Version 1.641 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 2.041 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.609 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.609:
- new setting pb_sv_maxsendrate defaults to 8 (KBps); determines speed at which PB Server sends
pbcl and pbag out to each client that requests an update during gameplay; prior versions were locked
at 2KBps to conserve bandwidth usage during updates; with modern broadband infrastructure, some admins
have asked for the ability to push PB updates out at a higher rate to clients
Version 2.015 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.730 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.710 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.707 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.707:
- the new PB services are no longer optional, see our PB Services FAQ
for more info
- the new PB services now support 64 bit flavors of Windows
- this version restores compatibility with Quake3 running under Windows 95/98/ME
Version 1.524 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This release contains new PunkBuster service components, please see
our faq page for more information.
Version 1.291 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.261 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.229 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.229:
- we are opening up beta testing of a new remote control/logging facility
called PBUCON. Admins who wish to be involved in the open beta can find more information here:
PBUCON
Version 1.218 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.206 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.196 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.153 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.153:
- returns the number of bytes and MD5 of files that are shorter than what the server is checking
for using MD5Tool lines (items that return a READ_FAIL to the PB Server)
Version 1.150 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.150:
- the pb_sv_task command no longer requires quotes around the third [command] parameter when spaces are embedded
- no longer counts spaces as characters in the player name for purposes of checking for minimum name length
Version 1.128 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.128:
- addressed bug with PB's Bad Name Facility not warning/kicking properly
Version 1.124 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
We have confirmed that the recently released update for the Xfire (www.xfire.com) instant
messaging program has triggered PB Violations #90003 and #90011 when the chat overlay system
is used while playing on a PunkBuster enabled server in OpenGL mode. Today, Xfire released a
v1.31 update to correct the problem on their end. We encourage PB admins to give the benefit of
the doubt to players who received either of these violations since Dec. 30th. As these are
generic cheat hook detection algorithms, we will not be removing them from our system. Players
who use Xfire while playing on PB Servers should update to the new version immediately.
Version 1.123 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.123:
- new command "pb_sv_powerguid [GUID] [Power_Points] [Player_Name(optional)]"; admins can use this
command to add a player's GUID directly to the PB Player Power database at the server when the player
is not currently connected
- when PunkBuster kicks a player, the message sent to other connected players will now show the last 4
characters of the kicked player's PB GUID after the player's name
- new setting "pb_sv_filewhitelist [game_subfolder] [file1] [file2] ... [fileN]" can be used by PB admins to
limit the filenames allowed in a specific game subfolder; this can be used in conjunction with PB's MD5Tool
to check filesizes and file signatures of the allowable files
Version 1.130 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.130:
- starting with this version 1.130, the PB Client now requires the game to be run as the
administrator user or equivalent under Windows XP/2K (see our
FAQ for more info).
Version 1.102 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.089 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
A new PBWEB v1.8 for linux has been released to our Updating PunkBuster
webpage. This version addresses a segfault issue reported
by several linux users.
Version 1.069 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.069:
- contains a temporary workaround for the lockup conflict with nVidia v5x.xx forceware drivers until
nVidia corrects their backwards compatibility issues - the workaround may or may not solve the lockup problem
for individual users depending on hardware combinations
Version 1.068 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.072 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.071 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. Starting with this version of the PB Server, admins will be able to
perform file checks on connected players during gameplay using the new MD5Tool Facility. Using this
new facility should be considered beta testing until further notice. The MD5Tool Facility is documented
here.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.071:
- new commands pb_sv_md5tool, pb_sv_md5toollist, pb_sv_md5tooldel, and pb_sv_md5toolempty
- new setting pb_sv_md5toolfreq defaults to 60 (seconds)
Version 1.066 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. We will shortly be releasing a new optional PB MD5Tool Facility for
PB Server Admins who want to check files on connected player systems to detect changed
pk3 files (among other things). Players are hereby warned that any detected attempts to
circumvent PB's new MD5Tool file checks will subject the Player's GUID/CDKey to permanent Global
PB GUID Ban with no recourse.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.066:
- new pb_logmd5tool setting defaults to 0; setting to 1 will cause PB to log all MD5Tool file check
query replies sent to connected PB Servers during gameplay
Version 1.065 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This version further addresses violation #20006
(GAME INTEGRITY) which has today been kicking players in Q3 mods where cg_bobup can be set to 0. We
encourage admins to ignore violation #20006 for all PB Client versions prior to v1.065.
