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What is LocalizeBug Fix?

:::warning Deprecated

LocalizeBug Fix is archived and no longer maintained. The repository was archived on GitHub in 2015 and accepts no changes. It is documented here for reference only.

For this class of exploit on a current server, use SafeNameAndChat.

:::

LocalizeBug Fix was a Metamod plugin by @s1lentq that closed a GoldSrc exploit in which localization tokens embedded in a player's name or chat message crash every client that receives them.

It is the first generation of this fix. The ReHLDS organization later extended it as ReLocalizeBugFix — which is itself now deprecated.

The exploit it blocked​

The GoldSrc client resolves #-prefixed tokens in certain messages as localization keys. Two vectors were documented by the author:

  • Chat. A message routed through client_print_color / client_print containing tokens, for example:

    s1lent :#Spec_Help_Text Hello people! #Spec_Duck

    Every client that received the message crashed.

  • Player name via ShowMenu. A name such as:

    name "q#Buy#Buy#Buy#Buy#Buy#Buy#Buy"

    crashed clients when they opened the player list menu.

Why it's deprecated​

The plugin targeted stock HLDS and was superseded by ReLocalizeBugFix for ReHLDS servers; that successor was in turn deprecated in 2017. Modern servers get this protection from SafeNameAndChat, which sanitizes the offending characters instead of blocking the message.

See Installation and Settings for what the plugin looked like in use.