Punkbuster Error: MD5Tool Mismatch Troubleshooting

[kilroy0097]

Punkbuster Kicked player 'Player' ...MD5Tool Mismatch: mods\bf2\Levels\Operation_Clean_Sweep\client.zip (len=2048)

A total of about 8 hours of play time. Which is the longest time period since these MD5 kicks started. I got my next one.

I think it's safe to say that I've done everything humanly possible to fix this issue. Obviously it didn't work permanently. So I can only come to one of two conclusions.

1. My Computer is a piece of crap and these errors are due to some magical property that is some how changing my files. The ONLY issue with PR since the reinstallation that was out of the ordinary was the "Connection Issue" in which you press Esc to go to the menu and then press Esc to go back to the game. That's it and it only happened twice in those 8 hours of play. Which has been spread out over several days obviously.

2. Punk Buster with this latest patch is fundamentally flawed and if so there is nothing I can do about that since they certainly will not listen to me or recant the latest version.

So what are my options? Are the Developers of PR aware of this? I can only assume they are although I have yet to hear from them on the issue. I do not know if they have spoken with Even Balance officials to see what may have caused this sudden increase of kicks from legitimate and none modified or hacked installations.

Until something is fixed or until whoever can fix it started giving a damn I'm kind of screwed I suppose and will simply have to keep asking for individual client.zip files from sympathetic community members.

So who has a client.zip from Operation Clean Sweep they can offer me?

P.S. I am extremely disappointed and demoralized due to this latest PB update and at this point I have officially run out of options.

[[R-DEV]bosco]

Uploading it now.

[kilroy0097]

Thank you (R-PUB)bosco once again.

Theory time for the PR Developers if they read this.

At what stage during the Punk Buster MD5 checks is Operation Clean Sweep?
If it goes through a certain patterned search then perhaps I might be able to tell if Dalian Plant then Mashtuur CIty then Operation Clean Sweep is a pattern in the order I received the errors.

Does it check all the files multiple times during a gaming session?
By game session I mean from starting up PR till whenever you quit PR. The entire time the BF2 game is running from up to down from joining a server till quitting it. Does PB check all the files multiple times?

If so why would it find a file not corrupted during one check and corrupted during another?
Obviously if it checks multiple times in one sitting how is it possible that file is corrupted from being good just the last check, especially since nothing, that I know of, is accessing these files.

Could or would an Anti-Virus program of any time or a Anti-Adware program or anything security related as such, possibly corrupt or change files on the fly during the Punk Buster check? Or could it be blocking it some how and hence making PB think the MD5 is wrong?
That's a theory that might be plausible if everyone having these issues has an Anti-Virus/Spyware program running all the time. I think I might test that out just to see.

Just some simple questions I would like answers to. You can PM me if you do not want this sort of answers public on this thread.

[[R-DEV]bosco]

Here it is:
RapidShare: 1-Click Webhosting

[arn354]

Does it check all the files multiple times during a gaming session?

The list is checked over and over again normally but each time a full cycle. depends on settings on the server. Perhaps you connected to the server and he just sent out the request on op-cleansweep a few seconds before you connected. Depends on settings how long it takes untill the request is done again by the pbserver.

Could or would an Anti-Virus program of any time or a Anti-Adware program or anything security related as such, possibly corrupt or change files on the fly during the Punk Buster check? Or could it be blocking it some how and hence making PB think the MD5 is wrong?

No - not a antivirus or anti-adware program. If you get differences (one time correct, one time not) in each md5-check, there are several possibilities. From hardware to malware - almost everything.

It would be easier to track down if you would create multiple md5-hashes from your bf2-installation (to see if you get at last one correct result) and to post a list of running processes. A online systemcheck at Trend Micro HouseCall - Free Online Virus and Spyware Scan - Trend Micro USA before (just to be sure...) would be useful aswell.

On weekend i could offer you a remote-session using TeamViewer - Free Desktop Sharing and Remote Control (really easy to use) - just pm me about.

At what stage during the Punk Buster MD5 checks is Operation Clean Sweep?

Download the recommended settings you can view the ordering of the md5checks in those files.
To create md5-hashes check out that post.

[gamerwiz09]

It does seem though, for me at least, that not all servers cause this(as I mentioned).

Perhaps if we confirm that, we can also confirm that it is the same servers for everybody. If THAT turns out to be true, we can begin testing, and compile a list of servers that DO, and DO NOT work.

