The Bad Ass Controller is a standard Ethernet-enabled device, just like other home networking products you might be used to. To keep it connected and running smoothly, we recommend:
Physical Connection
Connect your controller via a high quality (CAT5e or better) cable directly to your router or switch only.
Connecting it directly to your computer requires complex setup steps and is not recommended or supported. If you want to try anyway, we’ve documented one approach here: How do I set up a BAC if I can’t plug it into my router?
Protocol Configuration
The Bad Ass Controller acquires its network address (“IP Address”) directly from a special service called a DHCP server built into your router. In most cases, this is automatic and you do not need to take special action for it to work.
While Bad Ass Manager can detect when your controller changes IP address, we still recommend using your router’s “Static” or “Fixed” reservations feature to assign it a consistent address that never changes. This setting can usually be found in the “Advanced”, “LAN” or “DHCP” section of your router’s configuration page.
Firewall issues
To ensure your computer can talk to your Bad Ass Controller, some additional configuration steps may be needed. Most computers come standard with a ‘firewall’ that blocks communication on your local network – great for security, but bad for connecting to a controller!
For Windows users, be sure your network connection type is not Public. Setting to Private or Domain is the recommended setting. Windows networks marked as Public with extra security which hinders controller communications. If you do need to have your network type Public, then contact us for how to configure your firewall – we’re happy to help.
Typically, selecting the correct network setting will get everything working – but if you’re a firewall configuration wizard, the short answer is that you need to add a inbound firewall rule allowing UDP traffic to the BadASSManager server application.
Security
As is typical for industrial automation, the Bad Ass Controller is designed to be used on a trusted local network and does not have required authentication. This means anyone who has access to your network can use Bad Ass Manager to control your games.
If you provide Wi-Fi access to your guests, we strongly recommend that you use your router’s guest network feature to create a separate Wi-Fi network that only allows access to the Internet, blocking access to other local devices.
You should also ensure devices on your local network are inaccessible to inbound traffic from the Internet. In nearly all cases, this will happen automatically if you are using a standard router.