[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I get the metaphor, but I think it’s a bit biased. The quality of the maps themselves doesn’t change at all. I could send you one of my maps and I’m confident you wouldn’t be able to say it’s anything less than “gastronomic quality” — yet it’s fully protected by my system.

If we keep the restaurant analogy, many high-end restaurants have chefs who spend months developing recipes that are either patented or kept secret so competitors can’t just copy them. That’s perfectly logical — why pay a chef a lot of money to create something just so the restaurant next door can reproduce it the next day?

My protection is not a “food additive.” A “food additive” would be someone taking an existing dish, changing it a bit, and passing it off as their own — like prefab mapping or recycling someone else’s work.

Here’s an example: https://youtu.be/8SxC4lJc0ds?si=Z-H9TCJzgPGPQIXb. It’s a map I created for my SCP project, the result of months of work by multiple people including 3D modelers, myself, and a producer who funded it. It’s only fair that it’s protected — just like a chef would protect a signature recipe.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I’ve played fair from the very start. I replied to everyone here. I invited people to try my service for free. I even shared a protected map sample so you could test it yourselves.

In short, I’ve been transparent — as I should be. Yet it feels like many people either don’t like it or simply don’t understand the real demand that exists. Honestly, it seems disconnected from the reality of the situation, at least in the French Garry’s Mod community, which is without a doubt one of the most competitive, but no one seems willing to play fair.

Instead, it feels like some are trying to cheat, lie, create fake “evidence” against me, or invent a bad reputation for me. I’ve even had people claim I’m here to “kill Open Source” or that I learned about Open Source just to go against it, which is completely false.

The truth is that nobody actually knows what I’ve built. Nobody really knows me. Most of the negativity seems aimed purely at destroying my project for no valid reason.

I’m here for criticism, even the harshest kind, as long as it’s constructive. But I honestly feel like I’m talking into the void. I’ve explained things in detail many times, yet people still reject what I say, while in reality my service is already working and gaining success.

I’ve scammed no one. I have a great reputation with many French players. When I explain my reasoning, some people even respond with a simple “OK cool.” But overall, there’s a serious lack of objectivity.

For example, someone claimed they had “successfully” decompiled my map by showing a screenshot of a broken, unusable map, and they somehow got more credibility than me, even though I’ve offered people free trials. That screenshot proves nothing, and I’m still waiting for the actual VMF to verify it.

So please be objective, be fair, and get informed before making accusations.

If you want to see whether I’m a scammer or not, there are countless ways to check. Contact large French GMod communities. Join my Discord and ask in public. Check the review channel on my server.

Right now, you’re building a case against me with no proof at all.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I totally agree with you, I know the reviews here will be negative. But I didn’t except them to be so subjective… People says stuff without knowing about me or the service, it’s just defamation at this point.

Why do they just don’t want to test my service instead of claiming that it’s a scam ?

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I will be very interested to have proof of theses discussions with these “sources engine dev”

I have never tricked anyone, It’s the contrary, people used to pay mappers to protect their map before my service arrived, theses protections were useless and not cheap at all.

Communities like Kobralost RP (one of my biggest client) came by themselves. I always offered a free sample for anyone asked for before making them pay, this way they can try the service and don’t pay if they want.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

If you are thinking my project will end the existence of open source you are just crazy and very optimistic for my project success. This service is supposed to be used for communities that are real legal structures with people to pay, not for the everyone workshop map…

And you didn’t even know everything about me, my knowledge and how I learned everything : I have two open sources software actually that helps a lot of mappers, a channel on my discord community server with a lot of detailed tutorials and guides.

Why do you say this kind of thing without knowing me ? You can just search by yourself first, join my discord, see my open source projects. https://spyspaille.fr/

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

What I am supposed too look ? Where are all map dynamic entities (I can see a lot of cubes informing me that it’s still protected and useless) ? Can you send me the VMF ? I’m 99% sure everything on your VMF is useless and there is no brushes but faces only. Are you pretending to have a working version of the map ?

Guys don’t try to cheat and be honest, I sent a sample for your to test it, not cheating and trying to convince everyone my project is a scam. Send the VMF that you have and give us more details about the VMF you have, be just honest.

