Help - Optimizing CSS Under Orange Box for Best Gameplay

[scso1502]

BASIC SERVER INFO:
Rack Mounted 1U Supermicro Dedicated Server - Los Angeles, CA (QuadraNet D/C)
Server O/S: Windows Server 2008 Enterprise 64-bit R2
Processors: Dual Intel Xeon E5420 2.5 Ghz Quad Cores (8 Cores Total)
RAM: 16GB of ECC
Game(s): Counterstrike: Source (OrangeBox)
Mods: SourceMM 1.83 and SourceMod 1.3.4
Start Up Command: -game cstrike -console +ip 64.120.98.156 -port 27015 +maxplayers 24 +map gg_fy_funtimes +exec server.cfg +fps_max 0 -tickrate 66 +RCON_PASSWORD xxxxxxxxxx

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Hello Everyone,

I've been searching for information on how to best configure my CSS servers now that they are on the same engine as TF2 and DODS. My reason for this is simple. CSS ran perfectly for us prior to the engine update a few months ago, now it plays terrible. My biggest complaint is related to "shot registry". There are times when someone will die immediately when shot randomly without even aiming, and other times you can seeming aim directly at someone nearly point blank and not kill them with multiple shots. If I was the only one seeing this, I would not be posting this message, trust me.

I have spoken with dozens and dozens of players about this, and most of them have decided to move onto other games out of the frustration from it. It's just not fun to play CSS anymore if you are even remotely competitive and I'm just not sure why this is happening. I have a few thoughts about it and was hoping you guys can offer some factual tips to make the CSS game play on our servers as best as possible before I decide to stop hosting CSS anymore. Sadly, It's gotten that bad and I've been hosting CSS servers for our community for more than 5 years.

Considering the problems I'm seeing on our servers appear to be global elsewhere, and not just with ours, I suspect it's perhaps caused by things that are out of our control. Regardless, I'm hoping you guys have a moment to review and possibly improve the server.cfg settings shown below. This cfg file is being used on a 66-tick / 1000 FPS Sourcemod Gungame DM CSS Server I run.

CURRENT SERVER.CFG

// THIS FILE CONTAINS MANY OF THE MAIN STARTUP SETTINGS FOR YOUR BOOM! PUBLIC SERVER
// THE SETTINGS IN THIS FILE ARE SET FOR THE BEST PERFORMANCE
// YOU CAN CHANGE SOME SETTINGS WITHOUT AFFECTING PERFORMANCE, JUST BE CAREFUL!!!
// EDIT THIS FILE WITH CAUTION SO YOU DON'T SCREW SOMETHING UP!!!
// CHANGES MADE TO THIS FILE WILL REQUIRE A RESTART OR A MAP CHANGE BEFORE THEY TAKE EFFECT
// WORDS FOLLOWING "//" ARE ONLY COMMENTS, WHICH ARE NOT EXECUTED BY THE SERVER

//SERVER NAME AND PASSWORDS
hostname "BOOM! Gaming Gungame (DM) [Turbo] <125+ Maps> GameME" // Enter your Server's default name before the double slashes
//rcon_password "" // Enter your RCON password here before the double slashes
//sv_password "" // Enter the password for players to connect to your server (REQUIRED ON ALL PRIVATE SERVERS)
sv_contact support@boomgaming.net // Company contact email address for server system operator

//REGION SETTINGS - The world region to report this server in for the Valve Master Server's list.
// USA East Coast - sv_region 0
// USA West Coast - sv_region 1
// South America - sv_region 2
// Europe - sv_region 3
// Asia - sv_region 4
// Australia - sv_region 5
// Middle east - sv_region 6
// Africa - sv_region 7
// World - sv_region 255
sv_region 255

//EXECUTE PLAYER BAN FILES
//exec banned_user.cfg // executes the file holding all players banned by STEAM# |Leave as is|
//exec banned_ip.cfg // executes the file holding all players banned by IP Address |Leave as is|

//EXECUTE OTHER CONFIGS
exec sm_plugins.cfg // Used for executing master SourceMod Config File
exec steambans.cfg // Steam Bans Plugin Config File

//SERVER RATE SETTINGS - Changing these settings could screw up your server and cause lag!
sv_lan 0 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_unlag 1 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_maxunlag .5 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_minrate 75000 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_maxrate 100000 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_minupdaterate 33 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 33 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_maxupdaterate 66 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 66 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_mincmdrate 33 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 33 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_maxcmdrate 66 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 66 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_client_cmdrate_difference 1 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_client_predict 1 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_client_interpolate 1 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_client_min_interp_ratio -1 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_client_max_interp_ratio -1 // DO NOT CHANGE

