# SmokeAPI
_Legit DLC Unlocker for Steamworks._
## ✨ Features
* `🔓` Emulate DLC ownership in legitimately owned games
* `🛅` Emulate Inventory item ownership
## 🔗 Links
* `📥` [Download the latest release](https://github.com/acidicoala/SmokeAPI/releases/latest)
* `🪧` [SmokeAPI forum topic](https://cs.rin.ru/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2597932#p2597932)
* `🗂️` [DLC Database](https://steamdb.info/)
## 📖 Introduction
### ❓ What is SmokeAPI?
SmokeAPI is a DLC unlocker for games that are _legitimately_ owned in your Steam account.
It attempts to fool games that use Steamworks SDK (Steamworks) into thinking that you own the game's DLCs.
However, SmokeAPI does not modify the rest of the Steamworks, hence features like multiplayer, achievements, and so on remain fully functional.
### ❔ Which games are supported?
Only games that use Steamworks SDK for the DLC ownership verification are supported.
Hence, if a game's installation directory does not contain any `steam_api.dll` or `steam_api64.dll` files then it's definitely not supported.
Even if a game uses Steamworks DLL, it's not guaranteed to be supported because each game might implement additional custom verification checks.
Therefore, **you have to first research the game's topic**, to see if it supports unlocking.
Additionally, there are several points to bear in mind when it comes to unlocking DLCs with SmokeAPI:
* SmokeAPI most definitely will not work with games that use 3rd party DRM, such as games from Ubisoft, Rockstar, etc.* SmokeAPI most likely will not work with games that use Denuvo SecureDLC.
* SmokeAPI is unlikely to unlock anything in Free-To-Play games since they typically store all player data on the corresponding game server and hence all the checks are server-side.
* SmokeAPI will not work with games that employ additional ownership protection or if the game is using alternative DLC verification mechanism.
* SmokeAPI is unlikely to work with games that use an anti-cheat, since they typically detect any DLL/EXE that has been tampered with. Sometimes it is possible to disable an anti-cheat, but that typically entails the loss of online capabilities. Search in the respective game topic for more information about how to disable anti-cheat.
* Some games include DLC files in their base game, regardless of whether you own the DLC or not. However, some games download additional DLC files only after a user has bought the corresponding DLC. In this case, not only will you need to install SmokeAPI, but you also have to get the additional DLC files from somewhere else and put them into the game folder. Up-to-date DLC files often can be found in corresponding game topics.
* Some games don't use any DRM at all, in which case SmokeAPI is useless. All you need to do is to download the DLC files and place them in the game folder.
## :shipit: Usage
> [!WARNING]
> Please proceed with usage at your own risk.
> Usage of this unlocker entails breaking one or more terms of service,
> which might result in a permanent loss of your account.
To use SmokeAPI, you need to install it into the game folder following the instructions below.
Once installed, SmokeAPI is automatically loaded by a game every time you launch the game.
SmokeAPI supports **2** installation modes: _Hook mode_ and _Proxy mode_.
### ↔️ Mode comparison
#### 🪝 Hook mode
- **Advantages**:
- Persists after game updates
- Can be loaded by other injectors
- Can sometimes bypass DLL integrity checks
- **Disadvantages**:
- Might need an additional DLL to get injected (like [Koaloader])
#### 🔀 Proxy mode
- **Advantages**:
- Guaranteed to load
- **Disadvantages**:
- Might need reinstallation aftera game update
My advice is to try installing the unlocker in hook mode first.
If it doesn't work, try installing it in proxy mode instead.
If that didn't work, refer to the _Troubleshooting_ section below.
## 🛠 Installation instructions
> [!NOTE]
> To determine the bitness of a game you can open _Task Manager_, navigate to _Details_ tab,
> right-click on the column headers, click _Select columns_, tick checkbox next to _Platform_ and click _OK_.
> This will allow you to see a game's bitness in the _Details_ tab while a game is running.
### 🪝 Hook mode
- Download the [latest SmokeAPI release zip].
- From this downloaded zip extract `smoke_api32.dll` or `smoke_api64.dll`, depending on a game's bitness.
- Rename the unzipped DLL to `version.dll` or `winhttp.dll` or `winmm.dll`.
- Place this `version.dll` or `winhttp.dll` or `winmm.dll` next to the game's `.exe` file.
