Homecoming Launcher Public Beta

[Golden Azrael]

Faster.  Strong...urrrr.  More PowUrFUL.

 

Seems to have a problem with Window's Option Tabbing to other windows?  

 

Azrael.

[Voltor]

Well it was launching on my old XP box fora  bit now it says when opening "Failed to launch bootstrap, this may be due to internet connection"  PC is connected via wifi and launcher did work before on it.

[EmmySky]

7 minutes ago, Voltor said:

Well it was launching on my old XP box fora  bit now it says when opening "Failed to launch bootstrap, this may be due to internet connection"  PC is connected via wifi and launcher did work before on it.

For some reason my old eyes read this as you were playing on an old X Box and I was like DUDE but no, I just cant read tonight lol.

[agentx5]

I just want to say thank you, and that it's been working with no issues for over a month now.
This was a much needed security update.

Would like to see a more graphical layout with a pretty "play" button or something.

 

The only bug I saw when transfering over was that it didn't save my setting where I see time-stamps on chat and where I see a numeric time display on powers on that cooldown (which is very useful).

[Boudicia.Dark]

I'm using bitdefender and it will not allow me to install this launcher. I even turned off all bitdefender's functions and still, it just wont. I dont understand the whole "white list" thing, dont even know where exactly to find that in the interface. Somehow  in the years since shut-down, Ive grown old and ignorant of how to make the computer stuff do the things or not do the things. Anyway, I did see other people struggling with bitdefender, anyone out there able to help an old feeble headed lady with this?

[PaganSteel]

I am having a problem with the new installer. It runs, it makes the new directory separate from Tequila, but it does not seem to finish, or end. I do not have any new Icons on my menu or on my desktop. Task manager shows HC Launcher (32 bit) as running 0.1% processor occasionally, 4.6 MB memory, no disk or network usage. What gives? I have shut it down, restarted, Deleted new directories and run it again. Same result.

[Groovy]

Bitdefender Total Security here.  Install will not finish when both pulling info from Tequila or not.  Sounds like similar issues to the last few posts.

 

1.  I get a "Threat Detection" notification from Bitdefender.  It says "Bitdefender blocked a threat accessed by application launcher.exe."  Odd thing is that when I click on more details, it opens Bitdefender notifications but there are NONE listed even with my notifications icon is showing I have new notifications.  

2.  I also get the "Homecoming: City of Heroes Error" - which states "Could not load boostrap package.   This may indicate an internet connectivity issue"

3.  Under Firewall settings "Launcher.exe" is showing as access allowed

 

At this point, I'm not sure where to go or what exceptions /rules I should put in Bitdfender

[DELLsFan]

On ‎10‎/‎13‎/‎2020 at 1:27 PM, Number Six said:

Welcome to the public test of the new launcher for Homecoming: City of Heroes (or HC Launcher for short)!

 

Internally codenamed ‘Project Hangover’, the new launcher is intended to function as an officially supported successor to take the place of programs like Tequila. This post is a high-level overview of the launcher. There is a separate post with a technical deep dive here.

 

Looking for a quick start?

Click here to download the launcher!

Note: This needs to be installed to a new location (not your existing CoH install directory)

If you are currently using Tequila it will offer to copy over most data

 

 

This testing phase is focused on using the launcher under Windows. It is fully functional when running under wine on Linux, but installing wine varies from one flavor to another. Manga has an experimental build of Island Rum that can act as a bridge to the new launcher on Macs available here.

 

HC Launcher has three primary design goals: Speed, Security, and Compatibility.

• Speed: The launcher is supposed to get you into the game, it shouldn’t take any longer than absolutely necessary to fulfill this function. Tequila and several other launchers are based on .NET, and as a result have noticeably slow startup times on some systems. HC Launcher is designed not only for fast startup and faster patching, but also to avoid long and unnecessary file verification, or delays due to Internet latency.
• Security: This has been a frequent criticism of Tequila and its use of unauthenticated manifest files. By putting in a manifest file, you are in effect trusting the author of that manifest with complete access to the user account you’re running it under, since it can download and run arbitrary code. It also lacks protection against man-in-the-middle attacks, making it impossible to know if a malicious third party has hijacked the manifest. HC Launcher addresses all of those issues by using strong cryptography to verify the integrity of itself and everything it downloads. More details can be found in the technical deep dive post.
• Compatibility: HC Launcher is written in C and uses many of the same libraries as the game itself. As a result, it should run in any environment that is capable of running the game, such as wine on Linux/Mac, without any additional work.