Version 1.063 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This version addresses violation #20006 (GAME INTEGRITY) which has been kicking
players who use non-default r_singleshader and cg_thirdperson cvars in prior versions of the PB Client. Admins
who wish to allow the non-default usage of r_singleshader and cg_thirdperson cvars on their servers
should ignore violation #20006 for all PB Client versions prior to v1.063.
Version 1.066 of the PB Server for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.066:
- addressed glitch in loading banmask entries from PB ban files
- new pb_sv_maxConUpdates setting defaults to 12; PB Server will not send updates to more than this number of
clients simultaneously in an effort to cut down on update timeouts after a recent PB update
- new pb_sv_homepath command to display PB's home path
Version 1.061 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
We have confirmed that new software (Bigpond Toolbar used primarily in Australia) has recently been
released which raises pre-existing PunkBuster violation #60045. This violation number has been removed
from our system. We encourage PB Admins to give the benefit of the doubt to players and ignore
instances of this violation occurring after December 3, 2003.
Version 1.059 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page. This is a maintenance release.
Version 1.058 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.058:
- updated PB Restriction kicking
Version 1.057 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for
auto-update and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.057:
- initial PB Restrictions checking (see post for PB Server v1.060 dated 12.3.2003)
Version 1.060 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. This version includes a new PunkBuster facility called PB Restrictions. By default,
PB Restrictions are Enabled; the pb_sv_restrictions setting may be set to 0 by server admins who do not wish for PB
to kick for PB Restrictions. Kicking for PB Restrictions will be announced to players that join PB servers in the
"WARNING: PB Kicks for ... All PB Restrictions on this server" message shortly after joining a server where
PB Restrictions are Enabled. Initially, this facility will only work properly on
Internet based PB Servers but will be extended to LAN servers in a future update. We expect to activate PB
Restriction logging/kicking after the next PB Client update. Players who are kicked for a PB Restriction will be
notified of the reason they were kicked. Additionally, PB Restrictions will be logged on all PB Servers even
when kicking is disabled.
In general, the PB Restriction facility represents a tighter set of parameters for playing on PB Servers. A player who
fails a PB Restriction check should not necessarily be considered a cheater, so we advise PB Admins to consider
initial PB kicks for restrictions to be warnings to the players who are kicked so that they may either honor the
restriction by correcting their setup or play on other servers. However, we also encourage PB admins to deal
with repeat offenders of PB Restrictions as they see fit. The initial group of restrictions will deal with
unusual opengl32.dll access or hooking. Players whose systems do not return proper information about the game using a
single opengl32.dll system file will be considered restricted by this new facility (Note: Anyone still trying
to play PB games running under Windows NT v4 is going to be considered restricted by default). Future updates may
require the most current version of DirectX/display drivers to be installed, etc. We will
gladly accept and consider suggestions for future restriction possibilities from the community via email to
research@evenbalance.com.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.060:
- new pb_sv_restrictions setting defaults to 1 (which means kicking for PB Restrictions is Enabled)
- addressed bug in Linux PB Server that caused PB to not be able to restart itself (such as after an update) on some
Linux servers
Version 1.059 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.059:
- addressed glitch reported by some server admins that caused old PB Server versions to self-disable and/or stop
logging after the PB Client v1.054 update
Version 1.054 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.054:
- improved internal performance
- new pb_lan setting defaults to 0; when set to 1, PB will behave as though it has no Internet access
- addressed glitch with INCLUDE type Cvar restrictions
- new pb_webupdate command adds the PBWEB functionality directly into the PB client; PBWEB should no longer be
required to manually update PB clients; PunkBuster will automatically issue this command when necessary to auto-update
during gameplay before going into distress mode
Even Balance is planning to launch a new cross-platform product for PunkBuster admins after a short beta-test period.
