1. Installation and the master key
Download the installer, copy it to a USB flash drive and run it on your child's computer — it installs everything itself. Windows will ask you to confirm; agree. Right after installation, Antidrot opens and shows the “Save your master key!” window.
The master key is 8 characters made of digits and the letters A–F, for example 84A3D371. You need it to give access keys, to close the program and to remove it. Select it in the field and copy it into the Telegram bot or a password manager. The window won't appear again.
Don't keep the master key on your child's computer, and don't lose it: without the master key you can neither give play time nor remove the program.
2. What's in the window
- The text “To unlock this window, enter the master key or an access key made with the one-time code below.”
- The one-time code — 4 characters in a large red font. It changes every time the window appears and after every accepted key.
- The input field and the “Unlock” button. The field is cleared after every attempt.
- The “Time left until unlock” line — the break countdown (visible once time has been given).
- The “Continue” button — becomes active when the break is over.
- The “Close” button — hidden until the master key is entered.
The window takes up no more than a quarter of the screen, sits exactly in the center and can't be dragged, minimized with hotkeys or closed with Alt+F4. At the same time, the window doesn't steal focus: the keyboard and mouse stay with the game. The window gets focus only when someone clicks on it to enter a key.
3. The access key: S.R.M format
An access key looks like 3600.600.14400.C8FCE983:
| Part | Example | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| S | 3600 | Seconds of play — the window is hidden (1 hour) |
| R | 600 | Seconds of break — the window is on screen (10 minutes) |
| M | 14400 | Total limit in seconds from the moment the key is entered, breaks included (4 hours) |
| Signature | C8FCE983 | 8 characters calculated from the master key, the code and the time |
Handy values: 15 min = 900, 30 min = 1800, 45 min = 2700, 1 h = 3600, 1.5 h = 5400, 2 h = 7200, 3 h = 10800, 4 h = 14400. Numbers are written without leading zeros. Letter case in the signature doesn't matter.
The key is single-use: once it's entered, the code on the screen changes and the same key won't work again. Moving digits between the fields won't work either — the signature becomes invalid.
4. How to give play time
- Your child tells you the 4 red characters from the screen.
- You enter the master key, the code and the time in the key generator (the page works in the browser without internet) or tap “Generate key” in the bot.
- Your child enters the key in the field and clicks “Unlock”.
5. The play–break cycle
After the key is entered, the window hides for the play time S. Then it appears for the break R with a countdown. When the break is over, the window doesn't disappear on its own: the “Continue” button becomes active, and play resumes only after it's clicked. Until your child clicks “Continue”, play time isn't used up — if they went off for a cup of tea, the time isn't lost. The total limit M keeps running, though.
When the total limit runs out, the window stays on screen until a new key. If the play time in a key is longer than the limit, the program trims it to the limit.
6. Special cases
- All timers at 0 (the default) — the window stays up permanently, with no countdown line.
- S = 0 — the window won't hide; no play time is given.
- R = 0 — no alternation: after the first play period, the window stays until the limit runs out. In effect, “play once”.
- M = 0 — one play period and one break, then the window stays until a new key.
Ready-made presets for different ages are in the article “Antidrot presets by age”.
7. How to close the program
Enter the master key in the field and click “Unlock” — the “Close” button appears. It shuts the program down completely. On the next launch the settings are kept, but the total limit is reset to zero.
8. Honest limitations
- The program starts by itself every time the computer is turned on — there's no autostart to set up.
- After the program restarts, the total limit is reset: your child can finish the current play period, and after the break the window stays until a new key.
- The process can be ended in Task Manager — Antidrot doesn't hide. For strict limits, set up an account for your child without administrator rights.
- The settings file is open: it can be read and edited. The master password in it isn't encrypted.
- The window doesn't appear on the Windows secure desktop: the lock screen, UAC prompts, Ctrl+Alt+Del.
- If a game runs as administrator, run Antidrot as administrator too.
9. If something goes wrong
I lost the master key. What should I do?
The master key can't be recovered, so keep it safe — in the Telegram bot or a password manager. Without the master key you can neither give play time nor remove the program.
The key doesn't work. Why?
Most often the code on the screen has already changed: it changes every time the window appears and after every accepted key. Generate a key for the code that is visible now. Also check that the master key of this particular computer is selected.
The window doesn't show on top of the game.
Switch the game to borderless windowed mode. If the game runs as administrator, run Antidrot as administrator too.
Why can't the numbers in the key be changed?
The key's signature is calculated from the master key, the one-time code and all three dot-separated numbers. Any change to the time makes the signature invalid, and the program rejects the key.