Dear forum users! In compliance with the new European GDPR regulations, we'd just like to inform you that if you have an account, your email address is stored in our database. We do not share your information with third parties, and your email address and password are encrypted for security reasons.

New to the forum? Say hello in this topic! Also make sure to read the rules.

[GUIDE] How to Manually Port-Forward SFD

Having trouble running SFD? This is the place to get help and report errors.
Forum rules
By using the forum you agree to the following rules. For this forum you also need to follow these additional rules.
User avatar
KliPeH
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 914
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 3:03 pm
Title: [happy moth noises]
SFD Account: KliPeH
Started SFD: Pre-Alpha 1.4.2
Gender:
Contact:

[GUIDE] How to Manually Port-Forward SFD

Post by KliPeH » Tue Mar 22, 2016 7:15 pm

 ! Message from: KliPeH
Disclaimer
  • This is a tutorial written by me and is in no way an official guide to hosting online games in SFD.
     
  • The instructions in this guide can be followed to minimize risk of failing to host online games, but are not a requirement. Online lobbies should work without having to forward your ports, manual forwarding is simply done to ensure it.
     
  • By following these steps you agree to knowing what you're doing and possibly causing technical issues failing to follow my guide correctly.
     
  • Neither MythoLogic Interactive nor I are responsible for any damage done to your router or computer as a direct or indirect result of following these steps.

Tutorial

[1] Find the brand and model of your router. Look at the booklet packaged with the device, ask the person to whom it belongs or simply examine the device physically.
(Example #1: I have a TP-Link router. Looking beneath it, I can tell the model is TL-WR841N.)
(Example #2: I have a D-Link router. Looking at the attached booklet, I can tell the model is DSL-225.)

[2] Go to this website, and find your model in the list. Click any game to find your router's default gateway address. If the default address does not grant you access to the panel find the current address via the command prompt in step [5].
(Example #1: My default gateway address for the TP-Link router is 192.168.1.1)
(Example #2: My default gateway address for the D-Link router is 10.0.0.138)

[3] Open a new tab in your web browser (any browser will do) and input the gateway address into the search bar. Press 'Enter'. A small window or a page will pop up, asking you for login credentials. The defaults (both name and password) are usually "admin" (without quote marks). Sometimes "admin" needs to be capitalized ("Admin"), sometimes the "admin" username is replaced with "User", sometimes the password is "123" etc.

This website can help if you're having trouble finding the default login credentials for your router. Alternatively, ask the person in charge for modified credentials in case there are any. Parents or other guardians may sometimes elect to change the username and password to prevent further tinkering with the device. It is oftentimes possible to factory-reset the router in order to reset its login credentials, follow a tutorial for your respective router if those are not possible to acquire.

(Example #1: TP-Link Router)
User Name: admin
Password: admin
(Example #2: D-Link Router)
Username: Admin
Password: Admin
Validate: CVTXK
[4] Entering your router control panel, look for an ”Advanced” tab, or a tab named "Port Forwarding" / "Forwarding", or any variation thereof.
(Example #1: I will be forwarding my TP-Link ports from under Forwarding => Virtual servers)
(Example #2: I will be forwarding my D-Link ports from under Advanced => Port Forwarding)

[5] Create a new entry for SFD.

Note the following: the IP address required of you is NOT the gateway address you wrote into your browser's search bar. To find your IPv4 address, open up CMD (WinKey + R => "cmd" [write without quote marks]) and type the following in:
ipconfig
Press 'Enter'. Look for the IPv4 Address line, and write the IP you find there into the IP Address field. Using the IP in my example is not likely to work. You will need to find your own IP address via the method I described above. Any reference to an "IP" from now on is going to require the IPv4 address.

SFD's port is 52233 by default (fill this in for both external/internal or private/public port fields, if you are required to). The protocols you should be using are both TCP and UDP (choose the option that uses both in your entry). If you are required to select some type of interface, try using the most recent one. If that does not work, try every option until you find one that works.

Most other fields (like 'External IP' or 'Common Service Port') should be either left blank or set as the default option. The rest of the information is filled in accordingly.

(Example #1: TP-Link Router Entry)
Service port: 52233
IP Address: 192.168.1.101
Protocol: ALL/BOTH
Status: Enabled
Common Service Port: --Select One--
(Example #2: D-Link Router Entry)
Server Name: Superfighters Deluxe
External Port Start: 52233
External Port End: 52233
Protocol: TCP/UDP
Internal Port Start: 52233
Internal Port End: 52233
Server IP Address: 10.0.0.1
WAN Interface: ppp1.1
Once you're done, save the entry and make sure you apply/save any changes if the router requires you to do so. Some routers might need to be restarted before the changes are finalized. Most don't.

