How To: Minecraft Server Not Working - Why?

I love the game Minecraft especially when playing with friends on my Minecraft server. Minecraft servers are relatively easy to setup. There is plenty of documentation on the Minecraft wiki to explain how to get the Minecraft java executable to run.  However, this is a popular message among people who are starting their first server: 'My friends can't connect to my server?'.  This post aims to help people who have a server running except no one is able to connect. In the majority of cases this guide should help get you and your friends back Minecrafting again!

Port Forwarding
The first thing you need to take care of is port forwarding .  This means opening a port on your home network which allows Minecraft traffic to find your computer. Make sure you have allowed the Minecraft server through your computers firewall. Usually when you first start the server, a message pops up about allowing java access to your network – click allow. Otherwise, you can go into your firewall settings and add an exception as port 25565.

After that has been taken care of you need to allow traffic through your internet router. The port you need to open is: 25565.

My router showing the open port.

Everyone has a different router and this means I cannot explain exactly how to open the port on your router. However portforward.com explains how to do it on most routers.

At this point you should have successfully opened port 25565 through your firewall and router. You can check that it is successful by entering the port number on canyouseeme.org (make sure you do this while the server is running).

IP Address
"My Minecraft server was working but now no one can connect." - This could be because you have a dynamic IP address. Having a dynamically changing IP means that you could find your IP address one day and give it to your friend. The next day it could be a different address and your friend is no longer able to connect.

The best way around this is to set up an account with a DNS service like dyndns.org . This service assigns an address to your IP (eg. <your-minecraft-server>.dyndns.org). Simply sign up to a free account and add a hostname.

Next you need to download the Dynamic Update Client. This constantly updates your IP address with the hostname you created. It is pretty straightforward to install and set up. Once it is running it will constantly update your IP address. As a result you can give your friends this address you created and they will be able to connect every time!

Up-To-Date
If an update comes out for Minecraft, make sure that the server is the same version as the version that your friends have. Make sure you keep Up-To-Date!

Hopefully after following this guide, you will have gotten your Minecraft server running again. Of course there are many other problems that you could stop your friends connecting to your server.  If you have any other questions or suggestions, please let me know in the comments below or feel free to email me. I will probably update this post in future if the need arises.

Happy Minecrafting!

How to get FREE Microsoft Software!

It's not every day you get something for nothing. You may be wondering to yourself "Is this a fake?". Well, this is a genuine and legitimate method to obtain free software from Microsoft. The website which is called dreamspark.com is run by Microsoft itself and offers free software to students! You only need two things, a Windows Live account and proof of being a student. After becoming verified, you can go straight ahead and start downloading FREE Microsoft software!

Just follow the three easy steps below!

1. Head over to dreamspark.com and sign in with your Windows Live ID. 
2. Next you need to verify your student identity. To do this click on 'Get Verified' in the sidebar. You will have the option to become verified through either an ISIC card or through your school. I found the student card option to be the easiest for me.
3. Download free software!

After becoming verified you have the option to download a variety of software Microsoft has to offer. Items for download include: Windows Server 2008, Microsoft Virtual PC and also Visual Studio Professional edition. 

Have fun! And don't forget to subscribe by email to this blog!

The Best Linux Distribution for Netbooks 2012

I have spent some time researching the best linux desktop environment to install on my acer one aspire netbook. Like most people, my Windows 7 Starter OS had become sluggish and I needed a boost in performance. There were a few points that I came up with as requirements for this distro.

• The desktop environment should not be too fancy and graphic intensive.
• It should be easy to use and have nice aesthetic features.
• Another important thing was a system which did not use a lot of memory. 

In my opinion, I have found one that is great for not only netbooks, but for the low-end desktop as well.

The distribution I found best was Linux Mint 11 LXDE
(Currently there is no Linux Mint 12 LXDE)

Why?

Here are five reasons why I have chosen this as the best linux distro for netbooks:

1. It's absolutely FREE: This Operating System is completely free of charge and it is also open-source :D
2.  Ease of use: Linux Mint is probably one of the easiest to use linux distributions, especially for someone who is used to a windows environment. When you click the ‘menu’ icon in the bottom left hand corner of the screen, the range of programs appear in a style almost similar to windows. Many essential programs are installed right out of the box like firefox web browser, a mail client and even dropbox.

1. Aesthetically attractive desktop:  Linux Mint LXDE has desktop that is pleasing to the eye but not too distracting. It also has nice fonts. One of the great things about it being linux is that you can customize how it looks as much as you want.
2.  It uses less RAM: On my acer aspire one netbook, I have 1gb of ram. With no applications open, only 220mb of RAM gets used.
3. Hardware Compatibility: Linux Mint is based off of Ubuntu, this helps in terms of hardware compatibility. Linux Mint is compatible with virtually all hardware, and works perfectly on the acer aspire one.