GCSWhat is a DMA cheat?
A DMA cheat reads the game's memory through a hardware card instead of software. A DMA (direct memory access) card sits in a PCIe slot of the gaming PC and copies memory out to a second computer, which runs the cheat. No cheat program runs on the gaming PC itself, which is why DMA is the hardest kind of cheat for an anti-cheat to see.
In plain EnglishThis page explains what "DMA" means when people talk about game cheats, in simple words, and where on this site to read more. No cheat is ever 100% safe, so always check a product's status before you buy. A DMA setup has three parts. The card is a small FPGA board in a spare PCIe slot of the gaming PC. A second computer, often a laptop, connects to the card by cable and runs the cheat software. The third part is how you see the result: on the second computer's own screen, as a radar, or through a fuser that mixes an overlay into the gaming PC's video signal so the ESP appears over the game. Cards ship with firmware that makes them identify as an ordinary device. The firmware matters as much as the card, because an anti-cheat that recognises the card itself does not need to find any cheat software. Anti-cheats mostly look at the PC they protect: programs, drivers and changes to the game's memory. A DMA card reads memory without the processor or Windows taking part, and the cheat runs on another machine, so most of those checks find nothing. A build that only reads memory leaves the fewest traces. Aim features need input, which a DMA setup usually sends through a separate device that presents itself as a mouse. The PC's own defence is the IOMMU (Intel VT-d or AMD-Vi), which can limit the memory a device is allowed to reach; Windows uses it for its Kernel DMA Protection. Some anti-cheats also check the PCIe devices in a PC for hardware they recognise. And behaviour checks do not care how the information arrived: an account that always knows where everyone is can still be reported and reviewed. DMA is the most expensive route: the card, a second computer, sometimes a fuser, and a subscription for the cheat itself. Setup takes longer, and the card's firmware may need replacing when anti-cheats catch up with it. It makes most sense in games with strict kernel-level anti-cheats and hardware bans, where losing the account and the PC's fingerprint costs more than the hardware. One build on sale describes itself as a DMA build. Each one needs the card and the second computer described above. Official pages behind the facts on this page. How cheats are built and used is our own explanation, written under our editorial policy.The hardware
Why DMA is hard to detect
How anti-cheats fight DMA
What DMA costs
DMA builds in the store
DMA FAQ
Is a DMA cheat undetectable?
Do I need a second PC for DMA?
What is a fuser?
Does a DMA card work with any game?
Sources