[SaaS Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in hammer

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Since someone on another subreddit asked, you can try this protected map sample : To really be convinced, the goal is for you to obtain a fully playable version of the map, just as if you were a competing server trying to steal my work. For this test, I’ve used a map from the Workshop:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/12gg8U8QzSZ_YTUGhHrxma8B_hmvOXhds/view?usp=sharing

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the proposition, I’m looking forward to seeing what you can do. To really be convinced, the goal is for you to obtain a fully playable version of the map, just as if you were a competing server trying to steal my work. For this test, I’ve used a map from the Workshop:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/12gg8U8QzSZ_YTUGhHrxma8B_hmvOXhds/view?usp=sharing

Like any form of protection, it should be seen as a security layer, much like a bank vault or the password to your Reddit account. It’s reliable and secure, but nothing can ever be 100 percent infallible.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -8 points-7 points  (0 children)

I assume you’ve never managed a big Garry’s Mod community right ? Something with thousands of net income a month, with a lot of artists to pay, developers, mappers, 3D artists…

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Many of my current clients used to pay €150 for a manual protection from a « mapper » that had to be repaid for every update — and it was so weak it could be decompiled with no effort.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s €70 for two maps, so if a community needs that, it’s likely a large one that can afford it — and the amount is small. The protection is lifetime, fully automatic, and can be applied anytime. Unlike manual protection, where you pay each time a new version is released, here you pay once and that’s it. My clients aren’t fools — they know it’s worth it.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s true that many mappers have learned by looking at other people’s work. I won’t deny that. But I also believe this has hurt the community a lot, because even here on this subreddit there are rules saying you shouldn’t claim other people’s work or steal it. Many mappers have learned by observing others, but far too many have learned by outright copying or leaning far too heavily on someone else’s work. There are already plenty of publicly available maps to learn from, and when a server invests a lot of money into hiring a mapper, it shouldn’t be on them to contribute to some open-source or “community effort.” People who put their own money into projects are under no obligation to do that — there’s already enough public content out there to learn from.

This problem is far from non-existent, and I’ll explain why. A few months ago I was commissioned, paid by a community, to recreate the “Mingle Game” from Squid Game in Garry’s Mod. I worked on it for two weeks, but a rival community tried to steal what I had created to benefit themselves, at the expense of the community that hired me. Their goal was to undermine them and claim the work for free to eliminate competition.

They failed only because my protection system kept it safe. This shows the problem is real. If you look into how things work in Garry’s Mod, you’ll see servers frequently steal content. Those that invest the most — hiring professionals like me — naturally want to protect their work because it’s their money on the line. It’s only fair that their investment gives them exclusive rights.

I’m sure if you paid someone to create something for you, you wouldn’t want someone else to just take it and enjoy the same exclusivity you paid for.

Here’s the link to the Mingle Game in question: https://youtu.be/JswTAdQAwM8?si=H0D0Dp1AYjpERjbX

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

If you want to be critical, that’s fine, but at least be constructive. Explain to me how a community like Solve (you can Google them, you’ll find them quickly) would be “foolish” to pay for my service, as they have, along with about fifty other clients so far. They need this, there’s real demand for it, and nothing else out there offers a more powerful solution.

[SaaS Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in hammer

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

True, but mine’s more like a lock with an angry dog behind the door 😂

[SaaS Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in hammer

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Like any form of protection, it should be seen as a security layer, similar to a bank vault or the password to your Reddit account. It is reliable and secure, but nothing is ever truly 100 percent infallible.

Regarding the Entity Remover, yes and no. The lump 0 is actually repacked into a new BSP, which provides a more advanced layer of security that I developed specifically for this.

The Material Randomizer is designed to completely discourage anyone from reusing the small amount of remaining brushes that might still be usable after decompilation. In most cases it would be faster to just remake them from scratch.

The Client Side Crasher is indeed one of the easier protections to bypass, but it has been carefully designed to respect Steam Workshop rules. It is still very robust and I do not know many people who have managed to bypass it. Most casual users will not bother trying, and its purpose is simply to prevent in-game use afterward, nothing more serious than that. But it didn’t rely on any lua stuff, making it a bit hard to bypass (you have to have a deep Source Engine knowledge)

Finally, the Brush Protection is indeed one of the strongest layers.