This is a stand alone software server product (Win32, Linux and Mac versions) that captures and archives PunkBuster
logging information from one or more remote PunkBuster game servers. It comes with a built in web interface similar to
PunkBuster's WebTool and allows remote viewing of log files. It should be useful both to admins who lease servers and
don't have easy access to logs and also to leagues that want to have streamed match logging directed to a central
location. The first beta version is ready for testing. We are looking for a few Quake3 PB Admins who are willing to
test with live servers (Win32, Linux and Mac). Those who are interested should email
testing@evenbalance.com for more information.
Version 1.051 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.051:
- addressed a bug related to the PB Name Registration system that affected win32 PB Servers
- removed redundant DNS resolutions in the linux and mac editions
Version 1.047 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page. Some win32 PB Servers may have trouble auto-updating to this new version due
to a bug in v1.043 released previously. Win32 PB Admins should either delete the pbsv.db file in their servers'
home 'pb' subdirectories or just download the binary v1.047 pbsvnew.dll file from our Q3A PB Download page and
issue pb_sv_restart commands to get updated to this new version.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.047:
- addressed a bug in v1.043 related to win32 multi-threaded DNS resolution
Version 1.043 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.043:
- new pb_sv_lan setting defaults to 0; when set to 1, PB will behave as though it has no Internet access
- changes to the WebTool: the rcon password can no longer be set or displayed via the WebTool; also, the pb_sv_httpkey
(Web Key) cannot be directly changed via the WebTool; new additional layer of mangling to hinder packet sniffing
attempts to lift the Web Key; we recommend all PB Admins who use the WebTool set the pb_sv_httpkey setting to something
different from the server's rcon password; we also recommend that admins regularly change both the Web Key and rcon password
Version 1.034 of the PB Client for Q3A has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.034:
- addressed a bug whereby some cvar warnings were not being displayed to players on the playing screen
Version 1.034 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.034:
- addressed bug that forces players in OK status to spec mode when a new update is released
The newly released PB Client v1.031 includes an incompatibility with Windows NT v4. Players
running Windows NT v4 may receive violation #90001 without in fact having a video driver hack
loaded. We have removed violation #90001 from our system. Admins should give players the benefit
of the doubt and ignore instances of violation #90001.
Version 1.031 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Version 1.031 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.031:
- addressed bug in v1.030 that caused the PB Server to crash the game server for some
configurations during startup or restart
Version 1.030 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.030:
- addressed bug that caused the PB Server to "kick" server bots after an update
We have confirmed that new software has recently been released which raises pre-existing
PunkBuster violation #60056. This violation number has been removed from our system. We encourage
PB Admins to give the benefit of the doubt to players and ignore recent instances of this violation.
We have confirmed that new software has recently been released which raises long-standing
PunkBuster violation #70001. This violation number has been removed from our system. We encourage
PB Admins to give the benefit of the doubt to players and ignore recent instances of this violation.
A new set of cheat detection routines went out via auto-update about one hour ago. One of them, Violation
#60080, has been determined to cause false positives for players on some systems. A new replacement update has
just gone out. PB Server Admins should ignore any #60080 violations.
