VB.NET Memory Module (by master131)

[[MPGH]master131]

Someone originally asked me about how to write a float to memory and when he gave me his code, I immediately facepalmed since the decleration for WriteProcessMemory and ReadProcessMemory were completely wrong. I know it's not his fault because he probably copied from somewhere but here's my take on it.

It supports ANY 'primitive' value type, the most common one you guys will be using is probably: Integer, Single (Float) and String (string is not a primitive type but it's still supported). You can also read Byte() too (byte array), make sure to indicate how many bytes you want to read though.

Here's a full list if you're interested: Boolean, Byte, SByte, Int16 (Short), UInt16 (UShort), Int32 (Integer), UInt32 (UInteger), Int64 (Long), UInt64 (ULong), IntPtr, UIntPtr, Char, Double, and Single (Float).

Here's the code:

Option Strict On

Imports System.Runtime.InteropServices
Imports System.Text

Module MemoryModule
    <DllImport("kernel32.dll")> _
    Private Function OpenProcess(ByVal dwDesiredAccess As UInteger, <MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.Bool)> ByVal bInheritHandle As Boolean, ByVal dwProcessId As Integer) As IntPtr
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)> _
    Private Function WriteProcessMemory(ByVal hProcess As IntPtr, ByVal lpBaseAddress As IntPtr, ByVal lpBuffer As Byte(), ByVal nSize As IntPtr, <Out()> ByRef lpNumberOfBytesWritten As IntPtr) As Boolean
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)> _
    Private Function ReadProcessMemory(ByVal hProcess As IntPtr, ByVal lpBaseAddress As IntPtr, <Out()> ByVal lpBuffer() As Byte, ByVal dwSize As IntPtr, ByRef lpNumberOfBytesRead As IntPtr) As Boolean
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)>
    Private Function CloseHandle(ByVal hObject As IntPtr) As <MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.Bool)> Boolean
    End Function

    Private Const PROCESS_VM_WRITE As UInteger = &H20
    Private Const PROCESS_VM_READ As UInteger = &H10
    Private Const PROCESS_VM_OPERATION As UInteger = &H8
    Private Const TargetProcess As String = "iw5sp"
    Private ProcessHandle As IntPtr = IntPtr.Zero
    Private LastKnownPID As Integer = -1

    Public Function ReadMemory(Of T)(ByVal address As Integer) As T
        Return ReadMemory(Of T)(address, 0, False)
    End Function

    Public Function ReadMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal length As Integer) As Byte()
        Return ReadMemory(Of Byte())(address, length, False)
    End Function

    Private Function ProcessIDExists(ByVal pID As Integer) As Boolean
        For Each p As Process In Process.GetProcessesByName(TargetProcess)
            If p.ID = pID Then Return True
        Next
        Return False
    End Function

    Private Function UpdateProcessHandle() As Boolean
        If LastKnownPID = -1 OrElse Not ProcessIDExists(LastKnownPID) Then
            If ProcessHandle <> IntPtr.Zero Then CloseHandle(ProcessHandle)
            Dim p() As Process = Process.GetProcessesByName(TargetProcess)
            If p.Length = 0 Then Return False
            LastKnownPID = p(0).Id
            ProcessHandle = OpenProcess(PROCESS_VM_READ Or PROCESS_VM_WRITE Or PROCESS_VM_OPERATION, False, p(0).Id)
            If ProcessHandle = IntPtr.Zero Then Return False
        End If
        Return True
    End Function

