Ok here goes:
Groups used the exe files from demos to produce working cracks for the (protected) full versions.
That led to publishers using the same protection on the demos that would later be included with the game - we all know that.
Now, here is what I don't understand:
The demo has nothing to check - there is no dvd/cd in any drive. How come the exe files from a demo can not be used to crack the full version if the goal of the cracker is to remove cd/dvd checks which are not used in the demo exe in the first place.
How can the copy protection on the demo even work if it is not active? Why can't groups just "disable" the copy protection in the full version in the same way?
I'm by no means very knowledgeable on how copy protections work and this has bugged me for a while now, if anybody would take the time to explain this in an understandable way, I'd be most thankful.
I am not 100% sure but i think good protection is not just CD/DVD check, it also encrypts/hides important data like main .exe and/or some other important files. So when crackers have full game they cant just use demo .exe or compare files from demo and full. They have to deal with copy protection first.
Well the deal is that a demo.exe is a limited .exe file. It only "unlocks" certain parts of the game. So if used on the retail version it would only unlock mission 1&2 for example.
Also the purpose of cracking is to remove the copy protection...
A protected demo game .exe checks whether the files in the dirrectory are from the demo (=play the demo) or if they are from the full version (=dissable the exe)
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