Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

[Snowball]

I'm having a bit of a problem trying to find the technical support area of the forums here, so I'm having to post here for now. I'm sorry.

Anyway, I'm having a real problem trying to update my game! *AAARRRGGGHHH* On the second part of the update, (the bit with the double bars instead of one) it gets to 99% and then gets stuck, and won't continue on from there! This is the second time I've tried to update my game, and for the second time this has happened to me!

I've taken a screenshot to show the update, so hopefully it should give a few of you an idea of what is happenong. Click Here

The top bar says "skipped" and where there is a .dat number (79) next to it, the game keeps going through a few numbers, but it just WON'T continue from where it says "Time remaining : 03" So basically, it kepps getting stuck at that, and I don't have a clue what is causing it!

Can someone please help me out here? I haven't been able to play my game for nearly 2 months now *AAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH* and I'm getting quite desparate to try and get this thing sorted out!

It's getting quite out of hand too, cause I'm paying my monthly fees for a game I can't even play, which to me is VERY RIDICULOUS!

I want to get this game sorted out A.S.A.P. so I can start playing again!
I don't want to have to throw my game in the bin!!

[Snowball]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

I've just tried to load up my game after going through that faulty update, and now I'm getting this. Click Here
I didn't even get any error messages during the installation either.
So why is it doing this to me?

I don't have much of a clue what is causing it, except to ask that could it be the way I am installing my game, and which parts of the game should be installed into which folder.

When you first install the PoL disc, it creates 2 folders.
One which says "PlayOnlineViewer" and the other one which says "TetraMaster"
Now, should I be installing the actual game into the "PlayOnlineViewer" Folder, or can it be installed anywhere, because I have been installing the actual game into a different folder (with a name I created myself) other than the "PlayOnlineViewer" Folder, and I'm just wondering if this maybe what is causing my problem, though I'm not really sure at all.

[Treth]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

i have ps2 version, so idk if i can b much help... but im thinkin from what ur saying that u should put it next to Tetra Master and PlayOnline, not IN PlayOnline. like for the ps2 version, the HDD contains 3 parts when u click on it= PO, FFXI, TM. So I'm assuming that u dont put it in playonline or in ur own folder, id just put it next to the others... idk if thatll help

as for the error, id just do what it says, reinstall it. sure its annoying as hell, but maybe something messed up somewhere and all u have to do is try again snf ur char data shouldnt b deleted when u reinstall FFXI at least if u reinstall it within a month... i think :X

[neighbortaru]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

snowball, i'm gonna venture a guess and say your files might be corrupted. Here's what you can try:

1. scan your hard drive for errors (right-click your drive. click properties. click the tools tab. click "Check Now" under Error-checking)
2. defragment your hard drive (same place as before, just click "Defragment Now" under Defragmentation)
3. Install POL and TetraMaster from the first CD into a new folder ("d:\PlayOnline" for example).
4. Start POL and let it update.
5. Install Final Fantasy into the same new folder ("d:\PlayOnline" if you used that).
6. Install the Zilart expansion.
7. Install the Chains expansion.
8. Start FFXI and let it update.
9. Go out, catch a movie/dinner/whatever while it updates.
10. Come back and check on it. Hopefully it's all good now.
11. If it's all good, create another new folder and call it "FFXI-Backup"
12. Copy (not move, copy) the entire FFXI directory ("d:\PlayOnline\Final Fantasy XI") into here. This you can use in the future if you ever have to reinstall the game again. Just copy all the files back into the FFXI dirctory and save yourself the hassle of updating again.

[Snowball]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

neighbortaru.
Okay, here's something else I've just noticed.
From your reply, for the installation of the 2 expansions, you have listed Zilart before Chains.

Well, I have been installing Chains beofore Zilart, since it has 2 discs and not one. (Hence FFXl with 3 discs, Chains with 2 discs, and Zilart with 1 disc, in that order)
Can I just confirm that Chains comes before Zilart in the installation of the expansions, or should it be other way around?
So in other words.... is it 3, 1, 2, or......
3, 2, 1? Heh heh.