You're all done! You can now proceed to host a public game for others to join. You can give your friends your public IP address so they can connect to your private games directly.


  Screenshots



[1] Finding the router brand and model from the physical device.

[2] Finding the brand and the model in the online port-forwarding website.

     Finding the address to be input into the browser's search bar.

[3] Logging into the router control panel.

[4] Finding the port-forwarding section.

[5] Creating the port and finding your IPv4 address.


Troubleshooting
1. You will not be able to host if your ISP has put you behind a NAT.

Even if you follow my tutorial to a tee you will not be able to forward your ports correctly if your internet provider has put you behind a NAT. The easiest way to find whether you're behind a NAT or not is to simply enter your router control panel and look at what your IP address is. Now, look your public IP up; if the number Google gives you does not match the one in your panel, you're behind a NAT. The only way to fix this is to call your ISP and ask them to assign you a static IP address.

Keep in mind some ISPs will charge additional money for such a service, which is unacceptable. At that point you have the choice to either support an incredibly shady and restrictive practice, or moving to a more sensible internet service provider.

2. Your IPv4 address might change periodically.

This will invalidate the entry you created and prevent you from hosting again until the router cycles the address back to the IPv4 address you used initially. Routers don't set up static IPv4 addresses because it is less secure to do so, updating PF entries with relevant addresses will be on you. If you were ever able to host but can't anymore, or can only do it sometimes, this is the reason why. Repeat the "IP Address field" step in step [5] to get the new address (CMD => 'ipconfig'), and then update the existing port entry with it.

The address changes on a daily (every PC/router restart), weekly or monthly basis.

3. You have 3 different types of addresses, all fulfilling a different role. It is imperative that you understand when to use which address in order to successfully forward your ports.
  • The gateway address (ex. 10.0.0.138) is the address you use to get into your router's control panel. It is not used anywhere but in your browser's search bar.
  • The IPv4 address (ex. 192.168.0.1) is the address you use in all your forwarding entries; when you create a new entry for a port and you're asked to input an "address", it is always going to be your IPv4 address, never anything else. Players do not use this address to connect to your game unless you're on the same network.
  • Finally, the public IP address (ex. 221.192.199.49) is the address you give your friends so they can connect to your lobby online. It is never used anywhere else but in-game.
Remember not to mix the addresses up, e.g using your IP address in place of the IPv4 address when creating the forwarding entry.

4. If you follow step [5] and see the "ipconfig" results including IPv6 addresses (long number and letter strings that look like this), disable the protocol by following this tutorial. It is likely to interfere with the port forwarding process, and result in your router not accepting the IPv4 address you give it even if it's correct.

5. If no results show up at all - if the prompt line does not detect the 'ipconfig' command as a valid query - Right-click CMD, then 'Run as administrator', try to point it to the main C:\Windows\System32 directory with the 'cd' command, or otherwise ensure you have administrator priviliges (that you are the owner) on your computer.

6. Your server can be:
  • Online - Anyone can see the server in the server list and connect to it if it has a slot available and is not password protected.
  • Private - The server is hidden away in the server browser and can only be connected to directly via your public/private IP address.
  • Offline - The server will only accept local connections or allow multiple players to play on the same machine.
Ensure you are using the right setting, e.g Online for the full online experience. Always have your friends connect to your server through your public IP address directly; there's always the possibility you've accidentally changed a setting in-game which hid or otherwise moved your server on the server list, making it harder to find right away.

If you want your friends to connect to your server through IP give them the IP address you are currently using.

7. Most routers are set to change IP addresses on a regular basis. If you want your friends to connect directly to your server each time you host, check your IP manually before each play session. The address you used in previous play sessions is not likely to be relevant anymore, albeit being autofilled in-game. Bookmark the site linked above or just google "my ip".

8. Make sure your firewall isn't blocking external connections through SFD by allowing them in the firewall settings (Control Panel => Windows Firewall => Advanced Settings => Inbound Rules). Every instance of SFD in the list should look like this.

9. Make sure the UPnP protocol set is enabled in your router. I enable/disable the option from under the Networking Tools tab; you might need to explore your router's interface to find the option on your own. You may be required to restart the router in order to apply the change.

