Network requirements for SLOODLE 2

To use SLOODLE 2 you need your Moodle server to be able to send HTTP requests to your in-world objects in SL or OpenSim. If it can't do that, you'll get a "Server connection failed" error message when you try to use the rezzer.

Some firewalls and network settings make this difficult. Specifically:

Outgoing ports on your Moodle server

Some server hosting companies have firewalls that prevent traffic being sent to the ports used in Second Life and OpenSim.

To send requests to Second Life, you need to get them to open port 12046 outgoing. You should also ask them to open 12043 outgoing, which we may use in future.

If you're using OpenSim, the port you need may depend on how it's set up, but the default port seems to be 9000. See http://opensimulator.org/wiki/Network_Settings for more information.

To check direction what port your grid is trying to use, set up the rezzer then run the following query on your MySQL database:

select distinct(httpinurl) from mdl_sloodle_active_object;

The port number is the part after the server name in, eg if the URL is

http://my.server.example.com:9000/lslhttp/6abc7937-8618-4d96-b4d9-e550411aa32f/

...the port number is 9000.

Hosting companies we know about

We'll fill in information about hosting companies we know about as we get it. If you have problems with a host not listed here, please fill it in and let us know whether they could resolve it.

• Hostgator: Ports are disabled by default. Email support@hostgator.com to get them to open them for you.

Workarounds if you can't do this

If your Moodle host won't open these ports for you, it may be possible to get traffic out of your Moodle server on port 80 or 443 and send it to a proxy server, then from there to Second Life or OpenSim. Please post on the forums if you'd like to try this and we'll take you through it.

OpenSim behind the firewall

If you have a Moodle server outside your firewall and an OpenSim server inside your firewall, traffic may not be able to get from your Moodle server to your OpenSim server. The solution is to set up a rule on your firewall to allow traffic in. You may also need to set up NAT.

See http://opensimulator.org/wiki/Network_Settings for information on how to do this. The OpenSim network settings information is designed for users trying to access the grid from outside the firewall, but the same will apply to a Moodle server trying to access the grid from outside the firewall.

If you prefer not to open up your grid to the public for security reasons, you can limit the permitted incoming IP address so that only your Moodle server is allowed to talk to your OpenSim server from the outside.

Workarounds if you can't do this

If you can't make these firewall settings, it may be possible to work around it by creating an SSL tunnel from your OpenSim server to your Moodle server. Please post on the forums if you'd like to try this and we'll take you through it.