Managing External File Paths
A groom often references files that live outside it: imported geometry, texture maps, baked Alembic caches, sub-grooms, and scripts. When you move a groom to another folder or another machine, those references can break if they point at absolute locations that no longer exist. The App's directory manager solves this by resolving file references through a list of search locations, and by keeping paths portable when you save.
This page is about files that are kept as external references. You can also avoid the problem entirely for many files by embedding them in the groom; see Editing Operator Properties.
How file paths are resolved
When a groom needs a referenced file, the App looks for it in a prioritized set of locations rather than trusting a single stored path. In order of priority, it searches:
- Any files embedded in the groom.
- The folder the groom itself was loaded from.
- The groom's own scene search paths (saved inside the groom).
- The global search paths from your settings.
- The App's user assets folder.
The first matching file wins. This means a groom whose textures sit next to it will keep working even if it is moved, because the groom's own folder is always searched.
Scene search paths and global search paths
The directory manager keeps two editable lists:
- Scene search paths are stored inside the current groom and travel with it. Use these for locations specific to one project. They are available only when a groom is open.
- Global search paths are stored in your application settings and apply to every groom you open. Use these for shared asset libraries that many grooms draw from.
Below these, a read-only Always searched section shows the locations that are checked automatically: the current groom's folder and the user assets folder.
Keeping paths portable
When the option to make paths relative is enabled, the App rewrites a referenced file's path relative to a search root whenever it can, instead of storing an absolute path. It only does this when the file genuinely lives inside one of the roots, so it never produces fragile paths that climb out of the groom's folder.
When you save a groom to a new location with Save As, the App re-resolves each referenced file and rewrites its path relative to the new groom folder, so your assets remain reachable and the groom stays portable.
Where to find it
The directory manager's search-path lists are edited in the settings dialog. See Settings and Preferences. The search paths can also be queried and changed from the Scripting with the Python Console.