EQEmulator Forums - A little advice (or more hot air)

This is my first post on the boards so be gentle :oops:

I've spent the last few days trying to get a LAN server up and running, and after some hard hours trolling these boards at work, I finally found out that you cannot do that with the current patch.

I guess I'm writing this thread to not so much adress, but more to help people understand some of the more common issues people might be having. I've probably seen a lot of them since I think I've had every error in the book so far. *and this is why I love q/a in the clear cube stage!* For those who know this all better than I do, please feel free to correct me. Just trying to clear up some confusion.

1. Install - what do I do?
This one is a no brainer. eqemu.chiroplus.ca blastoma has a neat installer that he is working on to go along with the complied sources. Thank you :D ** EDIT: And install SQL, not just the server. *thanks Charmy* **

a. Know a bit about your machine/network before you install.
Without going into much detail, I will say this: Have a basic knowledge of your machine and your network. yay even though the internet gods have deemed thee worthy of access, the packets don't magicaly find their way to your applications. Behind a firewall? Forward the packets to the ip of the machine hosting the server. Don't know how to do this? PM me and I'll try to help :) .

b. once you know that your hardware is set up correctly, then worry about problems with your installation
'nuff said.

2. Knowing whats possible and whats not.
As far as I know, a Minilogon server *one that you host the logon server and the world/zone servers on* is not possible right now. I would imagine that there isn't a minilogon.exe in development right now because the developers are working on keeping their own logon code working in addition to the world/zone/emushare projects.

There are a few servers out there that you can play on, and a few might make you a staff member if you're good ;). This would probably be the best way to learn how the basics of running your own server. Once you feel comfortable, you could list your server publically. However, I don't recommend this until you are quite familiar with the EQemu community. *have you hugged a dev today??*

I would post links to all the nifty setup links and such, but there are already stickys in this thread or another. Look for them.

3. Errors
If you are receiving an error on your server output, be aware that you probably didn't do something right *like set up your hardware correctly*. Trust me, the code works pretty well for what is functional :)

If you are receiving an error in your client, it is because of one of the following reasons:

1. You didn't setup your EQemu account.
2. You didn't change your eqhost.txt file.
3. EQ is patched beyond what the developers are currently up to date with.
4. Your account doesn't exist on the SQL server *either EQEMU's or your own*
5. /* 140 */ unknown; :P

If you are having a problem be sure to post up your outputs along with any questions you have.

For now, I'm going to wrap up this post. If you have any questions, please feel free to PM me. I'll get back to you asap.

I wish all you new to this endeavour the best of luck, and thank those who have come before us.

"EQEMU: your world or mine?"