Hi Daniel.
We're here to help.
Please enable 'Internet connection sharing mode' in AVG firewall settings and check if that resolves the issue.
Open AVG, click Menu -> Settings -> Full Protection -> Enhanced firewall. On the right hand side, tick the checkbox against 'Internet connection sharing mode' to enable it.
I have added the game's folder to my exceptions list, added its exe files to the Allowed & Blocked Apps list with all the allowances, and attempted to add its exe files to the firewall's Application Rules. Nothing I've tried so far has worked.
On a side-note, the firewall's Application Rules menu no longer operates properly for me. It only shows me a blank list and options buttons which either don't open additional prompts or open new prompts that perpetually load and do nothing else.
I have just enabled this feature, but unfortunately, my connection to this game's servers has not improved and remains quite unstable.
Repairing AVG via the instructed method appears to have single-handedly fixed my issue on its own. Now, the application rules menu opens as expected, allowing me to adjust what levels of connection are allowed to what apps on my system. Phantasy Star Online 2 connects and stays connected. My firewall is on and asks me about new apps connecting over the internet (as I have set it to do). Now, if this issue happens again with similar symptoms, I believe that I know how to solve it.
I also tried repairing AVG through AVG's other menus, but this wasn't successful. I had to go through Windows' own apps menu as detailed above.
Thank you for your time. I plan to give this solution some additional testing, but it seems to be working.
Hi Daniel.
We're here to help.
Please enable 'Internet connection sharing mode' in AVG firewall settings and check if that resolves the issue.
Open AVG, click Menu -> Settings -> Full Protection -> Enhanced firewall. On the right hand side, tick the checkbox against 'Internet connection sharing mode' to enable it.
I just enabled all the system rules available, but my connectivity issue still remains.
As I have already been playing the game successfully with the Enhanced Firewall turned off for an "until your next restart" duration, the first part of this test seems redundant. But I did try switching the network profile I currently use and flagging it between public and private within AVG's settings. Although, how I did this was not strictly as instructed above, and I don't know if that matters or not. So, I'll detail my troubleshooting activity below.
When I attempted to enter the Network Profiles menu (as per your instructions), the list given there appeared blank with absolutely no options present for my currently used network profile. I have toggled both the Enable Automatic Profile Switching and Show Notifications for the former feature (checkboxes above that list) to no effect on my issue so far (not that I expected one for those options), and there appear to be no profiles listed here to switch among or adjust the Private/Public status of. I mention this unexpected issue because it may suggest another symptom of my problem so far. I don't know.
So, how I assumed to adjust the private/public flagging on my current network profile was to go to Hacker Attacks in the AVG application - the cog menu in the upper right corner - select Full Protection - Enhanced Firewall on the left - scroll to the bottom of the options on the right to see what network profiles are listed (several exist but most aren't valid). I currently have only one network profile here that seems eligible to use and – I assume – is active. The other profiles appear in this list with a red stroke through the icon, indicating that they are disabled. I seem capable of adjusting the private/public status of the one network that appears valid.
All that said, adjusting the private/public status of this used profile hasn't alleviated my issue. I found that the current network profile was set to Public all along, but upon setting it to Private, nothing has changed with Phantasy Star Online 2's connectivity. About the only solution so far has been to shut off the firewall – much like you suggested – but for an indefinite amount of time as I play for multiple hours each session.
Thank you for your suggestions. Let me know if you have more.
Appreciate your efforts in working towards fixing the issue, Daniel.
Initially, let us check if AVG Firewall is blocking the access by disabling it temporarily. To do so : Open AVG program - Hacker attacks - Click on toggle bar beside Enhanced firewall to disable it for 10 minutes.
If disabling firewall fixes the issue, please re-enable firewall & change network profile either to private or public once to check if it helps.
To do so : Open AVG program - Hacker attacks - Click on firewall options (drop down box) - Network profile - Identify the network to which your computer is connected - Change it to public or private & check.
You are welcome, Daniel.
The reason for changing network profile to 'Private' is that AVG Firewall will allow the trusted applications to communicate when it is chosen as private.
When the network profile is set as 'Public' then AVG Firewall would restrict most of the communication considering that the computer is connected to a public network which is more vulnerable.
Please open AVG Internet Security program window.
Click on "Menu->Settings->Full Protection->Enhanced Firewall".
Tick the box that says "Internet connection sharing mode" and then click on "System Rules".
Enable all the options in system rules and click on Ok.
Let us the know the status with Phantasy Star Online 2's connectivity once you are done with the above mentioned steps.