Questions about compiling / precompiling (1 Viewer)

[User]

I am interested in trying to make my own precompiles, and i am curious about a few things. I haev compiled just plain old MQ2 from their site before, and used it as it comes, but I have a few questions about how to add plugins and such.

Ground rules...We are starting straight from MQ2s website posted edition

I know there's a code or date or somethings you have to remove in order to make a compile useable on machines other then the one that compiles it. i.e. so I could make a compile, add the plugins, an dpost it here, others could DL it as is, make a shortcut to desktop and use it. What is it we have to change/add/remove to make this possible?

Second question is, so we have all these great wonderful plugins, all setup and ready to go, worked in previous compile, lots shouldn;t change (don;t use offsets), like MQ2melee etc. I assume there is a list, or the DSW itself has to be modified, so that when we compile, it includes and integrates these plugins into the compile. Like a newb( I am one) I haev tried in the past just tossing some in there from source, and they just don;t compile, so something must determine whether or not the get compiled into the ultimate product. How to we add these precompile plugins into the list so they compile and are added into the working MQ2.

I have already been through the guide on finding offsets, so no worries =) free from questions on that, I'll leave that to you seasoned vets for now =).

I believe that is all that comes to mind atm, just looking to be able to setup possibly a not quite so vannila compile for the interims between MQ@ posting a code, and a full precompile being available here, and I would be more then willing to post said compile, it wouldn;t of course include warp etc. yet as I don;t have the capabilities yet for hunting offsets.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Ccomp5950]

http://forums.notaddicted.com/showthread.php?t=4220

on the MQ2auth fix.

The warp information in there is outdated though.

As for plugins Jmo would be a good person to answer that.

 

[User]

Thanks Ccomp, I was looking for that post all day yesterday, but couldn;t come up with it, that has everything I was looking for...now to find a hex editor lol

 

[Alatyami]

Title: XVI32
Usage: Hex Editor

Manufacturer: Chmaas
OS: Microsoft Windows

Purchase Info: http://www.chmaas.handshake.de/delphi/freeware/xvi32/xvi32.htm FREE!

 

[unknown405]

I always thought it was a little bit funny that the MQ2 developers attempted to prevent certain things from being done in an OPEN SOURCE code. They even tried to outsmart everyone with their little HEX encoded array for "/warp" or whatever to prevent it from being used. Well. I guess their intent was to keep every Dick and Jane moron with Visual Studio from making active hack precompiles. Still didn't work though, I mean just look at me making all these precompiles

PS: This was a joke, even if you do believe it's true I have great respect for Lax, DKAA, ieatacid and the rest of the MQ2 team. Hats off to you guys...

 

[Siddin]

I have great respect for Lax, DKAA, ieatacid and the rest of the MQ2 team. Hats off to you guys...

QFT! Without them we wouldn't be here today.

 

[Ccomp5950]

I always thought it was a little bit funny that the MQ2 developers attempted to prevent certain things from being done in an OPEN SOURCE code. They even tried to outsmart everyone with their little HEX encoded array for "/warp" or whatever to prevent it from being used.

DKAA / ieatacid / Lax / et al, all rock.

However there was a time pre-compiles was extremely taboo and warp and any other nasty thing you can think of. The developers of MQ2 pretty much quit trying to fight it, there are relics of an old age of hostility in the current code but it's probably still there out of lack of reasoning to go back and pull out all the old "Road bumps".

The original intent of MQ2 was that compiling was the limiting factor in getting MQ2, if you couldn't compile it you didn't deserve to run it, hence the auth system was put in place as well as keeping pre-compiles off e-bay.

Redguides used to have a HUGE auth file where users ran the auth program and sent us their keys and we added it and from then on they could run any of the pre-compiles from the site.

MQ2 has a history and it's pretty interesting when you sit down and realize all the little battles back and forth that has happened to get it to such a liberal position now.

 

[unknown405]

Yea, I've been here for all that history. I just didn't always code for MQ2 during that history. One thing I do have to say though is if you have a source code directly in front of your eyes and can't figure out how to remove the authorization that MQ2Auth.exe puts in place then you can't honestly call yourself a coder, does anyone disagree with that?

I mean even if they went so far as to put the auth deep somewhere in Macroquest2.exe, where we don't have an available source to, simply make another injector and Ta-Da! You're done. Even if you don't have the skills to make an injector from scratch, but you still want to call yourself a coder, damnit, so you remove all the auth checks in the MQ2 source and now you're stuck. There are so many injector's out there where you can browse the DLL and browse the exe you want to inject it into and even open source ones where you can have it auto inject 'x' DLL into 'x' exe.

The same idea goes for warping, zoning and all the other fun active hacks that MQ2 devs added prevention code for. I would never believe someone if he told me that he coded this warp plugin or zone plugin but can't figure out how to remove MQ2's prevention code.

Alright so anyway, I think the point I'm trying to make is that the MQ2 devs just eventually realized that they may be able to stop every idiot from making precompiles, but as long as it's open source then why bother fighting the inevitable? It's like trying to hide your money while you're brother is in the room facing the other way. He may not know exactly where it is, but he's going to find it. Also, even if they stop the idiots from making compiles themselves it's just a whole $8 to go download it somewhere else.

 

[Ccomp5950]

The problem was (and still is) that Macroquest.exe is authorized for distribution "as is", same with MQ2auth.exe

It's not GPL, so legally it can put people in a world of hurt to be redestributing a hex-edited version.

It would be just as easy to have included a Windows version of sed and include a batch file that...

sed -i -e 's/Microsoft/Microsoap/gi' ./release/Macroquest2.exe
sed -i -e 's/Microsoft/Microsoap/gi' ./MQ2auth.exe
^^^^ scratch that, you have to have MQ2Auth0.h included in your compile so really the end user just has to modify Macroquest2.exe
you already modified MQ2Auth.exe you just wouldn't distribute it modified

and let end users do the modification (by double clicking OH_GOD_MICROSOAP.bat) but it was more along the lines of upsetting the MQ2 dev's more then lack of technical knowledge on how to disable the auth system.

as for the other road blocks I'm considering working on a simple bash file that removes that as well, I imagine it wouldn't be that difficult with a small reference diff and using "patch"

Linux server downloads new zip.
runs sed command to remove auth
patches roadblocks
rezips file

 

[User]

OK guys, an idiot ha resorted to getting tools, I now have a hex editor and I am up to modifying the PluginHandler.cpp to remove the date/time stamp, and low and behold, I can;t find it, so I thought well, I'll just do a find, and no dice, in a bone stock download from the site where would I find this .cpp file?

 

[User]

Ignore me, I am an idiot, I found it.