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Demos ​

Every match map produces a demo. 5Stack uploads, stores, parses, and serves it for you, the parsed data powers replay, playback, highlights, match analysis, and stats.

How demos flow ​

  1. The server records the demo and uploads it automatically when the map ends. Until it lands, the map card on the match page shows a timer (Processing demo): a countdown while the match's TV delay runs out, then how long the upload has been going.
  2. It's stored in S3-compatible storage (local RustFS by default, or your own provider. See Bring Your Own S3).
  3. 5Stack parses it to extract rounds, kills, utility, positions, and stats, and builds the replay file for the 2D/3D replay in the same pass. Parsing starts while the demo is still downloading.

Demos from outside your servers, Valve and FACEIT matches or a .dem uploaded by an admin, go through the same parser. See External Matches.

Downloading demos ​

From a map card on the match page you can download its demo as a .dem file, or, when the map has more than one demo, all of them as one .zip. Downloads are served via signed URLs from your storage provider. With the Cloudflare worker in front of your bucket, each demo downloads on its own through Cloudflare instead.

Reparsing ​

A match keeps the data its demo was parsed with. When an update teaches the parser something new, such as the recorded smokes the replay now draws, older matches pick it up once their demo is reparsed. Reparse All Demos under Settings → Application → Demos reparses every demo in the background, two at a time, and can be cancelled. If a map's demo was never parsed, admins can parse it from its map card.

Admin controls ​

Under Settings → Application → Demos:

  • Minimum Retention (days) and Maximum Storage (GB): demos are kept at least the minimum retention; once storage passes the maximum, the oldest demos past their retention are deleted first.
  • Global Demo Network Limiter: caps the upload bandwidth a game-server node uses to send finished demos to storage (or leave it unlimited).
  • Storage check: writes a test file to your bucket, reads it back, and checks the Cloudflare worker if you use one.
  • Scan Orphaned Uploads: finds demo, playback, and highlight files in storage that no database row references, and deletes them to reclaim the space.

For where demos physically live and how to use your own bucket (e.g. Backblaze + Cloudflare). See Bring Your Own S3.