Would it be possible to add an alternate form of mod application to BNS Buddy?

[halcyee]

Currently in order to apply mods to the game, you must place all your mods within your BNS folder. On installation, BNS Buddy would then apply a sym link to CookedPC_mod.

The sym application method has the limitation of forcing all your mods be stored on the same path of your game. This means you can't as easily apply mods from say, a secondary path. A workaround to this limitation is to assign a storage destination path, and having BNS Buddy looking that up and copying folders from that path into CookedPC_mod. By doing this, instead of placing all your mods in one basket, this would only have mods you are actively using placed within your BNS folder.

 

[cupid]

On installation, BNS Buddy would then apply a sym link to CookedPC_mod.

That's not always true as of 5.9.7.8:

Buddy - Update 5.9.7.8

Update 5.9.7.8 + Oups: Fixed typo for inbox + Updated: Changed the patch creator to xml creator + Added: Browsing trough inbox will mark browsed message read if unread + Fixed Bug: Not sending of mail code + Fixed Bug: Some addon paths were including double slash + Fixed Bug: Status for...

www.bnsbuddy.com

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The sym application method has the limitation of forcing all your mods be stored on the same path of your game.

That's pure and simply not true.
I don't know where you read this, but it is wrong.

When you google for "symbolic link windows" (http://google.com/search?q=symbolic+link+windows), you will have over 71.7 million results.
Fear not, because this is the first result: https://www.howtogeek.com/howto/16226/complete-guide-to-symbolic-links-symlinks-on-windows-or-linux/

Quoting from there:

Symbolic links are basically advanced shortcuts. Create a symbolic link to an individual file or folder, and that link will appear to be the same as the file or folder to Windows—even though it’s just a link pointing at the file or folder.

For example, let’s say you have a program that needs its files at C:\Program. You’d really like to store this directory at D:\Stuff, but the program requires that its files be at C:\Program. You could move the original directory from C:\Program to D:\Stuff, and then create a symbolic link at C:\Program pointing to D:\Stuff. When you relaunch the program, it will try to access its directory at C:\Program. Windows will automatically redirect it to D:\Stuff, and everything will just work as if it were in C:\Program.

This has been known for years, but the legacy name is "junction", up until Windows 10 build 14972.
(https://blogs.windows.com/windowsdeveloper/2016/12/02/symlinks-windows-10/)

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A workaround to this limitation is to assign a storage destination path, and having BNS Buddy looking that up and copying folders from that path into CookedPC_mod.

You can apply a custom mod folder in settings:



With this, you can create a folder wherever you want.

Using the new knowledge in this answer, you can create multiple symbolic links to the folders where you have the mods.
BnSBuddy has support for subfolders for a year or so, so, you can easily have a CookedPC_mod folder with mods, a Nude folder with mods, a CookieCutter folder with mods .... and that custom folder simply has symbolic links to each of those folders.

Remember this: BnSBuddy only supports 1 level of sub-folders.

 

[halcyee]

Apologies, I made the initial post when I mistakenly edited the first tab and read an dialog box stating invalid pathi browse for BNS folder. Upon doing a second take, it seems to have work. Though I did a work around for it, which was directly modifying the XML and directing custom mods path to secondary drive. But I quickly reverted to original XML (because I do not know how sym would function outside main game folder).

On that note, there wouldn't be a performance issue when using sym to a secondary drive, would there?

 

[cupid]

The performance penality will depend on how slow your drive is.

It should be in the 0-1ms range for an SSD and 0-50ms for an HDD, unless your drive isn't fit to be used any longer.

Windows is the one managing this, and probably would cache this information to avoid having to re-read the same multiple reparse points.

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But I quickly reverted to original XML (because I do not know how sym would function outside main game folder).

You totally skipped reading the link, didn't you?

In short: it doesn't matter, do what the hell you want, it will work.
(Hint: make sure you have version 5.9.7.8)

 

[halcyee]

No, I read your entire post. The sentence you quoted was what I did immediately after I got the pop up box. Hint taken, I'm using the latest version.

 

[cupid]

Well, don't worry, it would work.

If the symbolic link fails to be created, the file is copied instead.
Double the space taken but works.