GUIDE [WIP] DDSopt & Texture Overhauls

[z929669]

Discussion thread:
DDSopt Guide by STEP
Wiki Link

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GET DDSopt:
Github Pre-release versions
Official Nexus versions (select pre-release update 4)

[frihyland]

Yes this is the recommended method, just be aware that if one file is updated in TPC you have to redo the whole thing. So if you are not totally ocd about updating, its a much better solution. DDSopt 8 is extremely optimized to run faster and also has dozens of bugfixes, so there is a substantial time and quality difference.

[Besidilo]

I only DDSopt these folders (separately):

 

HR-DLC - unpack, merge, optimise, repack as 7zip

TPC - optimise, repack

WATER - optimise, repack

Dragon Glyphs - optmise, repack

 

I don't think optimising the vanilla textures does much, I don't optimise body textures due to possible artifacts and small mods don't really concern me, unless they have crazy size like the Dragon Glyphs mod.

 

Bear in mind that I'm not using the full STEP 2.2 at the moment, due to testing of some gameplay mods for the next STEP.

[Deathwing514]

Thanks you very much for the replies, it actually cleared up my doubts.

 

Now I have one more question regarding ddsopt.

 

For Optimized High Resolution Pack, should I eliminate the txt files or just process the whole file itself.

[Kelmych]

I optimize the vanilla textures and make a new BSA for them; I haven't done any detailed comparisons before and after. Personally I like to keep the size of the texture pack sets from being too large so I don't combine the HR DLC (with fixes/tweaks) into one file (I have one archived set of loose files using 7zip for each of the HR DLC) and I break the optimized TPC into two archive files with the loose textures. Whenever you uninstall a texture pack that overwrites one or more HR DLC or TPC files (e.g., the 2 Yuril gold rings file in STEP), WB has to go through the archived file to find and install the textures that are no longer being overwritten. This doesn't happen quickly, and having smaller archives helps a little.

 

DDSopt will simply copy any non-texture files that it finds if you use the standard configuration parameters in the STEP guidance, so you can run it on an entire folder containing text, meshes, textures, etc.

[frihyland]

Thanks you very much for the replies, it actually cleared up my doubts.

 

Now I have one more question regarding ddsopt.

 

For Optimized High Resolution Pack, should I eliminate the txt files or just process the whole file itself.

No, follow Z's directions and use the bat file and both fix mods on the HR bsa files.

I optimize the vanilla textures and make a new BSA for them; I haven't done any detailed comparisons before and after. Personally I like to keep the size of the texture pack sets from being too large so I don't combine the HR DLC (with fixes/tweaks) into one file (I have one archived set of loose files using 7zip for each of the HR DLC) and I break the optimized TPC into two archive files with the loose textures. Whenever you uninstall a texture pack that overwrites one or more HR DLC or TPC files (e.g., the 2 Yuril gold rings file in STEP), WB has to go through the archived file to find and install the textures that are no longer being overwritten. This doesn't happen quickly, and having smaller archives helps a little.

 

DDSopt will simply copy any non-texture files that it finds if you use the standard configuration parameters in the STEP guidance, so you can run it on an entire folder containing text, meshes, textures, etc.

Normally that would be true, but the text files and shortcuts included in the bsa are completely broken files and will crash ddsopt (or any program that is not meant to handle broken files).

[Kelmych]

Right, I didn't mean that anyone should change the instructions that Z prepared for optimizing the HR DLC and Skyrim Textures optimization. I was discussing the general case.

[z929669]

@Kelmych

 

Set 7z to compress as non-solid. This actually speeds up WB (and 7z processes) quite a bit. Reason being that archives can update in file-size chunks without having to uncompress/recompress the entire archive for a relatively small subset of changes to the archive.

 

My TPC is 1.7+ Gb compressed as 7z, but it took me less than a minute to install and about 20 seconds to update three files within the archive by drag&drop ... this is pretty fast for such a big archive, and it is because I compressed as non solid. My next step is to DDSopt that one so that I can compare the performance between DDSopt-ed TPC, HRDLC and standard vanilla. Cumulatively, I expect this to save me a minimum of 50 Mb of VRAM with improved texture appearance (esp at mid distance).

[Besidilo]

What textures should we avoid optimising with DDSopt?

 

I know that the paper textures from the vanilla game should be excluded, what about WATER textures, body and face mods, armours and weapons from other mods?

 

In other words, is there any exclusion list?

[Kelmych]

By the way, the URL pointers to the two DLC tweaks (3.2 and 3.1b) in Zs message on Sept. 10 don't work for me. Both should point to HighResTexturePack DLC Tweaks . In addition, the customized batch files only refer to a single DLC tweaks folder vs. the two that Z mentioned. Z mentioned having two folders in an earlier post, but he later modified it to use a single folder.

[Neovalen]

DDSoptPre3 has an exclusion list built into it already. Other things to not optimize are things like soul gem textures as they are non-standard size.

[z929669]

DDSoptPre3 has an exclusion list built into it already. Other things to not optimize are things like soul gem textures as they are non-standard size.

Correct.

 

This thread has more detail on the DDSopt INI file containing exclusions and other special instructions for water, dragons, foliage, bodies, etc. This info is accounted for with respect to the HRDLC and vanilla in general as well as some of the main community mods; however, there are many unaccounted-for mod textures that need to be treated specially or avoided altogether (e.g., Vurt's). Just use the posted settings, and all should be fine.

[z929669]

By the way' date=' the URL pointers to the two DLC tweaks (3.2 and 3.1b) in Zs message on Sept. 10 don't work for me. Both should point to HighResTexturePack DLC Tweaks . In addition, the customized batch files only refer to a single DLC tweaks folder vs. the two that Z mentioned. Z mentioned having two folders in an earlier post, but he later modified it to use a single folder.

The links  work for me, and take me directly to the downloads needed by way of a download-server menu. Are you saying that you are not seeing the download page when you follow the links? I have a premium acc on the Nexus, so this seems possible, especially if you pick Denver or Kent, as they are premium-only.

 

I will update the links if this is the case, just confirm please.

 

Thanks

[z929669]

For anyone interested, this is a screen of my Wrye Bash initial setup for v2.2 depicting what I have optimized and how it is organized for simple conversion between opt/non-opt. I'll do the same with each and every STEP texture mod to allow comprehensive analysis that also facilitates tracking down sources of error.

 

[Besidilo]

Are Vurt's textures automatically omitted from optimisation when using the settings from this post?

 

And another question, what does "Ignore border on optimizing" do and should it remain set to 1%?

[Kelmych]

Z, the links work today; perhaps there was a nexus problem when I tried them.