kradcliffe
Using a Samsung SSD for my gigs which contains the music and VirtualDJ home folder.
I use two different PCs depending on the gig but they require separate licence.dat and settings.xml files.
Would it be possible to add a couple of registry keys so these files could be in a separate location per PC (for example a sub directory of the VirtualDJ folder) because at the moment with the licence you need to log in each time a different PC is used and similarly with the settings they need to be different for each machine due to screen resolution, video settings etc)
I use two different PCs depending on the gig but they require separate licence.dat and settings.xml files.
Would it be possible to add a couple of registry keys so these files could be in a separate location per PC (for example a sub directory of the VirtualDJ folder) because at the moment with the licence you need to log in each time a different PC is used and similarly with the settings they need to be different for each machine due to screen resolution, video settings etc)
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 9:38 am
kradcliffe
Or maybe even have the licence.dat file store information for the last two computers logged in to the server?
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 4:18 pm
The Magic.DJ
I have 2 machine (#1 & #2 PC) login once for both pc and never ask me to LOGIN again.
If I login to a 3rd machine, then #1 will be log out and now I have #2 & #3 active.
You can have 2 machine login (active at all times) and on the settings, set it to not log you out or not login in.
If I login to a 3rd machine, then #1 will be log out and now I have #2 & #3 active.
You can have 2 machine login (active at all times) and on the settings, set it to not log you out or not login in.
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 4:57 pm
locoDog
I think he means they are the venues machines, i might be wrong
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 5:02 pm
kradcliffe
No, they are my own machines.
All the VirtualDJ files are on the SSD and not the individual PCs themselves hence the conflict.
It makes sense to use one external drive for everything to avoid having to sync all the time.
All the VirtualDJ files are on the SSD and not the individual PCs themselves hence the conflict.
It makes sense to use one external drive for everything to avoid having to sync all the time.
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 5:04 pm
locoDog
So you keep vdj folder on your external so fx and samples and playlists are sync'd
If vdj can't look in the local for licence/settings and external for the rest, a .bat file could rename the files you need,
I don't know how to .bat, i supose i should learn.
If vdj can't look in the local for licence/settings and external for the rest, a .bat file could rename the files you need,
I don't know how to .bat, i supose i should learn.
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 5:49 pm
kradcliffe
Yeah. It is possible to keep the VDJ home folder externally, it's just using it on multiple different machines is an issue.
Solution as you say would be for VDJ to look for tose files locally but everything else on the external drive, or allow multiple files of the same name for each set up.
Could be a handy feature for others too.
Maybe something for the devs to look at?
Solution as you say would be for VDJ to look for tose files locally but everything else on the external drive, or allow multiple files of the same name for each set up.
Could be a handy feature for others too.
Maybe something for the devs to look at?
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 5:57 pm
The Magic.DJ
I think I'm getting what you want to do.
You have only 1 HD to use to different PC. But every time you plug this HD to another PC, it ask you to login.
Here is an idea you can try.
Plug the HD to DELL PC #1 PC and login (if you have too, I'm just calling the pc DELL for now).
After all credentials are good to go and settings are setup to not LOGOUT or ask to login in vdj config. then....
rename the license.dat file to DELL PC#1.
Now Plug the HD to Dell PC #2 and login..... Then rename license.dat to DELL PC #2.
do the steps for a 3rd machine (Dell Pc #3).
Now to test:
Plug the HD to Dell PC #1 (rename the Dell PC #1 to License.dat) and see what happens.
Better yet COPY the Dell PC #1.dat to license.dat (this way you don't need to rename each time).
Hope you get the picture.
Let us know how it went.
You have only 1 HD to use to different PC. But every time you plug this HD to another PC, it ask you to login.
Here is an idea you can try.
Plug the HD to DELL PC #1 PC and login (if you have too, I'm just calling the pc DELL for now).
After all credentials are good to go and settings are setup to not LOGOUT or ask to login in vdj config. then....
rename the license.dat file to DELL PC#1.
Now Plug the HD to Dell PC #2 and login..... Then rename license.dat to DELL PC #2.
do the steps for a 3rd machine (Dell Pc #3).
Now to test:
Plug the HD to Dell PC #1 (rename the Dell PC #1 to License.dat) and see what happens.
Better yet COPY the Dell PC #1.dat to license.dat (this way you don't need to rename each time).
Hope you get the picture.
Let us know how it went.
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 10:13 pm
kradcliffe
The reason I'm asking for this is to not have to rename files.
If there were s registry key to direct to the exact file per machine it would find the correct license or settings automatically.
If there were s registry key to direct to the exact file per machine it would find the correct license or settings automatically.