    Public Function ReadMemory(Of T)(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal length As Integer, ByVal unicodeString As Boolean) As T
        Dim buffer() As Byte
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(String) Then
            If unicodeString Then buffer = New Byte(length * 2 - 1) {} Else buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        ElseIf GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then
            buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        Else
            buffer = New Byte(Marshal.SizeOf(GetType(T)) - 1) {}
        End If
        If Not UpdateProcessHandle() Then Return Nothing
        Dim success As Boolean = ReadProcessMemory(ProcessHandle, New IntPtr(address), buffer, New IntPtr(buffer.Length), IntPtr.Zero)
        If Not success Then Return Nothing
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then Return CType(CType(buffer, Object), T)
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(String) Then
            If unicodeString Then Return CType(CType(Encoding.Unicode.GetString(buffer), Object), T)
            Return CType(CType(Encoding.ASCII.GetString(buffer), Object), T)
        End If
        Dim gcHandle As GCHandle = gcHandle.Alloc(buffer, GCHandleType.Pinned)
        Dim returnObject As T
        returnObject = CType(Marshal.PtrToStructure(gcHandle.AddrOfPinnedObject, GetType(T)), T)
        gcHandle.Free()
        Return returnObject
    End Function

    Private Function GetObjectBytes(ByVal value As Object) As Byte()
        If value.GetType() Is GetType(Byte()) Then Return CType(value, Byte())
        Dim buffer(Marshal.SizeOf(value) - 1) As Byte
        Dim ptr As IntPtr = Marshal.AllocHGlobal(buffer.Length)
        Marshal.StructureToPtr(value, ptr, True)
        Marshal.Copy(ptr, buffer, 0, buffer.Length)
        Marshal.FreeHGlobal(ptr)
        Return buffer
    End Function

    Public Function WriteMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal value As Object) As Boolean
        Return WriteMemory(address, value, False)
    End Function

    Public Function WriteMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal value As Object, ByVal unicode As Boolean) As Boolean
        If Not UpdateProcessHandle() Then Return False
        Dim buffer() As Byte
        If TypeOf value Is String Then
            If unicode Then buffer = Encoding.Unicode.GetBytes(value.ToString()) Else buffer = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(value.ToString())
        Else
            buffer = GetObjectBytes(value)
        End If
        Dim result As Boolean = WriteProcessMemory(ProcessHandle, New IntPtr(address), buffer, New IntPtr(buffer.Length), IntPtr.Zero)
        Return result
    End Function
End Module

How do I use the code?
Right-click on your project and Add a new module. Then copy and paste the code from the box into the screen. If you want to use this module on another process, replace "iw5sp" with whatever you want next to 'TargetProcess'.

I've created a few functions for you guys. To check if a process is running, use the UpdateProcessHandle() function. For example (in a timer):

Private Sub Timer1_Tick(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Timer1.Tick
    If UpdateProcessHandle() Then ' Check if the game is running
        ' Do stuff here, like writing/reading memory or telling a user in a Label the game is open.
    End If
End Sub

Now, here's how to read/write memory using this module:
Dim myIntValue As Integer = ReadMemory(Of Integer)(&H12345678) ' Reads the value from 0x12345678 as an Integer
Dim myFloatValue As Single = ReadMemory(Of Single)(&H12345678) ' Reads the value from 0x12345678 as a Single (remember that Single is the same as Float)
Dim myASCIIStringValue As String = ReadMemory(Of String)(&H12345678, 10, False) ' Reads 10 characters at 0x12345678 as a ASCII String
Dim myUnicodeStringValue As String = ReadMemory(Of String)(&H12345678, 10, True) ' Reads 10 characters at 0x12345678 as a Unicode String
Dim myByteData() As Byte = ReadMemory(&H12345678, 12) ' Reads 12 bytes from 0x12345678

WriteMemory(&H12345678, 10I) ' Writes 10 as an Integer to 0x12345678, take note of the I at the end (it's optional but you can put it there just incase)
WriteMemory(&H12345678, 0.5F) ' Writes 0.5 as a Single to 0x12345678, take note of the F at the end! (you MUST do this or it will assume it's a Double!)
WriteMemory(&H12345678, "Hello World", False) ' Writes Hello World as an ASCII string to 0x12345678
WriteMemory(&H12345678, "Hello World", True) ' Writes Hello World as a Unicode string to 0x12345678
WriteMemory(&H12345678, New Byte() { &H90, &H90, &H90, &H90 }) ' Writes '0x90, 0x90, 0x90, 0x90' as a byte array to 0x12345678

How do I write a number into memory if I'm going to get it from a text box?
It is extremely important that you let VB.NET know what type you want to write into memory otherwise it may assume and you might get some nasty results, here's how you can do it:

