Server-side Refereeing: Why Nobody Can Cheat Your Game
Every move on YiBoard is validated by the server; the client is only a display layer. A patched client cannot invent a win. That is the baseline of our anti-cheat design.
The sneakiest kind of cheating in online board games is not a stronger player using an alt. It is a modified client: software that auto-plays your strongest moves, or worse, forges a win. YiBoard’s anti-cheat answer is simple: take the referee away from the client. Every move is validated by the server before it lands, and the client is only a display layer. Here is how the design works.
The referee lives on the server, not the client
In the classic client-trust model, the board state lives on your machine, so editing memory can edit the result. YiBoard flips that: the server holds the authoritative state. Your client sends the intent of each move, the server checks it (is it this player’s turn? is the cell free? has someone already won?), and only legal moves get broadcast to both sides. A patched client can only send legal moves; it cannot invent a win, because wins are judged by the server.
Why this matters
- Fairness: both sides see the same board and the same rules, nobody sneaks an extra move
- Trustworthy ratings: dan scores are built on validated games, so the numbers mean something
- Verifiable replays: shared games and spectating come from server data, not player claims
- Scales to Xiangqi and Go: every future game reuses the same referee core
AI opponents are a different story
Playing the AI needs no server referee: the Gomoku engine runs alpha-beta pruning in your browser within a 500ms budget. A local engine means no queue, no rate limit, and no lag from server load. Want to feel it? Start a match on the [play page](/play).
FAQ
Can a modified client really not cheat?
It cannot forge a win. The server holds the authoritative state and judges the outcome, so a patched client can only send legal moves.
Does playing the AI use the server referee?
No. The AI runs locally in your browser, so there is no round trip, no rate limit and no queue.
Can ratings be polluted by cheating?
Not through legal paths. Ratings are built on server-validated games, and farming behavior is detectable by the rating mechanics.
Will Xiangqi and Go reuse this anti-cheat?
Yes. The server referee core is shared and every future game will reuse it.