[Freeciv-Dev] Re: connection problem (PR#358)

[Reinier Post <rp@xxxxxxxxxx>]

> Now how should we solve this problem (the send buffer gets filled and
> the client doesn't reply fast enough)?

Omnne of the nice Freeciv features was that it's still quite playable
and quite fair to players with slower connections.
 
> 1) increase the buffer dynamically forever? (vulnerable to DoS attacks)

Make the maximum buffer size a server setting?

  /set autocutsize 32K

Or as an extra, support a timeout in seconds.

  /set autocutsecs 10

means 'feel free to cut a player's connection if it doesn't respond
within 10 seconds'.  For each client, store the current time upon
reading a packet and compare it to the current time upon writing one.
This would protect the server against clients that are unused or that
lose connection in an unclean way.

> 2) just discard those packets (it's what we are doing now)

1.10.0 doesn't, it's only been happening since your patch.

> 3) close the client connection and clean up the buffer?

After the max size is exceeded?  Yes, if possible -
the /cut command is supposed to cut the client's connection
and I don't trust it, it doesn't update the player list.

> I'm in favour of 3.  Any objections? :)

Yes!  Using a server variables would make servers less or more generous
towards players with slow connections.  This can be very useful.

> Vasco Alexandre da Silva Costa @ Instituto Superior Tecnico, Lisboa
 
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