Playing online games on a Uni network?

Mephisto · 23 Sep 2007 at 17:12

Ok so yesterday was my first day at Uni. When I moved into my room I setup me PC and connected to the Uni network. Pretty much everything has to be configured to use a proxy in order to work properly.

I got in that night a bit drunk, as you do on your first day, everone else had gone to bed pretty much and I wasn't tired so I thought I'd play some drunken CS:S.

I got connected to a server then about 3 mins later got disconnected because it couldn't connect to the VAC server.

How do I confure CS:S so it works? I can't see anything in the CS:S or Steam options.

PhillyDee · 23 Sep 2007 at 19:31

Maybe they need the ports to be open on their firewall / servers for it to work.

ttreaders · 23 Sep 2007 at 20:04

It's a problem with most Uni's im afraid, the network is normally set to block a lot of ports. Only way round it is to speak to your network admin.

Septh · 23 Sep 2007 at 20:10

At my uni (aberystywth) we can add our own firewall ports, by going to a web address (firewall.aber.ac.uk) might work at your uni too, you never know!

FrenchTart · 23 Sep 2007 at 20:44

Yup. Looks like speaking to your network admins is prob the best bet.

Does the uni have any sort of comp gaming group? They might know their way around it (e.g. Manchester Uni - hornet).

neocon · 23 Sep 2007 at 20:48

yes i went to manc and stayed in halls for 3 years

played css everyday

might have something to do with me getting a 2:2

jim5000 · 23 Sep 2007 at 21:41

google http tunnel if you want to get round your uni firewall. It basically routes all your game data through port 80 to an outside proxy server that connects to your game. Not sure what the lag would be like but it would be worth trying i guess.

J0hnb0y · 23 Sep 2007 at 21:51

i could never play online games from my uni network as only port 80 was open. i could v occasionally play CS:S in the early morning when nobody was awake...

Kreeeee · 23 Sep 2007 at 22:08

I didn't touch my PC for the first 4 weeks of uni!

I could play all games perfectly fine though.

FrenchTart · 24 Sep 2007 at 09:40

Kreeeee said:
I didn't touch my PC for the first 4 weeks of uni!

Yeah, think most people would be the same

Hen_Dawg · 24 Sep 2007 at 12:11

When I was at uni and in halls I played CoD quite a bit then out of the blue my entire internet was blocked and got some error saying "disconneted due to p2p activity".
Spoke to network admin who unblocked me and said they're p2p detection was quite sensetive.

You'll have to have a word with the admin, they should be oblidged to let you play games in your free time

Mephisto · 24 Sep 2007 at 17:42

Ok, I've just got in to find out WoW has been blocked too. That's it, the final straw! I can live without CS:S, but WoW...I cannot!

And they've blocked all torrent clients...etc too, damn them to hell!

Eddietop · 24 Sep 2007 at 17:44

It's their network they can do whatever they want at the end of the day.
Most prob they just block all outbound except 80 and 443 at the perimeter firewall.

hellforleather · 24 Sep 2007 at 17:55

Mephisto said:
Ok, I've just got in to find out WoW has been blocked too. That's it, the final straw! I can live without CS:S, but WoW...I cannot!

And they've blocked all torrent clients...etc too, damn them to hell!

mate if you've enough time at uni to be playing WoW you're doing something wrong...

particuarly in the first few weeks

Mephisto · 24 Sep 2007 at 18:14

hellforleather said:
mate if you've enough time at uni to be playing WoW you're doing something wrong...

particuarly in the first few weeks

O RLY O_O

I've been out every night, and I've had my course introduction today. I just want to play 10 arena games a week to get points, that's all. Takes about an hour a week.

Guess I'll have to just quit WoW for a year until I move into rented accommodation.

HAz · 24 Sep 2007 at 18:25

Mate go out and get laid, that's what I would do.

/Goes off to play TF2

neocon · 24 Sep 2007 at 19:03

HAz said:
Mate go out and get laid, that's what I would do.

/Goes off to play TF2

would you take advantage of a drunken college women or tuck her safely up in bed?

DB_SamX · 24 Sep 2007 at 19:32

At SOton, they had a list of allowed games oddly enough. But there were instructions about unlocking ports or something...I didn't pay attention - BF2 and AoE3 worked beautifully.

hellforleather · 24 Sep 2007 at 19:46

Mephisto said:
O RLY O_O

I've been out every night, and I've had my course introduction today. I just want to play 10 arena games a week to get points, that's all. Takes about an hour a week.

Guess I'll have to just quit WoW for a year until I move into rented accommodation.

okok, you've called my bluff so i must confess i dont know much about WoW

though anyone i know who plays it seems to get sucked in...

though a bit of advice would be that uni is the best time to try new stuff out, rock climbing, watersports, archery... and god knows what else. i'm sure if you have to quit WoW or whatever you'll find something else to fill the gap

anyways, sorry for the digression

Demoniser · 24 Sep 2007 at 20:09

www.your-freedom.net is your friend for most of your gaming needs while in halls, worked a treat for me last year, it's quite cheap afaik but it beat having to deal with the tripe that was resnet (at a technology oriented university too which made me lol).