Twilight's at it again 
In light of the recent permanent shutdown of RvS's multiplayer components (server lists, key authentication server, etc.), a couple of old RvS modders and clan members have banded up in order to find a way around these hurdles and keep the multiplayer section of the game running smoothly, even without Ubisoft's involvement.
So far, they appear to have a working Beta for people to use, you can download the most recent one here:
Steam thread:
http://steamcommunity.com/app/19830/discussions/0/343787283758557632/
Any sort of feedback could be of use, so if you encounter any funky connection issues which might be related to the patch, do mention them.
We should probably get our server sorted out so we can get it up on the list, as it is manually managed at the moment. *wink wink* DeCapi.
Preliminary Report:
The server list doesn't work for me, every time I try to join a server through it by selecting it and clicking "join", it does the typical "Please wait" window with the green check box (instead of the red cross box) for an instant of a second, then it disappears. Nothing happens afterwards (usually the same window would appear with the red cross box instead, which meant that it was really connecting to the server), and the user interface stops working (can move the cursor, but everything is unresponsive). I can, however, bring the console up, so it means that the whole program didn't crash.
Joining via IP produced mixed results, attempting to join any of the following servers produced these results.
I haven't tested our server through Join IP yet, forgot the port number.
I will take a look MM!
So OpenRVS is installed both at the client and server?
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
Pretty much. There is a total of three files that need to be copied to the system folder and additionally, for servers, some lines that need to be changed in server config in order for it to not call for CD Key authentication. There are some things to be taken into account, considering this is a beta. Primarily, new server bans would be IP only at the moment. Details are in the software's readme.
Once it's up, it should be joinable through IP even though it's not on the beta server list.
In a related matter, have you ever tried the N4 Admin for RvS? If so, how much did it affect performance? The thing has a couple of neat features admins could use such as forcing a round start, patrolling tangos, and other stuff. If I remember correctly, the old Training Ground had it.
The server should now run with OpenRVS! I will look at the N4 admin at another time.
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
Roger that.
I've managed to join the server through the "open" console command (Join IP gives me a "Server did not respond", it's probably due to the ports still not being open).
Performance at the time of this post is variant, in some actions it took too long before either the hit was registered (after shooting), the bullet counter was updated (after reloading), or the context icon appeared (such as "open door" when standing near one), which implies a considerable amount of desync from my end of about 6-7 seconds. Regardless, I managed to complete the level since that desync also meant tangos didn't get to see me opportunely.
It's to be noticed that this desynchronisation wasn't during every action, in some instances, shots were registered immediately like normal and context icons would appear on time. Overall, the whole performance was kind of hiccupy: some times it'd work (usually after engaging a tango), and others it'd lag like hell (after being "cold" for a while).
Whether either the time of day or the mod are causing this, I wouldn't know. I'll try it again sometime later and compare results.
Should there be any "new" issues server side that might be causing problems (either through logs and whatnot), let me know.
About the not being able to join using "Join IP". I will take (again...) a closer look. One thing about Raven Shield... There are many ports to open
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
Got apparently a fix for the lag issue, hopefully it's the one I'm experiencing.
It's server-side, details on the rvsgaming.org site, in the latest post.
The short of it is that there's an error in server logging, where the thing is spammed with a certain message, or so it seems.
I have applied it. How does it work?
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
I get the same performance, unfortunately.
Other servers work fine for me, but they're closer. Nonetheless, the SAS server's never worked that bad for me before.
Might be the mod, perhaps? And the ports are still blocked. I couldn't even join via "join ip", it returned a "Server did not respond". I had to use the "open" console command to get in it.
Ok. I think I will do a fresh install within the next days, and then reapply the mod. Let's see what that gives us.
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
Greetings RVS Friends,
I'm happy to host your RVS server on my N4 so that you may see who is playing on your server, what map it's on and some other available options for the line users, admins can access server admin controls through the N4.
Also you can always download the latest OpenRVS version by typing openrvs.ravenshield.net, .org or .us
In order for the line user to access the ShadowSquadHQ N4 panel you must be a registered member.
The Ravenshield.dll patch is available at the above mentioned site.
If you need server assistance don't hesitate to ask.
Gary or Reaper in Game.
Happily Retired and wanting for nothing.
http://www.shadowsquadhq.com
Thanks for the offer, Psycho!
We'll be sure to keep it in mind, should the need arise.
Thanks Psycho and good initiative! Our server is running and we'd much appreciate getting it on the server list.
However, I have one issue that I seem to be stuck with. I can only join the server through the console and not using "Join IP".
I should have applied OpenRVS correctly as well as modified the RavenShield.mod file by adding
Looking in the server console I can see it's using OpenRvs.
Ports should be default. The IP is: 185.15.73.207:7777.
SAS_LtCol_DeCapi
Commanding Officer
GCHQ
22nd [SAS] Elite Virtual Regiment
It seems I've got my mods a bit confused. While the N4Admin does indeed pretty cool stuff through its web interface, the other functionalities in-game (patrol, force start, server message, etc.) are actually provided by Twi's Server Mod version 2.
I put priority in getting this set up (it's as easy as OpenRVS) over the N4Admin at the moment. Once we actually get those ports unclogged, of course
P.S. Server worked like a charm on my Uni connection right now. No issues. Will test later and see if the lagging issue's gone for good now.