[TODO] Bans not staying?

[MrPresident]

Last night I had to redo all of my permanent bans because over the weeks I've lost some here and there.. see (http://zakap.com/MPNuke/test/banlist.html).
I did this with ulx banid just to come home from work today to find that all of 2 of those bans had mysteriously disappeared.. =( SOmeone who I had banned was on my server and when I checked my bans.txt in the ULib folder and my banned_users.txt in my cfg folder they were empty..

Is this something you've ever noticed before?

I also use HLSW to manage my server console.. I could see how maybe it could be doing something to my ban flatfile when it updates its list, but I would imagine that my ulx ban list should remain untouched?!? right?

I'm thinking about trying my hand at UBan if it still works because it would be nice to have a single ban list between my 2 servers.

What do you guys think?

[Megiddo]

HLSW bans aren't permanent unless you have something special in the config... I'll let spbogie talk more though.

[MrPresident]

Well, I dont actually use HLSW to ban the people.. I just use it to send the ulx commands to my console. I always use ulx ban or ulx banid. SHouldn't these be saved into the ulx ban file?

[JamminR]

Meg, I thought data/ban.txt was only for the temp bans, so they don't get lost between server restarts/map changes, etc.
By default, permabans get stored in /cfg/banned_user or banned_ip.cfg
For some dumb odd reason, a server startup doesn't execute these by default.

Meg, did we ever put the exec of those two files in any of our startup?

I'd be willing to bet the bans are there, but not being executed, if they were permanent.
Throw in two exec banned_blah.cfg to your server.cfg file (or wherever you store your non-ulx configs)

[MrPresident]

thanks.. somewhere they did get deleted though.. I think it might have been from me clicking reload or Update on my HLSW.. but I think adding the exec will fix another problem I was having with people who were actually on the ban list being able to connect as if they were not banned.
Thanks again.

[spbogie]

The ULib bans.txt file stores bot permenant and temporary bans so it can hold additional information about all of them, but the permanent bans stored in the ULib list are only for information. The default banned_users.cfg file takes priority (so people don't loose bans if they decide to stop using ulx), and the ULib bans.txt file is synchronized with it each time the server loads.

Jam, I am fairly certain that ulx does execute the banned_users.cfg file (both on load, and before enacting any ban), but there is a possibility that if it failed to do so, then when writeid was next called it would take out all of the bans stored there because there were none in the server's memory.

[JamminR]

Thanks bogie, I thought we had.

Zakap... keep an eye on it. If your 'real' banned_<users|ip>.cfg files keep coming up empty or 'short' of known bans.. let us know.
This is something we would need to determine quickly.

I'd hate to have ULX be erasing bans.

[p1cwh0r3]

I'll be keeping an eye on this one as well. We had some issues with the same problem a while ago. I've had no reports recently from our admins in regards to people slipping back in after a temporary/permanent ban.

Our servers are currently running revision 111 Ulib/ULX

[MrPresident]

okay here is a report...

On my spacebuild server the bans are not loaded on server start/restart..
On my build server (the server I added the exec banned_users.txt.. or whatever it is).. the lst is being loaded on strat/restart.

It would SEEM that this might have been my problem. As for why bans were being erased.. that is still yet to be determined.

[p1cwh0r3]

I can also confirm that permanent bans on all of our servers are not executing automatically upon restart/crash.
The banned_users|IP.cfg files are retaining all of the information as far as I can see but none of it is being loaded unless exec Banned_users|IP.cfg is placed in the server cfg.

I have run a test on all of them by //'ng out the exec lines and deleting the 2 lines entirely and on both cases nothing is loaded. (sounds like a dumb thing to do as it's basicly the same thing but I'm trying all avenues )

Servers are running Rev#111

Edit: Wonder how things will go once we get Uban installed eventually
If you need any debug reports let me know and we'll see if i can help nail this sucker.

[Megiddo]

This is spbogie's area, but I'm going to sticky this topic so we don't let it fall into oblivion.

[spbogie]

Sorry guys, I'm going to be a busy with Theater Troupe through next weekend. I'll get on this as soon as I possibly can.

[JamminR]

All, my opinion of ULX not execing the ban files is "It's not a Team Ulysses issue"
Some may disagree, and I respect your right to do that.
However, ban files are supposed to be executed in the default server cfg file whether someone is using ULX or not.

One of the team did/may fix/ include it to be nice, but if you remove ULX, your default cfg file should execute them even without.

I don't remember where I learned that those files were necessary to be executed, or I'd share the info.
I do remember it was before I learned of ULX, and much longer time before I was a member of the team.

One of those 'Server Admin 101' type items though.

[MrPresident]

I agree, and I only even posted this here in the first place because I thought it was ULX directly causing the problem because I thought ULX stored all of the ulx bans not the flatfile. It was an easy fix and I have not had the problem since. =)

[JamminR]

One other thing to remember and for you (anyone reading this) to research.
Again, I don't remember where I saw the information.

There is a ban limit somewhere.
I don't remember enough of it to know whether it is a file size limit on 'banned_<user|ip>.cfg" or just a limit on how many bans the source engine will allow to be stored while running.
I do remember that the latest ban will overwrite the earliest.
So if you have someone in your ban list from 2 years ago, you ban someone today that pushes the one two years ago out of that limit area, the 2 year old banned person could re-enter. Banning them again would put them back in the list.

Sorry, someone else may be able to give links/more discussion and info on this. Google can be your friend also