Ultimate Map Protection?

[TheGloomfrost]

Hey I was just thinking... IS there a way to check that the map size is a certain kb size?

The reason why I'm asking is that IF you could have a simple trigger check a cache size or even AMOUNT of triggers or length of a script or size of the map, this would make the map virtually impossible to JASS-Inject or modify in any way at all, seeing as you can follow the line by booting all the players from the cracked map with a message.

Anyway, so I guess there's more than one question/idea, ... or is there a better way to do the whole thing?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

~Gloom

 

[Hakeem]

If someone edits the map, they can remove that trigger.

 

[Yddohu]

But lots of the guys don't know even how to jass, they copy and paste some code to cheat. So the idea is nice, but I dont have any clue.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Hakeem, obviously there would be the complete removal of all WE-crap, including Triggers.. it would all be ONE long trigger if you don't know how the map .mpq structure works and whatnot.

I'm thinking something along the lines of caches? Or maybe something that counts number of triggers?

 

[Need_O2]

Why its so hard to use war3 map optimizer

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Because you can still JASS Inject. A good example would be the Island D with the cheats that actually spread pretty quickly.

 

[Eleandor]

Right and someone who can do that can't change the jass script that checks something as simple as the amount of triggers?

 

[Orchard]

Well you could incredibly hide that Jass script and make it appear like something else... through use of misnamed variables and redundant non-effectual code. Obviously making a map absolutely protected is impossible but if you were desperate you could go to those measures.

 

[Captain Griffen]

There are...some ways of doing similar things (no, you don't know about them, even if you THINK you do), but they can be easily circumvented.

 

[HINDYhat]

I know about them.

Yes I do.

 

[Hakeem]

The problem with any trigger that makes the map tamper proof, is that it does some unwanted action when it detects tampering.

Search for things that would do that unwanted action, like crashing the game or defeating all players. Simple as that.

 

[TriggerHappy]

Best way to protect a map is in your triggers .. Make a lot of checks of different cheats , use map optimizer , make custom functions like EGUI through the UI folder.

 

[Freshmeat3]

I hate map protections cause we can all learn from the map. And every protection doesnt help if WC3 can read the Map.

Same as Game Protections, such a waste of Time/Money... 2 Days and the Protection is cracked.

If u got the Map and must download it when u join a Host... u know that the Map is edited.

Well... if you need it, i cant stop you, but think what about im saying.

 

[PurplePoot]

There are, as Griff and HINDY said, ways of doing things which will know if the map has been significantly edited.

However, someone who cares about cracking your map would just run it in Grimoire. Problem solved.

 

[TriggerHappy]

Protecting Maps stops noobs from editing it and calling it theirs.

 

[Orchard]

I hate map protections cause we can all learn from the map. And every protection doesnt help if WC3 can read the Map.

Same as Game Protections, such a waste of Time/Money... 2 Days and the Protection is cracked.

If u got the Map and must download it when u join a Host... u know that the Map is edited.

Well... if you need it, i cant stop you, but think what about im saying.

Protecting Maps stops noobs from editing it and calling it theirs.

Most RPG maps have a legit reason to attempt to protect their maps though... for example to stop them from making a cheating load code.

 

[Freshmeat3]

Yeah but as i said. If u got the Map and join someone who has hosted the map with cheat codes in it, then u have to download the new one.

So u know, the map is edited. Is that the only reason? To protect them for hacks?

I think your problem is, that a "noob" takes a code, spell or something else you have made and put it in his own map...

Well, often im interest to see how something works... but firstly i have to deprotect them... its easy but it takes time.

All in All --> As i said --> Mapprotection is useless. I think only 20% of them cant open the map cause they are too stupid for it. But "Maphacker" find always a way.

 

[Anarki]

Protection is useless.

Don't bother, really.

The only reason that people should protect their maps, is to optimize it.

If someone wanted to edit your map, there really ain't anything you can do to stop them.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Okay guys lol, a couple of things.. this topic wasn't started as your thoughts or morales ABOUT map protection, it was started to find a solution for protecting maps.

There are tonnes of reasons why you would protect a map, and really, I leave my e-mail in my maps, so if someone wanted to ask me a question or wanted to know how something works, I urge them to send me an e-mail and I would be glad to help.

