Installing the Active Worlds Server (FreeBSD)

Note: Installing and running the Active Worlds server on FreeBSD is not officially supported at this time.

The Linux version of the Active Worlds Server can be installed under the FreeBSD 4.8 RELEASE, and may also run under other versions of FreeBSD but do so at your own risk as the Active Worlds Server has not been thoroughly tested under the FreeBSD operating system.

These installation instructions require that you have downloaded the latest version of the Active Worlds Server Software from our web site at www.activeworlds.com/products/download.asp.

Unless you have access to your own Active Worlds Universe, you must also have purchased an Active Worlds Server license from Activeworlds Inc. and have received a valid name and password for your world. For more information on acquiring a license for your world, see our server web page.

Once you have downloaded the Active Worlds Server and transferred the file to your FreeBSD host, please follow these simple instructions:

  1. Install the server software

    Create a new directory to store the server files, and place the server file there. For this example, assume the name of the file is "awslnx53.tar.gz":

    mkdir ~/awserver mv awslnx53.tar.gz ~/awserver cd ~/awserver

    Unpack the file:

    gzip -d awslnx53.tar.gz tar xvf awslnx53.tar

    The tar file unpacks into the following:

    atdump atload convert ejdump ejload propdump propload world worldsdump worldsload example.ini license.txt readme.txt

  2. Modify the world.ini file

    After unpacking the .tar file, you need to add an administration password to the world.ini file before starting the server. To do this, first copy the example file "example.ini" file to the file "world.ini":

    cp example.ini world.ini

    Then edit world.ini using any text editor such as vi. At the top of the file, you will see a section like this:

    [server] password= Choose an administration password for your server and enter it after the password=. The password can be anything, but as with any password it should be long and hard to guess. For example, if you chose the password "hobart119$xxa", your world.ini would look like this:

    [server] password=hobart119$xxa

  3. Specify a backup directory (optional)

    The Active Worlds Server has the ability to maintain an automated backup of itself at all times. You are strongly encouraged to make use of this feature, as accidents do happen and world data is occasionally lost due to file corruption, disk failure, etc. If the server database files are accidentally damaged or deleted and you do not have a backup, all of the building in your worlds will be lost and cannot be recovered! To activate the automatic backup feature, simply specify the name of a backup directory in the .ini file like this (the directory name shown here is just an example):

    [backup] dir=/etc/backups/myworld

    Now you can save the world.ini file and exit the text editor.

  4. Each executable file must be "branded" in order to help the FreeBSD kernel recognize that it is a Linux binary and not a native FreeBSD binary.

    To brand the server executable (world), the following command should be issues in the directory where it resides:

    brandelf -t Linux world Note that "Linux" must be capitalized exactly as-is.

    You will need to brand the other executables (atdump, atload, ejdump, ejload, propdump, propload, worldsdump, and worldsload) in the same manner if you wish to use them under FreeBSD: brandelf -t Linux atdump brandelf -t Linux atload brandelf -t Linux ejdump brandelf -t Linux ejload brandelf -t Linux propdump brandelf -t Linux propload brandelf -t Linux worldsdump brandelf -t Linux worldsload but NOT the simple shell script convert as it is not an executable.

  5. Start the server

    Start the server by typing:

    world The process will run in the background automatically. If you return to the command prompt with no messages, this means the process has started successfully.

  6. Install the administration client

    Next, download and install the administration tool from www.activeworlds.com/products/download.asp. The administration tool is a Windows program that connects to your Unix server over the network and allows you to configure it.

  7. Configure the administration tool to access your server by entering your server's host, port, and password.

    See administering multiple or remote servers for details.

  8. Add your world(s) to the server.

    Finally, using the administration tool, add your world to the server, reset it, and you are done!

Currently known issue:

After the world executable is started, the message "Bad system call (core dumped)" is printed. However, there is no coredump file, and the world server shows up in a process listing; it appears to function normally.

For instructions on how to install the Active Worlds server in other operating systems, see the following additional help pages: