[Server] VanessaE's Creative Server [git/dev]

[VanessaE]

It's a server/engine bug. I don't entirely understand the basis of the bug, nor have I seen any concrete plan to resolve it. :-/

All I can say is keep trying to get on. It'll work eventually. Takes me several tries sometimes as well.

[12Me21]

when i try to get on the server, one of 3 things has happened:
1: everything is normal
2: I get disconnected from the server immediately after the area around me loads.
3: I log on and I'm dead. I'm still connected to the server, but it won't let me break blocks or do anything.

For a while, #2 would happen once or twice, but I would usually be able to go on the server normally after that, but now it's only ever 2 or 3.

It takes a few minutes to get on the server, so trying more than 5 times is very time consuming.

[VanessaE]

It should only take 20-30 seconds to connect. If it's taking "a few minutes" on each connect, turn off "preload item visuals" in your config (you'll need to open and modity your config with a text editor while the game is closed, then start the game - the option is not in the main menu anymore).

[VanessaE]

12Me21: the problem has been found - it's a weird engine bug all right. The workaround, of all the weird things, was to turn damage on, on the server. Bulldog and I just had this happen to us both today also.

Try signing on, and once you get in, "kill" yourself once if necessary, and it should reset you back to normal.

[12Me21]

Ok, it works now.

Anyway, I've been wondering; why can't you break blocks quickly by hand, like you normally can in creative mode?

[VanessaE]

Because this server runs my custom game (Dreambuilder) and I don't care too much for that behavior.

[Michael Eh?]

we back to either nothing loading and blank screen with preload_item_visuals = true
-OR-
game crashes as before with preload_item_visuals = false

Your phone or window isn't wide enough to display the code box. If it's a phone, try rotating it to landscape mode.

Code: Select all

 >> === FATAL ERROR ===
 >> Access violation (Exception 0xC0000005) at 0x0000000002B31125
 >> Saved dump to C:\Users\User\Documents\minetest\bin\..\minetest.dmp
 >> === FATAL ERROR ===
 >> Access violation (Exception 0xC0000005) at 0x0000000002B31125
 >> Saved dump to C:\Users\User\Documents\minetest\bin\..\minetest.dmp
 >> === FATAL ERROR ===
 >> Access violation (Exception 0xC0000005) at 0x0000000002B31125
 >> Saved dump to C:\Users\User\Documents\minetest\bin\..\minetest.dmp


:( :( :( :(

[VanessaE]

If it loads but just gives you a blank grey screen, just try again. This is due to an engine bug on the server end (ghost entities trying to be "deleted" in the area you spawned in, which deletes the player object at the same time but without actually disconnecting the player). It is not your client.

I know it takes a few minutes for "preload item visuals" to run but I'm kinda stuck for a better answer. :-(

[12Me21]

Why are technic frames disabled? I know they can be used to grief stuff, but so can pistons and movestones, not to mention lava, water, and especially corium.

Is it because of lag?

[VanessaE]

They can get laggy, yes, but mostly because motors and frames can be used to move things like node breakers, such that they can cut wide, practically unlimited paths through the landscape without any recourse.

Last time I had them enabled on this server, someone used them to cut a 5x5 or so trench nearly 1000 nodes long through the map. I had to repair the damage mostly by hand.

Lava/water (and their cooled results) can be worldedited-out, corium damage is disabled since the server is set to disable damage otherwise, and pistons/movestones can only move a limited amount of stuff, so their ability to do serious damage is pretty limited.

[12Me21]

They can get laggy, yes, but mostly because motors and frames can be used to move things like node breakers, such that they can cut wide, practically unlimited paths through the landscape without any recourse.

Last time I had them enabled on this server, someone used them to cut a 5x5 or so trench nearly 1000 nodes long through the map. I had to repair the damage mostly by hand.

Lava/water (and their cooled results) can be worldedited-out, corium damage is disabled since the server is set to disable damage otherwise, and pistons/movestones can only move a limited amount of stuff, so their ability to do serious damage is pretty limited.

I don't think corium damage is disabled, I was messing with 3 nuclear reactors, and I made them melt down. after that, corium flooded a room underneath them multiple times after I tried to patch the holes.

Maybe you could limit the use of frames by limiting how many can be attached together, or not allowing them to move node breakers.

[VanessaE]

Odd, corium griefing is supposed to be suppressed. I'll try to make a point to look into that.

As for frames, that's a no-go. Definitely not re-enabling them on this server.

[12Me21]

Odd, corium griefing is supposed to be suppressed. I'll try to make a point to look into that.

