HLTV


                           HLTV Documentation           Version 3.1.1.1/4.1.1.1

                          

         

                          

    Content

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    1. Overview

    2. Spectating Games

    3. HLTV Basics

    4. Broadcasting Games

    5. Recording HLTV demos

    6. Larger Broadcasts

    7. HLTV Configuration




1. Overview

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    Half-Life TV offers the ability to have an unlimited number of spectators

    watching online games. They can follow the game just like they would as

    a spectator on the game server. Spectators are invisible to players and 

    can't interact with the running game in any way. Each spectator can choose

    any view position or choose any player to track individually. To have the

    most enjoyable spectating experience, spectators can enable the 

    Auto-Director mode. Then the camera is changed automatically so that only

    interesting scenes are shown from a suitable viewpoint. Thus the spectator

    can lean back and won't miss any relevant action. All the time, spectators

    may communicate between each other using the standard HL chat system.

   

    Most popular Half-Life MODs are supported like Counter-Strike, Team 

    Fortress Classic, Day of Defeat and many others. HLTV providers have full

    control over their HLTV system, may change number of spectator slots, add

    text messages or change the HLTV logo. The broadcast is delayed by a

    customizable amount of time, by default 30 seconds. This ensures that the

    playing teams can't use HLTV to get any usable information about their

    opponents. Providing a single HLTV server for up to 100 spectators is an

    easy task and doesn't need any changes in default configurations.

   

    Installing a larger HLTV network for thousands of spectators needs some

    more planning time and experience about required bandwidth and CPU/RAM

    demands (see chapter 6).




2. Spectating Games

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    To watch a HLTV game, start Half-Life, open the Multiplayer menu and select

    'Find Servers'. To search for currently broadcasted games, choose the

    'Spectate' section and hit 'Refresh All'. After the list has been updated,

    double click on the server you want to spectate and you'll be connected.


    If computer game leagues announce important matches to be broadcasted via

    HLTV, they often provide IP:Port addresses of their HLTV servers. Instead

    of searching them via the server browser, you can also go to the 

    'Favorites' folder and add the HLTV address to your server list by pressing

    the right mouse button. Otherwise, you can also open the console window and

    use the 'connect' command to spectate a certain game.

    

    For example:


        connect 192.168.130.42:27020


    The default HLTV port number is 27020, but may be changed. It should always

    be included in the given address, since commonly this port number is 

    different from the default port number 27015.


    You can spectate the game in different modes: Chase Cam, First Person, Free

    Look, Map Overview and Map Chase. The easiest way to change modes is to

    press the JUMP key (default SPACE). Alternatively you can use the spectator

    menu, which can be enabled by pressing the DUCK key (default CTRL). Here

    you can customize your personal view style and enable the Auto-Director

    Mode. Press USE (default E) to cycle through the different 

    Picture-In-Picture modes.

   

    The following HL console commands can be used to customize spectator 

    settings:


    spec_autodirector <0|1> - turns Auto Director mode on or off

    spec_drawcone <0|1>     - shows your view cone in map overview mode

    spec_drawnames <0|1>    - shows player names under their icons

    spec_drawstatus <0|1>   - shows game information (time, map etc)

    spec_pip <0|1>          - turns Picture-In-Picture mode on or off

    spec_menu               - opens the spectator menu

    spec_help               - shows a help screen

    spec_mode <1-6> [<0-4>] - set the main view mode, seconds parameter is

                              the PIP mode. Not all combinations are valid.

                              Main modes are:

                                1 : Locked Chase        2 : Free Chase

                                3 : Free Roaming        4 : First Person

                                5 : Map Overview        6 : Chase Map Overview

                              PIP modes are:

                                0 : PIP off             1 : Free Chase

                                2 : First Person        3 : Map Overview

                                4 : Chase Map Overview




3. HLTV Basics

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    The core of the HLTV broadcasting system is the HLTV server, also called 

    HLTV proxy. The HLTV executable is a console application that works much 

    like a HL dedicated server. To broadcast a game running on a certain game 

    server, the HLTV proxy connects to this server just like a normal player.

