Bynary808

It sounds like you're playing on the Xbox console since the PC GamePass version in the Windows store is the same as the current Steam version (these are the PC general support forums). Microsoft added 7 Days to Die to Xbox GamePass, but the Xbox GamePass version is still the original Xbox version that hasn't been updated since 2017 and currently doesn't appear to have any plan for updates: Console News | 7 Days to Die Xbox update - General Discussion - 7 Days to Die

This is a bit complicated since adding Microsoft store games to Steam as a Non-Steam Game doesn't work by default for UWP (Universal Windows Platform) Games. There are workarounds to adding UWP games to Steam (e.g., using UWPHook (https://github.com/BrianLima/UWPHook)), but even then there can be issues. That being said, there is a steamclient64.dll in the Windows store version install directory. I edited the platform.cfg file to change the first line from platform=XBL to platform=Steam. I then used UWPHook to add 7 Days to Die as a Steam game and then restarted Steam. After restarting Steam I can see 7 Days to Die and launching it from Steam first displays an error: "Windows cannot find 'C:\WINDOWS\system32\custominstallexec.exe'. Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again." After clicking "OK" to acknowledge, the 7 Days to Die launcher is presented and clicking "Run" in the launcher with the defaults presents a 7 Days to Die Launch Error stating "Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed." After exiting that Launch Error (the only option), I ran it again from Steam (same initial error) and then deselected "Use Easy AntiCheat (EAC)" from the launcher to see if it would run without EAC. At that point, the game started and then presented an error "Steam Login. Could not fully initialize Steam: The Steam client is not running or no connection possible." From there, the only option is to Exit Game since Retry does nothing. TLDR: Interesting idea, but seems to have some issues.

Sorry to hear you had the same issues, but I am glad to see some confirmation the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC version issue isn't just us @bulldogg0. We felt the same about the game despite the Windows store version issues so we also ended up buying the Steam version (the two pack option was a big help)... Also, thanks again to @Star69 for all of the help and information. For others with the Windows store version and issue, they helped confirm that the Steam version was much more stable and reliable since I was a bit gunshy. My friend and I both bought the Steam version and then setup the Frag free dedicated server trial so we could confirm performance and stability before fully committing and we've been having a blast and *knock on wood* haven't had any issues even with some much longer than planned game sessions Hopefully The Fun Pimps are able to get the Windows store version issue resolved at some point so the Windows store folks can have as much fun with this game as the Steam folks (and us Steam converts).

Thanks again, @Star69. I posted an official bug report here and have been adding comments as I find more data points: https://community.7daystodie.com/a20-bug-database/bug-pool/windows-xbox-gamepass-for-pc-204-b42-clients-crashing-to-desktop-consistently-~30-minutes-with-dedicated-vanilla-hosted-server-r625/ I haven't seen any kind of response yet, but I know those things take time so I don't expect anything quickly... maybe this will help the future Windows store 7D2D players

To update again, the official response from G-Portal was as follows: Hello, So long story short, This is the steam version of the game so running any other versions of the game does not guarantee the server will work for you unfortunately. We do not host any other versions aside from the Steam version of 7DTD. Hello, So there appears to be some confusion regarding what is now multiple PC clients with the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC version. After this, we tested on a Frag.gz hosted server and also a BlueFang hosted server and received the same results (although the first CTD on the BlueFang server was at 15 minutes with the rest at the expected 30 minute intervals).

To update again, the official response from G-Portal was as follows: Hello, So long story short, This is the steam version of the game so running any other versions of the game does not guarantee the server will work for you unfortunately. We do not host any other versions aside from the Steam version of 7DTD. Hello, So there appears to be some confusion regarding what is now multiple PC clients with the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC version. After this, we tested on a Frag.gz hosted server and also a BlueFang hosted server and received the same results (although the first CTD on the BlueFang server was at 15 minutes with the rest at the expected 30 minute intervals).

