Stopping a script

[JanitorsLOL]

Is it possible to stop a running script while in game, through the console, for the purpose of uninstalling a mod?

 

How are scripts from mods invoked in game?

Maybe through quests? Does stopping a quest also stop any scripts?

[IsharaMeradin]

It is not possible to have a "clean game" after uninstalling a mod. There will always be something left behind in the save files. Best course of action, revert to a save prior to introducing the offending mod.

 

Stopping a quest will stop any scripts on that quest provided that any actions registered for are also unregistered for just prior to stopping the quest. Single registrations will auto-un-register but continuous registrations will need to be stopped or they'll "spam" the papyrus log.

 

Scripts from mods are triggered the same way as scripts from the base game. Whenever an object holding a script is active and an event or function it is listening for is called, it will run the associated segment of code.

 

And let us leave room for any info I may have forgotten about, left out or not known myself.

[JanitorsLOL]

my question is a bit silly, ide havent given it much thought until now.

i suppose a better question would be how the game handles scripts, but since now that im actually thinking, i can also understand a bit more of it.

 

so how does the game treat scripts? it has to allocate certain things for it, and im wondering how exactly this is all managed by the game. i know its a bit much to explain, but my guess is that the game detects scripts and does its "thing" with them, i dont want to call it compiling, but more of an allocation. and this "thing" it does is sort of monolithic meaning it builds its "table" (if you want to call it that, yes im over simplifying the architecture and functions of several things here) and this table is something which gets built and cannot be edited or reverted. and the game crudely just discards any broken or missing functions from this hypothetical table.

 

anyway, i suppose my real question then, is that if theres any way to properly uninstall scripted mods by placing dummy files in their place, so that it is to not disturb however bethesda handles these things?

[IsharaMeradin]

Let us say that there is object X actively loaded in memory and it is holding script Y. Script Y does something every time event Z happens to the object.

If object X is a mod object and that mod is removed, object X will no longer exist. Depending upon what type of object it may be, the game could crash when re-visiting that area. Hence wait 30+ days on the other side of the game world for the affected cell(s) to fully reset.

If object X is a base object and the mod that added a script to it is removed, the current active instances of that object will still attempt to use the baked in version of the mod added script that now no longer exists. This will cause issues if other objects that the baked in script relies on also no longer exist. Again, leaving those objects behind somewhere for a 30+ day cell reset should take care of them if not cause them to completely disappear. It should be noted that new instances of the object won't be affect by the removed script.

Just because a cell reset may allow the game to continue does not mean that it is "clean" of any removed mods. There will almost always be something left in the save files for the remainder of that character run.

 

In short, it is not that the game cannot handle having things removed it is that the save file tries to restore things that have been removed. If one starts a new game after removing something, that removed thing will not cause any issues in the new game. But if one tries to continue an existing game after something has been removed, problems may arise and not only with mods that contain scripts.

[JanitorsLOL]

yes i see, i hadnt bothered thinking like the game because the game strangely doesnt consider mods to be something which should be properly uninstalled. you see? its somewhat deceptive. its quite ridiculous actually. pretty sure the ability to properly uninstall a mod goes along with the ability to properly install them in the first place. one might even philosophically consider weather this game has ever been compatible with mods since 2011, ho-ho

Edited August 31, 2021 by JanitorsLOL

[JanitorsLOL]

anyway, do you mind explaining exactly how save file corruption occurs then?

this should be interesting.

this is ultimately the point of why im here and what i wish to avoid.

doesnt seem like this topic is as clear as it should be

Edited August 31, 2021 by JanitorsLOL

[IsharaMeradin]

That is actually beyond my understanding, sorry to say. All I can say is that even the base game has some situations where script functions will keep trying to run despite the associated objects no longer existing. Get enough of that sort of thing in the save file and you're wasting resources on stuff that will keep failing instead of doing the stuff that is actually needed to be done.

[JanitorsLOL]

That is actually beyond my understanding, sorry to say. All I can say is that even the base game has some situations where script functions will keep trying to run despite the associated objects no longer existing. Get enough of that sort of thing in the save file and you're wasting resources on stuff that will keep failing instead of doing the stuff that is actually needed to be done.

 

yes and nobody is going to bother chiming along and explaining anything. how convenient

 

is there a simple way to determine which mods run which scripts and quests?

like with an app such as xedit

[IsharaMeradin]

You can load plugins in xEdit to see what quest records they have. But there is no easy way that I know of to see what mods might be running what scripts. I think some of the save tools might list the active scripts and possibly the object(s) running them. In some cases that can help to track down the associated plugin via the load order position. But I wouldn't really know as I do not use any of the tools that can modify the save file.

[JanitorsLOL]

You can load plugins in xEdit to see what quest records they have. But there is no easy way that I know of to see what mods might be running what scripts. I think some of the save tools might list the active scripts and possibly the object(s) running them. In some cases that can help to track down the associated plugin via the load order position. But I wouldn't really know as I do not use any of the tools that can modify the save file.

 

yes unfortunately i forced myself to do this,

there is a specific mod i had wanted to get rid of, "pick up books simple" though i had downloaded the "simpler" version of that mod offered without skse.

the mod uses vanilla papyrus, and what looks to be invoked by silent quest, which then uses a perk type effect though its all in scripting. simple mod with only two entries, one quest and one perk, each backed with their own script and a few fragments.

i was able to find the quest allocated in my game, but stopping it did nothing as it had no stages and was perpetually in the state of 0 for both its status and its stage. seemed like it was just a process for the script.

removing the mod, then cleaning the save did get rid of it.

was not able to find the perk anywhere, even before cleaning the save. again seems like it only existed in script, though it would be nice to confirm with someone else looking at the mod.

 

though it seems like i had properly removed the mod, there is still the question of how the game treats scripting. we can visibly see how the game pretty much does everything through the console, but we cannot see scripting at all. though the script had been removed, i worry that the game might still be treating it as if it were still there. it would be nice if someone could explain how this actually works

Edited September 2, 2021 by JanitorsLOL