There are lots of files in your 29-11.rar...
How many of them do I really need, if I use skidrow as a base?

Yesterday I played a bit as a client on some servers and it worked well... and I didn't replace any files...

You can now play by creating a server by typing commands in console after you open the game.

Edit: Everyone should now use appid 500 instead of 501. With appid 500, VAC 2 can be enabled, along with some other features once again.

First of all you will need to have L4D downloaded already, and a patched/cracked steam. Next you'll need the L4D_Online.11.30.2008.rar from a link below and extract it to steamapps\common\left 4 dead replacing everything it asks.

Edit: Removed files that were not necessary anymore.

L4D_Online.11.30.2008.rar
http://www.sendspace.com/file/34ihtg
Mirror : http://www.badongo.com/file/12292624

To host a local host server, follow these instructions :

1. Open L4D with the provided Left 4 Dead.bat (If you applied the files correctly it will be in steamapps\common\left 4 dead)
2. Make sure you have port 27015 open, as this is the port everyone will connect to you by (To check your port visit http://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/)
3. Most of the commands to run a server will be already done with the Left 4 Dead.bat so all you need to do is open console and type "map (map name)" and it will load.
4. Join to a irc chat (Or another means of communication) and post your I.P in this format: connect XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX:27015 (Go to http://www.whatismyip.com to find out your I.P)
5. Optional: To change the difficulty open console while the sever has been made and type "z_difficulty (The mode you want)"

To Host a Dedicated Server, follow these Instructions :

1. Download Left 4 dead Dedicated server from steam with a cracked steam.
2. Edit server.cfg to your liking before running the server. Located in steamapps\common\left 4 dead\left4dead\cfg.
3. Make sure you have port 27015 open, as this is the port everyone will connect to you by (To check your port visit http://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/)
4. Open L4D dedicated server by launching srcds.exe (Located in steamapps\common\left 4 dead)
5. Join to a irc chat (Or another means of communication) and post your I.P in this format: connect XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX:27015 (Go to http://www.whatismyip.com to find out your I.P)
6. Optional: To change the difficulty, type "z_difficulty (The mode you want)" in the Console tab. To change the map, type "changelevel (map name)"

To join a game, follow these instructions :

1. Join a IRC channel, or another means of communication
2. Wait for someone to post their connect info.
3. Once you've gotten that info, start L4D with Left 4 Dead.bat and copy and paste the connect info into your console and you'll join.
4. Optional: Add all the cracked servers to your favorites by typing "openserverbrowser" in console and clicking add under favorites. Use this for ease of finding servers to play on.

Basically the biggest problem for this method I've found is that once the campaign is done, the server will disconnect everyone to bypass the lobby. Simply just rejoin to the server to continue playing. There are other problems to be explored, but this is what I noticed so far.

I've created a IRC channel for people to post their connect info. Join #L4D-Free on Gamesurge.
Also check out the dedicated server list by typing !ip in #L4D-FREE

If you experience any problems, please PM me or reply to this thread with the following:
1. What is the problem?
2. How often does this occur?
3. What engine.dll are you using? (Please state if you're not using a engine.dll that I did not post)


For your safety make sure you use a blank account, as there is a possibility of that account being disabled.

Special thanks to csmania for the Dedicated Server files. Wickeddd for the !ip script, and all the people hosting dedicated servers.

Well, I've been playing/hosting for the past few days without any problems. My server is visible on the Internet and I can join it with no problems. I'll post my setup/settings so those still having problems have an alternative to try. One thing though, I'm using the Jape torrent release from the stickied L4d thread, so I'm not sure if this will work with the Skidrow release.

First of all, validate all the L4D files using cftoolbox. If any validation fails, correct and then resume download. All files, except left 4 dead sound.ncf, can be downloaded through steam. After updating, you should be able to launch your game though steam itself without the need for any launchers. Your steam must be cracked of course, so use whatever crack you prefer (Undead..etc. I personally use SMD 2.0).


With that done, it's time to download the server files using HLDSUpdateTool. You can do this 2 ways:

1.)Follow LordSte's guide and run the tool with the arguments he supplied.

OR

2.) To save time, simply copy the whole left 4 dead folder in the common folder EXCEPT the sound folder.

First make a folder, for example "c:\L4DServer" and then paste the WHOLE left 4 dead folder into it. Afterwards, rename the folder to "l4d". You should now have a folder structure of "c:\L4DServer\l4d" containing all the l4d game files. To save space, delete the "l4d\left 4 dead\sound" folder which isn't needed. Next run HLDSUpdateTool:

HldsUpdateTool.exe -command update -game l4d_full -dir c:\L4DServer -verify_all

It will verify and download the few missing dedicated server files which shouldn't take long.


Now for the fun part. I haven't tested Stryder's engine.dll and the skidrow version seemed to cause me nothing but grief, so I tried Vityan's VUP 2.01 SVN patcher. Seriously, Vityan's the man, everyone should be grateful for his amazing work; I know I am . Download the patcher in page 51 of the "[SERVER/CLIENT TOYS] - ViTYAN's Projects" thread in the Main Forum>Releases subforum. Scroll down, it's around the middle. Vup86 for 32bit and vup64 for 64bit obviously. Copy it to the bin folder containing your original engine.dll (you may want to back it up first) and run it:

vup86.exe engine.dll

After it does its magic, you now have a patched engine.dll that accepts all clients. You're almost done, you just need to create a server.cfg in the l4d/left4dead/cfg folder. I used the server.cfg included in coreyon's link as basis for mine.

All that's left now is to launch your server. Either create a shortcut to srcds.exe and add "-console -game left4dead +hostport 27015 +map l4d_airport01_greenhouse.bsp" in the target field, or make a batchfile containing:

srcds.exe -console -game left4dead +hostport 27015 +map l4d_airport01_greenhouse.bsp


That's it. Using the method above, I've been hosting games without any issues and the server even shows up in the server browser under the internet tab. Hopefully, this will remain working even for future updates. Hope this helps.

my server.cfg ) check out the tags )

You're supposed to run it at a command prompt. I'm assuming you're not familiar with any of this, so I'll walk you through the process. Go to Run and type cmd, a dos prompt should pop up. Now you must go to "bin" in your dedicated server folder, in my example c:\L4DServer\l4d\bin. To get there, first type "cd\" in the cmd prompt which brings you to the root of your c:\. Then type "cd c:\L4DServer\l4d\bin". Assuming you already copied the VUP patcher to the "bin" folder beforehand, type "vup86.exe engine.dll". It should inform you "ALL FILES HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULLY PATCHED. HAVE FUN!!!". It's that simple. The reason I posted this instead of a pre-patched engine.dll is that I feel it's better for you to learn to patch it yourself, than rely on other people to do it for you. It's really a no-brainer process, all the tools you need are freely available here on this forum if you look hard enough. Once again kudos to Vityan and all the developers here at rin for making this possible.





*Edit - Minor Corrections