Problem with vmaps or configuration?

[Xenithar]

Alright, I have built and configured my private server (mangos-zero) without much trouble. However, now I hit something that has me stuck. I extracted the dbc and maps folders without a hitch, but the vmaps are holding me up. I have extracted and built everything, but every time the server starts I get an error about "000.vmtree". The thing is, this file never gets created. I have done the whole process four times now and I get the exact same number of files every time, and never any "000.vmtree" file. The server is looking for the maps in the right spot, but I cannot figure out why it is looking for this non-existent file or why the file is not being generated. Could somebody point me in the right direction? I would really like to have LOS working.

[Xenithar]

Nobody? I'd like to figure this one out. Why am I not generating 000.vmtree?

[Pyromaniac]

hm...

startet "ad.exe" and after that "makevmaps_simple.bat"?

[Xenithar]

The ad program creates the dbc and maps data, not vmaps. The vmaps are created with two other programs. I have no trouble with my dbc or maps data. I normally run ad followed by the vmaps programs and then move them all to my Linux server via scp. I do have an idea as to what is wrong though. I believe that it is a database problem though, and am looking into it.

[Unkle Nuke]

Usually vmap extraction errors are due to an incorrect client version. Are you using 1.12, 1.12.1, or 1.12.2 for your client?

MaNGOS Zero is only compatible with 1.12.1 and 1.12.2.

Unless you're using a Spanish language client, you do not need 1.12.2 since it was a bugfix only for that particular client.

[Xenithar]

I am using 1.12.1, build 5875. This is my only remaining hurdle, though technically I remember mobs shooting me through walls and things in early versions of WoW on the official servers. I am also using the US client, not Spanish.

[Xenithar]

Alright, I figured this out. The tools that ship with the server were not compiled statically with the VS2010 libraries. This requires Win7 versions of msvcp100.dll and msvcr100.dll, which I do not have. I run XP Pro x64 on my domain at home due to the amount of waste and bog in Vista/7. Due to this, the stock tools did not work. When compiled on VS2005, they did not work correctly. I wound up install the VS2010 redistributable on an XP x64 box in a virtual machine so I wouldn't taint my real systems and ran the tools there. Worked like a charm. Hope this helps others who use XP instead of Vista/7!

[Unkle Nuke]

I'm on an XP box, but it is the 32-bit variety.

To be honest, I'll be migrating to Linux when the day comes that MaNGOS no longer supports VS 2008. VS 2010 has been a bug-filled nightmare that has broken many projects and systems. The last service pack made matters even worse, if I've read correctly. Based upon the thousands of postings, filled with complaints against VS 2010 in various online communities, I would much rather wait for the next iteration or do the more sensible thing and start using Linux and GCC for working with MaNGOS.

[faramir118]

When it first came out, VS2010 was a bit slower when compiling. I don't know if that still holds true - it's certainly not slow enough that I ever wanted to switch back.

I've not had actual problems... give it a try, UnkleNuke

[Xenithar]

I still run VS2005 Professional because 99% of my work is done in pure C++, though once in a while I may do a quick VB .NET app if it is a Windows-only project. I use Windows for gaming, but use Linux for everything else. I love Debian and have used it for years. Tried RH and some others, but too much bloat in them. I wish we could see more Linux ports of games. Loki did that for UT and such, but I doubt we will ever see things like GTA4 or Skyrim on Linux without an emulator of some kind, such as WINE.

Anyway, the problem was VS2010 libraries. If you are running XP or even Vista, you probably need the redistributable installed to make the stock tools work. Don't download a precompiled one like I did because it did NOT work.

[Unkle Nuke]

Thanks for the tip, Xenithar. I'll keep that in mind if I ever cross paths with VS 2010.

I think that MaNGOS' 32-bit heritage is showing itself with your troubles under Win 7. Still more kinks to work out, it seems. You ought to post your fix to the Compiling and Installation guide so other Win 7 and VS 2010 users won't be pulling their hair out. There may even be a way to patch the source to correct the issue, which you might submit for acceptance into the core. :cool:

I've long had my eye on Debian. I like the emphasis on stability and getting things done right, sort of like the way MaNGOS approaches development. I downloaded the entire Debian distro, about two months ago, as a set of DVD-ISO images. I dislike net installers simply because you never know when your net will be out of action.