//VALVE CHEAT PROTECTION
sv_pure 0 // How strict the server is when allowing custom content like sounds, skins, etc. |0-Disabled, 1-Normal, 2-Strict|
sv_consistency 1 // Enforces files consistency between players and the server |0-No consistency, 1-Normal, 2-Total|

//MULTIPLAYER VARIABLES
mp_autokick 0 // Will the server kick players if idle for too long per sv_timeout setting |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_spawnprotectiontime 0 // Time in seconds to kick players who team-kill after the round restarts
mp_autocrosshair 0 // Allows a clients automatic crosshair sizing feature |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_autoteambalance 1 // Will the server autobalance the teams
mp_buytime .25 // Time in minutes after round starts that you can use your buy menu
mp_c4timer 35 // Time in seconds before bomb explodes after planting
mp_dynamicpricing 0 //Is Valve's Dynamic weapon pricing on |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_fadetoblack 0 // Player's screens go black after they die until rounds ends |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_flashlight 1 // Is the flashlight enable |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_forcecamera 0 // Sets the moveable spectator camera for players so they can only view where they died |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_footsteps 1 // Can you hear footsteps of other players |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_maxrounds 0 // Sets the number of rounds played before map changes |O-Disabled, Any number other than 0 will disable mp_timelimit)
mp_freezetime 0 // Amount of time in seconds that you freeze while at round start |PUBS are usually 0, MATCH is 15|
mp_friendlyfire 0 // Enable/Disable friendly fire |1-ON 0-OFF|
mp_hostagepenalty 0 // How many hostages a Terrorist can kill before being kicked from the server, |0 to disable|
mp_limitteams 1 // Number of players one team can have over the other team
mp_winlimit 0 // Max number of rounds one team can win before a map change occurs (mp_timelimit will be ignored it this is other than 0)
mp_playerid all // Amount if info to Displays about players |Normal is ALL|
mp_roundtime 2.00 // Amount of time in minutes rounds will last
mp_timelimit 15 // Amount of time in minutes before map change will change
mp_tkpunish 1 // Punish Team Killers (TK'ers) on next round? |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_startmoney 16000 // Amount of cash players will start with when they join
mp_allowspectators 1 // Sets whether people spectate other players |1-YES 0-NO|
mp_chattime 10 // Amount of time in seconds players can chat after the game is over before map changes
mp_forcecamera 0 // Turns the Kill Camera off after you die |1-OFF 0-ON|

//SERVER SPECIFIC VARIABLES
sv_voiceenable 0 // Can players on the same team voice chat with each other? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_allowdownload 1 // Can players download custom content from the server? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_allowupload 1 // Can players upload spray content to the server? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_alltalk 0 // Can players to the other team? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_cheats 0 // Can people cheat on the server without getting VAC-Banned? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_gravity 800 // Sets map gravity - The lower the number, the more you float? |800 is Normal|
sv_timeout 65 // How long in seconds before an inactive player is kicked off the server
sv_pausable 0 // Can players pause the game? |1-YES 0-NO|
sv_airaccelerate 10 // |Normal is 10|
sv_friction 4 // |Normal is 4|
sv_maxspeed 320 // |Normal is 320|
sv_stepsize 18 // |Normal is 18|
sv_stopspeed 75 // |Normal is 75|
sv_turbophysics 1 // Determines how fast objects move when shot |Default is 1|
phys_pushscale 100 // Determines how an object will fly away from you when shot |Default is 1|

