Change/choose rom location?

[MorningStarGG]

When we export, does it copy the roms/iso files over? I use a cloud storage provider to store my games. I "stream" them locally on demand as needed. I'd love to do the same on Android. Is there any way to copy, or not copy our roms/iso files where we want them and tell the Android version where our rom/iso files are? I'd really prefer to not pull such large amounts of data locally. I don't have the storage space for that and am tired of my local drives failing that I've stored these on. Any help?

Edited September 15, 2019 by MorningStarGG
Clarifying the topic name.

[Jason Carr]

Currently, storing the games locally is the only option, unfortunately, unless you use something like the nVidia's Shield's functionality to mount a network share as a storage device (which I have yet to test). I will be adding some sort of option later on to be able to pull files off of a NAS or similar (I think, not sure how yet), but that will be coming at a later date.

[MorningStarGG]

11 minutes ago, Jason Carr said:

Currently, storing the games locally is the only option, unfortunately, unless you use something like the nVidia's Shield's functionality to mount a network share as a storage device (which I have yet to test). I will be adding some sort of option later on to be able to pull files off of a NAS or similar (I think, not sure how yet), but that will be coming at a later date.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking of doing if you came back with this answer. I do hope resources get invested into allowing us to only export the theme/images/details of these games and just pointing the app to where the games are. I see that as a "must have". In the meantime, I will be attempting my Shield's mount function in tandem with my home computer to achieve this. Well, when I finish rebuilding my collection from the last hard drive failure. *sigh*

[Clab4293]

if I already have my roms on my Android TV SD card would I have to take them off and put them on my computer and then put them back on my Android device's SD card for explorting??  Couldn't you just point to where the roms are located for each emulator like every other frontend for Android??

[Jason Carr]

17 minutes ago, Clab4293 said:

if I already have my roms on my Android TV SD card would I have to take them off and put them on my computer and then put them back on my Android device's SD card for explorting??  Couldn't you just point to where the roms are located for each emulator like every other frontend for Android??

That functionality is coming soon. However, currently, yes, the export process is the only option. Whether it feels backwards to you or not, this was the best option we had to get our user base up and running relatively quickly.

[Clab4293]

That makes sense. Thanks for the hard work. Also on the games/roms selection there's no way of changing the emulator settings (click on the 3 dots to the upper right} with a controller. 

[Jason Carr]

3 minutes ago, Clab4293 said:

That makes sense. Thanks for the hard work. Also on the games/roms selection there's no way of changing the emulator settings (click on the 3 dots to the upper right} with a controller. 

The Y button should work to open that menu. I've tested it with a Shield controller and an Xbox One controller.

[Clab4293]

So it would be triangle on PS4 controllers? I will try it

[Jason Carr]

Just now, Clab4293 said:

So it would be triangle on PS4 controllers? I will try it

I think so, yes. Should be the top button of the four.

[Clab4293]

Thank you so much, it works.  ?

[MorningStarGG]

46 minutes ago, Jason Carr said:

That functionality is coming soon. However, currently, yes, the export process is the only option. Whether it feels backwards to you or not, this was the best option we had to get our user base up and running relatively quickly.

You are saying soon. I am still building out my collection and as mentioned it's in the cloud. I don't have a good internet connection to be moving or modifying the location of my files easily. So, my question is how soon? Any ETA or guesses? I'd really love to not have to worry about the location of my roms/iso files. I also see the LaunchBox data files/videos/images and such running so much better locally than via the cloud. The games would run fine from there on an as needed basis but to have all of it having to run from there might not work the best. And, I'd love to just be able to keep these things separated. LaunchBox files local, games in the cloud. I'm not trying to be pushy and I'm sorry if this question comes off that way I'm just trying to see if there is any idea when this might happen. Right now, I'd have to basically pull all my files down locally(so much bandwidth and time) and send them all back in the format you want/need.

[Jason Carr]

1 minute ago, MorningStarGG said:

You are saying soon. I am still building out my collection and as mentioned it's in the cloud. I don't have a good internet connection to be moving or modifying the location of my files easily. So, my question is how soon? Any ETA or guesses? I'd really love to not have to worry about the location of my roms/iso files. I also see the LaunchBox data files/videos/images and such running so much better locally than via the cloud. The games would run fine from there on an as needed basis but to have all of it having to run from there might not work the best. And, I'd love to just be able to keep these things separated. LaunchBox files local, games in the cloud. I'm not trying to be pushy and I'm sorry if this question comes off that way I'm just trying to see if there is any idea when this might happen. Right now, I'd have to basically pull all my files down locally(so much bandwidth and time) and send them all back in the format you want/need.

