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The GCF/NCF Files
tab lists the available GCF/NCF files existing in the GCF/NCF storage folder. It also allows to manage these files using the contextual menu.
The list can be ordered by :
The Steam network Games/Media/Files are saved on the user's computer using Cache Files. Two kinds of Cache Files currently exist:
These files are described in the CDR which tells what the latest version of each file is. To be up to date, a file must have the same version as the one from the CDR.
Files with an anterior version number are called outdated
and must be updated using the download features or patches.
If an existing file in the GCF/NCF storage folder is not listed, it could be for different reasons :
Preferences
tab.For each GCF/NCF file, the following information is available:
common
subfolder of the GCF/NCF storage folder.common
folder files for NCF files.100.00%
. If a GCF/NCF file's completion is less than 100%, it means that its content is not entirely downloaded. If a local GCF/NCF file's version is anterior to the CDR version, it is displayed as outdated
.Logs
tab.
Detailed information concerning the GCF/NCF files is available using the Properties
function of the contextual menu.
All the operations described below are accessible from the contextual menu, by selecting one or more GCF/NCF files to be processed.
Only one operation can be executed at a time on a GCF/NCF file. If needed, the currently running operation can be interrupted using the stop task
function of the contextual menu.
A specific function can be associated to the double-click on a GCF/NCF file in the Preferences
tab.
A GCF/NCF file (including NCF files common
folder) can be deleted using the Delete
function of the contextual menu. Be aware that a GCF/NCF file can be used by more than one Game/Media/Tool.
The GCF/NCF file properties
popup gives detailed information about a GCF/NCF file, such as:
common
folder name for NCF files.common
folder size for NCF files.
The Open
function of the contextual menu allows to open the GCF/NCF file using the system files types association. An external GCF/NCF tool is required.
To execute a batch command line on the selected files, select the Run batch
function of the contextual menu. The command line is configured in the Preferences
tab.
To copy the GCF/NCF files list and description to the clipboard, select the wanted GCF/NCF files and use the Copy
function of the contextual menu.
(or press Ctrl+C
).
GCF/NCF files can be validated in order to ensure that their structure and contained files are not corrupted. Two operations are possible :
For various reasons, it may be interesting to create a mini GCF. A mini GCF is a GCF file where all the content is replaced by empty data. It can then be compressed with a very high compression ratio, but the content may have to be reacquired.
Two modes are possible for the creation of mini GCF files as configured in the Preferences
tab :
In order to create a mini GCF, select the MiniGCF
function of the contextual menu. The mini GCF will be created in the output folder as configured in the Preferences
tab
If a GCF/NCF file is outdated or not 100% complete, it may be possible to update it from the Steam network. This operation requires a valid Steam account owning the GCF/NCF file to be updated. This account must be properly configured in the Preferences
tab. Please read the Security warnings concerning accounts.
In order to download a GCF/NCF file from the Steam network, it must first be associated with a pre-configured account. It is possible to change this association using the Download / Account ...
function of the contextual menu.
To resume a GCF/NCF file download, use the Download / Resume
function of the contextual menu.
In case of a pre-load, the GCF/NCF file will be decrypted on the release date.
In case of error, you may find more details in the Logs
tab.
To pause a download, use either the Download / Pause
or the Stop task
function of the contextual menu.
The GCF/NCF files download can be monitored from the Bandwidth monitor
tab
If a GCF/NCF file is outdated or not 100% complete, it is possible to update it using patches.
The update workflow is the following:
archive
file from your local outdated or incomplete GCF/NCF file, using the Patches / Make archive
function of the contextual menu.archive
is a small file with a description of the GCF/NCF file such as the version, contained files, completion,...update
file from the archive
file and a more recent/complete version of the corresponding GCF/NCF file, using the Patches / Make Update
function of the contextual menu.update
file contains the updated description and content.update
file on the original GCF/NCF file, using the Patches / Apply update
function of the contextual menu. The local GCF/NCF file with then be updated, and the available content from the update
will be added. In case of a pre-load, the GCF/NCF file will be decrypted if the update
file has been created from a released version.
The archive
and update
files will be created in the output folder as configured in the Preferences
tab
If plugins are installed for processing GCF/NCF files, a Plugins
section will be added to the contextual menu. More information about plugins can be found on this page.