Friday, October 13th 2023

Enabling AMD Anti-Lag+ in Counter Strike 2 Will Get You Banned

by
GFreeman
 Discuss (102 Comments)
With the release of AMD Software Adrenalin drivers version 23.10.1 WHQL, AMD has added Anti-Lag+ support for Counter Strike 2, but it appears that this will only result in a VAC (Valve Anti-Cheat) ban. Apparently, the Anti-Lag+ feature is implemented by detouring engine dll functions, and any tampering with CS code will result in a VAC ban.

Valve was keen to note that once AMD ships an update, it will work on identifying affected users and reversing the ban. Luckily, the Anti-Lag+ technology only works on Radeon RX 7000 series RDNA 3 graphics cards, so it could be a limited number of Counter Strike 2 players. The issue comes as a surprise considering that Anti-Lag+ has already been implemented in various games, including competitive ones like Apex Legends, PUBG: Battlegrounds, Fortnite, and others, and only has issues with Counter Strike 2 and its VAC system. Hopefully, AMD will fix the issue pretty soon and we will keep an eye out for an update.
Source: Counter Strike 2 Twitter

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102 Comments on Enabling AMD Anti-Lag+ in Counter Strike 2 Will Get You Banned

#51
Ephebus
And while they keep giving legit players false bans, Valve will deliberately NOT BAN the majority of real cheaters, so the game keeps getting media attention for successively breaking the number of concurrent players. Not to mention all the profits from the marketing of game items. Oh, sure, they will ban a few cheaters every now and then, but if you play a single game of CS and say nobody was cheating, you're either extremely naive or, more likely, a shill.
Posted on Reply
#52
zlobby
raddeonGetting banned for having too good of a latency in 4k max settings :)
Just kidding, I like living dangerously so will report back if I do.
We salute you for your sacrifice! :toast:
Posted on Reply
#53
RJARRRPCGP
Isn't EAC sensitive, too? I wouldn't be surprised if we shortly, get reports of a slew of people getting banned! And, I mean an unprecedented amount of people getting banned!

Not just EAC, but also Vanguard.
natr0nbullets pass through enemy but you die instantly.
It can feel like most others are hacking, if you have packet loss.

Fun fact: I can enjoy Halo CE online multiplayer on a server with 280 ms ping with no packet loss and it plays so much better than low ping with packet loss!
Posted on Reply
#54
Denver
800-1000fps and still need to use such tricks? lol
Posted on Reply
#55
csendesmark
MakaveliOn this driver and been playing CS2 on it however saw no need to enable Anti lag+ so good here.

Hopefully they get it fixed shortly.

you can enable the "regular" anti-lag
The issue is with anti-lag+
Sorry, my display language is in Hungarian, but it is good for the point:

This is the default setting, so practically everybody is safe
Posted on Reply
#56
Ruru
S.T.A.R.S.
archie_kaosI'm glad to joined Team Blue (Intel ARC). This Incident sounds like a bad Joke.
I balanced between Acer A770 16GB and RX 6700 XT yet I went for the latter one. Though Intel's first dGPU (since Intel740) lineup isn't too bad.
Posted on Reply
#57
RadeonProVega
I tried to like this game, i can't. Its boring. Players spawn right next to you in deathmatch lol, hackers everywhere, just a boring game. Not sure how it gets so many players.
Posted on Reply
#58
Makaveli
csendesmarkyou can enable the "regular" anti-lag
The issue is with anti-lag+
Sorry, my display language is in Hungarian, but it is good for the point:

This is the default setting, so practically everybody is safe
They are both staying off I don't need it performance is fine for me.
Posted on Reply
#59
MarsM4N
Well, their "Anti-Lag+" kinda works. Maybe not how they intended, but there is no lag if you're banned from the game. :laugh: Btw. it's not only CS2 players affected by it:


While I am still puzzled how AMD's CPU department is 1337 and their GPU department is tumbling from one pile of poop into the next, let's not fall into the AMD bashing. There where tons of other innocent players banned from games in the past for running other software (f.e. RGB software). The lazy anti cheat providers who straight out "pro-active" ban players are as well to blame here.
Posted on Reply
#60
PapaTaipei
Dr. DroSpecial K can inject Nvidia Reflex onto any game, quite handy. Bad idea for MP games for the same reason, SK is a DLL.



