[BUG] Steam Connect URL does not work for many different games

[Winston]

Issue

The steam://connect/{ip:port} no longer works the way it used to in both the current Beta and Main branches of Steam. I went through every game option listed in the Steam Game Servers browser and the issue is not game specific, it affects many games but not every game.

Connect link worked fine for (tested)
- Age of Chivalry
- Counter Strike: Source
- Team Fortress 2
- D.i.p.r.i.p Warm Up
- Garry's Mod
- Half-Life
- Half-Life 2: Deathmatch
- Half-Life Deathmatch: Source
- Just Cause 2: Multiplayer Mod
- Left 4 Dead
- Opposing Force
- Synergy

Connect link errors for (tested)
- Arma 3
- Hell Let Loose
- Post Scriptum
- Risk of Rain 2
- Rust
- Spacewar
- Squad
- Squad - Public Testing
- The Ship
- Valheim

OS & Steam Version

Windows 11
Steam Version: 1696019606
Steam Client Build Date: Fri, Sep 29 2:45 PM UTC -08:00
Steam Web Build Date: Fri, Sep 29 4:25 PM UTC -08:00
Steam API Version: SteamClient020

Steps

• On the steam window menu bar click View > Game Servers
  
• Search for a game server from one of the erroring games listed above
  
• Right click a game server and click Copy link to clipboard
  
• Open the steam server connect link somehow
  
  • Method A: Open Windows Run (Win+R), paste the connect link, and click OK
    
  • Method B: Create a clickable link with it somewhere and click on it
    

Results

A server info popup appears with an error message:

Unable to connect to server, app id specified by server is invalid

Expected

Any of the following

• A popup asking to install the game
  
• The game launches and attempts to join the server
  
• The game attempts to join the server if already running

Additional

Additional games I did not see in the Steam Browser but give the same error. Verified by copying the ip:port from the BattleMetrics Servers[www.battlemetrics.com] list for each game listed below and using it in the same connect link format.

- 7 Days to Die
- ARK: Survival Evolved
- ArmA 2
- Atlas
- Battalion 1944
- Beyond the Wire
- Conan Exiles
- Dark and Light
- DayZ
- Insurgency
- Insurgency: Sandstorm
- MORDHAU
- Myth of Empires
- PixARK
- Rising Storm 2: Vietnam
- SCUM
- The Front
- Unturned
- V Rising

[♤ Rupertz]

steam://run/686810//+connect%191.101.166.120:9075

This will only start the game you still have to select the server to connect to!

It should be like this
steam://connect/191.101.166.120:9075?appid=686810

This requests directly from the server for the game ID to run But if you Open Steam

I know this because if you open steam>View>Game Servers
Open the server filter and select your server from the list. Then connect
Whallah, your in YOUR server!

Steam please fix this, it has been a really long time now for this issue.

[☆ Tazzie ☆]

The Isle (Legacy version) used to work with URLs to connect, but doesn't work anymore

[Slay3erTTV]

This work around does work for some games such as RUST however, I cannot get it to work for Ark Survival Evolved. I don't see why they felt the need to change something that was working just fine... Apparently these people have never heard the old saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." smh

[steeg]

LoremIpsum eredeti hozzászólása:

This works for me

steam://rungameid/gameid//+connect <IP:Port>

Thanks, this perfectly works at least for L4D2 community server.

This should be the ideal solution since it utilizes steam://rungameid/<gameid> which is widely used in running Steam game shortcut. The '//' on the end is for specifying launch options/parameters: steam://rungameid/<gameid>//<launch options>

[PredatH0r]

This bug seems to affect all games that use different port numbers for the server query protocol (https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Server_queries) and the game's internal client-server traffic.

Games based on idTech and Source engines typically use only one port and still work fine with the steam://connect/ip:port URL scheme, e.g. Quake Live with port 27960.

Games based on UE3/UE4 and other engines use separate ports, e.g. 27015 as the query port and 7777 as the game port (Unreal Tournament 3, TOXIKK, ...) and no longer work with this URL scheme.

It seems like the steam client runs the initial A2S_Info query against the specified query port, but then uses the value of the returned "port" field for further queries, which contains the game port and not the query port.

[GuberX]

the game Exfil has this issue, lists fine in the steam server list, but once using the connect url it fails

[Winston]

Thanks PredatH0r, that definitely helps understand why this is likely broken the way that it is.

Annoying that the connect url is still broken.