NodeListServer Example Project

Please consider a donation (see the Ko-Fi button above) if this project is useful to you.

This repository contains a Unity 2020.3 LTS project that demostrates a implementation of a classic Server Browser (one you'd see in classic games such as Battlefield 1942, old Call of Duty games, etc).

It is advised that this project is only used as a reference, don't expect it to be feature rich.

While the Server Browser logic is network stack agnostic (as in, it doesn't care if you're using Mirror, Mirage, a fishy-named network library or something paid), the Mirror and Mirage integrations are dependent on the respective network stacks and require further steps. To help keep dependencies to a minimum the mentioned network stacks are not included in the repository.

Requirements

• You must have installed and configured Node List Server. You can get it here from the NodeListServer repository.

Setup

1. You can either clone this repository and open it in your version of Unity, please note that any versions below Unity 2020 LTS are unsupported and I cannot have 50 different Unity versions on my workstation. Alternatively, download a snapshot archive of this repository and copy the NodeLS Client directory into your project's Assets directory.
2. If you use Unity Assembly Definitions, add a reference to the NodeLS.Client Definition. This will allow you to access the NodeListServer namespace.
3. You're good to go! You can now create class instances of the NodeLS Client. An example would be NLSCommunicator myCommunicator = new NLSCommunicator();.

Review the Communicator.cs as it's commented and does explain what it's trying to do.

Testing with DebugCommunicator

• There is a DebugCommunicator script that I used during development to ensure things are operating correctly. It uses three keys which are Q, W and E.
• Q sends a request to retrieve the server list, W fakes a server registration request and E removes the fake server that it created (if it was successful).
• You'll need to modify the Endpoint in which it uses for it to work on your setup. This script has a compile define to only be available inside the Unity Editor. It will not be compiled in standalone builds.
• Using this script outside of a testing environment is a bad idea. You've been warned.

Integration Packages

• Some integrations exist for various network stacks as mentioned earlier.
• Look inside the NodeLS Client Integrations folder for a UnityPackage file that contains scripts for use with the network stack the integration is for.
• Note that some integrations may be cause a compile error or warning about things being obsolete over time. If this happens, please open a issue ticket.

Wait, why I cannot connect to a listed server?

The easy answers...

• The server died. It happens, as it's Unity Engine after all.
• The server port is closed or needs Port Forwarding. If the server is on your ISP connection, open that port in your router: read the manual to figure out how to do that. See the footnote for additional info.

The more technicial answers...

Are you trying to connect a server hosted on your network using the Server Browser?

• Unless your NodeLS instance is inside your local network, NodeLS will detect your public IP address. Your private IP might be 10.0.0.2, but your public IP might be 42.69.4.20.
• Most routers may not support loop-back connections, which is basically a LAN connection calling the external outside IP address.
• Some ISPs block game server traffic. Comcast, Verizon and Vodafone are some that do traffic blocking, including servers on non-business grade connections. You're screwed if your ISP does that to you.
• Hosting servers behind a VPN connection is a bad idea.
• Mobile connections will not work for server hosting. Due to the nature of how mobile internet works, even if it does work partially, if you drop signal then you're in the dark.

Footnote: Keep in mind some ISPs can disallow port forwarding for stupid reasons, or they'll penalize you for doing so. If it's on a Windows/Linux cloud instance, open the firewall using Windows Firewall or iptables, although if you're using Google Cloud/Amazon AWS/Microsoft Azure then it can be a clusterfuck.

I need help!

• Open a issue ticket, although I expect you to know the absolute basics of C# and Unity Engine first.
• Don't be shy asking for help, but please give details as to what you tried, and what went wrong.

Credits

• AnthonyE
• JesusLuvsYooh
• NodeLS users & contributors
• Coffee donators
• Mirror discord

Thanks for using Australian Open Source Software!