game server appears in master list for 10 minutes until system idles

UNI · 05-24-2008, 06:37 PM

Fitst here is my system info:
Server specs
I swapped out the video card listed and currently use Nvidia Geforce4 TI 4200 with AGP8x
My router is linksys wrt54gs v.5 with upgraded firmware.
Cable Modem is linksys befcmu10
It runs slackware 12.0
-----------
I have port forwarding set up and it allows my game server to show in the master list through the internet. My problem is when I let the server idle for about 10 minutes the screen goes blank. Once the screen has gone blank my server no longer appears in the master list. It does still appear on my lan. I'm pretty sure some power management/energy saver option is creating this problem. I can't seem to find any helpful links. Is there a configuration file I can edit to turn off this power management/energy saving option? Which power option would be creating this problem? example network card, hard drive, etc.

Woodsman · 05-25-2008, 12:37 PM

Console screen blanking and display power management are set in Slackware in /etc/rc.d/rc.M:

/bin/setterm -blank 15 -powersave powerdown -powerdown 60

You can modify that command within the same script or add a similar but overriding command in /etc/rc.d/rc.local, which is where user modifications to the system startup usually are stored. The setterm command has a man page to explain the options you want.

If the screen blanking and display power management are occurring while in X, then the respective options are determined by the desktop environment. KDE uses its own mechanism and ignores /etc/X11/xorg.conf. Look in the Control Center under Peripherals / Display / Power Control and Appearance & Themes / Screen Saver.

Xfce and basic window managers use xscreensaver for screen savers but use /etc/X11/xorg.conf for display power management. In a default xorg.conf, look in the Section "ServerFlags". Look for the options BlankTime, StandbyTime, SuspendTime, and OffTime.

I hope this helps.

T3slider · 05-25-2008, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Woodsman

KDE uses its own mechanism and ignores /etc/X11/xorg.conf. Look in the Control Center under Peripherals / Display / Power Control and Appearance & Themes / Screen Saver.

Although KDE does have its own settings, the xorg.conf is not ignored as far as I have experienced -- the screen will still blank without the ability to control it in KDE (unless you set the blanking time to LESS than the time specified in xorg.conf). I added the following to my xorg.conf to avoid the issue and restore control exclusively to KDE's tools:

Code:

Section "ServerFlags"
    Option         "blank time" "0"
    Option         "standby time" "0"
    Option         "suspend time" "0"
    Option         "off time" "0"
EndSection

You could probably also just use 'Option "DPMS" "off"' (replacing 'Option "DPMS"' in your xorg.conf if it exists) to accomplish the same.

Probably not directly related to the OP's question, but enough to mention.

UNI · 05-29-2008, 03:58 PM

Thanks to those who replied.
I went ahead and tried the suggestions above. Only to find that my problem had nothing to do with power management or linux in general.
This turned out to be a port forwarding problem with my router. All is well now

---------off topic
T3Slider your name sounds familiar. Are affiliated with AOWC or some other gaming community?

T3slider · 05-29-2008, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UNI

T3Slider your name sounds familiar. Are affiliated with AOWC or some other gaming community?

I'm afraid I don't game much. I used to be involved in the Palm community (1src) and the Zaurus community (OESF), if those ring a bell. Otherwise, it's a coincidence.