V  W  E     S  O  F  T  W  A  R E     R  E  L  E  A  S  E     5.04

Installation Procedure

Tesla II System
BattleTech Firestorm
Version 5.04

This document addresses the procedure for installing the software and getting the cockpits updated.

I.	Preparation

Step 1.	Turn on the console.
Step 2.	Turn on all the cockpits.
Step 3. Turn on the mission review PC.

II.	Prep the Pods and MR for the update

Step 1. Using the console, “Kill” all the pods.
Use the box in front of the pod name.  Click on the box and select “kill” from the drop down menu.  Do this for each cockpit.
Step 2. Using the console, “Kill” the mission review PC.
In the last slot, use the menu option to select “Cameraship”.
Use the box in front of the pod name.  Click on the box and select “kill” from the drop down menu.

Step 3. Use the ALT+F4 key combination to exit the “Battletech Firestorm” application.
Step 4. Use the ALT+F4 key combination to exit the “mw4print” application.

III.	Verification of Shared Folder access

Part of the update requires that the console has access to shared folders on each of the pod PCs.

Before attempting to perform the update, we need to verify that the console has this access to proper folders on each PC.  Do the following:

Step 1. Click on the “Network Neighborhood” icon to open.
Step 2. Double click on “Entire Network”.
Step 3. Double click on “Microsoft Windows Network”.
Step 4. Double click on “Tesla”.

At this point you should now see all the cockpits and mission review listed in the window.

Step 5. Double click on “Alpha1”.

You should now see the following folders:
Batch
Drivers
Gameleap
Mw4files
If you see all these folders present then you have verified that the PC is setup correctly for the update.

Repeat Step 5. for each computer and verify each one.  Don’t forget to verify Alpha-mr as well.

If you DON’T see all these folders present please call VWE Support (312-953-1228 or 1227) for further instruction.

After verifying all the pods and mission review, please close the “Network Neighborhood” window.

IV.	Update Batch Files

The batch files are the files that include files run upon windows startup and other utilities used by the PC to automatically handle the software startup process.

Step 1. Using the CD-Drive, Insert the “Game Software 5.04” CD

On the Desktop should appear a DOS based menu.

Step 2. Select option “1”.

The following menu should appear.

Step 3.  Select option “A”.

The setup will start copying files to the console PC.  When complete it should look like this.

Step 4.  Press any key to continue…

Step 5.  You should now be back to the Update Batch Menu.  Repeat this update process for each of the cockpits 1-8, as well as the mission review PC.

Step 6.  When all have been successfully completed, select “X” to return to the main menu.

V.	Game Software Install

Now we will actually install the game software.

Step 1.  From the main menu, select “2”.

The files should start copying the game software from the CD to the console PC.  This will take several minutes to complete.

When the transfer is complete…

Step 2.  Press any key to continue…

Step 3.  From the main menu, select “X” to exit the installer.

Step 4.  Remove the CD from the CD-drive and store safely.

Step 5. Using the CD-drive, insert the “Game Software 5.04 Disk 2” CD

Step 6.  From the main menu, select “2”.

The files should start coping the remaining game software files from the CD to the console PC.  This will take several minutes to complete.

Step 7.  Press any key to continue…

Step 8.  From the main menu, Select “X” to exit the installer.

Step 9.  Remove the CD from the CD-drive and store safely.

VI.	Set the PCs to auto update upon reboot

This section will step you thru how to set the PCs to auto update upon reboot.

Step 1. Click and Open “My Computer” from the desktop.
Step 2. Double Click “Local Disk (C:)”.
Step 3. Double Click “Batch”
Step 4. Double Click “Update”
Step 5. Double Click “Update.bat”

The following menu should appear: 

Step 6. Two methods can be used here.  You can individually select each cockpit, and mission review.  Or you can Select “A” and it will process thru all the computers.  We recommend that you select each cockpit individually so that if any issues occur, you will know exactly which cockpit caused the issue.

A cockpit has been prepped correctly if you see this:

Step 7.  Press any key to continue…

Step 8.  When all cockpits, and mission review, have been prepped, select “X” to exit the main menu.

VII.	Updating the Pod PCs

This section will take you thru the process of remotely rebooting the PCs in order to update them properly. 

