Having peculiar networking problems trying to LAN games

Question

[Already posted this is gaming section, but on second thought, figure it belongs here in networking problems]   Alright, here's the deal. I've got an Inspiron 9300 with 1 gig of ram, 2.13 Pentium M, and a 440x Broadcom NIC. I first realized a problem with Battlefield 2 Version 1.21 patch. I had been able to play Battlefield 2 online just fine until that patch came out. once it came out, my server pings were all 150 and up, and the lag was even worse than a 150 ping should have given me. It was completely unplayable. Sadly, I stopped playing; I tried using the EA forums and that was a mess; they thought i was having video issues even though it had worked fine up to that point, and still ran fine in single player.  I thought it was a problem with their new patch.  I had tried reinstalling, i even did a system restore.   Now, in an issue I'm experiencing which I believe is likely related, most any game I install will run very poorly in LAN games, but fine in single player. Namely, Company of Heroes, Command & Conquer Generals, and Dungeon Lords to name a few. What makes the problem peculiar is that Dawn of War (by THQ, the same folks who make CoH), along with Winter Assault and Dark Crusade, run perfectly fine when I LAN. I experience these LAN problems regardless of whether I am networking wirelessly or via ethernet.  I do not have internet access with the computer in question (I am in Iraq and only have access to the net on government computers), but I have experienced wireless problems with it -- my wireless card no longer cooperates with me surfing the net.  This same wireless card allows me to run LAN  Dawn of War games without a hitch currently.  Don't know if the old wireless problem is related to my current networking problem.  I have a hunch this may be a hardware defect, but maybe one of you networking gurus can help me out with some little known firewall settings.  And by the way, my windows firewall is off, so thats not it.   Please help! I just wanna LAN some Company of Heroes with my friends! Company of Heroes runs significanly slower in 2 player LAN games (than single player) but is still playable; with 3 there's no way.  The more people I'm trying to LAN with, the worse the problem gets. Same with Dungeon Lords. So...... any help? Please?

Mr Blahh · Answer

The problem could be many things.   If you are trying to LAN games that take up all your bandwith make sure you have no other programs running that require internet bandwith, such as morpheus, limewire, any messenger service, things of that nature.   Also your firewall can prevent running your LAN games smoothly. I don't recommend doing it, but try disabling your firewall while playing the game, see if it improves the preformance.   Third thing, You may not have enough video memory. Try upgrading your video card to a card with higher dedicated video memory. A good amount is 256MB or higher. And some video cards require a certain amount of RAM to be able to support the amount of video memory.   Fourth thing. You may need more RAM (Random access memory). Althought 1GB should be enough, some games require 1.5GB or more. And if you are hosting games, I suggest 3GB or more.   5th thing. You will ALWAYS run the game more smoothly in single player then in multiplayer because you are not using the internet, you are only using your computer.   If you need any further help, Feel free to post a response and I will reply as soon as I can. Thanks

dmr0240 · Answer

I'm pretty sure I have the exact same problem. When I first installed Battlefield 2 it ran perfectly--no lag at all. After patching, it lagged like crazy every game and I simply could not play. I tried for a few days to search for a solution but I could not find one, so I gave up on the game entirely. I have played other online games since then, and all of them worked fine.

Company of Heroes, however, does not. I get the same kind of constant lag as I got on Battlefield 2 when I try to play Company of Heroes on LAN (I have yet to try internet multiplayer). It basically seems like the framerate is low--as if I don't have a good enough system to play the game at as high graphic settings as I have set (as opposed to little stutters every few seconds, which is how "regular" lag is on most games). However, I KNOW this is not the problem, because as soon as the person I am playing against disconnects, the game runs smoothly as normal. Also, it is completely smooth in all single player games. So I definitely have a capable system--it must be some network setting that got changed with Battlefield 2 v. 1.21, or some networking procedure that is utilized by CoH and Battlefield 2 version 1.21 and greater.

I have an Inspiron E1705 laptop with...
1.73ghz core duo
2 gigs ram
nvidia 7900 gs

Running wirelessly on a linksys wrt54gs v. 6 router.

Does anyone have any idea about what is going wrong?

crunchywolf · Answer

I'm wondering if we have some sort of flaw in our motherboards.... I tried to explain the problem to dell tech support, but their response is, 'if your computor will get you on the internet, we can't help you'... thanks dell.  and then there's the guys who reply without really reading the post like the guy above you did....   So i think it may be the motherboard because the problem is there regardless of whether I'm using a network cable or wireless.... I just picked up a PCMCIA Wireless (Linksys WPC54GS,$70) card and im gonna see if that helps, since maybe that data would bypass wherever the problem is in the motherboard (if there is one).  I'll let you know how that works out (I have to go back to iraq to get on the LAN, cuz that's where all my gamer friends are).   I should know for sure whether this fixes it by the 10th of Jan or so..... But hey, if you can convince dell tech support to replace something on your machine to fix it, please let me know how you did it.   Glad i'm not the only shlub pulling my hair out over this.   Inspiron 9300 Pentium M 2.13 GHz, 1 Gig RAM Broadcom 440x 10/100 Integrated Controller Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2200BG Network Connection NVIDIA GeForce Go 6800 (256 MB)

dmr0240 · Answer

Actually I think I just solved my problem, and hopefully the solution will work for you too. It seems that McAfee is to blame. Go to Start>Settings>Control Panel>Administrative Tools>Services and disable all the McAffee services (I have six total). See if that works. Then if you want, you can start enabling the services one by one to see which one exactly is the problem (I haven't done this yet myself so I'm not sure exactly which one it is). If that doesn't work, try disabling some other network services, because I originally went through and disabled a whole bunch of them and I still haven't restored them all; I'm therefore not 100% positive that McAfee is to blame. But based on what I've read on other forums about the game, I'm pretty sure it is. Hope that helps!

crunchywolf · Answer

I'll give that a shot.... I just can't do it until I go back to iraq and lan up with my friends (I'm on R&R leave right now)... sweet man, i hope this works.  All your stuff is good to go now? even BF2 online ??

crunchywolf · Answer

When I try to disable the McAfee stuff, a message pops up that says:   Could not stop the McAfee McShield sevice on Local Computer. Error 5: Access is denied.   did you have this problem?

crunchywolf · Answer

Thanks man, I'll let you know how it works out.

dmr0240 · Answer

Hmm... I didn't have that problem. Are you on an administrator login account for Windows XP? That might be necessary. Also maybe try pushing CTRL ALT DEL and shutting off all the McAfee processes first if it lets you (I think they all begin with M; you'll probably know them when you see them), then disabling the services through the control panel afterward. Oh and if all else fails maybe try booting the computer in safe mode and disabling the services then. Bottom line though is that McAfee is the problem, so anything you can do to disable it should be beneficial. Hope that helps you!

Anyway I haven't tried Battlefield 2 yet, but CoH definitely runs fine now.

Message Edited by dmr0240 on 12-28-200603:28 PM

Networking, Internet, & Bluetooth

Having peculiar networking problems trying to LAN games

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