How to Setup a Server on Windows

[WhiteWalker]

This game will always be special to me and my friends as it is the reason why we all got into gaming. We used to play it in university back in the day (NB: this was via LAN)

We have now left varsity and stay in separate parts of the country and have been looking to jump back and play the game just like old times.

Since we stay far apart from each other, LAN is no longer an option. Our best bet would be to look for a server under the "Multiplayer" Tab but we stay in South Africa and those servers have a Very High ping (average 300) rendering the game unplayable.

I have been looking at ways to host a server from my PC so that they can join and we could play together again without any luck.

If anyone here know how to host a server so me and my friends can play together please share with me or if anyone here knows a work around that could help us enjoy the game just like old times.

Thank you in advance.

[DYNAMIC™]

First off, you could go the easy route and use programs like Hamachi to setup a virtual LAN connection between you and your friends, make a listen server on "Host Game" in KF1, and use the Host's appended IPv4 in Hamachi (for example) to connect with the console command "open (IPv4):7707". I am not sure if it still works or if it works like this, but you could try for free.

Second, There are guides on hosting a listen or dedicated server on your personal machine in the community hub.
Making such a server requires you to be able to port-forward on your router the main ports UDP 7707,7708,7717 (there are additional ports listed but sometimes players are able to connect to each other using just these 3).
Port forwarding is not an issue unless you have an ISP that blocks you from entering the control panel like mine. Windows CMD -> ipconfig -> Default Gateway address. Write it in the link search of your browser of choice and you are in.
When you start a listen or dedicated server, your friends (who also port forwarded the required ones) will need to use the console (` button) -> type and execute the command:
"open (Host's IPv4 address):7707". The Host, either you or one of your friends who are setting up the server on their machine, will need to send the others his IPv4 address. Type into google "What's my IPv4" and you'll get it.
I will list below links that help explain more the work that needs to be put into it to reduce word count:

https://portforward.com/killing-floor/ --- General explanation.

https://forums.tripwireinteractive.com/index.php?threads/ports-used-by-killing-floor.31419/ --- a forum discussion with some useful information here and there.

https://wiki.tripwireinteractive.com/index.php/Dedicated_Server_%28KillingFloor%29 --- A detailed explanation on how to setup a dedicated server that requires SteamCMD if you or one of your friends are willing to put in the effort.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1250/discussions/0/558747218074985291/ --- A discussion here that talks about the differences between listen and dedicated servers.

I am not the most versed in this topic, so if someone sees this comment an notices errors or a subject left untouched in the links I attached, a heads up will be appreciated .

Hope this helps someone!

[Union of Universes and Patrons]

What about changing difficulty and amount of waves?
I tried cvars from wiki - didn't work and there are no settings in WebAdmin.

[DYNAMIC™]

Are you talking about the Advanced admin settings paragraph?
I haven't dwelled far enough into that sadly...

"Admins looking to made changes from the default settings will find most options available in the Killingfloor.ini (or in WebAdmin once enabled in the Killingfloor.ini)." (SourceL Wiki)
If the WebAdmin doesn't work, make sure you port forwarded on your machine port UDP/TCP 8075 and that it is correctly open through an online service.
If you haven't tried the In-game admin or Killingfloor.ini, try them, and if you did so already and the problem persists, I believe you should try and rename Killingfloor.ini to Killingfloor.ini.txt, Launch the game or verify files, and let it make a new Killingfloor.ini file where you edit the important things from scratch.
I also heard that if you have KF1 SDK installed it can cause problems with online/private servers and that you should uninstall a specific file so that the new one that'll be created will fix the issue(?) I will try and find the guide at a later date. I have read so much lately about KF1 that I forgot some important things that were such a quick fix yet common.

[NikC-]

Originally posted by Union of Universes and Patrons:

What about changing difficulty and amount of waves?
I tried cvars from wiki - didn't work and there are no settings in WebAdmin.

1. Edit your server's cmd line.
2. Install KFMapVoteV2 and add a new voting for game difficulty. Wave lenght can't be set by mapvotes.
3. Go to WebAdmin, gamediff / wavelenght and all other useful variables are there.

[DYNAMIC™]

God bless your heart, thanks for the informative reply.

[IceBeam]

Take a look at this comment and the one linked there, too.

[DYNAMIC™]

Thank you too for the assistance on this topic. Even though my friends aren't interested in this game so I have no reason to make a private server, its nice to know that the community is still active and sharing to this day.