[error] Failed reading masterserver authentification response: encountered parse error 'The document is empty.'
Masterserver needs to request your gameserver for it to be authentified and registered. This error means that masterserver can't access your server's tcp port.
Multiple problems can cause this error, but you can narrow it down by checking if your server is reachable from the outside.
Check if server is reachable
You can check if the server is reachable using your internet browser.
example : http://{server_ip}:{server_tcp_port}/verify should answer you I am a northstar server!
Your server must be running while you check if the server is reachable.
If server is reachable using external IP
Your GameServer is out of date
Check that your server is running on the latest Northstar release as it can sometimes include breaking changes.
Mastserver is down
Check Northstar's Discord for annoucements.
https://northstar.tf giving you a HTTP 523 error means that the masterserver is offline.
Ports are not the same
Your gameserver is configured to listen to a given TCP port.
Masterserver needs to be able to contact your gameserver though that same port.
Another Northstar Server is using the port
Shutdown every other server to narrow down the problem
This won't generally help but will allow you to avoid checking for the wrong server.
If server is not reachable using external IP
Check if your server is reachable from your internal network's IP (often starts with 192.168.x.x)
Firewall is blocking tcp ports
In some cases your Firewall or antivirus can prevent your ports to be exposed to your local network. To fix this issue, make a rule to allow your server to listen on your network. Disabling the firewall and antivirus can also work, even if it's not reccomended.
If server is not reachable using external IP but reachable using internal IP
Router configuration is incorrect
If your port can be accessed from your local IP but not from your public IP, then it's very likely that your NAT rules aren't properly configured.