What Are Live Bans in PunkBuster Anti-Cheat Streaming?

Updated

A live ban is a ban that is pushed to a connected game server as it happens, rather than being picked up later from a downloaded ban list. On PBBans, live banning is a feature of the PBBans Hub, which the site describes as offering "live banning, live banlist updates, live ban removals and much more" for PunkBuster-enabled games. The practical condition is that your server must be streaming to the Hub: if it is not connected, live bans have no path to reach it.

How a live ban reaches your server

The mechanism depends on a persistent connection between your server and the anti-cheat streaming infrastructure, not on a file you refresh on a schedule.

  1. Your server streams to the Hub. You apply, set up streaming, and the server maintains that stream. PBBans states setup "usually only takes 15 minutes or less from the time you apply until your server is streaming."
  2. A ban is issued. A detection, screenshot, or other evidence is processed into a ban entry.
  3. The ban is pushed live. Because the Hub holds an open connection to your server, the ban is applied without waiting for your next banlist download.
  4. Changes propagate the same way. Live banlist updates and live ban removals mean an entry added, corrected, or lifted is reflected on connected servers through the same channel.

The result is that a cheater banned on one streaming server can be excluded from other connected servers quickly, instead of only after each admin manually refreshes a list.

Live bans vs. static and cached ban lists

These are not competing products so much as different delivery paths to the same ban data. The distinction matters when you are deciding what your server actually enforces.

Aspect Live bans (via Hub) Static / cached global ban list
Delivery Pushed over the streaming connection Downloaded or bundled, then read by the server
Timing Applies as the ban is issued Applies at the next update or restart
Removals Live ban removals propagate Stale entries can persist until you refresh
Requirement Active streaming connection to the Hub A copy of the list, however obtained
Failure mode No connection, no live enforcement Outdated list, missed recent bans

The Master Ban Index (MBI) is the underlying ban record set — the site reports 410,140 MBi entries and 105,906 cached global bans — while live banning is how those entries are delivered to a streaming server in real time. A cached global ban list is a snapshot; live bans are the stream.

What you need to enable live banning

Live banning is not a standalone toggle. It comes with streaming to the PBBans Hub, so the prerequisites are the streaming prerequisites:

  • A PunkBuster-enabled game server that you administer.
  • A streaming application and Hub setup. PBBans points admins to its Beginners Guide and provides an Automated Hub Setup path.
  • An accepted streaming application. You apply first; the site notes the apply-to-streaming window is typically 15 minutes or less.
  • A maintained connection. The Hub must stay connected for live pushes to land.

Once streaming is active, live banning, live banlist updates, and live ban removals are part of what the Hub provides — you are not configuring each ban type separately.

Why a live ban might not apply

If a ban is not taking effect on your server, the cause is usually the connection or the setup, not the ban itself.

  • The server is not streaming. Without an active stream to the Hub, there is no live channel. This is the most common reason.
  • The connection dropped. A lost Hub connection stops live pushes until it is restored; the server may fall back to whatever static list it holds.
  • Setup was never completed. Applying is not the same as streaming. If the server never reached streaming status, live banning was never enabled.
  • You are relying on a cached list instead. A downloaded global ban list will not include bans issued after your last refresh, so recent live bans appear "missing."
  • The ban was removed. Live ban removals are a feature, so an entry you expected can be intentionally gone.

Deciding whether to enable it

Enable live banning if you want bans to take effect on your server as they are issued and you can keep a streaming connection to the Hub up. It is the stronger option against cheaters moving between servers, because the exclusion follows them in near real time rather than waiting on your update cycle.

Stay with a static or cached ban list only if you cannot or will not maintain a streaming connection — but accept that you will lag behind new bans and may keep enforcing entries that have since been removed. For most admins running PunkBuster games, the streaming setup is the prerequisite worth doing once, since it is what makes live banning, live updates, and live removals available at all.