## Why
Delta world saves (only changed entities re-serialized during the freeze) need two things from content: `Serialize` must be pure, and an unchanged entity must produce identical bytes on every save. An audit of the tree found the places that break this today. This PR fixes them and adds a diagnostic that measures byte stability in a running world over real time. No wire format changes, no version bumps.
## What
- **Guild**: `Serialize` ran the daily guildmaster recalculation (dictionary-order tie breaks, random picks, mutates another entity), war expiry, and the alliance leadership check on every save. That work now runs from `GuildMaintenanceTimer` (the former `WarTimer`, now started for both guild systems; the war and alliance checks are no-ops without the new guild system).
- **BaseHouse**: the `DecayLevel` getter wrote `LastRefreshed` and advanced the dynamic decay stage on every read, so any undecayable house changed its persisted bytes whenever a sign, gump, or `[Props` looked at it. It is now a pure read; `UpdateDecay()` on the decay tick advances the stage and refreshes a house that leaves the undecayable state.
- **Locked-down container contents decay through `DecayScheduler`** instead of a sweep inside `BaseHouse.Serialize`. `Item.CanDecay` now accepts a parent container whose new `Container.ContentsDecay` is true (locked down and not secure) when the content item is not itself locked down or secured; the `IsLockedDown`/`IsSecure` setters re-evaluate a container and its direct contents; `OnDecay` resolves the region from the world location. `BaseBoard`, `Aquarium` and `FishBowl` override `ContentsDecay` to false, matching the exclusions of the old sweep. Items already inside such containers are picked up at load, where every item re-evaluates its registration. The per-save O(all locked-down items) walk is gone; the work is now event driven.
- **BraceletOfBinding**: the `Bound` getter nulled its backing field for a deleted target; it now returns null for a missing or deleted target without writing.
- **`[SaveStability [delaySeconds=60] [sampleStride=1]`** (Administrator): hashes the serialized bytes of every entity in every registered entity persistence (`Persistence.EntityPersistences`, new), waits the delay in real time, hashes again, and reports per type how many records changed. Both passes are chunked under a 20 ms per-tick budget. Serializing twice inside one tick cannot see drift derived from `Core.Now`, which is frozen within a tick; the real-time wait is the point. On an idle shard the only legitimate churn is NPC movement and regeneration, so a static type with a high changed fraction is a serialization bug. `[SaveStability cancel` stops a run.
Engine additions: `Container.ContentsDecay` / `UpdateContentsDecayRegistration()`, the `CanDecay`/`OnDecay` change above, and diagnostic-facing `IGenericEntityPersistence.Name`, `EntityCount`, `EnumerateEntities()`, and `Persistence.EntityPersistences`.
## Behaviour notes
- Fealty recalculation now happens on the minute timer for both guild systems instead of at save time.
- A house that becomes decayable is refreshed on its next decay tick rather than at the exact moment of transition (at most one minute later).
- Contents of locked-down containers now decay on their own schedule (same `LastMoved + DecayTime` rule) instead of at the next world save after becoming due.
## Testing
- New tests: `GuildSerializePurityTests`, `HouseDecayPurityTests`, `SaveStabilityTests` (stable entities hash identically after the clock advances; a clock-stamped record is reported by type only after the clock advances; the snapshot covers Items, Mobiles and Guilds).
- `LockedDownContainerDecayTests` (Server.Tests): registration on drop, lock/secure/release transitions, excluded containers, nested containers, and decay on schedule through the scheduler.
- Full suites: Server.Tests 855 passed, UOContent.Tests 765 passed.
## Summary
Folds **113** hand-written `[SerializableProperty]` members into plain `[SerializableField]` declarations using the v4 setter hooks — value coercion/vetoes via `allowFieldChange`, post-change side effects via `fieldChanged` (whose `oldValue` parameter covers the old-house/old-sender unsubscribe patterns). Net **-450 lines** of setter boilerplate.