Version 1.026 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.026:
- new /pb_myguid console command displays the current cdkey and resulting PB GUID
- new pb_autoexec setting to hold the name of a user-created script that PB will execute after each
new server connection; players can create or edit pbcl.cfg with a text editor such as notepad and add
a line such as 'pb_autoexec pbgame'; then in the Quake3 'baseq3' folder create a file called pbgame.cfg and
enter commands that should be executed automatically after each connection
Version 1.029 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.029:
- improved detection and handling of corrupted security data (pbsv.db file)
- addressed pb_sv_restart bug that caused unexpected server exit on some linux boxes
Version 1.027 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.027:
- updated some existing and added new log lines produced by PB Server
- players who connect with old or non-functioning versions of PB are now forced to spectator
mode until their PB is updated/working properly
- addressed problem that is kicking gtv spec clients
- fixed bug that was preventing 'warning' messages from being sent to players on some servers
upon connection
- added new NameLock facility to allow admins to locally lock player names to specific guids; mostly
useful on servers that collect stats so that top players' names are locked against being used by
troublemakers to skew the stats
- new command pb_sv_namelock [guid] "name"; used to add a NameLock; the guid can be the full 32
character guid or a partial match; name is case sensitive and colors are stripped automatically for
matching; multiple items can be added for the same name to account for players who sometimes play
on multiple machines and/or use different guids from time to time; these lines can be added to the
pbsvuser.cfg file in the home "pb" directory to have the PB Server load and process the NameLocks
at each start up
- new command pb_sv_namelocklist; lists NameLocks currently hashed in memory
- new command pb_sv_namelockempty; empties the list of NameLocks currently hashed in memory
Version 1.025 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.025:
- addressed bug with pb_sv_banlist command so that it now filters according to documentation
- improved efficiency of initializing connecting PB Clients
- now kicks phantom players (players with an invalid game status yet a non-zero frag/death)
- addressed bug related to new IP Guard system and loopback players
- new facility to allow server admins to protect registered tags/names on local servers; useful
for clans to prevent the wearing of their clan tag on their own servers except by members and for
server admins to prevent the wearing of the admin's name on his/her own server; players who wear
protected tags/names on servers with this in effect will be kicked if they do not supply the correct
password credentials associated with the registered tag/name
- pb_sv_protecttag [uniqueId] "registered tag"; to protect a registered tag on the local server
- pb_sv_protectname [uniqueId] "registered name"; to protect a registered name on the local server
Version 1.021 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.021:
- /pb_myguid console command now hides the cdkey when PB detects a current server connection so that
the player's cdkey won't accidentally show up in any screenshots that are taken
Version 1.020 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.020:
- new /pb_myguid console command locally displays the currently entered cdkey and resulting
full PB GUID
Version 1.019 of the PB Client for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for auto-update
and to our website download page.
Release Notes for PB Client v1.019:
- new pb_autoexec setting to hold the name of a user-created script that PB will execute after each
new server connection; players can create or edit pbcl.cfg with a text editor such as notepad and add
a line such as 'pb_autoexec pbgame'; then in Quake3's 'baseq3' folder (and/or separate mod folders)
create a file called pbgame.cfg and enter commands that should be executed automatically after
each connection.
Version 1.022 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our download page and to our
master servers for auto-update.
Release Notes for v1.022:
- Now kicks players with non-zero frags and/or deaths if their PB Client does not fully
authenticate within a few seconds of joining the server
Version 1.021 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our download page and to our
master servers for auto-update.
Release Notes for v1.021:
- Addresses a minor bug related to non-dedicated servers communicating with loopback client
Version 1.020 of the PB Server for Quake3 is on our Q3 download page and will be going out
later tonight via auto-update. Various hacks are addressed that cause players to stay in UPDT status
on PB Servers.
Release Notes for v1.020:
- Addresses a server crash bug that arose in some cases when players were kicked by PB
- The pb_power command issued by players now displays player guids similar to how pb_plist works
- Now 'guards' IP addresses that are suspicious and kicks players using the guarded IP Addresses if
their PB attempts immediate update downloads upon joining
- IP addresses are automatically added to the new IP Guard list when a player's PB fails to update
after three consecutive tries
- PB Admins can also manually add IP Addresses and/or netmasks to the new IP Guard list with the
new pb_sv_ipguard command; example: pb_sv_ipguard 192.168.1
- NOTE: Currently, the IP Guard list is not saved to disk, it is cleared each time the PB Server is
restarted
- PB Admins can now permanently ban players connecting with specific IP Addresses and/or
netmasks from their PB Servers with the pb_sv_banmask command; example: pb_sv_banmask 192.168.1
Version 1.018 of the PB Server for Quake3. In order to test the pre-release, PB Admins should download
pbsv.db for Q3
into the appropriate home "pb" directory and overwrite your existing pbsv.db file. Then issue a pb_sv_restart command followed by a pb_sv_update command. This should initiate an auto-update to PB Server version v1.018. If pb_sv_restart does not properly restart your server, exiting the game server and re-launching it would be required instead of issuing the pb_sv_restart command. If your server updates to v1.018 but you experience problems and want to go back to the prior version, you should exit the game server and overwrite the pbsv.dll (or pbsv.so under linux or pbsv.mac under mac osx) with the pbsvold.dll file in the home "pb" directory and then restart the game server. Please send feedback via email about v1.018 and your experience following this update process to testing@evenbalance.com.