#### 🪝 Hook mode with Koaloader
If a game doesn't load `version.dll` or `winhttp.dll` or `winmm.dll`, you can use an alternative injector to load
SmokeAPI into the game process.
One such injector is [Koaloader], which supports different DLLs that a typical game might load.
For example, assuming that the game loads `d3d11.dll`:
- Install Koaloader:
- Download the [latest Koaloader release zip].
- From this downloaded zip extract `d3d11.dll` from `d3d11-32` or `d3d11-64`, depending on a game's bitness.
- Place `d3d11.dll` next to the game's `.exe` file.
- Install SmokeAPI
- Download the [latest SmokeAPI release zip].
- From this downloaded zip extract `smoke_api32.dll` or `smoke_api64.dll`, depending on a game's bitness.
- Place `smoke_api32.dll` or `smoke_api64.dll` next to the game's `.exe` file.
#### 🪝 Hook mode with Special K
There are games which have extra protections that break hook mode.
In such cases, it might be worth trying [Special K], which can inject SmokeAPI as a [custom plugin].
### 🔀 Proxy mode
- Find a `steam_api.dll` or `steam_api64.dll` file in game directory, and rename it to `steam_api_o.dll` or `steam_api64_o.dll`.
- Download the [latest SmokeAPI release zip].
- From this downloaded zip extract `smoke_api32.dll` or `smoke_api64.dll`, depending on a game's bitness.
- Rename this extracted DLL to `steam_api.dll` or `steam_api64.dll`, depending on a game's bitness.
- Place this renamed unlocker DLL next to the `steam_api_o.dll` or `steam_api64_o.dll` file.
[latest SmokeAPI release zip]: https://github.com/acidicoala/SmokeAPI/releases/latest
[latest Koaloader release zip]: https://github.com/acidicoala/Koaloader/releases/latest
[Special K]: https://www.special-k.info
[custom plugin]: https://wiki.special-k.info/en/SpecialK/Tools#custom-plugin
## ⚙ Configuration
SmokeAPI does not require any manual configuration.
By default, it uses the most reasonable options and tries to unlock all DLCs that it can.
However, there might be circumstances in which you need more custom-tailored behaviour, such as disabling certain DLCs, or selectively enabling just a few of them.
In this case you can use a configuration file [SmokeAPI.config.json](res/SmokeAPI.config.json) that you can find here in this repository or in the release zip.
To use it, simply place it next to the SmokeAPI DLL.
It will be read upon each launch of a game.
The config file is expected to conform to the JSON standard. It is recommended to use a text editor with JSON schema supports. This greatly assists with editing since it warns not just about syntax errors, but also about invalid values. One such editor is [Visual Studio Code](https://code.visualstudio.com/).
VS Code demo
This example showcases how VS code highlights an invalid value and displays a list of valid values that are accepted.
Advanced options
[//]: # (Admonitions don't work inside collapsible spoilers on GitHub :/)
**NOTE**: These options do not affect the unlocker, and should be left unmodified. They serve as utilities for text or GUI editors.
| Option | Description | Type | Default | Valid values |
|--------|-------------|------|---------|--------------|
| `$schema` | URL of a JSON Schema that corresponds to this config. | String | [SmokeAPI.schema.json](res/SmokeAPI.schema.json) | URL to a valid SmokeAPI config JSON schema. |
| `$version` | Reserved for use by tools like GUI config editors. | Integer | `4` | Integer numbers from 1 and beyond. |
Complete example
```json
{
"$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/acidicoala/SmokeAPI/refs/tags/v3.1.5/res/SmokeAPI.schema.json",
"$version": 4,
"logging": true,
"log_steam_http": true,
"default_app_status": "unlocked",
"override_app_status": {
"1234": "original",
"4321": "unlocked"
},
"override_dlc_status": {
"1234": "original",
"4321": "unlocked",
"5678": "locked"
},
"auto_inject_inventory": true,
"extra_inventory_items": [
9876,
8765,
7654
],
"extra_dlcs": {
"1234": {
"dlcs": {
"56789": "Example DLC 1"
}
},
"4321": {
"dlcs": {
"98765": "Example DLC 2",
"98766": "Example DLC 3"
}
}
}
}
```
Process Monitor screenshot
Download page