Inviato Mon 28 May 18 @ 10:43 pm
djjohnnyrox
If this isnt allowed please let me know Look up how to make an app portable, If you make the program portable and install it on your hard drive then run it from your hard drive you can use it on any windows machine and not have the log in issues, Im not sure if that violates and of VDJ's terms but it will work
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 1:53 am
The Magic.DJ
You could have a batch file.
assuming the hd is in D: Drive
This will be the first batch file for Dell PC #1
@echo off
D:\
cd\bal bal bla\VDJ FOLDER location
copy dell pc #1.dat license.dat /y
vdj.exe
This will be the second batch file for Dell PC #2
@echo off
D:\
cd\bal bal bla\VDJ FOLDER location
copy dell pc #2.dat license.dat /y
vdj.exe
and so on.....
just giving you some ideas that might work.
assuming the hd is in D: Drive
This will be the first batch file for Dell PC #1
@echo off
D:\
cd\bal bal bla\VDJ FOLDER location
copy dell pc #1.dat license.dat /y
vdj.exe
This will be the second batch file for Dell PC #2
@echo off
D:\
cd\bal bal bla\VDJ FOLDER location
copy dell pc #2.dat license.dat /y
vdj.exe
and so on.....
just giving you some ideas that might work.
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 1:55 am
PhantomDeejay
kradcliffe wrote :
No, they are my own machines.
All the VirtualDJ files are on the SSD and not the individual PCs themselves hence the conflict.
It makes sense to use one external drive for everything to avoid having to sync all the time.
All the VirtualDJ files are on the SSD and not the individual PCs themselves hence the conflict.
It makes sense to use one external drive for everything to avoid having to sync all the time.
You won't achieve what you want as soon as you opt to have the VirtualDJ home folder on the external drive.
Which makes me wonder what's the gain on doing so ?
Having the skins and effects carry over ?
I'm pretty sure you don't change them frequent enough to justify this solution.
Changes being made now & then could sync manually.
If you want to play around you can use these two tips:
1) VirtualDJ is using only one Registry key that tells it where to look for it's HOME folder (usually located on User Documents)
The key is HKCU\Software\VirtualDJ
2) If your drive(s) are NTFS formatted you can create "virtual" folders that link to existing folders anywhere on your system. Imagine them as shortcut folders.
To do so you need to study how to create symbolic links and junctions in Windows OS. It's a little bit geeky, but you can set that "C:\Thisfolder" is a "link" to "D: \AnotherFolder\WithASubFolder\WithASubSubFolder"
With a combination of the above 2 tips it's possible to move your home folder (or some of it's components) to almost everywhere.
Still though, since you want separate settings.xml per PC I cannot understand why you want to have one home folder for both...
Edit:
When the HOME folder is NOT on the external drive, the database for the songs of that drive stays separate from the main database (local hard drive database)
This means that you can carry your external hard drive from one PC to another and all the info will be there (hotcues, playcounts, last played, lists, virtual folders, favorite folders, filter folders e.t.c.)
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 6:40 am
kradcliffe
Thanks George.
Part of the issue here is that I don't have a database on the SSD. When I used the file copy command from within VDJ it didn't create a database on the external drive.
Part of the issue here is that I don't have a database on the SSD. When I used the file copy command from within VDJ it didn't create a database on the external drive.
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 8:19 am
PhantomDeejay
Yes, because the HOME folder is set inside the drive...
Let me explain how it works:
VirtualDJ is using a "HOME" folder that's usually inside user Documents folder.
This "HOME" folder contains the "master" database.
All the files that are on the same drive as the home folder get their information stored on the "master" database.
All files that are on different drives than "HOME" folder get their information stored on a database inside a "VirtualDJ" folder on the root of each drive respectively (local database)
On a typical case scenario, VirtualDJ "HOME" folder is located on C: drive. Therefore all file info for media files on C: drive are stored in the master database on "HOME" folder. Also all file info for media files on D: drive are stored inside the local database of the drive (D:\VirtualDJ\database.xml) on E: drive on E:\VirtualDJ\database.xml e.t.c.
If you change the location of home folder to another drive than C (let's say D) then the info for media files of D drive won't be inside D:\VirtualDJ\database.xml, but inside the master database that sits somewhere on the same drive!
Conclusion: On your attempt to solve a problem, you created a bigger one! :P
Here's how your 2 systems should be set up:
1) Both systems should use the "default" home folder location on Documents folder.
2) All your media files should be on an external hard drive. The drive then should have it's own "local" database.
3) For optimum performance the external drive should occupy the same letter on both systems. Personally I tend to give a "high" letter value to my external drive in order to avoid letter changes when there are USB sticks or other drives connected at the same time I try to connect my drive. For quite some time I used to use the "Q" drive letter.
4) If you need to sync playlists, history and cache between the two systems you can create junctions that will relocate the corresponding folder(s) either to the external drive, or inside a location that syncs via the cloud (e.g. inside a Dropbox / Google Drive folder)
PS:
Junctions are "shortcuts" for folders.
So, you create a junction between C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists <=> D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists
What happens is that when you try to visit the C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists folder, the system reads the contents and data from D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists folder. So, VirtualDJ "thinks" that it reads the data from "C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists" (which is the default "Playlists" folder) but it actually reads the data from "D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists" folder where they are actually stored. Same goes for writing data as well.
It's a dirty trick, but it does the job!
PS2:
Generally speaking, if you use only 2 computers, VirtualDJ should keep you logged in, despite the fact that license.dat has been synced from the other PC.
PS3:
If you decide to restore your home folder to it's original location please ask for advice how to do so in order to avoid loosing info from the database.
