Is it possible share content between projects?

Development Asset Creation
, ,
1

For example I would like import materials or blueprints from one project to another but editor is no able to load or browse into .uasset archive.

How could I reuse project contents between different projects without have to import and redo the raw content ?

2

Right now each project has its own content, and it cannot be shared. If you want to move content from one project to another, you can right click on the asset(s) you want to copy and choose ‘Migrate’. This will copy the asset(s), plus all their dependencies, into a folder of your choice.

In future we would like to have a mechanism for sharing assets.

1 Like
3

I am all interested in Sharing Materials, Textures, Blueprints, and Meshes etc between Projects. With the migrate procedure it creates a lot of double handling which i think is overkill. It would be good if there was a Common dir where core, shareable assets could be located.

Currently Im looking at a work around by copying Assets over into the Unreal Engine\4.0\Engine\Content\ directory, which looks like it should work. Can i ask why I cant migrate assets to this directory?

Also, does Unreal precache all of the data in the \Engine\Content\ dir? If so it is likely that using my work around will eventually lead to a sluggish editor due to having massive Asset libraries preloaded.

4

I would also like shared libraries between projects. I hope it will be added in a future version of UE4. A shared library with generic materials, blueprints and textures that can be used in multiple projects seems a very important feature to me.

5

It seems from the answer that you can migrate content to a common “shared” folder from all projects that you wish to share and then import all content from that common “shared” folder when you start a new project.

This should allow you to at least start with all common content

6

Any news about that?

7

Re : Any news about that ?
Thanks

8

Yes, any news about that, Epic team ?

Managing projects with shared assets is really important IMO. Can we expect in the future to reference any asset that could be located over the current project ?

Thanks to keep us informed.

9

Ditto! this needs to happen.

10

Guys, I just have the same problem here, but after some research, I find a good way to meet such demand. No need to request Epic a new feature.

The answer is create Directory Junctions between project content and your reusable assets repertory.

check out this link:

for example:

mklink /J “E:\UnrealProject\MyTestProject\Content\MyMaterialLib” “E:\UnrealProject\MyRepertoryProject\Content\MyMaterialLib”

this command will build a directory junction from MyRepertoryProject’s MyMaterialLib directory to my current working project MyTestProject under Content directory. Then, you can use any assets in the “MyMaterialLib” directory at MyTestProject just like it was local project’s assets.

11

I was thinking about doing this but I’m concerned it’s likely to cause issues if sharing/junctioning with projects that aren’t using the same version of UE4 (older versions can’t open files created in newer versions).

12

From my past experience with links all I can stay is: Stay away from it.
Sooner or later you WILL run into problems when moving, migrating to another computer or upgrading windows.

13

Any news on a sharing content mechanism? For archviz this could be a life saver (or better; disc space saver) because much often, the same basic materials and objects are used in multiple projects. Trees, grass, brick, etc so the disc is filled with the same data over and over again

3 Likes
14

I agree I would like a shared resource option between projects or games. I am planing on using a common branding with in my games, and duplicating that content for each new project or game seems a poor option. As In eats up a lot more space, and maximizes pain when making changes to core content. As you would have to make the change in all your projects or games.

15

Hello there,

Has anyone found a workaround for this problem? I am using UE only for filmmaking and some basic assets (e.g. water, sky, trees etc) are used in every film I make.

It would be nice if they could be shared between projects, because right now, for each film I am working on I have to copy-paste all the basic assets again and again in the different projects, which is, as people have mentioned, a disk space killer.

Thanks!