Probably Stolen Modules: Machine Upgrades Guide

Identify a machine upgrade rather than a mod

A module is an inventory item that belongs in compatible equipment. A mod is external community content loaded through the game's modding system, so the similar names should not be merged into one installation guide. Trading a module, fitting it into a machine and subscribing to Workshop content are different actions. Start by reading the item's category and the machine's interface rather than searching the computer's game folder for an in-game upgrade.

The supplied recording also treats modules as tradeable physical goods before they become part of a more developed water business. That explains why seeing one for sale does not prove it has already changed a machine's output. Ownership, placement and operation are separate states that should each be checked. An attractive tooltip in shop storage is useful information, but it is not evidence that every nearby machine has automatically received the item's effect.

Give each statistic its own question

The community reference links Performance with processing speed, Efficiency with power use and Quality with the result a machine makes. Those are different constraints, so the first useful question is whether the process is too slow, too costly to operate or unable to reach the desired output condition. A machine can improve in one respect while another limitation remains. That is why judging an upgrade only by a single positive number can miss the actual trade-off.

Some specialised modules affect more than one statistic in different directions. The name alone does not show whether the combined result suits your process, and a higher purchase price is not a universal ranking of usefulness. Read the totals after fitting the item rather than comparing one isolated line with a different machine's screenshot. If the process still fails, confirm the input and operating conditions before deciding that the module has no effect.

Fit the bay rather than assuming universal space

The module bay is a spatial inventory with compatibility and usable-space limits. The supplied video spends time expanding and rearranging the setup, showing why a useful module may still require a deliberate placement plan. The community reference distinguishes universal modules from machine-specific types and describes expansion of standard bays. Check the bay you actually own instead of assuming that a module which fits one device must fit every other device.

An expansion kit changes available space rather than directly proving an increase in speed or purity. The benefit comes from what can be installed in that new space and whether it addresses the process. Do not copy a fully packed late-game grid without checking which spaces are open in your own equipment. A different layout is not necessarily wrong, but its totals and compatibility need to be read rather than inferred from the outline of another player's machine.

Use water equipment as a concrete example

The supplied water-business recording shows modules being added as the purification setup develops. The relevant community machine reference distinguishes a purifier's eventual purity limit from the rate at which cleaning progresses. That makes Quality and Performance different answers to a water question, even though both can be useful. If the batch has stopped below the desired grade, adding speed alone should not be assumed to remove the documented limit.

A Water Purifier also differs from a handheld item with a similar name. The latter's durability message is not evidence that the overnight machine needs the same kind of repair or upgrade. Check the device, the batch and the installed statistics together before treating a plateau as proof of a broken module. The correct diagnosis follows the machine's actual mechanism rather than the broad idea that all water equipment shares one improvement path.

Check recovery and power separately

The Evaporator provides another useful example because removing liquid and recovering distillate are distinct results. Its community reference links recovery to a Quality effect, which explains why a faster input change does not automatically mean a fuller receiving container. Evaluate the particular output you intended to improve. That prevents a Performance-heavy arrangement from being mistaken for a complete solution to a recovery problem.

Efficiency should likewise be compared with the machine's stated operating requirement rather than treated as proof that power can always be ignored. The general module reference includes special scaling and limits on some machines, so a shared percentage does not necessarily mean identical behaviour across every device. This page does not invent universal free-power or limitless-throughput combinations. Effects outside the documented machine and version remain Pending confirmation (待确认) until the actual configuration is verified.

Upgrade in a way you can evaluate

Record the starting batch and the machine's totals, make a change with a clear purpose and inspect the next result. The supplied recording's rising water quality is meaningful because the player repeatedly checks the processed material instead of relying only on the price of the installed parts. Keep track of which device produced the result when several similar machines are operating. Otherwise, an improvement can be attributed to the wrong item simply because everything was rearranged at the same time.

Selling or exchanging spare modules is a different business decision from installing them. The Underground Exchange has specific recipes, while an ordinary buyer offers an actual counter transaction; neither proves that every unused module is worthless. Compare the effect you can use with the trade available in the current run. Exact best-in-slot layouts, guaranteed module rolls and a universal profit ranking remain Pending confirmation (待确认), rather than being copied from one player's successful setup.

Check whether the bay is a standard one

The general module reference describes a standard bay whose usable space expands in stages, while the Evaporator reference identifies its own smaller grid. That exception is a reason to inspect the actual equipment rather than treating every machine as the same rectangular puzzle. A layout that is valid for a standard purifier can therefore be the wrong physical plan for a different device even when some module types are shared. Read both compatibility and open cells before buying parts for a copied arrangement.

The same caution applies to comparing totals after an expansion. More available cells create room to fit parts, but they do not specify which parts you installed or whether their trade-offs suit the process. Check the final Performance, Efficiency and Quality values and then the observed batch result. This lets you identify whether the next useful purchase is space, a different module or simply the missing input that an increasingly impressive machine still needs to do any productive work.