Get a free Amazon Web Sever - I set it up there and have had zero issues. A t3micro sever is free.
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Online Home Poker (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter kk405
- Start date
Do you think this is also a way to make sure the game is secure? The idea of someone having to host the server seemed off-putting to me, given all the data must past through that point. What security is in place to prevent the host from peeking into the data?
The host would have to reverse engineer the code. I can't see anything in the logs, or anywhere else. I trust the AWS security way more than my home network, but with my 40 something players, not open to the Internet people in general, I am not worried about security.
codeman00
Flush
Ha. That easy, huh? I didn't even know I needed to go to a website to get a server, let alone knowing how to set up my router to communicate properly etc. This probably isn't going to happen without some detailed instructions, web links, and help. I didn't see any instructions on the maven site...nowhere did it say where to get a server or that I needed to get one.
Thanks though!
It really wasn't that difficult. Hit me up via PM and I can walk you through it.
I went with the server simply because I didn't want to open my home firewall ports. Plus it doesn't hinge on my ISP bandwidth. Win-Win
LotsOfChips
Flush
Tech warning - this is a dumbed down explanation, but is still a bit complicated
You don't need a dedicated server. Your home computer can be the server. Any web site resides on a server, whether it is some huge corporation with a bank of dedicated servers, or Joe Blow's personal fetish website running on a 20 year old Windows 98se clunker.
Server is just a term that means the computer that the software resides on. The clients (browsers visiting a website, or in the case of Poker Mavens, players, including yourself) connect to the server to access the information that the client software needs to present the web page/poker game to the user. Things like this once were called a master/slave relationship, now server/client relationship is the preferred term. In the case of Poker Mavens, the poker game interface, including the lobby and the tables, is more or less a web site as far as the players are concerned.
Setting up the server software (Poker Mavens program) on your home computer is really fairly easy, but it does take a wee bit of tech savvy. The biggest hurdle in getting it working on your computer is setting up your firewall and router to allow players to connect with the server. The firewall's job is to prevent any random person from getting into your computer to mess with it, and usually requires you to establish the connection before it allows two way communication. But in order for the players to connect to the server, they need to be able to initiate the connection to the server (your computer). So you need to tell the firewall that this particular program should allow incoming connections.
The router is what you use to connect to the Internet, and is usually supplied by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), probably a phone company or cable company. Without getting too technical, the Internet has a whole bunch of different addresses (public), and your ISP has assigned you one. That is the Internet address of your router. You can connect a whole bunch of computers to that router, each of which has a different address (private). That is the Network address of your computer.
Because the clients only see the Internet (router) address, and the server is located on your computer (Network) address, the router needs to know where to send incoming connection requests. So you need to tell it (program it) where to send the connection requests. This is called Port Forwarding, and there is a section in your router setup page that handles this.
A few minutes with google should help you to program your particular firewall and router. There is a user manual at Poker Mavens https://www.briggsoft.com/docs/pmavens/PMHelp.htm that has links to server setup, IP address setup, and router setup, although the last two are general in nature. You will need to search for setup info for your specific firewall and router.
OR - get your teenager (the one who resets the clock on your PVR/microwave oven) to do this for you.
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LotsOfChips
Flush
If the host is truly bent, then really there is little that can be done to prevent it, although in this case he would have to be VERY adept at programming in complex computer languages and reverse engineering, or have a lot of money to "invest" in having someone else do it for him. Someone actually did this and is now trying to flog a program that hosts can use. He is charging (or trying to) $10,000 for the software, and the Poker Mavens developer has fixed the vulnerability in the latest version.
But as the PM developer stated in a thread discussing this hack:
... everyone should know this: a poker site is only as honest as the people who are running it. The software is irrelevant in that regard. The site owner is running the software on their own hardware. Even if they don't have the source code, they still have access to debuggers, memory scanners, packet sniffers, and other reverse engineering tools that they can install on their server to spy on or manipulate the hand results. This is true for every poker site in the world, from my software to PokerStars and everyone in between.
That statement "a poker site is only as honest as the people who are running it" is true for ANY poker game, whether in a casino, an Internet site, or a home game. Trust is built over time, and is dependent on your relationship with that person, and the amount of money available. For most home games, even on the Internet, either you know and trust the host, or the money involved is pretty insignificant, or both. But it doesn't hurt to keep your eyes open for irregular betting patterns in any game you are playing, and in any location you are playing it (check out this this thread https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/cheating-allegations-at-stones.47537/ for a discussion of "Crotch Theory Optimal")
OH WOW! Poker Mavens is freaking awesome! I hope I can convince the regulars to switch over to it...