I really don't know time frames because I don't know what all will be involved. As in the past, I don't make promises as to release dates, even roughly. I'm sorry for that. If the existing solution isn't ready for you, then just hold off until it is, and use whatever solution you had previously.

[MorningStarGG]

1 minute ago, Jason Carr said:

I really don't know time frames because I don't know what all will be involved. As in the past, I don't make promises as to release dates, even roughly. I'm sorry for that. If the existing solution isn't ready for you, then just hold off until it is, and use whatever solution you had previously.

I never had a solid solution. I had been testing several until I found LaunchBox about a year ago and have been hoping/waiting for and Android version.

Thanks anyhow. I guess I'll just have to wait. *sigh*

[lilcheeks]

Is there anyway to edit the ROM location after you import?  My ROMs for my desktop are on a NAS, but i have a collection of ROMs on my phone locally as well.  I know there's no GUI interface for this yet, but is there a way to edit a certain file to make the import work?  Right now i add the import file, which doesn't include ROMs because that isn't support yet for network drives, but when i click the box art to launch a game, it's looking for my mapped network drive on my phone.  I feel like the only way to get the android version to work for me is to modify my desktop version temporarily, which may not be worth it.  Maybe i just can't use the android version until later, which is fine, just want to make sure there's not something i can do to edit files on my phone to make the import work.

[DOS76]

"Is there anyway to edit the ROM location after you import?  My ROMs for my desktop are on a NAS, but i have a collection of ROMs on my phone locally as well.  I know there's no GUI interface for this yet, but is there a way to edit a certain file to make the import work?  Right now i add the import file, which doesn't include ROMs because that isn't support yet for network drives, but when i click the box art to launch a game, it's looking for my mapped network drive on my phone.  I feel like the only way to get the android version to work for me is to modify my desktop version temporarily, which may not be worth it.  Maybe i just can't use the android version until later, which is fine, just want to make sure there's not something i can do to edit files on my phone to make the import work."

I'm a little confused here, if your ROMS on your desktop version of LB are on a NAS when you export them to your phone it will write them onto your phone. It won't be using them from the NAS on the phone. The ROMs already on your phone (assuming they aren't from a LB import) are basically useless for use with LB at this time. What isn't supported is using a network drive to store the ROMs to be used in Android.

[MorningStarGG]

28 minutes ago, DOS76 said:

I'm a little confused here, if your ROMS on your desktop version of LB are on a NAS when you export them to your phone it will write them onto your phone. It won't be using them from the NAS on the phone. The ROMs already on your phone (assuming they aren't from a LB import) are basically useless for use with LB at this time. What isn't supported is using a network drive to store the ROMs to be used in Android.

Network drives can be mounted on devices like the nVidia Shield. I'm thinking they my be using a similar thing? Not sure. As that's what I'm wanting to do, export images/videos/data and tell Launchbox on Android where the actual games are.

[DOS76]

Yeah I was more responding to the post directly before the one  I made I guess I should have quoted it in the beginning of my post.

[MorningStarGG]

1 minute ago, DOS76 said:

Yeah I was more responding to the post directly before the one  I made I guess I should have quoted it in the beginning of my post.

I know which one. I think he's trying to do some funky network setup but doesn't want his games local on the device as I don't. I'm not sure how or why he'd get it to say the roms aren't there as you said the export should have copied them and import put them on said device. But, I dunno.

[DOS76]

I have already exported games to my phone that are located on my network drive via my PC version of LB. From what I'm interpreting he is under the assumption that he can't use those to import to his phone as they will be looking for the network location which is a false assumption as once they are exported locally to his device they will no longer rely on the network path at all.

[MorningStarGG]

11 minutes ago, DOS76 said:

I have already exported games to my phone that are located on my network drive via my PC version of LB. From what I'm interpreting he is under the assumption that he can't use those to import to his phone as they will be looking for the network location which is a false assumption as once they are exported locally to his device they will no longer rely on the network path at all.

I'm not sure. I just know I don't want to have my games locally. That's the point of this whole topic. I only want the images/videos/data local, not the games. He did say the games won't launch though because they are looking for them elsewhere. And, that's odd.