Daz zip file structure and naming scheme

[EvilMonkey]

I'm making this post for informational purposes firstly because I'm a little anal and secondly because I (secretly) want everybody to do things my way but I'm not a fascist. Yet.

So, what is a DIM?

DIM stands for "Daz Install Manager" and is the application that automatically loads a Daz product into your Daz Studio content library along with it's "smart" meta data so it can be loaded and utilised within the Smart Content tab. DIM is also used in reference to a file that is capable of being read by the Daz installer, that has the correct format and accompanying manifest document. Daz issues all their current products with files capable of being loaded by DIM but there is also software out there that makes it possible to create your own "custom" DIM (file) so you can load products from other vendors or repackaged products that don't have a DIM file structure into Daz Studio.

What is DIM file structure?

Typically it's a zip file with a very specific naming scheme which reads as "IM[8 digit sku]-[2 digit zip number]_[full product name with no spaces or symbols]". Inside this zip you will find a "content" file, a "manifest.dsx" and a "supplement.dsx". Both dsx files contain metadata and are utilised by the DIM and the "content" folder is the container for the file structure that will be installed. None of those 3 files will end up in your content library so those people that install manually ignore them and the folders and files within the "content" folder are cut and pasted into their libraries.

Can I check what files should be in a DIM file?

Yes, by utilising the Daz Docs pages you can get the complete file structure and check it against what you might have downloaded/found/shared/been given. The web address to view a particular page is "http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/read_me/index/[SKU]/start" and you just replace "[SKU]" with the relevant Daz sku (currently a 5 digit number). Then navigate down the page until you find a link for "file list" and opening that will give you a directory list of all the files located in their particular folders. This is also handy to find out if there are multiple parts for a product if you’re having issues with a product or you’re just an anal, completist like me.

What are these “Template” files for?

These are accompanying files that aren’t utilised by DIM or installed but contain files that can be used by people wanting to create additional textures for an item. Typically they are wire frame layouts of the items surfaces in a format that the current textures are utilised. You’ll often find them accompanying files for clothes, hair or objects but not for people or add on texture sets. (They are also never listed in the Daz Docs folder structure).

Why have I got multiple files for this product and what are these “PoserCF” files for?

There is usually a main “core” file, as designated in the docs page but often you’ll get additional files that are numbered 2 onwards with a suffix to tell you what it contains. Recently the newer products haven’t been containing a lot of “PoserCF” suffixed files but it stands for “Poser Companion File” and the files therein are used to make DSON capable files transfer to Poser (Another software that’s similar but isn’t Daz Studio for those that don’t know). In older products you might find files with the suffix “DS”, “Ps”, “Legacy” or “CF”. The “Legacy” files are for Daz Studio versions before v4.5 and contain files not in DUF format. Recent files without a suffix or those with DS contain files for Daz Studio 4.5 and above, usually in DUF format. “Ps” or “dpc” suffixed files contain poser content and there are some vendors (Stonemason for example) who pack up their products with a companion file in “obj” format for those that don’t use Daz Studio. Lastly “CF” designated files are “companion files” that are for (older) products with a core file in poser format, so you need these companion files to make DS work with the core file.

So I can check everything up on the Daz Docs page and it will contain all the information I’ll need to check my files?

Kind of. It culls all it’s old information when a product updates so it only has the information for the current file structure although it does contain notes on updates, so with some deductive reasoning you can work most things out. For example “http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/read_me/index/35997/start”, this product was recently removed from the store and now has been added back as a “new” product although the sku is 35997 and it was originally released on “2016-12-04” but now says “2017-12-24”. The resolved issues field notes that Genesis 8 presets were added but they’ve also changed the product title which is why I think it’s been “re-issued” as a new product. Previously it was just titled “Rare Ancient Weapons and Poses” and contained smart props for Genesis 3 but now it announces the generation that it will smart prop to with the title, “Rare Ancient Weapons and Poses for Genesis 3 and 8 Male(s) and Female(s)”. The title change means a new web page and a renamed core file although most updates to products are more subtle. A quick way to check if you have the current update of a file is to look at the date of the most recent update and compare it to the date the files were modified in the zip. If they match then it’s probably from that update and current, other dates will indicate if the zip has been messed with or which update the DIM is from.

Why doesn’t the product I’m checking have a file list on the Docs page?

Yeah, some of them don’t, mainly the older pages, especially sku’s below 10000. They’ll have some limited information but no file lists or even an index of how many files are included with the product. Often these products were originally released with exe installers.

Do any other vendor websites index what files are included in their products?

Yes. Both Renderosity and Renderotica have “readme” files which can be downloaded from their relevant product pages and contain folder structure lists and detail product updates. With Renderosity also showing how many files (zips) the product comes with along with the file size, which is handy for cross-checking your archives. There maybe other sites which give out content information but I can’t think of any off the top of my head.

I’m going to share some files for people to use, should I just share the core Daz files as the lesser files aren’t useful to me?

If you can, share them all as a single file, wrapped up in a rar/zip/7z, as the template and poser files are usually very small but are very useful to some people and stop anal completists like me having a breakdown trying to find the files elsewhere on the internet. Sharing is caring and all that. 😉

Thanks for reading and I hope this helps some people. (If I'm wrong about something or have missed something out, feel free to let me know.)

[eelgoo]

Good noob information there.

There is also the option of manual install once you are more familiar with Daz Studio's layout.

🙂

[EvilMonkey]

Yeah, I thought it might benefit someone if it's all in one place as it's all information I've had to work out or find over the last 4 or 5 months. I, myself don't use "smart content" but I do like it to be available to those that do so keeping file structure and all files intact I think is a big deal and it's nice to know what everything does and how it works.

[eelgoo]

This is one thread that ought to form the basis of any 'Tutorial' forum that may or may not be created. 😉

[EvilMonkey]

Chrpes!

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