FiveM Server Launcher: Reverse Engineering & Automation

Engineering Around Platform Limitations

When FiveM's API restrictions prevented direct server access, I reverse-engineered their authentication flow to build a C# WPF application that bypassed the official launcher entirely. This wasn't just a quality-of-life improvement, it was a technical deep dive into undocumented systems.

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Core Technical Features

• Reverse-Engineered Authentication - Bypassed FiveM's launcher by replicating their Steam auth flow and protocol handlers
• Real-time Server Monitoring - Custom HTTP client polling FiveM's status API with WebSocket fallbacks
• Mod Dependency Management - Automated dependency resolution and conflict detection using directed graph algorithms
• Custom UI Framework - WPF with completely custom window chrome using WindowChrome class and hit testing
• Performance Optimization - Memory-mapped file I/O for mod installations and background garbage collection
• Integrated Reporting System - REST API client with JSON serialization for user feedback submission

"I built this because I was tired of the friction between wanting to play and actually playing. The official launcher felt like going through security at an airport... too many steps, too many checks. I wanted one click to equal instant immersion. The moment I saw it work flawlessly for the first time, I knew I'd turned a personal frustration into a community solution."

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Technical Architecture

Frontend: WPF with MVVM pattern, custom controls, and hardware-accelerated animations

Backend Services:

• Process management for Steam and FiveM executable handling
• File system watchers for real-time mod directory monitoring
• Custom TCP client for server status checks with retry logic
• SQLite database for user preferences and mod metadata

Key Algorithms:

• Mod conflict detection using file hash comparison and dependency graphs
• Memory optimization through paged mod installation and lazy loading
• Network resilience with exponential backoff for status checks