Earth & Beyond Emulator Net-7 Server FAQ
by Jadefalcon

Updated December 24, 2006


Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Requirements
3. Installing Earth & Beyond
4. Installing the Net-7 Server
5. Playing the game
6. Known Issues
7. Reporting Problems
8. Troubleshooting
9. Credits

1. Introduction

Welcome to Earth & Beyond! This FAQ will help those who are interested in play
testing the game using the Net-7 server software. Please be advised that the
Net-7 server is in early development. Many in-game features will not be
available yet. Multiplayer has not been fully implemented yet and is still
being worked on. Here are some examples of what activities you can currently
do.

Create/Delete game characters.

Dock at SOL System starbases.

Pilot your starship at impulse/sublight speed (no warp).

2. Requirements

Subject to change. For now the system requirements to run the game with Net-7
should not need to be any greater than what was necessary when the game was
released. However, please be advised that only Windows XP is supported in this
release. Net-7 relies on functions and files that are only included in Windows
XP. Perhaps in the future, support for Windows 98/ME will be added. It should 
work if you meet the following specifications.

CPU - 800+ MHz Athlon or Pentium III processor.
RAM - 256+ MB.
GFX - 32+ MB GeForce2 or Radeon 8500 with DirectX 8.1.
NET - 56+ Kbps.

3. Installing Earth & Beyond

It is very important that the game be installed and updated correctly in
order for the communication with the Net-7 server to function. First you will
need the game client itself. This can be installed from either using retail
CDs or the trial demo installer which can be obtained from this web location:

http://gamefiles.blueyonder.co.uk/blueyond.../eandb_demo.exe

Before moving on, you will also need to download the game update patch
enb-up.exe. This will ensure you are running the latest version (42) of the
client software which is required by Net-7. This can be obtained from the
downloads section of the emulator web site or from this web location:

http://www.stfcc.org/enb/files/enb-up.exe

To ensure a successful install of the client and server, it is advisable that
all background applications such as anti-virus, instant messengers etc. be shut
down. The best way to achieve this if you are not sure how to proceed is to
follow these instructions carefully.

1. Click Start, then Run. Type msconfig into the box. click OK or hit Enter.
2. You should now see the System Configuration Utility.
3. Select the Services tab at the top.
4. This is very important - check the box that says "Hide all Microsoft
Services" at the bottom.
5. Click the button that says Disable All.
6. Select the Startup tab at the top and click the Disable All button.
7. Click Apply, then OK. Reboot your computer.
8. Once back in Windows a popup will appear saying you have changed settings.
9. Place a check in the box that says do not show this message again.

Please note that the above instructions are completely optional. I have
decided to include this so that there are as few problems with software
conflicts as possible.

Ok, so you are ready to start the installation process. Begin by executing
the client installer you downloaded or insert disc 1 of the retail release.
DO NOT change the default directory that the game wants to install to. This
is critical. Ensure that the install path that appears when asked where to
install to is C:\Program Files\EA Games\Earth & Beyond.

Once the installation process is complete, it is a good idea to run the
Earth & Beyond Configuration which can be found in the Programs section of
the Start menu. This will allow you to change various game settings such as
screen resolution, texture filtering method and so on. After changing any
options, remember to select the performance test to ensure the settings work.

Now it's time to update Earth & Beyond. If you haven't already downloaded
the update patch, I recommend downloading it directly to the root directory
of the game client - C:\Program Files\EA Games\Earth & Beyond. Unlike other
official game patches you may be familiar with, this patch does not
automatically locate the directory to install to. By default it will simply
install to whatever directory it was executed from unless the user specifies
the install destination manually by selecting the browse option. Be sure to
browse to the Earth & Beyond directory when asked where to install the patch
if you downloaded it to a different location (like My Documents for example).

