What is the current most effective way to locate a leak? It appears to be opening the pts file in hammer, but I wanted to confirm.

I have read in this forum and the linked resources all about the different methods for locating leaks (block, pts, etc).

Alot of my reading was based on older versions of the mapping tools.

On my own prior to reading up, I did the 'make a bigger box around your box' method, man my compile times went from seconds to tens of minutes! And I never found my leak.

I agree the best way to prevent a leak is to not have one and I think I have one because I was working at too tight a grid on the edges of a map that has rolling hills. LESSON LEARNED....

Thanks...

using the point file within Hammer help me the most. The line should go red where the leak is.

Yep, thats in map ->Load pointfile.(i believe mapname.pts has the colored lines). Thats the best right now. Never use that skybox thing, its the devil.

Or pointfile in console in game.

There is a handy program called "Leakmarker" (v0.1). It reads your pts-files and draw boxes around leaks, so you can find leaks by ease.

Download Leakmarker v0.1: http://saida.lava.nu/do_download2.php?download_id=17

i know of 7 ways so far.

point file in VHE 3.5 seems the easiest. other pointfile in 3.4 or 3.3 can work too, but not well at all.

next easiest for one leak is point file in game after compile.

but some prefer the leakfinder zybdrome recommends, but it is not always reliable.

for multiple leaks the purple brush can help - putting big purple brushes around your level, then walking around and seeing where you can see the purple thru the leaks. best for many bigger leaks.

often the big brush method is recommended too, although i don't find it so great for multi leaks. best for teeeny leaks or weird ones. brush covers 1/2 map, either leak or no. then 1/4 where you think problem is. then 1/8, 1/16, 1/32. by then you should have a good idea.

then there is the skyboxing/wireframe 2 method - a lot like purple brush, but using wireframe to see if you can see the skybox polys instead of looking for a purple face. better for teeeny multiple leaks.

then there is vis grouping in editor method.....but that is buggy. i think i forgot an 8th way.....can't remember.

A leak is not necessary a physical hole: any entity outside the map or any entity touching the outside of the map will be considered as a leak (except for models, which center is inside the map).

I remember one day I became very upset because the map was ok but LEAK LEAK LEAK. Arrrgh never found why, even after many hours spent trying all the methods ...
What drives me crazy is that when you place a 'bigger box around your box', the leak HAS to disapear. Not in that case!.... I was furious.

There are probably things NOT to do because HLRAD thinks there is a leak.

Well, IMO, the best and most reliable method is loading map in HL along with pointfile. But for most cases loading pointfile in VHE 3.5 is easiest and most handy. For harder cases, solution is to manually - remove brush entities, divide map down to smaller sections and check for leak in sub parts.
First two should be enough. If you can't find (and fix) leak using either of these methods and have to use last one or other is shows bad habits in mapping, i.e. you create brushes with errors and don't fix them instantly. Never leave bad brushes and holes for later :).

Originally posted by tommy14
i know of 7 ways so far.

point file in VHE 3.5 seems the easiest. other pointfile in 3.4 or 3.3 can work too, but not well at all.

next easiest for one leak is point file in game after compile.

but some prefer the leakfinder zybdrome recommends, but it is not always reliable.

for multiple leaks the purple brush can help - putting big purple brushes around your level, then walking around and seeing where you can see the purple thru the leaks. best for many bigger leaks.

often the big brush method is recommended too, although i don't find it so great for multi leaks. best for teeeny leaks or weird ones. brush covers 1/2 map, either leak or no. then 1/4 where you think problem is. then 1/8, 1/16, 1/32. by then you should have a good idea.

then there is the skyboxing/wireframe 2 method - a lot like purple brush, but using wireframe to see if you can see the skybox polys instead of looking for a purple face. better for teeeny multiple leaks.

then there is vis grouping in editor method.....but that is buggy. i think i forgot an 8th way.....can't remember.

added to the mapping faq.

http://www.dayofdefeat.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=167099#post167099

If you've got an entity outisde and you cant see it in hammer, it gives you the coordinates in the comple log thing. Make sure its not a func_wall that touches the outside of your map, or any entity for that matter, except a model(you always have to have a brush behind, and below a func_wall for something like a hedgrow on the outside of the map).

I find having ALL my entitys in one vis group or another to be helpfull. that way. i can hide them all and just look at my brushwork.

Izuno, that was nice - but you really ought to clean it up so it is a coherent stand alone peice. right now it was a bit cryptic. this may be more clear:

leak finding methods

there are more than 7 ways to find leaks. But not all are useful in all situations.

1. easiest if you can run VHE 3.5 editor, is to compile CSG/BSP only, then import the points file into the editor. for more on that, see the VHE 3.5 version thread (http://collective.valve-erc.com/index.php?go=hammer_beta). however you can also load the pointfile into VHE3.4 or WC 3.3, but it does not work so well.