So far, I've had luck with 1CD Clan Sever, and Texas Teamplay server. I have been unable to play on the TC server, and for some reason(perhaps when I played a while ago, for a little while, very noobish as I was before stopping)I'm banned from the TG server, so I can't confirm that doesn't work. There is one other server that DOES, and DOES NOT work for me, but I can't remember them off the top of my head.

[umop-3p!sdn]

well, I rarely sign up for a forum for just one post, so hopefully I will get this mod running and be an actual part of the community at some point ... in this case though, I TA LEAST had to add to the data pool.

I have a fresh PC with a fresh BF2 - 1.41
new punkbuster
PR 0.756 [full install] with the recent cooresponding levels install.

It is not my PC as another user suggests.
While one may argue that CHANGING something from PC to PC works, therfor it is the PC, that is not the case simply because that wouldrequire that another issue is causing this within the PR session.

I suggest maybe a quick thread be made for syste, spec dumps to compare for the DEVs ...

It is likely an oversight of two conflicting data requirements, so a clean list might be easier to go over than a long verbose thread.
This is my very first post, so I won't create that thread, somone else do it if you agree ...

Here's my story:
same MD5 shaders issue as above
fresh everything. no extra processes.
full sized pagefile. [about 2GB for me]
Administrator acct.
video drivers fine.

I have yet to play more than 20 minutes of PR at a time, and thus am a worthless newb still. Which really sux, because I feel I would make an honorable addition to an intelligent squad. I simply cannot lpay the game though.

A coulpe things I wonder ...

1 how are the archives treated once addressed?
2 are they loaded into a temp file?
3 can their locations be replaced by shortcuts ?
4 must they be/not be write protected, or require a specific user control level to be accessed without problems?


ALso, if it is aparent that it is simply an issue of these somehow being corrupted time and again, can someone write a BAT file that will copy a fresh suit to the right folder every time you launch the game? I know that would be annoying to have an extra Gig as a file farm, but it might at least work in the meantime ...

The only anomaly I ALSO get in BF2, is that it won't let me play Highway Tamps, stating that the server doesn't allow modified content. I folowwed the official "fix" instructions, it still happens ... just put that outy there in case it is somehow related.

[kilroy0097]

Recommended Configs: Bf2 Server V1.41l - PunksBusted.com- in Partnership with 24-play.com

ultimate posts:

Feb 19, 2008
- added new md5check for BF2.exe from the EA Store version

I have a BF2 Disc from their first run. I have a 1.41 patch that I downloaded within a month of it's release. Both are extremely old.

Is there some other patch or some other change I'm not aware about that would cause PunkBuster to update the MD5 check for BF2.exe?

I'm looking into everything you posted arn354.

[General_J0k3r]

kilroy, if your download is so old, maybe try to dload it again. data gets corrupted on harddisks, you know?

[arn354]

ultimate posts:
Quote:
Feb 19, 2008
- added new md5check for BF2.exe from the EA Store version
I have a BF2 Disc from their first run. I have a 1.41 patch that I downloaded within a month of it's release. Both are extremely old.

Ultimate just mentioned that an additional check for BF2.exe was added in 02/2008 - for the Complete Collection. Not only one check for bf2.exe is valid. Only the BF2.exe is different - all other files are the same. You can be sure that we cross-checked the md5-checks on different machines, different operating systems and all available BF2-installations (BF2 standalone, Complete, Downloader, EA-Store,...).
The patch 1.41 is still the same - since its release - no change. But you can give a redownload a try - download from there if you want to - that one is 100% working. My BF2 dvd i am using is from 09/2005.

It does seem though, for me at least, that not all servers cause this(as I mentioned).

Confirm that the servers you are able to play on are using the checks at all - or which checks they exactly run.

umop-3p!sdn - you don't understand how that works and that not all servers use those checks. So it still can be your pc - even if you are able to play bf2 or other games - as long they don't use md5checks.

Stop thinking it has something to do with the servers. Some servers run them - some servers not. There are serveradministrators outthere knowing not really much about their servers or punkbuster - they just rent it to have one.

Stop thinking that the md5checks are incorrect. They are confirmed for XP and Vista. They are confirmed for all available bf2versions patched to 1.41 - normal, incl SF, Complete Coll, EA-Downl, EA-Store).