    Spectators connect themselves to the HLTV proxy and the game data stream is

    relayed through the HLTV proxy to all connected spectator clients. The next

    figure shows a basic HLTV configuration:

   

        HL Game Server -> HLTV Proxy => Spectator Clients

   

    The number of clients that one HLTV proxy can serve depends on available

    hardware and network resources. Theoretically, a single proxy can hold a

    maximum of 255 spectator clients. But be careful, even a proxy with 100

    spectator clients needs a full 2 MBit line to run smoothly. If more

    spectator slots are needed, the required network load must be distributed

    over multiple HLTV proxies.

       

    The first HLTV proxy connected to the game server is called the Master

    proxy, which sets the general broadcast settings like game stream delay or

    packet rate. All other HLTV proxies linked to this proxy are the Relay 

    proxies. Their total number and link order is not restricted, they may form

    a chain or tree of proxies. Most important is that their location is in

    different networks to ensure a balanced bandwidth usage.

   

                                   -> HLTV Relay Proxy 1 => Spectator Clients

     HL Game Server -> HLTV Master -> HLTV Relay Proxy 2 => Spectator Clients

                                   -> HLTV Relay Proxy 3 => Spectator Clients



         

4. Broadcasting Games

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    Let's assume the most simple configuration, a single HLTV proxy in a LAN

    environment. This is a very common situation and the default HLTV settings

    doesn't need to be changed. Choose a dedicated computer as your HLTV proxy

    and install the Half-Life Dedicated Server, which also includes all files

    needed by a HLTV proxy. This isn't needed if Half-Life is already

    installed.

   

    Start the HLTV application (HL icon with a small camera) and the HLTV

    console will open, showing some initialization messages (if that takes a

    long time, HLTV maybe can't resolve some IP addresses, then start HLTV

    with the '-nodns' command line option). Then the console is ready to accept

    your commands, here we use '>' as the console prompt. First give your HLTV

    proxy an unique name:

   

    >name "My HLTV Proxy"

   

    Let's assume you have started the proxy on host 192.168.1.2 and the game

    server, you want to spectate is running on host 192.168.1.3:27015. Then

    connect the HLTV proxy to this game server by typing:

   

    >connect 192.168.1.3:27015

   

    After a few seconds HLTV will be fully connected and ready to serve

    spectator clients. Use the 'status' command to verify that the HLTV proxy

    has connected properly :

   

    >status

     --- HLTV Status ---

     Online 00:23, FPS 79.0, Version 2435 (Win32)

     Local IP 192.168.1.2:27020, Network In 1.7, Out 1.0, Loss 0.00

     Local Slots 128, Spectators 0, Proxies 0

     Total Slots 128, Spectators 0, Proxies 1

     Source Game Server 192.168.1.3:27015, Delay 30

     Server Name "Half-Life dedicated server"

     Time 01:35, Game "valve", Map "maps/rapidcore.bsp", Players 1

   

    The 'status' command shows your own IP address, HLTV system cycles per

    second, total incoming and outgoing network traffic in kB/sec. Local slot

    and spectator numbers your HLTV proxy is providing, total numbers are the

    sum of all slots & spectators on all proxies broadcasting this game. The

    game source can be a game server, another HLTV proxy or a demo file.




5. Recording HLTV demos

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    HLTV demo files are like normal recorded games in Half-Life, but you can

    choose any view point, view mode or player to chase during replay. To play

    back a HLTV demo, a HLTV proxy is not needed. Just start Half-Life and type

    in console "playdemo <demoname>" or "viewdemo <demoname>" (viewdemo offers

    more options during playback like fast forward/backward, pause & 

    slowmotion). To record a HLTV demo, connect the proxy to a game server (see

    last chapter) and type in console:

       

    >record <name>

  

    All games will be recorded after issuing this command. The demo files will

    be saved in the current Mod directory, e.g. \cstrike. All demo files have a

    special naming convention <name>-<YYMMDDhhmm>-<map>.dem, including the 

    given name, date/time and map name. Demo files record the same data as send

    to spectator clients. That means also, the demo file records the game with

    the same delay as used for spectators. To verify, that a demo file is

    recorded use the "status" command. The recording may be stopped with 

    "stoprecording".

