Källkodningen

Källkodningen is the process of reverse-engineering a program or software to gain access to its underlying source code. This can be done in various ways, but the primary goal is to understand the inner workings of the software and potentially create a new version with certain modifications.

In the past, källkodningen was used to reverse-engineer software to understand how it worked and often to allow creation of identical copies. However, with the advent of in-game encryption schemes, open-source software arose, where the source code is publicly available from the beginning.

Källkodningen can also include social engineering attacks, where an attacker may, rather than reversing-engineering a game or software, persuade a game developer to disclose their source code or other sensitive information. One of the most famous examples of källkodningen is the debugging of the game "Destruction Derby 2". In this game, a källkodningen was done for the single-player car physics system by creating an emulator for PS1 and debugging the game through a cheat code.

The process of källkodningen is highly dependent on the nature of the software, with the complexity level varying widely from programs dealing with 2D textures and data analysis to complex 3D graphics and AI systems. The reverse-engineered information can be used by video game modders, who create third-party modifications for video games, game developers, security experts who analyze games, add-on creators, and companies in need of modules for their trade, and computer security researchers to study the vulnerabilities and possible ways of breaking a game.

There are also many tools available to aid in källkodningen, with the users ranging from home console hackers and(players) to professionals needing modules to fix certain parts of their trade or conduct penetration testing.