Freelancer Server Patch ReadMe

Change Summary

Server Changes

Server crash prevention measures were added, including crashes that result from client-side mods and common cheats.

The log output was cleaned up. Unimportant log entries were removed and more entries were added for player actions.

Cheat detection measures were added, including the automatic disconnection and logging of suspected cheaters.

Player data is now saved when landing. Previously, saves occurred only on launching and disconnection.

The server will no longer attempt to connect to the global server if the option to make the server Internet accessible is disabled.

Client Changes

Fixed MP Account ID generation in cases where no ID was generated.

Fixed crashes related to running client and server on the same machine.

Fixed bogus lag indicator when running client and server on the same machine.

Logging Changes

Logging was added for account creation, account deletion, character creation, character deletion, and cheat detection.

System enter and exit entries were removed.

Informational log entries (vs. warnings and trace output) are prefixed with "LOG:" to make them easier to parse out.

Cheat Detection Details

Players that are caught cheating are automatically disconnected from the server. A chat message is sent by the server to all of the players indicating the name of the player that was caught cheating. A log entry is also generated with the account name of the player caught cheating. The chat message sent to all of the players is stored in the file CHEATMESSAGE.TXT in the same directory as the FLSERVER.EXE program. It is a Unicode text file and can be edited by the server admin if desired. The maximum length of the cheat message is 80 characters.

Detected cheaters are also logged in the CHEATERS.LOG file in the multiplayer account directory. Each entry lists the date and time of the detection, the character name, and the account name of the player.

Cheaters are not automatically banned. It is up to the server admin to ban cheaters if desired.

 

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