10. If you follow through with the manual method described in this thread, disable the "Automatic Port Forwarding" option from the options menu in-game. Your manual forwarding might not work unless you disable it.
7 x
 
Image

User avatar
KliPeH
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 914
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 3:03 pm
Title: [happy moth noises]
SFD Account: KliPeH
Started SFD: Pre-Alpha 1.4.2
Gender:
Contact:

Post by KliPeH » Tue Mar 22, 2016 7:16 pm

(An additional comment I wanted to keep separated from the main post, so the OP stays PF-centered)
Seeing how the old forum will be closed in a few weeks, I decided to post my old port-forwarding tutorial here and improve it so it doesn't go to waste entirely and can be used for future reference. I worded some steps differently, merged step #1 and #2 together so you get less clutter, and fixed some mistakes I never noticed before duplicating the guide.

As usual, feel free to PM me with any problems you might run into; do keep in mind that posting in the thread and getting multiple answers will probably raise your odds at succeeding in the port-forwarding task and hosting your own multiplayer game. I'd also like to get feedback on the structure of the tutorial; if it's too colorful or not colorful enough, has BBCoding issues, or the format is hard to understand, say so and I'll try to improve it.

Thanks for reading and good luck.
0 x
 
Image

User avatar
DreTheGamer
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 67
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:31 pm
Title: Big Waves
Started SFD: December 2014
Location: Pixel Land
Gender:
Age: 22
Contact:

Post by DreTheGamer » Thu Mar 31, 2016 5:04 am

Here's a small minor question. Does one need to have the modem (Ethernet cable that goes into the back of your PC) or can you just do all of the steps without it?
0 x

User avatar
TheOriginalCj
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 177
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2016 10:28 pm
Title: Lifetime Sentence to SF Wiki
SFD Alias: RedneckJed
Started SFD: PreAlpha 1.1.0
Location: USA
Gender:
Contact:

Post by TheOriginalCj » Thu Mar 31, 2016 6:07 am

DreTheGamer wrote:Here's a small minor question. Does one need to have the modem (Ethernet cable that goes into the back of your PC) or can you just do all of the steps without it?
Back when my PC was wireless, as long as I had internet access and access to the router (internet service provider), it worked like a charm.
1 x
Superfighters Wiki Founder
The Superfighters Wiki
Join the Wiki!
Danger Ross wrote: What are you doing here wiki-slave?! GET BACK TO WORK!

User avatar
DreTheGamer
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 67
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:31 pm
Title: Big Waves
Started SFD: December 2014
Location: Pixel Land
Gender:
Age: 22
Contact:

Post by DreTheGamer » Thu Mar 31, 2016 11:14 pm

TheOriginalCj wrote:
DreTheGamer wrote:Here's a small minor question. Does one need to have the modem (Ethernet cable that goes into the back of your PC) or can you just do all of the steps without it?
Back when my PC was wireless, as long as I had internet access and access to the router (internet service provider), it worked like a charm.
Just trying to make sure. I moved my PC to my room, and now there aren't really individuals joining my game. My port is fine, I guess it's just my crappy PC which is XP by the way.
0 x

User avatar
TheOriginalCj
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 177
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2016 10:28 pm
Title: Lifetime Sentence to SF Wiki
SFD Alias: RedneckJed
Started SFD: PreAlpha 1.1.0
Location: USA
Gender:
Contact:

Post by TheOriginalCj » Fri Apr 01, 2016 12:44 am

I don't think OS has anything to do with it. Make sure you're using a TCP/UDP port and your open port on SFD matches the port you opened.
0 x
Superfighters Wiki Founder
The Superfighters Wiki
Join the Wiki!
Danger Ross wrote: What are you doing here wiki-slave?! GET BACK TO WORK!

User avatar
Lunatic
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 666
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2016 10:03 pm
Title: I hope Klipeh bans himself
SFD Alias: (LM) Lunatic
Started SFD: 1.0.5 Pre-Alpha
Gender:
Age: 27

Post by Lunatic » Fri Apr 01, 2016 9:51 am

I've always opened both TCP and UDP for my port forwarding. Give that a try if you haven't already.

