arma3_tools

[dawn palm]

if you continue to strike trouble, use pboProject. Like many others do.

[haughty gate]

Thanks, I've already tried it. In the current case I get some error messages that can't tell me exactly where the problem is. But at least I get error messages, not like the BIS tools.
Here the Error Log and config. Model is only a Cube in Geo and Res Lod.

[dawn palm]

pls show the dos screen with it's reason for failing

faurly confindent fo the cause but neeed the 'error' to not send you in the wrong direction.

[dawn palm]

ah yes.

memsphere us not a float. the p3d mentuned above is faulty. bis binarise hated it.

[robust vessel]

🤔

[dawn palm]

yiou could muck about with removing lods and propertoes until it 'works'

[robust vessel]

i'd meant that as a friendly reminder to update the tools to the latest version and try again 😉

[dawn palm]

👍

[haughty gate]

The Tools are from the November 7th 2024 , the aio Pack

[sly skiff]

so not updated

[haughty gate]

upps, my fault. i wil test it later with newer Version. Thx

[hybrid nest]

anyone have issues with pboproject not selecting the p drive symlinked file and instead using its original path for windows 11, bc I did this on 10 and it was fine but I’m not sure if I’m missing something

[hybrid nest]

nvm, i just had to go back through and redo the symlinks with MKLINK

[haughty gate]

So, packing Works. Now new Problem. In Editor its there and all looks good, but if i start mission preview , Arma3 freeze

[rancid crypt]

hey I'm having a problem with my addon builder, it shows this error when I try to pack a folder that has p3d files in it and I have Binarize checked on, it doesn't happen when binarize is on and there no p3d-s, or when there are p3d-s but binarize is checked off. I don't think my files are a problem since I sent it to someone else and they had no problems with packing it, I did verify the integrity of files twice and even did a full reinstall of arma 3 tools and it's still broken. Any ideas what might be causing it ?

[junior beacon]

Yeah. Don't use addon builder.

Use PboProject or Hemtt

[torpid valve]

Maybe you're running it as admin or something

[sly skiff]

Are they binarized P3d from somewhere else?

[rancid crypt]

Ok sorry found an error, it apparently was problem a problem with a folder name in which I store my random projects since that one has polish characters in it's name and it seems it somehow was interfering with p3d binarization process (copied the mod files to a different folder and it worked without problem)

[dawn palm]

pboProject does not allow bis binarize to wander all over your P drive. Think about improving your tools.

[rancid crypt]

Pretty sure that pboproject thing is some sort of malware, few months ago it bluescreened my pc each time I tried to use it, (so like 5 times) so I try to stay away from it

[sly skiff]

its not. but if the better tools dont wokr for you then you are stuck with the hard way

[fathom creek]

I am gonna take a shot in here.

Whenever I attempt to update my modpack for my unit. I keep geting a InvalidParameter and a steam error code 8? I had a look at other posts on reddit etc. someone said they only jus reuploaded it too fix it

[ruby meadow]

Had same.
Searching , googling , it's some unknown issue.
Some has fixed with empty description and change log.
Or with another account (add to contributor).

#arma3_troubleshooting message

[latent dagger]

I tried to search for it but is anyone familiar with pbo.tools? (That's their website link) I am having a hard time searching this discord for anyone else's experiences with it or if there's any caveats

[sly skiff]

Can't say rings bells. Why are you looking for them?

[latent dagger]

Someone else linked them to me with a question about them and somehow I've never even heard of it before

[sly skiff]

Ah it's that thing

[jovial elbow]

https://github.com/PBO-Tools
They've got a github, and a website
They seem to offer a pbo obsfucator, both a free version and a paid version

[sly skiff]

Yeh obfuscation

In my experience usually people try to hide sketchy content with that

[jovial elbow]

Not certain what the point is, since the only stuff that can be effectively encrypted/obsfucated in Arma are the models
(sqf too I think, since it can be compiled to sqfc, not certain how reversible that is though)
Everything else can be gotten from config dumps as far as I know

[limpid sky]

my object builder has been stuck in this view for the longest time i can remember. How can i reset it to factory settings view?

[dense cove]

You can just drag and drop these widgets (or windows or tools?) to your desired pos

[limpid sky]

they just make it even worse, i cannot extend the 3D view at all

now it looks like this

[dense cove]

I am saying these widgets on your right

[limpid sky]

the widgets just distorts the other views, some widgets i cant move

i know I just moved some of them

[dense cove]

You can even drop into an empty space of your screen, so it will become an independent window

[dawn palm]

@jovial elbow
Everything else can be gotten from config dumps as far as I know

My opinion is configs should be available to everyone to learn from. There's nothing in them that can be stolen. Not even a copy paste is usable.

I only give mild protection for sqf / script.c for that reason.

[sly skiff]

You have docked the toolboxes on right poorly. Undock all and arrange them properly

[sour hedge]

Object Builder is an absolute pain in this regard. Best to close all tool windows (using menu) and bring them back one by one around the main viewport.
Here is how I have mine arranged for a reference.

[sly skiff]

mine 😄

[jovial elbow]

True,
At minimum classnames need to be changed for config, and usually more
And having them available to read just makes it easier for more people to make legitimate mods
(I quite like what the Aegis team has done, all of their share-alike licensed content is easily available through a github, rather than requiring unpacking and careful reading of licenses to determine what is what)

[vale hedge]

I need to know how to adjust clothing models in p3d

I need help

[sly skiff]

what models you mean? adjust how?

[vale hedge]

I have a clothing model but I don't know how to play it on arma3 through p3d

[sly skiff]

You would need to make it a mod.

You can study the Arma 3 samples on steam

And #arma3_model channel can be used to ask specific questions

[vale hedge]

ok

[vale hedge]

This is a clothing mod that my friend authorized me, but I want to make changes to this mod

[vale hedge]

But I don't know how to do it on p3d

[dawn palm]

your friend must send you the UNbinarised version. You then make a modified p3d using Bis Object builder. You will eventually make a pbo using Addon Builder, Hemmtt, or pboProject.

[vale hedge]

Sorry my friend didn't send me the unbinarized version

[dawn palm]

how then do you expect to alter it?

[vale hedge]

Is it possible to re-modify or re-bind the version without unbinarization?

[dawn palm]

reverse engineering a p3d is illegal.

[sly skiff]

No there's nothing you can do

You need the original file.

And it can't be from some other game.

[vale hedge]

I bought these mods with money and have obtained all the authorizations

[sly skiff]

Mods can't be bought with money

You have been scammed

[dawn palm]

all you got for your money is Binarised p3ds then. which, are freely available via the @mod they came in.

[sly skiff]

And probably sold by someone who didn't even make the mod.

[dawn palm]

for sure

[vale hedge]

Can I make changes on Blender so that I can modify it?

@dawn palm@sly skiff

[dawn palm]

nope. blender is two steps behind the binarised p3d

[sly skiff]

We can not help with this

[dawn palm]

I am curious to know how you found the original author to get permission

[sly skiff]

And asking how to do it will get you banned from here

We have 0 tolerance on IP theft and ripping.

[dawn palm]

not just us. include Bis. and include many server owners.

[vale hedge]

No no no I didn't steal other people's mods

We can purchase mods through normal transactions

[sly skiff]

But what you want to do is just that.

[vale hedge]

No theft

[sly skiff]

You have been scammed and you can't use those models

[vale hedge]

I promise

[dawn palm]

irrelevant.

you fail to recognise that if you could, you would steal the p3d by reverse-engineering.

[vale hedge]

This transaction is protected by national law in our country.

[dawn palm]

again irrelevant. This conversation ends now.

[sly skiff]

Mods are not allowed to be sold

The tools and the game are non commercial

You buying the mod already is grounds to ban you

And the one who sold it

You can not use it.

[dark parcel]

any idea how to do the reds and blues for optimization on the model like this one

[frozen meadow]

it has hair(?

ins that the normals of the faces? wdm with optimization?

[sly skiff]

tiny picture, and what do you mean by reds and blues

[dark parcel]

I was asking about the normals and i got it, thanks guys!

[sly skiff]

you should not need to do anything with normals for optimization

[dark parcel]

Alrighty, thanks!

[frigid ember]

I'm using a .bat file to batch-build with addonBuilder. Does anyone know a way to emulate "binarize all textures" being off in the commandline?

[dawn palm]

textures=
but why you would want to do that escapes me.

[frigid ember]

Enough content that swapping it all over to hemtt would be like a month long project, so just optimizing my workflow until I either die or get the time to do a pause to do so

[dawn palm]

Niether pboProject nor hemmt have any relevance to the question.
In my world 'textures' are paa files. 'Binarised' from tga or paa source.

[frigid ember]

addon builder has an option to convert all png and tga in the folder

whereas it builds faster to not do that and have them pre-converted

[dense cove]

Which is also a thing for pboProject

[frigid ember]

hi polpo

[dawn palm]

bis binarize is the core for all these tools and IF paa exists already it does not remake them (providing the datestamps are ok). The option in addon builder is pointless.

[worthy gyro]

Hi, I'm trying to open FSM files, but it throws an error "No FSM inside this file" or something of that kind, I know these files are ok because in another computer it works, and opening them in notepad I can see the code, I think maybe it has to do with the compiler/decompiler, but don't know how to fix it, I'm using W7 and only have latest FSM editor in the PC where I have the error, no A3 tools, no Arma, would that be the problem?

[uncut forge]

hey everyone, do I need to register a OFPEC tag on the official website before I start? Looks like its down so I cant create an account to register one -https://www.ofpec.com/tags/

[rough grove]

You don't need to worry about registering a tag, just use something unique to you and you'll be fine

[uncut forge]

@rough grove Thanks!

[sly skiff]

registering used to be cool thing to do though. but like Brett says the main thing is that your TAG_ is unique to your project

[dawn palm]

uniqiueness is the point behind ofpec tag by simply ensuring it is. perhaps bis should move it to their own website.

[olive rose]

Hello. I have a strange problem with signing a PBO via console in Windows 11.

I am using dsSignFile and running the command in CMD:
C:\Users\BaxPC>cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\DSSignFile
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam Files (x86)\Steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\DSSignFile> dsSignFile C:\SEMODS\Key\SHIELD_Main_v0.0.5.biprivatekey C:\SEMODS\Mods\SE_Card.pbo
At the first execution everything works - the file is signed.
But if I repeat the command (even if it's completely the same), the signing doesn't work.
Sometimes rebooting the PC helps, but not always.

I also tried to execute the same command through the Visual Studio Code console,
but there I immediately got an error with error code 1.
Any ideas why this is happening?

[dawn palm]

i will test this 'theory' with pboProject because it's not what i'd expect.

works fine here. So, my guess is the first instance of DSSignFile.exe has not exited for reasons unknown.

[uneven drift]

Apart from ffmpeg (which makes the video very choppy/glitchy regardless of the settings I use) - What are the tools/software/services used by the community to convert mp4 -> ogv format? (I used convertio but they have a 100mb free limit per file)

[glossy inlet]

I use VLC

[dawn palm]

same

for entirely different reasons you might be intersted in deWss exe, It will convert wav/wss/ogg to any of the others (together with playback). for wss it will comvert compression from/to byte, nyble, or none.

[cosmic marsh]

I just launcher pboProject after some longer period of inactivity, and Windows Security suddenly finds a virus in the installation... anyone had similar experience ? Is that a false positive ?

