Help Index → Working with starships → Use case 31
An empty name does not make a ship slot unoccupied. The upgrade workflow checks Resource.Filename, while the ordinary Starships tree uses a name fallback that can look similar for occupied and empty records.
Before you start
- Load the intended save context and synchronize pending Starships text.
- Use the slot position as well as the displayed name when comparing tree rows with upgrade labels.
- Before any sync, Pretty Print or structured refresh, copy EACH pending Raw JSON pane’s complete text to a separate external file. Successful tab sync refreshes ALL Raw JSON panes and can erase pending text elsewhere.
- Before opening Upgrade Starships, record each intended zero-based ownership index in the tree. Named picker checkboxes show no visible index: count ALL ownership-ordered rows from one, including unoccupied rows; tree index 0 is picker row 1. Cancel if you cannot identify the row confidently.
Steps
- If several panes contain wanted pending work, preserve ALL before any refresh. If applying it, reapply and verify one non-inventory tab at a time; never simply sync each changed tab. Keep inventory text externally and reproduce supported changes with structured tools instead.
- Open Starships and locate the complete ownership row. Read its zero-based bracketed position; the display also uses a one-based Starship number. (control reference)
- Expand or highlight the record and inspect Resource.Filename rather than deciding from Name or a seed value. (control reference)
- Open Upgrade Starships to see the picker’s occupancy-aware labels. An empty or absent resource filename gives Slot X - (unoccupied); an occupied ship with a blank name gets Starship X (unnamed). (control reference)
- Click Cancel if you were only identifying the slot. If you deliberately run an upgrade including it, read the corresponding result label. (control reference)
Expected result
- A named record with an empty resource filename is still treated as unoccupied by the upgrade workflow. A ship with a real resource filename and no name remains an occupied upgrade candidate.
- The normal tree may show No name provided rather than the picker’s explicit occupancy label. Unoccupied selections are preserved and reported separately; unnamed supported ships can be upgraded.
What changes, and when to save
Reading labels and cancelling the picker do not change app data or game files. An actual upgrade changes app memory only; File > Save NMS Save File is a separate confirmed write. A refreshed pane is not proof that pending text survived; compare the intended values with your external copies before authorizing a live write.
Check the result
- Match one-based picker/result numbers to the correct zero-based array position before acting.
- Treat malformed resource structures as an error to investigate, not as reliable proof of an empty slot.
Important details and recovery
- Neither stale Name nor seed fields establish occupancy. Safe deletion requires a valid twelve-slot roster and valid resource structure; it is not a general repair tool for malformed ownership data.