RCON Reference Guide For Commonly Used Server Commands/Settings

Created By: Email: Website: Game: Last Update:

{PJG} Crimson (a.k.a. Anex) crimson@pjgsquad.com www.pjgsquad.com Call of Duty March 13, 2004

Table of Contents
GENERAL INFORMATION .......................................................................................... 3 Using rconpassword to execute server commands ..................................................... 3 Entering rconpassword once to execute server commands ........................................ 3 Creating a CoD Shortcut to join our server & easily execute server commands....... 3 GENERAL USEFUL COMMANDS............................................................................... 4 Speaking via the Console ............................................................................................ 4 Obtaining a current status of the server ..................................................................... 5 Setting/Changing the Server Time Limit..................................................................... 5 Setting/Changing the Server Score (frag) Limit ......................................................... 6 Changing Map Grace Period ..................................................................................... 6 Enabling/Disabling Kill Cam ..................................................................................... 6 Adding/Removing Team Damage ............................................................................... 7 Enabling/Disabling Freelook ..................................................................................... 7 Enabling/Disabling Enemy Spectate........................................................................... 7 Enabling/Disabling Team Balance ............................................................................. 7 Restarting the current map ......................................................................................... 8 Rotating the map ......................................................................................................... 8 Making the Server Private .......................................................................................... 8 KICKING PLAYERS....................................................................................................... 8 BANNING PLAYERS ...................................................................................................... 9 UnBanning Players................................................................................................... 10 CHANGING MAPS........................................................................................................ 10 MAPS AVAILABLE ON THE SERVER ................................................................................. 10 CHANGING SERVER GAME TYPES........................................................................ 11 Setting Game Type to Death Match .......................................................................... 11 Setting Game Type to Team Death Match ................................................................ 11 Setting Game Type to Behind Enemy Lines .............................................................. 12 Setting Game Type to Retrieval ................................................................................ 12 Setting Game Type to Search & Destroy .................................................................. 12 Setting Game Type to HeadQuarters........................................................................ 12 DEFINING MAP ROTATIONS ................................................................................... 13 RESERVING PRIVATE SLOTS.................................................................................. 17

General Information
First off, whenever attempting to use a command against the server, you must precede it with /RCON and then use one of the following 3 methods:

Using rconpassword to execute server commands

Use the password every time you issue a command, taking care to ensure you place the password within double quotes. Please note that this method is lengthy and problematic as you can accidentally forget to type the slash (/) or even forget to lower the console; resulting in displaying the rcon password to everyone on the server. As such, I do NOT recommend using this method: Example:
/rcon <rconpassword> <then your command> /rcon status /rcon map mp_brecourt

Entering rconpassword once to execute server commands

After joining your server, or the first time you wish to execute a RCON command, type /rconpassword whatever your password is. Using this method will ensure that so long as you remain in Call of Duty, your rconpassword will be set and all you would need to do is simply issue /rcon <then your command>; there is no need to continually type the rconpassword. Example:
/rconpassword myrcon21 /rcon status /rcon map_rotate

Creating a CoD Shortcut to join our server & easily execute server commands
Creating a CoD shortcut, placing the rconpassword and whatever else you wish in the shortcut itself, will allow you to easily and quickly join our server, as well as be able to immediately execute RCON commands, without having to enter the rconpassword. Below are the instructions for creating a CoD shortcut: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Go to your CoD folder, where the game exe files are located Right click on CoDMP.exe and select "Create Shortcut" Rename the shortcut to something like "My Clan Server" Right click on the shortcut and select the Properties option Click on the Shortcut tab, click inside the Target field and press the [END] key

6) Add the following information AFTER the game path (i.e. "C:\Program Files\Call of Duty\CoDMP.exe" note that this is completely unique to where you installed the game so your path may be different): +connect <server IP> +rconpassword <whatever your rconpassword is> 7) Click the OK button 8) Move the shortcut to your Desktop (or wherever you want it) or if you use XP, right click on it and select Pin to Start Menu. Simply select/double click on the shortcut when you wish to join your server NOTE: There MUST be a space between the end quote of the game path and the +connect line.

