Frequently Asked Questions

Will the wow registry 'hacks' improve my ping even more?

The wow registry 'hacks' will decrease the performance of your normal network related operations such as downloads/browing and especially uploads. People with registry 'hacks' activated have reported problems, even while using GameMax their pings in raid's/pvp have a tendency of shooting up and then down again. The server has all the enhancements activated and much more ONLY for your game and not the whole system! Please reverse all your registry hacks while using GameMax and if you decide that GameMax is not for you and you don't mind the degraded download/uploads you can always restore the 'hacks'. If you can't remember what changes you made do a Google search for 'wow registry hacks' and just follow the instructions in reverse to disable them and restore the default settings.

How does it work?

Simple! Your putty connection creates an encrypted connection and sends data to our server, the server establishes a connection to the game server and passed it back to you. GameMax does NOT change ANY game files, ANY packets or anything at all, it is only a proxy for your connection.

Can I try before I buy?

Yes of course we have a trial account, in fact we urge you to try the service before signing up just in case you run into setup problems such as firewall or OS issues.

What kind of servers/connections do we use?

All the servers are low latency and have 1000mbps dedicated lines in 15 GB redundant data-centers for the lowest latency (ping) and uptime (99.5%) possible. The servers are also fire walled and protected from most other external communication to maximize the gains.

Are my account details secure?

The traffic from you to our servers is encrypted using SSH(Secure Shell), encryption is started before authentication, and no passwords or other information is transmitted in the clear. SSH is widely deployed in nearly every UNIX and/or Linux variant in existence today and you can find more info about it's encryption on any of the thousands of WebPages about it as it has become the standard for any remote shell server access.

Can I use the server as a web proxy?

All the traffic out of the server is fire walled except to the game servers to maximize the gains and guarantee all the bandwidth is used for the game only. So, no you cannot use it as a web proxy and don't try as it might block your putty connection and you will need to wait for the timeout (60 sec) and re-log.

Can I use the Gamemax servers with my firewall/router?

Yes but some firewalls/internet security programs will block this and you will need to add putty/sockscap/freecap to the allowed/exception list. You could get stuck on 'connecting'/'Authenticating' or the game will not be routed through our servers and your ping will not change. There are too many firewalls/security programs to mention so please check your firewalls documentation or do a quick Google search to find out how to allow access. We urge you to use the trial account and get this working before signing-up.

Will Gamemax improve performance in countries where traffic is shaped?

Certainly, and it is the main reason why you tunnel to our servers using port 443, traffic is usually shaped so browsing and mail has the highest priority mainly to throttle p2p users(such as torrents) and unfortunately this affects gamers. By tunneling to our servers on port 443(https) the traffic is not shaped as it looks like it's just a user browsing the internet.

Will I be using more bandwidth by connecting through GameMax?

Yes, remember your connection is being boosted via our servers and testing has shown an average of 4-6% increase in bandwidth requirements.

How much bandwidth does WoW use?

Our testing has shown an average usage of 11-13mb an hour while playing wow through GameMax and 10-12mb per hour without GameMax.

Why do I sometimes experience lag spikes, especially when using a wireless connection?

How the WoW client works is that it caters and allows for playability with minimal bandwidth throughput. Meaning even if your connection is slow or unstable, you will still be able to play despite the bad ping. Well the downside is that even if your net is good, your connection is still going to be throttled down and your ping is still going to be bad. Our servers increase your games through-output slightly in exchange for good ping. Sadly, that also means that if your connection is bad or you have a routing issue at the moment, your ping will become even worse off than without it because you are unable to sustain a steady through-output requirements for Gamemax to produce lowered ping. 99% of the time when this occurs, it is usually due to your ISP or connection and is out of our control. If you have a really bad connection or are using a wireless connection we suggest you try the service for a month and see how it works out.

Why do I sometimes get a 'permission denied' message when logging into the server?

After entering your password, if you get a 'Permission denied' message after you see the 'You are connected' message it means either someone Is logged in using your login details or your previous putty session was not logged out properly and the server still sees you as logged in and is blocking connections from your username. In that case just wait 2 min for the session timeout and try login again, if the problem persists and you haven't shared your login details with anyone else who might be using it, please contact us so we can investigate further. Remember to use <CTRL>+C for closing your putty session to avoid this problem.

Who uses services such as this?

Gamers who play on overseas servers generally have very high latency's (pings) and this is amongst other things because their connections are usually routed through many hops (routers) all over the world before arriving to their destination (game server), by using one of our servers you are reducing the number of hops amongst other things as all the servers are chosen based on their location, latency and number of hops thus drastically reducing your ping. The servers are also tweaked and configured for gaming ONLY. See the answer to the previous question for more info. College/university students who cannot play games because their whole campus runs behind a firewall/proxy and most games need direct access to your computers ports. And as web proxies are designed mostly for web browsing this is not possible unless you are using a tunnel.

Can my account get suspended for using a proxy?

There is a chance your account could get suspended but not for using this service, there are a few reason and I will try explain them here.

Power leveling

If you use a power leveling/selling/farming gold you ARE breaking the EULA and you can be suspended or even banned.

Fast IP changes.

If your IP changes quickly, i.e. You connect to the game from your country, and then you realize that you forgot to activate the tunnel to our servers, you then disconnect and reconnect 5min later using our service. You just flagged your account and a GM could think you have been hacked or are sharing an account and investigate further.

Account sharing.

If you really ARE sharing an account with someone in another country you are breaking the blizzard EULA and could get suspended.

Foreign IP's.

Blizzard mainly suspends and closes based on IP changes as long as it matches specific profiles of "Power leveling, Gold Selling/Farming, Account Selling, etc." If you do get flagged a GM will be reviewing you and most possibly get in contact with you in-game or via email and as long as you aren't doing anything wrong, they will leave you alone, but if you are breaking the EULA, there is a good chance your account will be suspended or closed.

Botting.

Running a bot of any kind that plays the game for you WILL get you banned.

Tunneling, while not supported, does not violate the TOU. Nobody has been suspended for using a tunneling service!

What countries are supported?

Gamemax will work from anywhere in the world, if you can play WOW you can also use the service!

Do I have access to a shell account when signing up?

No, shell access is not allowed as the server is for gaming only and nothing that can potentially downgrade performance is allowed.

Can I use the server for p2p like torrents?

No, as this downgrades the performance and all client ports not used for gaming are blocked.

Can I use a port scanner on the server?

Just had to add this here for the 'Why can't I connect' crowd ;) There are security measures in place and there is a good chance you will get a 24hr automated ban if any such attempt is detected.

How do I decrease my ping in WoW?

Use www.gamemax.org ;)