Need some help understanding the -profile launch parameter

[BlackSpectre]

What does the -profile launch parameter do?

 

So... I'm a bit confused which makes writing up a wiki page about it difficult.  It appears that the command will create a sub-folder in Settings and also Logs for whatever name you use for the profile. For example, -profile Bob. It also creates a client.json file and a gfx.json file and places them in the "Bob" directory (or whatever you named the profile). There is very little information in either of these files. 

 

According to /Logs/Launcher/launcher.log, the Homecoming launcher uses this command line to launch the game:

 

cityofheroes.exe -profile live -auth 51.161.76.201 -assetpath assets/issue24;assets/live

 

Notice the use of "-profile live" in the above string. 

 

Is the command re-creating a new "live" profile each time the game is launched? Or does it just point the client toward the correct profile for it to read?

 

If we run the game without the launcher, do we need to use the "-profile live" command, or will that end up messing up the "live" profile the launcher previously created?

 

Also, I read that the -profile parameter is meant to be used with the launcher, but if so, why does it seem to work for cityofheroes.exe?

 

If anyone could shed some light on this for me, I'd greatly appreciate it...

 

 

P.S. This is probably the last question I have about launch parameters. After this one, all I have left is a bunch of graphics commands to test.

Edited July 13, 2023 by BlackSpectre

[Number Six]

It lets you have different sets of graphics and game settings. When you launch homecoming it uses -profile live, when you launch the Beta server, it uses -profile beta. The default location for loading bind files and options.txt is settings\[profile].

 

So if you're bypassing the launcher you'd want to use "-profile live" unless you want to keep any in-game settings you change separate for some reason. Probably you'd want to just use "live" so your graphics settings carry over and you can load any saved keybinds, etc.

 

It's not for the launcher, it's the way the launcher communicates to the game which set of files to use. It's also a required parameter to start the game so you need to have something there.

[BlackSpectre]

13 hours ago, Number Six said:

It lets you have different sets of graphics and game settings. When you launch homecoming it uses -profile live, when you launch the Beta server, it uses -profile beta. The default location for loading bind files and options.txt is settings\[profile].

 

So if you're bypassing the launcher you'd want to use "-profile live" unless you want to keep any in-game settings you change separate for some reason. Probably you'd want to just use "live" so your graphics settings carry over and you can load any saved keybinds, etc.

 

It's not for the launcher, it's the way the launcher communicates to the game which set of files to use. It's also a required parameter to start the game so you need to have something there.

Awesome. So if we created a new profile, say "Bob", the game would load that profile on startup instead, but there's not much there because I had just created it and haven't changed and saved settings yet? 

 

When the launcher "communicates" with the game through -profile, is it writing or re-writing parts of the "live" profile each time it launches? Is that how it works?

 

Also, if I understand correctly, the game will not overwrite the "live" profile (or any profile) except to add changes for settings and such? The basic information on file and package loading will remain unless changed by the launcher (and that would require a patch or update for the launcher)?

 

 

[BlackSpectre]

OK! Here is the wiki page I just wrote up about the -profile launch parameter. I hope everything I wrote is accurate, not misleading, and useful.   https://homecoming.wiki/wiki/Profile_(Command_Line_Parameter)