RefactorGuard

RefactorGuard is a Unity Editor tool for the most expensive refactor question in production: what breaks if this asset changes?

Scan your project once, build a reverse-reference map, and query any asset instantly. RefactorGuard shows every asset that references the selected file, every asset it depends on, and a clear SAFE or CAUTION status before you rename, move, or delete anything.

For broader review passes, RefactorGuard can analyze the current Project selection or a whole folder, assign High, Medium, and Safe risk tiers, and surface the highest-impact assets first. Filters, presets, and dashboard cards help you narrow large result sets fast and move directly from summary to investigation.

WHAT IT DOES

Use RefactorGuard on a single prefab, material, texture, scene, script, or ScriptableObject to see exactly how risky the change is. Incoming references show what will break if the asset changes. Outgoing references show what the selected asset depends on. Open and Ping buttons let you move directly into the Project window and inspect the impacted files.

The same scan data powers batch analysis for multi-selection and folder review. Group results by High, Medium, and Safe risk tiers, then use free-text, type, folder, and preset filters to focus on the assets that matter now. Dashboard cards highlight the top-risk asset, most dangerous folder, and highest-risk asset type so teams can go straight from summary to action.

EXPORT AND TEAM WORKFLOW

Export single-asset and batch reports as JSON or CSV. Use them in pull request reviews, release cleanup checklists, refactor planning, or handoff notes. RefactorGuard writes only analysis files to Assets/RefactorGuardData and does not modify project assets for you.

KEY FEATURES

- Full project dependency scan using Unity's AssetDatabase
- Reverse-reference map for instant asset impact queries after the scan completes
- SAFE / CAUTION status for single-asset analysis
- Incoming and outgoing dependency lists with Open and Ping actions
- Batch analysis for current Project selection and whole folders
- High, Medium, and Safe risk tiers for large reviews
- Structured filters by free text, asset type, folder, and tier toggles
- One-click presets for common audit workflows like High Risk Only and Safe Cleanup
- Dashboard cards for top-risk asset, most dangerous folder, and highest-risk asset type
- Single-asset JSON and CSV export
- Batch JSON and CSV export
- Editor-only workflow with no runtime dependencies

WHO IS IT FOR

Solo developers cleaning project debt before release. Technical artists reorganizing textures, materials, and shader graphs. Team leads reviewing high-risk content changes before merge. Any Unity developer who has ever broken references during an asset rename, move, or cleanup pass.

WHAT IT DOES NOT DO

RefactorGuard reports asset dependency risk. It does not automatically rename, move, or delete files for you. It is a read-only analysis layer built to make refactors safer, not automatic.

COMPATIBILITY

Requires Unity 2021 LTS or later. Editor-only tool. No runtime dependencies. No external services required.