If you want something more reflective of the state of Morrowind modding as of 2022, try
https://github.com/rfuzzo/mlox/releases
rfuzzo's recent fork of MLOX has resolved some of the bugs present in the original version and made some improvements on top of that.
This version also automatically downloads the latest version of Danae's MLOX data files as needed, which means you don't need to manually update. Danae's ruleset is still being actively updated by some authors, and older entries from back in the day have been significantly cleaned up too. This is the same ruleset recommended by mods like Beautiful Cities of Morrowind.
Neither is perfect, but a lot of work has been put into improving both, and almost all of the remaining issues are present in the original versions too. Both are straight upgrades for modern modders at this point, in my opinion.
Wow I love this! Coming back to morrowind as I do every couple years, I was still using version 1.0.3 and now discover the latest versions which not only run faster but actually do good sorting, specially now that I am on linux, love these little pieces of software that make life for us modders much simpler!
Literately from the time I posted my last comment to now I already fixed 5 conflicts, found 2 updated versions of mods and removed 4 incompatible buggy mods.
The "newer" versions aren't linux capable it appears but the old one was...so it has lost some functionality, I'm guessing? I run OpenMW on Linux Mint, I really would like a way to sort my mods - even if I have to find a "hacky" way to do it.
Thanks, that's good news - I have got other python stuff to run before on linux - but last time I tried MLOX .py file - it gave some python error - and then there's the whole OpenMW aspect of it regarding where the mods are installed
"python error" could be anything. Yeah, you'll need to trick it (I used a dummy .ini and a Data Files folder full of symlinks. It's a PITA but it's not something you need to do every day.
I suppose it's outdated (but anyway still pretty valid)
Anyway I read from other modders advice using the rfuzzo version, it's the most updated, I know the author wrote about it here in post/ comments, but the main page is still un-updated..
I'm using Wrye Mash (Polemos fork) to manage my mods and access mlox thru it to sort the load list. I made a my_rules file for mlox to use. However, there are several esm/esp files - morrowind.esm, tribunal, bloodmoon, Tamriel Rebuilt, SHotN, Province Cyrodil, etc. - that I always want to load first as a group in a specified order with no other mods being inserted. mlox has the NearStart rule and Order rule, but I haven't seen anything in the documentation showing how I can force mlox to load them first in that sequence and to not insert any other mods within that sequence.
I can use Wrye Mash to edit and lock the file modification time and force a load order sequence using WM, but if I use mlox to refine the load order, mlox overrides the lock times option I set in WM. It sounds trivial, but I'm having to then re-do all the file dependency checking I did in Wrye Mash which wastes all the previous time I spent to get everything squared away in the first place.
So is there a way in mlox to specify/name/identify a group of mods that you always want loaded first in a specific order and not insert any other mods into that load order?
Not as far as I know, it's how mlox works. It doesn't have a single monolithic load order list, like BOSS, but works by moving round chunks of your load order. Check out "mlox_guts.txt" (that seems to have been dropped from recent versions).
One thing you could try is editing [NearStart] in your mlox_user.txt to have this load order you want in. If that doesn't work then I don't think you can do what you want.
TBH, I'm not 100% sure why you want to do this. Is the "file dependency checking" updating plugin headers? Are there really that many?
I would always like these esm/esp files to load first in this order
Morrowind.esm
Tribunal.esm
Bloodmoon.esm
TR_Mainland.esm
Tamriel_Data.esm
Sky_Main.esm
Cyr_Main.esm
TD_Hotfix.ESP
TR_Hotfix.esp
abotSiltStriders.esp
abotBoats.esp
That load sequence does not produce any warnings in MW itself and forms the core for my games. It makes it easier to troublshoot problems as I add new mods. When I use mlox I will find other mods inserted or the tamriel_data.esm loading before TR_mainland.esm Also, I load a number of wares related mods and see WM warning that the mod dependency needs updating after I run mlox. I haven't kept track of the exact count, but it seems like updating the dependency list of about 10 mods every time in Wrye Mash every time I use mlox because mlox has sorted them for whatever reason. I find another odd mlox behavior, that when I use mlox to sort the order, have mlox update the load order based on that, that mlox again suggests a slightly revised load order.