//SOURCETV SETTINGS (See: http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Source_TV for more on SOURCETV settings)
tv_enable 0 //Activates SourceTV on local game server, SourceTV bot will appear as spectator client after next changelevel (master only).
tv_name BOOMGAMING.NET GG-CAM //Sets SourceTV name as it appears in server browser and scoreboard
tv_title GG_DM Admin-Cam // Place your clan name in front of this (i.e. BOOM! Match-TV) //Sets a SourceTV broadcast title shown in the spectator GUI (it will appear as a bot in your server)
tv_password "" //Sets required password for connecting spectators.
tv_maxclients 50 //Sets maximum client number for local SourceTV server/proxy (default 128).
tv_delay 0 //Source TV broadcast delay in seconds (master only).
tv_delaymapchange 0 //Delays the map change on game server until rest of buffered game has been broadcasted
tv_port 27020 //Set the SourceTV host port (default is 27020 or 27021). Must be set as srcds start parameter.
tv_maxrate 5000 //Sets the maximum bandwidth spenT per client in bytes/second (default 5000)
tv_snapshotrate 20 //Sets world snapshots broadcast per second by SourceTV (master only).
tv_relaypassword "" //Sets required password for connecting relay proxies.
tv_autorecord 0 //Automatically records every game, demo file name format is auto-YYYYMMDD-hhmm-map.dem |0-Off 1-On|
tv_dispatchmode 1 //Sets Source client dispatch mode for connecting clients: |0=never, 1=if appropriate, 2=always|
tv_relayvoice 1 //If enabled, allow player voice chat if broadcasted (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_chattimelimit 10 //Limits spectators to chat only every "x" seconds
tv_allow_static_shots 0 //Allows auto-director to choose fixed camera shots (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_allow_camera_man 0 //Allows a spectator client on game server to become SourceTV camera men (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_transmitall 1 // If tv_transmitall is enabled |0-Off 1-On|, the whole game is transmitted and spectators can switch
//their view to any player they want. This option increases bandwidth requirement per spectator client by
//factor 2 to 3. By default entities and events outside of the auto-director view are removed from SourceTV broadcasts
//to save bandwidth.

//MISC SETTINGS
sv_downloadurl "http://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx" //Set link inside "" if you have an HTTP download server for maps, sounds, skins, etc.
decalfrequency 60 //How often in seconds can people spray again
host_framerate 0 // Leave at 0 for best quality Demo recording
setpause 0 // Leave at 0 please

//SERVER LOGGING
log on // Enables server logging for troubleshooting |Leave on|
mp_logdetail 3 // Leave at 3 to log everything going on in the server
sv_logbans 1 // Logs server bans in the server logs |Leave at 1|
sv_logecho 1 // Echo log information to the console for troubleshooting |Leave at 1|
sv_logfile 1 // Log server information in the log file for troubleshooting |Leave at 1|
sv_log_onefile 0 // Log server information to only one file

//BOT GENERAL SETTINGS
bot_quota 4 // Set this value to the number of Bots you want to auto-join at startup
bot_quota_mode fill // |if FILL - Bots are used to keep player count up to the bot_quota setting, otherwise use NORMAL|
bot_difficulty 1 // |0-EASY, 1-NORMAL, 2-HARD, 3-EXPERT|
bot_chatter OFF // Bots can talk |OFF, RADIO, MINIMAL NORMAL|
bot_auto_follow 0 // Bots will always follow other players on their team |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_auto_vacate 1 // Bots will begin leaving as players join - All bots will be gone when bot_quota is reached |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_join_after_player 0 // Bots will only join server after at least one player joins the game |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_defer_to_human 0 // Will Bots plant bomb or rescue hostages? |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_prefix "" // Prefix Used in the name of all Bots place "//" in front of line to disable it
bot_allow_rogues 1 // Bots will ignore orders & don't complete objectives |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_walk 0 //Bots can only walk |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_join_team any //Set what team Bots will join when needed |CT, T, ANY|
bot_eco_limit 2000 //Bots can't buy if their cash falls below this amount in dollars

//BOT WEAPONS RESTRICTIONS
bot_all_weapons // |ALL_WEAPONS, KNIFES_ONLY, PISTOLS_ONLY, SNIPERS_ONLY|
bot_allow_grenades 1 // BOTS can have grenades |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_all_weapons 1 // BOTS can have any weapon |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_pistols 1 // BOTS can have pistols |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_sub_machine_guns 1 // BOTS can have SMGs |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_shotguns 1 // BOTS can have shotguns |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_rifles 1 // BOTS can have rifles |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_snipers 1 // BOTS can have sniper rifles |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_machine_guns 1 // BOTS can have machine guns |1-YES 0-NO|

I have already tried it at different FPS levels and saw no difference in game registry.

My true suspicions are that the game itself, the weapon effects, shot calculation, and other critical details that control shot registry and effect for each weapon have changed from before and there is no fixing that. If that's the case, then we're pretty much screwed, but I thought I'd make this one last attempt to configure the server correctly before giving up.

Your thought on this would be greatly appreciated.

