TLDR:
After launching a project and already compiling shaders to the default Zen DDC Folder(sigh), go to
Editor Preferences > Global > Derived Data Cache
and set the Project Local DDC Path to
%GAMEDIR%LocalDerivedDataCache
Upon restart, the project will compile shaders from scratch but they will be placed inside the project folder.
I can’t find where this variable is stored, so it’s not possible to set it prior to launching a new project.
I can’t even export any of the settings?!
I’ve read the DDC documentation, again, and the comments in BaseEngine.ini file, again.
The following command sets an environment variable which supposedly sets the location for the DDC system, Zen or otherwise.
setx UE-LocalDataCachePath %GAMEDIR%LocalDerivedDataCache
But it does not work.
I did find a line in BaseEngine.ini to make the Zen DDC save to the current project folder.
Under the [Zen.AutoLaunch] section, change the
DataPath=%ENGINEVERSIONAGNOSTICINSTALLEDUSERDIR%Zen/Data
line to:
DataPath=%GAMEDIR%LocalDerivedDataCache
But I was too quick to celebrate.
Unfortunately, upon a launching a different project, this method deletes the previous DDC location.
My conclusion is that it’s bugged. Epic, please fix.
I had already reported that the environment variable not working a month ago. Though, I can’t find my report now for whatever reason.