DSX files, DIM, CMS, Metadata, and Smart Content. How Are They Related?
3dcheapskate
Posts: 2,720
When I download a content product via DIM it downloads two files - a ZIP and a DSX each with the same filename (e.g. 'IM00030698-01_UltraGenesis23.dsx' and 'IM00030698-01_UltraGenesis23.zip'), and when DIM installs the product it deletes both of these files (if I've ticked the option to delete packages after installation).
If instead I go to my Product Library and download the manual installer (blue button) it downloads just the ZIP (i.e. 'IM00030698-01_UltraGenesis23.zip').
So the DSX is purely for DIM, whereas the ZIP just contains files to be unzipped to a content folder.
The ZIP contains at the top level a 'Content' folder and two more DSX files, 'Manifest.dxx' and 'Supplement.dsx'. When I manually installed products in the past I simply copied the contents of the 'Content' folder to whatever content library I wanted. I'm fairly certain that I asked about the 'Manifest.dxx' and 'Supplement.dsx' files on these forums (probably the old forums as I can't find the thread) and I believe that since I was not using CMS they were irrelevant for me, as they were used my DIM to add the product data to CMS.
The manifest seems to be an XML file telling DIM what to do with each file from the ZIP, and the supplement seems to be an XML file with just a couple of bits of data about the product. The separate DSX that the DIM downloads (e.g. 'IM00030698-01_UltraGenesis23.dsx' ) seems to be a slightly expanded version of the 'Supplement.dsx'.
Some content products (though not my example, but the Genesis Starter Essential) also contain another DSX file within the ZIP, under '/Runtime/Support/''.
There may be other DSX files but the four identified here (i.e. 'IM######_ProductName.dsx', ''Manifest.dsx', 'Supplement.dsx', and the DSX under '/Runtime/Support/'') seem to be the ones of most importance.
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Now that the CMS seems reasonably stable I'm reinstalling all of my Genesis content via DIM, and of course I'm now seeing stuff in the Smart Content pane for the first time.
So my query is this: what exactly is the relationship between the four DSX files, DIM, CMS, metadata and smart content ?
The obvious one to me (which may or may not be correct) is that DIM uses all four DSX files to set up the metadata for the product in the CMS database, and the Smart Content panes uses (a subset of) this metadata.
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Comments
You'll also find a mainfests folder in the default Install Manager folder in Public documents if you isntall with DIM. The .dsx file that goes with the zip is actually all you need to check for updates (so you could, if you wanted, delete (or archive) the zip and just keep that .dsx file to receive update alerts for uninstalled items (or at least, that has worked in the past): as far as I know it is not, or need not be, downloaded but is gernated from the file in the zip. The manifest describes the zip's content, and for installed files lists where they went. The \Runtime\Support files are the metadata for the CMS - theya re what is read by the Reimport Metadata command.
Thanks Richard. So the DSX files (edit: i.e. the four dsx files I mentioned) are really split in two - the manifest/supplement/IM####<product>.dsx used by DIM for installing and updating, and the ones in /runtime/support/ for the CMS metadata*.
I'd not spotted the manifests in Public Documents. It (edit: i.e. the path) also seems to be hard-coded - at least there doesn't seem to be any option to change it in DIM > Settings ? Are they used for anything else, other than checking for product updates. What would happen if I deleted them ? They also contain extra data like 'UserInstallPath'. I occasionally move my DS content directories, so that would screw things up. Any way round that ?
*Edit: That ties in with cm152335's comment on the 'Manually installed items don't show up' thread about copying /runtime/support/ to /AppData/Roaming/DAZ 3D/Studio4/RunOnce/ and importing metadata
The Manifests folder is what tells DIM what you have installed - without it everythng would show as ready to Install/Ready to Download.
The manifests folder can't be moved in the UI, but it 9and the thumbnails folder) can be moved by editing the .ini file (.plist for Macs) in (for Windows) C:\Users\YOU\Appdata\Raoming\Daz 3D\Install Manager\Accounts.
.dsx is just an XML file, there are others - for example holding the layout and action lists.
Thanks again - "OverrideManifestDir=" it is.
Where does the thumbnails folder ("OverrideThumbnailDir=" in the ini file) usually live? I can't see it in \Users\Public\Documents\DAZ 3D\ or \Users\Public\Documents\My DAZ 3D Library\
DSX simply indicating XML makes perfect sense, following in the naming tradition of DSA for ASCII, DSB for binary, DSE for encrypted. (What was DSF for? I forget)
Still wondering about the 'UserInstallPath' in the manifest DSX files for installed content. As I mentioned I occasionally move my DS content directories - doing so would now make these entries in all the manifest DSX files for DIM-installed content wrong. Is there any way round that ?
Just for S&Gs i decided to test if anything happened when i altered the original line of code in that file and DIM had no problem uninstalling the content i'd test installed.
Original line:
UserInstallPath VALUE="C:/Users/Public/Documents/My DAZ 3D Library"
Edited
UserInstallPath VALUE="C:/Users/Administrator/Desktop/daz test"
If you're doing a bunch of these i'd recommend notepad++, the replace option is amazing when working a bunch of files and just changing the same thing in all.
The default Thumbnails folder is a sibling of the default manifesst and Downloads folder - it will not be created unless you download at least one thumbnail image (via right-click on a product in DIM).