Thanks again, @Star69. In the meantime, we tried the Frag.gs free 24 hour trial and like GPORTAL performance was great and no errors... until the crash to desktops at exactly 30 mins. Fun, fun

Thanks, @Star69! I found a server that looked like a public Bluefang server (BlueFangSolutions.com 44178). My friend and I (both Windows store clients) were able to stay connected past the 30 minute CTD window previously experienced; however, we both had an error while loading in that broke the group window (Failed initializing window group players... Specified cast is not valid). No idea what that is about, but obviously a bit gunshy after the last hosting service so I'll PM you to see if I can get access to yours to see if that's a one server issue or possibly another challenge we might face with Windows store clients. It's always fun being early to the game

Just to update this issue in case it helps anyone else from a server hosting/rental perspective, I submitted the following issue to GPORTAL as a support ticket in addition to the bug report here for the crash to desktop: We're experiencing a consistent and reproduceable issue with disconnects every 30 minutes (timed) happening on (2) different PCs running the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients. I posted this issue to the 7D2D support forum and another forum member tested their Steam client with this server and did not experience the disconnect at 30 minutes. After that test, I connected to another public server and I was able to remain connected without disconnecting for ~60 minutes. Based upon these results, my current assumption leads to the idea that adding XBL authentication to the 7D2D PC version likely added additional port/protocol requirements and possibly something is happening with the XBL authentication/verification at almost exactly 30 minutes that is not allowed by the G-Portal hosted 7D2D server causing the issue with Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients (where the Steam clients on the same server work fine). I'm not sure what new configuration requirements were added when 7D2D added the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients, but my suspicion is that it added additional ports/protocols and there is some kind of authentication/validation happening at 30 minutes which is failing (possibly not allowed on the G-Portal hosted server). Please let me know if I can provide any additional information. The response I received was surprising and indicative that there is some confusion with the addition of the Windows store PC clients to the 7DTD PC game (and Microsoft likely has some blame since they keep adding "Xbox" to their PC gaming items): Hello, So long story short, This is the steam version of the game so running any other versions of the game does not guarantee the server will work for you unfortunately. We do not host any other versions aside from the Steam version of 7DTD. As such, for the foreseeable future I'd recommend any 7D2D Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients to avoid GPORTAL unfortunately... we've had great success with them on other games and to be fair their 7D2D PC server ran great during the many 30 minute sessions we played, but since they only recognize the PC Steam version I can't work with them on whatever is causing the 30 minute CTDs on their server.

I have submitted a ticket to G-Portal support for the 30 minute disconnects, but I don't have any specifics on what the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients are trying to do at 30 minute intervals causing the issue vs. the Steam client which does not have that issue to help identify the issue for the server hosting provider. However, as stated above I believe the 7D2D clients actually crashing to desktop when the issue occurs is a 7D2D issue that should not happen when a server side issue occurs. Please let me know if I can provide any additional information.

I have submitted a ticket to G-Portal support for the 30 minute disconnects, but I don't have any specifics on what the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients are trying to do at 30 minute intervals causing the issue vs. the Steam client which does not have that issue to help identify the issue for the server hosting provider. However, as stated above I believe the 7D2D clients actually crashing to desktop when the issue occurs is a 7D2D issue that should not happen when a server side issue occurs. Please let me know if I can provide any additional information.

To update this bug post: I continued testing this issue with the help of @Beelzybub and I was able to connect to their test server and remain connected without a crash to desktop for ~60 minutes. After that test, I connected to another public server and I was able to remain connected without a crash to desktop for ~60 minutes. Based upon these results, my current assumption leads to the idea that adding XBL authentication to the 7D2D PC version likely added additional port/protocol requirements and possibly something is happening with the XBL authentication/verification at almost exactly 30 minutes that is not allowed by the G-Portal hosted 7D2D server causing the issue with Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients that does not appear to be an issue for Steam clients on the same server. I've attempted to find a list of 7D2D port/protocol requirements after the PC Windows store version to see what may have changed (and may not be allowed on the G-Portal server), but so far all I can find is the standard port forwarding information. As such, the root cause appears that it could be something with the hosted server config, firewall config, etc. for the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients only.; however, I would expect that if the 7D2D server has an issue with authentication the 7D2D clients should 1) not crash to the desktop and 2) log an appropriate message in the client output log to indicate the source of the issue.

