I'm setting up a linux dedicated server, on Mandrake 8.2. The server.cfg is fine as far as I know. Server starts up fine, up until it starts sending the heartbeat to Raven. After that it constantly spews out "Hitch warning: <4 digit value> msec frame time" line after line after line without pause.
The server appears in the master list just fine, and clients can attempt to join. If I scroll back I can see them connecting, and a few dozen lines later time out. This has also be attempted here on the network with the same results.
The client appears to lock up, and the server keeps spewing out that error message.
Everything else appears fine, and I'm told that a hitch warning occasionally is not necessarily a bad thing (read: fatal) but the constant error is rendering the server useless.
I attempted to find a resolution to this problem elsewhere, with no luck. The linux dedicated howto thread has no solution that I've seen, and searching the forum is disabled.
Any help would be most appreciated.
Thanks,
CrashMan79
What's your server hardware like and what type of net connection do you have? A hitch warning is the server's way of saying, "I had to think about something and it caused some lag for any attached clients". Generally, it occurs during map changes. Now, if you're reaching 100% cpu utilization due to a large number of processes running, that would cause it as well. Check your total cpu usage and see.
It's a dual Celeron 433 with 256MB RAM on a 1.5Mbit DSL line.
I'll check to see if the CPU util is high.
Ok, cpu util seems to hover around 5% - 20%
When the hitch warnings are spewing out it stays above 60% spiking to 100%
Is there anything else running on that box besides the ded server?
Nothing but Apache and MySQL...
It's Mandrake 8.2 Download Edition if that helps.
apache and mysql are running, but not *doing* anything.
I've seen other posts where people have gotten it to run just fine on Mandrake 8.2, but I was thinking... Is it maybe the duel proc setup?
I've noticed that some things seem to behave oddly. Countdown timers in the games that come with the OS countdown rather rapidly, and accelerate when the mouse is moved.
I'm going to try a single proc to see if that solves it.
And it might just be an oddity of the server (using an Intel 440BX non-release board. weirdo with onboard everything, IDE, SCSI, video... no sound, no agp).
I'll try a few things, and maybe you'll find something that will help me. :)
Thanks for your help so far. :D
Well, seems that funky mobo won't operate without both procs in, *but* I chose the regular linux kernel on bootup instead of the snp kernel and everything seems to be fine. Two and only two hitch warnings upon starting the server up and that was it.
Server runs fine now.
I'm not exactly sure why the box doesn't like running in smp, but ah well. It's just a test server for now, gotta get a couple different procs and some more RAM for it. It's pretty much just scraped together parts right now. (Besides the box and the board)
Mandrake 8x is quirky like that. Thats why I use Slackware or FreeBSD now. They are much more cut down and barebone but thats what makes it more stable and reliable.
Mark
Thanks for the tip, I'm actually already looking for an alternative flavor of Linux that will cooperate with my dual proc setup.
I hate to admit it, but I'm more of a Linux n00b than I'd like to be. I have no problems operating on the console, but I have no experience installing any flavor of Linux except Mandrake and it's "spiffy" installer.
Are there any other distributions that have an installer to do most or all of the installation work for me?
Mounting filesystems, configuring hardware (Mandrake had no problems at all with my hardware, any of it) and the like.