Periodically, I find myself unable to connect to any game servers in all Source games. One minute I'll be playing and hopping around servers, and then the next I'll try to join a server and be met with being unable to surpass "Parsing game info..." no matter how many times I try and no matter what server I try to join.
I have researched extensively to find a solution be it through google, steam support, friends, and other methods. I have tried everything ranging from switching from Ethernet connection to WiFi and vice versa, verifying game integrity, restarting my computer, restarting the games, disabling my firewall, and much more.
To clarify, this is an on and off issue. It will occur randomly, with no pattern whatsoever and will end randomly, with no action taken whatsoever. However, for that window where the problem occurs (the length of it usually varies), I am stuck with nothing to do about it. Furthermore, I have no clue what causes it whatsoever.
I would greatly appreciate help to solve this issue. Thank you very much in advance for your time.
EDIT: Also, I've also tried to open a ticket with Steam Support, but they weren't helpful in the slightest.
Periodically, I find myself unable to connect to any game servers in all Source games. One minute I'll be playing and hopping around servers, and then the next I'll try to join a server and be met with being unable to surpass "Parsing game info..." no matter how many times I try and no matter what server I try to join.
I have researched extensively to find a solution be it through google, steam support, friends, and other methods. I have tried everything ranging from switching from Ethernet connection to WiFi and vice versa, verifying game integrity, restarting my computer, restarting the games, disabling my firewall, and much more.
To clarify, this is an on and off issue. It will occur randomly, with no pattern whatsoever and will end randomly, with no action taken whatsoever. However, for that window where the problem occurs (the length of it usually varies), I am stuck with nothing to do about it. Furthermore, I have no clue what causes it whatsoever.
I would greatly appreciate help to solve this issue. Thank you very much in advance for your time.
EDIT: Also, I've also tried to open a ticket with Steam Support, but they weren't helpful in the slightest.
this can happen when you have an improperly packaged vpk or you've unpacked a vpk.
first, do you have any files in your custom folder and/or have you tried installing any custom files (including HUD files) to your tf folder?
i last had this issue when i tried using the original nohats mod on the steam forums.
my tf2 was also offloaded to a drive separate from my steam installation at the time, so it could be a mix of independent factors. is that your case?
this can happen when you have an improperly packaged vpk or you've unpacked a vpk.
first, do you have any files in your custom folder and/or have you tried installing any custom files (including HUD files) to your tf folder?
i last had this issue when i tried using the original nohats mod on the steam forums.
my tf2 was also offloaded to a drive separate from my steam installation at the time, so it could be a mix of independent factors. is that your case?
joshuawnthis can happen when you have an improperly packaged vpk or you've unpacked a vpk.
first, do you have any files in your custom folder and/or have you tried installing any custom files (including HUD files) to your tf folder?
i last had this issue when i tried using the original nohats mod on the steam forums.
my tf2 was also offloaded to a drive separate from my steam installation at the time, so it could be a mix of independent factors. is that your case?
I haven't edited or removed and vpks. I also have tried deleting my custom folder. My tf2 is loaded on my normal C:/ drive.
[quote=joshuawn]this can happen when you have an improperly packaged vpk or you've unpacked a vpk.
first, do you have any files in your custom folder and/or have you tried installing any custom files (including HUD files) to your tf folder?
i last had this issue when i tried using the original nohats mod on the steam forums.
my tf2 was also offloaded to a drive separate from my steam installation at the time, so it could be a mix of independent factors. is that your case?[/quote]
I haven't edited or removed and vpks. I also have tried deleting my custom folder. My tf2 is loaded on my normal C:/ drive.
this may seem ridiculous, but have you tried wholly reinstalling the game? this means cleaning all instances of tf2 both from all the steam sub-folders & the registry.
just wondering because of your phrasing; you said you've "deleted your custom folder", which doesn't necessarily mean that you've tried running a clean install in a while. that said, i'd also like for you to recall what, if any, custom files you've put in your custom folder since/before this issue started occurring.
