Why hardware boxing always also is software boxing

[Peri Helion]

@Swaggasauruz - your solution is what I would call a true hardware solution. It is mechanical and electrical. Hell, I would try it not because I want to multi-box still, but because it sounds like an awesome "Frankenstein's Monster" kind of project.

@schmonz - I think you are correct. We may think of a switch as a hardware only solution, but it is really just moving the software off of the PC to the external box. It still contains some programming and instruction sets to multiplex the signals. I have no idea if Blizz can detect it or not, but I think they would consider it a violation.

I am no expert, these are just my thoughts.

[MadMilitia]

Of course they won't be able to detect it from software but they don't need to.

A simple GM observation of your characters all following at once, or interacting at once with an object is all they need to see.

And that will also go for rotations. I guess it's worth seeing to be sure for yourself but yeah.

[Swaggasauruz]

Of course they won't be able to detect it from software but they don't need to.

A simple GM observation of your characters all following at once, or interacting at once with an object is all they need to see.

And that will also go for rotations. I guess it's worth seeing to be sure for yourself but yeah.

Simulated keystrokes from software broadcasting are in fact different from HID keystrokes in many cases. Also if they see 5 accounts logged in on your device/ip/5 characters in a party pressing keys at exact same time/etc they have the ability via Warden to scan active processes on the computer. It would not be difficult for them to detect any of the well known multiboxing software running on the PC.

[Kayley]

As far as I understand it's not possible for Blizzard to differentiate between a keyboard sending an input or a switch sending an input from a keyboard - both events just look like a keypress from an HID.

Depends on what you use QT. Some switches just emulate, some switches passthrough a generic 'keyboard' which is meh.. and the bestest passthrough evveerrryyytthhiiinnngggggg (which is what you want).

Also if they see 5 accounts logged in on your device/ip/5 characters in a party pressing keys at exact same time/etc they have the ability via Warden to scan active processes on the computer.

Warden doesn't work like that lol

[Spyro]

A simple GM observation of your characters all following at once

That shouldn't be enough coz following can be implemented by addons.

But I agree that you can be banned if the wrong GM checks you or if their AI systems flag you (even if you aren't breaking the ToS), in fact, I was banned myself when boxing was legal without doing anything against the ToS. This also happened to several boxers, including "the famous" Furyswipes.

At this point I'm even scared to log 4 chars (with no software) to boost them in SM (which I need to beacuse I have to boost the 2 classes that I'm gonna play in TBC on my main account).

[Andreauk]

That shouldn't be enough coz following can be implemented by addons.

I do worry about addons like EMA that can allow mounting at the same time and the auto follow.

I myself will use a 2 seater then manually put my char onto the mount. I feel any auto follow addon is a very grey area right now.

[Swaggasauruz]

@Swaggasauruz - your solution is what I would call a true hardware solution. It is mechanical and electrical. Hell, I would try it not because I want to multi-box still, but because it sounds like an awesome "Frankenstein's Monster" kind of project.

@schmonz - I think you are correct. We may think of a switch as a hardware only solution, but it is really just moving the software off of the PC to the external box. It still contains some programming and instruction sets to multiplex the signals. I have no idea if Blizz can detect it or not, but I think they would consider it a violation.

I am no expert, these are just my thoughts.

I considered still going with the Arduinos as it would be a fun project but I ended up going with a USB synchronous switch. As far as I understand it's not possible for Blizzard to differentiate between a keyboard sending an input or a switch sending an input from a keyboard - both events just look like a keypress from an HID.

[nodoze]

Of course they won't be able to detect it from software but they don't need to.

A simple GM observation of your characters all following at once, or interacting at once with an object is all they need to see.

And that will also go for rotations. I guess it's worth seeing to be sure for yourself but yeah.

I considered still going with the Arduinos as it would be a fun project but I ended up going with a USB synchronous switch. As far as I understand it's not possible for Blizzard to differentiate between a keyboard sending an input or a switch sending an input from a keyboard - both events just look like a keypress from an HID.

None of the bans need to be triggered manually via Player Reports nor enforced manually via a in game review by a GM nor do they need to determine/verify the source of the input to make it bannable...

I am pretty sure Blizzard is recording server-side many attributes of your clients connecting and what environment they are connecting from (like what OS name/version, what machine/host name, what internal/external IPs, possibly full netmasks and trace routes, memory/cpu/gpu/vram/etc, things that denote VMs, etc) and also are recording your actions done in game (and likely the inputs and as best they can tell the source of those inputs) with very granular date/time stamps (at least to the millisecond).

It is very doable with the above information to write automated monitoring routines to detect accounts with simultaneous or nearly simultaneous actions and then automatically feed those flagged accounts to automated warn/suspend/ban workflows that require NO human interaction... I know because I do similar things professionally at work for people/clients connecting to our enterprise databases, enterprise applications, and Single Sign On (SSO) infrastructure for compliance & security reasons...

Frankly if I were Blizz I would just stop all the nebulous and halfway statements and just definitively say all interactions that result in 1 human action causing more than 1 action in 1 wow client are prohibited (whether hardware enabled or software enabled) and enable automated scans for that behavior and workflows to stop it and be done with it... Call it the "1-1-1" rule so it is simple/clear and easy to remember. People would then be forced to stagger actions in a reasonable human speed manner per client and that would end all the drama & confusion...

There are ways to try to get around the above but this would stop the vast majority of bots and abuses...