[sly skiff]

false positive ime

but since its been a while, updating can still be good

[cosmic marsh]

Yeah, removed the old and reinstalling now, I'm not comfortable with allowing a potential trojan, even though it's likely a false positive

[glossy inlet]

If it were a real trojan, it wouldn't detect it 😄

[rough grove]

Or hemtt, which does this in CLI or it's vscode extension, and supports converting from mp3 too

and is free and open source

[uneven drift]

Could you share your method? I tried following a youtube tutorial and it ended up being as lossy / glitchy as the ffmpeg conversion.

[glossy inlet]

Not really any method to it, select ogv output and thats it I think

[uneven drift]

I've also utilized Handbreak which I find it good so far (I've only converted a singluar video to ogv using this)

[vague shard]

Here brief guide for exporting ogv vids:

**FFmpeg - **
https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/OGV_File_Format

1. download ffmpeg 4.02 or 4.01 (I personally tested 4.01)
2. Go to folder with extracted ffmpeg.exe (bin/ffmpeg.exe) and open CMD (https://youtu.be/MPV7JXTWPWI?t=244)
3. via CMD use .\ffmpeg -i intro.mp4 -c:v libtheora -q:v 10 -c:a libvorbis -q:a 10 intro.ogv command to export ogv from source file
   - this code works when source mp4 file is in the folder where ffmpeg.exe is. (bin/ffmpeg.exe) If you keep source file elsewhere you need to add path

info for theora and vorbis libs:
http://trac.ffmpeg.org/wiki/TheoraVorbisEncodingGuide

In case someone would find better export setting for Theora and Vorbis, please let me know

**Any video converter free - **
Optional export tool would be: https://www.anvsoft.com/any-video-converter-free.html

libtheora bitrate 8000 frame rate 30
vorbis bitrate 320 sample rate 44100

BI forum had a couple of threads on it

[uneven drift]

Yea problem with ffmpeg for me is the constant glitchy / lossy video though it works fine for others. Using the same version as you. Don't know why it is the way for me.

[uneven drift]

Update: Handbrake conversion does not work ingame.

[zinc iris]

Hello! I just created in Alive Editor my custom OPFOR faction but it doesn't work in Dynamic Combat OPS missions. It's visible in the faction selection menu but instead of selected faction it spawns only the CSAT units from basic game. In the Dynamic Civil War works normally. How to make this work? Of course I've googled for Solution but unfortuantelty BI forums are closed due to the maintenance. I'm completly new in making mods so reply shouldn't be complicated for the more experienced modder.

[frozen meadow]

hi guys one question, Eliteness let you see the model?

[dense cove]

What do you mean by "see?"

[dawn palm]

no, it shows all the internal data (such as components or properties)
one example?
map=house

it also treats binarised (odol) or unbinarised (mlod) as born equal. Most of the data is the same.

[timber gorge]

If I make an insignia or a faction how do I upload it to steam as a mod or play with the mods with friends?

[sly skiff]

With the publisher tool

[timber gorge]

Alr thanks

[frozen meadow]

hi guys, there is a tool to make the miniatures for the editor?

[sly skiff]

miniatures?

[frozen meadow]

a little spanglish came out there

thumnails

or editorPreview

[verbal oar]

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Eden_Editor:_Configuring_Asset_Previews

[rough grove]

HEMTT can generate them using hemtt photoshoot, if your project uses HEMTT

[frozen meadow]

Object builder crashes when i open buldozer on a model

any ideas where the logs goes?

[sly skiff]

it probably wont say why in logs

[frozen meadow]

lol

so... what now

[sly skiff]

is it very complex?

[frozen meadow]

yea

[sly skiff]

over 200k tris?

100k?

[frozen meadow]

hmm its weigs 200mb, so... is quite complex

[sly skiff]

then thats the problem

[frozen meadow]

i can hide some part of the model? or something?

[sly skiff]

Id guess Id recommend making it properly for game ready state 😅

[frozen meadow]

i mean, im only modifying some stuff in it, ill ask who made this model was able to open buldozer

the model is already in the game, with some errors... but yea..

[sly skiff]

is it 200mb for 1 lod?

[frozen meadow]

no, its a complete model

with all the lods and stuff

262mb actually lol
before it crashes its says something about "compiling error data"

[craggy ibex]

Anyone familiar with ALiVE able to tell me why all of my infantry and (some) of the vehicles I put together with the ORBAT creator created side-swapped versions of their original factions instead of going into my created faction?

[zinc iris]

How to make my created custom ALiVE OPFOR faction to work with DRO missions? It works with Dynamic Civil War and Dynamic Combat Ops but not with Recon Ops. It only spawns the CSAT from vanilla game.

[severe lava]

New Release of the Arma Toolbox
This one requires Blender 4.2 or later.
Updated to the new extension scheme
https://github.com/AlwarrenSidh/ArmAToolbox/releases/tag/v4.2.2

[rough grove]

HEMTT VSCode Extension Update

Adds a P3D viewer

[dire basin]

Hi I don't know if its the right channel for that so feel free to redirect me where it's appropriate. Yesterday I setup my p drive for the first time using arma 3 tools, today I start my computer and my P drive is nowhere to be found. i don't want to reuse the P drive setup tool in the object builder because apparently it erase everything in the P drive. Is there a way to recover it ?

[dense cove]

You can reassign

[dire basin]

You mean I can reassign my partition ?

[dense cove]

Yes. Unpack is only mandatory first time

[dire basin]

ok thank you very much !

[scenic canopy]

P drive is usually not auto mounted on startup, you have to mount the drive again

[nimble island]

Hi, could you please point me at the best current tutorials for addons making? I am a bit lost between all of these videos...

[scenic canopy]

You’ll have to be more specific as that is a very broad field. There are dedicated channels for the different steps like modelling, texturing, config making etc

[nimble island]

This page provides some structure information, but not all the possibles settings into mod.cpp and so on.
https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_3:_Creating_an_Addon#Scripts

I can look at local mods I have subscribded, but sometimes there is an 'addons' folder, sometimes no.....

Is there any ultimate guide about addon files content?

I am looking for customizing the A3 home page and get links to my servers. I have seen the Spotlight customization here https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Arma_3:_Main_Menu
and wonder if I can create more than one link to my numerous servers.

[scenic canopy]

If there is no addons folder with pbos then the game won’t consider it as a mod folder

https://github.com/code34/mainmenu a bit old but should point you in the right direction

[nimble island]

Thanks a lot!

[raven obsidian]

does anyone know how to resolve the issue with arma tools not opening when you try to open it?

[sly skiff]

Try verify the tools install on steam

[sick granite]

Anybody unable to use publisher tool, just doesn’t show any of my mods after starting , same thing on the pc of another modder I checked with to confirm it wasn’t just me ?

nvm, its back..?

[raven obsidian]

already did that

[remote matrix]

I assume the older versions of the Blender tool box are not getting updated?

I never moved past 3.6.10 Blender as I absolutely can´t stand the new shading mechanics, but at the very least on this version of toolbox vertex groups assigned to a proxy will not carry over together with the proxy when copying it other LODs except for -all-proxies and @@armaproxy.X.

I have to manually assign the other vertex groups to each copied proxy. Not a big issue, but still. Not sure if it was reported.

[sly skiff]

most likely right

[muted kernel]

does the thing tool allow the user to do 3d retexturing of tank/plane/uniform from mods like RHS?

[severe lava]

You need a paint program for that, this is for exporting 3d models from Blender

[muted kernel]

And… do you know any guide, video, or discord conversations on how to do 3D retexturing you can point me to?

[severe lava]

If you mean something like Substance Painter where you paint directly on the model, you will need the actual model for that. But that is usually not available, and I am quite sure that neither RHS nor most other mods will give them out. So I don't really see much chance of that working out.

[muted kernel]

F me…

But thank you anyway..

[odd talon]

Hey Alwarren, idm putting in a bug report if its not a user error thing, but for some reason my geometry lod keeps reverting to fire geometry every time the blend file is closed and re-opened? I'm saving in-between but its just being odd

[warm loom]

can someone tell me why blender wont let me install arma 3 tools

i keep getting a circular error

[warm loom]

@severe lava

[severe lava]

I've heard this one before, I have no idea why it does that. It certainly doesn't happen for me. I'll take a look at it tonight

[warm loom]

any way of fixing it

like fresh install

of toolbox

or putting it in the files

[severe lava]

Does your Geometry use a LOD distance?

[severe lava]

You should definitely uninstall the old toolbox before installing the new one, but I have heard it would happen also on a fresh install. As I said, I have no idea why this happens, I need to look into it.

[warm loom]

first time i got toolbox man

[odd talon]

Just making a cuppa and I’ll give it a test

[warm loom]

sorry didnt read all the way through

[severe lava]

No worries. As I said, I'll look into it after work.

[warm loom]

thanks man

[odd talon]

if i change it to custom its distance is 1

also what do the colours on the lods mean?

fire geo is green, res is normal/grey/transparent and geometry is orange

[severe lava]

There shouldn't be any colors.

Unless you assign them via Material colors

[odd talon]

i mean the dropdown

[severe lava]

😐

Have you keyframed these?

[odd talon]

oh goddamnit

yeah

problem between screen and keyboard then ahah

[severe lava]

Hehe happens 😄

[odd talon]

Cheers fella, I must've misclicked it at some point

Yep, seems to have fixed the resetting issue as well

😄

[sly skiff]

Woah that was so unexpected issue but thinking back that is the only way to cause value to reset like that.

[odd talon]

Yeah it makes sense logically, cause the anim phase was set to have it as fire geo at 0 and i had 1 selected (timeline wise) so whenever i changed it without adding a new keyframe it reverted

[sly skiff]

If you had not mentioned the property colors this might have been unsolvable

[odd talon]

Always good to overshare info on an issue tbf, nothing worse than finding someone on stackoverflow or something describing the exact issue you have and then replies with "fixed it" with no further context haha

[severe lava]

Someone said this on the ticket on github:
"To fix this issue i extracted the ArmaToolBox and changed the MDLexporter.py to MDLExporter.py it needed a capital "E" but can confirm this worked for me and works great!"

I'll fix it tonight, but if you want to give it a go immediately try to change that.

[warm loom]

it didnt work

same error still

thanks for trying though

[primal saddle]

someone know how to fix that u cant move in bulldozer

[sly skiff]

could be something messing with the key binds

maybe launch parameters are wrong

[primal saddle]

It’s the parameters from pmcwiki

[severe lava]

Try the updated archive from github

[warm loom]

Thanks bro

[warm loom]

@severe lava managed to active it but whenever i import a p3d it gives me a 'wrong mdl version' error

[severe lava]

That happens when you try to import a binarized models. The toolbox doesn't support that

[warm loom]

binarized?

[severe lava]

If you unpac a PBO, the models are binarized.

[warm loom]

how do i unbinarize them

[severe lava]

You don't. You need to ask for permission from the original author

[warm loom]

and what if i cant

[severe lava]

Then it's "tough luck"

[warm loom]

mad

[severe lava]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

[sly skiff]

this is also whats called stealing

and we dont support that here

[warm loom]

its not though

[sly skiff]

well you can have your own opinion on that. But ripping is not tolerated here

[dawn palm]

it is though. you alter someone else's creation is called theft

[warm loom]

but i havent altered anything

[sly skiff]

you are not allowed to touch other peoples models

you can use the mods

but that is all

[warm loom]

bredda lets just chill

i havent touched anyones models

[sly skiff]

alright so what is it you try to do?