this sort of information would be the absolute best way to set a frame of reference. although the issue is seemingly periodic, there can be a host of factors that exacerbate a core fault, such as IO choke, fragmentation, or even network choke, such as running out of RAM for your NAT table.
again, don't mean to be unhelpful by asking that. when i last had this issue, it didn't go away by simply clearing out my custom files; i had to do a completely clean install.
just trying to figure out each step in this diagnosing process.
this may seem ridiculous, but have you tried wholly reinstalling the game? this means cleaning all instances of tf2 both from all the steam sub-folders & the registry.
just wondering because of your phrasing; you said you've "deleted your custom folder", which doesn't necessarily mean that you've tried running a clean install in a while. that said, i'd also like for you to recall what, if any, custom files you've put in your custom folder since/before this issue started occurring.
this sort of information would be the absolute best way to set a frame of reference. although the issue is seemingly periodic, there can be a host of factors that exacerbate a core fault, such as IO choke, fragmentation, or even network choke, such as running out of RAM for your NAT table.
again, don't mean to be unhelpful by asking that. when i last had this issue, it didn't go away by simply clearing out my custom files; i had to do a completely clean install.
just trying to figure out each step in this diagnosing process.
Bump, still having the problem. Have had a ticket open for 5 days with no response from Steam Support. If anyone has any ideas that may help me I would be really appreciative.
EDIT: Sorry didn't see the above post. I have already fully clean re-installed TF2. The only thing ever in my custom folder is PVHud and this happened before I had it even. I have never had a problem with RAM, I have monitored it specifically along with CPU usage. I don't think it could be NAT tables, but I will look in to that as well. Any other tips you can provide would be helpful.
Bump, still having the problem. Have had a ticket open for 5 days with no response from Steam Support. If anyone has any ideas that may help me I would be really appreciative.
EDIT: Sorry didn't see the above post. I have already fully clean re-installed TF2. The only thing ever in my custom folder is PVHud and this happened before I had it even. I have never had a problem with RAM, I have monitored it specifically along with CPU usage. I don't think it could be NAT tables, but I will look in to that as well. Any other tips you can provide would be helpful.
just to quickly clear up the possibility of network RAM: what is the make/model of your gateway? if you're running on a multi-part system, what are the makes/models of your routers/switches/modems?
otherwise, i doubt that's the issue anyway. here's what i need to know next:
obvious question, but have you updated your chipset or BIOS?
how many hard drives are installed? are you running on RAID (include the number) or IDE (SATA or AHCI)?
if you have multiple disks/partitions/drives, is your OS loaded separately from steam?
what are the read/write speeds of your drives?
what are the results of the SMART check pertaining to the health of your hard drives?
how much paging file size have you allocated (System, Advanced System Settings, Advanced, Performance -> Settings, Advanced, Virtual Memory)
what OS are you running?
do you have Windows Aero enabled? (disable it if so -- go into Control Panel, System, Advanced System Settings, Performance -> Settings, Visual Effects, and Adjust for best performance)
what is the security level of User Account Controls set to? (always beneficial to disable it when debugging a choke)
what programs start up with your computer? (if windows 7, go to start & search for msconfig, then go to the startup tab -- if windows 8, go to task manager & go to the startup tab)
immediately after booting (don't do anything besides the following), load steam & tf2, then dump the results of your task manager to a text file: http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-generate-text-file-list-of-running-processes-in-windows/
what is the rate convar set to on TF2?
upload the contents of your cfg folder so I can take a look.
what anti-viruses are you running?