1b. one improvement for VHE 3.4 or WC 3.3 in editor leak finding is to edit the point file with wordpad, removing all but the first and last points. this tends to make a straight line - much easier to read, but far less exact.

2. second easiest and most common leakfinder is to open the map in play and load in the pointfile in console with "particles 50000". You will then see a dotted line in your level that bounces around like crazy! Just follow it, and the point where it leaves the level is where the leak is happening. for more info goto JCJQ leak error page (http://jchq.vibrants.dk/faq/leaks.htm)

3. There is a handy program called "Leakmarker" (v0.1). It reads your pts-files and draw boxes around leaks, so you can find leaks by ease. Download Leakmarker v0.1 (http://saida.lava.nu/do_download2.php?download_id=17)! however this program has been known to fail in some cases. don't get stuck on it too much.

4. the purple/red brush leakfinding method also comes from JCHQ leak error page (http://jchq.vibrants.dk/faq/leaks.htm). basicly you skybox around your level with with brushes with red texture lighting. this plugs the leaks temp, and will give a red light showing thru any leak area. do NOT keep the skybox (http://www.slackiller.com/tommy14/errors.htm#skyboxing) afterward!

4b. another editor version is to use the 3d view with red/purple brush skybox. don't compile, but use the 3d color view and cruise your level looking for red/purple thru the cracks. do NOT keep the skybox (http://www.slackiller.com/tommy14/errors.htm#skyboxing) afterward!


5. some recommend the the BIG BRUSH method, such as the Snark Pit (http://www.snarkpit.com/tutorials.php?tut=6), although i don't find it so great for multi leaks. best for teeeny leaks or weird ones. brush covers 1/2 map, either leak or no. then 1/4 where you think problem is. then 1/8, 1/16, 1/32. by then you should have a good idea.

however sometimes even the big brush method will not help if there is an entity buried in a brush, or outside the map somehow. be aware of that.

6. if you have really complex architecture, there is the skyboxing/wireframe 2 method developed by ComCray at the Collective (http://www.chatbear.com/board.plm?a=viewthread&t=458,1058483904,22529&id=501129&b=9&v=flatold) - a lot like purple brush, but using wireframe to see if you can see the skybox polys instead of looking for a purple face. better for teeeny multiple leaks. do NOT keep the skybox (http://www.slackiller.com/tommy14/errors.htm#skyboxing) afterward!

7. ComCray also developed the visgrouping method over at the collective too. (http://www.chatbear.com/board.plm?a=viewthread&t=458,1058483904,22529&id=501129&b=9&v=flatold) this was again for some complex architecture that developed a leak.
in what you think is the problem area, visgroup the brushes/blocks that are the outside "border" into one group. make all of them a bright color so they show up well.
now set one screen into 3-D flat view mode and size it to full-screen (shift+z).
When you move around the leak area in the one screen you may see some flickering here and there, sometimes the flickering will be a visible seam which stays in view for a a few seconds. That's where the leak is.
What happens is that the screen renderer tries to light up the side of a brush which should actually be covered by the brush next to it.

8. i think there are other methods, but if you are still stuck at this point, consider a new map?

I know there are different types of leaks. ZHTL's error manual explains them:
Leak 0 are ones the worry about
Leak 1 & 2 aren't a problem

Anyway, I usually get leaks because I put a set of path_corners outside a level for a plane flyby. It's easily fixed though by creating a small box around each.

Originally posted by Mythic_Kruger
A leak is not necessary a physical hole: any entity outside the map or any entity touching the outside of the map will be considered as a leak (except for models, which center is inside the map).

I remember one day I became very upset because the map was ok but LEAK LEAK LEAK. Arrrgh never found why, even after many hours spent trying all the methods ...
What drives me crazy is that when you place a 'bigger box around your box', the leak HAS to disapear. Not in that case!.... I was furious.

There are probably things NOT to do because HLRAD thinks there is a leak.

Can someone please elaborate on center of models being inside the map? Does this mean my trees can 'poke through' my sky as long as it is not more than half of the model height?

the little X represents where the model is. if thats inside your world you fine.


Originally posted by Mythic_Kruger
I remember one day I became very upset because the map was ok but LEAK LEAK LEAK. Arrrgh never found why, even after many hours spent trying all the methods ...
What drives me crazy is that when you place a 'bigger box around your box', the leak HAS to disapear. Not in that case!.... I was furious.

This is exactly what happened to me one time when I used over 8 wads, when it showed a pointfile ti moved every time, but because when i cofined the area a lot I wasn't using over 8 it went away. RARGH it took me weeks to figure out WTF was going on.