Everquest2.exe hanging after launchpad

[Leucippus]

<p>I am having this issue with both the regular client, and the streaming client.</p><p>The launchpad will run fine.</p><p>However, EverQuest2.exe hangs.</p><p>The hang is odd. Everquest2.exe *32  appears in the Task Manager process list, but there is no Everquest listed in the applications list.</p><p>Everquest2.exe is using zero CPU time.</p><p>It is almost as if it is waiting for some event to occur, that will never occur.</p><p>Also, Everquest2.exe is using about 35M of memory, far less than when it is running as expected.</p><p>I am running Vista 64 with all the latest updates.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>Using the sysinternals.com (now Microsoft) utility Process Monitor, the last operation listed for Everquest2.exe is:</p><p>ReadFile  C:EQ2TestTestServerEverquest2.exe</p><p>There are quite a few operations before that one.</p><p>I noticed the application (*.exe) files in that directory were not set to Windows XP compatibility mode nor run as administrator, so I set them to that, and no change. I run the launchpad as administrator.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[EQ2Magroo]

<p>Perhaps this is firewall related ? Have you tried disabling any firewalls you have on the PC ?</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>Well, disabling firewalls is not an option, for obvious reasons.</p><p>But the program Everquest2.exe does seem to be cycling through some sort of TCP scan. I changed Process Monitor's filtering to not filter those items out.</p><p>ThreadCreate</p><p>ThreadExit</p><p><p>TCP Reconnect <Computername>58598->cds280.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>TCP Reconnect <Computername>58598->cds280.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>Thread Create</p><p>Thread Exit</p>TCP Reconnect <Computername>58599->cds280.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>TCP Reconnect <Computername>58599->cds280.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>Thread Exit</p><p>Then a port scan(?) similar to</p><p>TCP Connect <Computername>58600->cds449.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>TCP Disconnect <Computername>58600->cds449.iad.llnw.net:http</p><p>Those two entries are repeated, in order and sequencially from 58600 until 62269</p><p>Note: there is a ThreadCreate inserted in the 59027 entry</p><p>there is a ThreadExit inserted after the 59613 entry</p><p>ThreadCreate after 59898</p><p>ThreadExit inserted in 59905</p><p>ThreadCreate after 59912</p><p>ThreadCreate then ThreadExit after 60277</p><p>These ThreadCreate and Thread Exits seem to keep repeating in the port scan</p><p>Well, it seems the program just keeps counting up where it left off after a pause and a bunch of TCP Reconnect, Thread Create and Thread Exit entries.</p><p>Maybe the above information is of use to someone.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Eveningsong]

<p>You'd probably have better luck trying the Support Forums, where techie types hang out <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />.</p>

[Leucippus]

<p><cite>Eveningsong wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>You'd probably have better luck trying the Support Forums, where techie types hang out <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" />.</p></blockquote><p>Except, this situation only happens with the Test Sever code. The released code works fine.</p><p>Test server issues belong in in this forum, I believe.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Eveningsong]

<p>Ah, you never mentioned Test in your original post and I apparently didn't read the second carefully enough <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />.</p>

[EQ2Magroo]

<p>Why can't you disable the firewall ? Do you have a direct connection onto the internet with a valid internet IP address on your PC (unlikely) or are you behind a NAT router ? If the latter, unless you have your router setup to forward all traffic to your PC then turning off the firewall isn't going to expose you to any risk.</p><p>It does sound like the 2nd copy of Everquest2.exe isn't allowed through the firewall to me.</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>Those TCP Connect and Disconnect mentioned above are returning SUCCESS, according to Process Monitor.</p><p>Also my firewall is not reporting suspicious activity, not that I put much worth in its reporting ability.</p><p>I don't think it is a firewall issue. Not sure how a TCP Connect would report SUCCESS if it were a firewall issue, but with Windows, not much would surprise me.</p><p>I tried launching the game for the test server over my network, from a Windows 2000 machine and got similar results.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>This program should run with the firewall enabled.</p><p>Globally disabling a firewall is just an unwise move. Also, disabling such a thing is not always a simple task. No doubt I could disable it, if I had to. But I see no reason to at this point. Windows is not even reporting connection errors, as far as I can tell.</p><p>There is also the matter that the released game is currently working fine with my network setup. However, this test build is not. (The test builds used to work, a while ago. I don't long on test all that often).</p><p>This build is for testing. Assuming my setup is not a unique case, others will have this error once the test code is released. It would be nice to get this behavior corrected, or at least explained, before it is released, in less than two weeks.</p><p>How would you feel if the game you had been running for years suddenly stopped working after purchasing a long awaited expansion?</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Leucippus]