This way, once you are in the server, all you have to do is type /RCON and then the command. Example:
/rcon status /rcon map_rotate

NOTE:

For the remainder of this document, I will use the method whereby you have already entered the rconpassword, via one of the above methods. I prefer having the rconpassword already defined so you do not have to type it out every time you wish to execute a server command; that and its much safer!

General Useful Commands

Speaking via the Console

Speaking with the console is pretty much the same as if you were speaking; only you have to type the command to talk. The actual command to speak to everyone on the server is "say". You could place whatever you wish to say in double quotes but it's not necessary. Example:
/rcon say Hello everyone, how are you? /rcon say "Hello everyone, how are you?" /rcon say Server is going Retrieval next round /rcon say Server is going Retrieval next round

/rcon say Stop TKing or you will be kicked /rcon say Stop TKing or you will be kicked

The above examples will be displayed on the screen as: Console: Hello everyone, how are you? Console: Server is going Retrieval next round Console: Stop TKing or you will be kicked

Obtaining a current status of the server

"Status", displays a list of the people currently connected to the server, whether they're playing or spectators. It works as follows: Example:
/rcon status

The following is then displayed in your console: Client ID 0 1 2 3 4 5 Score 23 13 33 25 21 12 Ping 45 65 51 30 32 100 GUID 100000 100001 100002 100003 100004 100005 Player Name {PJG} Crimson {PJG} Stalker {PJG} AimRed You Suck! {PJG} Buzz Litebeer {PJG} Flying Nun IP Address 165.56.24.45 65.45.24.57 65.56.21.35 125.54.85.21 24.56.42.51 161.61.41.56

Setting/Changing the Server Time Limit

To change/set the time limit to be used by each map, you would simply type the command and enter a new value. Please note that there are different time limit commands for each gametype. Also note that I created shortcut commands for each setting and gametype. Death Match: Team Death Match: Retrieval: Behind Enemy Lines: Search & Destroy:
/rcon /rcon /rcon /rcon /rcon scr_dm_timelimit "20" scr_tdm_timelimit "20" scr_re_timelimit "20" scr_bel_timelimit "20" scr_sd_timelimit "20"

Note: The time limit command does not currently function. This should be addressed in the patch, but given the rotation we run, time limit is not used so I would prefer we kept it this way using a score limit is the best method (though theres nothing wrong with using both methods).

Setting/Changing the Server Score (frag) Limit

To change/set the score limit, there are a couple ways to do so. The best method is by setting a map score limit. Just like setting a map time limit, there are score limit commands for each gametype. Death Match: Team Death Match: Retrieval: Behind Enemy Lines: Search & Destroy: NOTE:
/rcon /rcon /rcon /rcon /rcon scr_dm_scorelimit "50" scr_tdm_scorelimit "100" scr_re_scorelimit "10" scr_bel_scorelimit "60" scr_sd_scorelimit "10"

(player based score) (team based score) (team based score) (player based score) (team based score)

Both score limit and time limit changes immediately take effect, be aware of this before you make any changes.

Changing Map Grace Period

Call of Duty has a setting allowing teams to organize, players to join, and weapon selections to be finalized before actually starting the round: graceperiod - unique to Retrieval and Search and Destroy game types only. Retrieval: Search & Destroy:
/rcon scr_re_graceperiod "15" /rcon scr_sd_graceperiod "15

Enabling/Disabling Kill Cam

To enable/disable the killcam, being able to review your death from the other players perspective, you would use "scr_killcam". By setting the variable to a value of 0 (off) or 1 (on), you enable/disable the feature. Example:
/rcon scr_killcam "1" /rcon scr_killcam "0"

(Turns Kill Cam on) (Turns Kill Cam off)

Adding/Removing Team Damage

To add/remove team damage (a.k.a Friendly Fire or FF), you would use the command variable "scr_friendlyfire". By setting the variable to a value of 0 (team damage off), 1 (team damage on), 2 (Reflective damage), or 3 (Shared damage both the shooter and team member being shot receive damage), you control the type of team damage used, if used at all. Example:
/rcon /rcon /rcon /rcon scr_friendlyfire scr_friendlyfire scr_friendlyfire scr_friendlyfire "0" "1" "2" "3"

(Turns off team damage) (Turns on team damage) (Turns on reflective damage) (Turns on shared damage)

NOTE:

Setting team damage on or off immediately affects the game play; it does not require a map change or restart.

