Steam has suddenly made it impossible for me to play HL2 in OFFLINE mode!

G

Goethe

Guest
The copy of HL2 I bought a month ago had been working fine until this afternoon. While I generally play in offline mode, today I made the *mistake* of loading the game while I was online, and as it is typical, Steam decided to update itself. After Steam downloaded everything it needed to download, I kept receiving a message indicating me that "Steam is having trouble connecting to the Steam servers" every time I tried to log on to my account. Interestingly, this is the first time since I installed the game that I am asked to enter my password and user name.

I am not sure I care if I am able to connect to the servers, as I only play the single player game, but the problem is that after this update it has been impossible for me to play HL2 in offline mode. When I try to start the game in offline mode I keep receving a message saying that "there is no Steam login information stored on this computer" and that "you will not be able to use Steam until you can connect to the Steam network again".

Here are some things you might wish to know:

1) I have winXP. I am on dialup.

2) I DO NOT have XFire, nor had I ever heard of it.

3) The Steam.exe file IS NOT set to run in any compatibility mode (all the boxes in the compatibility tab are and have been unchecked).

4) I deleted the ClientRegistry.blob file a couple of times but this did not fix the problem. I double click on the HL2 icon, Steam comes up, downloads some updates, and then I am left with the first error message I described above.

5) My win xp sp2 firewall is turned off.

6) I reinstalled Steam but this did not fix the problem.

What else can I do?
Anyone else having this problem?


PS: I tried to post this at the Steampowered forums but apparently those forums are down - can someone verify this?
 
If you said you don't have XFire, how have you not heard of it..?
 
If you said you don't have XFire, how have you not heard of it..?
Click to expand...

It was mentioned in the FAQ. I have no idea what it is nor HAD I ever heard the word XFire
 
Go into your steam settings window, and in the account tab, make sure "don't save account information on this computer" is unchecked. Exit Steam, disconnect from the internet, and then load Steam up again. That should hopefully fix it. If not, try restarting when exiting Steam.

If that doesn't work, try loading Half-Life 2 while online, then repeat the above process.

If all else fails, try validating half-life 2 again.
 
Go into your steam settings window, and in the account tab, make sure "don't save account information on this computer" is unchecked.....
Click to expand...

I can't get that far. When I load Steam I get a login window asking me to enter my password, and then two other options to create or retrieve an account. I enter my information, click on login and I get the message I just mentioned.
 
So this also happens when you're online?
Click to expand...

This happens only when I am online. When I am offline I get this message:

Steam - Error
Unable to connect to the Steam network. 'Offline mode' is unavailable because there is no Steam login information stored on this computer.

You will not be able to use Steam until you can connect to the Steam network again.
To Check the status of the Steam network please visit http://steampowered.com/status
 
FYI:
I am running a legal copy of Half Life 2. I have not used any cheat or any crack. I have no reason to believe my account was banned. Any ideas?
 
In that case, I would assume it is the combination of the steam servers being extremely busy today, and your slow internet connection, that's causing the problem.
 
That could be it I guess. Although it makes me wonder why, if the servers are overwhelmed, Steam is still able to download the updates each time I run Steam after deleting the ClientRegistry.blob file.

I am sure I am not the only one on dialup, have you heard of other people having this same problem?

Also, how long do you think I should wait until I am able to play this game? I paid for a game I cannot even play, great.
 
I don't usually help people who make stupid topics like "im going to sue valve" But as im in the christmas spirit :D

Ok you said the steampowered website is down so i'll cut and paste some of the support section here.

This is what I belive your problem is, because i've used windows xp SP2 firewall and it's a sly bugger, SO PLEASE make sure it's not the firewall.

Firewalls
The last situation you might run into is where you used "logout and exit" and then have an internet connection problem (most typically caused by your firewall). This also happens when you delete the Clientregistry.blob file which stores your password.

In this case, when you try to run Steam, it will come up and tell you that you can't log into Steam until you connect to the internet. Because your firewall is selectively blocking only Steam (usually due to an update) you can still browse the web so it looks like you don't have an internet problem, and indeed, you don't. What you have is a firewall problem.

The solution there is to open your Firewall User Interface and remove all references to Steam.exe and HL.exe, then run Steam again. This time, your Firewall will ask you if you want to allow Steam to have access to the internet and so you say yes, and now Steam will connect to the Steam Network and ask you to log in.

In the unfortunate case where the player installed a firewall, then manually deleted the firewall directory and executables (he didn't use the add/remove uninstall tool) he might very well still have parts of the firewall running in memory where he can't see them, but they are still there trying to protect him from problems.

