Setting up Red Dawn for Online play and need help.

[Allen262]

It has came to my attention that CnC Net now supports RA1 Mods. Now I would like to get Red Dawn working for online play. However I'm quite lacking in the know how to do this. I do know that the sync error could be fixed by adding a ton of keys in the rules.ini. I belive FunkyFr3sh has given me all of the need keys already and the place to hex edit the game.

 

I'm missing any thing else or need to be made aware of any updates, bugs and or pitfalls? I have the Red Alert+Aftermath+Counterstrike+Map Pack+Hotkeys  from http://funkyfr3sh.cncnet.org/ and I can see it has been heavily modded and I don't have much of clue what the modding is for/dose. The Red Alert Config tool it has is cool...

 

Any help is would make my happy!

 

Notify me of replies ON.

[Iran]

I made the patch (which also contains a variety of stuff by other coders), config tool and launcher. I don't intend to support mods for my patch because of the sheer amount of time just working on the patch itself requires.

[Allen262]

If I can fix the sync error with just ton of keys in the rules.ini I'm find with thing being how they were before your config tool/ launcher. Just cncnet.exe and need parts. I can force the game to run AM by dumping all of the AM parts in the rules.ini to avoid compat errors.

 

Since this would be a online only no one would need to change things or need to run the RA95.exe. Just a short cut of to the cncnet.exe

[Tore]

There's been nothing preventing anyone to play on CnCNet with mods before. It's just that non-supported mods don't get their own lobbies and have to use the default lobby.

[FunkyFr3sh]

Go to the chat and ask hifi which header is still free to use, if hes in mood he will add your mod to the cncnet page aswell, then just hex edit what i told you and that's about all you need to do

 

if you want to update to the latest version you gotta do some more changes, you could for example place all files you have modified in your mod to a single mix file (wolapi.mix) and just place it in the game folder of the new version

[Allen262]

On 1/3/2013 at 4:46 PM, Tore said:

There's been nothing preventing anyone to play on CnCNet with mods before. It's just that non-supported mods don't get their own lobbies and have to use the default lobby.

 

I did test in Nov, Dec 2011 and know that CnCNet will work with mod but they didn't have there own lobby. I didn't want to cause mass compatibility error so I never did make a Online setup. Now a year later thing have changed. The code for RA1 mod to have lobbies has been found, CnCNet has been updated a few time, the rise of the sync error and  heavily modded RA95.dat/exe. None of that I have stayed up to date on.

 

Quote

Go to the chat and ask hifi which header is still free to use, if hes in mood he will add your mod to the cncnet page aswell, then just hex edit what i told you and that's about all you need to do

 

if you want to update to the latest version you gotta do some more changes, you could for example place all files you have modified in your mod to a single mix file (wolapi.mix) and just place it in the game folder of the new version

 

If I add all of the keys from the oos-fix_new.zip to the rules this will fix the sync error? Looking the the http://funkyfr3sh.cncnet.org/ RA I can't use the Red Alert Config. Also http://funkyfr3sh.cncnet.org/ RA is pack full of maps. Can I remove them? Also what it the Out of Sync fix 2.1 map for if adding the key to the rules fix the OOS?

 

Why would I need to put all my files into wolapi.mix? Can I just put them into the needed mixes. Like tanks and building go into conquer.mix and the icon go into hires.mix. Since I'm replace stock files with update one why not put them in the the same place like the stock game has?

[FunkyFr3sh]

if youu put all files in wolapi.mix u can just port your mod easy to any other ra and u also don't need to add all the OOS-Fix ini keys to your rules.ini, config tool and all that stuff would also work like this

 

just try it out and you will see

[Iran]

I rechecked my first post and it sounded quite dickish, that wasn't my intention in case you felt it was being dickish.