Hmm...maybe that's the issue with bluestacks chat..il. give it a try
Thanks
madforpancakes
Straight
Yup, that's how I have done it. No balance til my phone starts buzzing!
Thanks @Señor Tony ... chat seems to work the same with bluestacks... no echo of input, but it still goes into the chat
I'll try using my PC next time...
Right, I don't fill the accounts of the users until I get PP or Venmo. No money in the software.
LotsOfChips
Flush
A bit late to the game with this response, as three others replied while I was typing (speed keyboarding lessons, here I come).
The software is strictly play money. It's up to you to collect and distribute the actual cash (and to program the players accounts accordingly). In Canada we use electronic transfers between bank accounts. Fast, safe, secure, and no fees.
Jeevansluck
Royal Flush
I LOVE to hate online poker.
Keeps me away.
Happy to wait for REAL poker..
Keeps me away.
Happy to wait for REAL poker..
I just miss my poker buddies. During this screwed up time, I need some kind of break from the insanity. Watching them squirm as their nut flush falls to my FH helps...
Jeevansluck
Royal Flush
SendThatStack
3 of a Kind
For those playing on PokerStars cash games, how do you deal with the rake?
While all of this is true - if you host at home - your Internet is the bottleneck. If it's you and 8 guys - no problem. But any connection issues are your fault.Tech warning - this is a dumbed down explanation, but is still a bit complicated
You don't need a dedicated server. Your home computer can be the server. Any web site resides on a server, whether it is some huge corporation with a bank of dedicated servers, or Joe Blow's personal fetish website running on a 20 year old Windows 98se clunker.
Server is just a term that means the computer that the software resides on. The clients (browsers visiting a website, or in the case of Poker Mavens, players, including yourself) connect to the server to access the information that the client software needs to present the web page/poker game to the user. Things like this once were called a master/slave relationship, now server/client relationship is the preferred term. In the case of Poker Mavens, the poker game interface, including the lobby and the tables, is more or less a web site as far as the players are concerned.
Setting up the server software (Poker Mavens program) on your home computer is really fairly easy, but it does take a wee bit of tech savvy. The biggest hurdle in getting it working on your computer is setting up your firewall and router to allow players to connect with the server. The firewall's job is to prevent any random person from getting into your computer to mess with it, and usually requires you to establish the connection before it allows two way communication. But in order for the players to connect to the server, they need to be able to initiate the connection to the server (your computer). So you need to tell the firewall that this particular program should allow incoming connections.
The router is what you use to connect to the Internet, and is usually supplied by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), probably a phone company or cable company. Without getting too technical, the Internet has a whole bunch of different addresses (public), and your ISP has assigned you one. That is the Internet address of your router. You can connect a whole bunch of computers to that router, each of which has a different address (private). That is the Network address of your computer.
Because the clients only see the Internet (router) address, and the server is located on your computer (Network) address, the router needs to know where to send incoming connection requests. So you need to tell it (program it) where to send the connection requests. This is called Port Forwarding, and there is a section in your router setup page that handles this.
A few minutes with google should help you to program your particular firewall and router. There is a user manual at Poker Mavens https://www.briggsoft.com/docs/pmavens/PMHelp.htm that has links to server setup, IP address setup, and router setup, although the last two are general in nature. You will need to search for setup info for your specific firewall and router.
OR - get your teenager (the one who resets the clock on your PVR/microwave oven) to do this for you.
AWS provides a free solution - PM me and I can walk you through setting it up. Iv'e gone gold on Poker mavens and have 60 members, many games running. I'm happy to add anyone interested. PM me for the details.
Zoom meetings while hosting poker has REALLY made it feel much more like a home game. @DoubleEagle can vouch for me - our games have really made this much easier to deal with the lockdown.
I'm starting to wonder if my account may get flagged. Multiple $15-20 transactions coming and the fewer big transactions going out. If they ask, what beside gambling looks like this? Collecting for food delivery?
If that's the case, I'm fucked. I have over 12k in my 'bank'
It's now all I have to look forward to for Friday and Saturday nights (or Saturday Sunday mornings for me) I've informed the wife that it's my regular activity lol
We are playing right now sir - three tables
Id love to but I'm working. And I know I won't get anything done if I play lol
LotsOfChips
Flush
Just tell them that you are a low budget dial a dope operator...
LotsOfChips
Flush
How do you deal with the 40 minute limit on meetings, or do you have a subscription (probably, if you sprung for the Gold version of PM)
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