In this case, Steam and HL will work until the game executables get updated, and then the Firewall will see that the signatures have changed and will start blocking Steam and HL from accessing the internet.

This is the most common cause of Steam getting stuck updating and then give the message "Failed to connect to the Steam Network"

Unfortunately, there is no user interface left for the player to control the firewall, and in fact doesn't even think he has a firewall installed so he's stuck.

Usually the only way to fix this is to go re-install the same firewall or an update of that firewall and then uninstall it properly using the add/remove tool in the control panel.

If you are unable to remove the blockage and you are unable to repair your installation then often the only last option is to re-install your operating system.

This could also be your soloution, from another support section.

General Fixes:
Assuming that your connection to the Internet is working with other applications (browser, e-mail, etc.), connection problems with Steam can occur for a number of reasons.

The most common ones are outlined below.

1. Your Internet Connection
Check the stability and reliability of your Internet connection.
An unstable connection can cause Steam to download improperly, or your attempt to connect to a server might time out.

There are many online tools that help you to check for problems with your connection, here are tow of the more popular:
http://www.dslreports.com/tools
http://www.speedguide.net/analyzer.php

If you suspect that you are having a problem related to your Internet Connection, please contact your ISP.

2. P2P, FTP and Web Server Applications
Make sure that you're not running P2P programs like Kazaa or LimeWire in the background. These programs can consume a large portion of your bandwidth. The same is true for FTP and Webserver applications.

3. Security and Firewall and Anti-Virus Software
If you're using security or firewall or anti-virus software, train them to recognize Steam.exe and all instances of HL.exe and HL2.exe as trusted programs. Consult your program manuals for how to do this.

Typically, if you have a connection problem immediately after a Steam update it is being caused by your firewall.

The best solution is to go to the firewall permissions and remove all references to Steam.exe, HL.exe and HL2.exe and let them be relearned again. Just because there are existing permissions does NOT mean they are correct permissions!

You should also only be running one firewall at a time. Never run two or more firewall programs, they can conflict with each other and cause many different connection problems.

4. Firewalls and Routers
If your computer is behind a router with a firewall, you'll need to open the ports that Steam uses to connect to the Internet. Most embedded firewalls require you to open ports manually (they don't learn automatically). Routers without firewalls rarely need to have ports opened for game client (but usually do for game servers).

If your configuration software requires port numbers, please use the following:

*
UDP 1200
*
UDP 27000 to 27015 inclusive
*
TCP 27015 to 27039 inclusive
*
TCP 27040 and 27041 only for CyberCafe Owners

For help on port forwarding for your Router, please consult this excellent website: http://www.portforward.com.

For assistance with your Firewall you will need to go to the support site for your particular Firewall. Windows XP SP1 firewall does not require any specific configuration changes for Steam to work but XP SP2 firewall does.

Now i'm going to take a wild guess and say that you blocked steam accessing the internet to get it to run in offline mode? SP2's firewall is super slimy and is probably doing something to your internet connection.

Long post.
 
I'm getting the same problem but I'm on high speed cable. It can update but it wont let me connect, the same as you. My router is exactly the same as it is when it Steam was working so it's not that. I've deleted anything that has to do with Steam/HL in my Firewall and that did not work. I even totaly cut off my firewall and did not help. I've scanned with ad-aware for anything, got nothing. My ani-virus has picked up nothing. I've done everything in that post that Ben quoted.

Wait, I haven't checked my varification for a while. Which file should I check first?

EDIT: It's been 3 days. I can still get the "update" when I delete the .blob stuff D:
EDIT: I can't check shit, it needs to log in. Also, when I try to log in, my computer locks up for 5 seconds and then is smooth for about one second, then locks up again untill I get the warning. D:!

Aw, I planned to go h4rdc0r3 in The Trenches :<
 
Why do people have problems whit STEAM and Half-Life 2? I don't :)
 
I had a similar problem today when, absolutely out of the blue, I start up HL2 and it says it can't play in Offline mode because no username/password info has been stored on the computer. Grrr, okay, that pisses me off but I assume I accidentally unchecked the "save username/password info" box a few days ago when I last played. So after an hour or so of Steam updating shit and whatnot, I start up HL2 only to have Steam (henceforth referred to only as Shiit) make the absolutely amazing revelation that "this game is not ready to be played in offline mode." I can't believe I paid $40+ for this bullshit.

Shiit lets me play as it used to if I dialup on to the internet, but the moment I disconnect or give the phone cord a yank HL2 crashes to the desktop and Shiit tells me it can't pull up the game files. All because Shiit couldn't remember my username and password. I just wanted to play the game!!!
 
