DotNetDataCollectorEx

DotNetDataCollectorEx is an extension/replacement to Cheat Engine's DotNetDataCollector, designed to work with .NET Framework 4.5+ and .NET Core 3+ / .NET 5+. It provides some additional features and in some cases more information. It also supports .NET 8+ which Cheat Engines's DotNetDataCollector does not.

DotNetDataCollectorEx uses ClrMD to collect information whereas Cheat Engine's DotNetDataCollector uses the .NET Unmanaged API

Features

• Support for .NET Framework 4.5+ and .NET Core 3+ / .NET 5+.
• Provides, in some cases, more detailed memory analysis and additional functions compared to the legacy DotNetDataCollector.
• Works in both Replacement Mode and Extension Mode.
• Can be used dynamically via Lua to replace the legacy DotNetDataCollector.

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Installation

There are two installation methods for DotNetDataCollectorEx:

1. Replacement Mode (Not Recommended)

1. Locate your Cheat Engine installation folder.
2. Rename the existing DotNetDataCollector32.exe and DotNetDataCollector64.exe to LegacyDotNetDataCollector32.exe LegacyDotNetDataCollector64.exe respectively.

• DotNetDataCollectorEx will automatically run LegacyDotNetDataCollector.exe for older .NET versions or Versions for which it can't find the DAC.

4. Copy DotNetDataCollectorEx32.exe and DotNetDataCollectorEx64.exe into Cheat Engine's installation folder and rename them to DotNetDataCollector32.exe and DotNetDataCollector64.exe respectively.
5. (OPTIONAL) Copy DotNetDataCollectorEx.lua into the autorun folder.
6. Restart Cheat Engine.

Now, Cheat Engine will use DotNetDataCollectorEx, but will fall back to the legacy collector for older .NET versions.

2. Extension Mode (Recommended)

1. Keep the existing DotNetDataCollector.exe's in place.
2. Copy DotNetDataCollectorEx32.exe and DotNetDataCollectorEx64.exe into one of the folders defined in the lua script inside the processlocations table.
   • Default Locations are:
   • 1. Cheat Engine installation folder
     2. autorun folder
     3. autorun\dlls folder
   • These can be changed inside the lua Script.
3. Copy DotNetDataCollectorEx.lua into Cheat Engine\autorun\.
4. Restart Cheat Engine.

In this mode:

• DotNetDataCollectorEx runs alongside the legacy DotNetDataCollector.
• You can dynamically replace the legacy collector later using a Lua function. For more info refer to this section

Replace Legacy DataCollector Using Lua

• ReplaceLegacyDataCollector(restore)

• A method of the object returned by getDotNetDataCollectorEx().

• Replaces the legacy DotNetDataCollector with DotNetDataCollectorEx at runtime.

• Use this function to switch to the new collector for .NET 8+ applications.

• If you want to restore the legacy DotNetDataCollector you can call this function with restore being true

• Example Usage in Lua:

local collectorEx = getDotNetDataCollectorEx()  -- Get the new collector object
collectorEx.ReplaceLegacyDataCollector()        -- Replace the old collector with the new one for .NET 8+

if (true) -- Optional reinitialize the DotNetSymbolHandler so the Disassembler shows the Names of Methods
  createThread(function () -- Do it async so it doesn't block the main thread freezing Cheat Engine
    reinitializeDotNetSymbolhandler()
  end)
end

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Recommended Usage

For maximum flexibility, it is recommended to use DotNetDataCollectorEx in Extension Mode. This mode provides the following benefits:

• Legacy DotNetDataCollector:

  • Works for .NET Framework versions older than 4.5.
  • Can be used alongside DotNetDataCollectorEx in Extension Mode for .NET Framework 4.5+ applications.

• DotNetDataCollectorEx:

  • Provides more functions and detailed information compared to the legacy version.
  • Supports .NET Framework 4.5+ and is the only version that supports .NET 8+.