I know the game dev scene for Linux is dominated mostly by ports of older games that were open-sourced, like Doom or Quake, but there are a few gems out there. I would love to develop an epic RPG or simulator for Linux, if I ever manage to slug my way through learning C++, OpenGL, and some 3D apps like Blender.

My studies are painfully slow, thanks to adult responsibilities, but I hope the day comes when I can contribute patches to MaNGOS and maybe even help out with PseuWoW.

@faramir:

I've read so much bad press, so to speak, about VS 2010 and SP1 that I'm very wary of "upgrading" while VS 2008 has worked so well for me.

You have to be even more careful if you're using the latest Windows Platform SDK due to some file conflicts between the installers for VS 2010 and the PSDK that breaks the compiler. There's a workaround for it, but you'd think MS would have its own ducks in a row so dev tools for the same environment didn't break each other.

If you're using the Direct X 9.0c June 2010 SDK, then you have to install it before installing the latest VS 2010 runtime or else it breaks the DX9 SDK installer. You can uninstall the VS 2010 runtime, install the DX9 SDK, then re-install the VS 2010 runtime, but it's ridiculous that MS hasn't updated the DX9 SDK installer or patched the VS 2010 installer to work correctly on Windows XP systems, since they cannot run DX 10 or 11. *sigh*

I'll keep my ear to the ground, though. If things seem to be improving, I won't rule out VS 2010 entirely.

[Xenithar]

I'm not using VS2010. I run XP Pro x64 for gaming and Debian Squeeze for servers (shell only) and for normal work (with KDE installed). Whoever heard of needing 2GB of RAM just to run smoothly? That alone keeps me from using Vista/7!

[Unkle Nuke]

It's been a while since I upgraded my MaNGOS server. Due to my workhorse having been down, until recently, the server box has been sitting idle.

I must have misunderstood you when you mentioned VS 2010. I thought you meant compiling with it, not having to use the runtime.

So wait...what you're saying is someone on the core dev team has coded the out-of-box binaries for ad.exe and the vmaps extractor and assembler such that you're required to install the VS 2010 runtime? I've never noticed this before, but that's likely due to the fact that it seems nearly every other piece of software I've installed also installs the VS runtimes so they will function.

If that's right, then you're also saying XP users must compile the tools themselves or install the VS 2010 runtime?

Maybe it's just me, but I've always disapproved of programs that requires software just for it to function. The developer should make their projects so they compile without the need for external dependencies being installed separately by the end-user. I blame MS for this trend, going all the way back to Direct X 1.0 and earlier versions of Visual Basic. Games and software worked just fine before such APIs were forced down everyone's throat in the name of easier, more unified standards in programming.

I keep Visual Studio around for compiling Windows projects, but my primary dev toolchain I've decided to adopt is GCC. For Windows, this means I use minGW with Code::Blocks as my IDE.

[lillecarl]

Yes it is precompiled and requires this runtime, but what is it to fight about when you can recompile it yourself with the project files included? =)

[Unkle Nuke]

Well said, lillecarl! Simple, but true words.

That's the great thing about open source code. If you're having trouble running a binary executable, just compile the code for native operation on your platform. 8)

[Xenithar]

The problem is that it doesn't come with VS2005 solutions. I know whole corporations who refuse to go to VS2008 and VS2010 due to problems. I personally feel that way, so compiling isn't just a click and go process for many of us. This is especially true for the hordes of gamers who, like myself, continue to use XP/XP x64 for insane levels of performance over Vista/7, where 2008 and 2010 target Vista and 7. Not only that, bust VS2005 is the last IDE by MS to actually compile code that will run on NT4, 2000, and 98, if that matters any more.

If the project included the 2005 solutions, this would be fine by me. It took me a full day to compile this stuff though, due to editing and duplicating projects and solutions. Granted, if we were running only Linux, this would be a moot point!