Why can I require a lua module from a plugin whose cond is false (thus not loaded)?

[xulongwu4]

When playing with the plugin settings, I noticed that when a plugin's cond field is set to false, that plugin is not loaded, meaning that its path is not included in rtp. However, it appears that I still can require a lua module that is within the lua directory of that plugin.

My understanding of how require works in neovim is that it will look for lua modules in the lua folder of all paths in the rtp. If a plugin's path is not in rtp because its cond is set to false, how is it possible to still require lua modules from that plugin? Can someone help me understand it? Thanks a lot!

[folke]

This is a side-affect of auto-loading of lua modules. You'll be able to require those modules, but the plugin will never load, nor will it ever be on the rtp. I can return an error instead, but this is low on my prio list

[xulongwu4]

Thanks for the explanation. I still have one confusion. How does neovim know where to find a required module if that module is not currently in the rtp? My understanding is that neovim only looks for lua modules under the lua directory in its rtp?

[folke]

Neovim doesn't know. Lazy has its custom package loader that is faster and allows for Auto loading