Cl_rate In 3.xx

Drek

I was meandering through the 3.xx changelog when I stumbled onto this little bomb...

<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Locked cl_rate to 9999 to prevent exploits.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Before I start ranting and raving about this, I want to clear up some questions up for myself.

1. Does this mean that the "rate" cvar no longer does anything as well?

2. How is this going to affect rate management plugins like Blatt Rate, and the AMX rate management plugin?

I'm hoping that the answers to this are 1. "No", and 2. "Not at all." If the answers are 1. "Yes", and 2. "They no longer work." this is going to be yet another nail in the coffin for players on dial up, and people running servers on anything less than a T1 connection...

I'm wondering what kind of an exploit could warrant disabling a key component to making the game playable for the above mentioned people on dial up, and those running bandwidth challenged servers?

Talesin

Lagspiking. Essentially, someone setting up things so they seem to 'mega-lag' for a moment... or at least the server thought they were. It's one of the ways that some people 'speed up' their weapon to insane levels.

Align

So like a speedhack? Well, except much more unpredictable.

seriousham

It simply means it's automatic now,
no problem for dail-up.
(well no more then usual)

Alcapwn

sounds good to me <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo-->

rknZ

The rate command still works fine, but the cl_rate could be changed so your surroundings seemed fine to you, but to everyone else you kept lagging all over the place, making you unpedictable and hard to hit...

EDIT: So dial-up should be fine <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->

Lucid

join an empty server with a friend, have him set cl_rate to 1000, then have him run around as a skulk. Watch how ridiculous it is. He'll be choppy as hell on your screen, but everything will be perfectly smooth on his screen.

meatball

<!--QuoteBegin--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->but to everyone else you kept lagging all over the place, making you unpedictable and hard to hit...
<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
if i remember it correctly thats how it was to play on my old connection (all the other guys was lagging around on my screen)

Align

That would be a low "rate" then, the server-to-client bitrate.

Forlorn

rate is what how fast you take stuff from the server.

cl_rate is how fast you send stuff to the server.

These are the uploads and download speed commands basically.

Obviously, screwing around with cl_rate will give the server a slow amount of data on you, and therefore other players will see the lack of data in the form of a player with super choppy movements.

Drek

I understand now, thanks for the info. No need for me to panic I guess... <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->