Still are, but Valve has issued unfair bans for false positives in the past and the VAC developers always had the capability to revoke an account ban at their discretion. Said accounts are marked as unbanned rather than never banned, however.



I doubt the game runs unmodified on Windows 7, it's an unsupported version of Windows (read: unknown and untested DLLs for the engine), and with Valve killing Windows 7 support in two months you'd imagine people would have stopped insisting on it...

If you have not been banned yet you will be. VAC is not a proactive anti-cheat, it's reactive and it bans in waves. It'll flag your account and it'll be banned at a random time in the future.
Hi there, do you have any screenies of a Steam acc being publicly marked as unbanned? Never seen that and my Steam acc is from 2003.
Posted on Reply
#61
RJARRRPCGP
MarsM4NWell, their "Anti-Lag+" kinda works. Maybe not how they intended, but there is no lag if you're banned from the game. :laugh: Btw. it's not only CS2 players affected by it:


While I am still puzzled how AMD's CPU department is 1337 and their GPU department is tumbling from one pile of poop into the next, let's not fall into the AMD bashing. There where tons of other innocent players banned from games in the past for running other software (f.e. RGB software). The lazy anti cheat providers who straight out "pro-active" ban players are as well to blame here.
Over RGB software? This likely will result in them being embedded into BIOSes in the future.
Posted on Reply
#62
Random_User
I wonder how this all happened at all? Antilag was present in CSGO for ages. Might be different approach.

However, considering that nV Reflex is already integrated into the game, AMD obviously "had no time" for reaching out Valve to implement own advertised features. As they are to preoccupied with MI/AI/enterprise stuff for serious gentlemen with serious funds. Why would they worry about all these "menchildren" peasants and their silly games. Thus, why bother with testing the consumer drivers then?

On the other hand, CS2 was in development not so long time ago. AMD obsiously had time to introduce their SDK to Valve, while both CS2 and Anti-Lag+ were in beta.

P.S.: I dunno about other anticheats. But if this triggers VAC, the BattleEye is even more antsy. It's the dumb mad Cerberus. Anti-cheat providers have to scratch their heads now.
RJARRRPCGPOver RGB software? This likely will result in them being embedded into BIOSes in the future.
Is this even a surprise any more? The RGB sofware is so horrible in general, I wonder how it haven't been labeled as malware by now.
Posted on Reply
#63
Ruru
S.T.A.R.S.
Just wondering that can playing with modified GPU drivers get you banned? Better that I don't try with my 2nd PC :D
Posted on Reply
#64
R-T-B
Hardware1906beside it works on other games so why not CS2?
Most likely AMD forgot to whitelist it with valve, as I said.
Posted on Reply
#65
Vya Domus
R-T-BMost likely AMD forgot to whitelist it with valve, as I said.
If you need to whitelist software your anticheat is crap.
Posted on Reply
#66
RJARRRPCGP
KissamiesJust wondering that can playing with modified GPU drivers get you banned? Better that I don't try with my 2nd PC :D
If it's kernel-level anti-cheat, then yes, indeed!
Posted on Reply
#67
Dr. Dro
PapaTaipeiHi there, do you have any screenies of a Steam acc being publicly marked as unbanned? Never seen that and my Steam acc is from 2003.
It's not shown in a Steam profile. You need to use a Steam data website like the SteamDB calculator or vacbanned.com
Posted on Reply
#68
R-T-B
Vya DomusIf you need to whitelist software your anticheat is crap.
If you are using injection there isn't any other way for the anticheat to know friend from foe. It's the same reason wine users get banned.

I mean if you want to make that argument then AMD needed to program this differently.
Posted on Reply
#69
1d10t
Nothing new for online players, considering these anti cheat already doing false detection even with obnoxious and hostile services like Riot's Vanguard.
Personally I once got a VAC ban because the ping was too slow, yeah you read that right. Considering I left CS:GO because aimbots were rampant, I'm kinda surprised they are starting to get serious about fighting cheaters again.
Posted on Reply
#70
Dr. Dro
1d10tNothing new for online players, considering these anti cheat already doing false detection even with obnoxious and hostile services like Riot's Vanguard.
Personally I once got a VAC ban because the ping was too slow, yeah you read that right. Considering I left CS:GO because aimbots were rampant, I'm kinda surprised they are starting to get serious about fighting cheaters again.
High ping has never ever resulted in a VAC ban. Match abandonment in ranked games can result in game bans, however. These are not VAC bans but bans issued directly by the developer for unacceptable conduct.