disable any antiviruses, including Microsoft Security Essentials, for now
disable your firewall for now as well
make sure that cl_disablehtmlmotd is set to 1
some rudimentary ideas before i get the above info:
clean your demo folder for now
set rate to something much smaller for now, like 20000 (some servers will overload your NAT table -- if you have a small amount of RAM on your networking device -- if you don't throttle your rate)
unlock the true administrator account and try to run TF2 on it: http://teamfortress.tv/thread/15451/solved-mumble-overlay-doesnt-show
check fragmentation of your hard drives. defragment if there is any fragmentation, but also make sure that you're not automatically defragmenting your hard drives
run a DPC latency monitor in the background every time you play TF2, and stop it after the issue occurs: http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
if your DPC spikes up to a level that the program alerts you about, then report the results & implement the advice in the following guide: http://www.overclock.net/t/1433882/gaming-and-mouse-response-bios-optimization-guide-for-modern-pc-hardware-2014-r0ach-edition (take the tone with a grain of salt -- ignore advice about disabling Hyper Threading and legacy options)
really unintuitive performance enhancements:
make sure that you've run the Windows Experience Index test
disable (and/or set to manual) any unnecessary services: http://www.blackviper.com/service-configurations/black-vipers-windows-7-service-pack-1-service-configurations/ (he has them for windows 8 as well)
ensure that windows is activated & that you've fully updated windows
if your TF2 is not loaded on an SSD with decent read/write speeds, here's a really shitty workaround for now until i can analyze your info:
offload TF2 to a RAMdisk and report the results
just to quickly clear up the possibility of network RAM: what is the make/model of your gateway? if you're running on a multi-part system, what are the makes/models of your routers/switches/modems?
otherwise, i doubt that's the issue anyway. here's what i need to know next:
obvious question, but have you updated your chipset or BIOS?
how many hard drives are installed? are you running on RAID (include the number) or IDE (SATA or AHCI)?
if you have multiple disks/partitions/drives, is your OS loaded separately from steam?
what are the read/write speeds of your drives?
what are the results of the SMART check pertaining to the health of your hard drives?
how much paging file size have you allocated (System, Advanced System Settings, Advanced, Performance -> Settings, Advanced, Virtual Memory)
what OS are you running?
do you have Windows Aero enabled? (disable it if so -- go into Control Panel, System, Advanced System Settings, Performance -> Settings, Visual Effects, and Adjust for best performance)
what is the security level of User Account Controls set to? (always beneficial to disable it when debugging a choke)
what programs start up with your computer? (if windows 7, go to start & search for msconfig, then go to the startup tab -- if windows 8, go to task manager & go to the startup tab)
immediately after booting (don't do anything besides the following), load steam & tf2, then dump the results of your task manager to a text file: http://www.intowindows.com/how-to-generate-text-file-list-of-running-processes-in-windows/
what is the rate convar set to on TF2?
upload the contents of your cfg folder so I can take a look.
what anti-viruses are you running?
disable any antiviruses, including Microsoft Security Essentials, for now
disable your firewall for now as well
make sure that cl_disablehtmlmotd is set to 1
some rudimentary ideas before i get the above info:
clean your demo folder for now
set rate to something much smaller for now, like 20000 (some servers will overload your NAT table -- if you have a small amount of RAM on your networking device -- if you don't throttle your rate)
unlock the true administrator account and try to run TF2 on it: http://teamfortress.tv/thread/15451/solved-mumble-overlay-doesnt-show
check fragmentation of your hard drives. defragment if there is any fragmentation, but also make sure that you're not automatically defragmenting your hard drives
run a DPC latency monitor in the background every time you play TF2, and stop it after the issue occurs: http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
if your DPC spikes up to a level that the program alerts you about, then report the results & implement the advice in the following guide: http://www.overclock.net/t/1433882/gaming-and-mouse-response-bios-optimization-guide-for-modern-pc-hardware-2014-r0ach-edition (take the tone with a grain of salt -- ignore advice about disabling Hyper Threading and legacy options)
really unintuitive performance enhancements:
make sure that you've run the Windows Experience Index test
disable (and/or set to manual) any unnecessary services: http://www.blackviper.com/service-configurations/black-vipers-windows-7-service-pack-1-service-configurations/ (he has them for windows 8 as well)
ensure that windows is activated & that you've fully updated windows
if your TF2 is not loaded on an SSD with decent read/write speeds, here's a really shitty workaround for now until i can analyze your info:
offload TF2 to a RAMdisk and report the results