Installation problem - I'm about to go nuts.
retiretomaui
Posts: 383
I hope someone can walk me through a particularly nasty installation problem. I've been trying to successfully install Daz on my new PC for two months, now. Yes, two months. Sometimes, Daz works, other times it literally crashes on startup. Then, the dreaded no Postgre message crop up intermittently. Sometimes, yes, sometimes no. Sometimes, Postgre is mysteriously deleted as per DIM and I need to re-download it and reinstall it. As a result, while I can sometimes (when it isn't crashing) get to content via Content Manager, CMS is virtually unusable. On and on and on... Seriously, I'm considering making this into a drinking game, one shot everytime Daz supplies me with yet another error message! If I didn't have to teach five classes tomorrow, trust me, I'd already be smashed. 
I'm trying to install and run Daz from the G drive, a 4TB drive.
- G:DIM Downloads is where I have DIM download ocntent to.
- G:My Daz 3D Library is where I have DIM install content to.
- G:Daz 3D Program is where Daz Studio itself is installed to.
So, what am I doing wrong? Why won't DAZ read the Postgre? Why does Studio keep crashing nearly nonstop? I have told Studio to look to these paths listed above throug the Preferences menu and then CMS. Is there a place that Postgre should be installed to instead?
As an aside, I really wish that Daz would make installation to a non-default location far more easy. A casual user should be able to just list a drive path and DIM and Studio should be able to make it all work without the user having to jump through hoops.
Many thanks,
Bob
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Comments
Well the DAZ Studio crashes might be out of memory at which time Windows 10 will purposely halt processes with very large memory usage. Well DAZ Studio crashed most often on me when I had only 4GB RAM and no discrete graphic cards so I did only CPU renders. I then upgraded to 8GB RAM but still CPU renders and crashes were much less frequent, finally I upgraded to 16GB RAM & CPU renders and crashes are almost non-existant but sometimes DAZ does get extremely slow even with 16GB RAM.
If out of memory isn't the problem maybe it's install permissions and to fix those you deinstall, clean up folders & files after uninstall, and then reinstall at the correct security level for DAZ Studio, that being a 'normal user' (NOT an Administrator).
You want to make sure that everything installed for DAZ Studio was installed as 'normal user' and without using any functions like 'Run as Administrator'
My 'normal user' account on Window is Jack for example so I just install everything regarding DAZ as Jack and without elevating permissions via 'Run as Administrator.
Inspite of you installing the DAZ Studio program on G much of the support files needed to run DAZ Studio will still be installed on C:
The entire Postgress dB will wind up still bein installed in the private Roaming folder of the user account that installed it:
example
C:\Users\Jack\AppData\Roaming\DAZ 3D\cms
When you install things via DIM the database that says what is installed via DIM and what is downloaded via DIM will reside in a location similar to this:
C:\Users\Public\Documents\DAZ 3D\InstallManager
Instead of the expected Jack (aka your user name)
Also some plugins support files will reside in the default Documents location where most users install their DAZ content
D:\Documents\DAZ 3D\Studio - examples geoLocatorAM / LAMH2IrayCatalyzerAM / lookatmyhairAM
Also final thing is that Windows 10 will not give a non-system drive the same security permissions & inheritance of those permissions as the system drive I'm pretty sure so installing programs that aren't so-called 'portable' programs meant to be installed on portable storage like USB drives is probably going to cause trouble with some programs.
So it's probably going to cause less unexpected things for a program like DAZ Studio and just install in the default location on the system drive, almost always C: with the default permissions. Then configure DIM & DAZ Content (in the Preferences Menu in DAZ Studio) on your G drive with all your space.
So I'd completely clean install DAZ Studio (but NOT DIM a reinstall of DIM it's not needed but if you do - save the DIM configs in the floder shown above so you can copy it back & not have to redownload all downloaded DAZ products or edit all DIM product database files (which is possible to avoid redownloading all DAZ products in a pinch)) by
1) uninstalling all DAZ content via DIM uninstall
2) Uninstall DAZ Studio & DAZ Studio Public Beta
3) & then rebooting.