Release Notes for v1.018:
- The pb_sv_noguidgrace setting now defaults to 1 which means PB will remove players who refuse
to enter a valid cdkey 1 second after joining the PB Server
Version 1.017 of the PB Server for Quake3 has been released to our PB Master Servers for pre-release testing. In order to test the pre-release, Quake3 PB Admins should download pbsv.db into the appropriate home "pb" directory and overwrite your existing pbsv.db file (NOTE: Do not download this pbsv.db file into the "pb" directory for any game except Quake3). Then issue a pb_sv_restart command followed by a pb_sv_update command. This should initiate an auto-update to PB Server version v1.017. If pb_sv_restart does not properly restart your server, exiting the game server and re-launching it would be required instead of issuing the pb_sv_restart command. If your server updates to v1.017 but you experience problems and want to go back to the prior version, you should exit the game server and overwrite the pbsv.dll (or pbsv.so under linux or pbsv.mac under mac osx) with the pbsvold.dll file in the home "pb" directory and then restart the game server. Please send feedback via email about v1.017 and your experience following this update process to testing@evenbalance.com.
For Quake3 PB Admins, new PB Server v1.011 has been released to our download page. Pending feedback, it will be released soon for auto-update. The server release notes on our download page have been updated for new items with this version. We would like for PB Admins (especially running Linux) who have direct server access to pre-test the auto-update to version 1.011. To test the auto-update to v1.011, make a local backup of your pbsv.db and pbsv.so files and then download pbsv.db into the home "pb" directory. At this point, issue a pb_sv_restart command. After your PB Server restarts, issue a pb_sv_update command and your PB Server should begin the process of updating to v1.011. Please send feedback to testing@evenbalance.com reporting how the update to v1.011 goes. If any problems are encountered, the original pbsv.db and pbsv.so files should be restored to get back to the current stable environment.
Release Notes for PB Server v1.011
- new pb_sv_lanmask setting defaults to empty; can be set by server admin to denote the netmask
of IP addresses that should be considered on the same LAN with the game server (i.e. for Servers
that have both an external IP and an internal IP)
- old pb_sv_dupmask setting removed
- plist now shows each player's guid status from the new PB Guid Auth server directly after
the GUID
(VALID) or (VALID2) means that the GUID is valid
(UNKN) means that the guid is not known to the PB Guid Auth server and should be
considered hacked
(LAN) means that the player is on a LAN with the server (see pb_sv_lanmask setting
above)
(WRONGIP) means that the GUID is valid but the IP address of the player does not
match the last IP address authed by id's cdkey auth server
(BANNED) means that the GUID has been permanently banned from all PB Servers
(it should be rare to see these as PB will remove such players from the game
immediately upon joining)
(-) means that the PB Server has not received any communication from the PB Guid Auth
server for this GUID (could signify the PB Guid Auth server is down or that
a firewall is blocking communication)
(AUTHDOWN) means that the PB Guid Auth server is working, but that id's cdkey auth server
is down - please notify us of this condition via email to support@evenbalance.com
- new pb_sv_guidRelax setting controls PB's kicking behavior related to GUIDS; this setting
is cumulative based on adding the values for the conditions desired; 1=UNKN Guid,
2=WRONGIP Guid, 4=DUPLICATE Guids; the current default for this setting is 7 (1+2+4) which
means that PB will not kick (relax kicking) for any of the three cases
New cheat detection patterns #110003 and #110004 of the AutoFire variety were added to the PB violation system a few hours ago for all games we support. We have been able to confirm that at least one legitimate program (Team Speak Server v1.22) can cause PB to raise these violations falsely. PB Admins should not ban or suspect any players who were tagged with these violations for cheating. Any admins who have a question about this issue should email info@evenbalance.com. We apologize for the inconvenience to any players who were accused of cheating due to one of these violations.
