Build and install a mod

A build turns your project into package files and patches. An install puts them, with your scripts, into a Sunrise mod folder. Mods explains how Sunrise loads it.

Set the mod details

An install needs mod details. If they are missing, Studio opens this dialog for you.

1. Choose Build > Mod details….
2. Fill the fields.
3. Press Save.

Problems show in the dialog. Save stays disabled until they are fixed. mod.json has the rules for every field.

Build packages

1. Choose Build > Build packages, press Build packages in the toolbar, or press Ctrl+Shift+B.

The build runs in the background. The status bar shows the stage and a progress bar, then the result with an Open folder button. Each build goes into a new folder, named by date and time, inside the project’s build folder. A build never writes into the installation.

To build somewhere else, choose Build > Build to folder… and pick an empty folder outside the installation.

The Build tab of Project changes lists the packages written and the object edits compiled. Open output folder opens the build folder. Each build also writes a receipt that lists the files, the new tags, the packages it needs, the dependency and manifest edits, and the merge data files. Each package except a startup replacement gets a .merge file beside it, so Sunrise can merge it with other mods that patch the same package. How a build works explains them.

Build and install

1. Close the game.
2. Choose Build > Build and install.

Studio checks the mod details, builds the project, and installs it in bin/x64/Sunrise/mods/<mod id>. New packages go to packages, patches of installed packages go to patches, and scripts and SDK modules go to scripts and sdk. Each .merge file goes beside its package. An install replaces the whole mod folder. When it is done, the status bar says Mod installed. Restart the game to load it.

If the Mission Graph has unsaved changes, Studio asks to save them first. If the game holds the mod’s files, the install fails. Close the game and install again.

Update a running game

Update running game sends script changes to a game that is already running. It does not need the Live tab.

Before the first update:

1. Install the mod with Build and install.
2. In the game’s settings.json, set studio_attach to true. See Connect to a running game.
3. Start the game.

To update:

1. Save your mission scripts.
2. Choose Build > Update running game.

Studio builds the project, writes only the changed script files into the installed mod, and removes the scripts you deleted. Then it asks the game to reload the mod. The game swaps the scripts when each mission reaches a safe point. Studio waits up to 30 seconds. The status bar shows the game’s answer.

Update running game writes nothing and asks for Build and install when any of these changed:

• mod.json;
• a package or a patch;
• an SDK module;
• whether the mod has a scripts folder.

If a script does not compile, the old scripts keep running. A mission that is not bound or not started yet needs an activity restart. This step is unverified end to end with Studio.

Build and install and Update running game have no default keys. Set them in Shortcuts and presets.

Limits

• Edits and config bindings on startup _unp1_ packages cannot be installed. Build packages still builds the edits, as full replacements.
• New packages need an ID from 0100 to 0CFF. See Package IDs.
• A project with no package edits, scripts or SDK modules has nothing to install.
• Update running game needs exactly one game running from your installation, and the mod installed once with Build and install.