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                   JOURNAL FOR THURSDAY 30TH DECEMBER, 2021
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SUBJECT: Two more updates for jittery admins
   DATE: Thu 30 Dec 18:34:45 GMT 2021

A while ago I sorted out an issue that was making some people a little jittery
about using the beta. Specifically, I implemented the Debug.AllowDump setting
in the server configuration. This allowed admins to disable the #DUMP command
on a live server.

It turns out that there were other issues making some admins jittery: limiting
the number of players on the server and the logging of player IP addresses.

I’ve just pushed out an update to the public dev branch that addresses both of
the issues.

Firstly, the server now honours the Server.MaxPlayers configuration setting.
If the server already has Server.MaxPlayers players connected, anyone else
connecting will be greeted with:


  Server too busy. Please come back in a short while.


Secondly, the server now honours the Server.LogClient configuration setting.
If this is set to false (the default) then every effort is made to not log the
player’s incoming IP address. Instead the incoming IP address is replaced with
“???”, but the incoming port number is retained.

For example:


  [#UID-6] connection from: ???:35848
  [#UID-6] client error: read tcp 127.0.0.1:4001->???:35848: i/o timeout
  [#UID-6] disconnect from: ???:35848


This feature is needed because, according to the GDPR, the IP address may be
considered personal information and need the player’s informed consent[1] in
order for it to be recorded in the log… and all of the other obligations GDPR
implies :|

Some admins will argue that the incoming IP address is required for being able
to securely maintain the server and does not require consent.

I’m not going to argue either way, instead I’ll sit on the fence and give you
a configuration option instead so that you can make up your own mind and run
your servers how you want :)

My opinion? Don’t log player’s IP addresses if you don’t have to.

--
Diddymus

  [1] Apparently not in Germany, but the EU says in some cases an IP address
      should be treated as personal information — even if it isn’t. The UK ICO
      says IP addresses in isolation are not personal information, but might
      be. What if I’m in the UK accessing a server in the EU via Germany? All
      a bit of a mess really…


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