 

Important note: HC Launcher uses a different file layout for the client install, reorganizing it to make it easier to manage. As a result, it cannot coexist with Tequila and must be installed to a different location. By default it attempts to locate existing files to avoid having to redownload them, as well as migrate user data. More information about the new layout is available in the technical deep dive post.

 

The new game layout is completely self contained and is fully ‘portable’. Nothing is registered system-wide and the files can simply be moved to another location, or deleted if you want to remove it.

 

Please post any feedback or bugs in this forum. Thank you!

 

Infected web page detected by my Bitdefender antivirus

Feature:

Online Threat Prevention

"We blocked this dangerous page for your protection: http://cdn.homecomingservers.com/hc/launcher/3305/win32/launchercli.exe.xz Accessed by: launcher.exe

Threat name: Gen:Variant.Fugrafa.6013

Dangerous pages attempt to install software that can harm the device, gather personal information or operate without your consent."

 

Please advise.

[WanderingAries]

1 hour ago, DELLsFan said:

 

Infected web page detected by my Bitdefender antivirus

Feature:

Online Threat Prevention

"We blocked this dangerous page for your protection: http://cdn.homecomingservers.com/hc/launcher/3305/win32/launchercli.exe.xz Accessed by: launcher.exe

Threat name: Gen:Variant.Fugrafa.6013

Dangerous pages attempt to install software that can harm the device, gather personal information or operate without your consent."

 

Please advise.

What did you click on to get that file? It doesn't match ANY of the links in the OP thread at all. I don't like the ".xZ" extension though,

 

This is the link to download the launcher from above: https://manifest.cohhc.gg/launcher/hcinstall.exe

[WanderingAries]

5 hours ago, Groovy said:

Bitdefender Total Security here.  Install will not finish when both pulling info from Tequila or not.  Sounds like similar issues to the last few posts.

 

1.  I get a "Threat Detection" notification from Bitdefender.  It says "Bitdefender blocked a threat accessed by application launcher.exe."  Odd thing is that when I click on more details, it opens Bitdefender notifications but there are NONE listed even with my notifications icon is showing I have new notifications.  

2.  I also get the "Homecoming: City of Heroes Error" - which states "Could not load boostrap package.   This may indicate an internet connectivity issue"

3.  Under Firewall settings "Launcher.exe" is showing as access allowed

 

At this point, I'm not sure where to go or what exceptions /rules I should put in Bitdfender

Have you tried any of these? I don't have it, so I can't test.

 

For you as well: @Boudicia.Dark, @PaganSteel

Edited November 25, 2020 by WanderingAries

[JanessaVR]

I tried to install this, but my BitDefender went nuts.  It says it's a virus threat:

 

We blocked this dangerous page for your protection:

http://cdn.homecomingservers.com/hc/launcher/3417/win32/launchercli.exe.xz

Accessed by: launcher.exe

Threat name: Gen:Variant.Fugrafa.6013

Dangerous pages attempt to install software that can harm the device, gather personal information or operate without your consent.

 

So, I guess I'll have to stick with Tequila for now.

 

[TalonMC]

On 11/20/2020 at 4:59 PM, Voltor said:

Well it was launching on my old XP box fora  bit now it says when opening "Failed to launch bootstrap, this may be due to internet connection"  PC is connected via wifi and launcher did work before on it.

I'm getting a similar error when trying to install the new launcher on my PC.

 

"Could not load launcher bootstrap package.  This may indicate an internet connectivity issue."

 

[Groovy]

21 hours ago, WanderingAries said:

Have you tried any of these? I don't have it, so I can't test.

