For years, SHAR MP (The Simpsons Hit & Run Multiplayer) has been a small, but special piece within the Donut Team community. SHAR MP was released as a proof of concept to show that adding multiplayer to The Simpsons Hit & Run was possible, however as time has gone on, we've lacked the time, effort and resources to maintain it and grow it to its potential.

Why Are We Discontinuing SHAR MP?

Maintenance Burden

The codebase of SHAR MP is outdated, making it difficult to maintain and improve. It was built on legacy technologies that are no longer compatible with modern operating systems and runtimes. As we continue to push forward with new and existing projects, maintaining SHAR MP would require a disproportionate amount of time and resources that could be better spent improving mods, modding tools and other community-focused resources.

Additionally, Donut Team spends around $4,000 USD annually to keep everything running. While the SHAR MP server is only a fraction of that cost, every bit adds up. By shutting it down, we can reduce both expenses and the maintenance burden, allowing us to focus on more impactful projects that benefit the community in the long run.

Security Risks and Compatibility Issues

It's no secret that SHAR MP has been outdated for quite some time. The multiplayer launcher has not received necessary updates to support certain mods, such as Fully Connected Map, without requiring users to download an alternate version.

The primary reason for this is simple: the SHAR MP client has been flagged with false positives by antivirus software. Because of this, distributing an up-to-date version comes with a few challenges:

• Legitimacy concerns – We cannot distribute a launcher that is repeatedly flagged as a virus. Maintaining trust in our platform is crucial, and distributing software that triggers security warnings would only create unnecessary concerns among users.
• Antivirus interference – False positives can lead to major disruptions, with some antivirus programs outright deleting SHAR MP or preventing it from running. This results in frustration for users and a support burden for us.

In addition to that, due to SHAR MP's outdated nature and the challenges of fixing it, the risk of security vulnerabilities affecting both Donut Team and its community played a major role in our decision to take it offline.

Why aren't you open sourcing it?

Some may wonder why we’re not open-sourcing SHAR MP instead of discontinuing it entirely. While we understand the appeal of open-source preservation, there are several reasons why this isn't a viable option:

• The original developer does not wish to open-source it: The original developer has made it clear that they do not want SHAR MP’s code to be publicly available. We respect their decision and will not be releasing the source code.
• Open-sourcing it wouldn’t allow updates: Even if we made the SHAR MP server component open-source, it wouldn’t be possible to meaningfully update or improve it. The server only relays and validates data the client is sending, which means client changes would be required.
• It relies on ancient tech and complex dependencies: SHAR MP depends on outdated technologies and convoluted modules that make it difficult to build, even for experienced developers. This would make it frustrating and impractical for anyone to fork or maintain. (We've tried!)
• It is deeply integrated with Donut Team accounts – SHAR MP requires Donut Team accounts for authentication, making it challenging to strip out and distribute a version without this dependency. In addition to that, the SHAR MP client sends session tokens, which grant authorization to Donut Team accounts. Making this code public would introduce significant security vulnerabilities, potentially exposing user credentials to unauthorized third-party servers.

When is SHAR MP going offline?

SHAR MP will be taken offline on 25 May 2025.

We are organizing a last hurrah for SHAR MP, maybe you can crash the servers and send it off in your own fashion. The tentative dates for this is 24 May - 25 May 2025. Specific times will depend on active times, you may organize sessions with each other in the Donut Team Discord server.

To download SHAR MP, to take place in the last hurrah, you may download a copy here.

What happens after that?

We will no longer provide support for issues related to it. If you still have SHAR MP, you will be unable to connect to our multiplayer instance. We'll continue to explore options for re-releasing SHAR MP in the future. Additionally, if a new multiplayer solution becomes viable in the future, we will explore it with the same dedication to quality and stability that defines our projects.

We want to thank everyone who has supported SHAR MP over the years. We understand there may be some users who are upset by this change. We apologize for any inconvenience that this decision may have caused.

Thanks for being part of this journey.

— Donut Team