Source SDK Known Issues

This is a list of known and verified issues with the Source SDK release, and potential workarounds.

General Issues

Visual Studio 2002 Is No Longer Supported (Since 8/4/2006)

As of this SDK Release Visual Studio 2002 is no longer supported. We are sorry for the inconvenience that this causes our customers.

Tools Issues

Hammer Issues

Direct Shortcuts to Hammer Will Not Work

With this version of the SDK you will get an error if you attempt to run hammer.exe from the 'sourcesdk\bin' directory. Here is the best way to work around this issue:

1. Right-click on the Source SDK item on the Tools tab in Steam.
2. Select Create desktop shortcut.
3. Add -runhammer to the end of the steam.exe command line.

   For example: C:\Program Files\Valve\Steam\Steam.exe -applaunch 211 -runhammer

4. Rename the desktop shortcut to something appropriate, such as "Hammer Editor".

This has the added benefit of actually launching the SDK Launcher before Hammer, making sure it is the latest version.

Also, you can create shortcuts to Model Viewer and Face Poser by creating other shortcuts and adding these command line arguments:

-runmodelviewer

-runfaceposer

SDK Code Issues

SDK Launcher Will Terminate if No 'gameinfo.txt' Exists In A MOD Directory (Since 8/4/2006)

In order to remind MOD makers choose the correct SteamAppId the SDK Launcher will inspect all installed MODs and attempt to load their 'gameinfo.txt' files. If a MOD directory does not contain a 'gameinfo.txt' file then the user will see the following message and the SDK Launcher will terminate.

Unfortunately, the SDK Launcher will attempt this check each time it is launched until the check is successful. This issue can be worked around in the following ways:

• Move the offending MOD directory, run the SDK Launcher, and then copy it back after the SDK Launcher starts successfully.
• Bypass this check altogether by creating a file named 'show_deprecatedappid_marker.txt' at '%Steam Root%\SteamApps\%Steam User%\sourcesdk\launcher'.
• Adding a 'gameinfo.txt' to the offending MOD's directory.

3D View In Hammer Appears Empty (Since 8/4/2006)

The newest release of Hammer requires that at least on Camera be placed in the map in order for the 3D Views to work. If you are experiencing empty 3D views simply place a camera in your map.

Error When Compiling Maps from Within A Mod (Since 8/4/2006)

When compiling a map within Hammer you may see the following error message:

This is caused by the fact that the Create MOD Wizard does not create a 'maps' subdirectory under the $SteamDir\SteamApps\SourceMods\%ModName% directory. Until this problem is fixed in the SDK you can bypass the problem by adding this directory yourself and attempting to re-build the map.

Error When Running Maps from Within A Mod (Since 8/4/2006)

When attempting to run a map from within Hammer you may come across the following error message:

Here is the process for working around this issue until it is addressed in the SDK:

1. On Hammer's Tools|Options|Build Tools page change the Game Executable page to be:

$SteamDir\steam.exe instead of $SteamUserDir\half-life 2\hl2.exe

1. From the Run Map screen prepend the following to the parameters for the '$game_exe' command:

-applaunch 215

What this will do is run Steam and instruct it to launch 'Source SDK base' and point it to the map defined by the remainder of the '$game_exe' parameters. One thing to look out for is that you will need to build the DLL's for your MOD before running it.

Error Running a New Mod (Since 8/4/2006)

In the new SDK it is necessary to build the client and server DLLs before running the MOD. Please build them if you see this message when trying to run the MOD.

Included cs_militia Map Does Not Load Properly (Since 8/4/2006)

The version of cs_militia that came with the SDK does not load properly and will be fixed in a patch release of the SDK.

SDK Does Not Compile Under Linux (Since 8/4/2006)

The SDK was not properly tested under Linux before it was released. Until a patch addresses this here is the workaround:

--- Makefile.vcpm       9 Jun 2006 04:27:20 -0000       1.3
+++ Makefile.vcpm       6 Aug 2006 19:00:54 -0000
@@ -33,7 +33,9 @@
 TIER1_OBJS = \
        $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/characterset.o \
        $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/interface.o \
+       $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/generichash.o \
        $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/KeyValues.o \
+       $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/stringpool.o \
        $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/utlbuffer.o \
        $(TIER1_OBJ_DIR)/utlsymbol.o \


--- Makefile    23 Jun 2006 02:42:01 -0000      1.5
+++ Makefile    6 Aug 2006 19:04:26 -0000
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@

 # the CPU target for the build, must be i486 for now
 ARCH=i486
-ARCH_CFLAGS=-march=pentium -mmmx
+ARCH_CFLAGS=-march=pentium3 -mmmx -O3

 # -fpermissive is so gcc 3.4.x doesn't complain about some template stuff

Also it won't compile without -O3 due to some weird inline forcing. Still investigating that bizarreness.

From Scratch Mod Exits When Launching from Steam Menu (Since 8/4/2006)

Launching a (Make a mod from scratch) mod from the steam menu enters the game, shows the game menu, dings, and then exits, no error. Although, launching from a command line works fine.

Well actually it should work fine. Though note that if you have compiled you're dlls in debug mode you have to add "-allowdebug" to the MOD's launch options! The run_mod.bat already adds it.

Visual Studio 2005 Is Not Presently Supported (Since 1/17/2006)

Presently the Source SDK does not support Visual Studio 2005 or Visual C++ Express. This support will be added in a future release.

See also

• Source SDK Release Notes