Updates and Versions
What our version numbers mean, how they differ from the game version a server emulates, what a release candidate is, and how to apply an update to a server you are already running.
Two Numbers
Every download carries two versions.
| Example | What it is | |
|---|---|---|
| The game version | RF Online 2.2.3.2 | Which version of the original game this server plays. It does not change for a given download, and it must match the client. |
| Our version | v0.5.1 | Which build of our software you are running. This is the one that goes up when we release. |
“RF Online 2.2.3.2 v0.5.1” is a build of our server for Golden Age. Include both in a bug report.
Each game is versioned and released separately. RF Online 2.2.3.2 reaching v0.6.0 says nothing about 2.1.5, which has its own number and its own release notes. A shared improvement lands in each game the next time that game ships.
Major, Minor and Patch
Our version is major.minor.patch: the three numbers in 0.5.1, read left to right.
| Part | Which number | Example | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major | the first | 1.4.2 to 2.0.0 | Something you were relying on has changed. The release notes will tell you to do more than copy files. |
| Minor | the middle | 0.4.3 to 0.5.0 | New systems, new content, new settings. This is where a new config file or a client-side change can appear. |
| Patch | the last | 0.5.0 to 0.5.1 | Fixes and small corrections. Copy the binaries in and restart. |
While a version is on 0, a minor bump can be larger than the number suggests. The release notes
are the list of what changed, one entry per version per game, under changelog.
Release Candidates
Before a version is published we give it to testers. Those builds are marked -rc after the
version they are working toward: 0.5.0-rc1, then 0.5.0-rc2 if it needs another pass.
- Candidates are not published on this site. The download page, its hashes and the version badge show the last full release.
- A candidate has no release notes of its own. It reads the notes for the version it is working toward, which describe where that version is going rather than what you are running.
- The number is inside the build, not only in the file name. It appears in the server’s startup
banner, so
0.5.0-rc2in a bug report identifies the exact build. Two candidates of the same version are different software.
When testing is done the candidate becomes the release: 0.5.0-rc2 ships as 0.5.0.
Applying an Update
- Read the release notes for the version you are moving to, and for any you skipped.
- Stop the server.
- Copy the new
server/folder over your existing one. For most releases this is the whole update. - Copy in anything the notes name. See below.
- Start it. The server upgrades its own database schema on start. There is no migration script to run.
Your settings.cfg and your player databases are not part of what you copied, so they are not
overwritten.
New Config Files
When a release adds a config file, the release notes name it. Copy the new file out of the archive into the same place in your own folder, keeping the structure it came in. New files ship with working defaults.
New settings inside a file you already have need nothing from you. An absent setting takes its default, and the notes say when a default is worth changing.
Game Content
If a release changes the game’s own content, the notes say so.
On the default database, the content ships as db/gamedata_<game>.db and the new file replaces the
old one.
On MySQL, the server imports content only into an empty content database. Drop gamedata_<game> and
start the server, which re-imports it from database-mysql/. Player data is in separate databases
and is not affected.
Client Files
The client/ folder is what your players copy into their game folder. When a release changes it,
the notes say so.
If you run the website, put the new files in your client/ folder and rebuild the index:
client updater. Each player gets the change the next time they launch.
If you do not run the website, tell your players to copy the new client/ contents in themselves.
A player on stale client files fails to connect in a way that looks like a server fault, so do this
before you announce the update.
Going Backwards
Downgrading is not supported and is not tested. The schema only moves forward, and an older build pointed at a newer database can fail in ways that are hard to unpick.
To keep the option, copy your db/ folder somewhere else before you update.