```cs
// before
[SerializableProperty(1)]
[CommandProperty(AccessLevel.GameMaster)]
public int Charges
{
get => _charges;
set
{
_charges = Math.Clamp(value, 0, MaxCharges);
InvalidateProperties();
this.MarkDirty();
}
}
// after
[SerializableField(1, allowFieldChange: nameof(AllowChargesChange))]
[SerializedCommandProperty(AccessLevel.GameMaster)]
[InvalidateProperties]
private int _charges;
private bool AllowChargesChange(ref int value)
{
value = Math.Clamp(value, 0, MaxCharges);
return true;
}
```
## How sites were selected
A classifier parsed all 204 `[SerializableProperty]` sites and converted only those matching strict shapes: getter is exactly `get => _field;`, the assignment comes first (after at most an equality guard), and relocated side effects contain no `return`, no `value` mutation, and no field re-assignment. Everything else was left alone deliberately:
- **~34 custom getters** (fallback defaults like `_x == -1 ? Default : _x`, self-healing refs) — no setter hook can express these.
- **~35 pre-assignment logic** (durability Unscale/Scale sandwiches, old-state captures like PotionKeg's pile weight).
- **virtual/override members, name-mismatched backing fields (`m_`), exotic semantics** (guards' `Focus` does work on *equal* assignment; `ChampionSpawn.Active` never assigns its field).
Five sites the classifier refused were converted by hand where the hooks fit cleanly: `ReceiverCrystal.Sender`, `PlayerVendor.House`, `PlayerBarkeeper.House` (old-value unsubscribe via `oldValue`), `BaseSuit.AccessLevel` (its existing virtual `OnAccessLevelChanged` already had the exact callback shape), and `DyeTub.DyedHue` (a true veto: `AllowDyedHueChange(ref int value) => _redyable`).
## Verification
- Build: **0 errors, 0 warnings**.
- **Schema regeneration produces zero Migrations changes** — the conversion is wire- and schema-neutral by construction (same orders, types, and property names), and CI's schema diff check enforces it.
- **835 + 708 tests green.**
## Behavioral notes (all strict improvements, called out for review)
- Generated setters skip everything when the incoming value equals the current one; a few converted setters previously re-ran side effects on equal assignment (redundant `Update()`-style refreshes).
- Generated setters always `MarkDirty()` on change; several converted setters never did (e.g. `DyeTub.DyedHue`, `MorphItem` ranges) — their changes only persisted if something else dirtied the entity. Those latent persistence bugs are fixed by construction.
## Summary
- Adds proper Latin1 encoding support, replacing CP1252 usage throughout the codebase
- Adds specialized, optimized string decoding methods with safe string filtering for each encoding type
- Filters invalid Unicode characters (C0/C1 control codes, non-characters) by removal rather than replacement since
the UO client renders nothing for these characters
- Fixes UTF-16 null terminator position handling to correctly advance by 2 bytes
## Changes
TextEncoding.cs
- Added SearchValues-based invalid byte/char detection for efficient filtering
- Added encoding-specific GetString methods: GetStringAscii, GetStringLatin1, GetStringUtf8, GetStringBigUni,
GetStringLittleUni
- Each method supports a safeString parameter for filtering invalid characters
- Little-endian UTF-16 uses direct memory cast for zero-copy decoding on LE systems
- Invalid characters are removed (not replaced with U+FFFD) since the client renders nothing for them
SpanReader.cs
- Added ReadLatin1() and ReadLatin1Safe() methods
- Rewrote encoding-specific read methods to use optimized TextEncoding.GetString* methods
- Fixed UTF-16 null terminator handling: position now correctly advances by byteLength (2) instead of 1
SpanWriter.cs
- Added WriteLatin1 and WriteLatin1Null methods
## Packet Updates
- Updated all packet code to use Latin1 encoding instead of CP1252
- Affected: account packets, equipment packets, menu packets, message packets, mobile packets, player packets, secure
trade packets, vendor packets, gump packets, book packets, mahjong packets
## Filtering Behavior
Invalid characters filtered in safe mode:
```
┌───────────────┬────────────────────────┐
│ Range │ Description │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────┤
│ 0x00-0x1F │ C0 control codes │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────┤
│ 0x7F │ DEL │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────┤
│ 0x80-0x9F │ C1 control codes │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────┤
│ 0xFFFE-0xFFFF │ Unicode non-characters │
└───────────────┴────────────────────────┘
```
Note: Surrogate pairs (0xD800-0xDFFF) are not filtered because proper validation requires context checking for paired
vs unpaired surrogates. The UO client renders nothing for these anyway.