Dim valueToWrite As Integer
If Integer.TryParse(TextBox1.Text, valueToWrite) Then ' Try to convert the text into an Integer
     WriteMemory(&H12345678, valueToWrite)
End If

Dim floatValueToWrite As Single
If Single.TryParse(TextBox2.Text, valueToWrite) Then ' Try convert the text into a Single
    WriteMemory(&H12345678, floatValueToWrite)
End If

However, if you are 100% sure that whatever inside a box is a number and not letters you can do this:

WriteMemory(&H12345678, CInt(TextBox1.Text)) ' Writes the value inside a TextBox as a Integer
WriteMemory(&H12345678, CSng(TextBox2.Text)) ' Writes the value inside a TextBox as a Single

What's the difference between a ASCII and Unicode string?
Unicode strings use 2 bytes for every letter it uses and ASCII only uses 1 byte for every letter. If you find a string in memory with Cheat Engine with the Unicode box unticked then it's a ASCII string. If the Unicode box is ticked then it's a Unicode string.

[Jorndel]

Someone originally asked me about how to write a float to memory and when he gave me his code, I immediately facepalmed since the decleration for WriteProcessMemory and ReadProcessMemory were completely wrong. I know it's not his fault because he probably copied from somewhere but here's my take on it.

It supports ANY 'primitive' value type, the most common one you guys will be using is probably: Integer, Single (Float) and String (string is not a primitive type but it's still supported). You can also read Byte() too (byte array), make sure to indicate how many bytes you want to read though.

Here's a full list if you're interested: Boolean, Byte, SByte, Int16 (Short), UInt16 (UShort), Int32 (Integer), UInt32 (UInteger), Int64 (Long), UInt64 (ULong), IntPtr, UIntPtr, Char, Double, and Single (Float).

Here's the code:

Option Strict On

Imports System.Runtime.InteropServices
Imports System.Text

Module MemoryModule
    <DllImport("kernel32.dll")> _
    Private Function OpenProcess(ByVal dwDesiredAccess As UInteger, <MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.Bool)> ByVal bInheritHandle As Boolean, ByVal dwProcessId As Integer) As IntPtr
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)> _
    Private Function WriteProcessMemory(ByVal hProcess As IntPtr, ByVal lpBaseAddress As IntPtr, ByVal lpBuffer As Byte(), ByVal nSize As IntPtr, <Out()> ByRef lpNumberOfBytesWritten As IntPtr) As Boolean
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)> _
    Private Function ReadProcessMemory(ByVal hProcess As IntPtr, ByVal lpBaseAddress As IntPtr, <Out()> ByVal lpBuffer() As Byte, ByVal dwSize As IntPtr, ByRef lpNumberOfBytesRead As IntPtr) As Boolean
    End Function

    <DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError:=True)>
    Private Function CloseHandle(ByVal hObject As IntPtr) As <MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.Bool)> Boolean
    End Function

    Private Const PROCESS_VM_WRITE As UInteger = &H20
    Private Const PROCESS_VM_READ As UInteger = &H10
    Private Const PROCESS_VM_OPERATION As UInteger = &H8
    Private Const TargetProcess As String = "iw5sp"
    Private ProcessHandle As IntPtr = IntPtr.Zero
    Private LastKnownPID As Integer = -1

    Public Function ReadMemory(Of T)(ByVal address As Integer) As T
        Return ReadMemory(Of T)(address, 0, False)
    End Function

    Public Function ReadMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal length As Integer) As Byte()
        Return ReadMemory(Of Byte())(address, length, False)
    End Function

    Private Function ProcessIDExists(ByVal pID As Integer) As Boolean
        For Each p As Process In Process.GetProcessesByName(TargetProcess)
            If p.ID = pID Then Return True
        Next
        Return False
    End Function

