SE Dev Server Code Skill

Allows reading the decompiled C# code of the Space Engineers Dedicated Server. The "game logic" of the server is largely the same as the game (client) is running. The entry point (main executable), some aspects of logging and configuration differ. Also, some of the libraries are not used by the server, but they may still present to provide the necessary data structures and some backend functionality.

⚠️ CRITICAL: Commands run in a UNIX shell (busybox), NOT Windows CMD. Use bash syntax!

Examples:

• ✅ test -f file.txt && echo exists
• ✅ ls -la | head -10
• ❌ if exist file.txt (echo exists) - This will NOT work

Actions:

• prepare: Run the one-time preparation (Prepare.bat)
• bash: Run UNIX shell commands via busybox
• search: Run code searches using search_server_code.py
• test: Test this skill by running test_search_server_code.bat

Routing Decision

Check these patterns in order - first match wins:

Priority	Pattern	Example	Route
1	Empty or bare invocation	se-dev-server-code	Show this help
2	Prepare keywords	se-dev-server-code prepare, se-dev-server-code setup, se-dev-server-code init	prepare
3	Bash/shell keywords	se-dev-server-code bash, se-dev-server-code grep, se-dev-server-code cat	bash
4	Search keywords	se-dev-server-code search, se-dev-server-code find class, se-dev-server-code lookup	search
5	Test keywords	se-dev-server-code test, se-dev-server-code verify, se-dev-server-code check	test

Requirements

The host system must have the following on PATH:

• Python 3.13 or newer
• git command line client (used to version each decompiled server build)
• dotnet SDK (for installing ilspycmd)

Getting Started

⚠️ CRITICAL: Before running ANY commands, read CommandExecution.md to avoid common mistakes that cause command failures.

If the Prepare.DONE file is missing in this folder, you MUST run the one-time preparation steps first. See the prepare action.

Folder Layout

After preparation the skill folder contains a Data junction. The actual data lives outside the skill folder so that it is preserved across Clean.bat / Prepare.bat cycles.

skills/se-dev-server-code/
├── Data/                 (junction → %USERPROFILE%\.se-dev\server-code)
│   ├── .git/             local Git repository tracking decompiled sources
│   ├── .gitignore        ignores CodeIndex/, Content/, __pycache__, *.py[cod], *.bak, *.log
│   ├── game_version.txt  recorded SE_VERSION / CLIENT_BUILD_NUMBER / SERVER_BUILD_NUMBER
│   ├── Decompiled/       decompiled C# sources, organised per assembly (committed)
│   ├── Content/          textual server content (NOT committed - regenerated)
│   └── CodeIndex/        CSV indexes (NOT committed - regenerated)
├── Bin64/                (junction → server's DedicatedServer64, removed after preparation)
└── ...                   skill scripts and documentation

The Data folder is a junction to %USERPROFILE%\.se-dev\server-code\. (%USERPROFILE% is used rather than %LOCALAPPDATA% so the data sits outside any per-app UWP filesystem virtualization.) Treat Data/Decompiled, Data/Content and Data/CodeIndex exactly as before.

Local Versioning of Decompiled Sources

The Data folder is a local Git repository. Every successful preparation creates a commit of the decompiled C# sources whose message is the server's version label, e.g. 1.208.015 b4.

This means:

• All previously decompiled server versions are preserved in the local Git history. You can git checkout any past commit inside Data/ to inspect or diff against an older build.
• Server updates are detected automatically by comparing the binaries' embedded version constants with Data/game_version.txt. If they differ (or the file is missing), Decompiled/, Content/ and CodeIndex/ are wiped and a fresh decompilation runs.
• This makes it easy to update plugins, mods and scripts for compatibility with new server releases: diff the relevant source between two commits inside Data/ to see exactly what changed.

The repository uses an internal author/email (se-dev-skills@localhost) so commits work even on machines without a configured global Git identity.

