Questions about moving 3D content drive to new PC (help)
SnowSultan
Posts: 3,773
I'll be switching over to a new PC in the near future, and will also be moving over my 3D content drive (not the drive where Studio is installed). Just have a couple of questions before I do so.
* Can someone tell me the exact files that need to be moved over so that Connect remembers what content is installed? I don't mind reinstalling content, but I want to avoid Connect not recognizing content that *is* installed.
* I did a lot of the drag-and-drop virtual folder organization to sort content. I would assume all of that would be retained, but is there anything I need to know to ensure that they still properly link to the actual content (like making sure the drive is labeled the same as before, etc)?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
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Sorry to bump, just hope someone might be able to answer this in the next day or so as I'm probably going to be making the switch early next week.
One other somewhat unreleated question: my motherboard requires an 8-pin and a 4-pin secondary power supply (not counting the standard 24-pin one). My PSU's CPU power cords each have one 8-pin and two 4-pin connectors, so I have to leave one of the 4-pins hanging loose. Do you think this is a problem or is it expected? My only concern is that it's a power supplying cord. Thanks again for any advice.
I will try to help ass I've moved my DAZ install once however I think I wound up re-downloading my DAZ products because of a goof I did with the DIM....I will try to help you avoid that.
a) * Can someone tell me the exact files that need to be moved over so that Connect remembers what content is installed? I don't mind reinstalling content, but I want to avoid Connect not recognizing content that *is* installed.
# Choose paths for your install and content locations to your liking and appropriate for your new PC.
i) I installed content via the DIM 1.1.0.41 and despite that, some products, not many, were seen by the internal DAZ Studio Content Manager as not being installed and I saw no rhyme or reason as to which products it did that too.
ii) To remedy that, because the install icons were agravating me, I installed some content a second time via the DAZ Studio Content Manager.
iii) I moved the location of the DAZ Studio Content Manager installed content to be a sub folder of the regular DAZ Studio Content Library, but that's me, it probably would have been better to move it to a folder at the same level subdirectory as the Content Library rather than as a subfolder of the Content Library.
iv) In the DIM config: I moved all my content install files to an external disk in DIM: <external disk:path>\Documents\Daz 3D\InstallManager\Downloads
v) In the DIM config: I moved my DAZ Content Library to a new path by create my own DAZ Content Install Path: <system disk::\Documents\Design\DAZ 3D\Studio\Library>
vi) The actual config of the DIM is kept here: C:\Users\Public\Documents\DAZ 3D\InstallManager and I found via my own trial & error you cannot change the location of those files without getting 'cute' and using things like NT junctions and such. So change your DIM config how you like it and save those files for off disk and by the way, beefore overwriting your newly installed DIM manifest files on you new PC with the once from your old PC make sure you upgrade the DIM & all DAZ programs to the versions you'll be using on the new PC for there will be no file incompatibilities. Then if you uninstall all your products before you decommision your old PC and copy that DIM information over the the new PC with the external DIM content installer cache thing should install very quickly with no re-downloads.
b) * I did a lot of the drag-and-drop virtual folder organization to sort content. I would assume all of that would be retained, but is there anything I need to know to ensure that they still properly link to the actual content (like making sure the drive is labeled the same as before, etc)?
i) I'm not an expert but as far as I know you just need to update the location of you Poser Format Content directories and DAZ Studio Format directories to have all the locations in it that you've arranged folders too.
e.g. I have very simple lay out because I merged my folders mostly but look at the attached picture.
c) My motherboard requires an 8-pin and a 4-pin secondary power supply (not counting the standard 24-pin one). My PSU's CPU power cords each have one 8-pin and two 4-pin connectors, so I have to leave one of the 4-pins hanging loose. Do you think this is a problem or is it expected? My only concern is that it's a power supplying cord. Thanks again for any advice.
Again I'm not an expert but most power supplies to reduce the number of types of power supplies that manufacture how power cords for different incompatible motherboards available and it's been a while true, but I can't remember last time I build a PC that didn't have several loose power cords coming from the power supply, including extra cord or two for the MB.
I've changed the path in the DIM config (I added a path option for Installation, made it active), and in the DazStudio (I checked where it's looking at it LOOKS right).
Except the DIM 'installed' packages still shows the original path.
How do I fix that?
Well you can uninstall and reinstall all those with the incorrect install paths which will go rather fast since nothing is really being uninstalled.