    Private Function UpdateProcessHandle() As Boolean
        If LastKnownPID = -1 OrElse Not ProcessIDExists(LastKnownPID) Then
            If ProcessHandle <> IntPtr.Zero Then CloseHandle(ProcessHandle)
            Dim p() As Process = Process.GetProcessesByName(TargetProcess)
            If p.Length = 0 Then Return False
            LastKnownPID = p(0).Id
            ProcessHandle = OpenProcess(PROCESS_VM_READ Or PROCESS_VM_WRITE Or PROCESS_VM_OPERATION, False, p(0).Id)
            If ProcessHandle = IntPtr.Zero Then Return False
        End If
        Return True
    End Function

    Public Function ReadMemory(Of T)(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal length As Integer, ByVal unicodeString As Boolean) As T
        Dim buffer() As Byte
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(String) Then
            If unicodeString Then buffer = New Byte(length * 2 - 1) {} Else buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        ElseIf GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then
            buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        Else
            buffer = New Byte(Marshal.SizeOf(GetType(T)) - 1) {}
        End If
        If Not UpdateProcessHandle() Then Return Nothing
        Dim success As Boolean = ReadProcessMemory(ProcessHandle, New IntPtr(address), buffer, New IntPtr(buffer.Length), IntPtr.Zero)
        If Not success Then Return Nothing
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then Return CType(CType(buffer, Object), T)
        Dim gcHandle As GCHandle = gcHandle.Alloc(buffer, GCHandleType.Pinned)
        Dim returnObject As T
        returnObject = CType(Marshal.PtrToStructure(gcHandle.AddrOfPinnedObject, GetType(T)), T)
        gcHandle.Free()
        Return returnObject
    End Function

    Private Function GetObjectBytes(ByVal value As Object) As Byte()
        If value.GetType() Is GetType(Byte()) Then Return CType(value, Byte())
        Dim buffer(Marshal.SizeOf(value) - 1) As Byte
        Dim ptr As IntPtr = Marshal.AllocHGlobal(buffer.Length)
        Marshal.StructureToPtr(value, ptr, True)
        Marshal.Copy(ptr, buffer, 0, buffer.Length)
        Marshal.FreeHGlobal(ptr)
        Return buffer
    End Function

    Public Function WriteMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal value As Object) As Boolean
        Return WriteMemory(address, value, False)
    End Function

    Public Function WriteMemory(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal value As Object, ByVal unicode As Boolean) As Boolean
        If Not UpdateProcessHandle() Then Return False
        Dim buffer() As Byte
        If TypeOf value Is String Then
            If unicode Then buffer = Encoding.Unicode.GetBytes(value.ToString()) Else buffer = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(value.ToString())
        Else
            buffer = GetObjectBytes(value)
        End If
        Dim result As Boolean = WriteProcessMemory(ProcessHandle, New IntPtr(address), buffer, New IntPtr(buffer.Length), IntPtr.Zero)
        Return result
    End Function
End Module

How do I use the code?
Right-click on your project and Add a new module. Then copy and paste the code from the box into the screen. If you want to use this module on another process, replace "iw5sp" with whatever you want next to 'TargetProcess'.

I've created a few functions for you guys. To check if a process is running, use the UpdateProcessHandle() function. For example (in a timer):

Private Sub Timer1_Tick(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Timer1.Tick
    If UpdateProcessHandle() Then ' Check if the game is running
        ' Do stuff here, like writing/reading memory or telling a user in a Label the game is open.
    End If
End Sub

Now, here's how to read/write memory using this module:
Dim myIntValue As Integer = ReadMemory(Of Integer)(&H12345678) ' Reads the value from 0x12345678 as an Integer
Dim myFloatValue As Single = ReadMemory(Of Single)(&H12345678) ' Reads the value from 0x12345678 as a Single (remember that Single is the same as Float)
Dim myASCIIStringValue As String = ReadMemory(Of String)(&H12345678, 10, False) ' Reads 10 characters at 0x12345678 as a ASCII String
Dim myUnicodeStringValue As String = ReadMemory(Of String)(&H12345678, 10, True) ' Reads 10 characters at 0x12345678 as a Unicode String
Dim myByteData() As Byte = ReadMemory(&H12345678, 12) ' Reads 12 bytes from 0x12345678