Let me explain how it works:
VirtualDJ is using a "HOME" folder that's usually inside user Documents folder.
This "HOME" folder contains the "master" database.
All the files that are on the same drive as the home folder get their information stored on the "master" database.
All files that are on different drives than "HOME" folder get their information stored on a database inside a "VirtualDJ" folder on the root of each drive respectively (local database)
On a typical case scenario, VirtualDJ "HOME" folder is located on C: drive. Therefore all file info for media files on C: drive are stored in the master database on "HOME" folder. Also all file info for media files on D: drive are stored inside the local database of the drive (D:\VirtualDJ\database.xml) on E: drive on E:\VirtualDJ\database.xml e.t.c.
If you change the location of home folder to another drive than C (let's say D) then the info for media files of D drive won't be inside D:\VirtualDJ\database.xml, but inside the master database that sits somewhere on the same drive!
Conclusion: On your attempt to solve a problem, you created a bigger one! :P
Here's how your 2 systems should be set up:
1) Both systems should use the "default" home folder location on Documents folder.
2) All your media files should be on an external hard drive. The drive then should have it's own "local" database.
3) For optimum performance the external drive should occupy the same letter on both systems. Personally I tend to give a "high" letter value to my external drive in order to avoid letter changes when there are USB sticks or other drives connected at the same time I try to connect my drive. For quite some time I used to use the "Q" drive letter.
4) If you need to sync playlists, history and cache between the two systems you can create junctions that will relocate the corresponding folder(s) either to the external drive, or inside a location that syncs via the cloud (e.g. inside a Dropbox / Google Drive folder)
PS:
Junctions are "shortcuts" for folders.
So, you create a junction between C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists <=> D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists
What happens is that when you try to visit the C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists folder, the system reads the contents and data from D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists folder. So, VirtualDJ "thinks" that it reads the data from "C:\Users\GTsag\Documents\VirtualDJ\Playlists" (which is the default "Playlists" folder) but it actually reads the data from "D:\VirtualDJ Stuff\Playlists" folder where they are actually stored. Same goes for writing data as well.
It's a dirty trick, but it does the job!
PS2:
Generally speaking, if you use only 2 computers, VirtualDJ should keep you logged in, despite the fact that license.dat has been synced from the other PC.
PS3:
If you decide to restore your home folder to it's original location please ask for advice how to do so in order to avoid loosing info from the database.
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 10:47 am
kradcliffe
I fully understand the process surrounding the home folder location, but when I had it natively on C drive and copied files over to D it never created an external DB. Maybe something wrong with the file copy process?
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 11:41 am
PhantomDeejay
That's odd.
The only reason I can think off is insufficient access rights when doing the copy... (and therefore VirtualDJ was not able to create the VirtualDJ folder on the root of the drive)
The only reason I can think off is insufficient access rights when doing the copy... (and therefore VirtualDJ was not able to create the VirtualDJ folder on the root of the drive)
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 12:12 pm
kradcliffe
I did try several things at the time but no DB was ever created.
The junctions idea looks like a potential partial solution so I will look in to it further.
Thanks for your help.
The junctions idea looks like a potential partial solution so I will look in to it further.
Thanks for your help.
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 12:22 pm
PhantomDeejay
I use 5 pc's. I copy and move files from within VirtualDJ all the time. To external drives, USB thumb drives, even SD Cards!
I had never had an issue where VirtualDJ would not create/update the database on such a case.
Most likely there was an issue with NTFS access rights. Anyway, our issue is not why VirtualDJ didn't create a database at that time, but why some things don't work as they should now...
Question Nr 1:
Do you use an account with Administration rights, or a "simple-user" account on your PC's ?
I had never had an issue where VirtualDJ would not create/update the database on such a case.
Most likely there was an issue with NTFS access rights. Anyway, our issue is not why VirtualDJ didn't create a database at that time, but why some things don't work as they should now...
Question Nr 1:
Do you use an account with Administration rights, or a "simple-user" account on your PC's ?
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 12:26 pm
kradcliffe
Admin accounts only.
SSDs are formatted exFat, not sure if that could be an issue?
SSDs are formatted exFat, not sure if that could be an issue?
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 1:42 pm
PhantomDeejay
It shouldn't be, but exFAT works differently than NTFS. This also means that the ability to create junctions will be limited on your system, since junctions are a feature of NTFS. Finally access rights don't apply on exFAT drives.
If you opted to format your drive to exFAT in order to keep compatibility between Windows and MAC computers you should opt to format the drive to NTFS and use an app like Paragon NTFS on your MAC to write data on the drive (MAC OS reads NTFS drives just fine anyway)
If you opted to exFAT for ANY other reason, then you would definitely be better with NTFS instead of exFAT
If you opted to format your drive to exFAT in order to keep compatibility between Windows and MAC computers you should opt to format the drive to NTFS and use an app like Paragon NTFS on your MAC to write data on the drive (MAC OS reads NTFS drives just fine anyway)
If you opted to exFAT for ANY other reason, then you would definitely be better with NTFS instead of exFAT
Inviato Tue 29 May 18 @ 1:52 pm
