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diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a48e8de --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,272 @@ +#The Mana World Athena Readme + + + +This is TMWA, an MMORPG server used by The Mana World that uses a protocol +based on one of many projects that foolishly chose the name "Athena". +Specifically, it was forked from eAthena, a Ragnarok Online clone, in 2004. + +TMWA is maintained in conjunction with The Mana World, but is not tied to +it. However, please read the note about server-data below. + + +Take a look at the [wiki](http://wiki.themanaworld.org/index.php/How_to_Develop) for user instructions. + +<b>Important note:</b> building from a github-generated tarball does not work! +You must either build from a git checkout or from a 'make dist' tarball. + + +The rest of this file contains information relevant only to: + +1. Distributors. +2. Contributors. + + +TMWA has been maintained by o11c (Ben Longbons) since early 2011 or so. +Before that, it never really had a proper maintainer, since everyone +thought that ManaServ was going to be the thing. But it won't ever be, +at least not for TMW. + +TMWA has a [bugtracker](https://github.com/themanaworld/tmwa/issues). + +But it's probably worth getting on IRC first: +* Use an IRC client: irc://chat.freenode.net/tmwa +* Or just use the [webchat](https://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=#tmwa). + +Note that this channel is *only* for technical discussion of TMWA (and +attoconf), not general chat or TMW content development. + +I'm active in the Pacific timezone, but I might not have internet access +all the time. I'm usually never AFK longer than 48 hours; when there is an +exception, I always tell the content devs who also idle there. + +##1. Distributors. +###Important notes: + +- Go read [version.make](version.make) +- TMWA requires git to build by default, use 'make dist' to get a tarball. + +###Platform dependencies: +####Architecture: + + tested: x86, amd64, x32 + likely to work: all architectures (patches welcome if they don't) + +####Operating system: + known bad: Linux 2.6.26 and earlier + maintained: Linux 3.2 and later + likely to break: Cygwin, BSD +####Filesystem: + must support symlinks + +###Build dependencies: +####Python: + required: 2.7.x only, installed in $PATH as 'python' +####C library: + recommended: glibc 2.17 or higher + supported: glibc 2.13 + known bad: glibc 2.8 or below + unsupported: anything that's not glibc +####C++ compiler: + required: g++ 4.7.2 or higher + recommended: g++ 4.8.1 or higher + not recommended: clang++ 3.3 or higher (all versions have unfixed bugs) +####C++ library: + recommended: libstdc++ to match g++; may need patch for clang++ + may work: libc++ +####attoconf: + special: see below +###Runtime dependencies: +####glibc: + depends on what it was built against +####libstdc++: + depends on what it was built against +###Instructions: +####Configuration: + ./configure +_Takes most of the options GNU Autoconf's configure does - I won't + repeat the output of `./configure --help` here._ + +_`--prefix=/usr`, not `--prefix usr`, in order to prevent an ambiguity. + "In the face of ambiguity, refuse the temptation to guess."_ + +_Out-of-tree builds work._ + +_Note that there is no option to disable dependency tracking, as it + is also used to generate link information. There is also no option + to ignore unknown options - I refuse to lie._ +####Build: + make -jN +####Build test: + make test + +_Nowhere near complete useful yet. Requires source of Google Test._ + + make format; git diff --exit-code +####Install: + make install DESTDIR=/whatever + +_See [what is installed](#what-is-installed) below_ +####Install test: +_not implemented_ +####Distribution tarballs: + make dist + make bindist + +###Note about attoconf: +TMWA's `./configure` script is implemented using a python package +'attoconf', which I wrote over a weekend after reading GNU autoconf's +documentation and realizing that it was 1. insane, and 2. still trying +to solve the wrong sort of problem. + +Currently, attoconf's API is still in the "experimental" stage, so the +real rule is "does ./configure work?". +When it gets to 1.0, it will start guaranteeing compatibility. + +Attoconf is available at [Github](https://github.com/o11c/attoconf/) and is a +well-behaving python package. + +Attoconf requires Python 2.7; a port to Python 2.6 is doable with a bit +of work, but it is not known if this would benefit anybody. + +If you're Arch - you broke Python for us all, you clean up your own mess. +Patches to call a nonexistent `/usr/bin/python2` will NOT be accepted. + +###What is installed: +####Overview: +Currently, `make install` installs 5 binaries, along with a handful +of libraries, headers, data files, config files, and debug files, each +of which has a `make install-something` target. + +The 4 main programs below are typically running on the same machine, +though in theory they may be configured to run on different machines +in a fast LAN. Also, the internal protocol between the programs is +subject to change without notice, so they *must* be upgraded +simultaneously. + +These programs currently read most of their files relative to the +current working directory; this was the only thing that makes sense +since the