 

For you as well: @Boudicia.Dark, @PaganSteel

Thank you.  I tried all of these and no luck.  Of course, based upon Bitdefender's reaction it looks like the Launcher.exe file is the file that's causing the issue.  It's listed as an acceptable app and I put the folder where's located AND the file as an exception.  No dice.

[Grouchybeast]

On 11/25/2020 at 11:41 PM, Groovy said:

Thank you.  I tried all of these and no luck.  Of course, based upon Bitdefender's reaction it looks like the Launcher.exe file is the file that's causing the issue.  It's listed as an acceptable app and I put the folder where's located AND the file as an exception.  No dice.

I've just had the same problem, and listing the programmes and folder didn't work for me either.  However, adding 'cdn.homecomingservers.com' as an exception to the Online Threat Protection module in Bitdefender sorted it out.  (Protection --> Online Threat Protection settings --> Manage Exceptions --> Add an exception)

[chi1701]

On 11/25/2020 at 8:03 AM, JanessaVR said:

I tried to install this, but my BitDefender went nuts.  It says it's a virus threat:

 

We blocked this dangerous page for your protection:

http://cdn.homecomingservers.com/hc/launcher/3417/win32/launchercli.exe.xz

Accessed by: launcher.exe

Threat name: Gen:Variant.Fugrafa.6013

Dangerous pages attempt to install software that can harm the device, gather personal information or operate without your consent.

 

So, I guess I'll have to stick with Tequila for now.

 

That is weird, since ive just installed it, run it, downloaded or sideloaded and started the game just fine, and I have BitDefender

[TalonMC]

I don't have BitDefender.  I have something called Cisco AMP for Endpoints, and I don't see a way to add exceptions to it.  I added the "HC Launcher" app to the list of apps allowed through the Windows Defender Firewall, but I'm still getting this error when running the new launcher installer.  Any ideas on how to get the installer to finish on this laptop of mine would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!

[arthurh35353]

I can't seem to log into the launcher now, as when it goes to the homecoming web page server, it gives an app error and fails to load the page.

[SuperPlyx]

9 hours ago, arthurh35353 said:

I can't seem to log into the launcher now, as when it goes to the homecoming web page server, it gives an app error and fails to load the page.

Same for me , if you mean the forum login, altho tbh I am not sure what the point of that is anyway.

[Amphetamine]

On 12/16/2020 at 8:24 PM, arthurh35353 said:

I can't seem to log into the launcher now, as when it goes to the homecoming web page server, it gives an app error and fails to load the page.

I have the same issue & if I leave the Launcher open it is using a lot, A LOT, of memory causing lag. 

[Groovy]

On 11/27/2020 at 5:21 AM, Grouchybeast said:

I've just had the same problem, and listing the programmes and folder didn't work for me either.  However, adding 'cdn.homecomingservers.com' as an exception to the Online Threat Protection module in Bitdefender sorted it out.  (Protection --> Online Threat Protection settings --> Manage Exceptions --> Add an exception)

Worked like a charm!!  Thanks Grouchy!

[UberGuy]

During installation file copying, the "Cancel" button on the progress window is unresponsive, and thus does nothing. I realized I'd typo'd the target directory and tried to cancel, but could not.

[plymster]

On 11/3/2020 at 6:16 PM, Selune Do' Might said:

i also am running into that same issue.  also on win 7 64bit edition.   first pic is after i try to mouse over it, second is after some clicking  then opening a window over it then dismissing window, but just goes back to 1st pic when i mouse over again to log into beta or normal servers

I'm also getting the "things being black" problem.  I'm also on Win 7, 64 bit.  Has this been resolved?

 

I can still play fine (once I find the "Homecoming" widget), so it's not a major issue for me.  It's just weird.

[lemming]

Same issue here with the blackness on a Win 7, 64 bit.

[Odee]

I must be doing something wrong.  The Prerelease and Beta buttons say Not Installed, and I can't find out where to get those.  Damn Google to eternal pits of flame.

[WanderingAries]

1 hour ago, Odee said:

I must be doing something wrong.  The Prerelease and Beta buttons say Not Installed, and I can't find out where to get those.  Damn Google to eternal pits of flame.

 

Checkout the instructions under the "Launcher Main Screen (Initial Install):" section