[CC]DarKnight
06-02-2007, 02:21 PM
Short version:
Can someone explain how the server list works, and why certain IP's are listed sooner than others?
Long version:
After an update, we noticed a decline in (NON-regulars) connections. Sometimes the server would not show up in the list on a client machine until 1000 other servers had shown already. After the decline in random player connections did not fix itself, some tests were run. We noticed that if a client were to refresh the server listing, then quickly stop it, the servers listed were similiar in IP. The first octet in the IP was always in the 60's - 70s. We tested at different times of the day and night, with and without filtering for inoxious items (password, bots, etc.), and always with the same results.
I am removing all identifying information, so what I am posting can be looked at objectively.
Taken from our forums:
I have done an experiment over the past week.
On each IP, the old one and the new one, I put up 2 identical servers with identical settings, ports, etc... Each one will just autoconnect anyone that joins to the new main server. The only difference is their IP.
This is compelling evidence of IP-bias in Valve's server list sorting.
I will just paste the server console output from each server below then do an analysis.
--------------------
OLD SERVER
hldsr1
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 207.44.***.***:27035
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 11899 331 20.84 0
hldsr2
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 207.44.***.***:27028
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 11900 348 20.84 0
-------------------------------------
NEW SERVER
hldsr1
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 70.86.***.***:27035
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 10088 755 20.84 0
hldsr2
hostname: Server Name! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 70.86.***.***:27028
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 10088 827 20.41 0
The main thing you can see is that on the OLD server.. the "UPTIME" is about 11,000 minutes on both servers. Then a while later I started the servers on the NEW server which has uptimes of about 10,000 minutes on each server.
Despite the shorter running time however you can see the DRASTICALLY higher number of connections to the servers on the NEW IP:
755 and 827 versus 331 and 348.
In summary...
in 11,000 minutes hldsr1 and hldsr2 on the OLD IP redirected 679 players to the new server which amounts to an extra player joining every 16 minutes, while...
in 10,088 minutes hldsr1 and hldsr2 on the NEW IP redirected 1,582 players to the new server which amounts to an extra player joining every 6 minutes.
I should have made a clever little table but you get the point.
70.86.70.210 > 207.44.144.3
Can someone explain how the server list works, and why certain IP's are listed sooner than others?
Long version:
After an update, we noticed a decline in (NON-regulars) connections. Sometimes the server would not show up in the list on a client machine until 1000 other servers had shown already. After the decline in random player connections did not fix itself, some tests were run. We noticed that if a client were to refresh the server listing, then quickly stop it, the servers listed were similiar in IP. The first octet in the IP was always in the 60's - 70s. We tested at different times of the day and night, with and without filtering for inoxious items (password, bots, etc.), and always with the same results.
I am removing all identifying information, so what I am posting can be looked at objectively.
Taken from our forums:
I have done an experiment over the past week.
On each IP, the old one and the new one, I put up 2 identical servers with identical settings, ports, etc... Each one will just autoconnect anyone that joins to the new main server. The only difference is their IP.
This is compelling evidence of IP-bias in Valve's server list sorting.
I will just paste the server console output from each server below then do an analysis.
--------------------
OLD SERVER
hldsr1
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 207.44.***.***:27035
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 11899 331 20.84 0
hldsr2
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 207.44.***.***:27028
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 11900 348 20.84 0
-------------------------------------
NEW SERVER
hldsr1
hostname: SERVER NAME! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 70.86.***.***:27035
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 10088 755 20.84 0
hldsr2
hostname: Server Name! OC3 Dust 24/7 USA 100Mb NO:(56K-AWP-hax-shields)
version : 47/1.1.2.5/Stdio 3651 secure
tcp/ip : 70.86.***.***:27028
map : de_dust at: 0 x, 0 y, 0 z
CPU In Out Uptime Users FPS Players
0.00 0.00 0.00 10088 827 20.41 0
The main thing you can see is that on the OLD server.. the "UPTIME" is about 11,000 minutes on both servers. Then a while later I started the servers on the NEW server which has uptimes of about 10,000 minutes on each server.
Despite the shorter running time however you can see the DRASTICALLY higher number of connections to the servers on the NEW IP:
755 and 827 versus 331 and 348.
In summary...
in 11,000 minutes hldsr1 and hldsr2 on the OLD IP redirected 679 players to the new server which amounts to an extra player joining every 16 minutes, while...
in 10,088 minutes hldsr1 and hldsr2 on the NEW IP redirected 1,582 players to the new server which amounts to an extra player joining every 6 minutes.
I should have made a clever little table but you get the point.
70.86.70.210 > 207.44.144.3