[warm loom]

simply look at the models for inspiration cause idk how to make them in blender

[sly skiff]

forbidden

you can look at them in game

[dawn palm]

you can also use eliteness to inspect them.

[sly skiff]

also there are tons of video and written tutorials on "how to model things" online

those are the sources for answers on "how to make stuff"

[warm loom]

like how to make a tbas v5

find me a tutorial and i will accept i was wrong

[sly skiff]

you learn how to modle first

theres is no tutorial on how to specifically make all possible things

you would learn how modeling is done, you would collect reference images, study them and their shapes and start forming that in 3D

you start from the basics

[tardy kettle]

I am currently dealing with an issue where I can't seem to open addon builder. I was using it just fine and then my pc seemed to crash, now it is unable to be opened. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling. I've tried doing this with steam. I checked for system updates. It just WILL NOT open. Any ideas or similar experiences?

[sly skiff]

does it throw any error?

[tardy kettle]

No error comes up on screen, just opens and immediately closes

[sly skiff]

did you try restarting your computer?

[tardy kettle]

Yes I did, also all the other a3 tools programs run fine, just addon builder crashes

Is there a way to find a crash report to see if it gives one?

[sly skiff]

would be in the addon builders install folder I think

[tardy kettle]

Not seeing anything

[tardy kettle]

I also get an error when trying to open a pbo with pbo manager

[tardy kettle]

After literal hours of testing. I found that if I put a3 tools on a different drive the applications open up fine. Pbo manager I reinstalled and works fine. However if I try to use a3 tools on the other drive it doesn't allow me to open addon builder. I assume it's being restricted by some file in that drive.

[sly skiff]

that is a weird one

[dawn palm]

pboManager is an excellent, intuitive, gui for missions. It is not suitable for addons.

[azure arch]

hello! Is there a way to speed up the uploading process with the Publisher tool? Right now every update of my mod takes many hours because each time I'm hit with this message:

[jovial elbow]

Not that I know of
It's Steam's automatic description checker as far as I know
Don't think it's capable of actually checking mod content in Arma 3, don't know if it does for any games
On my mods it mostly took less than 1h, usually less than 15min

[azure arch]

so you're saying this is because I added my Discord and Github links to the description? 😭

[jovial elbow]

Could be
I don't know exactly how it works or if it crawls connected links or just checks against known malicious links
It seems to be faster when there's no changes or minimal changes to the description

[azure arch]

ok thank you for the info, I´ll leave setting the description for last going forward

[dense cove]

It is not Publiaher but Workshop's feature

[junior beacon]

Has anyone ever had an issue that publisher couldn't find a file in the temp folder, a file it created itself? I have a feeling it has to do with the path lengths

C:\Users\xxxx\AppData\Local\Temp!Publisher_3den+Enhanced_1d88a82d-7372-402e-bb07-3960bdd8151a\optionals@enh_remove_mission_missionendingcasualties\addons\enh_remove_mission_missionendingcasualties.pbo.enh_8.3.0_enh_remove_mission_missionendingcasualties.bisign

[karmic niche]

I'm not really expecting this to work, but you may try this: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/fileio/maximum-file-path-limitation?tabs=registry#enable-long-paths-in-windows-10-version-1607-and-later

[junior beacon]

Sadly you were right. Didn't work.

8151a\optionals@enh_r
But I also noticed it's missing a backslash after the optional folder.

[karmic niche]

Haha! I was right! 🥳
...oh wait

[junior beacon]

Btw, dedmen had the solution.

The path was indeed 3 characters too long

[glossy inlet]

We just need the temp folder name to be unique.
Whoever did it previously just threw a GUID onto it 1d88a82d-7372-402e-bb07-3960bdd8151a
that's a bit too much wasted space.. I shortened it down to 8 characters, now that example fits.

Also the missing backslashes are discord formatting

[odd talon]

Hey alwarren, do you think this vertex group visualiser ive cobbled together would be useful for the main arma toolbox for blender?

Idk if theres some other way ive completely skipped to do this, but just wanted a way to see where I had assigned vertex groups so I don't overlap them

[sly skiff]

pospospospospos

[odd talon]

Gets abit laggy when rendering them for groups for say doors, hidden selections etc. haha

Cause it does it for each point, but useful for paths at least

[frozen meadow]

that will be nice for the hemtt VS code extension

[sharp jay]

Any good tools to extract a PBO file on Linux?

Ah I got it! JAPM works.

[karmic niche]

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/PBO_File_Format
See last section: "Open Source PBO Libraries"

[dawn palm]

ALL my dos tools work in the penguin

[eager sparrow]

I guess maybe right place,but I recently reextracted game data with arma 3 tools, is there a reason why stuff like a3\data_f\proxies\mbt_01\driver.p3d doesnt get extracted?

[robust vessel]

does it even exist? Did it even exist?

[sly skiff]

Yes arma tools extract does not extract everything

Use mikeros arma3p maybe?

[eager sparrow]

oh okay, could also not exist aswell maybe I am just using a bad path

[sly skiff]

Don't know for sure but there are lot of proxies in there

[shadow bough]

Hi, so im trying to get into Arma 3 modding and ive discovered the wiki. Specifically the Page: "Creating an Addon". Im really having issues understanding the explanations. Ive gotten so far and installed Arma 3 tools and ive extracted the Game data. And ive created a folder containing an empty config.ccp. What are my next steps? I just want to play a sound after somebody interacts with an object.

[dawn palm]

@sharp jayThe problem with most extractors is that they don't extract to immediately usable data. config.bin, not config.cpp, and binarised rvmats are examples.

[dense cove]

I actually think your intention here is unrelated to a Mod that you need to set up evevrything. What are you really wanted to do? What exactly should happen?

[shadow bough]

A players goes up to a laptop, interacts with it via scrollwheel and selects an Alarm. After selecting that a sound gets played that is heard in a range of 30 Meters in the same volume

[dense cove]

So is this a mission thing?

[shadow bough]

yeah for example would be cool to have it like a blueprint to use it on other missions, is that possible?

[dense cove]

This does not belong to a Mod creation but something in Eden Editor. Yes it is possible but you are trying something very unrelated

[shadow bough]

oh ok thank you very much

[glossy inlet]

You only need to extract game data for model/terrain mods. Not for just script mods.
Script mods are alot simpler

You'll need CfgFunctions (see its wiki page) to set up your script functions that will be added to the laptop.
the addAction script command to add the action.
Not sure how you want to do the alarm selection, you could probably just do multiple addActions.

You can do all this in a mission first, CfgFunctions goes into description.ext file next to the mission.sqm

Figure out the basic config and scripting for the functions first.
Once you got it going in a mission, you can start transferring it into a mod

[forest wadi]

Uhhhh, how do I remove the P drive?

I accidently mounted it

[dense cove]

There is no downside to have it

[forest wadi]

Of course but I honestly prefer it not being there xD

For OCD's sake

[dawn palm]

subst /d p:

[forest wadi]

Comes back when I refresh

[dense cove]

Refresh what

[dawn palm]

sorry
subst P: /d

[forest wadi]

Still same issue

[dense cove]

Worked finely to me

You sure you're not running anything with P drive

[forest wadi]

Worked now after I did the 2nd step

Thank you all for the help :D

[tepid sundial]

Hello, I have a small problem: the latest time, my construction tool won't launch the preview mode. I'm searching on the internet or on the Bohemia wiki, but I couldn't find a solution. Do you have a solution?

[sly skiff]

you have set up P drive with the Arma tools devp and that unfortunately rarely works these days

[tepid sundial]

Oh, nice and you know why it doesn't work anymore? And do you also know how to fix it or is there another way to proceed?

[sly skiff]

windows issues

[sly skiff]

https://pmc.editing.wiki/doku.php?id=arma3:tools:installing-steam-arma-3-tools
https://pmc.editing.wiki/doku.php?id=arma3:tools:setup-p-drive

Ive followed these in the past.

[tepid sundial]

Thanks but with the links you passed me I can't figure out how to use object bulder and buldozer for 3D ?

[sly skiff]

with this setup arma3p should set up buldozer to run thorugh arma3 exe

instead of the renamed copy of buldozer exe

this typically works better in win10+ environment

[jovial elbow]

If you still can't get the viewer to work, you can use this for the options for the external viewer path
(from mine, so the path won't match what you have, but the launch options are still good, this is the result of arma3p and mikeros tools setup process)
E:\games\SteamLibrary E\steamapps\common\Arma 3\arma3_x64.exe -buldozer -name=Buldozer -window -noLand -exThreads=0 -noLogs -noAsserts -cfg=buldozer.cfg
With the path to arma3_x64.exe replaced with whatever the path to your arma 3 installation is

[tepid sundial]

hey thanks I tried your method and it worked I was able to visualize my creations

[jovial elbow]

I haven't tried playing with the launch options, but you should be able to have it load a world for background if that's what you want

[sly skiff]

I have the instructions for that pinned in #arma3_model I think

[rocky rover]

Looking for guidance - I recently changed my ARMA3 location from my C: drive to an external SSD (labeled E: drive) because I was running out of space when mounting the P: drive. Now when i run PBOProject I get an error message "file cannot have hard drive:\ specifier.

I've built terrains in the past and had no issues with PBOProject but obviously I have done something wrong

[dawn palm]

Paste a screen shot of the gui's main panel pls.

[rocky rover]

Apologies for the delayed response. The problem has corrected itself.

[elder gale]

so P Drive is irrelevent today or just needs a bit of tweaking?

[elder gale]

So P Drive is no longer a viable tool or does it just need tweaking in Windows 11?

[glossy inlet]

Whether p drive is relevant depends on what you're doing

[elder gale]

I am going to dive back into modding. Actually picking up where I left off years ago on a sound mod, you know, one of the many now. Its cause I just read someone was having an issue with the P Drive

[glossy inlet]

Modding what though?

You need p-drive for terrains, and some models

[dawn palm]

bis replaced the use of a 'p' drive with an %appdata% folder.

pboProject forces bis binarise to use the old method.

[glossy inlet]

A appdata folder? What are you talking about?
What appdata folder? This is the first I hear of that

[jovial elbow]

Probably %localappdata%\Temp, which can be changed in the settings
As far as I know, it's just used for the temp files during packing of pbos
pboProject has a similar setting, but the default location is on the p drive if you are packing mods with a p drive

[dawn palm]

the 'temp' folder is also used by binarize.exe to:
+bake binarized p3ds into a wrp.
+bake proxy p3d info into the owner p3d.
the above is the reason why tools like arma3p (and indeed extractPbo) are necessary.
The major reason for the unfairly called 'temp' folder is to retrieve this data when using your own buildings. It is most certainly not temporary.

There's nothing illegal, immoral, or dumb usimg %appdata% but extraction tools will be difficult and prone to errors.

[empty sleet]

Trying to make sense of this. Having transitioned (fairly recently) to using mikeros tools and P drive is anything in the above discussion likely to impact on my modmaking?

[dawn palm]

using p: is something everyone understands

it's just one small part of the steep learning curve you need, to be a sucessful modder.

[frosty onyx]

tried opening viewer in addon builder. any solutions??? anyone?

[dawn palm]

addon builder makes pbos

if u meant object builder, set your path correctly to the arma3 exe in File->Options->External Viewer

[frosty onyx]

thx

[swift scroll]

Ladies and gents. I am currently using the Splendid Camera in the editor, and something I was curious about, was whether or not there was any mods around for a more intense camera. POLPOX has some decent features, but I have seen nothing around for exact lenses, only the general zoom option.

