Daz Connect - Do I have to re-download all of my products? More faq info please...
AprilYSH
Posts: 1,514
From http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/comment/941607/#Comment_941607
Do I have to re-download all of my products?
No, but if you choose to update a product to benefit from the live functionality, the latest updated version of the product will be re-downloaded through the Daz Connect service*. Daz Install Manager product updates required you to re-download the entire product. Daz Connect allows you to get incremental changes, making updates more efficient. Once installed using Daz Connect, Daz Studio keeps you notified of available updates as well as other content to consider.
Note: If a product is already installed to a mapped content directory by any other means, installing the same product through Daz Connect will attempt to conserve bandwidth by copying the files that are verified to be "current" to the specified Daz Connect Data path instead of downloading the file again.
Since we are getting a lot of metadata updates (yay!) and DIM makes me download the full zips everytime (boo! lol) I want to move to Connect (which will only download the tiny modified metadata file! yay!)
Does it "copy" or "move" the files?
What does it check to verify a file is current, or are there any tips to make sure it uses existing files as much as possible?
tia :)
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Comments
I think the highlighted Note means if you manually install a product into the mapped DAZ Connect directory and then fire off the install via the Smart Conent product icon, DAZ Connect will check that product's folder for files. It will only download files that are missing. After DAZ Connect validates the product folder is complete, it will run the metadata script if there is one.
This may not necessary be faster than downloading with DAZ Connect, but if one has bandwith limits with their ISP, it can be a way to play catchup if one desires to have a DAZ Connect managed product when that option is available.
If you have a product's DIM installer, you can try it.
1. Go to Smart Content>Available tab and select a product
2. Right click, select More Information and note the Product ID
3. Locate the DIM installer and copy the content folder to My Daz Connect Library/data
4. Rename the content folder to 1_<product id> where <product id> = the product's Product ID
5. Drag the renamed folder into the cloud folder that resides in My Daz Connect Library/data
6. Go back to the product in step 1, right click and select install
What should happen:
1. DAZ Connect parses the files made sure they are all there, if not, download missing files
2. DAZ Connect imports the product's metadata if available
I have a lot of packages that I installed via DIM which are now showing grey with only an Install item in them in the Content Library/Products section. The files are still there; I can see them in Windows Explorer, but it seems the Content Library has decided they aren't installed. Uninstalling/reinstalling via DIM (yes, I save the zips) doesn't update the Content Library either.
Am I seriously now meant to keep slogging through my products to see which ones DAZ Connect has "taken over", and individually re-installing them?
And at least in the ones I've experimented with thus far, it appears to have fetched the files from the server, not from the existing installation. So, as it stands, I have these packages installed twice now. Am I also meant to now manually uninstall the DIM version as well?
And, finally, I don't see the purpose of re-installing these items via Connect, as they have no additional metadata assigned. :-\
If they are the same files then they are copied. (It uses an MD5 Hash to decide if the files are the same, and note that the Connect version are compressed, not plain text.) If they are not the same then they are downloaded.
They are not moved, in case you are using Carrara 8.5 or the DSON Importer for Poser.
Simple answer is... Then don't.
That's actually not quite as helpful an answer as I was looking for. :-\
Are the content directories, where they are installed, mapped in DS 4.9? It sounds like they are in the database, but not in mapped directories. (Note that is a guess, based on information provided.)
No, everything is mapped, and has been working fine. And the installed files are right where DIM put them (F:\DAZ 3D Library). Its not all files, just some; the only pattern I can see is that they are for older products which don't have Smart Content metadata (yet?). In fact, I picked up a few items from the store just this morning and DIM installed them just fine and everything shows up where its supposed to.
Well that is new. Sorry I don't have an answer for you at this moment. Can I also get you to file a support ticket as that is not behavior I am seeing.
Note that this does mean, as I understand it, that uncompressed files from a DIM install will be seen as different. Running the Batch Convert pane's compression options on the folders before installing with Connect should fix that.
Correct. Thanks for helping have that clarified.
OK, I have a probable answer, but I am still going to need a ticket to confirm it is what we think it is and get you a fix.
Alright, I'll did that right away, thanks! Ticket #211335.
Thanks. We'll see if we can get you all straightened out.
Thanks Lidnsey, Spooky, RIchard and all :) I will get around to swtiching to Connect when I finish my wip in 4.8 - The release just had to happen when I had a longish development in progress. gahh! lol! I have the public beta to check renders and other things out but didn't want to mess with my content library in particular. I hope Gordon's issue is resolved by the time I get there haha :)