Try adding that into a [NearStart] entry in mlox_user, although I believe people maintaining the mlox rules use both _user and _base files for some reason.
When I was maintaining the mlox rules I only ever added Order rules that were needed and not ones for just cosmetic reasons, that could be why you're seeing that with the TR .esm files
Danae uses the French version of Morrowind, I think, so her .esm files will be different sizes and so the Wares plugin headers will need updating.
The rest I dunno, it's been 5(?) years since I did anything with mlox.
Thanks. I'll give it a try. I somehow think it's a logic problem re: setting the order sequence. It seems like (but probably not true) that there should be a way using the ? and the * characters to write an order rule that makes a de facto command to load a group of mods first. Does the person maintaining mlox read this thread anymore? I use nexus rather than github to comment. The latest release of mlox (rhuzzo?) uses a text file called my_rules to incorporate custom order sequences.
I didn't realize that the language version of MW would result in the issue about the plugin headers. I use mlox to sequence the load order for my mods based on what the community has found to work best and using it as an advisor to spot if there are mods I should have or conflicts I was not aware of.
If you're not set-up on GIthub then Discord would be the way to contact people who still do mlox stuff.
Plugin headers record the file size of ESMs, different language versions are a different number of bytes. Differences lead to that error message "One or more plugins could not find the version of the master file they depend on" (or whatever).
The * and ? are wild card characters, * is any number of any character and ? is any single character
First I sorted the mods with LOOT - Load Order Optimization Tool, then I ran MLOX, but it didn't change anything in the mod list. Does this mean that LOOT is as effective as MLOX and can be used as a good alternative?
To anyone wondering if you should get Mlox in 2021: it is still a useful programme, as long as you read the load order suggestions critically (keeping in mind recent mods that are not included).
However, this version is outdated. Go here for the latest version: https://github.com/mlox/mlox#readme
To add to this: The mlox_base.txt this comes with is from 2017 and outdated. Go here to get the latest mlox_base.txt file from 2019 https://sourceforge.net/projects/mlox/files/mlox/ If you use the outdated mlox.exe from this Nexus base, mlox_base.txt will be located inside your Morrowind game folder. The updated mlox.exe that Dragon32 posted will make a new folder outside of the Morrowind game folder located: users>(PC user name)>AppData*>Local>mlox>mlox *(make sure you turn on "show hidden files and folders" in the Windows 'Folder Options' settings) Make sure to run mlox.exe at least once, which will then create these files.
To make mlox even better, RandomPal has made a user file that adds even more rules/order settings that compliment mlox_base.txt. You don't have to use his city mod to download and use his user file: https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/49231?tab=files Download "Mlox User file" at the very bottom, and put mlox_user.txt in the same location your mlox_base.txt is at.
I use, what seems to be the latest version of mlox but i get the following message:
[NOTE] > 'Protective Guards.esp' | These mods require Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE) v0.9.2 or later, or MGE v3.0.3 or later. [NOTE] > 'ANPC.esp' > 'CE-DepthPerception25.esp' | These mods require Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE) v0.9.4a, or MGE v3.5.6 or later.
Take into account that I have already downloaded and correctly installed mwse and mge and have them updated to the latest versions that are available, should I just ignore these messages?
There's no way for mlox to work out whether you're running MWSE (or MWE or MGE or MGE XE...) so view these as notifications. Back in the day people were running 0.9.2 and kicking up a stink on the Bethesda forums when a 0.9.3 mod didn't work.
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https://github.com/rfuzzo/mlox/releases
rfuzzo's recent fork of MLOX has resolved some of the bugs present in the original version and made some improvements on top of that.
This version also automatically downloads the latest version of Danae's MLOX data files as needed, which means you don't need to manually update. Danae's ruleset is still being actively updated by some authors, and older entries from back in the day have been significantly cleaned up too. This is the same ruleset recommended by mods like Beautiful Cities of Morrowind.
Neither is perfect, but a lot of work has been put into improving both, and almost all of the remaining issues are present in the original versions too. Both are straight upgrades for modern modders at this point, in my opinion.
