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Unity Editor Asset Tools

Overview Animation Diagnostics Zion Scene Backup Zion Save Inspector Zion Dependency Graph Zion Asset Auditor
Overview Installation Quick Start Concepts Window Reference Editing Tree Search Save Diff Schema & Reports Built-in Providers PlayerPrefs Custom Source Custom Format Tutorial API Surface Save Safety Troubleshooting

Adding a Custom Source

Implement ISaveSource to add any storage backend - ScriptableObject snapshots, cloud saves, in-memory test fixtures. Drop the class in an editor assembly with a public parameterless constructor and it auto-discovers on the next domain reload.

Interface shape

public sealed class PlayerPrefsSource : ISaveSource
{
    public string DisplayName => "PlayerPrefs";
    public int Order => 5;

    public IEnumerable<SaveEntry> List() { /* enumerate your keys */ }
    public byte[] Load(SaveEntry e)      { /* return raw bytes for the key */ }
    public void Save(SaveEntry e, byte[] payload) { /* write back */ }
    public void Delete(SaveEntry e)      { /* delete key */ }
    public void Reveal(SaveEntry e)      { /* no-op or focus settings */ }
}

Worked example - PlayerPrefs via a manifest key

A stripped-down teaching version of the shipping source. The same pattern applies to any custom backend.

using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using UnityEditor;
using UnityEngine;
using Zion.SaveInspector.Editor;

public sealed class PlayerPrefsSource : ISaveSource
{
    public string DisplayName => "PlayerPrefs";
    public int Order => 5;

    private const string ManifestKey = "ZionSaveInspector.Manifest";

    public IEnumerable<SaveEntry> List()
    {
        var manifest = PlayerPrefs.GetString(ManifestKey, string.Empty);
        if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(manifest)) yield break;

        foreach (var key in manifest.Split(';'))
        {
            if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(key) || !PlayerPrefs.HasKey(key)) continue;

            var value = PlayerPrefs.GetString(key, string.Empty);
            yield return new SaveEntry
            {
                DisplayName    = key,
                Identifier     = key,
                SizeBytes      = Encoding.UTF8.GetByteCount(value),
                LastModified   = System.DateTime.Now, // PlayerPrefs has no timestamps
                SourceTypeName = nameof(PlayerPrefsSource),
                FormatHint     = value.TrimStart().StartsWith("{") ? "json" : null
            };
        }
    }

    public byte[] Load(SaveEntry entry)
        => Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(PlayerPrefs.GetString(entry.Identifier, string.Empty));

    public void Save(SaveEntry entry, byte[] payload)
    {
        PlayerPrefs.SetString(entry.Identifier, Encoding.UTF8.GetString(payload));
        PlayerPrefs.Save();
    }

    public void Delete(SaveEntry entry)
    {
        PlayerPrefs.DeleteKey(entry.Identifier);

        // Also strip the key from the manifest so it doesn't reappear.
        var manifest = PlayerPrefs.GetString(ManifestKey, string.Empty);
        var keys = manifest.Split(';').Where(k => k != entry.Identifier);
        PlayerPrefs.SetString(ManifestKey, string.Join(";", keys));
        PlayerPrefs.Save();
    }

    public void Reveal(SaveEntry entry)
    {
        Debug.Log($"PlayerPrefs key: {entry.Identifier}");
    }
}

After Unity recompiles, the source appears in the Source dropdown. Any registered key shows up as a save entry, and if the value is JSON the existing JsonSaveFormat parses it just like a file.

Opting in to backup diffs - ISaveBackupProvider 1.1

Additionally implement ISaveBackupProvider and the inspector's Compare > With Backup action lights up for your source, exactly like the built-ins:

public sealed class MyCloudSource : ISaveSource, ISaveBackupProvider
{
    // ... ISaveSource members ...

    public bool TryLoadBackup(SaveEntry entry, out byte[] payload,
                              out string backupLabel)
    {
        payload = LoadPreviousRevision(entry.Identifier);
        backupLabel = "previous cloud revision";
        return payload != null;
    }
}
  • Return false when no backup exists - the menu item shows as disabled.
  • backupLabel appears in the diff window title so the user knows what they're comparing against.
  • The interface is opt-in; sources without it simply don't offer the menu item. Nothing else changes.
Continue to Custom Format.