Should I Do It?
RCDeschene
Posts: 2,800
I beginning to notice that my Local Drive is getting a bit bulky. So as I was looking through my bit bytey programs like MMORPGs, Autodesk, and even DAZ 3D, I noticed that I have not one, not two, but THREE times of each piece of content in three different areas of my system; two being copies of DIM installed products and the other being all the content I still have on my hard drive since the days of the Install Manager and My Library. I really need to get rid of this stuff, but there's no way I'm going to spend hours clicking on every uninstaller.
So my situation is this: should I just delete every folder DAZ 3D related in general and re-install everything nice and clean with the DIM, or is there something else I can do. I already have all my scenes, renders and 3rd Party Content in a safe backup, so I'm ready for anything.
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Comments
Very good question!
I am also in the process of re-installing everything with DIM and want to delete my manualy installed content.
I wonder if the installers write something in the registry? If not, I think you can just delete the content.
Peter.
I've done it a couple of times already... didn't hurt anything, except that the last time I forgot to back up my scenes, material files, etc. So, just like a fresh install. The nice thing is that CMS still retained much of my user settings/metadata, etc. Wish I had backed it up completely, though.
Dude I got a 2 Terabyte External HD for $120 tax included. I deleted some stuffs long ago that I wish I never deleted ever. Now I cant find it anywhere, Heed my warning.
I'm not uninstalling anything that I'm not going to instantly reinstall.
...my concern is if one has a particular runtime setup, uninstalls all the old content, then re-installs everything using the DIM and letting it set up the library/runtime structure, that paths to all components of scenes (as well as those which are still WIPs) created in the previous setup would be broken thus making those scene files useless.
Also if one is going to do a full DL/reinstall of years worth of content purchases, better have a rock solid and fast connection.
That's what I did, and because of this, every freebie I had installed was wiped as well. I have to say, I'm glad I did it as it also gave me the opportunity to start fresh with categories and a couple separate runtimes.
That's what I did, and because of this, every freebie I had installed was wiped as well. I have to say, I'm glad I did it as it also gave me the opportunity to start fresh with categories and a couple separate runtimes.
That's what I was afraid of so I did it a different way. I took the newest folder and merged it with the next oldest. This way any new files over-wrote older stuff, then deleted the first folder. Then I did the same again, that newest folder into the next oldest and so on. In the end I only had one folder with (hopefully LOL) the latest version of files.
The only problem I can see with deleting it all and starting fresh with DIM is that I'm not sure if absolutely everything has been converted yet.
If you just delete all your folders and start fresh, you might wind up missing product.
Good luck and smooth sailing whichever way you go! :)
As long as the content was properly installed to start with (no nested content directories, for example) and locally-generated files (the \Data folder files for imported content in DS) then all scenes should open correctly as DS, at least, stores relative paths (the location of files within the content directory) and not absolute paths (including the location of the content directory on the disc). Poser at one time tended to use absolute paths for content not in the default library, but I think recent versions avoid that.
...so as long as all Genesis, Daz content and 4.6 content remains in my D:/Daz3D/Daz Studio/My Library and all the Poser content remains in my D:/Daz3d/Daz Studio3/Content I shouldn't have any broken paths if I open an older scene/scene subset (the latter where I store all my characters)
So then, if I had it install all my Poser content to the D:/Daz3D/Daz Studio/My Library/Runtime folder, then I'd have path conflicts with older scenes and saved characters (if they used Poser runtime and older content that normally resides in my Studio 3A content tree).
Is this correct?
First, NEVER set the install path to the Runtime folder, ALWAYS to the folder CONTAINING the Runtime folder.
Second, as long as your saved scenes were saved to DS-Format Content Folders, all paths are relative. It doesn't matter which content folder the item is installed to, DS sees them all as one big content folder.
...I use Runtime figuratively. When I used the original Daz Installers, I always pointed all 4.6/Genesis content to D:/Daz3D/Studio/Library.
As I have both 3Advanced and 4.5 on my system, all Poser and older (non Genesis/DSON/.trx) content was installed to the 3Advanced Content folder which then was mapped in the 4.6 Preferences/Directory Manager. This is the reason for my question about broken paths when reinstalling everything using the DIM as I am not sure whether it will install the older/Poser content to 4.6 Library/(Runtime) instead of the 3Advanced Content/(Runtime)?
If it does wouldn't that result in broken paths when I open a scene/character as it would be looking for any content used that originally was in the 3Advanced Content folder?
Never dealt with this possibility when I had 3Advanced and 2.3 installed on the same system since they both shared the exact same Content folder.
In DS4.6, no, as DS just sees it all as one big content folder. In DS3, if the DS4.6 content folder isn't listed as a content folder, then it won't see the files. You can define more than one install location in DIM -- for example, I install most things to My Library, but I also have a DS3 content folder for items which have both .duf and legacy versions.
...OK I think I follow this.
So lets say for the sake of argument, I get a new ISP that gives me a stable fast connection than i currently have. I reinstall the DIM (pray that it doesn't mess up my login) then proceed to have it DL everything I ever purchased overnight to make sure I have all the latest updates. I also install the DIM on the workstation, which will only be used in offline mode as it does not have a permanent Net connection (would need to buy and install modem card to have that).
OK that gets everything to the notebook. Now I have to transfer it all to the Workstation for installation. As I don't have a large enough USB stick to handle everything in one shot, I have to transfer and install it in segments of say 8 GB at a time. How would the DIM on the Workstation know just what it needs to install on the workstation if it is only getting a partial collection of installers?
Next would I just need to let it install to the Library and Runtime folder in 4.6 (as I can also map the 4.6 Poser runtime and Daz content folders to 3A) or do I need to still split it up between 4.6 and 3A to preserve the content paths?
...and how would i make sure that it installs everything to the D: (Data) drive rather than the Public Documents folder on the smaller C; drive?
You can do it either way -- references to geometries, textures, morphs, UVs, etc. are all relative, so DS treats it all as one big content folder, whether it really is one or more than one.
You can set up as many install locations as you like, just make sure you select the one you want before you start the installs.
To use DIM to install you just point it to the TOP DS content folder.
Right way:
D:/Daz Studio/My Content
Wrong way:
D:/Daz Studio/My content/Runtime
The DIM installer will put the proper files and Folders into the right place on it's own.
Of course, I always put everything in "My DAZ 3D Library".
And for those of you who are worried about my scenes. I've wiped and reinstalled all my DIM content before (but just my DIM content, this time I trashed the whole realm of DAZ 3D in just about it's entirety from my OS), so I know once I reinstall all my content through the DIM (where Studio can now be installed via that method), I suspect everything should be fine granted I make sure my install directories are appropriate as the admins are saying here.
I have alot of content from other stores in my runtime networks so I don't see a way to delete everything and just use DIM to rebuild cause that would be only the DAZ stuff. What I did instead was create a turnover point where I started using DIM to download/install new content bought at DAZ and once I got the hang of it... it is flexible and thankfully even though it thinks there are still a couple thousand products that need to be downloaded it does list the newer ones bought first so I can just download them.... I might eventually redownload all Genesis stuff thru DIM so it will notify me of needed updates for those products.
Nevermind. I had tried re configuring somethings in the CD Maintenance and everything's good again. : )