Sockets

Sockets are low-level objects that are responsible for sending and receiving raw data over the network. Mirage has a single transport (called Mirage.SocketLayer.Peer) built into its core, which handles all the connection states and reliability. Peer then uses the low-level sockets API to send and receive raw data over the network. Check this section below to see how to implement your own socket.

Available sockets

The table below shows a list of available sockets and their features.

	UDP (built-in)	Steam (Steamworks.NET, Facepunch)	Websocket
CCU	1000+	?	?
Protocol	UDP	UDP	TCP
Unreliable	✅	✅	❌
Mobile	✅	❌	✅
WebGL	❌	❌	✅
CPU	LOW	LOW	?
NAT Punch	❌	✅	❌
Encryption	❌	✅	✅
IPv6	✅	?	?
Managed	✅	✅	✅
Native	✅	❌	❌
Based on	NanoSockets (native), .NET (managed)	Steam Game Networking Sockets	SimpleWebTransport

Changing a socket

To change a socket, follow the steps below:

1. Install the desired socket. Instructions are available on each socket's repository.
2. Add the socket's SocketFactory as a new component on the object where you have the other Mirage components.
3. Assign a reference to this component in the Socket Factory field of NetworkServer and NetworkClient components.
4. Check if the socket has any required additional steps.
5. Done. Mirage should now be using the newly added socket.

Implementing new socket

To create a new socket, you have to implement two classes - one that implements the Mirage.SocketLayer.ISocket interface, which will represent the low-level socket and one that extends the Mirage.SocketLayer.SocketFactory class, which will act as the MonoBehaviour component creating new instances of the low-level class.

You can check out our built-in UDP socket implementation as an inspiration: Mirage.Sockets.Udp.UdpSocket and Mirage.Sockets.Udp.UdpSocketFactory.