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[feet14]

QUOTE(Shameless Cookie @ Feb 27 2005, 11:55 AM)

I did the same softmod to a friend's XBox a couple weeks ago and he has yet to crack it open, so he's running a stock drive.  Well, at the EXACT same time, he was also banned... we had played on Live the night before, both of us with MVP 2005... and yesterday morning I couldn't sign on so I called him up and he said "Yea, I get the same message."

[Gumba]

QUOTE(feet14 @ Feb 27 2005, 11:31 PM)

It's likely that the softmod changed/moved/renamed some M$ files. We think M$ check that all their files are intact, because there was an exploit involving replacing xboxdash.xbe with update.xbe from a game, which allowed people to use backups on live with chip off.

[Ozy]

I think now it is obvious that M$ are checking componants, but not every xbox.

There must be something that triggers M$ to scan for your serial numbers.

Also adding HD and EEPROMS to the database before they hit the stores is a excellent theory, quick, easy and effective so it would seem.

At this rate we will all have to have dual drives and that is only if we can get past the database theory.
We need more proof though before this can be considered a new banning method.

Just a thought though;
Has anyone been banned for no reason and not played halo 2? If bungie were promising to get rid of modders on live then this method of banning seems to do the job.

[Shameless Cookie]

QUOTE(Ozy @ Feb 27 2005, 09:08 AM)

Just a thought though;

[Ozy]

QUOTE(Shameless Cookie @ Feb 27 2005, 04:09 PM)

Well, I've never played Halo 2 but I think that the fact that I had a softmodded machine banned differs from what you're getting at... I'm the minority here, it seems. 

[kezor]

both of my buddies got baned when they play mvp baseball. something new is in play. i gave one my buddies a new eeprom when he got banned from halo that worked out now he is banned again. new eeprom will test soon other buddy got banned and gave him a new eeprom working so far both have a x2.3 and 160 wd hdd

[BirdofPrey]

on the other side of the fence.. my 200gig is loaded with stuff on all partitions.. (c,f and g anyway).. ive been on live since nov.9th with halo2, always with the mod off.. always with the disc... and im still on.. if they're scanning hard drives i guess they just havent got to me yet.. but so far everything on my box is as before and works just the same.

[Blackcat]

QUOTE(BirdofPrey @ Feb 28 2005, 09:31 PM)

on the other side of the fence.. my 200gig is loaded with stuff on all partitions.. (c,f and g anyway).. ive been on live since nov.9th with halo2, always with the mod off.. always with the disc... and im still on.. if they're scanning hard drives i guess they just havent got to me yet.. but so far everything on my box is as before and works just the same.

[Ozy]

So it seems that new xboxes are most affected.

We need to identify this new threat before it wipes us all out.

[Ozy]

IDed! Go to the thread HERE. It makes most sese and fits in with all that is here.

[baddkar]

damn this shit is getting scary... can i make a switch with my stock hdd and my big hdd now after i have been on live? or will switching hdd's back to the OG one result in ban?

[feet14]

OneCrazyDJ - what a load of bull.

An EEPROM includes the MAC address so they can't track you this way.
I'm using a new game - Halo 2 - without problem. I just take appropriate precautions, like live-blocking bios and keeping live account on memcard.
IP Tracking is unreliable as most people have dynamic IP's.
There's no conclusive evidence regarding pre-marriage of components.
HDs are not yet being scanned for files - plenty of people, myself included, have Evox, Xbmc on C/E partitions. As long as the M$ files are intact, you're ok.

Buying a new Xbox is one solution but if you get a new EEPROM and stock HD plus live-blocking BIOS, detection will be difficult for M$.

[iLLNESS]

check the linox theory, they dont use hdd serials.. they store your gt info on the hdd eeprom...

if your xbox is virgin, it has neither the gt or the live info...

when u connect to live, it gets the live info
when u register a gt it gets gt info

anyways.. this is likely completely random bans..

im not banned (wd 160, x3).. and all my shit is on f...

but yes.. hdd scans would be very unlikely...

it seems its only ever halo2 players being banned here anyways... and right now they are going crazy with halo2 bans..

odds are uve been playing with people who standbyed

[feet14]

iLLNESS - linox theory is separate from marriage theory. This gt info is stored in the HDs partition table, which EvoX can save as disk.bin. If you boot your Xbox with modchip on, blank the partition table with a blank disk.bin and reboot into live, you will probably get banned. M$ will see that the gamertag info has gone missing. Marriage Theory is about info M$ store on their servers.

Your large HD isn't banned because you're not using a flagged GT.

My ban in November was before I received my copy of H2, so it's not all down to that. As for standby glitching, your Xbox doesn't get banned, but your live account gets suspended for a few days.

HD scans aren't happening yet but it would be possible. Whether that would be legal is questionable. The current scanning system only checks that all M$ files and hardware components are untouched. Scanning files you've added to your Xbox is completely different.

[Blackfly1976]

Just a thought, but how exactly would anyone be able to "scan" the HDD when the xbox is booted off the M$ BIOS, I mean, there's certainly no FTP server? So if M$ can scan my xbox HDD over the internet and through my firewall, how would I go about such an action across my local network?
Curious about the technologies involved more so than challenging any particular theory.