Update 1.8.2 & what's going on

Last time I wrote about what's going on with GameMaker Server is quite long ago, so I thouhgt I'd write another post to tell you about what's happened and what's going to happen to GameMaker Server.

Let's start with the new server. The server has moved to another location. You'll probably notice that the connection to the server is a little faster. The downside to the new server location is that it's getting about 5x more expensive for me to host it. Yeah, I'm not too happy about that :P This basically means I'll be pushing donations more. I've added a message you may see every now and then if you're using GameMaker Server to host your game. The option was almost impossible to find in the past, so I'm hoping this new message will at least make everyone aware that this option exists. I've got no plans to make this a paid-only service.

Together with moving the server I've also updated the site to fix a few minor issues that have been bothering me for quite a while. The text in replies will no longer overrun its borders, but will show a scrollbar if it's too long. If you're using a custom page background, the GameMaker Server logo will no longer scale and resize while hovering. The footer that got really big and caused the page to show horizontal scrollbars is fixed too. Lastly, it's (finally!) possible to have multiple tabs of the website open without forms being invalidated.

I'm looking into hosting more data on the server itself. Version 1.8.2 is the first download to be hosted on this website. Ultimately, all games on this site should be able to get their download hosted here. Extending the updating system to update the entire game directory and not only the executable is also something I'm looking at.

Update 1.8.2 has been released, which can be downloaded from the front page. It includes a bunch of bugfixes:

Fixed an issue with saving INI keys in the All version of the extension.

Fixed an issue with the all version that prevented numbers between -25 and 25 from being sent correctly.

Fixed an issue that caused instances to be destroyed when a client switched rooms

Fixed an error while registering an account

Fixed an issue that caused players to be invisible when using the all version of the extension.

Fixed an issue that would cause 100% CPU usage on the server when a client disconnected properly.

Lastly, there will be a server update pretty soon that'll effectively ensure 100% uptime of the game server. From that point on, when the server is restarting for an update, it'll freeze its own state and transfer the connections to the updated server. The updated server will then restore the state, and continue where the old server left off. Essentially, I can update the server without anyone getting disconnected and only noticing a few seconds of lag.

Thank you for using GameMaker Server!
Size43

Replies (14)

Can you please make it so when the server is empty you can make a server sided script that changes a variable in an online ini?
I need a number to reset to -1 when a session has ended.
Thank you! :)

Never mind I got it working! Was a syntax error, all I have to do now is sync objects, thanks anyway!

You can use the player logout event, and check whether the player count is becoming 0. I'm not actively supporting the server-sided scripts because they run on a severely outdated engine, and will eventually be replaced by something better. You could also reset the variable to -1 when the first player logs in to a session :)

Is it possible, could you please add an function that accepts a user's friend request in-game? It would be helpful as I am currently making an in-game gui that shows all your friends and gives you the option to send and accept friend requests. Thanks

I've had this on my todo list a few times, but I've skipped it because I ran out of time. It's on my todo for 1.9 again. I won't skip it this time :)

I have use the VS mode for my game and sometimes it doesn't put the players against each other and they are stuck in different sessions, requiring restart(s) until they are put against each other. My settings:http://i.imgur.com/6hWcGRP.png

How far apart, time-wise, do the two players login? If two players connect at almost the same time, they may end up in different sessions.

Pretty much the same second when testing. Probably further apart when I play against others.

What does the gms_session_count() script return when the players are in different sessions? What are the types of each session? (GameMaker Server uses 0 = non-vs session, 1 = vs lobby, 2 = vs playing, 3 = to be removed)

At what point do the players end up in different sessions? When logging in, when starting the game or when ending a vs game (and going back to the lobby)?

They end up in different sessions after logging into server and going to lobby, before the game starts. The game doesn't go back after end of the game.

Right now it happened, one player sees session 1306, type 2 as playing(it crashed due to a bug in code) and the session he is in, 1307, type 1. The other player is in 1308, type 2 and doesn't see the other 2 lobbies.

That sounds very weird. It should not be possible for players to end up in different sessions / not see all sessions unless one of the clients gets disconnected. (Though a player will never join an in-progress vs game, and join a lobby instead. All players will be merged into one lobby at the end of a vs game).

Would you be willing to mail me (gamemakerserver@outlook.com) your gmk/gmz so I can take a look at it?

What about the issues I told you about them before?
Which including:
1-Sometimes I and someone don't see each other.
2-Player count doesn't decrease.
I found a new one: if there were 2 players with exactly the same name, they see each other but they are completely invisible.

I can definitely see how bugs that were fixed in 1.8.2 could have fixed the issues you were having, but I can't be sure. Any bug for which I received a gm project should be fixed, along with all bugs I acknowledged & said would be fixed.

Otherwise, if you're still experiencing the same bugs in 1.8.2, please send me your project so I can use it to reproduce the bugs and fix them.

Good ;)