[ducloc080202]

What

Rebases #4296 (closed unmerged) onto current main and resolves the docs/dev/TechnicalDebt.md conflict by keeping main's split debt files.

SceKernelLoadStartModule now remembers the first module-arguments block whose pointer does not lie on the calling thread's stack, and passes it to zero-argument module loads. Without this, modules that read their plugin arguments (e.g. Unity's PSN.prx version check) see garbage and can crash during startup: Cat Quest III (PPSA15065) crashed 4/4 boots in PSN.prx before this change.

Tested

• Windows (MinGW 15.2.0, Release): full build passes; all 16 *module* ctests pass, including guest_module_args (the new test from this change builds and runs on Linux/macOS CI; the NOT_WIN32 guard is unchanged).
• Cat Quest III (PPSA15065), Windows: before — deterministic early 0xc0000005 in PSN.prx.guest.prx after the "old version" error; after — boots past engine init and loads all 454 asset bundles to the loading screen. Linux/macOS rely on CI.

Checklist

• Based on current main; no other open PR implements the same functions (fix(libkernel): pass the first module arguments block to zero-argument sceKernelLoadStartModule calls #4296 is closed)
• One topic per PR; follow-ups go in a new PR
• No comments in code except technical debt
• Unimplemented paths throw (NotImplemented_nid_no_patch); silent stubs are listed under Silent stubs in their library's technical debt file
• No notes, investigation .md files or images added to the repository (attach them to this PR)
• New third-party code is a submodule built from source
• Generic behaviour, not specific to one title
• Depends on: none
• Unblocks: Cat Quest III (PPSA15065) on Windows: after loading ~450 bundles the title stays on the loading screen; it polls scePadRead and receives buttons but never advances #4909 (needed to reach the loading screen; the title still stalls there)
• AI-assisted: yes

[xXPBSXx]

Windows build check of this PR.

Environment: Windows 10 (19045), MinGW-w64 GCC 15.2.0 (WinLibs r7), Release, BUILD_TESTING=ON, -j2, libusb-cmake from a local checkout. Built from main c2565f014 with this PR and ten other open PRs (#4972, #4967, #4966, #4945, #4938, #4936, #4933, #4898, #4896, #4888) merged together; the merges had no conflict.

Result: the merged tree builds, but no test of this PR runs on Windows: its tests (guest_load_start_module_args) are registered only for non-Windows builds in libkernel/CMakeLists.txt (if(NOT WIN32)).

Not checked: any behaviour of the change on Windows; no title run.

AI-assisted (Claude Code).

[github-actions]

Some comparisons could not be completed because a pull request conflicts with the base branch. Review these shared files manually before concluding that there is no overlap.

Pull request	Shared files not compared
PR 4563	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 5021	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 6044	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6149	core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 6226	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6469	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6519	core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 6586	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6830	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6879	core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 6893	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6936	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 6977	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 7090	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7156	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7192	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7201	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt core/libs/prx/libkernel/Module/src/Module.cpp
PR 7299	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7450	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7532	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 7853	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8041	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8463	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8477	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8487	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8520	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8626	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8658	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8700	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8717	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8726	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt
PR 8850	core/libs/prx/libkernel/CMakeLists.txt

[oneandonlydean]

Thanks for this. Since the questions from 14 Oct are still open and it has gone quiet, I'm closing it for now to keep the queue current. Please reopen it once you've had a chance to address them, and we'll pick it up.