Essential Documentation

• CommandExecution.md - ⚠️ READ THIS FIRST - How to run commands correctly on Windows

Code Search Documentation

• QuickStart.md - More examples and quick reference
• CodeSearch.md - Complete guide to searching classes, methods, fields, etc.
• HierarchySearch.md - Finding class/interface inheritance and implementations
• Advanced.md - Power user techniques for complex searches
• Troubleshooting.md - What to do when searches return NO-MATCHES or too many results
• Implementation.md - Technical details for skill contributors (optional)

Quick Search Examples

# Find class declarations
uv run search_server_code.py class declaration MyCubeBlock

# Find method signatures
uv run search_server_code.py method signature UpdateBeforeSimulation

# Find class hierarchy
uv run search_server_code.py class children MyTerminalBlock

# Count results before viewing (useful for large result sets)
uv run search_server_code.py class usage MyEntity --count

# Limit number of results
uv run search_server_code.py class usage MyEntity --limit 10

# Paginate through results
uv run search_server_code.py class usage MyEntity --limit 10 --offset 0
uv run search_server_code.py class usage MyEntity --limit 10 --offset 20

Always check the server code when:

• You're unsure about the server's internal APIs and how to interface with them.
• The inner workings of the Space Engineers Dedicated Server is unclear.

Custom Scripting

For building your own utility scripts to work with the indexes and decompiled code:

• ScriptingGuide.md - How to write Python scripts, use BusyBox, handle Windows paths

Server Content Data

The textual part of the server's Content is copied into the Data/Content folder for free text search:

• Language translations, including the string IDs
• Block and other entity definitions
• Default blueprints and scenarios
• See ContentTypes.md for the full list of content types

Content Index

Data/CodeIndex/content_index.csv maps every textual content file to the decompiled C# source files that reference it. Columns: rel_path (path relative to Data/Content/) and usage (path of a C# source file in Data/Decompiled/ that references it). Each content file appears once per usage, so you can filter and page by rel_path to see all C# code that loads or references a given content file. Files with no known usages have a single row with an empty usage column.

Running the Dedicated Server

The server executable is SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe in the DedicatedServer64 folder.

Headless Mode (No UI)

SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe -console

This bypasses the Telerik WinForms configuration UI and runs the server directly.

Configuration

The server is configured via XML files. The primary configuration file is SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg located in the server's AppData directory (typically %APPDATA%\SpaceEngineersDedicated\).

Key configuration areas:

• Server settings (name, world, mods, max players)
• World settings (game mode, inventory size, welding speed)
• Network settings (port, public/private)

Configuration should be done by editing the XML files directly or with utility Python scripts. See below for planned utilities.

Planned Utility Scripts (Not Yet Implemented)

• config_editor.py — Read and modify SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg values from the command line (e.g. set server name, max players, world name)
• world_manager.py — List, backup, and manage saved worlds in the server data directory
• mod_manager.py — List and validate mods referenced in the configuration

Server-Only Assemblies

Assembly	Description
SpaceEngineersDedicated	Server entry point (replaces SpaceEngineers.exe)
VRage.Dedicated	Dedicated server framework, lifecycle, and configuration
VRage.RemoteClient.Core	Remote client support (RCON-like functionality)

General Rules

• In the Data/Decompiled folder search only inside the C# source files (.cs) in general. If you work on transpiler or preloader patches, then also search in the IL code (.il) files.
• In the Data/Content folder search the files appropriate for the task. See ContentTypes.md for the list of types.
• Do not search for decompiled server code outside the Data/Decompiled folder. The decompiled server source tree must be there if the preparation succeeded.
• Do not search for server content data outside the Data/Content folder. The copied server content must be there if the preparation succeeded.

Action References

Follow the detailed instructions in:

• prepare action - One-time preparation
• bash action - Running UNIX shell commands via busybox
• search action - Running code searches
• test action - Testing this skill

Remarks

The original source of this skill: https://github.com/viktor-ferenczi/se-dev-skills