I've never had much success with wireless hosting, at least not recently, but in theory it should work.
0 x
Originally posted by Gurt
SFD BADASS! 8-)

User avatar
gwendalaze
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 84
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 12:55 pm
Title: Jarate Yellow Belt
Started SFD: PreAlpha 1.1.4
Location: France

Post by gwendalaze » Fri Apr 01, 2016 2:21 pm

If you are having trouble since you turned your internet connection from ethernet to wi-fi, this may be due to the fact that your router gave another LOCAL IP (the one you use when you setup your router to port-forward) to your PC upon it changing its internet interface.

Also, if it keep changing, some routers allows a feature that enable you to set a specific MAC adress to a specific local IP. To find your MAC adress (aka physical adress), instead of typing 'ipconfig', type 'ipconfig /all'. Now look for the physical adress of your wi-fi (wireless) or ethernet interface (the one with a wire).

Note that this 'local' IP is not your real IP, players shouldn't type it to join your game.

Anyway, I got to say that this guide is pretty complete, good job on this one.
2 x
- Gwendalaze, failing at being fun, just like this signature

User avatar
DreTheGamer
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 67
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:31 pm
Title: Big Waves
Started SFD: December 2014
Location: Pixel Land
Gender:
Age: 22
Contact:

Post by DreTheGamer » Mon Apr 04, 2016 5:31 am

I saw what you meant by the Physical Address thing and it works now! Thanks for the help guys, even though I have my PF set up already, just needed to figure out the wireless part. Best of gaming to you all.
And by the way, do I need to make sure that this won't interfere with my internet in general because I saw another connection, well wireless connection that was screwing around with my internet & I noticed that it was Hamachi, so I uninstalled it completely from my PC just to be sure.
1 x

User avatar
Billy
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 285
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2016 3:56 pm
Title: Owner of a failed Clan
SFD Account: Billy
SFD Alias: Billy
Started SFD: October 2015
Location: Austria
Gender:
Age: 22

Post by Billy » Mon May 09, 2016 1:27 pm

Does anything change (besides people will join in your server) which is noticeable at other PCs in the local network? (Because of my parents, they will say NOOOOOOO if i ask them if i am allowed to do that [and no i am not a little kiddy who thinks internet is a app])
0 x
Join Delta Squad today, if you mail me now you will get this cool private rank for FREE, but thats not all, you will also get an imaginary Cookie, so better hurry up!
Yea, ehh, that was a big fail...

User avatar
LuckyLucas
Meatbag
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2016 9:27 pm
SFD Alias: .Lucas
Started SFD: 1.0.6b
Gender:
Age: 24

Post by LuckyLucas » Mon May 09, 2016 6:49 pm

Billy wrote:Does anything change (besides people will join in your server) which is noticeable at other PCs in the local network? (Because of my parents, they will say NOOOOOOO if i ask them if i am allowed to do that [and no i am not a little kiddy who thinks internet is a app])
not really no
0 x

User avatar
KliPeH
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 914
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 3:03 pm
Title: [happy moth noises]
SFD Account: KliPeH
Started SFD: Pre-Alpha 1.4.2
Gender:
Contact:

Post by KliPeH » Mon May 09, 2016 6:57 pm

Billy wrote:Does anything change (besides people will join in your server) which is noticeable at other PCs in the local network? (Because of my parents, they will say NOOOOOOO if i ask them if i am allowed to do that [and no i am not a little kiddy who thinks internet is a app])
  • "As long as you have Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10 installed then you have a solid firewall in place and can safely forward a port to that computer." [source]
Port forwarding should be fairly safe as long as you forward an exact game port (such as SFD) rather than a range of ports (for example, all ports from 52233 to 53233).
0 x
 
Image

User avatar
Billy
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 285
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2016 3:56 pm
Title: Owner of a failed Clan
SFD Account: Billy
SFD Alias: Billy
Started SFD: October 2015
Location: Austria
Gender:
Age: 22

Post by Billy » Thu Jun 02, 2016 9:44 am

I got another problem:
MY MUM CHANGED ROUTER PASSWORD AND FORGOTT IT AFTER THAT!!
Is it possible to recover it?
0 x
Join Delta Squad today, if you mail me now you will get this cool private rank for FREE, but thats not all, you will also get an imaginary Cookie, so better hurry up!
Yea, ehh, that was a big fail...

