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cs16-record-play-demos/en.md
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| 1 | +--- | |
| 2 | +title: "How to Record and Play Demos in CS 1.6" | |
| 3 | +excerpt: "Record CS 1.6 demos with the record command, play them back, jump around the timeline, and use demos to review your own play or gather evidence against a suspected cheater." | |
| 4 | +category: "client" | |
| 5 | +tags: "demos, recording" | |
| 6 | +image: "" | |
| 7 | +read_time: "8 min read" | |
| 8 | +--- | |
| 9 | +<p>CS 1.6 has a built-in demo system that records everything the client receives during a match into a small <code>.dem</code> file, which you can replay later from any angle. Demos are how you review your own mistakes, how leagues verify results, and — most usefully for public server players — how you gather evidence when you suspect someone is cheating. The commands are simple once you know them, and the files are tiny because they store network data, not video.</p><h2>1. Start and stop a recording</h2><p>While connected to a server, open the console and start recording with a name of your choice:</p><pre>record mydemo</pre><p>This writes to <code>cstrike/mydemo.dem</code>. Play normally, then stop when you are done:</p><pre>stop</pre><p>You can only start a recording once you are in-game on a map; running <code>record</code> at the main menu does nothing. If a demo with that name already exists it is overwritten, so use a fresh name each time — including the date or opponent's name makes them easy to find later.</p><h2>2. Play a demo back</h2><p>From the main menu console, play any demo in your <code>cstrike</code> folder by name (no extension):</p><pre>playdemo mydemo</pre><p>The game loads the map and replays exactly what your client saw. <code>playdemo</code> plays as if you were watching live from your own eyes. To watch with the free-look demo viewer controls instead, use:</p><pre>viewdemo mydemo</pre><p><code>viewdemo</code> opens the demo player interface, which lets you pause, fast-forward and change camera — the mode you want for careful review.</p><h2>3. Control playback</h2><p>Inside a demo you are not locked to real time. Useful controls:</p><ul><li><strong>Pause</strong> — the <code>pause</code> command or the demo viewer's pause freezes playback.</li><li><strong>Fast-forward / slow-motion</strong> — <code>demo_timescale</code> changes playback speed. <code>demo_timescale 2</code> plays at double speed to skip dull stretches; <code>demo_timescale 0.25</code> slows a suspicious moment to a crawl.</li><li><strong>Free camera</strong> — in <code>viewdemo</code> you can detach the camera and fly around to see a play from another angle, which is exactly what you need to judge a wallhack or aim lock.</li></ul><h2>4. Use demos to catch cheaters</h2><p>This is the practical payoff. If a player looks suspicious, record the round, then review it slowly with <code>viewdemo</code> and the free camera. Slow the timescale down and watch their crosshair through walls (does it track opponents it should not see?) and on flicks (does it snap unnaturally to heads?). Because the demo stores what your client received, it is honest evidence you can send to a server admin. Pair it with the server's own logs if the admin runs a <a href="/plugins/csb-chat-logger">chat logger</a> or has anti-cheat output. A demo plus a timestamp is far more actionable than "trust me, he was hacking".</p><h2>5. Manage and share demo files</h2><p>Demos live directly in <code>cstrike/</code> as <code><name>.dem</code>. They are small — a full match is often just a few megabytes — so they are easy to zip and send. When sharing for a ban appeal or league dispute, include the map and the approximate time so the reviewer can jump to the moment with <code>demo_timescale</code> rather than watching the whole thing. Delete old demos periodically; they accumulate quietly in the game folder.</p><h2>Common errors</h2><ul><li><strong><code>record</code> does nothing</strong> — you ran it at the menu or while not on a live map. You must be connected and in-game to record.</li><li><strong>Demo will not play</strong> — the <code>.dem</code> was recorded on a different game version or a heavily modded server, or the map is missing locally. Demos are version-sensitive; a protocol change can break old demos.