To update this bug post: I continued testing this issue with the help of @Beelzybub and I was able to connect to their test server and remain connected without a crash to desktop for ~60 minutes. After that test, I connected to another public server and I was able to remain connected without a crash to desktop for ~60 minutes. Based upon these results, my current assumption leads to the idea that adding XBL authentication to the 7D2D PC version likely added additional port/protocol requirements and possibly something is happening with the XBL authentication/verification at almost exactly 30 minutes that is not allowed by the G-Portal hosted 7D2D server causing the issue with Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients that does not appear to be an issue for Steam clients on the same server. I've attempted to find a list of 7D2D port/protocol requirements after the PC Windows store version to see what may have changed (and may not be allowed on the G-Portal server), but so far all I can find is the standard port forwarding information. As such, the root cause appears that it could be something with the hosted server config, firewall config, etc. for the Windows store/Xbox GamePass for PC clients only.; however, I would expect that if the 7D2D server has an issue with authentication the 7D2D clients should 1) not crash to the desktop and 2) log an appropriate message in the client output log to indicate the source of the issue.

Just to update, after uninstalling and reinstalling the 7D2D Windows store clients I'm still seeing the same consistent crash to desktops at each 30 minute interval. I looked through the bug reports and don't see any other reports for the Windows store - Xbox GamePass for PC clients for any reason, but that's not too surprising since it just came out publicly last week. As such, I went ahead and submitted a bug report to see if someone with the Windows store client can reproduce since I don't see anything else to try at this point other than buying the Steam 7D2D clients instead: Windows Xbox GamePass for PC 20.4 (b42) Clients Crashing to Desktop Consistently ~30 Minutes with Dedicated Vanilla Hosted Server - Bug Pool - 7 Days to Die Thanks again to Beelzybub for all of their time and assistance attempting to isolate and troubleshoot the issue!

I was able to get access to the server log, but from what I can tell I can't see anything from the server side except it's showing the disconnects (and the crash to desktop timing from the server side is consistently 28-29 minutes connected: https://pastebin.com/g3XAtQUf I was thinking about this one... even if I was able to get access, I'm guessing removing XBL (Xbox Live) would probably not allow us to connect if I understand it correctly since we're connecting via Xbox Live and not Steam.

I'm not seeing anything in the logs I can find via the hosted server website. The logs they have listed for access are: configstore_log.txt connection_log_26982.txt service_log.txt stats_log.txt systemmanager.txt I know the forum guidelines mentioned posting the server output log but I don't see how to get access to that and I'm assuming that's the one I'll want since those others really don't show anything. I can submit a ticket to the hosting service to see if I can get access to the output log to see if I can find anything there unless there is another log file I need? I'm also not seeing how to access the platform.cfg file via their interface... I do see other config files available, but none with that reference.

So this is where things get a bit odd due to Microsoft branding... There isn't an Xbox really involved other than the Xbox branded application installed on Win10, so there isn't any actual Xbox (hardware) involved to reboot. Neither of us are on WiFi so that shouldn't be a factor and our disconnects are at 30 minute intervals timed based upon individual clients and consistent enough I'm very skeptical to blame individual routers. One interesting note I saw when Beelzybub was logged in: At the top of the G-Portal server there is a line indicating active players (IP: XX.XX.XX.XX:26980 (Query Port: 26981, Rcon Port: 8161) Active Players 0/10 I didn't notice it before since I wasn't watching it, but when Beelzybub logged in with Steam it obviously showed Active Players 1/10. However, after that when my friend tested it showed Active Players 0/10 and sure enough even when we were both logged in later it showed 0/10. I'm sure this is because we're both playing via Xbox PC GamePass we're authenticating to the 7D2D server with Xbox Live profiles where the server is only counting Steam logins (the games are managed/updated under the Xbox app in Win10 so Xbox profiles are used). Since we're disconnecting individually I can't come up with a scenario how that might have an impact (e.g., if time paused since there weren't any active Steam logins, but then we'd both be dropped at the same time). However, we can see each other (and they could see Beelzybub) listed in the server player window in game and the other player continues to play on the server if the other crashes to desktop. I know folks have been playing on Steam forever, but I do know it was just added to Xbox PC GamePass a few days ago and as far as I can tell it wasn't on the Windows store before that so my mind keeps wandering in that direction...