   

    Sometimes a HLTV broadcast is not wanted and the HLTV proxy is only used

    to record a demo file. In this case, some HLTV settings should be made to

    gain optimal recording results:

   

    >maxclients 0   // don't allow any spectator clients

    >delay 0        // no game stream delay

    >rate 10000     // maximum data rate

    >updaterate 20  // standard update rate

    >nomaster 1     // don't register at master servers




6. Larger broadcasts

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    Setting up a HLTV network that can handle a larger number of spectators

    (>1000) is a difficult and time consuming task. The following guide should

    help to configure and run such a HLTV network. One of the most important

    rule should be "Quality, not Quantity". It's better to offer a smaller

    number of spectator slots, than operating at the maximum bandwidth limit,

    thus all spectators would suffer from lags and timeouts. Check carefully

    your available bandwidth capacity and calculate how many spectators can

    be handled by your HLTV servers. The average bandwidth demand per spectator

    is between 2 and 3 KB/sec and depends on the current mod, map and number of

    players. CPU and RAM shouldn't be a bottleneck on modern PC systems.

    

    This list for common Internet connection types gives a feeling, how 

    bandwidth demanding HLTV can be:

           

        -   ISDN         64 Kbps            :      2 spectators

        -   DSL         128 Kbps (upstream) :      5 spectators

        -   T1          1.5 Mbps            :     75 spectators

        -   LAN          10 Mbps            :    500 spectators

        -   T3           75 Mbps            :   4000 spectators


    Use the "maxclients" command to set how many clients should be accepted by

    a HLTV proxy. Make sure that the "maxrate" variable is set too a reasonable

    value, e.g. 3500 kB/sec. Lower values are possible, but make sure spectators

    don't get too much "choke" during a running game. The "maxrate" command

    doesn't effect the bandwidth limit between HLTV proxies, only for spectator

    clients. To lower the general bandwidth demand, you can turn off the 

    internal HLTV chat ("chatmode 0") or decrease the game update rate from the

    default value 20 to 10 ("updaterate 10"). A lower update rate may save up

    to 25% network traffic and is an acceptable tradeoff in this case since

    spectators doesn't need a high update rate like real players does.

       

    A very common setup for large broadcasts is to use 2 dedicated HLTV servers

    to create a private and a public HLTV segment. Let's assume the game server

    is in a closed LAN and not accessible from outside. This ensures a maximum

    security against attacks (DOS etc) from outside. The HLTV master server is

    started within the LAN and it's IP address should be kept secret. The 

    second HLTV server is started outside the LAN with a global IP and is

    connected to the HLTV master server. This second HLTV server is the public

    HLTV dispatcher, which IP address is given to the audience. Any relay

    proxies are connected to this HLTV dispatcher. Thus the HLTV master server

    is in a secure LAN environment and can be used for demo recording or for

    HL clients serving video projectors. Spectators connect to the HLTV 

    dispatcher and are relayed through the HLTV network to a relay proxy with

    a low usage. Thus the total network load is balanced between all connected

    HLTV proxies.

