Hey people, hope you can help me out…
I’m trying to play Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings from behind a router (it’s a NETGEAR DSL Modem Internet Gateway DG 814 if that means anything to anyone :)).
I have an internal IP address, but when I go to something like myipaddress.com I get something different. I’ve read something about having to ‘open some ports’ so I can play. Can anyone give me an idiots guide as to 1. Which ports to open and 2. How to open them:confused:
The problem is simply that if I try to host the game, no matter which IP I use the people can’t see the game, and vice versa (NB the people I’m playing against are not behind any kind of network)
Thanks for the article, Q.E.D.…only problem is that it seems to suggest that I need a whole bunch of ports open; initial…subsequent…inbound…outbound:confused:
Do I really need all these ports open? If not, then what exactly do I need?
Again, thanks for the (incredibly speedy!) response
It depends on whether you’re using DirectX 7 or 8 according to the article. Follow the instructions given to determine which one you’re using, and then open the ports specified for that version.
I’ve found that most internet gateway/routers can play nice with online games if the firmware is up-to date. Problems with gaming was an common complaint with the Netgear and Linksys boxes, and they seem to have solved most of those issues. If you haven’t done so recently, check the support pages for ‘firmware’ concerning your model.
Yes, port forwarding takes packets destined for your outside internet address, and forwards them to an assigned inside address. so if you were running a web server on your computer, you would enter
80
(the port you want forwarded)
and
192.168.1.10
(if that’s the inside address of your computer)
usually, it only makes you put the last octet (the 10 in my example) in the space provided. my numbers should only be used for example, yours may differ. although i think both netgear and linksys use the 192.168.0 subnet as default. did you try upgrading the firmware? you may not have to mess with these settings if you did.
Wowzer! Here I thought I was the only one in the world to have this problem. Maybe we could compare notes as to what does and doesn’t work. I have no problems at all playing when my friend launches and it’s just the two of us playing, but if I try to launch, it doesn’t work. Also, if I try playing with more than one player it doesn’t work. Do you have any problems with that? I know it has to be something with my router, which is linksys, but I just can’t figure out what to do.
hmm…you’ve had more luck than I, Amberlei, as I couldn’t even join a game my friend started. I’m going to try the port forwarding thing tonight, I’ll let you know if it works or not
What operating system are you using? This is a long shot, but I’m wondering if Win XP might be the culprit? I know when I was running Win 98 and on a dial-up, I was able to launch. Changed both about the same time, but hadn’t considered the possibility it was an XP issue till this morning. It’s very frustrating. Must be doubly so for you, as you’re unable to play even with somebody else doing the launching.
I’m running XP pro (switching back to ME as soon as I get my hands on some removeable storage though); I’m pretty sure the problem is the router though, as when I’m at home I use a straight dial-up connection and everything works hunky-dorey. Here at university we have an 8-computer LAN connected up to a broadband connection using a router; anything involving connecting to another computer (and therefore, I’m guessing, swopping IP addresses) just doesn’t work at the moment.
windows XP has a built in firewall, which while designed with good intentions, like most microsoft innovations can be quite annoying at times.
The firewall is called the “Internet Connection Firewall” and can be disabled as follows:
Start->Control Panel->Network Connections->the relevant connection->Network Tasks->Change settings of this connection->advanced->internet connection firewall->and finally clear the “Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet” box.
long winded, i know, and nowhere near guaranteed to work, but hey, give it a shot.
Btw, i recommend permanently disabling this firewall and instead acquiring a more commercial one, such as ZoneAlarm or Sygate, which allow you to set permissions for individual programs.
Ah, I forgot about that, Chagto; that could well be your problem Amberlei, although I know it’s not mine cos I made sure the daft thing was switched off ages ago:)
Howdy Y’all! q;} I’m the above-mentioned friend, with whom Amberlei, mysteriously, has little trouble connecting.
I’m on AOL (shudder!) dialup with windows 98. One would think this would cause problems. It doesn’t. I rarely have lag except during very ‘large’ games… Hero Fest, and the like.
Green Dragon, perhaps you’d like to try a game with me sometime? Who knows, maybe it will work! Saturday afternoon, perhaps sunday afternoon. Lemme know here.
GD, i may have missed your response but did you upgrade your firmware? If not, go to DG814 and d/l the appropriate firmware…I know that helped some problems i was having with a different router.
Here’s a link to netgears page on opening ports for specific games (sadly, not AoE). Port forwarding . You should probably refer to Q.E.D.'s link to Microsoft to get the specific ports for AoE.
Also, i saw that this router supports DMZ which basically opens your computer totally open to the internet. You might try enabling this ONLY when you game and then turn it off when you are done.
I really wish I could figure this puppy out. There’s just gotta be a solution for me somewhere!