Is it just the corium that destroys blocks, or does the chernobylite do it too?

[VanessaE]

It's the corium that does that. The chernobylite is the cooled/hardened byproduct thereof. Looks like I had a configuration mistake on the server. It's fixed now.

[12Me21]

This is a graph of my memory usage while playing on the server, having my game crash, and then trying to reconnect 8 times:


Anyway, I made a taller antenna! (not finished yet)

[VanessaE]

Wish I could do something about the connection issues, but that's a bug in the server's code (actually you connect just fine but you get invisibly kicked off by the bug).

[VanessaE]

Update: My servers have all moved to a new host (again!). This time, it's hardware problems on the host I was with; rather than argue with them to get the hardware fixed (which was already a pretty big problem when I first moved there), I'm just taking my business elsewhere.

It's still digitalaudioconcepts.com port 30000, but the new IP address is 176.9.29.178. The domain will follow along shortly, as soon as DNS propagation catches up.

The osiris.inchra.net IRC server will re-join the network soon.

[12Me21]

I've been having a lot of problems with my game crashing while on the server, It's happened at least 3 times so far, twice for the same reason. (I'll check the debug.txt when I get home)

And of course, the problem of having to try many times before I can connect normally, still happens.

[VanessaE]

Yep, the many-tries-to-connect is a minetest server/engine bug; that it's crashing for you from time to time is a client bug, neither of which can I solve. :-(

[12Me21]

Yep, the many-tries-to-connect is a minetest server/engine bug; that it's crashing for you from time to time is a client bug, neither of which can I solve. :-(

I haven't gotten these on any other servers, Is it just because there are lots mods?

[VanessaE]

It's because of a bug I call "ghost entities". It's happened on three of my servers (including one that runs bog-standard minetest_game with barely any mods), and at least a couple of other people out there have reported the same sort of issues on their servers.

Entities are being created out of thin air and being duplicated out of control; when the server thinks the count is in excess of its per-mapblock limit, it tries to delete them, thinks it succeeds, but fails silently. In the process of trying to delete them, it deletes any newly-added player references in the affected map area also, forcing those players to sign off and back on. Thankfully it's just the internal "handle" to the player object that's deleted, and not their account, but the player is not informed that they've been bumped.

[rubberduck]

here an screenshot from my "build a giant decoration industrial park" - project, you can all help with this, i have planned this as a huge "community-project".

[codybruce]

Thank you kindly for letting me have a field day. That is the first time in years I've sat down and played a game for 8 hours straight. I completely accept the ban.

Banned.png (2.66 MiB) Viewed 3379 times

[cheapie]

It has come to our attention that this server has been griefed (see codybruce's post above). It will be restored from a recent backup shortly (less than a week old). Some newer construction may be lost, however I will be available to help rebuild if needed.

Sorry for any inconvenience,
VanessaE's Creative Server administration team

[VanessaE]

Backups are taken on a daily basis, so this world has been restored from the Sunday morning backup.

[twoelk]

It has come to our attention that this server has been griefed (see codybruce's post above). It will be restored from a recent backup shortly (less than a week old). Some newer construction may be lost, however I will be available to help rebuild if needed.

Sorry for any inconvenience,
VanessaE's Creative Server administration team

oh dear, and I'm far away from any internet connection worth the name let alone near any machine worthy to connect to a "Dreambuilder" world. I havn't even repaired the "oops" from the last accident near one of my builds yet (only some details missing).
But then again I havn't built anything recently so my stuff has probably all been restored ;-P

[codybruce]

You won't miss anything. I only did a days worth of damage. Server backups are every night at 3 AM Eastern time. I had an absolute blast. Had a great story to share with my little brother and colleagues. Little brother was amused. A colleague I have come to dislike was the, "I would be one of the builders..." type. The other colleague brought it up in hysterical laughter in the Monday meeting.

I truly had a blast. Thanks for letting have fun in a video game.

I will not spoof my MAC address to obtain a new IP from my ISP to come wreck it again. I had my fun.

Douchebag comment: Isn't destruction a form of creationism?

Fuckin' Wrekt.

Website updated.

[VanessaE]

I have moved the server's standard restart time to 1100 UTC (12:00 noon CET, 6:00 am US eastern time) to better coincide with the slowest times on the server. This change affects all of my servers.

[Michael Eh?]

Map is offline... along with it's host?

[cheapie]

Map is offline... along with it's host?

We're having some problems (DDoS), so she's moving it to a different hosting provider with DDoS protection. It might take up to a day or two to get everything sorted out.

(InchraNet IRC can still be contacted at amun.inchra.net, but services are down)