Windows 10 Dedicated Server - Crossplay doesnt work?

[Alturis]

I have been trying to get a private dedicated server running that supports people playing both on Steam client and on XBox PC. Whenever I run the server with the -crossplay option it continually fails to connect to the PlayFab server and people running the Steam client cannot connect. If i run it without -crossplay only those running the Steam client can connect.

I have googled this for a while and it seems like it is a very common problem. But there is never a clear answer as to how to solve it. I have friends that are using GamePass through MS that have to use the XBox version and friends that use the Steam client. Is there no way to get everyone working on a dedicated server? Or more what might I try to figure out how to get my dedi to work correctly with the -crossplay option?

[Hobo Misanthropus]

I had this issue too on my dedicated server, I just assumed it's because my copy of windows on the server hasn't been registered, and since Playfab is a microsoft property, it's some kind of legitimacy check, because I can get playfab crossplay on my gaming PC

I would need to hear from the Linux Bros though to see if they can get playfab working on a linux Dedicated server.

[Alturis]

My copy of windows is authenticated.

[Hobo Misanthropus]

Originally posted by Alturis:

My copy of windows is authenticated.

Very curious.

There could be another reason, but I didn't want to speculate, do you mind if I ask what spec you're trying to run the dedicated server on? Particularly the Processor.

[Hobo Misanthropus]

I don't want to bury the lead. For security reasons, Microsoft may not allow older processors to connect to their Playfab service because they are vulnerable to certain classes of side-channel exploits. All Intel CPUs up to I think the 9th gen, and all ryzen through the 2000 series are vulnerable to this side channel attack, and did not have access to the mitigations deployed for them. Intel 10th Gen and beyond and Ryzen 3000, 5000 and 7000 are fine, unless I'm misremembering what generations were affected.

That's just a hypothesis of course.

[Rhapsody]

Originally posted by Hobo Misanthropus:

I don't want to bury the lead. For security reasons, Microsoft may not allow older processors to connect to their Playfab service because they are vulnerable to certain classes of side-channel exploits. All Intel CPUs up to I think the 9th gen, and all ryzen through the 2000 series are vulnerable to this side channel attack, and did not have access to the mitigations deployed for them. Intel 10th Gen and beyond and Ryzen 3000, 5000 and 7000 are fine, unless I'm misremembering what generations were affected.

Spectre or Meltdown, right? I'm no expert, haven't internalized the differences, just have vague memories of those having something to do with what you described.

[Alturis]

Its an i5 4th gen actually.

[Hobo Misanthropus]

Originally posted by Alturis:

Its an i5 4th gen actually.

That is well old enough to be vulnerable to Spectre and Meltdown. But again, I have no idea if this is the actual reason. I am simply assuming that if the cause and/or solution was easy, it would have been addressed by now, by the community. To be so common, yet have no real leads... that's the best I can do.

Originally posted by Rhapsody:

Originally posted by Hobo Misanthropus:

I don't want to bury the lead. For security reasons, Microsoft may not allow older processors to connect to their Playfab service because they are vulnerable to certain classes of side-channel exploits. All Intel CPUs up to I think the 9th gen, and all ryzen through the 2000 series are vulnerable to this side channel attack, and did not have access to the mitigations deployed for them. Intel 10th Gen and beyond and Ryzen 3000, 5000 and 7000 are fine, unless I'm misremembering what generations were affected.

Spectre or Meltdown, right? I'm no expert, haven't internalized the differences, just have vague memories of those having something to do with what you described.

Those are the vulnerabilities. I mostly forgot, but I think they're essentially the same mechanism, with different ways to exploit. However both are side channel attacks (essentially forcing memory to dump protected out). These vulnerabilities will become especially dangerous as AI becomes more ubiquitous since you'll be able to train AI tools to simultaneously attack a target, and then sort through the volumes of trash data for the good things, like normally hash protected information.

[Faceplant]

I run my servers on a Xeon E5-2670 if that's old enough for a test. I run in docker, but I think it sees the CPUs the same as it does native.

I have no way of testing it, but I can spin up a test server and send you the info if you want test with it.

[Hobo Misanthropus]

Originally posted by Faceplant8:

I run my servers on a Xeon E5-2670 if that's old enough for a test. I run in docker, but I think it sees the CPUs the same as it does native.

I have no way of testing it, but I can spin up a test server and send you the info if you want test with it.

I think the Xeon Platform has TPP support going farther back than Core or HEDT, however on older Xeon CPUs the performance penalty for running the mitigations was severe, in excess of 25%.

Even with that large a penalty, I doubt you'd see any performance loss, the Valheim server doesn't bury the performance needle, so to speak.

[Alturis]

I feel like the Valeim devs could add more information to the log about what exactly the error code is etc.