In some games, said bans will display alongside VAC bans on a Steam profile, but the profile will remain in good standing with VAC, and game bans apply on a per-title basis.
Posted on Reply
#71
LabRat 891
Dr. DroHigh ping has never ever resulted in a VAC ban. Match abandonment in ranked games can result in game bans, however. These are not VAC bans but bans issued directly by the developer for unacceptable conduct.
Correct me if I'm wrong but,
couldn't malware that's intercepting, inspecting, and altering TCP/IP packets
or
bad hardware that's 'inconsistently' dropping packets
also 'trigger' an actual VAC Ban?

I'm asking/mentioning as I recall devices for the Xbox 360 that did similar, and were a PITA for msft to detect and ban.
IIRC, the eventually-found un-bannable 'trick' was using a physical switch on one of the Ethernet conductors/pairs, to simulate (on-demand) an 'ISP/Network problem' while not-entirely disconnecting the 'hacker/exploiter'.
If done quick-enough, an exploiter could 'freeze' everyone else in the game (they hosted),
frag them, then re-enable proper LAN/WAN function.

I wonder if VAC has a detection mechanism for this kind of dumb hardware-level TCP/IP exploit?
Posted on Reply
#72
Ruru
S.T.A.R.S.
RJARRRPCGPIf it's kernel-level anti-cheat, then yes, indeed!
No idea though. I'm more a hardware nerd and somewhat a noob what it comes to software. :)
Posted on Reply
#73
zlobby
LabRat 891Correct me if I'm wrong but,
couldn't malware that's intercepting, inspecting, and altering TCP/IP packets
or
bad hardware that's 'inconsistently' dropping packets
also 'trigger' an actual VAC Ban?

I'm asking/mentioning as I recall devices for the Xbox 360 that did similar, and were a PITA for msft to detect and ban.
IIRC, the eventually-found un-bannable 'trick' was using a physical switch on one of the Ethernet conductors/pairs, to simulate (on-demand) an 'ISP/Network problem' while not-entirely disconnecting the 'hacker/exploiter'.
If done quick-enough, an exploiter could 'freeze' everyone else in the game (they hosted),
frag them, then re-enable proper LAN/WAN function.

I wonder if VAC has a detection mechanism for this kind of dumb hardware-level TCP/IP exploit?
That would be a really dumb decision. TCP is inherently unreliable. And together with most people's ISP and crappy home networks, it would result in probably 70% of all users being banned. And that's bad for the publishing studios.
Posted on Reply
#74
marios15
LabRat 891Correct me if I'm wrong but,
couldn't malware that's intercepting, inspecting, and altering TCP/IP packets
or
bad hardware that's 'inconsistently' dropping packets
also 'trigger' an actual VAC Ban?

I'm asking/mentioning as I recall devices for the Xbox 360 that did similar, and were a PITA for msft to detect and ban.
IIRC, the eventually-found un-bannable 'trick' was using a physical switch on one of the Ethernet conductors/pairs, to simulate (on-demand) an 'ISP/Network problem' while not-entirely disconnecting the 'hacker/exploiter'.
If done quick-enough, an exploiter could 'freeze' everyone else in the game (they hosted),
frag them, then re-enable proper LAN/WAN function.

I wonder if VAC has a detection mechanism for this kind of dumb hardware-level TCP/IP exploit?
That's probably due to client-side hit registration/ping compensation, which is never used in competitive games.
Most games use server authoritative methods.
Posted on Reply
#75
AsRock
TPU addict
WOW, i see Valve being a dick once again what a surprise. Sure AMD cross the line so steam\valve bans people for some thing that a user might not of understood.

Sounds like a lawsuit.


All sounds like a good way for Valve to make a buck.
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