Warm Regards

[BehaartesEtwas]

I don't observe something like this, on the contrary. Since the update the hit registration has even improved on my servers (the tiny bit it could get improved... ;-)). Ok, I am on Linux, not Windows, and I did a lot of system optimizations, but that did not need any changes. Your rate settings are fine. I would recommend using the valve default settings for all the other stuff. And I recommend fps_max 70 to keep the server running at 66 fps, which is the optimum for the orange box (for tick 66 servers).

[lol554]

Code:

sv_minupdaterate 33 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 33 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_maxupdaterate 66 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 66 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_mincmdrate 33 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 33 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK
sv_maxcmdrate 66 // DO NOT CHANGE - USE 66 FOR 66-TICK or 101 for 100-TICK

Remove that, and also set the fps_max to 67.

Code:

sv_minrate 75000 // DO NOT CHANGE
sv_maxrate 100000 // DO NOT CHANGE

Your sv_minrate is set too high, put it on like 15000 or 20000 instead.
sv_maxrate is fine.

Code:

//SOURCETV SETTINGS (See: http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Source_TV for more on SOURCETV settings)
tv_enable 0 //Activates SourceTV on local game server, SourceTV bot will appear as spectator client after next changelevel (master only).
tv_name BOOMGAMING.NET GG-CAM //Sets SourceTV name as it appears in server browser and scoreboard
tv_title GG_DM Admin-Cam // Place your clan name in front of this (i.e. BOOM! Match-TV) //Sets a SourceTV broadcast title shown in the spectator GUI (it will appear as a bot in your server)
tv_password "" //Sets required password for connecting spectators.
tv_maxclients 50 //Sets maximum client number for local SourceTV server/proxy (default 128).
tv_delay 0 //Source TV broadcast delay in seconds (master only).
tv_delaymapchange 0 //Delays the map change on game server until rest of buffered game has been broadcasted
tv_port 27020 //Set the SourceTV host port (default is 27020 or 27021). Must be set as srcds start parameter.
tv_maxrate 5000 //Sets the maximum bandwidth spenT per client in bytes/second (default 5000)
tv_snapshotrate 20 //Sets world snapshots broadcast per second by SourceTV (master only).
tv_relaypassword "" //Sets required password for connecting relay proxies.
tv_autorecord 0 //Automatically records every game, demo file name format is auto-YYYYMMDD-hhmm-map.dem |0-Off 1-On|
tv_dispatchmode 1 //Sets Source client dispatch mode for connecting clients: |0=never, 1=if appropriate, 2=always|
tv_relayvoice 1 //If enabled, allow player voice chat if broadcasted (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_chattimelimit 10 //Limits spectators to chat only every "x" seconds
tv_allow_static_shots 0 //Allows auto-director to choose fixed camera shots (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_allow_camera_man 0 //Allows a spectator client on game server to become SourceTV camera men (master only) |0-Off 1-On|
tv_transmitall 1 // If tv_transmitall is enabled |0-Off 1-On|, the whole game is transmitted and spectators can switch
//their view to any player they want. This option increases bandwidth requirement per spectator client by
//factor 2 to 3. By default entities and events outside of the auto-director view are removed from SourceTV broadcasts
//to save bandwidth.

Remove all that shit, you don't need it. Also add -nohltv to your launch parameter, then STV will be permanently disabled (until you remove -nohltv again ofc.).

Code:

//BOT WEAPONS RESTRICTIONS
bot_all_weapons // |ALL_WEAPONS, KNIFES_ONLY, PISTOLS_ONLY, SNIPERS_ONLY|
bot_allow_grenades 1 // BOTS can have grenades |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_all_weapons 1 // BOTS can have any weapon |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_pistols 1 // BOTS can have pistols |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_sub_machine_guns 1 // BOTS can have SMGs |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_shotguns 1 // BOTS can have shotguns |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_rifles 1 // BOTS can have rifles |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_snipers 1 // BOTS can have sniper rifles |1-YES 0-NO|
bot_allow_machine_guns 1 // BOTS can have machine guns |1-YES 0-NO|

Remove... more unnecessary stuff...

Code:

//REGION SETTINGS - The world region to report this server in for the Valve Master Server's list.
// USA East Coast - sv_region 0
// USA West Coast - sv_region 1
// South America - sv_region 2
// Europe - sv_region 3
// Asia - sv_region 4
// Australia - sv_region 5
// Middle east - sv_region 6
// Africa - sv_region 7
// World - sv_region 255

Remove and set sv_region to 1 (i think LA is closest to the west coast).

