From: http://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/Singularity

General Information

Singularity is a public test server for EVE Online that is used by both CCP developers and by EVE players to test changes and new features before they are released to the Tranquility server. Test servers have very strict set of rules.

Its primary function is to provide a test environment as close as possible to the live environment of Tranquility. For this purpose, the Tranquility database is "mirrored" (copied) over to the Singularity server once every few months, or depending on the needs of the CCP Quality Assurance department.

Another benefit of the test server is that it allows players to do some testing of their own, either by trying out yet unreleased features and items or by testing ships, modules, skills or structures - on their own or against other players.

Technical Information

The Singularity server runs on a cluster - that is a group of linked computers that work together. This makes it a multi-node server with multiple proxy servers. The number of nodes may vary, as the development team will add or remove hardware resources from the cluster depending on testing requirements. The setup is similar to Tranquility, but with lower numbers.

The Singularity database is distinct from the Tranquility database, although they are being synchronized periodically. Actions taken on the Singularity server will not affect your account or character on the Tranquility server.

Mirroring

The process of "mirroring" consists of taking an exact copy of the Tranquility database, including character and account data, like a snapshot. This copy is then processed by the CCP Deployment team and all starbases are removed, in order to prevent players from spying on their positions and then using this information on the live server. All moon minerals are available in all moons, to help testing and prevent moon scouting on the test server. All accounts are edited so they don't expire. Agent memory (both standing and loyalty points) are removed. S&I jobs are removed (because jobs in starbases would get stuck). The market is seeded so that all market items cost 100 ISK and are in plentiful supply. At least one station per constellation is market seeded like this. In addition there are some other internal adjustments. This entire process can take up to 3 days, then the Singularity server is open for public.

After a mirroring process, the Tranquility and Singularity databases are separate and distinct and no synchronization between them will occur until the next mirror is taken from Tranquility and deployed on Singularity. Character progression on Singularity will be independent of Tranquility - players can effectively train two different sets of skills on the same character, if they so wish.

Accessing Test Server

In order to access the Singularity server you need to have an active account on Tranquility. The account needs to have been active at the time when the current mirror was taken, this date is usually mentioned in the Test Server Feedback forum.

For example, if your account expired on August 15th and the database mirror is taken 3 days later, your account will be inactive on Singularity, even if you reactivate it on Tranquility afterwards.

If your account is active on Tranquility but you find you are having login problems on Singularity, you can look for help in this forum-thread.

As Singularity is most of the time running a different code version than Tranquility, you will need to create a separate EVE folder to connect to Singularity.

Windows

1. Create a separate folder for your test client ( i.e "C:\evetest")
2. Copy everything from your original EVE folder (by default located at "C:\Program Files\CCP" ) to the new ("C:\evetest").

   This step is important, since patching the test client will render it incompatible with the Tranquility server.

3. Go to this webpage to download patches for Singularity
4. Download the "Download TQ to Singularity Patch" or the Multiplicity one if you are going to test on that server.
5. Apply the patch to the correct EVE installation such as "C:\evetest". You will be promted to point to the appropriate installation folder.
6. Create a shortcut for the new eve.exe file inside C:\evetest,
7. Right click on the shortcut and select properties, then select the Shortcut tab
8. add /server:87.237.38.50 for Singularity (it would be /server:87.237.38.51 for the test server Multiplicity) and press OK

   The final look of the Target line would look something like this ( Different between client locations )

   "C:\evetest\eve.exe" /server:87.237.38.50

9. Then double click on the shortcut and log in.

Updating the Singularity client

Note that both the autopatcher and the patching page are usually updated with some delay. The builds, that are not used by the autopatcher or listed in the official patching page, are not supported and might corrupt your client.

Autopatching

By using the server parameter you can usually use autopatching, in which case your client version will be detected and the appropriate patch will be downloaded and installed.

Manual patching

If autopatching is not working, then you will need to download and install the patch manually. To do this, go to the test server patch download page and select your client type (Windows or Mac). From there you can either download a patch from the Tranquility client version to the current Singularity version, or select your current client version from a drop-down menu.