   

    +----   Private LAN -----+  +------ Public Internet --------+

                                                 -> HLTV Proxy 1 

     HL Server -> HLTV Master -> HLTV Dispatcher -> HLTV Proxy 2 

                                                 -> HLTV Proxy 3

   

    The configuration files of HLTV master and HLTV dispatcher are different:

   

    master.cfg:

   

     nomaster      1        // don't register at WON master servers

     proxypassword MyPWD    // protect HLTV server

     publicgame    0        // don't show game server IP

     dispatchmode  0        // don't dispatch spectators

    

    dispatcher.cfg:

   

     forcemaster  1         // register at WON master servers

     publicgame   0         // don't show game server IP

     dispatchmode 2         // dispatch all clients to other proxies

     hostname     MyGame    // public HLTV server name

    

   

    If you're running 3 or more HLTV servers in total, it's a good idea to

    use RCON to manage them via a single server admin tool. To enable RCON

    on a HLTV server an "adminpassword" must been set. Also "proxypassword"

    should be set to ensure only known HLTV providers can connect to your

    HLTV network. Otherwise anybody can connect with slow HLTV proxies and

    disturb your network load balancing.

                      


   

7. HLTV Configuration

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    A short note about console command syntax. A command description follows

    the following notation:

   

        command <parameter> [<parameter>] - description

   

    A command may have one or more parameters. Parameters in brackets [] are

    optional. Common used parameters are :

   

        <string>  : text, must be in quotes if text contains spaces "My Name"

        <n>       : a whole number, e.g. 42

        <f>       : a floating point number, e.g. 4.2

        <IP:Port> : an IP address, e.g. 192.168.130.42:27020

        <a|b|c>   : a set of options, a or b or c

   

    Note, any of these special characters <, >, |, [ or ] are not part of the

    final command as typed in the console. Lots of these commands are boolean

    switches, were 1 is meaning ON and 0 is respectively OFF.

    

         

    connect <IP:Port> - connect HLTV proxy to game server (default port 27015)

    disconnect        - disconnects proxy from server, but doesn't stop the

                        broadcast. All spectator clients stay connected.

    stop [<text>]     - disconnects from server, disconnects all clients and

     stops demo recording. Optional goodbye message.

    quit              - quits the HLTV process

    retry             - retries the last server connection

    autoretry <0|1>   - if enabled, proxy will retry connection to server if

                        connection was interrupted for any reason

                             

    name <text>       - sets the HLTV proxy scoreboard name

    hostname <text>   - sets the HLTV host name for game browser list

   

    serverpassword <text>     - sets the game server password

    adminpassword <text>      - sets password for RCON & commentator

    proxypassword <text>      - sets password for other relay proxies

    spectatorpassword <text>  - sets spectator password. Will also exclude

                                proxy from global load balancing

                                       

    clients         - lists connected spectator clients

    proxies         - lists connected relay proxies

    players         - lists players on game server

    kick <ID>       - kicks a spectator client from proxy

    bann <IP>       - banns an IP address (completely ignored)

    clearbanns      - removes all IPs from bann list

    say <text>      - sends a text message to game server (chat with players)

    msg <text> [<duration> <pos x> <pos y> <color hex rgba>]

                    - sends a text message to all spectators as big HUD text

    localmsg <text> [<duration> <pos x> <pos y> <color hex rgba>]

                    - same as msg, but only seen by local clients

   

    servercmd <string>         - forwards console command to game server

    clientcmd <group> <string> - forwards a console command to all clients of

                                 given group: 1=spectators, 2=proxies, 3=all

                                 

    loopcmd <id> <n> <string>  - loopcmd will execute <string> every <n>

                                 seconds. <id> is a number between 1 and 64 to

                                 identify this loopcmd. "loopcmd <id> none"

                                 will disable a looping command again. loopcmd

                                 without any parameter will list any command

                                 currently in the list.

                                 

    signoncommands <string>    - console commands that will be executed by

                                 local spectator clients after connection is

                                 established. Commands may be separated by

                                 semicolons.

                                

    maxclients <n> - set spectator number limit for this proxy (default 128)

    delay <n>      - delays the game stream for n seconds on the Master Proxy.