Does anyone know of any mods or tools that can be used in this way?

[dense cove]

What "intense"

[tardy kettle]

Anyone ever have issues with Addon Builder where it will not open regardless of what you do? It is the only function of A3 tools I cant access anymore

Is there anything I can share to help ya'll get an idea of whats wrong? Do I need to get a crash report from somewhere?

[dawn palm]

that sounds to me like you re-installed onto a different drive.

[tardy kettle]

Yes I did, however this is after it was crashing on the previous drive. I have since deleted all files (that I know of) pertaining to A3 tools and it still does not open on a fresh install

Is deleting the A3 tools folder on this path not enough? Am I missing files somewhere?

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common

[tardy kettle]

Can I talk to a dev or something? I will literally pay for the time it takes them to troubleshoot with me.

[tardy kettle]

https://tenor.com/view/gjirlfriend-gif-14457952604098199169

[sly skiff]

This is unlikely to happen. Especially on weekend.

When you reinstall the Arma Tools, does it open up a splash screen with checkmarks? At that stage it should write the tools registry entries.

I don't remember if there is any registry fix tool in there.

But kinda sounds like for some reason the registry don't get written on install

Or there's old registry that points to wrong place maybe

Which does not update

[dawn palm]

the fix for above is to 'play' steam tools once, which updates the registry and ini files.

@tardy kettleyou're lucky to have got any response, when you failed to mention the chsnges which caused the issue.

[elfin marlin]

HI getting this :

What is it mean ?

[glossy inlet]

Binarize crashed

There should be a crash dump somewhere

[tardy kettle]

I haven't gotten any screen like that to come up.

[tardy kettle]

I had it first installed on my C drive. My PC hard crashed and I had to use the power button to shut it down. Once I got the system back on my entire A3 Launcher says it gets corrupted and reinstalls all the mods. A3 Tools also says that it is corrupted. When I open A3 tools every program still opens up without issue. The only one that does not is AB. It just flashes on screen and then closes again. The only fix I found at the time was switch A3 tools to a diff drive. The issue now is that I have crashed multiple times and now none of my drives open AB.

@sly skiff

[tardy kettle]

@dawn palm I have just cleared all the A3 tools files from my pc, I deleted all the folders in steam apps path. Please guide me through what I need to do here. I will do it however you recommend.

[sly skiff]

this kinda feels like your windows is broken

you might need a full windows reinstall

since things just dont seem to work right at all

these are very rare issues and typically problem is in the users system

[tardy kettle]

Its only AB that does this though?

[elfin marlin]

In cfg for pbo or somethink smashed with arms tools ? Because I can't build anything even if I check something I was built before and I use it.

[frank sedge]

What I would try first would be to uninstall the A3 tools, if you haven't already done so. Not via Steam, but via the control panel. Then maybe delete the folder

C:\Program Files (X86)\Steam\steamapp\common\arma 3 tools

manually so that any files that have not been removed are deleted. Then reinstall the tools and hope for the best. Mikero takes a while to reply as he is far away from “our time zone”, so don't despair if he doesn't answer.
Deleting any windows temp folders might be a good idea as well using the integrated clean up tool.

[dawn palm]

@tardy kettlethere are alternatives to Addon Builder. Both Hemtt and PboProject have good reputations and good support when things go bang.

[tardy kettle]

I will give this a shot and if not I guess AB is cooked

[rocky rover]

I have an issue with pboProject. I installed in my C: drive but am getting the following error message - "The procedure entry point ?pbo_can_obfuscate@DePbo@@QEAAHXZ could not be located in the dynamic link library C:\Program Files (x86)\Mikero\DePboTools\bin\pboProject.exe." Not sure what step I may have overlooked.

[dawn palm]

you are using mis matched tools. use the aio installer to solve this.

[rocky rover]

Understood - thank you

[tardy kettle]

This did not work, I dont know what to do at this point.

[tardy kettle]

This seems to have fixed it. My AB loads fine now. The downside is all of my setting and such need to be fixed. I'm hoping this issue doesn't arise again. Thank you to everyone who helped recommend things. I'll be back in a month when it messes up again

[sly skiff]

lets hope you get to ask different questions next time 🙏

[swift scroll]

Like a more advanced camera. With different lense measurements as a basic part of it.

[dense cove]

Not sure what you really need

[rocky rover]

I am getting the following error when packing my project - configuring with P:\temp\GKR\Kartif$PBOPREFIX$

warning:$prefix$ comtains a different prefix over-ride
was GKR\Kartif, override= GKR\kartif\

[dawn palm]

Why on earth are you appending prefix?

simply remove it

[rocky rover]

OK - I thought $PBOPREFIX$ was required when pacing your projects.

Thank you for the assistance

[dawn palm]

https://discord.gg/tRW4RunR

[chilly ether]

Anyone have good tutorials for how the arma3tool box for blender functions, like a run down of the features and what they do

[hidden mist]

Tweaked: Some data has been repacked using binarization with new features (see an upcoming SITREP for more Intel) <- from yesterday's Dev Branch log

Any more info on that?

[limber garden]

I know the P3D version is now 70 (previously 68) but not sure what changed

[clever reef]

Are there any artificial intelligence-related systems that completely create the script for you? files, script initialization, and so on

[sly skiff]

no

its all garbage

[clever reef]

But I don't think it would be a bad thing to actually do it. An AI that creates a script, edits or corrects all errors from .rpt

[sly skiff]

yes it would

if you dont know whats good code you cant evaluate if AIs work is ok

[hidden mist]

Oh, I think it might be geometric occlusion, would make sense if it's a change in the p3d format

[limber garden]

They had the sections for that in version 68 though

[hidden mist]

Mh, in that case I'll remain curious

[limber garden]

Maybe it required an update for the sections to be used

[smoky halo]

it seems they want to support bigger (read more vertices and faces) models

[tiny flower]

are there any tutorials on how to go about making a map?

[languid fractal]

Anyone got a idea why hemtt refuses to find my script_mod file, I checked the path multiple times

The script_macro gets recognized without issue, so I'm a bit stumped here

[languid fractal]

alright, reset my p drive and it worked, windows probably fucked it up

[sly skiff]

The tools are quite delicate

[languid fractal]

True, it's just frustrating sometimes

[dapper pivot]

Mmm, yeah, faces are now ~16 bytes instead of ~9. Bit of a pain to have to deal with larger types when previously you could just bitblit most arrays.

[jovial elbow]

There's some stuff pinned in #arma3_terrain
pmc wiki has the best guides that I've seen
This I think is the primary guide: https://pmc.editing.wiki/doku.php?id=arma3:terrain:ultimate-terrain-tutorial

[dapper pivot]

Anyone checked the dev-branch of the tools to see if they now support 32-bit vertex references in MLOD's?

[sly skiff]

That's the commonly recommended for getting basics down. However there is really no full guide for all the rest that comes after basics😅

[dawn palm]

As much as I respect your opinions HG, I think you are being harsh with the PMC tutorial, Jakerod's tute is almost as good and better presented (Snake man has issues with organising pages on any of his). The PMC tute is the holy grail for making maps. No one should leave home without it. 🥸 There is undoubtedly additiomal fine tweaking required to get a good map, but any tweak i can think of is only necessary tinkering with the detail already presented.

Something we can both agree on is don't go near any video tute. One that is accurate and not misleading or wrong does not exist.

[sly skiff]

its just pretty solid on getting the basics down. Jakerods goes into some more detail on some of the things. But I think "first tutorial" is better to not go too deep into the finer details. People get lost with those as it is complex enough

[dawn palm]

agreed

[inner lark]

Hey everyone, i've been making a compilation of mods for my unit, and i've been able to update it many times in the past

this time for some reason i keep getting the error 8, i've tried deleting all the changes but nothing seems to work, anyone has had this problem before? if so how did you solve it, please help i've been trying to fix this for an hour now and since the forums are down i'm trying my luck here, good night everyone too.

[dawn palm]

error 8 is, as stated, an invalid parameter. It is either :
+caused when loading one of the requiredaddons, OR,
+you managed a slip of the fimgerz in the (current) config.cpp, OR,
+your cmdline to start arma3 has been bazongled,

the config error is not possible with our tools, but, it could be caused by one of the required addons.

even tho you can remove the addon list, the faulty addon itself can cause this error because the pbo will be loaded by the engine anyway.

[scenic canopy]

That’s an error dialog with the steam publisher tool, it’s not related to the game engine itself

[dawn palm]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarg

[inner lark]

Thanks for the help, to test that I tried uploading the same folder into a new mod, if it was one of those problems it shouldn’t let me upload it

[inner lark]

But it did, I don’t know what was the problem with the publisher but the same files, the same config and the same signatures and it worked in a new mod, I even managed to update it.

[scenic canopy]

Steamworks API works in mysterious ways

[scenic canopy]

Had similar issues with another Steamworks tool yesterday, it kept complaining about InvalidParam. Had to update the SDK integration for it to go away.

[junior beacon]

Is it possible to rename bisign and bikey files without breaking the signature? I was told yes, but I tested it yesterday without success.

[scenic kraken]

i was under the impression you could as long as the pbo and bisign match

[junior beacon]

I tried it with a Hemtt script and the launcher would say they are not signed. Then I tried with checkSignatures and the test failed too

[scenic kraken]

ah I just realized I resign after I rename

[junior beacon]

With Hemtt?

[scenic kraken]

No dssign

[junior beacon]

😢

[glossy inlet]

Game gets from server the names of the bisigns signer (that is the name after pbo name and before .bisign)
If the name server/client doesn't match, that lookup would fail and the server will be shown as potentially missmatching signatures in server browser.

But if the bikey/bisign names on server/client were renamed the same way, I'd expect that to work.

But the bikey/bisign itself, contains its name inside the file too. So if you rename it, you probably need to rename it inside the file aswell

[junior beacon]

I am not even as far as trying to connect to a server.

I might actually have an idea what I did wrong. Gonna test this evening.

[dawn palm]

as @scenic canopy has noted, the bikey contains the same name inside it and will fail if u (try to) rename it

our tools will show you the contents of any bisign, pubkey or privkey but there is no facility to alter them because bi will alter them whenever it suits them to improve security

[junior beacon]

Issue was on my end

file.move(addonsFolder.join(addonName + ".pbo" + ".bisign")); // Correct
file.move(addonsFolder.join(addonName + ".bisign")); // Wrong

Or maybe not.

[vague shard]

Dedmen would you recommend to rebin all/certain p3d for CDLCs? ref ODOL 73 vs ODOL 75 (latest)

[glossy inlet]

No

If you don't use the new features, there's no reason

[glossy inlet]

.pbo.bisign is invalid

The bisign name must appear between there

The bisign contains the bikeys name, after the .pbo

That is how the game find's which bisign to load

[junior beacon]

Hm ok.

That means I end up with a long name again so I'll just leave it.

[smoky halo]

mlod version that is saved by OB did not change

[dusk beacon]

Hey all, quick one but I'm having issues with mounting my PDrive.

It used to work, but now just doesn't.

I mount the drive, but it doesn't show up for some reason, when I try to open the location of the Pdrive I'm met with a error

this is my current pathing.

here's the log

I can't seem to figure it out, any ideas?

(I've also tried uninstalling, and reinstalling tools and their files and reinstalling bulldozer to no effect)

[sly skiff]

unfortunately my experience is that he tools launcher setup method often just dont work.