4. Installing the Net-7 server

First, you must extract the Net-7 installer from the downloaded zip archive.
Begin the Net-7 server installation by executing the setup file you just
extracted. Note that currently there is no way to specify where Net-7 installs
to. It will automatically install to the root of your C: drive. Do not attempt
to move the Net-7 folder that has been created to a different location.

Next, open My Computer and browse to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc. Now
right-click on the hosts file and select Open With. Choose Notepad from the
program list. Add the following text to the end of the file (including spaces).

127.0.0.1 local.net-7.org

Before attempting to run Net-7, a SSL certificate must be installed. First,
open My Computer and browse to C:\Net7\bin. Double-click on the file called
local.net-7.org. This will initiate a series of message boxes that will
enable you to install the certificate. In most cases it should be as easy as
clicking the Install Certificate button and simply clicking next in the
prompts that follow. If you are experiencing any problems, there is a very
detailed guide with step-by-step instructions on how to install it at this
forum page - http://forum.enb-emulator.com/index.php?showtopic=1183.

5. Playing the game

Great! You are now ready to begin playing Earth & Beyond. Begin by launching
the Net-7 icon that is on your desktop. You should now be presented with the
Terms of Service agreement along with a DOS prompt box behind it. Click the
I Accept button to continue.

Once you arrive at the login screen, you have two options for a username
and a password. Most will want to start by using the word test as both the
username and the password. This will allow you to start fresh with an account
that you can use to create new characters and customize the avatar and ship
appearances for each one to your liking.

If you prefer to skip the character creation process, you can use the
username VectoR and the password go. This will allow you to select characters
that have already been created by the developer. Don't forget the capital R
in VectoR as it is case-sensitive.

Congratulations! You should now be arriving at the starbase. Feel free to visit
each of the station areas. Try interacting with the various NPCs and terminals.
Have a look in your vault. Once you are ready to depart the station,proceed to
the docking bay and click on your ship.

Once you have arrived in space, have a look around by holding Ctrl and moving
your mouse around. Zoom in and out on your ship by holding Shift and moving
your mouse forward and backward. Open your navigation map by pressing M or
clicking the map icon in the lower left corner. While in the map, click the
last icon from the right at the top twice to see the navigation labels. Try
clicking a few navs, gates or Earth to build a warp path.

After you're done admiring the view and clicking stuff, you can dock at the
starbase again by clicking the large yellow icon representing the base at the
edge of your screen or selecting it from the map and click the dock option that
appears above the target window. At any time you may exit the game by hitting
Esc and selecting Quit to Desktop.

6. Known Issues

INV-300 This error usually occurs when other software running on your computer
is using the ports that the game server is trying to use. If you are using
Skype, P2P or other internet related software, shutting them down should solve
the problem. See section 3 for tips.

INV-301 Known to be caused by an erroneous Earth & Beyond related registry
entry. The only way to fix this problem is to uninstall the game and manually
delete any registry entries related to Earth & Beyond, Westwood and EACom.

7. Reporting Problems

We are aware of most of the problems. Remember this is a work in progress. If
you notice problems with the placement of objects in space, please mention it
to the Data Team in the Feedback section of the forum. Do not report problems
with the stations and NPCs at this point.

8. Troubleshooting

If you are having any trouble along the way, try to retrace your steps and
reread the appropriate section of this FAQ that deals with the step you are
stuck on. Please understand that the devs are working very hard to bring the
game back and may not have a lot of time to help solve every issue. If you feel
you have encountered an issue that is not related to the topics covered in
this FAQ, please post a detailed description of the problem in the forums help
section. I encourage all community members to do the best they can to try and
assist anyone who is experiencing difficulties.

9. Credits

Thanks to RazorWing, VectoR.360, agfot, blasti99, Imp, cyranius, Zanor, Ookami,
davidr99, techtv, zarius, Vaniq, Suricata, kxmode, Snowknight26, Imasock,
tbohner, chronicles, Annihilator, Raptor45, CraZboy, and anyone else I've
forgotten who has contributed to this project and the Earth & Beyond community.

-Jadefalcon