User avatar
KliPeH
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 914
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 3:03 pm
Title: [happy moth noises]
SFD Account: KliPeH
Started SFD: Pre-Alpha 1.4.2
Gender:
Contact:

Post by KliPeH » Thu Jun 02, 2016 10:23 am

Billy wrote:I got another problem:
MY MUM CHANGED ROUTER PASSWORD AND FORGOTT IT AFTER THAT!!
Is it possible to recover it?
A quick Google search revealed you might be able to reset your device manually, removing all custom configurations including any forwarded ports and your custom set password. If you aren't able to reset the router manually try forwarding your ports with a desktop application rather than your usual router interface, also the third method mentioned in the article I linked.
0 x
 
Image

User avatar
Splinter
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 314
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 5:03 pm
Title: Grenade chef
Started SFD: 1.1.6
Location: Brazil
Gender:

Post by Splinter » Thu Jun 02, 2016 1:54 pm

KliPeH wrote:Give your IP to your friends so they can play with you!
Wait, wait, wait. So, even after port-forwarding, people need your IP to join, instead of simply joining the server?? I'm having problems port-forwarding since I changed my modem, but I remember that before I just manually port-forwarded and people could join my server.
0 x
Hold your breath.

User avatar
Billy
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 285
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2016 3:56 pm
Title: Owner of a failed Clan
SFD Account: Billy
SFD Alias: Billy
Started SFD: October 2015
Location: Austria
Gender:
Age: 22

Post by Billy » Thu Jun 02, 2016 2:00 pm

Thx KliPeh, will try it today
0 x
Join Delta Squad today, if you mail me now you will get this cool private rank for FREE, but thats not all, you will also get an imaginary Cookie, so better hurry up!
Yea, ehh, that was a big fail...

User avatar
KliPeH
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 914
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 3:03 pm
Title: [happy moth noises]
SFD Account: KliPeH
Started SFD: Pre-Alpha 1.4.2
Gender:
Contact:

Post by KliPeH » Thu Jun 02, 2016 3:05 pm

Splinter wrote:
KliPeH wrote:Give your IP to your friends so they can play with you!
Wait, wait, wait. So, even after port-forwarding, people need your IP to join, instead of simply joining the server?? I'm having problems port-forwarding since I changed my modem, but I remember that before I just manually port-forwarded and people could join my server.
No, I deliberately said "friends" because if you were to make a private server for yourself and your friends you'd give them the IP so they could use the connect-to-IP option rather than the server list (since a private server won't show up in the public-server list).

If you don't mind random people joining in or aren't playing with friends just make sure the "public" option is checked and you're all good to go.
1 x
 
Image

User avatar
Billy
Superfighter
Superfighter
Posts: 285
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2016 3:56 pm
Title: Owner of a failed Clan
SFD Account: Billy
SFD Alias: Billy
Started SFD: October 2015
Location: Austria
Gender:
Age: 22

Post by Billy » Thu Jun 02, 2016 5:46 pm

just one question, how to find out which port is used by anything, and which ports are allowed to use?
0 x
Join Delta Squad today, if you mail me now you will get this cool private rank for FREE, but thats not all, you will also get an imaginary Cookie, so better hurry up!
Yea, ehh, that was a big fail...

User avatar
Kamikaze
Fighter
Fighter
Posts: 45
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2016 6:28 pm
Title: Clan Spetsnaz
SFD Account: SPZKamikaze
SFD Alias: Kabbit/CerealGuy/Karl Ruprecht
Started SFD: PreAlpha 1.2.1 , August 2013
Location: ZzzzZzzzzZZZzzzz
Gender:
Contact:

Post by Kamikaze » Fri Jun 03, 2016 3:36 am

I have always looked like making Port-Forwarding and I never could :P
0 x
8-) :ugeek: Clan Spetsnaz!

Tearum
Fighter
Fighter
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat May 14, 2016 9:16 pm

Post by Tearum » Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:59 pm

i have a problem with hosting.

When i click to host a game and i start my server its okay and the port forwarding is also okay.
But nobody can join. Its on public game and there is 7 free slots and there isnt any bug or crash.
And the game is on the firewall list so the firewall dont block it.
Before that i could host and i did it a lot but i update my windows 10 and i bought a new video card etc. and after that i had this problem.
(((((i can join to other server))))))))
My port forward is 52233.
MY fps is 60-70.
I tried to switch off the automatic port forwarding or try other port number than 52233 but nothing changed.
My friend in my street have the 52233 port like me and he can host without any problem.
When my friends tried to join to me it just counted up to 8.

Please help me.
Last edited by Tearum on Wed Jul 27, 2016 2:40 pm, edited 2 times in total.
0 x
The end means that something begin.

Tea

Post Reply