[dusk beacon]

any idea how to fix it or work around it?

[sly skiff]

ah yea sorry, got distracted

[dusk beacon]

It's all good mate, I've uninstalled it all again, hopefully reinstalling it works.

[sly skiff]

https://pmc.editing.wiki/doku.php?id=arma3:terrain:ultimate-terrain-tutorial#installing_arma_3_steam_tools

this section covers how to simply set up without the tools launcher

[dusk beacon]

many thanks

[jaunty forge]

I haven't used hemtt before, does it need to be manually added to path when installed from winget?

wait- no its already in path. What the heck why isnt hemtt recognized as a command

[stuck chasm]

restart your vscode/cmd
paths are cached

[jaunty forge]

that was it ty

, I'll take this over to the ace discord lol

[latent dagger]

Is imagetopaa.exe capable of being run in parallel safely? I.e. I can run multiple instances of imagetopaa on the contents of a folder and it not conflict/corrupt/explode/uninstall windows?

[dawn palm]

Very capable. Snake Man (pmc) has a bat file to handle multi threading.

[latent dagger]

Oh fantastic. Thank you!

[dawn palm]

I supply his texconvertors for free with my tools.

[latent dagger]

Ah yeah I found the scripts, I see what you mean. I never realized that's what its doing. Thanks for pointing it out!

[weary lichen]

Does anyone know if there is a way to view .PBO files from Cold War Assault by using Arma 3 Tools? I tried Bankrev, but I was not successful. I'm trying to study weapon cfg, and ammo cfg files. Someone told me that those files are packed into .pbo files.

[dense cove]

DePbo by Mikero surely worked on my end

[dawn palm]

yes, ALL my tools work same for OFP, VBS, Xbox, Arma and Dayz

[weary lichen]

Thanks again.

[weary lichen]

And would Bankrev be the proper tool for viewing PBO files?

[dense cove]

Arma 3 Tools might work on some OFP era files some don't, some never works at all

[dawn palm]

nope, extractpbo/makepbo, Unlike bis, our tools are fully backward compatible. The only tool from bis that still works for flashpoint is pal2pace (renamed by bis to img2paa)

[weary lichen]

Oh wait. You are THE Mikero? Wow. When you said 'my tools' I thought you were talking about your specific install of Arma 3 Tools. I didn't realize you were talking about the tools you made yourself, and have so graciously offered to the world.

[weary lichen]

This is good to know.

[dawn palm]

thank you

[dense cove]

Mainly thought of PAA. Guess was the only case that works on OFP

[dawn palm]

you are in for a necessary learning curve to know the names of equivalent bis tool names

yes, PAA and PAC remain the same

[weary lichen]

Interesting. Now would either of you know if I am going in the right direction for my goal? Namely locating weapon, and ammo data.

[dawn palm]

p3d is not compatible.

[dense cove]

Just open them all and find some config that would look related to your topic. OFP era config is located in everywhere but no consistency (much less consistency than A3)

[dawn palm]

I think my tool for converting odol7 is a freebie. if not, too bad.

weapons in arma no longer use a gear selection panel, and the 'slot' numbers for gear types have altered.

[weary lichen]

Right on. You two have been awesome. I highly appreciate it.

[dawn palm]

@weary lichenYou might be interested in playing with CWR1`,2 or 3. Each mod converts ALL flashpoint models and maps to the relevant engine and supplies ALL the official missions including the campaigns. The almost essential editor102 is also supplied. Very few self respecting missions were ever written without it.

[weary lichen]

That does sound awesome. I'm by no means a high level computer user. But perhaps one day. On that note. I downloaded your PBO extractor. But I don't know where the executable for it is. That should give you a decent idea of how good I am at computer stuff.

I also ran the installer. So it must be somewhere. I'm on Windows 10. I don't know if that matters.

[dense cove]

If you see the green gear icon on PBOs, just double click it

[dawn palm]

each tool is a lego block. All of them communicate via a central core called depbo64.dll. the beauty of it is, that there is onle ONE config compiler, irrespective of which lego block, or engine, uses it. Thus only one piece of code fixes a fault or updates the speed for everone. When arma2 was released, only the dll was altered, same for arma3, same fpr dayz.

do NOT cherry pick tke too;ls. Use the all-iin--one installer

then follow @dense cove 's advice

[dense cove]

You really need to hit your keyboard more carefully

[sly skiff]

What game are you going to mod?

The old configs wont be much use for arma3 so for it its best to read configs from arma3

[weary lichen]

I am not a modder. At least not yet. I am an Arma lover with mod ideas. So in the meantime I figured I might as well learn how to navigate computers better. So far I have been learning basic scripting, and I have found a particular enjoyment from exploring the Arma 3 config viewer. Upon realizing that I decided to go see what the first game was like, but that forced me to learn more scripting. Upon discovering there was no in-game config viewer I set out on this quest to learn how to decipher it. In so doing, I shall both learn more computer stuff, while exploring a series that I really love.

[weary lichen]

What do you mean?

[dense cove]

It is not about you

[weary lichen]

Right on. Much appreciated.

[dawn palm]

there is no syntax difference between a config for ofp and arma. arma however has three extra keywords. they both use inheritence classes.

[sly skiff]

👍 Then looking at those configs may give you some insight into how the old game worked. Good luck wiht your learning experience. Its always good to try to learn.

[weary lichen]

Indeed.

[weary lichen]

I see. But Arma 3 has a built in config viewer that is very fun to explore. I want to explore the configs in the old games. It has been quite the ordeal.

[dawn palm]

bedtime reading for you

https://community.bistudio.com/wiki/Class_Inheritance

[weary lichen]

I shall read it. Thanks again to everyone.

[dawn palm]

I want to explore the configs in the old games
simply use exractpbo. problem solved

[weary lichen]

That is the 'Lego' that I downloaded. The one I couldn't figure out how to open after running the installer. But if I'm understanding your Lego analogy correctly, then I shall be needing to install many more tools.

[dawn palm]

the aio installer downloads and installs them all.

[weary lichen]

Alright. I used the AIO installer. I still can't find the executables.

[dense cove]

^

[weary lichen]

Alright. Now it says

Attempting to connect to pipe...

Is that normal?

Never mind. I see what you mean. I might be into something here.

[weary lichen]

Alright. I have managed to get into some unpacked config files. Very cool. Now I shall see if I can find what I am looking for. I greatly appreciate all of the help.

[dawn palm]

wingrep is your friend. it will rapidly scan all configs for a given name. 6g30 eg, tent eg

[weary lichen]

Oh. That is interesting.

[tepid jetty]

When I upload a mod do I need to have the bisign and the bikey in the folder? or no

[dense cove]

Do you know what they do? They are to ensure the PBO is not modified so server owners can whitelist trusted Mods and allow players to use (if the server requires this process)

And bisign is for each PBO, bikey is for server, biprivatekey is only for you, not to leak

[tepid jetty]

So, bikey stays in the folder but not bisign or biprivatekey?

[dense cove]

...Do you know what they do?

[opal mist]

Never share or upload the private key anywhere, it's intended to be used only by you (to sign mods) and stored securely

[tepid jetty]

I tired can you just tell me, one of the things are for servers and the other one does something else

[dense cove]

bisign are for each PBO and everyone requires to join a server where PBO verify is enabled

[tepid jetty]

So they go in the folder with the PBO

[dense cove]

Yes, as you've seen it in any Mods

[tepid jetty]

Usually I don't look in the folder

I just play the game

[dense cove]

I am starting to wonder what you do

[tepid jetty]

Play arma 3, I'm just trying to upload a mod

that I hand crafted

like a sculpter

[dense cove]

Sounds some understanding you have is very wrong

[tepid jetty]

probally idk

I took a python class in 8th grade and almost failed so that probally says alot about my abilities with this kind of stuff

[vague shard]

@tepid jetty

1. the workshop item must contain the bisign file pair for each pbo
2. it should contain the bikey in keys folder for convenience, or otherwise you need to provide the file by some other means where people can grab it easily
3. the private key may not be included

[tepid jetty]

thanks man

[full drift]

@orchid shadow will you pm me please

[queen turtle]

Hey folks, someone knows how can i fix this shitty OB interface? Its the model view now fucked up because of a stupid misclick

[sly skiff]

manually

undock dialog move/dock it to right place

[verbal oar]

And then export the registry so you can restore it more easily next time.

[hollow nymph]

Anyone able to help with pboProject?

[jovial elbow]

Help with what?
I assume you are getting errors, which nearly always means that your mod has bugs or poor code (pboProject catches some poor code that can cause issues later, along with errors)

[hollow nymph]

Yep, something odd

Nevermind, I think I got it to work that out

Let me get the fix framed up

Now to add the mass tag(?)

[jovial elbow]

Hmm
I haven't done anything with ArmaMan, or much with models at all
You'll have to ask in #arma3_model if it still isn't working

That file structure, with what looks like building directly in Documents, might cause you issues later
Also, using code blocks (three backticks, followed by three letter language code) makes it easier for people to help

[hollow nymph]

Yea fair point

[sly skiff]

this does not seem to be valid P drive path

[hollow nymph]

Now I'm getting this

#include "CfgGlasses.hpp"

class CfgPatches
{
    class vnj
    {
        author="nonJoker";
        name="RPD Bandolier Pouch (single and double)";
        url="";
        requiredAddons[]={"loadorder_f_vietnam"};
        requiredVersion=1.0;
        weapons[] = {};
        units[]={};
    };
};

[sly skiff]

probably something in your glasses.hpp

[hollow nymph]

Maybe

Let's find out

class CfgFunctions
{
    class vnj3
    {
        class functions
        {
            file = "RPD_Bandolier\scripts";

            class postInit     {postInit     = 1};
        };
    };
};

class CfgRemoteExec
{
    
    class Functions
    {
        mode = 2;    // whitelist only
        jip = 0;    // JIP flag not allowed
        class postInit {allowedTargets = 0; jip = 0};
    };
};


class CfgGlasses
{
    class None;
    class G_vnj_rpd_pouchx1 : None
    {
        author = "nonJoker";
        displayname = "RPD drum pouch x1";
        model = "RPD_Bandolier\Models\RPD_drum_pouch_single";
        picture = "RPD_Bandolier\Textures\bandolier_icon.paa";
        mass = 34;
        identityTypes[] =
        {
            "G_NATO_default",300
        };
        mode = 2;    // Facewear mode:
                    // 0 = None - not supported
                    // 1 = Diving - diving goggles, only appear while swimming
                    // 2 = Goggles - normal goggles, they show overwater but disappear while swimming
                    // 3 = NVG - not supported
                    // 4 = DivingAndOverwater - goggles always show, over and underwater - added in Arma 3 v2.08
    };
};

Nothing seems out of order...

As far as I can tell, at least

[sly skiff]

is more a #arma3_config matter though

[jovial elbow]

How do I make pboProject use a pboprefix file?
It's ignoring the one that I added beside the root config.cpp, both $PBOPREFIX$ and pboprefix.txt

Figured it out. I needed prefix=path\for\addon rather than just path\for\addon

Nvm, it's still ignoring the prefix

This is the output from pboProject

creating joblist

Processing \raven\raven_cbj_65x25...

verifying model.cfgs(if any)...