</li><li><strong>"Playback is corrupt" or it ends early</strong> — the recording was cut off by a crash or the file was truncated during transfer. Re-download or re-record.</li><li><strong>Cannot change camera angle</strong> — you used <code>playdemo</code> (first-person only). Use <code>viewdemo</code> for the free camera.</li><li><strong>Demo missing from the folder</strong> — you recorded to a name that overwrote an earlier one, or the game ran from a different install path. Check the <code>cstrike</code> folder of the install you actually launched.</li></ul><h2>Verification</h2><p>Record a short test to confirm the whole flow works. Join a server, run <code>record test1</code>, play for thirty seconds, then <code>stop</code>. Return to the main menu and play it back:</p><pre>viewdemo test1</pre><p>You should see your thirty seconds replayed, and you should be able to pause and slow it with <code>demo_timescale 0.25</code>. Confirm the file exists as <code>cstrike/test1.dem</code>. Once you know it works, get in the habit of recording whenever a player looks suspicious — you cannot go back and capture a round after it happened, so the recording has to already be running. For reporting, combine your demo with the player's SteamID; see <a href="/tutorials/find-player-steamid">how to find a player's SteamID</a>.</p> |
fix-amx-commands-unknown/en.md
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| 1 | +--- | |
| 2 | +title: "Fix: amx_ Commands Return 'Unknown command'" | |
| 3 | +excerpt: "When amx_slap, amx_ban and other admin commands report Unknown command, AMX Mod X is not loaded — here is how to trace it from Metamod down to plugins.ini." | |
| 4 | +category: "errors" | |
| 5 | +tags: "amxmodx, commands" | |
| 6 | +image: "" | |
| 7 | +read_time: "8 min read" | |
| 8 | +--- | |
| 9 | +<p>You type <code>amx_slap</code> or <code>amx_who</code> in the console and get back <code>Unknown command: amx_slap</code>. That single response tells you something specific: AMX Mod X is not running. The <code>amx_</code> commands are registered by AMXX plugins, so if the console does not recognise them, the whole chain that loads AMXX has broken somewhere. Trace it from the bottom up.</p> | |
| 10 | + | |
| 11 | +<h2>1. Understand the load chain</h2> | |
| 12 | +<p>Admin commands only exist if this entire stack is intact, in order:</p> | |
| 13 | +<ol> | |
| 14 | +<li>The mod's <code>liblist.gam</code> (or <code>addons/metamod/...</code> wiring) loads <strong>Metamod</strong>.</li> | |
| 15 | +<li>Metamod's <code>plugins.ini</code> loads the <strong>AMX Mod X</strong> core module.</li> | |
| 16 | +<li>AMXX reads its <code>configs/plugins.ini</code> and loads <strong>admin.amxx</strong> and the command plugins.</li> | |
| 17 | +<li>Those plugins register the <code>amx_</code> commands.</li> | |
| 18 | +</ol> | |
| 19 | +<p>"Unknown command" means the break is at step 1 or 2 — AMXX itself is not up. "Command works but I have no access" is a different, later problem.</p> | |
| 20 | + | |
| 21 | +<h2>2. Is Metamod loaded?</h2> | |
| 22 | +<p>From the server console, ask Metamod directly:</p> | |
| 23 | +<pre>meta version</pre> | |
| 24 | +<p>If you get <code>Unknown command: meta version</code>, Metamod is not loaded at all — nothing above it can run. The mod is not chaining to Metamod. Check that the game DLL line points at Metamod. On a Linux ReHLDS/HLDS install, <code>cstrike/liblist.gam</code> should hand the game off to Metamod, for example:</p> | |
| 25 | +<pre>gamedll_linux "addons/metamod/dlls/metamod_i386.so"</pre> | |
| 26 | +<p>(Path and filename vary by build — the point is that the mod loads Metamod, not the stock game DLL directly.) If <code>meta version</code> <em>does</em> respond, Metamod is fine and the problem is above it.</p> | |
| 27 | + | |
| 28 | +<h2>3. Is the AMXX module loaded under Metamod?</h2> | |
| 29 | +<pre>meta list</pre> | |
| 30 | +<p>This lists every Metamod plugin and its status. AMX Mod X should appear as <code>running</code>. If it is missing, its line is absent from <code>addons/metamod/plugins.ini</code>; add it. If it shows <code>bad load</code> or an error, the AMXX module path is wrong or the binary does not match the platform — a Windows <code>.dll</code> on Linux, or vice versa.</p> | |
