@@ -151,14 +151,15 @@
 				   run-id)))))
     (if conn
 	(begin 
           (debug:print-info 2 *default-log-port* "already connected to a server")
            conn) ;; we are already connected to the server
-	(let* ((sdats (tt:get-server-info-sorted ttdat dbfname))
-	       (sdat  (if (null? sdats)
-			  #f
-			  (car sdats))))
+	(let* (;; (sdats (tt:get-server-info-sorted ttdat dbfname))
+	       ;; (sdat  (if (null? sdats)
+	       ;;	  #f
+	       ;;	  (car sdats))))
+	       (sdat (tt:get-valid-server-random ttdat dbfname)))
 	  (match sdat
 	    ((host port start-time server-id pid dbfname2 servinffile)
 	     (assert (equal? dbfname dbfname2) "FATAL: read server info from wrong file.")
              (debug:print-info 2 *default-log-port* "no conn - in match servinffile:" servinffile)
 	     (let* ((host-port (conc host":"port))
@@ -349,11 +350,30 @@
 	       (common:low-noise-print 120 "server info sorted"))
 	   (debug:print 2 *default-log-port* "SERVER #"count": "(string-intersperse (map conc sorted) ", ")))
        (set! count (+ count 1)))
      sorted)
     sorted))
-    
+
+(define (tt:get-valid-server-random ttdat dbfname)
+  (let* ((candidates (tt:get-server-info-sorted ttdat dbfname))
+	 (numc       (length candidates)))
+    (case numc
+      ((0) #f)
+      ((1) (car candidates))
+      (else
+       (let* ((firsthost        (caar candidates))
+	      (valid-candidates (filter (lambda (x)(equal? (car x) firsthost)) candidates))
+	      (numvalid         (length valid-candidates)))
+	 (case numvalid
+	   ((0) (debug:print 0 *default-log-port* "ERROR: code issue, filter broke?") #f)
+	   ((1) (car valid-candidates))
+	   (else
+	    ;; expand logic here to support more than two servers
+	    (if (> (random 100) 50)
+		(car valid-candidates)
+		(cadr valid-candidates)))))))))
+   
 (define (tt:send-receive ttdat conn cmd run-id params)
   (let* ((host-port (tt-conn-host-port conn)) ;; (conc (tt-conn-host conn)":"(tt-conn-port conn)))
 	 (host      (tt-conn-host conn))
 	 (port      (tt-conn-port conn))
 	 (dat       (list cmd run-id params #f))) ;; no meta data yet
@@ -502,12 +522,16 @@
 			   (prime-host #f)
 			   (result    '()))
 		  (if (null? servrs)
 		      (reverse result)
 		      (let* ((servdat (car servrs)))
+	;;; INFO: (0) 23:08:10 ERROR: bad servinfo record
+	;;; "(127.0.1.1 36797 1701662813.0 88fff570fa3996d6082df8a1875e6cb1 15462 6.db /home/matt/data/megatest/ext-tests/sixtyfivek/.servinfo/127.0.1.1:36797-15462:6.db)"
+			     
 			(match servdat
-			     ((host port startseconds server-id servinfofile)
+			  ;; host port startt server-id pid dbfname servinffilr
+			  ((host port startseconds server-id pid dbfname servinfofile)
 			      (let* ((ping-res  (tt:timed-ping host port server-id))
 				     (good-ping (match ping-res
 						   ((result . ping-time)
 						    (not result)) ;; we couldn't reach the server or it was not a megatest server
 						   (else #f))) ;; the ping failed completely?