International Anarchy

* NOTE: Valve has changed the variable for this trick, I will post an updated method that uses the new way for L4D soon!

The [IA] Left 4 Dead server is a great place to enjoy any game variant of Left 4 Dead! If you are an [IA] Member, the server will pop-up on your menu screen shortly after your game starts up. All you have to do to join the server is just click on the Group Listing or by connecting manually by console. Of course, once you are in the game Steam will begin to search for players and add them to the server. Random players will fill the server in a short amount of time.

However, you cannot change the game mode the server is running on by simply joining via the group option. You also cannot change the game mode if you connect by a console command. This is a bummer, since sometimes you may want to play campaign instead of versus, or wanted to try survival out on a difficult level. Wouldn’t it be great if you could just create a new game lobby, invite your friends, and know that once you hit “Start Game” that you will be connected to our server directly? I have good news for you though! By adding a single command to a config file for your Left 4 Dead installation, you will always be able to connect to our Dedicated Server by creating a new game lobby! In this post I will walk you through on just what you need to do to add that command.

1. We will need to create, or update, your autoexec.cfg file for your Left 4 Dead game. It’s more than likely that you do not have this file. You can download it from here International-Anarchy.com Left 4 Dead AutoExec (Right Click -> Save As) or you can copy the code and make it yourself

   // International-Anarchy.com
   // Left 4 Dead Server Settings
   //
   // http://www.international-anarchy.com
   //
   
   // Allows for L4D to search for
   // Other Dedicated Servers
   ms_dedicated_server_type "best"
   
   // Following Command MUST Use an IP Address
   ms_force_dedicated_server "69.64.10.188"

   Make sure you save it as a .cfg file in your text editor if you are creating your own autoexec file! Otherwise it will not work.

2. Now we need to place the new autoexec.cfg file in the correct location. The following steps will take you to the correct folder for a regular Steam installation.
   1. Open “My Computer”
   2. Open your C:\ Drive
   3. Open the “Program Files” Folder, then Open the “Steam” Folder
   4. Open the “steamapps” Folder, then Open the “common” Folder
   5. Open the “left 4 dead” Folder, then Open the “left4dead” Folder inside
   6. Open the “cfg” Folder
   7. Copy and Paste your autoexec.cfg file into the “cfg” folder

   For users that do not have steam in the default location, you will need to get yourself to (STEAM INSTALL ROOT)\steamapps\common\left 4 dead\left4dead\cfg\ and place your autoexec.cfg file there. The image below shows that I have placed my autoexec.cfg file where it needs to be.

   

3. Now all you have to do is start up your copy of Left 4 Dead, create a new game lobby with the settings that you desire, and start your game up! It will then connect you to the [IA] server, as long as another group isn’t playing in it already.

I hope this how-to guide helps you get going with your copy of Left 4 Dead. If you do encounter any issues with the autoexec.cfg, please let us know in the forums!

I have made a few modifications and updates to the International-Anarchy.com TF2 server we have. First, I finally have enabled reserve slots to work correctly on the server. This means that as long as you have admin access, you will be able to connect to the server. This has a few catches though. The server is displayed to the public as having 24 slots, in reality it has 30 slots. Those last 6 slots are designated reserve slots, so admins can connect. If the server is full (24/24) but the reserve slots are not, you will need to connect to the server via your console. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Open your in-game console
2. Type this command: CONNECT tf2.international-anarchy.com
3. Presto! You are in!

The only exception to this is if all reserve slots are full, you will still be unable to connect, but this will hardly happen.

The second upgrade to the server is the addition of an addon that fixes arena mode. In arena mode under a typical SRCDS install, the maxplayers variable is divided by 3. This creates a Red, Blue, and Waiting team. The issue with this is a lot of players are forced to wait in the ranks to play in arena mode. I added a SourceMod addon that has since corrected this issue. Teams can now be up to 14 v 14 in arena mode, meaning a full server (reserved slots full) of 30/30 only up to two players will have to sit out. NOTE: This addon DOES NOT unbalance the teams! If the teams are uneven, then a player will still have to sit out.

These a just a few changes to improve the quality of the server! Please if you find any issues, report it in the forums!

Thanks!

EDIT: For clarification, reserve slots cannot be filled by regular players, even if they are to connect from console. So the only way an admin or reserve slot user cannot get in is if all reserve slots are taken by reserve slot users, and the rest of the server is full. Again if you see any issues, please post them on the forums using the link above!

I have setup a few trial game servers for International Anarchy. They are running on my newly co-located server at BluegrassNet. Currently, we are running a Counter-Strike: Source Server, Team Fortress 2 Server, and a basic Left 4 Dead server. All of the servers are equipped with the following plugins at this point in time…

• MetaMod: Source
• SourceMod
• SourceBans

The servers can be connected to by using the “connect” command in-game followed by their respective hostnames…

• CS:S – css.international-anarchy.com
• TF2 – tf2.international-anarchy.com
• L4D – l4d.international-anarchy.com

I do not expect any to barley any lag on any given game server. However these servers are still in a trial or beta phase at this point in time. If any issues do arise please report them on the forums as soon as possible, it is much appreciated. Users can check the status of any given game server at http://servers.international-anarchy.com. Users can see what maps are playing, IP addresses of the servers, connect to the servers directly, check server bans, protest server bans, and much more! The link to the Server page is also in the side bar. [IA] members can also gain Admin access to all game servers by contacting me.

Bring your friends, enjoy the servers, and please let us know how they are doing!