Hamachi to solve network problems

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Quemaqua
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Post by Quemaqua »

We were all skeptical, but we've got 5 players connected to my server now without any issues at all. So apparently it's like magic... we had endless problems before even though most of the group was fully technically competent as far as setup goes.

heathan666
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Post by heathan666 »

ok so basically anyone that signs onto my hamachi "room" is no connected by a virtual lan, which means they can connect through my lan connection info correct???
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Full Bleed
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Full Bleed »

Hamachi has been having issues lately. Took 3-4 hours tonight for everyone in my group to get connected. According to their forums, other are experiencing this same problem. It sounds like Hamachi is getting a bit too popular.

Has anyone else tried to use something like OpenVPN? I briefly looked at it tonight but it doesn't have the most user friendly interface and I was somewhat concerned with how secure it was.

It would be nice to have a back-up for when Hamachi goes on the fritz again.
Maptool is the Millennium Falcon of VTT's -- "She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts."

osman
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by osman »

Yeah, we've started having issues with Hamachi. Took a while to get our Monday game going last week, and I've been having general issues with it since then. I did look for some other alternatives, but they're certainly not as slick as Hamachi. I've used OpenVPN for work, but I'm not sure the UI and such would be workable for most users. I also found Wippien, which is closer to Hamachi, but it requires a Jabber server as your central switching point (for handing off keys, etc...). I had some issues getting it working, I couldn't seem to connect to any of the supposedly free Jabber servers.

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Azhrei
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Azhrei »

Full Bleed wrote:I was somewhat concerned with how secure it was.
And why is that? Am I correct that Hamachi is proprietary (i.e. closed source) code and OpenVPN is an open source solution? Why would an open source solution be less secure?

Btw, I'm not sure they would solve the problem. For people who can't configure their router to allow incoming connections (University students, hotel room users) OpenVPN probably wouldn't work, since one end has to be running a server that the others connect to. Essentially, Hamachi runs the server for you and just routes your traffic to other people who are part of the same vpn. So if you had an OpenVPN server on the 'net, it could work the same way. So maybe one person in your game who doesn't have a router issue could run the OpenVPN server and everyone connects to them. Now a different user could run MT on that vpn and the others could connect...

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Full Bleed
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Full Bleed »

Azhrei wrote:And why is that? Am I correct that Hamachi is proprietary (i.e. closed source) code and OpenVPN is an open source solution? Why would an open source solution be less secure?
Because I can't tell what OpenVPN is doing. The interface sucks. The ins and outs of setting it up are not user-friendly at all. Hamachi lets me more easily determine what's "open" and what isn't.

Perhaps if someone out there has set up OpenVPN, specifically for use with MT, then the community as a whole may gain something from a nice FAQ. But, unfortunately, I'm not the one to do it.

Doesn't sound like it's an option anyway if we have to have a dedicated server.
Maptool is the Millennium Falcon of VTT's -- "She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts."

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Azhrei
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Azhrei »

Full Bleed wrote:Doesn't sound like it's an option anyway if we have to have a dedicated server.
No more dedicated than a MapTool server normally is. :)

crazyde11
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by crazyde11 »

You guys make it sound so easy, but I can't get it to work. To clarify, do I just start up a Hamachi network, have my players join, and start up a MapTool server like normal? Do they then find my MapTool server under the LAN tab or RPTools.net tab?

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Azhrei
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Azhrei »

crazyde11 wrote:[...] To clarify, do I just start up a Hamachi network, have my players join, and start up a MapTool server like normal? Do they then find my MapTool server under the LAN tab or RPTools.net tab?
Yes, start the VPN software (Hamachi, in your example). Everyone should be connected to Hamachi first (makes it easier to test other parts if everyone has already figured out Hamachi).

Then start your MapTool server. The Hamachi software should put your Hamachi IP address at the top of the list of preferred Network Connections, so when you start the MapTool server, it should bind to that address. When the server broadcasts on the network saying, "I'm here, I'm here!" the only people who will see it are the other folks connected via Hamachi (since the "virtual network card" that Hamachi creates is the one used by MapTool).

You should not register with the RPTools registry so empty out that field in the Start Server... dialog. If you do fill it in, it will have your external IP address, not your Hamachi one, so no one will be able to connect to it. Give your players the IP address that Hamachi assigned to you, or have them use the Direct tab to connect. (If you need the Hamachi address, you should look at the Connection Info... dialog prior to starting the server, or you can find the information in Windows using the Network Connections panel.)

Good luck, and have fun!

crazyde11
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by crazyde11 »

It's up and running, thank you so much.

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Azhrei
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Re: Hamachi to solve network problems

Post by Azhrei »

crazyde11 wrote:It's up and running, thank you so much.
You're very welcome. ;)

If you had any problems getting it to work, please post here and let me know. The things you have problems with are probably things other people will have trouble with, so I try to add that stuff to the FAQ. :)

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