<p><cite>Adeyia@Antonia Bayle wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>Why can't you disable the firewall ? Do you have a direct connection onto the internet with a valid internet IP address on your PC (unlikely) or are you behind a NAT router ? If the latter, unless you have your router setup to forward all traffic to your PC then turning off the firewall isn't going to expose you to any risk.</p><p>It does sound like the 2nd copy of Everquest2.exe isn't allowed through the firewall to me.</p></blockquote><p>I run two copies all the time, I 2-box (either two different computers or the same (newer,faster) computer). Sometimes three copies, if you count the launcher on a different PC as another instance. The launchpad allows multiple logins for the same account, just the game does not.</p><p>Turning off one's firewall most definitely does expose one's PC to risk, even if turned off for a moment. That situation is one of the problems with software firewalls, they are not turned on during OS installation. So, your PC gets "infected" before you can even get the security measures running.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>"Jumpering" around the hardware firewall had no effect, as expected.</p><p>This issue appears very similar to this one:</p><p><a href="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/posts/list.m?&topic_id=462467" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/...topic_id=462467</a></p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Leucippus]

<p><cite>Leucippus wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>"Jumpering" around the hardware firewall had no effect, as expected.</p><p>This issue appears very similar to this one:</p><p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/posts/list.m?&topic_id=462467" target="_blank">http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/...topic_id=462467</a></p><p>-Leucippus</p></blockquote><p>Oh, it might BE the same issue!</p><p>The fix appears for that issue appears to work for this issue!</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[EQ2Magroo]

<p>Well if you read my post...I said turn off your software firewall, not your hardware firewall. You never turn off a hardware firewall (if indeed you have a firewall, I'm guessing not though, you have a NAT box)</p><p>If you are behind a NAT router, turning off a software firewall will not expose you to any risks at all. Stuff doesn't just come in randomly from the Internet and attack your machine despite what you may believe. You must first have an outgoing connection through your NAT router to the device that is trying to attack you. If I try to hack your PC from here I can't, because your NAT IP address of 192.x.x.x won't get routed across the Internet. I can attack your router, but it won't forward on packets to your PC because it doesn't have a valid connection in it's table. The only exception is if you have placed your PC into a DMZ, in which case any incoming traffic that has no valid destination will automatically get sent to you, and then I agree that turning off the software firewall is a no no.</p><p>But assuming you're not in a DMZ, then turning off the software firewall has no risk to you.</p><p>Anyway, I'm using multiple copies of EQ2 and EQ2 test here (on Windows XP) and it all works fine.</p><p>If I clear the permissions on my firewall for the test Everquest2.exe and then try to start it through the launcher, the firewall prompts me at exactly the same point you are seeing a problem, so that's why II suspect software firewall. However your firewall is not prompting you, it's just refusing the let the .exe out onto the Internet, so it hangs trying to establish a connection to SoE's servers...the symptoms fit perfectly. Check your software firewall logs, and see if everquest2.exe (the one in the test folder) is added to authorised applications. Remember just because the name is same doesn't mean anything, the two copies of everquest2.exe need to be autorised seperately.</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>Still broken after today's patch.</p><p>I am getting a "small" popup with a progress bar, that completes, before the game hangs though.</p><p>Same fix still lets me start the game.</p><p>-Leucippus</p>

[Korok]

<p>As long as the eq2 default ini has the cl_resource_address line in it my Test won't start.</p><p>I can manually start Everquest2.exe with that line commented out and login.</p><p>Software FW is off.</p>