[scso1502]

Thanks for the feed back guys. I'll make the changes and will report back with the results... I really appreciate it! I'm just curious though, why do I need to remove the SourceTV block from server config and disable hltv if it's set to off in the server config anyway? Also, why remove bot settings that I use. How does that affect performance? Lastly, are you saying the cmdrate and updaterate settings should not be enforced and to remove them. I don't understand that. I was under the impression that enforcing reasonable rates on clients was good for the server and kept things consistent between players.

Mike

[BehaartesEtwas]

I think that stuff doesn't really matter in your case. If you don't add bots to your server, all other bot settings are ignored. Same with sourcetv. The rates you are settings there are enforced almost like that by valve defaults anyway. I would keep the rate settings (because they are a little more strict than defaults - though I would not increase the minimum any further) and remove the other stuff. Only your sv_minrate is really too high, but that probably doesn't really matter either, as players should decrease their cmd- and updaterate to decrease the data rate, not their rate, to prevent choke.

[lol554]

(12-08-2010, 01:49 AM)scso1502 Wrote:  Thanks for the feed back guys. I'll make the changes and will report back with the results... I really appreciate it! I'm just curious though, why do I need to remove the SourceTV block from server config and disable hltv if it's set to off in the server config anyway? Also, why remove bot settings that I use. How does that affect performance? Lastly, are you saying the cmdrate and updaterate settings should not be enforced and to remove them. I don't understand that. I was under the impression that enforcing reasonable rates on clients was good for the server and kept things consistent between players.

Mike

Hello. Most of the stuff is unnecessary and just fills your server.cfg and makes it like a chaos to edit. You could split it up to several files and then just exec the cfg-files from your server.cfg

The TV part is unnecessary, because, well, you don't use SourceTV so why have all that stuff anyways? Also -nohltv disables the STV permanently, i think that gives better performance, because the tv_enable is just a on/off switch.

The cmd and update settings aren't used anymore... The server defaults the updaterate to 66 and forces the cmdrate to 66.

Code:

"sv_maxupdaterate" = "66" ( def. "66" )
replicated
- Maximum updates per second that the server will allow

[LordMarqus]

Quote:The cmd and update settings aren't used anymore... The server defaults the updaterate to 66 and forces the cmdrate to 66.

Is that correct?

[Terrorkarotte]

Nope ist not. The standard values are as they were before. They added the sv_competitive_mode or something like that increases the values if activated. But thats all.

[scso1502]

What's the difference from turning SourceTV off like I had it vs. disabling it? Is there something that disabling it does that turning it off doesn't? Also, why would I make multiple cfg files to sort through to execute basic server cvars when all my settings are in one easy to read and well labeled file? Removing settings means if I ever want to re-enable something I have to put them all back again...

[BehaartesEtwas]

guys, let us separate style from optimizations please. this only confuses the TO, apparently :-)

no there is no difference between turning srctv off or not turning it on. if it's off, it is off. you can organize the settings like you want, this does not have any performance implications (apart from a few ms or so during mapchange).

nevertheless if you have performance issues, I would recommend starting with a blank server.cfg and adding only the hostname and passwords. if the server then runs better, you can add a couple of your settings to see, if one of them causes the problems. if your issues don't get obvious immediately this can take several days or even weeks, but it is the only way. omitting any unnecessary setting will save you a lot of work then...

[joe.powell]

So is it really best to run a server @ 66fps, rather than the 1000fps everyone seems to demand?

[Terrorkarotte]

Its easier to run stable 66 fps than 1000. A dropping and bumping server is often worse than a stable 66.
Since you can not gain anything from "fps > tickrate" it is best to run 66-100 fps

[joe.powell]

(12-14-2010, 06:57 AM)Terrorkarotte Wrote:  Its easier to run stable 66 fps than 1000. A dropping and bumping server is often worse than a stable 66.
Since you can not gain anything from "fps > tickrate" it is best to run 66-100 fps

Ok, cheers, Ill give it a go, see what people say, if they even notice it!

[lol554]

(12-09-2010, 02:12 AM)Terrorkarotte Wrote:  Nope ist not. The standard values are as they were before. They added the sv_competitive_mode or something like that increases the values if activated. But thats all.

In general term, it is. Why would anybody touch this (if they didn't want to use tickrate_enabler)? The default cvars is absolutely fine.