***WARNING***
DO NOT REBOOT ALL THE PCs AT ONCE.
***WARNING***

	Step 1. Reboot the console PC.
		Wait for the console to come up before proceeding.

Step 2. Using the box in front of the slot for “Pilot 1”, select “Reboot” from the pull down menu.

Pod 1’s PC should reboot and upon windows startup start downloading the game software from the console PC.  When the download is complete, the PC will automatically startup the game software, and become ready to play.

Step 3. Wait until Pod 1 comes up and indicates “Idle” by the console.

Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each cockpit, and then mission review.  Wait until the pod responds as ready, before rebooting the next PC in line.

Do not reboot multiple PCs at the same time.  Game software corruption can be caused when multiple PCs are accessing the console PC to download the software at the same time.

VIII.	Mission Review Video Installation

Once all the PCs have rebooted and indicated “idle” on the console, do the following. 

Step 1. Using the console, “Kill” the mission review.

In the last slot, use the menu option to select “Cameraship”.
Use the box in front of the pod name.  Click on the box and select “Kill” from the drop down menu.

Step 2. Insert the “Game Software 5.04 Disk 2” CD into the CD-drive.

Step 3.  From the main menu, Select “3”.

The files should start copying the mission review video file from the CD to the console PC.  Then the MR video file will be copied from the CD directly to the mission review PC.  This will take several minutes to complete.

Step 7.  When complete, press any key to continue…

Step 8.  From the main menu, select “X” to exit the installer.

Step 9.  Remove the CD from the CD-drive and store safely.

Step 10.  Reboot the mission review PC either thru the console option, or directly at the PC.

IX.	Installation Complete

Once all the PCs have rebooted and indicate “idle” on the console, the installation process is complete.

Run a few test missions using various maps and Mechs’ to verify that you don’t have any software corruption during the update process.

If you have a cockpit that you suspect of having corrupted software, use the update file process in Section VI to set the auto update process and then use the console to reboot the PC in question.

If new bugs are discovered, please report them to VWE as soon as possible.  Bug reports need to be as detailed as possible so bugs can be reproduced.

TECHNICAL NOTES:

Dual Head Video Cards:
Since the installation of the new equipment we have seen that the dual head PCI video card seems to be a repeating area of failure.  Reviewing the components and the logs of comments from the technicians in the field, it appears that the most common failure occurs when MFDs are being adjusted or re-connected.  Please be very aware that a incorrect connection of the video cable at the MFD can cause damage to the dual head PCI video card.

Frame Stuttering or apparent lag issues:
Whenever you reformat a hard drive and reinstall the operating system and game software, the windows settings for memory tend to reset to default settings.  By adjusting the virtual memory settings of Windows you may get better performance.  In order to do this, follow these steps:
1.	Turn off PC, connect keyboard to the PC, and restart the PC.  The PC won’t recognize that a keyboard has been connected unless the keyboard was connected at boot-up.
2.	Once the PC has booted up and the software has started, hit ALT+F4 on the keyboard twice.  This should kick you back to the desktop on the main screen.
3.	Hit ALT+F4 one more time and you will get the “Shut Down Windows” dialog box.  Select “Log off Gameuser” and hit OK.
4.	Username: administrator
5.	Password:  If you don’t have this, get password from the Amusement Manager or call VWE Support.
6.	Once logged in, tab to the “start”, hit spacebar, arrow up to “settings”, and select “Control Panel”
7.	Select “System” and hit Enter.
8.	Tab to the “General” tab, and right arrow to the “Advanced” tab.
9.	Tab to the “Performance Options” and hit spacebar.
10.	Tab to the “Change” under virtual memory and hit spacebar.
11.	Change the “Initial size” to 512.
12.	Change the “Maximum size” to 1024.
13.	Tab to the “Set” button and hit spacebar.
14.	Now you can just tab to the “OK” and hit spacebar, and repeat for each window until all are closed.
15.	Shutdown and reboot the PC.

Unfortunately, there is no remote way to do this for each PC, and there isn’t a way to have this preset by the installation process.  The D&B Denver store has tried this, and stated that there was improvement in the frame-rate of the units.  If your units are performing with no issues, then this process may not be required.

Michel ‘Firestorm’ Lowrance
Director of Software Development
mlowrance@virtualworld.com
(312) 234-9600 x208

VWE Support
(312) 953-1228 or 1227