[Korok]

<p>Further investigation into the network streams led me back to my hardware router/firewall where I found a Proxy filter enabled.</p><p>Disabling the Proxy filter allowed the Test Eq2 client to complete it's tranactions and run succesfully.</p>

[Leucippus]

<p>Still no change in this behavior after today's patch.</p>

[Leucippus]

<p><cite>Korok wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>Further investigation into the network streams led me back to my hardware router/firewall where I found a Proxy filter enabled.</p><p>Disabling the Proxy filter allowed the Test Eq2 client to complete it's tranactions and run succesfully.</p></blockquote><p>Could you provide more details as to what exactly you changed?</p><p>Although in my case, I can bypass the firewall completely but still get the behavior.</p>

[Azrael_888]

<p>Wow I just thought it was my computer.  Yeah it's weird:</p><p>1.  I run the TEST patcher.</p><p>2. I make sure none of my characters are selected for the auto login</p><p>3. I click Play</p><p>4. Sometimes there's a EQ2 green loading bar ( iassume some configuration is being done) then...</p><p>5. NOTHING happens for 2-3 minutes</p><p>6. Basically now I go get a cup of cofee (so to speak) chat with the wife.  Play with my kids then come back and O there is my character login screen.</p><p>Thanks for starting this thread cause I was starting to think there was something wrong with my computer.</p><p>BTW it ONLY happens on the TEST configuration.  If I log into the live servers there is no hang.  So why is there such a long delay in loading the game from clicking play on the launcher till the actual game "starts?"</p>

[EtoilePirate]

<p><cite>Azrael_888 wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>Wow I just thought it was my computer.  Yeah it's weird:</p><p>1.  I run the TEST patcher.</p><p>2. I make sure none of my characters are selected for the auto login</p><p>3. I click Play</p><p>4. Sometimes there's a EQ2 green loading bar ( iassume some configuration is being done) then...</p><p>5. NOTHING happens for 2-3 minutes</p><p>6. Basically now I go get a cup of cofee (so to speak) chat with the wife.  Play with my kids then come back and O there is my character login screen.</p><p>Thanks for starting this thread cause I was starting to think there as something wrong with my computer.</p><p>BTW it ONLY happens on the TEST configuration.  If I log into the live servers there is no hang.  So why is there such a long delay in loading the game from clicking play on the launcher till the actual game "starts?"</p></blockquote><p>The same thing was happening to a number of us last night, right after the "quick" 3:30 EST patch that lasted three hours.  When I looked in Task manager after seeing the green loading bar (when I saw it, about 50% of the time), I'd find an EQ2 process using rather a lot of RAM but 0 CPU, but no EQ2 application.  Eventually it just started working again (for most of us -- we were discussing it in Test channel around 7:00 EST last night) but didn't seem related to anything I did or didn't do.</p>

[Kurisutaru]

<p><cite>Leucippus wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p><cite>Leucippus wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>"Jumpering" around the hardware firewall had no effect, as expected.</p><p>This issue appears very similar to this one:</p><p><a rel="nofollow" href="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/posts/list.m?&topic_id=462467" target="_blank">http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/...topic_id=462467</a></p><p>-Leucippus</p></blockquote><p>Oh, it might BE the same issue!</p><p>The fix appears for that issue appears to work for this issue!</p><p>-Leucippus</p></blockquote><p>I am having the same problem. After trying all the recommended "fixes", checking my firewall and such.. nothing worked. So I finally tried deleting the line</p><p><span><p>cl_resource_address <a rel="nofollow" href="http://eq2.patch.station.sony.com/patch/eq2/assets/live/" target="_blank">cl_resource_address http://eq2.patc...assets/livetest</a></p><p>from eq2_default.ini</p></span><span> then ran Everquest2.exe as an administrator (Vista user here) from the folder and voila.. I was able to login. </span></p><p>After this.. I tried running the game once again using launcher and it happened once more.. game would just hang after launchpad.</p><p>PS- I only have this problem with test.. live server is running fine.</p>