Themida works in a different way to most of the copy protection systems found in other games. Starforce causes problems because it replaces drivers, and there's no guarantee that those drivers will be compatible. Safedisc and SecuROM both work under a similar principle. They use purposefully created 'bad' sectors of the media to generate authorisation (the bad sectors act like a code). Both require specialist tools at the duplication point for a developer to use it.
Themida basically does none of these things. The Oreans driver is something related entirely to Themida : it does not replace any windows or system drivers, nor is it used as one. Its about as dangerous as any of the dlls you can find in Mount & Blade (or any other game's) directory.
From what I understand, Themida has two main methods. In the first place, it scans the system each time you run M&B to check for decompilers or similar. In the second, it appears to generate on the fly decryption - think of it as having a randomly generated password locking out the code each time you run it, and Themida providing that password.
It's not completely free of problems, though none are dangerous to the system. Most problems are caused by the way Themida checks for decompilers - certain malware will trigger the copy protection (I assume if you have a virus then Themida should be the least of your worries). Earlier versions had a similar problem with 64 bit processors, although that appears to have been rectified in the latest version.
No Themida drivers are launched when windows is started, nor do any randomly turn on and off. The only time it ever runs is when you also launch M&B. Most of the protection system appears to be tied into the executable for M&B. Oreans.sys is the only driver I've found not in the M&B directory. Uninstallation will usually remove Themida and its drivers, although deleting oreans.sys will have no adverse effects on the system if the uninstall fails to remove it. The driver isn't used to do anything but run Themida.
If your still unsure you can always contact oreans themselves. They have always proved helpful and reliable when I (or anyone else from this board) has had cause to contact them in the past.
If your interested in the kind of problems Themida has caused, search the bug report or customer support forums for Oreans.sys. Like I said, most have been related to the 64 bit bug, which was resolved with release .710. In no cases has Themida been known to alter or otherwise damage the normal running of the system, the worst effect is simply M&B not starting.
Mount & Blade also incorporates code level hack protection. Similar protection is used in most games, and is designed to detect abnormal interference (such as that caused by a crack) on the actual program's execution environment. Unlike Themida, this protection is actually part of the game itself (being part of the game's code) and uses no outside programs, software or drivers. If something triggers this protection, then certain effects are applied to the way the game plays, designed to render it unplayable. The chance of this occuring without using a crack are incredibly small, (no known case so far). If you do think this is happening to you, then shutting down all background programs, combined with a quick anti-virus/spyware scan will resolve the issue. If you are still unsure, contact myself or another admin and we can confirm whether what you are seeing is down to the inbuilt protection or not. Remember, since M&B is still in Beta stage it is highly likely that any bugs occurring are actual bugs, and not the copy protection being triggered. Obviously, this kind of protection cannot install anything, pose a security risk or have adverse effects on your system.
Themida basically does none of these things. The Oreans driver is something related entirely to Themida : it does not replace any windows or system drivers, nor is it used as one. Its about as dangerous as any of the dlls you can find in Mount & Blade (or any other game's) directory.
From what I understand, Themida has two main methods. In the first place, it scans the system each time you run M&B to check for decompilers or similar. In the second, it appears to generate on the fly decryption - think of it as having a randomly generated password locking out the code each time you run it, and Themida providing that password.
It's not completely free of problems, though none are dangerous to the system. Most problems are caused by the way Themida checks for decompilers - certain malware will trigger the copy protection (I assume if you have a virus then Themida should be the least of your worries). Earlier versions had a similar problem with 64 bit processors, although that appears to have been rectified in the latest version.
No Themida drivers are launched when windows is started, nor do any randomly turn on and off. The only time it ever runs is when you also launch M&B. Most of the protection system appears to be tied into the executable for M&B. Oreans.sys is the only driver I've found not in the M&B directory. Uninstallation will usually remove Themida and its drivers, although deleting oreans.sys will have no adverse effects on the system if the uninstall fails to remove it. The driver isn't used to do anything but run Themida.
If your still unsure you can always contact oreans themselves. They have always proved helpful and reliable when I (or anyone else from this board) has had cause to contact them in the past.
If your interested in the kind of problems Themida has caused, search the bug report or customer support forums for Oreans.sys. Like I said, most have been related to the 64 bit bug, which was resolved with release .710. In no cases has Themida been known to alter or otherwise damage the normal running of the system, the worst effect is simply M&B not starting.
Mount & Blade also incorporates code level hack protection. Similar protection is used in most games, and is designed to detect abnormal interference (such as that caused by a crack) on the actual program's execution environment. Unlike Themida, this protection is actually part of the game itself (being part of the game's code) and uses no outside programs, software or drivers. If something triggers this protection, then certain effects are applied to the way the game plays, designed to render it unplayable. The chance of this occuring without using a crack are incredibly small, (no known case so far). If you do think this is happening to you, then shutting down all background programs, combined with a quick anti-virus/spyware scan will resolve the issue. If you are still unsure, contact myself or another admin and we can confirm whether what you are seeing is down to the inbuilt protection or not. Remember, since M&B is still in Beta stage it is highly likely that any bugs occurring are actual bugs, and not the copy protection being triggered. Obviously, this kind of protection cannot install anything, pose a security risk or have adverse effects on your system.