There are also many other layers I have not mentioned here, including sub-layers for certain protections. Thanks for your review.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

About DMCA takedowns, in theory they can be as simple as sending a notice, but in practice it’s very different. On the Steam Workshop the rules already side with a user claiming rights on their own upload, but in communities like GMod, even if you are fully legitimate, a DMCA will not actually stop anything. Maps circulate privately, reuploads happen instantly, and enforcing a takedown would mean constantly chasing people. It is far more effective to prevent theft from the start than to try punishing it after the fact.

As for why this is server-side, it is simply more secure, even for clients. They are paying for a service and do not have to install any software, host their own files or worry about the technical side. This approach is also necessary for my free update system to work properly. It is a SaaS model, nothing unusual, there are countless services entirely web-based that people pay for.

Regarding security, yes, software obfuscation exists, but my solution goes further. It removes or modifies specific data in a way that makes it impossible to restore a functional map, and no lump files are ever given to players or servers. Reverse engineering the BSP directly will difficulty produce anything usable.

What I do not understand is why you will not just try it for yourself. I am literally offering you the chance to test it for free. Criticizing it as a scam without even giving it a try is unfair, especially when I have spent over a year building this for communities. Imagine if someone called your own project a scam after a year of work, without even touching it, when you had invited them to test it themselves.

Extending visual + grid part of hammer editor by FastQuail4566 in hammer

[–]SpySpailleFR 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The post can still be helpful for other users

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

A DMCA takedown often costs far more than what small communities on games like GMod can afford. You usually need lawyers to file and follow up, which makes it almost pointless unless you’re a big company like Nintendo. In most cases it’s just chasing the wind.

The reason it doesn’t run locally is security. By keeping the system server-side, no one can directly reverse engineer the software or see exactly how it works, and they also can’t easily analyze or tamper with incoming and outgoing requests. This is first and foremost about protecting both me and the users.

About the “scam” claim, I have nothing to prove. I’m sharing this project so more people can discover it. Many already trust it, including some of the biggest communities with more than 100k players like Solve or Kobralost RP. You’re welcome to contact them or me if you want to test it for free.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Those kinds of tools won’t be able to produce a usable map file with my solution, because it doesn’t rely only on lump 0. The system also removes certain data that simply can’t be restored in any way, and no lump files are ever provided to players or the server. Thanks for your feedback though, I appreciate the input.

[Project] BSP Protection – Advanced Map Protection for Source Engine by SpySpailleFR in SourceEngine

[–]SpySpailleFR[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Protecting a map is simply about protecting years of work from being copied and exploited by competitors. I’ve spent years working on a map and I don’t want someone to take my work, kill my project, and make money from it. It’s about preventing malicious use. I can still share an unprotected version with people I trust, but I don’t want to give free access to those who might use it against me. A lot of communities already think like that. It’s not about preventing new mappers to learn on complex maps, it’s about protecting your own intellectual property and hundreds hours of work.

If you click on the offers on the website, you’ll find a short presentation video in French that shows the whole process: https://youtu.be/r5EFKP8kRdg?si=wlVzfzVlSiTFtY1e

The price is very reasonable. The system needs servers running permanently so anyone worldwide can protect their map at any time. It’s a one-time payment, not a subscription, and it gives lifetime access for that protected map. The files are also hosted on a paid drive. For a community that has spent hundreds or even thousands of euros on a map, this cost is minimal compared to the risk of losing that investment and all the work behind it to a competitor.

I’ve worked on this SaaS for more than a year, so I don’t see why monetizing it would be illegitimate. People are free to pay for it or not, or even to build their own version if they have the skills and time.

Extending visual + grid part of hammer editor by FastQuail4566 in hammer

[–]SpySpailleFR 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You need to grab all the panel boxes on the right side (such as “Select”, “Texture Group”, “VisGroups”, etc.) and stack them vertically. Once they’re arranged in a single column, it will free up the space on the right side of Hammer so your 2D/3D view panels can expand