<scanning files to pack (and verifying mlods if any)>

..
</end scan>

<MakePbo start>

prefix ignored in \raven\raven_cbj_65x25\pboPrefix.txt
config.cpp:compiling...
\raven\raven_cbj_65x25\pboprefix.txt :excluded


Prefix = raven\raven_cbj_65x25

writing header entries..

writing pbo header...
Writing data blocks...
File written to P:\raven\@raven_cbj_65x25\addons\raven_cbj_65x25.pbo
<MakePbo end>


signing raven_cbj_65x25.pbo ...

success
Job(s) completed in 0secs on Tue Jun 10 22:18:01 2025

And my pboprefix.txt file

prefix=x/raven/raven_cbj_65x25/addons/core;
author=Raven3.14;

I don't know what I'm doing wrong, or if this is just expected behaviour for pboProject

[torpid valve]

iirc it's $PBOPREFIX$.txt

[jovial elbow]

I tried that
It ignored the prefix anyways,
And including the prefix file in the pbo didn't work either

[dawn palm]

The prefix= in $pboprefix$.txt is ignored. It was first 'invented' by Kegetys and myself during Xbox Elite development.
THE prefix is created from the file location of the config.cpp, It is detailed in the readmes accompanying our tools.
I have no idea what a 'prefix file' in a pbo could possibly mean.

https://discord.gg/n5uua8PD

[glossy inlet]

You can unpack your pboProject pbo, after it was packed, with ExtractPbo.
Then edit the generated pboprefix file.
Then drag the folder back onto MakePbo, and it will properly pack it with the prefix you want.

But its probably easier to use HEMTT instead.

[jovial elbow]

Okay, so what's happening is expected behaviour, since it generates the mod prefix from the file location.
And I should just set up my files the way I want the prefix, ignore the prefix, or switch to using HEMTT.
Thanks for the response.

[frigid axle]

Would it be possible to create a script that, when placing objects like trenches, automatically deforms the ground, instead of just replacing the model, which results in most of the trench being underground and requiring manual deformation? Like replace for ace trenches?

[sly skiff]

probably

but might not be 100% reliable

as different maps have different cell size

(distance between heightmap points)

[hollow glade]

is there any documented errors with bulldozer RTDynamics_64.dll not being able to run on windows 11?, checked permissions of arma tools and bulldozer and application + reinstalled twice and still does not work (could not find anything on google thus far)

[frigid axle]

Config would help

[dense cove]

No it won't

[sly skiff]

there isnt really anything about those I think

[sly skiff]

this is not something that can be configured

its hardwired in each map

[frigid axle]

Got it. Is there any similiar mod?

[sly skiff]

if you didnt find any on workshop then maybe not

#arma3_questions is better place to ask if anyone knows of X type mode

debug path?

[hollow glade]

actually does bulldozer require arma to be downloaded on the same drive as it is installed on?

[sly skiff]

no

I run buldozer directly from Arma3 install and exes

My P drive is its own disk

not virtual one

[hollow glade]

yeah setting it up like that works thanks mr 🐐

[dawn palm]

@jovial elbowwhat surprises me here is why you can't have your source files located correctly on the 'p' drive in the first place.

there is an advanced method you can use to alter the prefix which I will only discuss via PM.

[jovial elbow]

I have them on the p drive
The path currently is P:\raven\raven_addon\config.cpp

[dawn palm]

so why can't these files be in the 'correct' location?

if they're replacing a bis pbo, I can understand.

[jovial elbow]

Ehh
I'm lazy
I've already got P: drive working, so I'll just set it up for the prefixes I want, or just leave it the way it is.
Altering the prefix isn't worth the fiddling in this case

[toxic relic]

@smoky halo that would be some good news...how did you figure it out

[dawn palm]

damn right it isn't

[main glen]

Anyone know what happened to https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2369477168 advanced developer tools?

[junior beacon]

Gone

[main glen]

https://tenor.com/view/oh-really-hmph-surprised-gif-18286648

anyone know why?

[junior beacon]

The author for sure knows.

[twin wind]

damn I came here to ask the same question...

[main glen]

Haha bro!

https://tenor.com/view/spider-man-we-one-gif-18212100

[twin wind]

whyy 😦

[main glen]

Most likely

[lapis mesa]

@glossy inlet Any comments on this? We really miss your mod 😅 🫡

[glossy inlet]

Not my mod

[lapis mesa]

Oh, sorry
I was misremembering someone else who made it
I'd check, but uh, the mod page is down

[glossy inlet]

He took down all his workshop uploads.
Hid some of his GitHub repositories, and left the Discord.
Don't expect it to be coming back

[lapis mesa]

https://tenor.com/view/disintegrate-gif-22469816

[lapis mesa]

Good thing I have an emergency local copy somewhere

Anyways, thanks for the info! Have a great weekend 🫡

@glossy inlet Actually, sorry, but I should ask: Any idea why they up and vanished like that?

[main glen]

What an odd behaviour

if it's intentional 😄

[neon flax]

#arma3_scripting message

[twin wind]

lol he could at least just wait until A4 is out 😄

[high crypt]

U find one? I need it too much

[smoky halo]

@toxic relic new ODOL version uses 4byte indices instead of 2byte for faces

[spark cave]

Can you explain how you do this? I've been trying to copy composition in manually, and the only solution that even seems like it might work at this point is to unbinarize the save file and drop every composition in manually.

[nimble island]

Ya, I am developing an external tool that reads/writes the SQM directly. So, I am free to do whatever I want. My tool generates compositions too. Since I cannot set the group callsign, I put this into the init field as a variable instead:
this setVariable ["ArmATvTUnitsCallsign", "ALPHA"];
Then, when I process later the units loadouts on the SQM, my tool looks at group init field to fetch the ALPHA callsign then set it into the SQM as if it was set by the editor. Release + video to come soon.

[spark cave]

That sounds great. I don't suppose you have an Alpha version of the tool you're willing to share? It would be incredible to have something to start from.

[nimble island]

I have. Soon (I am fixing alpha bugs now).

[spark cave]

Fantastic. I suppose I'll fearlessly charge ahead on the unit compositions. (Assuming our conversation in Editor doesn't give me an immediately workable workaround to work with.)

[scenic canopy]

There’s a couple of SQM compatible read/write tools and libraries on GitHub, search for arma config parser

[nimble island]

If you are OK with ruby, I did this lib: https://rubygems.org/gems/sqm2json/versions/0.0.4

[scenic canopy]

• https://github.com/overfl0/Armaclass
• https://github.com/BrettMayson/Config2JSON
• https://github.com/arma3modorganizer/SQM_Parser

[tepid sundial]

Hello, I'm coming back to this discussion because I'm experiencing a problem: every time I exit Object Builder and return to it the next day, I get an error message. Furthermore, when I check my files, it consistently indicates that 2 or 3 files are missing or incorrect, forcing me to redo the process. Do you know why this happens and how to fix this issue once and for all?

[jovial elbow]

Is that steam verify finding missing files?

[tepid sundial]

Every time I exit and restart Arma Tool, it detects missing files.

[jovial elbow]

You should be starting Arma 3 Tools directly, rather than through steam
Verifying files for Arma 3, and tools might fix the missing files
Or you might need to redo P: drive setup if you are using that, preferably using Mikero's tools (pmc wiki has a good guide for that iirc)

[tepid sundial]

I don't understand how to launch Arma 3 Tools without using Steam.
And are you advising me to redo my P drive using Mikero's tools to permanently fix this issue?

[sly skiff]

you would find the object builder exe from its install folder and run it from there

and yes setting up P drive and buldozer with mikeros tools usually works more reliably

[jovial elbow]

Right-click on the game, manage, browse local files is the easiest way to get to the install folder unless you are used to going through steamapps
The actual path to the install is %steamOrSteamLibrary%/steamapps/common/Arma 3 Tools, dependent on where your steam installation is, and which drive you have Arma 3 tools on

[tepid sundial]

Do you have documentation that explains how to use and configure my P drive with Mikero's tools?

[jovial elbow]

This is about the best: https://pmc.editing.wiki/doku.php?id=arma3:tools:setup-p-drive
Don't unpack the dubbing files unless you need them, it just takes longer

The short form is basically:
Download mikero AIO installer from bytex https://mikero.bytex.digital/ (free ones work fine and cover everything needed for most modding)
Set up P drive (mapdisk.bat, mikero AIO workspace setup, or project drive from Arma 3 tools)
Run Arma3P to unpack a3 content, probably skip dubbing
It should work afterwards

P drive needs remounting every time you restart your computer using some method, (unless you set it up as persistent, not certain it's worth the time)
I use Arma 3 tools mount project drive to mount P drive, seems to have worked fine for me

[odd talon]

Anyone got a fix for the steam API init failure access violation error for buldozer? I used to get this and applied the fix to run it from the a3 install location rather than the P drive but randomly its started appearing again on the install location?

ah fixed

Maybe because i've been switching between dev beta for the diag exe and normal but just had to run A3 Tools from steam > Select Project drive Management > select install buldozer mode > click run

Just as an fyi if anyone has the same issue in the future

Im assuming it may have something to do with the DLL's or something not marrying up to the newly downloaded version thats not in beta? but not sure

[torpid hinge]

Did something change with Addon Builder / Binarize's behaviour? I normally use a python script to invoke Addon Builder, which generates a command like this: sh 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\AddonBuilder\AddonBuilder.exe' 'C:\...\wh-annex\WHFramework.Altis' 'C:\...\MPMissions' -include=includes.txt In my newest PBOs, there's a new stringtable.bin file that wasn't present in my older PBOs, despite the command being the same. When running my scenario, the following shows in my log: sqf 12:38:36 Cannot find requested language "English" in binarized stringtable. 12:38:36 ➥ Context: mpmissions\__CUR_MP.Altis\stringtable.bin I only have <Original> entries in my stringtable and not <English> ones, but this causes my scenario to be improperly localized:

If I check my PBO on Steam Workshop which was published directly from Eden Editor, this stringtable.bin file doesn't exist, and it localizes correctly:

[glossy inlet]

You had stringtable.xml with NO translations besides <Original> entries? correct?

[torpid hinge]

Yes, the <Original> contains the english translations

[glossy inlet]

For now you can manually delete the .bin and it will fall back to the xml.
I'll take a look tomorrow

[karmic niche]

Does anyone have experience with PyCharm or any Jetbrains tools like Intellij?
I opened up my Pythia project and all of the sudden it complained about PBOPREFIX being undefined. I don't even have any reference to that anywhere. The .git/index file is mentioned because of my two $PBOPROFIX$ files in my tree, but that's all 🤷‍♂️

Or... could it be that it's a PyCharm bug triggered because I have a file named $SOMETHING? 🤨

Okay, lol, that actually was it 😅

Thanks for being my Rubber Duck

[void canyon]

Hey, I'm having some issues packing a pbo with Mikero's pboProject, it's always at the point of binarisation. I've tried reinstalling, and verified arma 3 tools. But so far nothing is working.

I can also send the log files if that would help

[glossy inlet]

Binarize crashed it seems.
There will be a binarize .mdmp file somewhere. Likely in your Arma 3 tools folder

Pack that in a zip and send me that

[glossy inlet]

@torpid hinge did it delete the stringtable.xml from the pbo??
Only the .bin was left?