What I DON'T like is people opening the map, or injecting like Orchard said, a fake load code for an RPG hero and ruining the game for players who want to play legit, ruining the reputation of the map.

I'm more interested in the ways of HOW to create the scripts/triggers to check for modifications.

Most map-making noobs, who don't know how to create a map of their own, but love a map (and this was proven 3 times by me) tend to Inject a CODE into a map, versus a hero or ability or anything more complicated. It's usually something someone has to type in, so lets say I had 5 player types something in event, and then inject a 6th one, could there be a JASS Script to check HOW MANY events of that sort there are? I think that would be a good start if checking map kb size is out of the question (it HAS To change with any modification)

 

[Anarki]

I never said anything about morals.

I simply stated that it is pointless to protect maps; because someone out there can crack it.

The only viable "uncrackable" solution, would be to have checksums on every single possible aspect of the game, and then obfusicate the checksum functions and embed them within function required for gameplay.

But that's stupid, because it's a waste of time.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

I wasn't refering specifically to you.

Yeah but at the same time, I would be interested in how to do that, but couldn't there be a .wts/trigger/script checksum alltogether?

 

[PurplePoot]

The biggest problem is that posting the best methods in public means releasing them to the crackers.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Yeah but NOT really... if you DO make a checksum of some sort, ANY modification to the map would replace at LEAST 1 byte, therefore activating the trigger.. if you DO know a good way though PurplePoot, can you msg me it then? lol..

I'm helping my friend work on her map at this time, but I might try out some things on my own. Was just wondering if any JASS pros are on here with their command lines of doing what nothing else can lol.

 

[Anarki]

Let us assume, that there was a native function which allowed you to get the exact file size of the map.

Let us also assume, that I am cracking into a map which has such protection. I hack the map, I inject my cheats, and then I play, to find that the map autodefeats everyone.

Solution? I look for the checksum, and delete it.

So it's rather pointless, anyway.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

I suppose so.. but hopefully, it would keep even more people away.. I mean as we all probably do, know a couple of peeps who know how to crack into maps, possibly including ourselves. HOWEVER, how many of those peeps actually KNOW how to read one long script trigger KNOWINGLY looking for the checksum, IF at all? I mean obviously not EVERYONE who makes maps or cracks them will read this, it would be a safe assumption to say that they wouldn't know EXACTLY what defeats the players...

 

[TheGloomfrost]

I know how it works.. x_X I'm trying to do the complete opposite. lol.

Although, yeah sure, maybe I might learn something new from the site.

I think I'm going to do a little bit more research on it,...

Anyone else's ideas would still be greatly appreciated though.

 

[Anarki]

Why are you so intent on finding such a strong protection, anyway?

By the way, the site that I PM'ed you, you can ask there how to protect maps against map deprotectors. (ironic, isn't it?)

Just don't say hateful crap to them.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Lol thanks for the site.

+Rep

It has A LOT more resources that I was looking for, INFACT, weirdly enough, I've BEEN to that site before.. must've ignore that whole category or map protection because I wasn't looking at that before now.

Thanks again,

 

[BOESERTEDDY]

Quite annoying to read all those posts...
Like TheGloomfrost, by reading I didn't want to hear anything about how useless it is to protect maps or that it's annoying for people who want to learn from them. I just wanted to hear if you CAN or CAN NOT check the size.
How to hide the trigger is something else.

Same as TheGloomfrost, I'm quite interested if anybody knows how to check the size. If he or she doesn't want to make it public, pm me plz...

PS: I think I know about which side your talking about... :-D

 

[Captain Griffen]

I know of only one viable way to do anything near what you want to do...and it's easily bypassable, and also has a lot of issues with updating the map.

 

[TriggerHappy]

Updating the map??

Why dont you just save another copy?

 

[Captain Griffen]

Updating the map??

Why dont you just save another copy?

You have no idea of what I am talking of, and I have no intention of enlightening you, since that would weaken the effectiveness of it even further.

 

[HINDYhat]

It's a bitch to set up correctly and subtly...

Nevertheless, open source for the win. If you're protecting your map to prevent noobs from stealing it, that just means your map isn't great enough for people to notice that it's not an official version. And if the fake version becomes more popular than the legit version, that just means the stealer is doing a better job at this then you.