4) Now after reboot, deleting the now mostly empty folders listed below
C:\Users\Jack\AppData\Roaming\DAZ 3D (the equivalent location for your user - you said you used a G:\ labeled drive)
C:\Program Files\DAZ 3D\PostgreSQL CMS (the equivalent location for your user - you said you used a G:\ labeled drive)
C:\Program Files\DAZ 3D\DAZStudio4 (the equivalent location for your user - you said you used a G:\ labeled drive)
C:\Program Files\DAZ 3D\DAZStudio4 Public Build (the equivalent location for your user - you said you used a G:\ labeled drive)
5) And reboot again.
6) Now reinstall DAZ Studio as a normal user with no elevated privileges to your default system drive, probably C: & reboot
7) Now configure your DIM download content & such correctly (this shouldn't need changing though as far as downloaded file location of the installers for content) & also your DAZ Studio Preferences again to the G drive where your DAZ Content Library will be.
8) Reinstall all DAZ content again via DIM
9) Run DAZ Studio & it should work as expected now.
+++++
To see if DAZ is crashing because it runs out of memory before clean installing everything do
a) open a scene that you know causes a DAZ crash in DAZ Studio
b) <ctl>-<alt>-<del>
c) Task Manager
d) Clink on column Memory to sort by highest memory usage at the top
e) Render the scene that cause the crash
f) watch in the Task Manager the memory usage of DAZ Studio - when memory gets to be less the 4GB RAM the closer to 0GB RAM it gets the more likely Windows 10 will close DAZ Studio by crashing it.
g) A work around to that problem is in the Render Settings in DAZ Studio under the Optimization setting set the Instancing Optimization to Memory instead of the default Speed.
Thank you! I will try that tonight when I get home from work.
Thank you, so much! It seems to be working! I'm going to need to save your excellent description in case I ever have to migrate Daz again. Postgre seems to be deleted and having to be reset, that hasn't changed, but one that's done Daz seems to work. And, despite me trying to disable it, the 32 bit Postgre keeps being downloaded and isntalled by DIM, which may be part of the problem. It uninstalls or disrupts the 64 bit version requiring the deletion, redownload, and installation of the 64 bit Postgre. Again, once that's done it seems to work; annoying, but functional and do-able.
Thank you again, you're a lifesaver!
Bob
Perfect steps for "full" unistall. Thank you!
Why is DIM getting the 32-bit downloads? You are hiding them in DIM's Settings - Downloads tab? They shouldn't get downloaded nor installed if so.
Believe it or not, yes, and the DIM keeps downloading it. Before I start any DIM downloads, I usually remember to do a search for it and uncheck that download and uninstall. Sometimes I forget, though. DIM has been acting quite strange, lately. Daz Studio does not show up as an installed product even though it was downloaded and installed through DIM, and there's the shortcut right there on the desktop where DIM placed it! Yup, very quirky lately.
You need to 'uncheck' 'automatc install after download' and you need not install any 32 bit software. Just after download - right click on the 32 bit SW & 'hide' in DIM. Or to save space go into the DIM configuration for what SW you want to download and install & uncheck that you want any of the 32 bit SW and it won't get downloaded to begin with so it can't be automatically installed.
I'm glad the instructions helped, it's always reall iffy when I type instructions on the fly to people who may or may not have experience in that sort of activities whether 1) My instructions don't have big typos, something left out, or just plain technically incorrect instruction on a step or 2) Whether even if the instructions are correct if it doesn't come off as a foreign language to the technically uninterested.
Well... well... well! Dear "nonesuch00"... ... ...you are a Real Knowable Master of DAZ' Hidden Wisdom!
Thank You for sharing your deep knowledge!
I had Studio installed on a second hard drive that went south (Drive d:). After a full uninstall and editing the registry to remove all references to the D: drive and Studio, I reinstalled via DIM. Studio is still looking for content on D:, though all content directories in DIM show C:. Very annoying. Why do we still have to put up with Windows?
There's a last step you may have missed.