Enabling/Disabling Freelook
To enable/disable freelook, being able to freely move around the map when dead or as a spectator, you use "scr_freelook". By setting the variable to a value of 0 (off) or 1 (on), you enable/disable the feature. Example:
/rcon scr_freelook "1" /rcon scr_freelook "0"

(Turns Free Look on) (Turns Free Look off)

Enabling/Disabling Enemy Spectate

To enable/disable enemy spectate, being able to spectate the other team when dead or as a spectator, you use "scr_specateenemy". By setting the variable to a value of 0 (off) or 1 (on), you enable/disable the feature. Example:
/rcon scr_spectateenemy "1" /rcon scr_spectateenemy "0"

(Turns enemy spectate on) (Turns enemy spectate off)

Enabling/Disabling Team Balance

To enable/disable Team Balance, having the server check teams and balance them at the end of each round, you use "scr_teambalance". By setting the variable to a value of 0 (off) or 1 (on), you enable/disable the feature. Example:
/rcon scr_teambalance "1" /rcon scr_teambalance "0"

(Turns Team Balance on) (Turns Team Balance off)

Restarting the current map

To restart the current map, you would make use of the command "map_restart". This will reset the map to the specified timelimit and or scorelimit, as well as reset each teams/players individual scores. Example:
/rcon map_restart

Rotating the map

To rotate to the next map, you would make use of the command "map_rotate". This will end the current map and load the next map in rotation (sv_maprotationcurrent). Example:
/rcon map_rotate

Making the Server Private

To make the server private, you simply use the g_password cvar. It is defaulted to contain no value, so your server is open to everyone. Setting it to a value will then require people to connect using the password, as well as require those currently in the server to enter it or be kicked when the map changes or you issue the map_restart command. Examples:
/rcon g_password calmatch /rcon map_restart

To open the server to the public again, you simply clear g_password of its current value. This is done simply by issuing the following: Examples:
/rcon g_password /rcon map_restart

Kicking players
There are a few ways in which to kick players, but I'm only going to cover the easiest and best way to do so. It involves using the "status" and "clientkick" commands. I prefer using this method of kicking as it prevents you from having to type out a players name, which can be lengthy and difficult depending on the complexity of the name. In addition, the player could also change his/her name in mid command and then you'd be forced to re-type the new name. In other words, use the below described method. "Status", displays a list of the people currently connected to the server, whether they're playing or spectators. It works as follows:

Example:

/rcon status

The following is then displayed in your console: Client ID 0 1 2 3 4 5 Score 23 13 33 25 21 12 Ping 45 65 51 30 32 100 GUID 100000 100001 100002 100003 100004 100005 Player Name {PJG} Crimson {PJG} Stalker {PJG} AimRed You Suck! {PJG} Buzz Litebeer {PJG} Flying Nun IP Address 165.56.24.45 65.45.24.57 65.56.21.35 125.54.85.21 24.56.42.51 161.61.41.56

Once this is displayed, you simply find the player you wish to kick from the server and note their Client ID. You then use the command, "clientkick", with the ID of the person, to boot them from the server. For this example, we will kick client #3 for being a bad little boy: Example:
/rcon clientkick 3

Banning Players
Banning players is done almost exactly the same as kicking them, just uses a different command. If you find that someone warrants banning, simply use the above "status" command to obtain the players client id, then use the banclient command. Example:
/rcon status

