Files to No in Options > Game) to prevent the server from sending you stuff, but you will be informed with an error message telling you what files are necessary to play if you are missing something.

If you are running into a specific pk3 that is crashing your game, try to trace it back to whatever server it came from. That way you can send the admin a nice email describing your problem and hopefully they can take the pk3 off their server or correct the issue.

RK

(Sick Boy) #3

Yeah I delete all my unused pk3’s like every month (especially mapcycles and beta maps) and still, some problems remain, like you say devmap.

To open a map in devmap, open it first with /map en when it’s loaded you can load it with devmap.

All the same problems from RTCW…

(Machine for to kill) #4

I didn’t know you could do that, but now that I do…

Thanks RK

P.S.
A server with only new maps is not a good idea

(Cyber-Knight) #5

I find the autodownload feature in ET really poor and stupid.

Like in RtCW, I join a map playing MarketGarden OSP, it will ONLY donwload MarketGarden and the appropriate OSP files and let me join the server. Even if the next map is Tank, it will download Tank when the server starts loading it up.

In ET, if a server is running a set of customs, Temple, Flak Cannon, DDay, Maiden, it will download EVERYTHING before you join the server, which is stupid cuz it means you’ll probably spend over half an hour downloading stuff. Maybe if the server was on my favourites, I wouldn’t mind but for pubbing, it’s annoying.

(O2.iceman) #6

Yeh that happened in SOF2 as well.

It seems they did something to the engine in between RtCW, and SOF2/ET, so that now EVERY pk3 in the etmain directory has to be downloaded before you can join, even if that map isn’t playing or that mod is not in use.

But the clients can “cl_allowdownload 0” to turn it off, but of course when you DO need the map when it comes in rotation, you’ll get kicked unless you previously download it offline.

(Wraith2k3) #7

I always try to download the latest maps to avoid having to do it in-game.

But what annoys me is if some dumb admin decides to change the pk3 for a map so I have to re-download something I already have. Admins: DON’T TAMPER WITH THE PK3’S!!

(Rain) #8

In ET, if a server is running a set of customs, Temple, Flak Cannon, DDay, Maiden, it will download EVERYTHING before you join the server, which is stupid cuz it means you’ll probably spend over half an hour downloading stuff. Maybe if the server was on my favourites, I wouldn’t mind but for pubbing, it’s annoying.

That’s partly true–ET still only downloads pk3s that the server is using a file in, HOWEVER, any map with a .campaign file is referenced by the server when it builds a list of available campaigns.

Moral of the story:
Mapmakers–please put your campaigns in a separate pk3!

(SCDS_reyalP) #9
(RivrStyx) #10

Yes i’m a low life and a culprit of this. Wasn’t thinking when i did it… was thinking it would help admins and make things easier. I’m a dope and assholio. :banghead: I will correct the errors of my ways and it won’t happen again Now…please… 40 lashes. :frowning:

On another note…Not sure why clients download the map campaigns pk3 even if seperate. The skins pk3 i did doesn’t download even if auto download is on and on a server… why would a client need a campaign pk3 or cfg. Seems something should have been setup to tell its a campaign pk3 and not download it as it does with skin pk3s