Best practises

Best Practices & Common Gotchas

Recommended Practices

1. Use "basic", "network", "advanced" categories only
2. Set meaningful weight values in increments of 10
3. Hide mandatory technical flags with "hide_in_ui"
4. Use "dont_append_flag_just_value" for flagless params
5. Provide good description and ui_label
6. Include backup_content_dir pointing to your saves folder
7. Add image and logo URLs for nice gallery display

Common Issues

• Mismatched meta.name and filename → won't load
• Non-numeric steam_app_id → validation error
• Wrong executable extension → validation error
• Empty required value with requires_value: true → validation error on save
• Using unknown category names → UI grouping breaks
• Forgetting ui_group matching category key

Testing Tips

1. Start with a minimal runfile
2. Add args gradually
3. Check SSUI logs for validation messages
4. Test on both Windows and Linux if providing both executables

Happy runfile crafting! Your contributions make dedicated servers easier for everyone.