Download missing tracks during lobby

I played counter strike for ages and when you are trying to join a server that is running a track that is not yet available locally it allow you to join the lobby and in the meanwhile allow you to download and install it.

I noticed that lot of server now have a >5 min waiting time, prob that time is enough to download and install the missing track.

An even better solution, that doesn't affect the server bandwidth is to create a kinda web repo where all the tracks are listed and the user can download missing track in the meanwhile.

 

The main issue at this moment is how the servers work. In the server I just have to put [track name folder] -> [data] -> insert surfaces.ini and by this your game knows what track should be loaded. So server side nothing is actually loaded except for the surfaces.ini file. To make your suggestion work, the whole track should be stored on the server and not locally

 

Ah ok, I wasn't aware on how the server work, it cloud be interesting to add plugin support for server (ATM is it written in native c or something else? Python?) probably the fastest idea is to create a remote general repo of allowed tracks maintened by kunos or someone else where each server can re route user without the track installed.

This will avoid user not to join a game first and even than will allow user to have always the latest version of the track,

And also this will allow Kunos to check for good and not stolen contents.

Also prob it will be necessary to handle the track in a kinda zip file that once downloaded the system take care to unzip and place in the right dir.

Even prob this will be interesting to be applied even on cars too.

 

A (non racing) game I used to play had a fantastic system where it would do a http re-direct and download any content you needed for that server.

In fact I'm pretty sure that's how Valve games work at the moment, so titles like TF2 etc.

 

Jep,

But that's not how it works (yet?)

 

Yep, when I start thinking about this I was referring to CS a my ideal game server service with maps & mod download, but prob at the earliest version (till 1.5) it was the server itself that was allowing the user to download contents during the connection time, and the user was able to join only once its local files are in sync with the server ones.

 

i agree with this feature and also it would be extended to cars and customized skin-suit-helmet

 

Why not just use steam workshop for mods?

Much easier
very innovative
wow

 

With links there is always the chance of malware I'd imagine. If a server has control of where you can download a track you could essentially end up with a situation where the server owner creates a track called bathurst/v8 supercars but the file the user ends up downloading only comes with 200mb full of viruses. That is of course very inefficient way to distribute viruses but at the same even if the server owner is being totally honest he can spread infected file by accident. It is also a problem imho that such system also would make it harder for the original content creator to control where his tracks are downloaded.

I'm not saying it cannot be done. One example is this for example: When you create a track you put a text file containing a link to the official ac forums pointing to the thread where the track is being discussed. Then when ac detects you do not have a track (you get the red track name in map) you just click that red track name and you get a small popup in ac showing the link (the link comes from the host). If you press that link ac opens your default browser and takes you to the thread here on the official forums. The link for this thread could be called: "download-missing-tracks-during-lobby.11026" for example. No way to make that point to anywhere else than ac forums unless you hack ac .exe files directly.

The security comes from the fact that links only to ac forums are accepted. Even if someone tries to change the url address to point somewhere else it still cannot go outside ac forums. Ac forums of course does not host any files. That would also make it impossible to distribute illegal conversions using those links because you can't really do that on ac forums (such threads get deleted or at least links removed). And the best thing is there is no added bandwidth to the host or ac developers.

There are of course other ways, this is just one example.

 

For ages in other games custom content was downloaded from server or how it can be made in valve's games from ftp and no big harm were done.
Server/client check if file format is fine could be enough, plus information in game that you download it for own risk and we are good to go.
But even it is possible I don't think it happen in AC because of DLC. It's too easy to get such mods just by joining the server so dlcs will be less atractive. I mean here only pub or causal players, it's not problem for people in leagues that know what file they need to prepare.