Just to update the issue status: Beelzybub very graciously connected to the server and was able to stay connected for over 50 minutes without issue using the Steam client. I had my friend connect to the server alone and play to see if there was a potential conflict between the two of us both playing together, and they were disconnected at 30 minutes even playing alone so I'm doubting it's an issue between the two of us (especially considering our crashes to desktop are based upon individual login times). So that leaves me with a potential issue with the Windows store version of the client? Is anyone else using the Windows store client with a dedicated hosted server yet... and if so, any issues? I'm guessing we're about to the point of submitting a bug report with the Windows client, but I'm open to trying anything else if there are any ideas.... Thanks again to Beelzybub for their time in helping to troubleshoot.

Good to know! I'll just leave it running from now on

I'm game to give it a shot. I'll PM you the info now... I don't have the server running 24/7 since we only play when we both have time and didn't want to suddenly log in to a crazy incremental 7th night I think that would definitely help to isolate it to the server... or another thing I was thinking about last night. I'm guessing you'd be using the Steam version, where we have the Windows store version I started with when it notified me of the "new release" (even though it has Steam all over in the log files and paths. As such, I was wondering if it might be something that worked on the Steam version but might be an issue in the store conversion.

I'm their "tech assist" so they usually just login as me. It hasn't been an issue with any other games so far (including other Windows store games) and I would expect that if login was an issue it would be startup and not 30 mins later for both systems. You're right about the PCs... I forgot they grabbed one similar in a sale, so correct that to "minor" differences in setup (CPU, GPU, hard disks, etc.). We just played again for a bit and now we're both timing and allowing for seconds difference in starting stopwatches, the crash to desktop is exactly 30 mins. This last time I joined about 10 mins after them and was able to play 10 mins after their crash until my own. Are there any processes, checks, keepalives, etc. that happen on a 30 minute interval? I have to feel like that interval is too specific and consistent to be a coincidence.

I recently started playing 7D2D from the Windows store (not Steam) and managed to hook a friend into playing so we rented a dedicated server on G-Portal. We're having a lot of fun, but seeing a strange issue where we both are crashing to desktop individually at almost exactly 30 minute intervals. Regardless of who joins first, if we're in a party or not, or anything else we've been able to try, almost exactly 30 mins after starting the first player will crash to desktop with no errors. Then the second player will crash to desktop when they reach almost exactly 30 minutes and we'll repeat that cycle throughout our playtime. If I play singleplayer, I don't seem to have the constant 30 minute crashes, but I did see it when I attempted to host for my friend (which is why we went to a dedicated hosted server). I also tried disabling EAC and GameSparks per some other discussions but it didn't make a difference. My "typical" client output log: https://pastebin.com/1KBW78Z0 My friend's typical client output log: https://pastebin.com/w3eNbrXZ Our server is a dedicated server hosted through G-Portal, so I can't see how to access the output log there if that matters. Looking through the other support posts, I'm really not seeing anything jumping out at me and I'm not sure what (if anything) happens on a 30 minute cycle that might cause this type of issue. We're both really enjoying the game, but I'm hoping for some help so we can get to longer consistent play sessions. It might help to add we have fairly different PC setups, but we play a lot of cooperative multiplayer games (Ark, Icarus, etc.) and this is the first with this issue. Thanks in advance for your time.