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Overview

PluginLoadReason is a flags enumeration that indicates why a plugin was loaded. This can be accessed through the IDalamudPluginInterface.Reason property.

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Enum Definition

[Flags]
public enum PluginLoadReason
{
    Unknown = 1 << 0,
    Installer = 1 << 1,
    Update = 1 << 2,
    Reload = 1 << 3,
    Boot = 1 << 4,
}

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Values

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Unknown
int
The reason for loading this plugin is unknown or could not be determined.
Unknown = 1 << 0  // 1
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Installer
int
This plugin was loaded because it was installed through the plugin installer.
Installer = 1 << 1  // 2
This occurs when a user manually installs a plugin from the plugin installer window.
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Update
int
This plugin was loaded because it was just updated.
Update = 1 << 2  // 4
This occurs when a plugin is reloaded after being updated to a new version.
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Reload
int
This plugin was loaded because it was told to reload.
Reload = 1 << 3  // 8
This occurs when a plugin is manually reloaded, typically during development or troubleshooting.
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Boot
int
This plugin was loaded because the game was started or Dalamud was reinjected.
Boot = 1 << 4  // 16
This is the most common load reason, occurring when plugins are loaded at game startup.

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Usage

Since PluginLoadReason is decorated with the [Flags] attribute, multiple reasons can be combined using bitwise operations.

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Accessing the Load Reason

using Dalamud.Plugin;

public class MyPlugin : IDalamudPlugin
{
    public MyPlugin(IDalamudPluginInterface pluginInterface)
    {
        var reason = pluginInterface.Reason;
        
        if (reason == PluginLoadReason.Boot)
        {
            // Plugin loaded at game startup
        }
        else if (reason == PluginLoadReason.Installer)
        {
            // Plugin was just installed
        }
        else if (reason == PluginLoadReason.Update)
        {
            // Plugin was just updated
        }
    }

    public void Dispose() { }
}

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Checking Multiple Flags

var reason = pluginInterface.Reason;

// Check if loaded for any update-related reason
if (reason.HasFlag(PluginLoadReason.Update))
{
    // Handle update scenario
}

// Check for specific reason
if (reason == PluginLoadReason.Boot)
{
    // Handle boot scenario
}

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Common Scenarios

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First-Time Installation

When a user installs your plugin for the first time: 
if (pluginInterface.Reason == PluginLoadReason.Installer)
{
    // Show welcome message or tutorial
    // Initialize first-time setup
}

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After Update

When your plugin is loaded after being updated: 
if (pluginInterface.Reason == PluginLoadReason.Update)
{
    // Show changelog
    // Migrate configuration if needed
    // Show "what's new" message
}

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Normal Game Launch

When the game starts normally: 
if (pluginInterface.Reason == PluginLoadReason.Boot)
{
    // Normal initialization
    // Load saved state
}

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Development/Testing

When reloading during development: 
if (pluginInterface.Reason == PluginLoadReason.Reload)
{
    // Reset temporary state
    // Reload configuration
}

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Best Practices

  • Use the load reason to provide appropriate user feedback or initialization
  • Consider showing changelogs or welcome messages based on the load reason
  • Avoid performing expensive operations on every load reason - optimize for Boot which is most common
  • Handle the Unknown case gracefully as a fallback

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