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ARK Commander 1.2.0b receiving some final touches prior to Patreon release.

Hello everyone!

Atlas Server Control 0.1.8.0b has been uploaded, the main change with this release is a fixed Server Grid Editor.
All Island assets are accounted for and will no longer be sunken into the ocean.

Commander is set to receive a revised blueprint list for Atlas shortly, adding all the missing items that have been slowly creeping in over time.  A massive thank you to CompactDisc on our Guilded platform for putting this together, it’s no small feat.
I will be pushing this update to Commander HiVE today but keep in mind, there are new categories that will not show an icon until I release Commander 1.1.2.  Not a big deal but something to keep in mind should you notice.

Hello good people of the interwebs, I hope you are safe and well.

There have been some whispers I’ve given up on my projects, not so!  I’ve been waiting in the wings for significant changes to be made on the games I support, not to mention keeping 1.5meters away from my keyboard because, well, it’s a keyboard.  Who knows what nasties lie within.  (enough crumbs to coat a schnitzel)

As with a lot of peeps across the planet, Covid has thrown a fat spanner into the mix.  Working from home comes with many challenges I was not expecting, one of those being “motivation”, it’s a big ask when your working flat out on software for your employer to slip away and work on side projects, code fatigue is as real as Covid and my penchant for fast food.  Bless High Metabolism, this skinny fella will blow out soon.

Waffle waffle so what’s happening?   ok

Commander 1.1.2 with Crystal Isles mapping, Hive updates and fine tuning (yeah, put the color numbers back on the Painter dammit!)  Violet Exchange is currently 48 Patreon subs overdue, I’m terrible but working on it believe me.  I’m not going to reinvent the wheel here, Ark-API already does a stellar job so I will focus on getting map data into Commander first and foremost.

Atlas Server Manager – HOOOOJ update coming, I’m talkin’ new Server Grid Editor, all the islands, a metric ton of additional server settings and my love generously slathered all over the setup wizard, he doesn’t mind.  (oof)

As I’ve said in the past, SparcMX is here for the long haul.  I’m already 4 years in and I’m still waking up in the morning, awesome!

Commander 1.1.0 has been released to Patreon, head there now for early access to the greatest ARK admin tool available for as little as $1.
patreon.com/sparcmx  Public release will follow shortly.

I’ve spent quite some time getting the base functions stable before I delve deeper into quality of life features, I feel that moment is almost here.  The latest changes in this release were dramatic, the entire Update system was pulled out and re-coded from the ground up.  The driving force behind this change was the Steam Depot and lack of reliable source for version/build information, I have developed a new way of obtaining this information outside of Steam and so far, it’s been reliable and stable.
The next wave of updates should usher in a new layer of time-saving features and inventive methods.

Atlas Server Control (ASC) is designed to take the headaches out of setting up your own Atlas server for private or public use.  Configuration is a joyful point-click affair requiring very little knowledge of running a game server of this calibre.
ASC will also monitor the running cluster providing automated updates, scheduled events and statistics via an intuitive interface.  The Sync Server allows the control and sharing of information from remote servers that are part of your cluster, this ensures no matter what machine your working from, complete cluster control is there with you. 

Features

• Start, Stop, Automatic updates
• Schedule based restart and config change system
• Sync Server to control shards running remotely
• Integrated Server Grid Editor
• Point and Click config creation
• Supports new and pre-existing installations
• Integrated Redis database control
• CPU, Mem, Player count datalogger per shard
• TileMap Server (coming soon)

Click here to visit Wiki and Download

It’s not bad, really  😎  Just means there is only so much that can be done each day.  So much has happened in the last 6 months it’s flown by but progress has been made.  It would seem Commander 1.0.9, Violet Exchange and ATLAS Hive will all be ready at the same time!  I did not plan it this way, fluke.
I’ve stripped back some features in Violet Exchange for stability, I’ll add more bot commands post release.  Commander will be lacking some maps but that will change post release too, I got some help.

ATLAS Server Control (ASC) was created out of necessity, my own Atlas cluster desperately needed a method to take care of the servers.  Like most things, I went overboard and threw the kitchen sink in.  This is not your average game server, there are a few 3rd party components required to get it all working and larger maps that require many physical servers.  Launching, monitoring, updating and detecting crashes is ok for 1 machine, but what about 20?
I’ve developed a way to link ASC clients to a master client, so the cluster can be managed from one place as a whole (even from home).   Preliminary code is working great, it needs error handling and some handshake functions on the socket (connection establishment stuffs) oh, and encryption duh.

Note:  While you are able to see what the remote servers are doing, start/stop/update and syncing them with ASC is a premium feature for Patreon.  Programming requires copious amounts of chocolate, coffee and oxygen – for as little as $1 I get to eat chocolate and you get to become a super admin.
If you want to share your lunch with me, smash that Patreon banner on the front page (just below the #1 Aussie Host).

Hey wait, what about Glider???  huh?
Yes, umm well since I slapped together a better map control for Commander that lets me get my vector on, I realized Glider would benefit greatly with this control.  Soooo, once I’ve released Commander, I’ll revisit Glider and with a bit of luck, not get VAC banned again.

Hello everyone, quick update regarding the next Commander release.  ATLAS support has been implemented and working as it should, this was a little more involved than just adding the blueprints.  Atlas has a whole new raft of specific commands that needed a home and Ark had filled all the space, so Commander will now reshuffle its interface based on which game your playing!  Atlas mapping will also be coming to Commander.

More soon..

It’s been quite a while since I’ve updated my blog, many things have changed in my life and for the better.  I’ll start off by saying the support I’ve received for this project has been nothing short of amazing, the team of volunteers that formed around me, assisting in all aspects of community management, software support, gameplay tips and ideas (deep breath)  I cannot thank you enough, without your support Commander would be a skeleton of what it is today!  Another round?

Violet Exchange is now being tested for the final time before I release it to Patreon.  Violet will provide the mapping data to Commander clients who possess the server key, it will allow them to visualize all objects on a map.  A nice zoomable map with no limit on what you can display, foundations, players, dinos and all the stats associated to each.  In addition, you can manage your server with discord bot commands, my favorite is the “Report Crashlog Kill PID” command, admins will come to appreciate this feature.

Glider is sitting on the shelf at the moment, there is too much going on with Commander and Violet for me to allocate any time to it.  Its possible the new mapping control will be transplanted into Glider, hopefully making the manual keyframing less clunky.

We’ll speak again real soon,

• Sparc

Grab it on the Downloads Page, lot’s of fixes and a couple of additions.