Joining a session online

[coptermanic]

Ok, here we go again.
Just been trying to join an online session, and got the message of a connection problem.
something to do with "forwarding UDP ports 26500-26505 to my computers internal IP address".

Can any computer ace help me out with this please?

[Grant85]

I had the same thing Mike,It's your firewall blocking you.I had to turn mine off as I didn't know how to open new ports etc.But since I took my laptop for repairs it has come back and now I don't have the problem.

Cheers Grant.

[Birdie4x4]

I get the same thing, will watch with interest.

[coptermanic]

It's not the firewall.

Just turned off Windows Vista firewall, and got the same message.

[Gate88]

Happens to me too! I'm hoping a techie can come up with an answer!

[Grant85]

It's not the firewall.

Just turned off Windows Vista firewall, and got the same message.

Have you got a seperate anti virus? I had to turn the firewall off on my Virgin Media antivirus.

[D1zzy]

It's not advisable to switch off either your Firewall or Anti-virus guys.

Port forwarding, if you haven't done so already will certainly help. This can vary depending on the Router or Firewall you're using. Appropriate instructions can be found here: http://portforward.com/ - particularly for those using routers (scroll down to seek you router's make and model)

Most software Firewalls do allow port forwarding but this will vary greatly between each one. Have a look through to locate Port related settings then open a port range of 26500-26505 (UDP) to allow Phoenix through.

[DbyMA]

Like most people, I have software firewalls on my workstations (i.e. ZoneAlarm on Windows XP SP3 PCs) which generally pop-up alerts to say what is trying to access what, and ask for my permission before proceeding.

However, unlike most people, I also have to get through a dedicated hardware firewall cell/chain (i.e. a secure business grade environment). This requires specific address and port configurations to be setup explicitly.

What I have found is that forwarding ports in the range 26500-26505 alone will still not always enable Phoenix to work online properly.

Other ports in the 9000-9009 range (specifically 9005 for me), and 47624. The latter is part of the DirectPlay (DirectX) protocol specification (see DirectX: Ports required to play on a network).

Most folks don't need to know about all this, as they are using consumer grade firewall routers (Netgear, LinkSys, D-Link) which already have these and many other nasty little holes (forwarded ports) built into to them.

Most software companies, it would seem, expect Joe Consumer to have a standard set of holes in their network; so they don't tell you exactly each and every port this IS needed (this also stops the semi-savy employee from playing games whilst at work!).

BTW: I've even seen 64860 and 64861 port usage being attempted, but Phoenix will (for me) work without these!

You'll know if you've got all of the ports sorted if you can Join online sessions, Host sessions, and use VoIP as well.

Turning your network security defences off, or keeping ports open that you are not using regularly is not big or clever (not these days with ID theft etc.).

If anyone would like some more specific help with their setup to get Phoenix working fully, please feel free to get in touch. I'll help where I can.

Professionally, I know very little about the drying time of paint; but then I'm not a painter

[Gate88]

People have suggested in the past that I go to portforward.com but I dont really want to shell out $30 and find out thats not the problem!

Isnt there a cheaper way?

[crash-alot]

Guys,

It is normally your router that is blocking the access. So you need to forward the ports (Open the ports) on the router to the IP address of your PC. Gate PM me if you want some help.

[Gate88]

Guys,

So you need to forward the ports (Open the ports) on the router to the IP address of your PC.

Yep you've lost me there already!!!

What I dont understand is that it works sometimes but not others, if my ports are shut then arent they always shut?

[bolders]

My understanding and experience on my own PC is that you dont need to open ports in the router to allow online gaming (firewall access is required though) - The only time I had to open router ports up was when i wanted to host a server rather than connect to an existing server. This has been the same in every game ive played, Call of duty, driving sims and phoenix

The only reason I can think that this might be different in phoenix is that if you join a session and the host leaves the system atomatically selects another flyer as the host (if you are hosting a session you need to forward the ports in your router)

I guess this doesnt help much and I guess its worth opening router ports anyway so you can host a server.
I guess what im trying to say is - dont expect the problems in phoenix to be resolved by opening router ports. I believe there is another problem at play here.......but i could be wrong its not uncommon lol

[D1zzy]

People have suggested in the past that I go to portforward.com but I dont really want to shell out $30 and find out thats not the problem!

Isnt there a cheaper way?

Not sure where the $30 comes from... no need to download software, just follow links (skip ads) etc for instructions...

With regards to hosting sessions - it's not unusual for a host to have their ports closed, making connecting to them a problem which can show up as a port problem your end. So not always will opening your own ports do the trick, it also depends on whether or not the host is inadvertently blocking and how Phoenix handles that.

[Hangar-7]

It's not the firewall.

Just turned off Windows Vista firewall, and got the same message.

Have got the latest version (2.5t) of Phoenix?

[Dedcalm]

Port forwarding did not fix it for me when after re-installing my XP OS I was getting this error. Tried opening the firewall to allow the app though and still no joy - reverted all my changes and then turned off the firewall just to test and it worked.

I need to sort out my wireshark sniffer now so I can work out what ports are required and in which direction so I can open the firewall correctly to allow it to work.