Questions about running single instances of multiple mods

[Drek]

I am in the process of switching over to the ServerLoader. I have some questions. I run six different mods on weekends, basically my clan votes on which mod they want to run on Friday and Saturday nights, and whichever mod is voted for runs for the night.

I want to be able to click on a shortcut to start and stop my mod. I run six different mods but I don't want them all running at different times. Is it possible to simply install the ServerLoader once for each mod I want to run, then set up the configuration for each mod, and create shortcuts to start and stop the service for each mod? Will this create a problem, essentially having the service installed six times? Will I even be able to install the service more than once without creating problems? Or is there a way to install it once and choose which mod it starts and stops?

[botmeister]

I found the best way to do this, is to load only one instance of ServerLoader, and configure the INI file to load each of your processes. The key is to have all of them put in a paused state with the line "Paused = No", this will prevent them from running when the service is first started.

The next thing to do, is to create command files with extension .BAT or .CMD which re set up to start/stop processes for you.

Here's some examples:

File: CS_Start.CMD
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -resume 1
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -start 1

File: CS_Stop.CMD
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -pause 1
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -stop 1

You can have the command file stop a process before starting another, for example:

File: CS_Start2.CMD
call C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\HL_Stop.CMD
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -resume 1
C:\HLServer\SrvLoad\meanloader -start 1

You can get even more fancy, by setting up a schedule using the AT service. With the AT service, you can have your mods automatically stopped/started based on a schedule by configuring the AT servce to run your command scripts at a certain date/time or day of the week.

[Drek]

Great, thanks for the help. I'm assuming that CS_Start2.CMD should have "-resume 2" and "-start 2"?

[botmeister]

Yes, that would make more sense for the examples shown.

[Drek]

I finally got around to replacing ServerDoc with the (mEAn) ServerLoader, however, I would like to clarify some things. First off, when you said "Paused = No" I am assuming you meant "Paused = Yes" because otherwise all the servers will try to start up when the service starts.

Also, I'm thinking the idea of using the .bat files to start the server somewhat defeats the purpose of running the ServerLoader as a service. Unless I am mistaken, if all the instances of HLDS are paused in the .ini file, then if for some reason the power went out, or there was a reboot for some reason, when the server computer restarted, ServerLoader wouldn't load the instance of HLDS that had been running when the computer rebooted. So I'm guessing the only way to get around this is to edit the ini file every time I want to start a game, and change the line to "Paused = No" for the instance of HLDS I want to run. A bit more convoluted, but not a big deal really, especially when you consider the benefits.

[botmeister]

Yes, paused = Yes will prevent a server from starting. You'd normally want to keep all the servers paused except for one when you have more than one server config in the ini.

You are right about the .bat files. When a reboot happens there's no memory of which server config was last in use.

There is a way around this, it is still a bit convoluted but perhaps easier than editing the ini file each time. You could have more than one ini file stored as templates in another folder. Each template is configured to match the settings specified by a corresponding .bat file. When a .bat file is run, it copies the corresponding ini template file over to the serverloader install folder, which will overwrite the existing one with the template. The next time the server is restarted, it will load whatever was the last copied ini file, which loads whatever server was last specified by running the .bat file.

[Drek]

Ya, that's not a bad idea. Overall though, I just thought I'd say I'm very pleased with ServerLoader. I does the job its designed to do very nicely and I'll feel much more comfortable now when I leave for a few days and leave the server on knowing that it will restart if the power goes out, or if the server reboots for some other reason. So thank you very much for the ServerLoader and for putting the effort that you obviously did into it.

[botmeister]

I'm pleased to see that the ServerLoader is working for you so well.

BTW, the source code is available should you or anyone want to modify it or just learn from it.