                     The default value is 30 seconds to avoid cheating. If the

                     delay is set to a value below 10 seconds (e.g. 0), the

                     auto director function will be disabled.

    rate <n>       - bandwidth rate the game server sends data to the proxy

    updaterate <n> - game updates per seconds send from server to proxy

    maxrate <n>    - sets the maximum bandwidth rate for spectator clients

    maxloss <f>    - sets the acceptable packet loss rate, default

                     value is 0.05 (5%). If packet loss is higher, new

                     spectator clients will be rejected.

    maxqueries <n> - maximum of status queries per second requested by server

                     browsers

                                

    dispatchmode <0|1|2> - Dispatch mode 1 (AUTO) will redirect connecting         

                           clients to other proxies balancing work load between

                           all proxies. In dispatch mode 2 (ALWAYS) any

                           spectator clients will be redirected, so this proxy

                           serves only as dispatcher. Dispatch mode 0 (OFF)

                           won't redirect any clients.

 

    publicgame <0|1>     - if public is 1, game server IP will be visible to

                           spectators and 'joingame' is allowed.

    offlinetext <string> - info text clients will see as reject reason if HLTV

                           isn't broadcasting yet

    chatmode <0|1|2>     - if chatmode is 0, spectators can't chat. If set to 1,

                           only spectators connected to the same proxy can see

                           their chat messages. In chatmode 2 all spectators

                           can chat between each other (then Master and all

                           Relay proxies must have set chatmode 2). 

                          

    bannerfile <file>    - specifies a TGA file (RGBA) that will be shown as

                           logo in spectator GUI.

    

    ping <host:port>     - pings a HL server on the given port (default 27015)

    nomaster <0|1>       - if enabled, proxy won't register at WON master

                           servers

    forcemaster <0|1>    - if enabled, proxy will register at WON master server

    heartbeat            - sends manually a status packet to WON master servers

    region <n> - set the region your HLTV proxy is located in

   

    rcon <string>         - sends a remote control command to other servers

    rconaddress <IP:Port> - sets the remote control target address

    rconpassword <string> - sets the password for the remote controlled host

  

    cheeringthreshold <f> - number of cheering players must be above this

                            threshold to play the cheering sound (by default 0.25).

                              

    blockvoice <0|1>      - if set, all incoming voice data is blocked. This is

                            useful to override incoming voice commentators or

                            player voice with own commentators voice.

  

    cmdlist         - shows all registered proxy commands

    logfile <0|1>   - starts/stops console logging in "logfile<date>.log"

    status          - shows proxy status information

    modules         - shows all loaded HLTV modules and versions

    exec <filename> - executes a .cfg file

    echo <string>   - prints a text to HLTV console

    developer <0|1> - additional debug messages are shown in developer mode

       

    record <filename>   - records all following games to demo files using name

                          syntax "filename-<date>-<map>.dem"

    stoprecording       - stops recording a demo file

    playdemo <filename> - starts broadcasting a demo file

   

          

    The console does auto-completion by hitting 'TAB'. All commands in the

    config file "hltv.cfg" are executed during startup.

   

    Some parameters can only be set in the command line:


    -port <n>        - sets the HLTV proxy port that spectators connect to

                       (default 27020)

    -ip <IP>         - forces the proxy to use this IP on a multihomed host                

    -comm <filename> - sets a master server info file other than woncomm.lst

    -nodns           - disables any DNS resolving (useful for LAN proxies)

    -maxfps <n>      - sets maximum system cycles per seconds (default 100)

    -highpriority    - starts the HLTV proxy as high priority process

    -steam           - proxy enables special Steam support

    -dev             - developer mode

   

   

    These parameters cannot be changed during runtime, thus they can't be used

    in config files.

       

    All console commands can be used in the command line, if a "+" is prepended

    to them, for example:

   

        hltv.exe +connect localhost:27015 -port 27021


    A Half-Life server can set sv_proxies <n>, to determine how many proxies

    are allowed to connect. If HLTV proxies should be forbidden, set it to 0,

    otherwise 1 to allow for a Master Proxy. Other values are experimental.

  

   

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For HLTV news, updates and help visit http://hltv.valve-erc.com


Copyright (2003 Valve LLC.)