If you want to debug .NET 8+ applications, it is recommended to call ReplaceLegacyDataCollector to replace the legacy collector, as the legacy version does not support .NET 8+. This is important because other Cheat Engine functionality that relies on DotNetDataCollector will only work with .NET 8+ if you use the new version. These include but are not limited to:

• The .net Info Window
• Cheat Engine's Symbol Handler
• Cheat Engine's Dissect data/structures
• dotnetinterface.lua used for example for Jitting methods.

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Limitations and Compatibility

• Legacy DotNetDataCollector:

  • Works for .NET Framework versions older than 4.5.
  • Does not support .NET 8+.

• DotNetDataCollectorEx:

  • Supports .NET Framework 4.5+ and is the only version that supports .NET 8+.
  • Provides, in some cases, more detailed memory analysis and additional features compared to the legacy version.

Known Limitations:

• Certain operations may incur slightly higher performance overhead compared to the legacy collector.
• Parameter Names returned by getMethodParameters are not the actual name of the parameter but the name of the type. This is because ClrMD does not expose those.
• DotNetDataCollectorEx seems to miss some types(classes) that Cheat Engine's DotNetDataCollector finds. This is as far as I understand because ClrMD is only able to find constructed types. Though in my testing it found most types and all that where actually useful to me.

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Lua API

DotNetDataCollectorEx provides additional Lua functions that can be used inside Cheat Engine.
For a full list of available functions and their descriptions, refer to the Lua API Reference.

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Building from Source

To compile DotNetDataCollectorEx from source, you will need:

• .NET 8 SDK installed on your system
• Visual Studio 2022 (or any other preferred build environment)

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📌 Building with Visual Studio 2022

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/Bloodyboneye/DotNetDataCollectorEx
   cd DotNetDataCollectorEx

2. Open the solution (DotNetDataCollectorEx.sln) in Visual Studio 2022.

3. Select the desired build configuration:

   • Release | x64 for win-x64
   • Debug | x64 for win-x64-debug
   • Release | x86 for win-x86
   • Debug | x86 for win-x86-debug

4. Publish the project:

   • Open Solution Explorer, right-click the DotNetDataCollectorEx project, and select Publish.
   • Choose the desired publish profile (win-x64, win-x86, etc.).
   • Click Publish.

5. Find the compiled executable in the respective output directory (see the table below)

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📌 Building with Command Line (CLI)

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/Bloodyboneye/DotNetDataCollectorEx
   cd DotNetDataCollectorEx

2. Restore dependencies:

   dotnet restore

3. Build and publish using the desired profile:

   • Win-x64 (Release):

     dotnet publish -c Release -r win-x64 --self-contained false -o bin/publish/

   • Win-x64 (Debug):

     dotnet publish -c Debug -r win-x64 --self-contained false -o bin/publish/debug/

   • Win-x64 (Self-Contained):

     dotnet publish -c Release -r win-x64 --self-contained true -o bin/publish/self-contained/

   • Win-x86 (Release):

     dotnet publish -c Release -r win-x86 --self-contained false -o bin/publish/

   • Win-x86 (Debug):

     dotnet publish -c Debug -r win-x86 --self-contained false -o bin/publish/debug/

   • Win-x86 (Self-Contained):

     dotnet publish -c Release -r win-x86 --self-contained true -o bin/publish/self-contained/

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📌 Output Directories

Publish Profile	Target Platform	Build Type	Output Directory
win-x64	x64	Release	bin/publish/
win-x64-debug	x64	Debug	bin/publish/debug/
win-x64-selfcontained	x64	Release	bin/publish/self-contained/
win-x86	x86	Release	bin/publish/
win-x86-debug	x86	Debug	bin/publish/debug/
win-x86-selfcontained	x86	Release	bin/publish/self-contained/

After publishing, the compiled executables will be named:

• DotNetDataCollectorEx64.exe for x64 builds
• DotNetDataCollectorEx32.exe for x86 builds

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License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.