So basically: work harder; stop whining.

 

[BOESERTEDDY]

Only problem: It's different for some sorts of ORPG maps...

 

[Anarki]

It's not hard to cheat in ORPG's.

It's also not hard to deter cheaters in ORPG's.

Just obfusicate your code.

 

[Kwah]

It makes pros edit and call it theirs.

Basically Map protection it always circumventable, if you have enough time.

 

[Screaming_flame]

True but Sometimes there is a con;

Pros for me
-----------
I can edit a map, To help whats wrong, like a lagg or a Glitch, invisible wall,etc.

I have no idea to make a Bnet account so, I help clean up bugs in local.

Cons
-----------
Most of the maps I enjoy sometimes have Anti-Cheat like if I put "Iseedeadpeople" it crashes

 

[Hakeem]

It's not hard to cheat in ORPG's.

It's also not hard to deter cheaters in ORPG's.

Just obfusicate your code.

Lrn2remote storage.

 

[Need_O2]

I spent 2 hours to access war3map.j of Defiances open rpg but failed
so I think war3mapoptimizer rokcs
and about cheats someone may saw it when admin or one of his friends typing it

 

[Dr Super Good]

The fact is that no map protection is truly safe as long as WC3 can run the map (as as long as it can those data files, it can be edited). The best most users can do is WC3 map optimizer by vexorian as it truly mangles everything beyong understanding if you are a "noob".

However for better defences where there are triggers that detect change, only really smart people can make them, in which case equally smart people can remove them.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Basically just rephrasing what Dr Super Good said;

(Oh and this is after A LOT of research)

ALL maps can be unprotected, no matter WHAT you do to it.
Basically, as long as your game can run the map, then it can be opened with mpq editors and changed/cheated/hacked.

The things you CAN do are pretty simple;
A great solution just like Dr SG said was WC3 Map optimizer by Vex, it's the perfect solution for anti-noob hacking, it even obsuficates your code for you.

However, if you want to go deeper, you need to know JASS, and there are multiple ways of coding in ways to make it really hard to open/read for the hacker, eg: instead of using a -gold string, you do something like "-" + "g" + "o" + "l" + "d", which when looked at by the hacker, makes it harder to read, but that's not map protection, it just makes it a little harder.

Anyway, if whoever wants, PM me, and I'll send you a great site that I learned A LOT from, so feel free.

 

[Dreadnought[dA]]

Optimization is by far and away the best way to protect your map. My friend wanted me to help him find some code in DotA (he deprotected it), but it was so mangled up with the dumbest function and variable names, nobody could ever find his stupid function. 20,000 lines of code all mangled up... Sound fun?

 

[Dr Super Good]

Still does not stop JASS pros.

 

[TheGloomfrost]

Yeah, and nothing will... but I suppose we could give tips and stuff on to HOW to protect it the best with JASS, although that defeats the purpose cause the "jass pros" go on these sites specifically to learn about how people are protecting, so they can deprotect easier... lol..

All I have to say is that what I did, I said "The only true official version should be xxx,xxx bytes big if you want to check, and you can get it officially at hiveworkshop.com and must be uploaded by TheGloomfrost",

 

[Hakeem]

Okay, I've changed my mind.

Protect your maps all you want from noobs, but I will hate you if you obfuscate your code from my learning eyes.

Most people that know JASS know how to deprotect anything, so obfuscating your code is saying "Fuck you." to other modders.

 

[Dr Super Good]

I infact leared quite a lot about JASS from all the obfuscated code from maps. Basically if you try hard enough you eventually get used to ignoring variable and function names completly and asigning them purly a mental value.

It is still slow but is doable. There are many tips to improve your ability to do this however this could be classed as part of map deprotection thus I will not say them.

 

[Anarki]

It's not the problem of people deprotecting the map. There isn't anything you can do about that.

It's the people who inject cheat codes into the map.

There are two ways to deal with this: internally, and externally.

Internally, you could have things like checksums for gold, lumber, xp, etc. However, this is probably the harder option.

Externally, you could make your map polished, and popular, and constantly release new versions, which is probably easier (bullshit it's not easier, it's probably harder unless you're going to release versions with no significant changes or fixes), but much more effecient.