The following is then displayed in your console: Client ID 0 1 2 3 4 5 Score 23 13 33 25 21 12 Ping 45 65 51 30 32 100 GUID 100000 100001 100002 100003 100004 100005 Player Name {PJG} Crimson {PJG} Stalker {PJG} AimRed You Suck! {PJG} Buzz Litebeer {PJG} Flying Nun IP Address 165.56.24.45 65.45.24.57 65.56.21.35 125.54.85.21 24.56.42.51 161.61.41.56

Once this is displayed, you simply find the player you wish to ban from the server and note their Client ID. You then use the command, "banclient", using the ID, to permanently boot the person from the server. For this example, we will kick client #3 for not getting the hint: Example:
/rcon banclient 3

UnBanning Players
UnBanning players is a little more complicated. There are currently 2 built-in ways to unban a player: 1) using the unBanUser command; 2) Connecting to your server via FTP and removing the player from the ban.txt file. If you banned players using 3rd party software, check with its user guide for info on unbanning. Using the above example banned example, to remove the ban for You Suck!, you would issue the following, matching the players name exactly: Example:
/rcon unbanuser You Suck!

Changing Maps
Changing maps via RCON is done the same way you change it on your own system, using the command "map", and then the map code name. However, the map you use may not work as it depends on the game type currently used by the server. In Call of Duty, there are a total of 12 maps. However, as stated, not all of the maps can play in each mode. To date, there are currently 2 maps that cannot play in Search & Destroy mode, Chateau (mp_chateau) & Ship (mp_chateau). Those two maps are available in the other modes, just not S&D. As such, if you are playing in S&D mode, you will need to change the gametype (g_gametype) to something other then S&D. Examples:
/rcon g_gametype sd /rcon map mp_carentan /rcon g_gametype re /rcon map mp_chateau

Maps available on the server

Map Name DM, TDM, Retrieval, Behind Enemy Lines, & HeadQuarters

Map Code

Search & Destroy

mp_chateau mp_ship mp_brecourt mp_harbor mp_railyard mp_carentan mp_dawnville mp_depot mp_powcamp

Chateau Ship Brecourt Harbor Railyard Carentan Dawnville Depot POW Camp

mp_hurtgen mp_pavlov mp_rocket

Hurtgen Pavlov Rocket

Changing Server Game Types

As you know, there are 6 game types in Call of Duty, Death Match, Team Death Match, Retrieval, Behind Enemy Lines, Search & Destroy, and Headquarters. There are others created by modders, but I will leave those for them to discuss. Each game type has a specific code to represent it. Below are the game types and their associated codes: Game type Death Match Team Death Match Retrieval Behind Enemy Lines Search & Destroy HeadQuarters Code dm tdm re bel sd hq

Changing the game type involves doing 3 things: 1) changing the game type itself; 2) setting the map rotation; and 3) changing to a map within the new game type. This is done by using the command "set" (set a variable to user specified value), and the game type variable "g_gametype". Then you set the map rotation using the map list variable "sv_maprotation". Finally, you select the initial map to be used, using the previously described command "map" and the map code name.

Setting Game Type to Death Match

To set the game type to Death Match and then change the map to Rocket, you would use the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype dm 2. /rcon map mp_rocket

Setting Game Type to Team Death Match

To set the game type to Team Death Match and then change the map to Ship, you would use the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype tdm 2. /rcon map mp_ship

Setting Game Type to Behind Enemy Lines

To set the game type to Behind Enemy Lines to POWCamp, you would do the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype bel 2. /rcon map mp_powcamp

Setting Game Type to Retrieval

To set the game type to Retrieval and then change the map to Chateau, you would use the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype re 2. /rcon map mp_chateau

Setting Game Type to Search & Destroy

To set the game type to Search & Destroy and then change the map to Brecourt, you would use the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype sd 2. /rcon map mp_brecourt

Setting Game Type to HeadQuarters

To set the game type to Search & Destroy and then change the map to Brecourt, you would use the following: 1. /rcon g_gametype hq
2. /rcon map mp_brecourt