[rocky canyon]

new update or something broke it, mine worked till yesterday now i get the same error

[odd talon]

@rocky canyon try what I posted here

after doing that make sure to reset the path for buldozer to the a3 directory

[torpid hinge]

uhh not for me, both files were present as checked by bankrev and pbo manager:

[void canyon]

I think this is it

[glossy inlet]

Mh when I packed with addon builder, my pbo explorer only showed me the bin.
Maybe something is just wrong with my addon builder settings

[dawn palm]

ppl on my discord channel are reporting similar to this:
Yes! I switched to legacybranch of armatools and got it working.

I've advised them to use the halve and halve again rule to narrow it down.

[dawn palm]

cause thats a known issue after the update```

[void canyon]

I appreciate it, I'll see what I can do

[void canyon]

sorry if this is a hassle but how would I roll back my arma tools?

[glossy inlet]

#arma3_terrain message

Oh that crash is super trivial

steam_api64.dll is outdated

uh

actually its not found

@stuck chasm There is no steam_api64.dll in Arma 3 tools?
There is a 32bit one, which, we didn't update

Now of course it is a bit stupid to be running steam game recording inside binarize.. But.... anyway

So the fix for this issue, go into your Arma folder, copy the steam_api64.dll, put it in Arma 3 tools (either in main folder, or next to binarize exe). Then it should work

Well I did think about that. But, I failed to consider that binarize has steam support enabled

Putting the steam dll into it is the easiest fix, and we can just quickfix that today

I think putting it next to binarize.exe should work, can you tell me if that works @west owl ?
So like this

This issue only triggers when binarizing a terrain.
Because, while binarize has no UI. Its opening the in-game terrain loading screen, and trying to mark that as a loading screen in steam game recording

[west owl]

Yes I will let you know tonight around 8pm CET

[glossy inlet]

I think by that time we'll have pushed a hotfix for it.
I'm just not sure if it needs to be in Binarize folder, or in the Arma 3 Tools folder

[scenic canopy]

The other one is in the root right?

Yeah, no 32 bit DLL in binarize folder

Publisher folder has steam api dlls as well

[glossy inlet]

I think binarize just before never actually loaded the steam api.
Because there is no 64bit dll it could use anywhere

[scenic canopy]

Probably

[vague shard]

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools is weird for me

locally i have only the 32bit from 2021

on our build server had both two dll. only the _x64 was updated tho

the build server was on legacy branch - which is gone now?

the different tools seems to have different versions of the dll too

[stuck chasm]

correct, newly built tools have the new version. other tools haven't been updated so having them use a new version of the steam api is risky
issue in this case is that Binarize now uses the steam dll's but doesn't actually have them included

the build server was on legacy branch - which is gone now?
when we release an update the legacy branch password is updated, it removes it from the list, use Arma3ToolsLegacy1040

only the _x64 was updated tho
not updated by us, none of the tools include the steam_api64.dll (except now binarize in a couple mins and only on dev branch for now awaiting hotfix to stable)

[vague shard]

thanks for the info - was the legacy branch replaced with a newer tools version tho?
we had to stick to it due to the reported problems before - if thats gone now, we have a problem 🙂

[stuck chasm]

was the legacy branch replaced with a newer tools version tho?
it used to be version 1.038, now its 1.040

what problem forced you to stay back?

[vague shard]

@stuck chasm ref: #arma3_terrain message and following

however the crash that stopped us may be the current dll issue. so need to re-test that.

full rebuild takes ~2h. so will report back later today

[hard locust]

Switched to dev tools, an it fixed the -1066598274 error I was getting when packing terrain 👍

[stuck chasm]

Thanks, if there is still issues I can also publish the 1.038 version on another legacy branch temporarily until issues are resolved

[junior beacon]

Where exactly would I find the log files of Publisher?

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\Logs
Seems empty

[ruby meadow]

try lookup
arma3publisher.rpt

[junior beacon]

Doesn't exist

hmm

[junior beacon]

weird

Guess I am screwed, the console only prints "Errors occured while publishing"

Man these Arma tools

[ruby meadow]

And tools Logs buttons takes directly that folder

[ruby meadow]

Seems it doesn't get even point "do .rpt of error"

[junior beacon]

@glossy inlet You had send me a different tools exe to fix that path length issue, was that fix released with 2.20?

[glossy inlet]

I don't remember when that was

I think I made the paths shorter right? I should've pushed that into he normal one

I don't even remember what tool it was

[junior beacon]

publisher.core.dll

Lol yeah

I used the dll you send me a few weeks ago and now it works

So the fix didn't make it =/

[glossy inlet]

I pushed it to publisher core though. In april. I don't know when the tools were branched

or if publisher was built at all?

No we must've pushed publisher because of the terrain tag

@stuck chasm maybe we didn't push the publisher.core.dll ?

[stuck chasm]

definitely updated, it should show rev 152926 in file details

[glossy inlet]

The filepath thing was 152789 🤔

Found it

stable was branched 4 days earlier, and it wasn't merged

But you can still keep using your fixed one 😄

[junior beacon]

yeah, I have too

[rocky canyon]

i need help,i cant get bulldozer to work anymore after the tools update... "external viewer attach failed" it was working correctly with stratis lighting before the update

[sly skiff]

youll need to refrehes P drive with arma3p and apply the lighting configs again

[rocky canyon]

what do you mean with arma3p ?

[sly skiff]

assuming you ha unpacked P drive arma3 data with mikeros tools (arma3p)

[rocky canyon]

nah i use vanilla arma 3 tools

[sly skiff]

okies, then no idea.

[rocky canyon]

i will try replacing the cfg

[hard locust]

Use mikeros arma3p, arma tools is crap for extracting data

[rocky canyon]

I tried to install mikeros and its giving me more errors when binarizing than A3 tools ever did. And it broke my old pdrive so NO

[hard locust]

That's because it does error checking, where addon builder does sod all. An it didn't break you P drive, you most likely just did the paths wrong or using the tools to mount P

[vague shard]

Subskeleton index out of range. There seems to be a SubSkeleton index that is greater than the number of sub skeletons, this should not be happening. Please report it with reproduction steps/files.

Is this new? [from .bin.log]

if so, should the model sent via A3FT?

[scenic canopy]

Game data on P drive needs to be recreated after large updates

[rocky canyon]

i dont use mikeros, so i should just extract the game data again ?

[vague shard]

Warning: memory usage limited by a page file. Current limit 2308 MB, wanted 6139 MB.
Increasing your page file size might improve game performance.
FileServer MaxCacheSize = 256 MB
Warning: CfgVehicles missing in PreloadConfig - may slow down vehicle creation
Warning: CfgAmmo missing in PreloadConfig - may slow down vehicle creation
Warning: CfgNonAIVehicles missing in PreloadConfig - may slow down vehicle creation
would be also good to learn if these are normal, or indicates a faulty P drive setup, or some parameter tweaking would help

[sly skiff]

the page file I dont think I ever got. the missing in preloadconfigs are normal

@sour hedge did we come into any conclusion on the subskeleton issue? Was it related to sections and animated parts

[scenic canopy]

Applies regardless of tools

[rocky canyon]

alright i try it thanks in advance

[vague shard]

d:\Bis\Source\Dev\Futura\lib\pactext.cpp(6064)Unsupported procedural texture type
➥ Context: #(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0) <- ShapeLoad: N:'ww2\assets_m_sourcespe\vehicles\tanks_m\spe_m4a1_76.p3d' P:'ww2\assets_m_sourcespe\vehicles\tanks_m\spe_m4a1_76.p3d'
Can not create source for procedural texture - probably badly formed texture name: "#(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0)"
➥ Context: #(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0) <- ShapeLoad: N:'ww2\assets_m_sourcespe\vehicles\tanks_m\spe_m4a1_76.p3d' P:'ww2\assets_m_sourcespe\vehicles\tanks_m\spe_m4a1_76.p3d'

noticed this also the first time. is that warning/error correct? "#(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0)" or whats wrong about this definition?

[glossy inlet]

I don't know if it matters.
I could look at the model but probably not have time for it anyway

[glossy inlet]

First can be ignored
The others are slow, but no problem

[glossy inlet]

In Binarize?
Binarize has no render, thus no render target

[vague shard]

its from binarize bin.log

there is other similar stuff to that like

d:\Bis\Source\Dev\Futura\lib\pactext.cpp(6064)Unsupported procedural texture type
➥ Context: #(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0) <- ShapeLoad: ...
Can not create source for procedural texture - probably badly formed texture name: "#(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0)"
➥ Context: #(argb,512,512,1)r2t(rendertarget0,1.0) <- ShapeLoad: ...

[west owl]

All good for me 🙂

Thanks 😉

[vague shard]

ok no more crashing ✅

however the different error/warning reporting for terrains (#arma3_terrain message) you may want to look into with Dedmen at some point
like hopefully binarize still generates the same working wrp as before and its really just more/different reporting 🙏

[i can provide our terrain bin and packing logs for reference via DM or A3 FT if needed]

[covert grove]

Thanks everyone - confirming that adding steam_api64.dll from arma3 into the binarize folder fixes the 1066598274 error when binarizing terrain 🙂

[sour hedge]

Conclusion on the subskeleton reporting was inconclusive - possibly related to having more bones in the skeleton than the allowed limit.
Same with the reporting on the "Unsupported procedural texture type" for rendertargets. Suddenly started appearing a few months back after an update and doesn't seem to be related to anything actually wrong.

When you mentioned sections and animated parts, you might have been thinking of the bone limit, which is typically regarded as 256 or thereabouts, but which I discovered can be much lower if bones are in more than one section, as they count twice. (example: a duplicated instrument gauge needle with same selection (bone) name, one for the daylight with normal texture and a second in podsvit pristoju with an emissive that glows at night).

[verbal oar]

Is not using a bone a potential benefit of this madness? xD #arma3_model message

[slender juniper]

Note to self, don’t ever update tools….

[dawn palm]

you don't have a choice in the matter. Typically updated p3ds crash map makers

my tools eg have an option to degrade p3d's unitil such time as bis relesase a new binmake for us.

[slender juniper]

Yeah I get that, I just get frustrated because I no have to remember how I got my ob viewer working the last time

[rocky canyon]

Same but somehow i made it to work again, dont ask me how

[vague shard]

Dedmen once you have a moment, can you please check if the rpt for terrain builder is broken? it creates the header (ok) and then only empty lines (at times 100k plus)
in C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\TerrainBuilder\Logs

sample

[hard locust]

You tried switching to dev version of tools? That fixed the crash I was having when packing terrain. No idea what issue you having, but might be worth a try.
You can also roll back the tools if you having issues

[glossy inlet]

Or just copy the dll's into proper place manually

[slender juniper]

I’ll bash away at it again today, just getting the viewer attach error, I used the forums last time I couldn’t get it to work… rip

[native talon]

hi, anyone have that problem with terrian builder:

[hard locust]

That's your paths wrong in layers.cfg or the rvmat of textures

not sure why you cut image off 🤔

[limpid drum]

Why does my PTT & radio (left of the picture in red) not have a front mesh when it does in blender? It uses the exact same texture as the ones on the right, but the ones on the right are fine. I tried copy and pasting it and it does the same.

[sly skiff]

Probably inverted mesh. Blender draws both front and back by default

Look up backface culling

[limpid drum]

just had to press W on the parts that were messed up

flip the normals

[sly skiff]

yes well that means your source is messed up

Id strongly recommend fixing your source

since the problems will just keep coming back

you also got couple of parts there with messed up uvmapping

[smoky basin]

is there any recommendations for a good statusbar i can use on my server

[rocky canyon]

What happened to the forums btw ? Seems like there is infinite maintenance

[sly skiff]

Just slow

[slender juniper]

They got DDOS'd as far as I can recall

[sly skiff]

This is not a helpful answer.

