Game mode: online private Type of issue: cant join server Server type: pve Region: na
I’ve downloaded the dedicated server app on my laptop thats connected to ethernet, set up the server and installed. I have opened up the ports 7777, 27015, 27016 for both tcp and udp, tested port accessibility and got all greens, while also running port checker software as well. ran the server ( multiple times with different settings ex. with and without multihome ) and tried to join the game on my desktop, in multiple various ways. It wont let me join, it just loads for a long time and says connection error or something of the sort and brings me back to the main menu. I googled my issue, read multiple threads and such. some people have suggested multihome, changing server ports, but I am running on 2 machines. How does this work? What do I do if im hosting on one machine and joining on another? I can include pictures and stuff if needed. I’ve been at this for about 3 hours and am clueless about what to do. My friends can all join my server but I cant.
my friends are connecting through my external ip, they are not lan and I have tried connected to my laptop through both internal and external ip on my desktop, with and without port numbers as well and to no avail on my end.
In the Windows firewall on the host I have the ports open (7777, 7778, 27015, 25575) in the “inbound” policy for TCP and UDP. Less restrictive than I need, but it is only currentlly accessible “locally” or I would be more precise.
So the problem arises more than likely because you’re on a NAT* local network. Your friends can connect externally, because you’ve opened the pinholes and allowed players to connect via hitting the EXTERNAL IP Address. This is the IP address of your house, basically, and internet providers work very hard to keep their traffic moving properly. Sending out a request, through the internet, to come back into your External IP Address is called a loopback. This is something ISPs generally prohibit, even via ping.
In your hybrid situation, you have an External address that works fine. You need to look for the LOCAL, or NAT address of the laptop. In @Broc’s example, this is “192.168.0.2 on Intel…”
Using Steam, click View -> Servers. Sometimes you can find a Local asset/server by clicking the LAN tab. If this doesn’t work, Click Favorites, then Add A Server. Type in the Local IP address you found in your server console, add a colon, and the Steam Query Port. Click Find games at this address… Then add it to Favorites.
Good luck, feel free to ask follow-ups.
* Network Address Translation: you are given a local, differently-classed IP address for use among your network. In this way your external IP address can be operated by multiple clients, within a separately firewalled and “protected” zone. Addresses in NAT are similar to 192.168.0.1, 10.0.0.1 and the like.
Ok I finally managed to connect to the server, I disabled windows firewall and norton firewall on my laptop and was able to connect by direct connect with the laptops ip not external without the port, with the port did not work. The steam > view > server > lan shown the server but i was not able to connect and connecting via the online lobby list also does not work. But I think it’s safe to assume that it was the firewall that prevented it ? idk but thank god finally i can enjoy the game. Debugging sucks :p. thanks yalls for the tips and info.