Servers

So you want to run a dedicated server? Seek no further! Read on and we will explain you how to do it right here in full detail. Before we start, please be sure to have installed the latest Quake III Arena version(1.32) and Q3F2.2.
For information on the Quake 3 aspects of running a Q3F server you should consult the documentation included with Quake 3 Arena (in the extras directory). This section deals with Q3F server specifics.

Running a Q3F Dedicated Server:

To start a dedicated Q3F server you'll probably need to use the command line, or a desktop shortcut. Running a Q3F server is only a little more complex than running a standard Quake 3 Arena DM or CTF server. The key to smooth server operation lies in the q3f_server.cfg which includes all the Q3F specific commands that most server administrators will need. The q3f_server.cfg also includes the address of the dedicated Q3F master server - as such it's important that you consult this file, and use a command line as close as possible to the following if you're setting up a public server.

Linux:
q3ded +set dedicated 2 +set fs_game q3f2 +exec q3f_server.cfg

Windows:
quake3 +set dedicated 2 +set fs_game q3f2 +exec q3f_server.cfg

You can simply use the example command lines provided with Q3F 2.2. You will find them in the directory 'examples' called 'runq3f' for Linux and 'runq3f.bat' for Windows.

Step by step installation:

Linux:
1. unzip the Q3F 2.2 archive to your quake3 directory
2. copy runq3f from examples to your quake3 directory and set the file's permissions (chmod 755 runq3f).
3. edit q3f_server.cfg in the q3f2 directory
4. start the server with ./runq3f
5. after the first start you can use chmod 000 ~/.q3a/q3f/q3config.cfg to prevent q3a from reading the written config file. In the past there were problems with this config file when running multiple servers from the same directory.

Windows:
1. use our Q3F 2.2 Installer to install Q3F 2.2 on your server or unzip the Q3F 2.2 archive to your quake3 directory
2. copy runq3f.bat from examples to your quake3 directory
3. edit q3f_server.cfg in the q3f2 directory
4. start the server by executing runq3f.bat

Notes:
This installation steps are for a standard q3f server. If you are interested in a higher level of customization, have a look at the advanced server configuration docs & scripts in your /q3f2/howtos/servers/docs/, a Q3F2 servers cvar list can also be found there.
For running multiple servers you need a different command line for each server because every server needs its own port (they can't all run on the default port 27960). Copy the runq3f or runq3f.bat to a new file name and edit the net_port setting in it.