If you're the author of a mod which adds things to the build menu with a script it is pretty much a given that you've seen at least one bug report like this:
I tried your mod and now my menus are gone! You broke my game! HELP!
-- every user who forgot to run your uninstaller
Ok, maybe they didn't yell, but you get the idea. Sooner or later someone will either not read the instructions or simply forget to follow them. At this point they have two options:
- Reinstall your mod, run the uninstaller, and then disable it again.
- Install one of the menu fixer mods floating around and restart the game a few times.
Kind of a pain, right?
Settlement Menu Manager (SMM) makes it all happen automagically. Once your users have SMM installed all they will have to do (99% of the time) in order to remove your mod (and any other mod using SMM) is take it out of their load order.
- Create a quest and check "Start Game Enabled"
- Attach SettlementMenuManager:MenuInstaller.psc to it.
- Set the PluginName, ModName, and Author properties on the script.
- Add a struct for each menu you want SMM to add to the game. The ModMenu value in each struct needs to be either a keyword or a formlist. TargetMenu is where SMM will put your menu.
Alternatively you can simply copy the quest from SMM_Example_Plugin.esp and change properties as in steps 3 and 4 above.
Once you have done that you will want to add the following (or something like it) to your mod description:
This mod uses Settlement Menu Manager to add custom settlement menu categories. This means that you don't need to worry about running a special holotape/chem before you uninstall it: just remove it from your load order and you're done.
In addition to a notice, it would probably be a good idea for you to add SMM as a requirement on your mod page.
Q: If I install SMM can I still use mods that set their own menus up?
A: Yes. SMM is designed to play nicely with other mods.
Q: If I install this does it mean that I can install/uninstall anything without worrying about menus disappearing?
A: No, you will still need to run the uninstaller for any mod which is not using SMM.
Q: If I want to stop using SMM can I just disable it? (Can SMM uninstall itself automatically?)
A: No, it isn't actually possible for a mod to automatically clean up after itself once it has been uninstalled. In order to properly uninstall SMM you will have to activate the "Safe Mode" feature SMM has, save, close your game, and then remove it from your load order. Obviously, uninstalling SMM will break any mod that relies on SMM.
Q: What is "Safe Mode" and how do I enable it?
A: Safe Mode temporarily removes everything that SMM has added to the build menu. The next time you load your game or open and close the build menu everything will be re-added. To activate Safe Mode run the Settlement Menu Manager Holotape that was added to your inventory when you installed SMM and select "Enter Safe Mode".
Q: A non-SMM enabled mod broke my build menu. Can I use SMM to fix it?
A: Yes, select the "Settlement Menu Rescue" option in the SMM holotape. It will scan through the build menu and remove every invalid category/menu (without clobbering the valid ones).
Q: Can't I just include your code in my mod and not depend on my users installing SMM?
A: No! The whole point is having a separate, always installed bit of code that does everything. If each mod tried to do that they'd end up stomping all over one another.
Q: How many menus can my mod add using SMM?
A: As many as you want; however, there is a global limit of 1024 custom menu categories. I can increase this if necessary, but I can't imagine a situation where you'd need more.