Table Assigning to another Table Error

[JuniorMikezz]

I’ve come across a weird experience regarding tables, for some reason the “Default template” table is being altered even though here im assigning another table to = the default template (so to have the default template replace the other table)

Now this is the default template table:

now for some reason when i’m making the PartyTable[QueueBox] = to the template table (so the template table should replace whatever content is in PartyTable[QueueBox], however for some reason, if we look at the prints below:

How is it possible for the DefaultTable[“Template”] to have been altered?

There’s 3 matches for DefaultTable

[dthecoolest]

@JuniorMikezz

Default template” table is being altered

This is how tables work as they are passed by reference.

You will need to clone the table in order to have a fresh copy that won’t alter the original table.

Create on Roblox

[JuniorMikezz]

Thanks for replying, but how is defaulttable[“Template”] being altered when im just assigning it to replace another table?
e.g.: PartyTable[QueueBox] = DefaultTable[“Template”]

[dthecoolest]

Changing PartyTable[QueueBox] will change DefaultTable[“Template”]

This should be a good explanation for the phenonemon:

Pass by reference?

Think of a reference like a notecard with a street address for a house on it. Now, instead of passing the whole house around, you just pass around the notecard with the address on it. When you want to access the house, you have the address at hand. You have a reference to the house. In Lua, passing by reference vs. passing by value is implicit. Functions, tables, and userdata are passed by reference, while strings, numbers, and booleans are passed by value (e.g. they’re copied). Here’s a code …

[elonrocket]

As @dthecoolest said, tables pass by reference not value so you are editing the exact same table

Pass by reference?

Think of a reference like a notecard with a street address for a house on it. Now, instead of passing the whole house around, you just pass around the notecard with the address on it. When you want to access the house, you have the address at hand. You have a reference to the house. In Lua, passing by reference vs. passing by value is implicit. Functions, tables, and userdata are passed by reference, while strings, numbers, and booleans are passed by value (e.g. they’re copied). Here’s a code …

List of what’s passed by reference and what’s passed by value

@sleitnick

I don’t know. But typically in most popular dynamic languages, non-primitives are passed by reference, and primitives are passed by value.

The primitives in Lua are:

• number
• string
• boolean
• nil

The non-primitives:

• function
• userdata
• thread
• table

[JuniorMikezz]

thank you, i called the shallowCopy function passing the DefaultTable through it, however, it seems to still somehow become altered? (if you look at the prints and the arrows)

--ShallowCopy function image

this is the default table:

you see how Leader = “”

It seems to work the first time, but then the second time it seems altered:

[JuniorMikezz]

Please if anyone could help regarding the message twice above (^^)