External hard drive: turnkey solution?
I've just about topped out my computer's main drive with DAZ and some other memory-intensive files, so just got a USB external HD to hold them instead (and free up that space again on the main HD). Moved over all my DAZ content files (DAZ 3D, the Install Manager folder and My DAZ 3D Library). But before I start deleting off the main drive...can someone with more experience please walk me through how to get DAZ to recognize these files and Installer to put new ones on the new HD too? Consider me a newbie. I'm running Windows 7, have had DAZ 4.7 for a while -- OK, maybe not a total newbie! -- but just installed DAZ 4.8, upon which my main HD redlined. Thanks!
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In DS:
1) If you have custom categories/tags/metadata, go to the Content Library pane options menu (rectangle with horizontal lines in the upper corner) > Content DB Maintenance > Export User Data
2) Content Library pane options menu > Content Directory Manager, add the new paths under both "DAZ Studio Formats" and "Poser Formats".
3) You can now move the files to the new location (if you did so already, make sure you get the Userdata .dsx files from Runtime > Support) and delete them from the old location
4) Content DB Maintenance > Reset Database
5) Content DB Maintenance > Re-Import Metadata
In DIM:
1) Settings (gear icon in upper right corner) > Downloads, change the path for the downloads; if you have some downloads in the old location move them to the new location
2) Settings > Installation, click the + sign in the lower left to add the new install path, then change the "Current Path" to your new path.
3) If you don't want to uninstall/reinstall everything with DIM, go to the ManifestFiles folder and edit all the .dsx files with an editor that can do global search/replace (I use Notepad++). Change the line that reads:
<UserInstallPath VALUE="C:/Users/Public/Documents/My DAZ 3D Library"/>
to your new install location (note that it uses forward slashes, not backward slashes).
In step 2, is it enough to tell it "F drive" if I've moved the folders (the 3 I mentioned in last post) there intact?
Sorry, I'll probably have more questions as I work through the steps.
I don't think you can edit the paths, so you need to browse to the full path (e.g. F:\...\My DAZ 3D Library)
Ask any questions, sometimes I'm unaware that I've left out an important detail.
Poser won't let me add the path to "DAZ 3D" formerly in my Windows "My Documents" folder (not public) without confirmation. Keeps telling me "The directory selected does not contain, and is not, a 'runtime' directory. Would you like to continue anyway?" Yes, actually it does since I moved the Runtime folder there manually. Should I tell it "yes"? Don't want to break anything!
Regarding Step 3, I've already moved all files inside the folders I listed before, where Install Manager put them (with the old paths, however). Do I need to do anything more with them?
Sorry if I'm pestering....
What's the full path? It needs to go up to the folder containing the Runtime folder.
If you did the Export User Data, there will be files named UserData_x.dsx in Runtime\Support, so make sure you move those as well.
Thanks! Got DS done (I hope correctly); starting now on the DIM.
Steps 1 and 2, should these go to the "Downloads" folder in Download Mgr.? Also, I recopied the whole DIM folder to the USB drive and now DIM is telling me "The folder specified contains files that were not installed by Install Manager.... [Add Anyway] [Cancel]." Should I delete them first, or just "Add Anyway?"
Step 3, I don't want to edit everything if the computer can do it instead. How do I uninstall and reinstall? Can I do this offline, or do I need to download everything again from DAZ? (Limited data plan!)
Bottom line, "slow and cautious!" I don't want to break anything.
Step 1 is for where you want the zips you download to go -- you can delete or archive them after installing.
Step 2 is for where you're going to install content -- you get the message that it already has files because you copied the content folders over and DIM still thinks you installed to the old location -- choose "Add Anyway".
Step 3, if you still have all the downloaded zips you don't need to download them again, the edit approach is to avoid having to redownload if you didn't save them. If you do still have the zips, put them in the downloads folder (the new one if you already changed that path), and make sure the paths for 32-bit software and 64-bit software are the same (unless you want to move the software also), then go to the Installed tab in DIM, click the box at the top next to Products to select everything, and click "Start Queue" at the lower left to have DIM uninstall everything (don't worry if the files aren't in the old location any more, DIM will still go through the list and remove the manifests from the old installs even if the files are already gone). When it's done, if DIM is showing everything in the "Ready to Download" tab, click the Refresh icon at the top so it will show the zips you have in the Downloads folder as "Ready to Install" (if it already has them there you don't need to refresh). Make sure your install location is set for the new location, click the box next to Products to select all, and "Start Queue" to install everything to the new location.
OK, I did #1 and #2 with no problem..
For "3, in DIM everything showed as "ready to install" and when I clicked "Start Queue" (as in the middle of your paragraph) it started installing everything: yellow bars progressing, "ready to install" counting down, and "install" counting up. When finished, all items showed as "Installed" (except the Photoshop bridge since I don't have Photoshop) -- the only things shown "Ready to Download" are those I've not yet downloaded since my main drive is already so full!
Checking my directories, it looks like everything installed right back onto my main drive, not the USB one. In DIM "Installation" I can't change the "Recommended DAZ Studio/Poser Content Folder" path from "C/Users/PublicDocuments/My DAZ 3D Library" to my USB drive; the "browse" button is grayed and nothing happens when I click it. Right-clicking the path does nothing either.
What to do, what to do? Am I stuck using my main drive for content?
You can install to any path from DIM, you just need to set it up first. You cannot change the recommended one, but you can ADD as many as you want.
Go to DIM, click on the 'Gear' icon at the top right, select the Installation tab, click on the plus sign at the bottom left of the interface, and add you new path. When installing, make sure that your new path is selected in Ready to Download, tick the Show Details box and change it from there if necessary.
OK, trying again. I deleted the C-drive paths from DIM this time before starting the queue. The LED on the USB drive is blinking so it looks like they're installing there this time. We'll see.
Thanks a million! Things seem to be where they should be now, apart from a few textures I'm having to "locate" individually again. Downside: DS runs noticeably slower now retrieving a scene from memory, but that's surely just due to the USB connection. No fix for that, is there?
The first thing that comes to mind on slow usb speeds is to check is if you are using the same type of usb to your board plugs. What version of USB is the eternal HD 2.0? 3.0? I had purchased a 3.0 that clearly stated that is could be run on the 2.0 motherboard however it was verrryyyy slow to access the external HD (not just in D|S) and would freeze a lot. Once I got them both on the same version there was a huge uptick on speed for acessing stuff.
Excuse the reviving a older thread but having to change the DIM manifest files when moving to another drive? This is the first time I have heard of this (everything else I alredy knew about and isn't too bad). UGH that is not good. Sure I can edit them but there are over a thousand manifest files at the moment (perhaps two or three). Editing every file? Search and replace is fine, but whew that is a bigger job than I want to tackle at the moment. Although I guess I will have to at somepoint as the drive is filling up. Strange how Daz/DIM does not have a easier way to migrate a runtime considering that most of us will do it sooner or later
Get Notepad++ or similar text editor that can do a batch find and replace on all the files at once.
The easy way is to have DIM uninstall everything and reinstall it, but that's only a good solution if you saved all the downloaded zips or have a fast, unlimited internet connection.
Hmm I never got a notification of the responses here. I will manually check from now on.
Well removing and reinstalling with DIM would work, but it will take a long time compared to fixing the manifest files I think. Not to mention remove custom categories, but the datbase has to be nuked, rebuilt, and user data reimported anyway so that is a moot point. But at least there is a plan B if I can't get Notepad++ to do what I want. Never tried the bulk edit, but I will give it a shot when the time comes (on a backup of all the manifest files).
Thanks all. :)
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