WriteMemory(&H12345678, 10I) ' Writes 10 as an Integer to 0x12345678, take note of the I at the end (it's optional but you can put it there just incase)
WriteMemory(&H12345678, 0.5F) ' Writes 0.5 as a Single to 0x12345678, take note of the F at the end! (you MUST do this or it will assume it's a Double!)
WriteMemory(&H12345678, "Hello World", False) ' Writes Hello World as an ASCII string to 0x12345678
WriteMemory(&H12345678, "Hello World", True) ' Writes Hello World as a Unicode string to 0x12345678
WriteMemory(&H12345678, New Byte() { &H90, &H90, &H90, &H90 }) ' Writes '0x90, 0x90, 0x90, 0x90' as a byte array to 0x12345678

How do I write a number into memory if I'm going to get it from a text box?
It is extremely important that you let VB.NET know what type you want to write into memory otherwise it may assume and you might get some nasty results, here's how you can do it:

Dim valueToWrite As Integer
If Integer.TryParse(TextBox1.Text, valueToWrite) Then ' Try to convert the text into an Integer
     WriteMemory(&H12345678, valueToWrite)
End If

Dim floatValueToWrite As Single
If Single.TryParse(TextBox2.Text, valueToWrite) Then ' Try convert the text into a Single
    WriteMemory(&H12345678, floatValueToWrite)
End If

However, if you are 100% sure that whatever inside a box is a number and not letters you can do this:

WriteMemory(&H12345678, CInt(TextBox1.Text)) ' Writes the value inside a TextBox as a Integer
WriteMemory(&H12345678, CSng(TextBox2.Text)) ' Writes the value inside a TextBox as a Single

What's the difference between a ASCII and Unicode string?
Unicode strings use 2 bytes for every letter it uses and ASCII only uses 1 byte for every letter. If you find a string in memory with Cheat Engine with the Unicode box unticked then it's a ASCII string. If the Unicode box is ticked then it's a Unicode string.

Nice on
Still, it do look very alike the one that was posted a long time ago here. (Page 2 in tutorials I think...)

[Larity2056]

Nice work Master

[Blackdawn]

ill gona try this

[hoschi111]

Thats for that awesome source.
Everything works fine, except reading the adresse as string.

as example:

 Private Sub Button1_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Button1.Click
  Dim mystring As String = ReadMemory(Of String)(&H1D07CBC, 231, False)
End Sub

Returns an error here:

  Public Function ReadMemory(Of T)(ByVal address As Integer, ByVal length As Integer, ByVal unicodeString As Boolean) As T
        Dim buffer() As Byte
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(String) Then
            If unicodeString Then buffer = New Byte(length * 2 - 1) {} Else buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        ElseIf GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then
            buffer = New Byte(length - 1) {}
        Else
            buffer = New Byte(Marshal.SizeOf(GetType(T)) - 1) {}
        End If
        If Not UpdateProcessHandle() Then Return Nothing
        Dim success As Boolean = ReadProcessMemory(ProcessHandle, New IntPtr(address), buffer, New IntPtr(buffer.Length), IntPtr.Zero)
        If Not success Then Return Nothing
        If GetType(T) Is GetType(Byte()) Then Return CType(CType(buffer, Object), T)
        Dim gcHandle As GCHandle = gcHandle.Alloc(buffer, GCHandleType.Pinned)
        Dim returnObject As T
        returnObject = CType(Marshal.PtrToStructure(gcHandle.AddrOfPinnedObject, GetType(T)), T)
        gcHandle.Free()
        Return returnObject
    End Function

=> MissingMethodException

I'm thankful for any solution.

Btw, a bad solution is returning a bytearray which will be enocoded as string with an external function.

[norgor21]

Hello, i have a question, how to use pointers with "ReadMemory()"?
Also, i am getting the => MissingMethodException too.
Thanks in advance.

[[MPGH]master131]

People where saying that strings weren't working, I've fixed it now. Also, if strings still have some of the old text at the end, please make sure to add vbNullChar at the end of the string.

Example:
WriteMemory(&H12345678, "Hello World" + vbNullChar, False)