files are dependent on the server-data. However, a migration +to installed files has begun. + + +####tmwa-monitor: +Formerly known as `eathena-monitor`. + +An unmaintained tool whose job was to keep restarting the servers +every time they crashed. It still builds in case anyone was using it, +but it proved inflexible and has't really been kept up-to-date with our +(TMW's) server-data, and besides, the server doesn't crash much now. + +At some point I plan to rewrite it and ship a new conf file, unless +everyone agrees to use systemd, in which case I maybe can use that. + +In the mean time, there is a `run-all` script in the server-data repo +that starts the appropriate server for that config. On the main server, +we instead start the servers (and bots) individually in a tmux. + +####tmwa-admin: +Formerly known as `ladmin` ("local"). + +This is an essential tool to maintain the server's flatfile "databases". +It doesn't actually touch the files directly, just connects to +tmwa-login. + +Even when everything is rewritten to use SQL, it will be kept, if just +to keep a consistent interface. In fact, if we use SQLite we *can't* +edit the databases independently. This wouldn't be a problem with +Postgres, but people seem to think it's hard to install (that's not my +experience on Debian though. Did they ever try themselves, or are they +just repeating what they've heard?) + +####tmwa-login: +Formerly known as `login-server`. + +User-facing server to deal with account checks. + +Also accepts internal connections from `tmwa-admin` and `tmwa-char`, +subject to a plaintext password (and for `tmwa-admin`, also an IP check). + +####tmwa-char: +Formerly known as `char-server`. + +User-facing server to deal with character persistence. + +Connects to `tmwa-login`; also takes internal connections from `tmwa-map`. + +Note that it is fully supported for more than one `tmwa-char` to connect +to the same `tmwa-login`; the client will be presented with a list of +"worlds" before leaving the login server. + +####tmwa-map: +Formerly known as `map-server`. + +Connects to `tmwa-char`. + +It is technically possible for more than one `tmwa-map` to connect to +a single tmwa-char, but this is poorly supported by our current config +and moderation tools, and there are likely undiscovered bugs. + +####About server data: +Just having the binaries is not enough: you also need a complete set of +content: config files, game scripts, savefiles, and client updates. + +A web server to serve the updates is also strongly recommended, as even +developers get annoyed when wushin makes us work straight from his +client-data repo. + +Currently, there is only *one* set of server data that is known to be +compatible with TMWA: https://github.com/themanaworld/tmwa-server-data + +The only recommended way of using this is by following the instructions +in the [How to Develop](https://wiki.themanaworld.org/index.php/Dev:How_to_Develop) article. These instructions are only designed +for people contributing to TMW itself, not to people trying to start +a fork - we know all forks are doomed to be unsuccessful anyway, so +please don't split the development effort, and you can't split the +player community. + +In particular, the instructions do NOT provide information on how to +secure a server by changing all the default passwords. + +There are 3 other known sets of complete server data: regional ones +for Germany and Brasil, and Evol. Evol requires their own fork of +the tmwa server (for some reason they don't like me to call it evola), +and nobody seems to know of the foreign servers are keeping active. + +Note also that The Mana World has not investigated the copyright status +of other sets of server data. + +##2. Contributors. +The most important thing if you want to help improve TMWA is *talk* to me. +No, wait, that's the second most important thing. + +The real most important thing if you want to help improve TMWA is that it's +*work*. You can't just stop by and chat for a few hours and help at all. +If you're going to work on TMWA, you have to be work months in the future. + +TMWA was terrible when I got it, and I've only fixed enough to make it +sane, not pretty. Even a minimal change is likely to touch the whole tree, +so merge conflicts are a constant problem. + +That said, there *are* several tasks that I could use help with. Several +essential tasks have been left undone just because they don't conflict with +the main body of my work. + +But I do not want someone who will just work for a few hours, go to bed, +then never return. I have wasted far too many hours answering their +questions. If you're going to help, you have to actually *help*. + +The following skills are good to know required for various tasks: + + - ability to read + - ability to write + - ability to notice error messages + - ability to solve your own problems + - willingness to accept review of your changes. It's not personal if I + say your work is wrong, I'm just seeing more than you do, and tiny + details are often incredibly important. + - familiarity with gdb + - Python (A low entry barrier, but Python alone is not enough for the + tasks. Particularly, reread the bit about review.) + - C++11 (Not a low entry barrier. I'm not really expecting help with this, + and since this is conflict heavy, please do the other tasks first). |