I
LOVE
YOU ARE THE BEST
The "newer" versions aren't linux capable it appears but the old one was...so it has lost some functionality, I'm guessing? I run OpenMW on Linux Mint, I really would like a way to sort my mods - even if I have to find a "hacky" way to do it.
Yeah, you'll need to trick it (I used a dummy .ini and a Data Files folder full of symlinks. It's a PITA but it's not something you need to do every day.
Anyway I read from other modders advice using the rfuzzo version, it's the most updated, I know the author wrote about it here in post/ comments, but the main page is still un-updated..
https://github.com/rfuzzo/mlox/releases
I can use Wrye Mash to edit and lock the file modification time and force a load order sequence using WM, but if I use mlox to refine the load order, mlox overrides the lock times option I set in WM. It sounds trivial, but I'm having to then re-do all the file dependency checking I did in Wrye Mash which wastes all the previous time I spent to get everything squared away in the first place.
So is there a way in mlox to specify/name/identify a group of mods that you always want loaded first in a specific order and not insert any other mods into that load order?
Thanks.
One thing you could try is editing [NearStart] in your mlox_user.txt to have this load order you want in. If that doesn't work then I don't think you can do what you want.
TBH, I'm not 100% sure why you want to do this. Is the "file dependency checking" updating plugin headers? Are there really that many?
That load sequence does not produce any warnings in MW itself and forms the core for my games. It makes it easier to troublshoot problems as I add new mods. When I use mlox I will find other mods inserted or the tamriel_data.esm loading before TR_mainland.esm Also, I load a number of wares related
mods and see WM warning that the mod dependency needs updating after I run mlox. I haven't kept track of the exact count, but it seems like updating the dependency list of about 10 mods every time in Wrye Mash every time I use mlox because mlox has sorted them for whatever reason. I find another odd mlox behavior, that when I use mlox to sort the order, have mlox update the load order based on that, that mlox again suggests a slightly revised load order.
When I was maintaining the mlox rules I only ever added Order rules that were needed and not ones for just cosmetic reasons, that could be why you're seeing that with the TR .esm files
Danae uses the French version of Morrowind, I think, so her .esm files will be different sizes and so the Wares plugin headers will need updating.
The rest I dunno, it's been 5(?) years since I did anything with mlox.
I didn't realize that the language version of MW would result in the issue about the plugin headers. I use mlox to sequence the load order for my mods based on what the community has found to work best and using it as an advisor to spot if there are mods I should have or conflicts I was not aware of.
Plugin headers record the file size of ESMs, different language versions are a different number of bytes. Differences lead to that error message "One or more plugins could not find the version of the master file they depend on" (or whatever).
The * and ? are wild card characters, * is any number of any character and ? is any single character
However, this version is outdated. Go here for the latest version: https://github.com/mlox/mlox#readme
https://sourceforge.net/projects/mlox/files/mlox/
If you use the outdated mlox.exe from this Nexus base, mlox_base.txt will be located inside your Morrowind game folder. The updated mlox.exe that Dragon32 posted will make a new folder outside of the Morrowind game folder located:
users>(PC user name)>AppData*>Local>mlox>mlox
*(make sure you turn on "show hidden files and folders" in the Windows 'Folder Options' settings)
Make sure to run mlox.exe at least once, which will then create these files.
To make mlox even better, RandomPal has made a user file that adds even more rules/order settings that compliment mlox_base.txt. You don't have to use his city mod to download and use his user file:
https://www.nexusmods.com/morrowind/mods/49231?tab=files
Download "Mlox User file" at the very bottom, and put mlox_user.txt in the same location your mlox_base.txt is at.
[NOTE]
> 'Protective Guards.esp'
| These mods require Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE) v0.9.2 or later, or MGE v3.0.3 or later.
[NOTE]
> 'ANPC.esp'
> 'CE-DepthPerception25.esp'
| These mods require Morrowind Script Extender (MWSE) v0.9.4a, or MGE v3.5.6 or later.
Take into account that I have already downloaded and correctly installed mwse and mge and have them updated to the latest versions that are available, should I just ignore these messages?