And I think that's about your only option that I know will work.
If you try to edit the config with those wrongs paths in it, the edited file "might" have a checksum on it by DIM and then DIM will complain about that.
But maybe not so if you want to try then the variable you search for is called 'UserInstallPath' and you need to edit each incorrect file in the directory:
C:\Users\Public\Documents\DAZ 3D\InstallManager\ManifestFiles
so if you have one of those search and replace utilities (I don't so I can't recommend) just search for the path you want to replace and replace with your new path. No guarentees as I said the DAZ SW might be doing checksums on the confiles files. There is a .dsx file for each installed product from the looks of it.
There is probably a way to move the DIM Manifest directory and even the content database directories and files too if you poke around enough and find where the paths are configured. If it's not configured in the actual SW, which is frowned upon, then you are in luck.
eg: C:\Users\Public\Documents\DAZ 3D\InstallManager\ManifestFiles\IM00001879-01_AfricanElephant.dsx
open the XML file in wordpad and <ctl>-F UserInstallPath & search then edit your path with new path.
<UserInstallPath VALUE="E:/Documents/Design/DAZ 3D/Studio/Library"/>
make sure you don't accidently tell your OS to my worpad/notepad to make those the default app for opening .dsx files.
Same concept in os X but you will have an easier time of changing those incorrect lines using sed or vi.
Yeah, doing that, and that seems to be working fine (uninstall/reinstall).
It's something I've been meaning to do for a while... I've been going through the elaborate process of, once a month, copying everything over to Dropbox folder and having it backup from there. And then it hit me 'well, this is stupid, I should just make the library a folder in Dropbox and have it backup as time goes on.' But I was nervous about moving stuff.
My computer just started acting up today, so it's encouraging me to get that sorted out before I may have to get a new computer. (Particularly since a new computer would have a SSD, which I'm VERY much looking forward to)
The uninstall/resintall route works nicely if you keep the downloaded packages...not so nice if you have to wait for everything to be downloaded again.
I try to keep all the installer packs on hand, because when my internet is good, it's very fast, but with kids and streaming video subscriptions, it's seldom ever 'good'...well at 3 am it is, but still not fast enough to download everything before they get up for school.
Thanks, a lot of that sounds a little confusing but if I have content installed that Connect isn't recognizing as being installed, I'll just reinstall it again. Using the drag-and-drop virtual method actually means not having to go through and delete duplicate files in the library.
My directory structure should be the same (Studio on C: drive, content on E:), but I'll also be going from Windows 7 on this machine to 10 on the new one (I know, not looking forward to it, but at least I know what I'm in for now).
K, I'll try to tie up this power supply cord so it doesn't touch any metal and leave it there. Probably should be OK since I bought a fairly decent modular supply and it didn't come with any 8+4 connectors (just 8+4-4). Thanks for the advice.
Bummer. Well I hope it wasn't because of the suggestion of editing the Install Manifests .dsx XML files triggered some sort of DIM configuration checksum that make it say, 'hey that's not my installed content'. I haven't actually tried that myself.
And now the metadata is really borked. Fun.
I redownloaded and reinstalled everything to a USB drive with my laptop, as it was filling my internal hard drive. Now Studio (also installed on the USB drive) doesn't recognize any of it, it keeps looking on the C drive. I'll figure it out. Fun, indeed.
Where do you find the settings that will let you tell Studio where to look? I'm having a bit of trouble here...
From the Content Library options menu select Content Directory Maintenance - then expand both the DAZ Studio and Poser format listings and make the changes you need.
If you're on Windows before you create your DAZ Studio install create the DAZ content library and content manager folders on the external drive at a place you like and add it to the Window Library/Document as another 'Windows Library folder' That's what I did for my USB SSD drive with all my Windows 'Library' folders. Although Windows being Windows and programmers being programmers some applications still manage to install their doc directories to my User C drive Windows Library folder.
Windows will complain when you unplug the USB SSD but it will work again OK as soon as you plug the SSD back in.
If you are starting with a clean install/new machine it is best to set up everything BEFORE you start loading any content...install DIM, manually, first and configure it to your desired locations. Then install Studio (I prefer using the manual installer) and configure it. With both of those configured before you start installing any content...make sure you have Studio and DIM agreeing on where the content goes...you shouldn't have any problems with the content.
Doing as nonesuch described above is a great step, before you install the DIM.