 

The OOS issue is caused by the fact that the default game's rules.ini leaves out a few keywords for stuff because Westwood relies on the internally programmed default for them, when mod maps do modify these settings that were left out, the memory for that setting is changed but because the default rules.ini (which is re-loaded during map loading  before map's own modded settings to clean up memory) doesn't contain the keyword, the memory settings for the modded map are still being used and never reset by reloading rules.ini.

 

What funky's oos-fix rules.ini does is specify ALL the full setting for every section, unit etc so they game will reload all the memory when you load a new map. What you need to do is use his oos-fix rules.ini as base and apply all the settings you are currently using in your rules.ini to it. That probably might take a few hours though.

[Allen262]

FunkyFr3sh:What about all of the Enable small infantry, Enable CS and Enable AF options? My infantry are not the same as RA1 so if that is used things are messed up. Red Dawn also uses CS Ants all the time also some AF units are used but not required. CS has to be on all the time or no Recon Bike, Fame Tank and Stealth Tank.

 

What I'm thinking is since I have an old copy of the RA from RedAlert1.com that has a RA95.exe that has CS and AF always on. I would use that exe, add all of the need OOS key to the rules.ini. All of my other file like .shp and sound .etc are already pack like the stock game has things. The only thing I'm losing is the nice config tool.

 

I got your PM that told me what I needed.

 

Iran:

Its okay. I can imagine that you doing at leat weekly updates to the config tool. Maybe when the tool gets more refined you could do some versions for mods to use.

 

The oos-fix for the rules.ini will few hours since it isn't copy and paste for Red Dawn since just about every unit, bulding, weapon, warhead and projctile has been edited in some way. Last night started on this however I got size traked into working on TMP ra tiles.

[Iran]

Yeah, maybe but I don't know when I could add things for extra mod support. I added a keyword for RULES.INI that can be used to enable the parabombs for all game modes (skirmish etc), no build speed cap with the Aftermath enabled, a few AI fixes like allying and fixing paranoid mode and an option to remove the check if there's a Helipad on the map before the AI techs up but other than that not much added for modders. There's sadly quite a bit of work ahead for me before I can add more fun stuff.

 

The config tool and launcher are completely optional, the config tool is a front end to RULES.INI and DDRAW.INI. The launcher is a frontend to various RA95.exe command line arguments, cncnet.exe and the config tool, it also shows the current amount of players on RA1 CnCNet.

 

FunkyFr3sh updated his download today, the new download is changed so the expansions are enabled/disabled with REDALERT.INI keywords, it also has optional mousewheel sidebar scrolling (code by CCHyper), No-CD is controlled by a REDALERT.INI keyword and the game will only load smallinfantry.mix now if a REDALERT.INI keyword for it is enabled.

[Allen262]

I like the config tool as the one thing I never like about Red Dawn is the lack of Hi-res. I stuck to stock since CnC-DDraw lacked a user friendly interface. Your tool has that and more. The one thing I don't like is the Small Infanty since Red Dawn's infanty are not the same as RA and Red Dawn already uses small. E2 and E3 are switched. This way Nod dosen't start with grenadier (Plus saved me days of single player map editing). and Tanya has been replaced with the C&C Commando. (editing of 1000+ frames total) Since 99% of mods wouldn't take the time needed to change infanty the Small Infanty Option is fine, I'll work around it.

 

I can work around the Small Infanty option by A: Making the smallinfantry.mix empty B: I can make use of it how it is but it will make me do some work. I'll have use SHP Builder an make my E2, E3 and Commando 33%? larger and put them in the right place. The curent small E2, E3 and Commando would go into smallinfantry.mix. Now the Small Infanty still works as it dose now.

 

The enable the parabombs I like since GDI lack them in skirmish and multiplayer but is fair since Nod dosn't have a counter. Plase no disable Spyplane. I made the Spyplane into the Ion Cannon.  The AI ideas sound good but can wait. The one thing I would like is for the AI to build ships one day. However if it were done it is likely to need a key to keep the AI from finding a small pond and filling it up with ships... Like Shipmap= yes or no.