Transferring content between computers
Odaa
Posts: 1,548
So I just bought a seriously discounted Dell XPS 8700 with Windows 8.1, as a replacement for my Dell XPS 420 with Vista. I would like to try to import my DAZ content directories and other fun stuff over as painlessly as possible. Does anyone have any advice? I do have a couple external hard drive to use as intermediate transfer points if I have to, but I'd rather not try anything fancy like pulling the hard drive out of the old computer and manually installing it-if I were the kind of person who were good at things like that, I probably wouldn't buy Dell. :)
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I'm soon to start moving to my new computer too, I plan to use externals to transfer things like custom made content, textures, scene files and everything from other stores. With DIM though, It's complicated, It wont see the files as installed if you just copy it all over (As I've heard about from some friends) So with items from Daz3d I plan to download through DIM directly on my new PC, to dodge associated problems. It will mean my monthly DL will be hit, but hey. Theres probably ways around the DIM issue, and if anyone knows, I too would be glad to hear it.
I'm also seriously looking forward to a clean slate runtime, has gotten rather messy since my last fresh install on this computer.
I do currently have two computers that I use for Studio. I sometimes DL my new content to each machine, but more often, only DL once and then copy the ZIP files to my other machine into my DIM DL folder and they are usually found there. I do allow DIM to install them on each machine so that I have fewer problems that way.
Odaa, I wish I could tell you an easy way to do the move, but what I have had success with is just to copy my directories to an external drive and then to my new computer. This gives me the added feature of having some type of back-up. since I am VERY bad at doing back-ups at any other time.
I've done straight copies of file from one machine to another (even mac to pc). It works for most things, but this was before I started using the instasll manager, I'm not sure how it's going to keep track of your files. (When I first got the install manager, I reinstalled everything in new folders over a period of weeks)
You do not need to redownload everything if using DIM. Locate the DIM's download directory (Look under settings, then the Downloads tab), and copy every file from there to the download directory listed under the DIM on the new computer. If the PC's are networked this is easy, otherwise use a portable harddrive to copy the files.
Now DIM on the new computer should show all your files as "Ready to Install" but they are not yet installed. You can either reinstall them all via DIM, or also copy your installed runtime over from your old PC, and hook this in to Daz Studio on the new computer. I would recommend the first option unless you had mixed your own content in with DIM's runtime on the old PC. Some products (mostly plug ins) will install files in your Program Files area, and unless you know what you are doing these are best reinstalled using DIM.
I've moved Daz Studio and Poser content from one computer to another and I've also copied it to a new hard drive when my hard drive failed. I did it by copying the "My Library" directory and the Poser Runtimes to an external USB disc and back to the new computer. This works for most content but a few things need special installation, the AoA advanced lights and some shaders are like this. I use the install manager for things like this but do manual installation for everything else.
If you have setup your own categories in Daz Studio then run "Export User Data" from Content DB Maintenance before backing up and "Re-import Metadata" after restoring and you should get them back.
Are you using laptops or desktop computers? When I installed a new hard drive in my Dell desktop I did some of the copying by taking the old drive out and putting it in a sata docking station that makes it work as an external USB drive. On my desktop it is very easy to take out and put in hard drives, you just open the side panel and pull them out of the drive bays, but I wouldn't try and do this on a laptop.
Thank you, guys! Will probably have more questions when the computer gets in.
Weird problem, I've been installing M4/V4 content under DS4.6 and can't get the program to acknowledge its existence.
Did you remember to reimport the database metadata so that the M4/V4 stuff appears in smart content?
Did you remember to reimport the database metadata so that the M4/V4 stuff appears in smart content?
Yeah, that would explain it. Not sure I have access to metadata for all the products involved, I am working off the cd for the Figures, Characters and Avatars book, because that's where I originally got the rights to Morphs++ for V4/M4
even more exciting, DS4.6 is refusing to recognize a good chunk of the M4 clothes, even when it's things like the Dynamic Toga, which are comparatively new and I'm installing them through DIM.
Aha, there we go. Hide off smart content and drag "content library" to where I can find it easily.
Smart content (when available) is easier to use than content library, which can get in a mess when you have a lot of content. However at least it should always be there. Remember if you can not find content you installed via DIM, remember to right click on the button in the DIM installed view, and select "Show Installed Files", that tells you where it put everything
Thank you! Right now I have DIM in "Install everything" mode, then I will go back and get all my M4/V4 morphsets installed in one place, and some other things sorted out. After that, I will probably go through the "manual runtime organization" thing I did a few years back to at least make that manageable. I just have too much useful stuff that predates metadata to rely too heavily on smart content.
So, is there anyway to get a download reset on Xurge3d purchases? I still have the original emails with the download links, but they are not working anymore, and didn't get a response when I tried to email the merchant.
Greetings,
I've typically had good luck with the method on this page: http://xurge3d.com/faq
Actually, I've never had to re-download, but I had to change my purchase from the Poser version to the DAZ Studio version (I was dumb, and clicked buy without reading carefully enough), and I got a response about three and a half days later. (Don't read too much into the 24 hour promise, I think it's just one or two people running the site, and maybe with a day job as well.)
-- Morgan
Thank you! Just emailed them again-I don't mind it taking a bit but I had emailed by responding to the last "thank you for your purchase" email I had from them, and I thought perhaps it had gotten caught in their junkmail filters or something.