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HELIX is in Early Access Preview. Some features and documentation may be non-functional or out of date.

Add Lua Scripts to Your World with Workspaces#

A technical overview of workspace creation, persistence, detachment, and duplication

1. Overview#

A Workspace in HELIX is a local folder containing all files for a world you are editing.

  • Used to store unpublished changes before publishing to the HELIX server.
  • Can be temporary (deleted automatically) or persistent (saved as a draft).
  • Workspaces allow multiple local versions (drafts) of the same world.

2. Temporary Workspaces#

  • Created automatically whenever you:
    • Join a world.
    • Create a new world.
    • Preview assets from a world.
    • Connect to a remote server.
  • Purpose: Required technically for the game to run, but not shown to the user in drafts.
  • Behavior:
    • Deleted automatically when you leave the world.
    • Does not clutter the user’s disk.
    • Invisible in the Drafts list.

3. Converting to a Persistent Workspace#

A workspace becomes persistent when you:

  1. Save the world (via Save button or menu).
  2. Publish it for the first time.
  3. Auto-save it using the quick-save function (no name prompt).

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When saved:

  • The workspace gets a permanent ID.
  • It appears in the Drafts list.
  • It will be offered as an option next time you join that world.

4. Opening, Creating, and Replacing Workspaces#

When joining a world with an existing draft:

  • You are prompted to:
    • Open existing workspace.
    • Create a new one.
    • Replace the existing workspace.

  • This prompt exists because:

    • There may be local changes you could overwrite.
    • There may be remote changes that require a fresh copy.

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5. Multiple Workspaces per World#

  • You can have multiple drafts of the same world:
    • Example: MyWorld and MyWorld 2 both reference the same server world.
  • Each draft has its own local folder.
  • Deleting a draft removes only that local workspace.

6. Detached Workspaces#

  • Detached Workspace: A workspace not linked to its original world.
  • Created when:
    • You save a workspace for a world you do not own.
    • You manually detach it from its original world.
  • Detached workspaces:
    • Cannot be published to the original world’s package.
    • Publishing creates a new world on the server.
    • Are treated as independent projects.

7. Duplication vs. Detachment#

  • Duplication: Simply creating another draft workspace for the same world.
    • Both drafts can publish to the same original world.
  • Detachment: Explicitly breaking the link to the original world.
    • Future publishes create a new world.
  • Both are separate actions:
    • Duplication keeps the link.
    • Detachment removes the link.

8. Publishing from a Workspace#

  • If linked: Publishing updates the existing world on the server.
  • If detached: Publishing creates a new world package.
  • UI:
    • Linked workspace → option to “Update World.”
    • Detached workspace → option to “Publish as New World.”

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9. Best Practices#

  • Save before exiting to avoid losing work in temporary workspaces.
  • Use multiple drafts to experiment without affecting your main version.
  • Detach only when you need to create a new, independent world from an existing one.
  • Keep your Drafts folder clean by deleting old or unused workspaces.