Defining Map Rotations

Map rotation is a list of maps the server will load. As it map finishes, it will load the next map in the rotation. Call of Duty has 2 cvars designed to manage this ability (both are used by the server): sv_MapRotation and sv_MapRotationCurrent. sv_MapRotation is the main map list variable and is what server uses to load its list of maps. sv_MapRotationCurrent is auto set by the server itself, based on the maps defined in sv_MapRotation think of it as a memory buffer. The server reads sv_MapRotation, assigns the maps defined in it to sv_MapRotationCurrent, and then uses sv_MapRotationCurrent when loading the next map(s). This can be very confusing as people tend to only set sv_MapRotation, ignoring sv_MapRotationCurrent, and then wonder why the old maps previously defined in sv_MapRotation are being loaded instead of their new ones. To avoid this, server admins MUST first clear sv_MapRotationCurrent BEFORE changing sv_MapRotation and loading the next map. When defining map rotations, you MUST follow the correct format or you risk crashing the server. You MUST precede each map name by the map command (i.e. map mp_harbor). You may also optionally add a gametype for each map in your map list (i.e. gametype sd map mp_harbor). If you do not define gametype for each map in your map list, the server will use whatever mode you have defined in g_gametype. The following are example setups for map rotations:
HeadQuarters Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_railyard map mp_brecourt map mp_rocket //Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype hq //Load the first map map mp_rocket

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in HeadQuarters mode.

Search & Destroy Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_dawnville map mp_carentan map mp_harbor //Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype sd //Load the first map map mp_harbor

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in Search & Destroy mode.

Retrieval Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_chateau map mp_ship map mp_depot //Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype re //Load the first map map mp_depot

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in Retrieval mode.

Team Death Match Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_carentan map mp_brecourt map mp_powcamp

//Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype tdm //Load the first map map mp_powcamp

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in Team Death Match mode.

Death Match Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_ship map mp_pavlov map mp_hurtgen //Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype dm //Load the first map map mp_hurtgen

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in Death Match mode.

Behind Enemy Lines Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "map mp_ship map mp_railyard map mp_pavlov //Define the gametype to be used for all maps in the new rotation set g_gametype dm //Load the first map map mp_pavlov

NOTE:

In the above example, all maps will play in Behind Enemy Lines mode.

Mixed Game Type Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation "gametype sd map mp_dawnville gametype re map mp_depot gametype hq map mp_brecourt gametype bel map mp_harbor gametype tdm map mp_rocket gametype dm map mp_chateau //Define the gametype to be used for the first map to load only set g_gametype re //Load the first map map mp_pavlov

NOTE:

In the above example, each map has its own gametype defined.

Custom Map List Example

//Clear the current map rotation (should one exist) set sv_mapRotationCurrent "" //Define the map rotation set sv_mapRotation map gametype sd map the_hunt gametype re mp_falaisevilla gametype sd map Nuenen gametype re map mp_v2_ver3 gametype sd map mp_offensive gametype sd mp_oase //Define the gametype to be used for the first map to load only set g_gametype sd //Load the first map map mp_oase NOTE: In the above example, each custom map has its own gametype defined.

Reserving Private Slots

Call of Duty allows server admins to establish reserve slots for their team members or friends. By assigning a password to said private slots, a player using that password will be automatically assigned to one of the private slots. Server admins typically use this feature to ensure they or their team members/friends will be able to join the server, even when its full. The variables to use are sv_privateclients (this defines the number of slots to reserve) & sv_privatepassword (this is the password players will have to use to join the private slots). The best way to establish private slots is directly in your server config file, so its always used when your server restarts, but can also be done via the console. Below are examples of both: Examples: Via your server config (recommended method):
Set sv_privateclients 8 Set sv_privatepassword myclanonly

Via RCON (not recommended):

/RCON sv_privateclients 8 /RCON sv_privatepassword myclanonly

NOTE:

Setting private slots does not allow more people to join then sv_maxplayers, but rather takes the number of slots you assign and subtracts from it. For example, if you have a 32 man server, with 8 private slots, your server will only appear as a 24 man server in the ingame browser. Your server will still support 32 players, but once it reaches 24, no one else will be able to connect unless they use the private password.