If you come onto a forum with an attitude like that do you expect help?
 
Given the situation I don't think it's totally unwarranted. I'm sorry if you can't understand. No, wait, actually I'm not, since to understand you'd have to experience it, and I'm not that cruel. :thumbs:
 
OD-Black_Fire said:
I'm getting the same problem but I'm on high speed cable. It can update but it wont let me connect, the same as you. My router is exactly the same as it is when it Steam was working so it's not that. I've deleted anything that has to do with Steam/HL in my Firewall and that did not work. I even totaly cut off my firewall and did not help. I've scanned with ad-aware for anything, got nothing. My ani-virus has picked up nothing. I've done everything in that post that Ben quoted.

Aw, I planned to go h4rdc0r3 in The Trenches :<
Click to expand...

Ok So at least I am not the only one with the problem.

^Ben,
I have done everything you mentioned and I was unable to fix the problem. Actually, there is one thing I haven't done, format my hard drive. But why should I?

As far as the firewall not being turned off, I am going to post 2 screen shots to prove that I am not lying.

BTW: It's been a day since I can't get the game to work, all because I chose to load the game while I was online!

So I am still where I started, can someone please help me?
 
ok ^Ben, I am willing to consider the option that the problem is with my firewall.

For assistance with your Firewall you will need to go to the support site for your particular Firewall. Windows XP SP1 firewall does not require any specific configuration changes for Steam to work but XP SP2 firewall does.
Click to expand...


What type of configuration does the XP sp2 firewall need?
 
I get the exact same problem, it all started on the December 22 (I belive so) update

I did everything, I even reformatted my computer heh, reinstalled steam and tried to run it..

"steam cannot connect blah blah blha..."

Valve better redeem the last update. or fix it :(

I also heard rumors that it isn't a firewall problem but a isp problem.. like AOL and some others..
 
I'm on AOL.

Goethe im not saying you are stupid with the firewall situation, but i've turned off the firewall and it's turned itself back on and blocked ports before.

If you give me about 1 hour I will investigate how to completly turn off SP2 firewall(fullllllllllllll from the boxing day fooood)

But can I assume that the way you got steam to run in offline mode was to block it's access to the internet with a firewall?

If you did I have a suspicion that the firewall has not turned off it's settings properly.

And I completly agree you should not reformat a PC for a game unless your PC has underlying problems of it's own.
 
My computer had tons of little problems (software hidden that couldn't be removed, and major strange slowdowns) So I just was bored with insomina so I just reformatted, I didn't reformatted for the game, but for my own expense of trying to fix some things on PC.

^Ben, I am on AOL as well, everyone I notice who add this problem has some connection with AOL.. maybe Valve is doing a ethic cleansing of all AOL users. or I am going mad..

The fixes that Valve has offerend are quite bland, but something about a MTU with my router I belive that is the problem, it told me to put it at 1500, which I have it at 1000. I can't find a way to change it.
 
Which router do you have?

Well actually saying that im on AOL UK, but I do connect to the ATDN(aols main backbone where all AOL traffic goes through)

My MTU setting is at 1350.
 
Ok I was gonna let this one die but since you guys have had the goodwill to help me I will update you on my problem.

The problem is fixed. I downloaded a newer version of AOL and the problem went away. So the problem was not with the firewall, it was with AO-Hell
 
I'm not on AOL but strangely enough just mere minutes after my last post the problem evaporated. I gave the phone cord a good pull while playing HL2 and it gave me the "Steam cannot access game files" error message on the desktop, but HL2 was still running in the background and I opened it back up and it was fine. I quit the game to see if I could recreate the result and started Steam up in Offline Mode and now HL2 works like it did before the problem.

There wasn't any additional update downloaded between having the problem and the problem being fixed as far as I know. If there was then it came in while I was in HL2. What is this program up to!?! :/
 
"What is this program up to!?! :/"

Kill you in your sleep.
 
Well, I'm going to necro this topic for more help. I am on windows 2000, dialup, no AOL, and I'm getting the same errors. It's not my firewall, I've gone through all that, and my router is EXACTLY the same as it is when Steam worked, so that is ruled out. I can still get updates. I just reinstalled steam and it still did not work. :(
 
:/


I opened up that program, and I can't do anything, nore ever seen any of the programs in the list before, unless i click on advanced. Eh?
 
Bah, it didn't help. I appriciate the help though, I'm getting withdraw effects.

*Gets tremors*
 
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