How to Make a Free Vent Server

Most Ventrilo users wear headsets so both hands can work their computers.

Ventrilo, nicknamed "Vent," is software that allows online voice conferences. Players of massively multiplayer online games like EverQuest and World of Warcraft use Ventrilo to coordinate their attacks. It has two parts: a server that hosts the group and a client that members need to have on their computers to connect to the server. Most people charge to host a Vent server, but Ventrilo's website says you can host a free Vent server if you follow the license rules.

Instructions

1. Sign up for an Internet service provider that gives you enough bandwidth to run a Ventrilo server. At the default settings, each person in Vent uses bandwidth of about 3k bytes per second. Allow twice that, as many people usually talk at the same time.

2. Download the Ventrilo server version that fits your computer's operating system. Supported systems include Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Linux i386, Solaris SPARC, Solaris x86, FreeBSD i386, NetBSD i386 and Mac OSX PowerPC.

3. Execute the Ventrilo server program. In Windows platform systems, you will run it in a console window that you find in the "VentSrv" menu.

4. Set your working directory--if you have a Unix system--to wherever you want to run the Vent server from. Then execute these two commands, one at a time, waiting on the computer in between: "mkdir ventrilo" "cd ventrilo"

5. Copy into this new directory the tar.gz file. Type "gunzip " followed by the name of the tar.gz file. Type "tar xf " followed by the name of the tar file. Type: "./ventrilo_srv."

Tips & Warnings

• You can change your free Vent server's default settings with instructions that came with the download, in the "Ventrilo_srv.htm" file.

• Charging for Vent service while running a free Vent server is illegal, and the owner of Ventrilo can sue you.

References

• Ventrilo: Features
• Ventrilo: Purchase
• Ventrilo: Server - Network Requirements
• Ventrilo: Download
• Ventrilo: Setup