[MCL-13539] Creates empty folder

The working directory of the Minecraft Launcher can be changed with the --workDir argument.

This mostly operates as intended; however, if there is no %appdata%\.minecraft folder, then one will be created. No files are put into this folder, it just creates one, and doesn't use it.

Also, the true affected version is 2.1.13508 according to the About screen, but Jira doesn't acknowledge that version exists yet, probably because it was just released yesterday.

Attachments

Comments 2

migrated 2022-01-28T10:21:31Z

Hi there!
Could you answer few questions regarding this issue, it will help with the investigation:
Does this issue still occurs to you on newest version of Launcher?
Does the issue effect is the same for the Minecraft Launcher downloaded from minecraft.net and from Microsoft Store?
Could you provide us with more in-depth repro steps?

Also, could you attach screenshots and video of this issue? That would help the investigation.

This ticket will automatically reopen when you reply.

migrated 2022-01-30T22:59:54Z

The issue still occurs on the newest version of the launcher. Also, when the launcher updates, it puts an updatelog.txt file into the .minecraft folder, similarly regardless of the --workDir argument.

I do not think the issue can easily be reproduced with the Windows Store version because passing command line arguments to store apps is not straightforward. There's no way for an average desktop user to do so, even doing it by invoking the app with C# code is a bit quirky. This also means the Windows Store version is limited in that you cannot specify an arbitrary folder for the working directory.

How to reproduce:

Rename %appdata%/.minecraft to %appdata%/backup.minecraft
Note there is now no %appdata%/.minecraft folder
Make a shortcut to the MinecraftLauncher.exe with an added argument such as --workDir "C:\mc_alt"
Run the shortcut
Note that the %appdata%/.minecraft folder now exists again though it is empty (unless the launcher updated in which case it will have the updatelog.txt file as mentioned previously)

[media]

In my own case I used the alternative directory "E:\mined craft\minealt" but unless the issue is only reproducible by changing what hard drive is in use, it shouldn't matter, and if the drive letter changes the behavior of the bug, then that's even more buggy.