If I HAVE been installing the expansions in the wrong order, then I wonder if this has been the real cause of my problem.
PLEASE HELP!

P.S. - I don't really want to (and have absolutely NO intention to) defragment my drive. This may take ABSOLUTELY HOURS, (and up to a day, which is even more waiting time than waiting for FFXl to update, and FFXl roughly, has been taking around 3 hours, which isn't too bad really) and I just DON'T have the patience for it.

[neighbortaru]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

um it really shouldn't matter, but i've always installed zilart before chains simply due to the fact that it's the more current expansion. if it updates any files, i would not want to copy older files (from zilart) over newer files (from chains).

if you don't want to sit through a defragment (doesn't take that long unless you've filled the disk and haven't defragmented it for the life of the system), the very least you should do is an error check.

[Lunaryn]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

Defragmenting seems to have different results depending on the situation, and I've heard of enough data loss problems that I don't generally recommend it unless it's really clearly indicated. Running chkdsk is recommended, though.

What I suggest for those who actually have their OS install media is just to go ahead and in the first place make separate partitions for OS/progs and for data, so that when things start to get cluttered or dated, reinstalling the OS is a viable option. In my case, I don't actually use Windows for anything but FFXI, so reinstalling isn't an issue anyway, though I do actually have a separate partition for FFXI (basically because I was testing to make sure FFXI would run this way, before sending someone a removable HDD to run their FFXI off of). My important data's all on ext2 filesystems anyway, if I need it from Windows, I'll just run explore2fs and copy it, or grab it from a Samba-exported share if it's on my server.

If you actually delete and reinstall POL Viewer and FFXI and still get a problem w/ the same dat file, I suspect the problem is actually with the HDD. If all else fails, find that one dat file, move (not copy) it somewhere else, say the root directory. Rename it "badspace.bin" or somesuch, and make it readonly and/or hidden. Then delete the rest of FFXI, and reinstall. Don't defrag if you do this, though.

I don't know what tools there are anymore to mark space as bad if chkdsk doesn't want to do it for you. I used to be able to do this manually with Norton Utilities 4 but that was back under DOS 3 or so.

[Snowball]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

Hi again everyone.

Guess what???

I have FINALLY managed to get my game updated..... and FINISHED!
YAAYYY!! *does a little dance, then celebrates it with a big bottle of vodka* Heh heh.

I don't know how I managed it...... BUT I DID!
And now I can login and FINALLY (after 2-3months of tedious torment!) play FFXl again. YAYYY!!
I've missed the halloween event, which I would have liked to have taken part in, but I'm just VERY glad that I can play again! (I expect there will be another halloween event next year, so hoping that I don't get any problems again at that time, I can wait to do the event next year. I don't think I'll be repeating the xmas one though, since I did that last year, and successfully got all 3 trees from it too)

Moreover, I didn't do any defragmenting of my game.
I did do a disk check though, like neighbortaru suggeted, and everything seemed to be fine. I also uninstalled my game and installed it in a slightly different place.
I don't know how any of these 2 options could have caused my game to work better though, but they did, greatfully!

There is however only one slight problem. (this is a minor thing compared to befoer) As the day goes on, as more and more players are connecting to the net, and logging into FFXl, I keep getting pushed out/disconnected.
And I seem to get a better reception to play during my mornings.

[ibroyles]

Re: Update Problem With Game. Desperate Help Please!

There is however only one slight problem. (this is a minor thing compared to befoer) As the day goes on, as more and more players are connecting to the net, and logging into FFXl, I keep getting pushed out/disconnected.
And I seem to get a better reception to play during my mornings.

Unfortunately a pretty common problem nowadays. I get D/C'ed on average 2 times a day, its frustrating but luckily since its a widespread problem people usually understand(ie getting disconnected in party).