| 31 | + | |
| 32 | +<h2>4. Did the admin plugins actually load?</h2> | |
| 33 | +<p>If AMXX is running under Metamod, drop into AMXX's own view:</p> | |
| 34 | +<pre>amxx plugins</pre> | |
| 35 | +<p>You are looking for <code>admin.amxx</code> and the command plugins reading <code>running</code>. If <code>admin.amxx</code> is missing, its line is commented or absent in <code>addons/amxmodx/configs/plugins.ini</code>; if it says <code>bad load</code>, a required module failed — see <a href="/tutorials/fix-amxx-module-failed-to-load">module failed to load</a>. Order matters here too: <code>admin.amxx</code> must load early, per <a href="/tutorials/plugins-ini-load-order">plugins.ini load order</a>.</p> | |
| 36 | + | |
| 37 | +<h2>5. Command exists but is refused (a different symptom)</h2> | |
| 38 | +<p>If <code>amx_slap</code> is <em>recognised</em> but tells you that you lack access, AMXX is loaded correctly — your admin entry is the problem. That is not "Unknown command"; that is an access-flags issue in <code>configs/users.ini</code>. Confirm your SteamID and flags are set and that you authenticated. This is covered in the admin-setup material rather than here, since AMXX is clearly running.</p> | |
| 39 | + | |
| 40 | +<h2>6. The most common single cause</h2> | |
| 41 | +<p>In practice, the overwhelming majority of "amx_ commands are unknown" reports come down to one of two things, and it is worth checking them before anything else. The first is that Metamod never loaded because the game-DLL line still points at the stock game binary — someone reinstalled the mod, or an update overwrote <code>liblist.gam</code>, and the Metamod hand-off was lost. <code>meta version</code> returning Unknown command confirms it instantly. The second is a platform mismatch: an AMXX or Metamod binary for the wrong operating system, which loads as <code>bad load</code> and takes every <code>amx_</code> command down with it. A Linux server needs the <code>.so</code> builds throughout; copying a Windows setup onto a Linux box, or the reverse, breaks the whole chain even though every config file looks correct.</p> | |
| 42 | +<p>Work the chain in order — Metamod, then the AMXX module under it, then the plugins — and do not skip ahead. Fixing <code>plugins.ini</code> is pointless if Metamod itself is not loaded, and the three console commands below tell you exactly which rung is broken.</p> | |
| 43 | + | |
| 44 | +<h2>Troubleshooting</h2> | |
| 45 | +<ul> | |
| 46 | +<li><strong><code>meta version</code> is Unknown command</strong> — Metamod is not loaded. Fix the game-DLL wiring so the mod loads Metamod, then restart.</li> | |
| 47 | +<li><strong><code>meta list</code> does not show AMX Mod X</strong> — its line is missing from Metamod's <code>plugins.ini</code>. Add it and change map.</li> | |
| 48 | +<li><strong>AMXX shows <code>bad load</code> in <code>meta list</code></strong> — wrong-platform binary or a bad path. Match the <code>.so</code>/<code>.dll</code> to your OS.</li> | |
| 49 | +<li><strong><code>amxx plugins</code> is missing <code>admin.amxx</code></strong> — the line is commented or absent in AMXX's <code>plugins.ini</code>. Enable it.</li> | |
| 50 | +<li><strong>Command recognised but access denied</strong> — not an "Unknown command" case; fix your entry in <code>users.ini</code>.</li> | |
| 51 | +<li><strong>Everything looks loaded but commands still unknown</strong> — you are typing in in-game chat, not the console, or you edited a config that is only re-read on map change. Change the map and retry from the console.</li> | |
| 52 | +</ul> | |
| 53 | + | |
| 54 | +<h2>Verification</h2> | |
| 55 | +<p>Walk the chain top to bottom in the console and confirm each layer answers:</p> | |
| 56 | +<pre>meta version | |
| 57 | +meta list | |
| 58 | +amxx plugins</pre> | |
| 59 | +<p>Metamod should report a version, <code>meta list</code> should show AMX Mod X <code>running</code>, and <code>amxx plugins</code> should show <code>admin.amxx running</code>. Once all three are healthy, <code>amx_who</code> will return a player list instead of "Unknown command." If you fixed a config file along the way, change the map first — Metamod and AMXX only re-read their plugin lists on map change or restart.</p> | |
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