[slender juniper]

Well, yes and no, they got taken out by shadowy figures…but understood, I get what your saying

[sly skiff]

This is not correct info either as far as I know.

[slender juniper]

Then feel free to enlighten us then bloke

[sly skiff]

They're just switching forum plafrom and the migration work has been slow progress.

Bloke

[slender juniper]

Not what they originally went with… bloke

We understand the frustration of the community with the server difficulties over the past week. And we know that many of you want answers.

However, we cannot divulge details about the issue or the specifics of our efforts. We know this naturally leads to much community speculation, which we cannot prevent.

But we want to assure you:

We take this very seriously. We are doing everything in our power to get all of you back in-game as quickly as possible. At the end of the day, our words don't solve the problem. You all want to play the game, and we are the ones who need to make that happen.

So if we're more silent than you might want us to be, it's because we're focusing on solutions, not explanations. And we are making progress. We deeply appreciate your patience and support, and we will keep fighting to ensure this situation is remedied and that everyone can enjoy Arma Reforger to its fullest as soon as possible.

[junior beacon]

That's about in-game servers not the forum. Also wrong channel.

[slender juniper]

Apologies mate, just trying to answer old mates question, got carried away (as is usual for me) @sly skiff

[sly skiff]

indeed can see that happened.

[lost rampart]

@sly skiff @glossy inlet incase anyone is still curious about this - i actually just found the "culprit" of the subskeleton index issue - moreso found out when it happens - since i've recently been binning my meshes instead of using them unbinned - i've actually stopped having the error alltogether; granted im using hemtt so im not sure if it does anything differently when binning p3ds than mikero's or the vanilla tools, but i just checked and the error does not appear with binned p3ds, but it does still appear with unbinned ones - so in short it's probably with how the engine reads the unbinarized p3ds, and is not an issue with a released mod (if you want you can try replicating it with a mesh you know gets the error unbinned)

TLDR: as has been already said, the error itself highly likely doesn't matter, but i imagine it'll confuse people so perhaps if my steps can be replicated and confirmed, the error can be made more verbose to elaborate that you probably shouldn't care about it 😂

dedmen if you want i can share you my p3ds to get an exact replica if needed, but this probably isnt really something that warrants a good use of your time

@vague shard for reference ^

[sour hedge]

I see the errors reported in the "bin log" after building with pboProject. As far as I know that is binarising the p3d's?

[lost rampart]

maybe it gets reported in the bin log but it goes away in the .rpt 🤷

probably the bin log still does a similar check as the engine does on the unbinarized version before binarizing it

[rocky canyon]

Thanks mate 🤝

[vague shard]

@lost rampart binarized P3d (ODOL) are treated differently by the engine vs unbinned (MLOD). this goes also for the error and warning reporting.
so when a model gets binarized, the data gets optimized and changed. thus you no longer get certain warnings/errors during runtime/with the resulting MLOD p3d.

TLDR: certain warnings are only shown in the bin log (or if you load MLOD p3d with the game), while others are shown by for MLOD and ODOL p3d

so if bin log tags something as error, its usually something to look into/fix - hence it would be good to know what these are about

[glossy inlet]

Is that reproducible? I didn't touch it 😄
@stuck chasm ? :harold:

[glossy inlet]

The error only happens when binning.
So yes, it wouldn't show when already binned, because it already showed in binarize when you binned it previously.

They don't seem to be causing crashes, so the warning can probably just be added to the list of things to be ignored

[vague shard]

To be clear: Its nothing new - i have a rpt dated 2021 with just empty lines. Maybe it never worked or got bugged at an earlier A3 tools update.
I only stumbled upon it trying to help a team member with TB issues and thought maybe the rpt could help.

[glossy inlet]

That was indeed not clear.
Maybe we can fix it someday

[toxic relic]

hmmm...checky, i wonder if it will happen though...

[rancid lake]

How do we set the weight for geometry lod with ArmaToolBox in Blender ?

[signal basin]

can't get buldozer to open and from what i've researched my paths are correct

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/566355363385835521/1388905876932264019/image.png?ex=6862aee5&is=68615d65&hm=4c8e441252ffeed43ee713ee1e8f9ea37ef1505e8d35b1a7f5d7a041b8c967cf&

if i try to run buldzoer exe on the p drive i get this

no matter how many times i reinstall or repair i don't get that RTDynamics_32 file

[signal basin]

i got the viewer working now but it won't load textures enough though my path for textures is p:\

[sour hedge]

You can always set the buldozer path to run the arma exe from your game steam folder if running from p:\ is not working for you.
Check you don't have "hide textures" ticked.

[signal basin]

hide textures isn't ticked

i just get this

[sour hedge]

Probably the path is wrong.
You shouldn't normally have them in an addons folder.

[sour hedge]

In Object Builder in the Current LOD > Textures list, do you have those green oblongs showing that each texture is found?

[signal basin]

texture paths are right too

[sour hedge]

What size is that texture (exact pixel measurements)?

[signal basin]

4096x4096

all this worked before but i don't know what happened it just stopped working

[sour hedge]

If you remove that one texture from the model (temporarily) does it then load up, or does it fail with another texture error?

[signal basin]

using your command line now for external viewer i don't get the texture error anymore

but the texture still doesn't show up

[sour hedge]

What do you get instead of the texture? And do other textures show up?

[signal basin]

i don't get anything its just the untextured model

thats all i get

[sour hedge]

Your screenshot shows you have more than 1 texture. Do any of those textures show in buldozer?

[signal basin]

no nothing shows

[sour hedge]

If you replace one of the paa's with a tga in Object Builder, does it show in the main OB window (like the tank example I posted)?

[signal basin]

na nothing shows up with them as tga

i'm gonna try restarting my pc and remounting the p drive

ya man still nothing not textures showing at all

[sour hedge]

Have you got any other models which are still working? (ie, is it your OB set-up that has failed, or is it model specific)

[signal basin]

nope i've been trying all different ones

this is my external viewer command line C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3\arma3_x64.exe -buldozer -name=buldozer -window -noland -exThreads=0 -nologs -noasserts -cfg=buldozer.cfg

[sour hedge]

Update/verify Steam A3 tools?

[signal basin]

yep did that before i restarted

this is the DLL Folder path C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Arma 3 Tools\ObjectBuilder

then path for textures is P:\

[sour hedge]

Looks ok

[signal basin]

the tools options looks good too

[sour hedge]

In OB, you have "Use Direct3D" on? (button)

[signal basin]

yes

i have it checked to auto turn on when object builder is open

[sour hedge]

and the button to the right of that, which shows textures

[signal basin]

its greyed out i can't click it it looks like this

[signal basin]

how do i get it like that?

[sour hedge]

Usually when Direct3D is off, but it looks like you have it on

[signal basin]

if i put show solid faces on it turns on

but that still doesn't show be texures when buldozer is launched

[sour hedge]

Oh of course, forgot that too - 0 on the NumPad

[signal basin]

whats that do?

[sour hedge]

switches between wire frame and solid

[signal basin]

its not doing anything for me

[sour hedge]

num lock?

[signal basin]

ya my 0 is working but nothing is happening

[signal basin]

ya mine doesn't have a keybind

this is correct right?

[dawn palm]

most object builder issues ae resolved by using a shortcut to the exe rather than starting it from the gui menu

[hybrid iris]

Hi, I'm having a weird problem when I try to upload a mod to the workshop, it tells me "An attempt was made to move the file pointer beyond the start of the file."

[dawn palm]

the problem is not wierd, it's techno babble. figure out the diifference beteen this upload and a successful one, or, re-read the how-to looking for a mistake you made.

the only thing wierd is the use of english then portuguese in the error message, it suggests that the message is inaccurate.

[frozen meadow]

its spanish lol, maybe someone missed son string table

[glossy inlet]

Nah it's just that publisher is not localized

[cold gorge]

Hey guys, trying to sign a mod for unit but the "To play on the server remove listed files or install additional accepted keys". I have signed it through DSutils and the server owner has confirmed the key is infact in the server, we use faster to host off a dedicated box. It works when we remove the required addons of "CUP_AirVehicles_MQ9" but then the mod itself breaks. Would anyone know how to resolve this? This is the mod: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3513625966

[frigid steppe]

can someone pls explain why i cant sign these 2 files

why does it not want to sign

[dense cove]

• Which software you use to pack the PBO
• How big the PBOs are

[frigid steppe]

2gb

[dense cove]

How big exactly

[frigid steppe]

one is 2 gb and the other is 1

[dense cove]

2 GB is hard limit of a PBO file

But you didn't answered the first question

[frigid steppe]

damn

[frigid steppe]

pbo manager

[dawn palm]

whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?

[dense cove]

Put pboManager into your garbage bin and use proper software to pack

[dawn palm]

good grief

pboProject, Hemtt, or bis Addon builder

[frigid steppe]

how do i pack using this, im sorry if its a dumb question

[dawn palm]

@wyatt, pboMangler is an excellent, intuitive, gui to make missions. You have no chance at all for it to make addons

i think you're better off with pboPro. most ppl here don't use bis.

irrespective of which tool you choose, ALL of them have the same steep learning curve.

[frigid steppe]

it works thanks

[dawn palm]

which 'it' did u choose?

[frigid steppe]

addon builder

works for the 1 gb one

now i need to probably split the other so it wont be big

how about this error?@dawn palm

[dense cove]

"You did something wrong" is what it says

[dawn palm]

i don't issue any such error. I know what it means but i'm not going to encourage you to use that tool.

[long pendant]

I setup my hemtt project using hemtt new. Do I need to specify my config.cpp and the like in the project.toml using include = [...]? Or will it automatically detect them somewhere somehow?

// Folder structure
C:.
└───MarlosEnhancedTransmissions
    │   .gitignore
    │   compile.bat // just hemtt dev inside, used for building. I'm just used to making these files
    │   LICENSE
    │
    ├───.hemtt
    │       project.toml
    │
    ├───.hemttout
    │   │   ci_annotations.txt
    │   │   latest.log
    │   │
    │   └───dev
    │       │   LICENSE
    │       │
    │       └───addons
    └───Addons // .pbo goes here when I use build?

Thanks!

[vague shard]

@long pendant HEMTT support is located on the ace discord

[long pendant]

oh okay

[dawn palm]

There's no config.cpp in that diagram and it looks unnecessarily complicated. Anything requiring xaml or equivalent is a wasted effort. It's the 2nd worst language ever inflicted on the poor buggers who need to use it.

[glossy inlet]

Well luckily, there isn't any xaml.
If you'd read the diagram.

[dawn palm]

oh well, i assumed toml was another branch of xaml, or similar hideousness.

[Tom's Obvious Minimal Language] looks ok

[haughty gate]

Hi,
need help with addon builder.
since last Arma update i get this message here.

[sour hedge]

Try this button

[odd talon]

With PBO project does anyone else get long binerize times when modifying RVMATS?

I edit one RVMAT used on one model and it takes a a few minutes to binerize the pbo

Just wanted to check its expected behaviour or if i've got some funky settings

[odd talon]

for reference, i changed one value in the RVMAT and it took 377 seconds

[sly skiff]

do you do full build?

[odd talon]

Nope not full build

I can’t seem to find a setting that would relate to it

I updated the tools today and no change

[sly skiff]

how long does it take if you dont edit rvmat?