## Test Plan
- All 631 Server.Tests pass
- Verified client rendering behavior using TestUnicodeGump command (pages 1-5)
- Confirmed U+FFFD, unpaired surrogates, and non-characters all render as blank in client
- Verified Latin1 characters (0xA0-0xFF) display correctly
- Verified C1 control codes (0x80-0x9F) are filtered and don't display
## Summary
- Removes allocation of a `List<ContextMenuEntry>` every time a context menu is created.
- Moves packet/context menu creation logic out of the core
- Fixes tame entry
## BREAKING CHANGE
> [!Important]
> **Developer Note**
> ```cs
> public virtual void GetContextMenuEntries(Mobile from, List<ContextMenuEntry> list)
> ```
> and similar functions changed to
> ```cs
> public virtual void GetContextMenuEntries(Mobile from, ref PooledRefList<ContextMenuEntry> list)
> ```
## Summary
### Changes
- Adds `[IgnoreDupe]` and `[SerializedIgnoreDupe]`
- Updates all _known_ classes that need the attribute. Some might be missing, please helps us find them!
- Adds `Item.Dupe()` command and encapsulates `CopyProperties` and `OnAfterDuped`. This is also overridable.
- Updates Dupe command to use the new logic.
- Fixes duping multiple kinds of objects that used to be outright broken.
### Bug Fixes
- Fixes issue with durability after duping
- Fixes issue with hue after duping
> [!Note]
> **Developer Note**
> Customizing how duping an item works now requires two steps:
> 1. Add `[IgnoreDupe]` or `[SerializedIgnoreDupe]` to the property/field
> 2. Add custom logic in an `OnAfterDuped` override
>
> When do you need to do this?
> *When the property being copied is not a primitive, and you need to manually deep-clone the contents of the property such as with Lists, Dictionaries, or sub classes.*
### Summary
* Fixes syntax compile error when THREADGUARD is enabled.
* Removes `int packetLength` from incoming packet handles since they aren't needed.
### Developer Notes
Incoming packet handler `SpanReader` is now properly scoped to that packet by length.
## Breaking Changes
Incoming packet registration signature has changed to:
```cs
delegate* void OnReceiveCallback(NetState state, SpanReader reader, int packetLength);
IncomingPackets.Register(int packetID, int length, bool ingame, OnReceiveCallback onReceive);
```
For example, an incoming packet handler signature would now look like this:
```cs
public static void SomeIncomingPacket(NetState state, SpanReader reader, int packetLength)
{
// Parse the data
}
```
## Summary
Updates the network Pipe class to use a mirrored memory technique. This technique involves mapping the same physical memory to two contiguous virtual memory spaces so the byte buffer appears duplicated. This allows writing to a double-sized array to wrap around without the need for the `CircularBuffer` classes.
In practice this allows us to use `Span<byte>` as if the buffer was a regular array.
### Bug Fixes
- [X] Fixes bad fixed length string parsing
### Summary
- Adds KR/EC client versions to ClientVersion
- Adds distinction for enhanced versions in the page queue
- Adds KR Expansion flags
- Adds ProtocolChange enum support
- Adds missing Moongate checks for TerMur
- Adds better message for why a client version is not supported, and which ones are supported.
**Only one functional change**
* Fixes a bug in LogFactory where `Warning` is being logged as `Information`
Non-functional changes:
* Updates/Fixes copyright headers
* Removes namespace scopes for core files.
View with [whitespace off](https://github.com/modernuo/ModernUO/pull/1187/files?w=1).