The testing for our new GUID Authentication server system is going well. We expect to broaden the test base soon to any Quake3 Admins who are interested in helping test. This new master server system will allow PB Servers to positively validate player GUIDs and confirm that they are generated from the same CDKeys and IP Addresses used when players join PB Servers. We expect this system to completely eliminate GUID hacking on PB Servers where the Admins desire to take advantage of this system. Special thanks to Jolt and Speakeasy for helping with the initial testing and feedback.
PunkBuster is designed to auto-update so that users (players and admins) do not have manually update their PB files. However, for players and admins who do from time to time have to manually update their PunkBuster files for various reasons, we have recently developed a small utility applet called PBWEB for use in making this process as painless as possible. After receiving very good feedback from players and admins who have used this utility over the past few days, we're making it available to the general user base. Please see our PBWEB Support Page for more information.
Release Notes for prior PB Server Version updates
12/12/02 v1.005
- fixed bug related to kicking for changed GUIDs; only affected servers having an old local PB
Client version
12/12/02 v1.004
- fixed bug that was kicking spectator clients even when pb_sv_specname was set properly
- new pb_sv_minname setting defaults to 0 which means disabled; otherwise requires player
names to be at least as long as the pb_sv_minname value (after stripping colors from the name)
- now detects and kicks for changed GUIDs
11/26/02 v1.001
- fixed bug related to new pb_sv_noguidgrace setting that was kicking NO_GUID players
immediately rather than after the grace period
11/26/02 v1.000
- new pb_sv_updategrace setting to specify the number of seconds a PB Client is given
to update (if necessary) before being removed - default is 600 (10 minutes)
- new pb_sv_noguidgrace setting to specify the number of seconds a player is allowed
to stay on the server with a 'NO_GUID' identifyer before being removed - default is 0
which means NO_GUID players are not removed
11/24/02 v0.998
- outbound PB Packets are now queued and sent once per frame (max) in an effort to
address packet bursts (also pb_sv_sleep setting is ignored starting with this
PB Server version)
- new GUID system assigns player GUIDs at the server so that punks can't impersonate
other players
- violations are now logged with player GUID and IP Address
- temporarily disabled duplicate GUID/CDKEY violations while testing this version
- logs and reports (if/when necessary) to players when the server is using an old
version of the PB Client
11/6/02 v0.996
- temporarily removed the 'invalid guid' and 'changed cdkey' violations because of
problems with some mods - will reintroduce in a future update
- new pb_sv_taskempty command clears the PB task list
- fixed (for consistency) order of arguments for pb_sv_power command (slot # now is
first, then power points)
11/2/02 v0.995
- does not kick for 'too many initializations' (until that bug gets straightened out)
- client queries using pb_cvarval are now ignored if the text "pass" is in the query
(used to be "password")
- player guids and IP addresses are logged in the violation logs
- the kicking for extended characters bug has been fixed (now only kicks if pb_sv_extChar is 0)
- players named 'all' are kicked with a BadName violation
- new pb_sv_emptyname setting defaults to 0 which means players with empty (blank, or "")
name are kicked with a BadName violation
- pb_sv_cvarLogging can now be set to 0 which means PB will not log cvar reports to disk
(may reduce lag)
- bad web key attempts are now logged with source IP address:port
- new command pb_sv_newlog causes PB to close current log, increment log file number and
open a new log
note: use "pb_sv_task 1800 1800 pb_sv_newlog" (for example) to open a new log every 30 minutes
- now kicks players whose guid/cdkey changes during play or who have a malformed guid
- PB log filenaming/sequencing problems have been addressed
- does not log 10002/10004 violations (this bug will be fully addressed in a future update)
- pb_sv_dupmask can be set to a LAN netmask to not kick players on a LAN for duplicate guids
(i.e. pb_sv_dupmask 192.168 will cover all players whose ip starts with 192.168)
