What is automatic failover and why it matters for online games
Failover is the automatic switch from a connection that failed to a backup one. In online games, that means: if your internet drops, game traffic switches to the second line before the server even notices.
Manual vs automatic failover
Manual (what most people do)
- Internet drops
- You notice it dropped (can take a few seconds)
- You unplug the cable, plug another one in, or switch Wi-Fi networks
- You wait for the new connection to stabilize
- You reopen the game and log in again
Total time: 30 seconds to several minutes. In that window, your character is already dead in-game.
Automatic (with PingArmor)
- Internet drops
- PingArmor detects it in ~1.5 seconds
- Traffic is switched to the second internet automatically
- The game keeps running normally
Total time: ~2 seconds. The game server never notices the switch.
How PingArmor detects problems
Monitoring runs in real time, with two detection layers:
Drop detection (gateway ping)
PingArmor sends a ping to the gateway of your primary interface every 750 milliseconds. If it gets no response 3 times in a row (~2.25 seconds), failover kicks in.
Lag detection (game server ping)
Full drops aren’t the only problem. Sometimes the internet is “working” but the route to the game server is congested — the classic route lag.
PingArmor tracks real latency to the game servers. If ping goes above the configured threshold (default: 150ms), it switches to the second internet. That can force a new route and clear the lag.
The WireGuard tunnel
PingArmor doesn’t just do failover — it builds an encrypted tunnel between your PC and a relay server using the WireGuard protocol.
Why that matters:
- Fixed server-side IP — when you switch internets, the IP that changes is the one on your PC, not the one the game server sees. That’s why the switch is transparent.
- Encryption — all traffic is encrypted, protecting against interception.
- Instant reconnect — WireGuard is stateless, so there’s no slow handshake when reconnecting.
How long does the switch take?
| Scenario | Detection time | Total time |
|---|---|---|
| Full internet drop | ~2.25s (3 failed pings) | ~2.5s |
| Route lag (high latency) | ~1.5s (2 readings above threshold) | ~2s |
| Failback (back to primary) | 15s of stability + switch | ~16s |
Failback is intentionally slower — PingArmor waits for the primary to stabilize before switching back, to avoid flapping.
In practice: supported games
PingArmor auto-detects connections to RubinOT and Tibia Global. Once the tunnel is up and you open the game, routes are configured automatically — zero manual setup.
For a walkthrough, check the step-by-step tutorial.
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