* Adds `SerializationProperty` - This will generate the private variable for serialization. Also provides an option `useField` to specify your own. Example:
```cs
[SerializationProperty(0, useField: nameof(_resource)]
```
## Breaking Changes (New API)
ObjectPropertyList supports the following API:
```cs
list.Add(500000);
list.Add(500001, stringArgument);
list.Add("Some text");
list.Add($"Some text with {argument}");
list.Add(500002, $"{arg1}\t{arg2}");
```
## Notes
1. All API uses that require a formatter like this:
```cs
list.Add(500002, "{0}\t{1}", arg1, arg2);
```
Should be changed to use string interpolation, for example:
```cs
list.Add(500002, $"{arg1}\t{arg2}");
```
2. The following paradigm should no longer be used:
```cs
list.Add(1061170, prop.ToString()); // strength requirement ~1_val~
```
The new string interpolation API will avoid having to convert the argument to a string before writing it to the packet. Instead use the following:
```cs
list.Add(1061170, $"{prop}"); // strength requirement ~1_val~
```
### Benchmarks
```cs
| Method | Mean | Error | StdDev | Gen 0 | Allocated |
|------------------------------- |---------:|--------:|--------:|-------:|----------:|
| BenchmarkOldOPL | 241.0 ns | 0.56 ns | 0.47 ns | 0.0105 | 88 B |
| BenchmarkStringInterpolatedOPL | 199.9 ns | 2.44 ns | 2.39 ns | - | - |
```
### Changes
- [X] Removes crash in STArray.Return when array is null.
- [X] Fixes NPE in OPL when entity is null. Serial in packet will be 0 when entity is null.
- [X] Fixes NPE in AosAttributes when Parent is null.
- [X] Changes OPL to use string interpolation.
- [X] Introduces `IPropertyList` to allow extending PropertyList for other uses.
Fixes an issue with DropReq where an old client was sending in 14 bytes, but the server was expecting 15 bytes.
To fix this we introduced a new packet handler, `ContainerGridPacketHandler` and changed the code to determine the length of the packet dynamically using `GetLength(NetState)`.
Also fixed throttling so dropped packets are properly skipped.
- [X] Caches DateTime.NowUtc on the game loop (not other threads)
- [X] Replaces all locations where it makes sense
- [X] Adds Min/Max for `IComparable` (TimeSpan, DateTimes, etc)
Closes#261
- [X] Adds a stop music packet
- [X] Converts chat packets
- [X] Breaks out chat code a little bit more
- [X] Converts character statue animation packet
- [X] Renames some folders to have spaces
- [X] Organizes and consolidates incoming/outgoing packets for other content
- [X] Fixes virtual checks
- [X] Removes 6017 handler since it is only used in one place
- [X] Exposes a ref int to modify the packet length. This is acceptable since we technically have access to the entire reader/buffer.
- [X] Adds support for `SkipLocalsInitAttribute`. SkipLocalsInitAttribute skips initializing stack variables including `stackalloc`. I don't think it is wired/working yet but should be implemented soon.
- [X] Optimizes broadcasted packets by checking if the first byte (packet ID) is non-zero. If it is already set, it reuses the buffer.
- [X] Removes unnecessary refs to Spans. I don't think the Span struct itself is mutable, so a ref is not helpful.
- [X] Fixes an issue where a buffer smaller than 8 bytes would not double with enough space in some cases.
- [X] Fixes an issue with dupe copying the savebuffer reference (ugh).
- [X] Streamlines the IGenericWriter API to use better generics.
- [X] Streamlines the IGenericReader API to use better generics.
- [X] Forces `tidying` of a List/HashSet to be done externally since Writers/Readers should not have side effects.
- [X] Fixes an issue where Tidying a list didn't TrimExcess, causing memory leaks.
- [X] Reverted the meaning of `World.Running` to specifically refer to any world state post world loading.
- NOTE: Do not use this if you want to block on world saves. Instead use checks against `WorldState.Saving` states.
- [X] Fixes an issue with serializing negative DateTime deltas.
- [X] Fixes a potential issue with serializing non-UTC DateTime.
Bumps release version
- [X] Changes effect packets
- [X] Updates playing sounds
- [X] Updates Effects class to have more options so there are less direct calls to building the packets
- [X] Changes bonding status packet
- [X] Removing Kestrel & Libuv
- [X] Cleaning up NetState
- [X] Removing System.IO.Pipelines
- [X] Cleaning up packet reading
- [X] Adds a maximum of 5000 sockets (configurable) to prevent OOM
- [X] Replaces the AsyncState with a thread-safe wrapped boolean called NetworkState
- [X] Removes Parallel.ForEach (no perf gain)
- [X] Removes custom houses compression on another thread
- [X] Test high load scenarios
Bumps release version
