Mesh file is unused in this asset warning and errors

Apologies if this has been reported elsewhere. It may also be a suitable thread for the content creation forum.

I was trying to use one of my loco assets to test some scripting and thought I'd bump the Trainz Build to 5.1 to see what would happen. For 5.1 all my trainzmesh meshes that are in LOD files (LM.TXT) are being identified as an error such as:

! <kuid:186372:890188> : VE268: Mesh file is unused in this asset: 'cnj840_body_lod0.trainzmesh'

If I make the TB 5.0 then its just a warning.

The comments for the VE268 message don't seem to apply to my situation. i.e. all the meshes are being used and I'm not trying to reference them from a mesh asset library.

Maybe I'm a bit thick but I literally don't understand the error. Can someone point to an earlier discussion or explain what is required in simple english?

I got the warning with TB4.6 just the other day.

Unused meshes or textures should not be there ofc.
but they don't hurt the game, cause they are simply never loaded.
Seems a redundant warning only confusing for users.
Don't think any asset beside a route and a session require a buildnumber above 4.6

G.M. said:

Unused meshes or textures should not be there ofc.
but they don't hurt the game, cause they are simply never loaded.
Seems a redundant warning only confusing for users...

Click to expand...

As I read the WiKi page for VE268, it says that unused meshes are warnings in 5.0 and below but errors in 5.1 and above. Fair enough if FBX files for those meshes exist since it wastes commit time. It then goes to say that meshes from mesh libraries need to be properly referenced. Not entirely sure what the issue is there but I'll accept that.

But, in my case, all the offending meshes are being used but are identified in LM.TXT files so I don't understand why I am getting warnings/errors.

I did a search of TS22 assets (TB 5.0/5.1) on the DLS and the only traincar assets I could find are EDH6 assets and they are also attracting the same warnings.

G.M. said:

...
Don't think any asset beside a route and a session require a buildnumber above 4.6

Click to expand...

I disagree with this statement. Unless we have a really good reason for using a TB less than the current then we should use the current, which, in this case is 5.0/5.1 for TS22. Building assets for TB 3.5 just so it meets the minimum for DLS upload is just making work for others to repair your asset at some later stage.

Strikes me that this is a bug that needs sorting out?

clam1952 said:

Strikes me that this is a bug that needs sorting out?

Click to expand...

I recall seeing a discussion on this issue recently but cannot recall if it was somewhere in these forums or on Discord. A search didn't find anything. It seems to me that the validation isn't searching through LM.TXT files identified in the asset config.

I don't understand why N3V doesn't publish validation changes rather than leaving us to find them and then figure out a way to solve issues.

Build 4.9 is required for certain script functions used in those locos (GetConfigSoupCached), I went with 5.0 as that was what I was testing in at the time. I noticed the warnings too and ignored them as the meshes clearly were in use. Perhaps N3V want us to stop using lm.txt and start using mesh table LOD, but if that's the case they should publish documentation to that effect instead of (as you say) leaving us to work it out for ourselves.

pcas1986 said:

I recall seeing a discussion on this issue recently but cannot recall if it was somewhere in these forums or on Discord. A search didn't find anything. It seems to me that the validation isn't searching through LM.TXT files identified in the asset config.

I don't understand why N3V doesn't publish validation changes rather than leaving us to find them and then figure out a way to solve issues.

Click to expand...

I've seen it as well, had to be on here as I don't use Discord, but I can't find it....... yet!

edh6 said:

Build 4.9 is required for certain script functions used in those locos (GetConfigSoupCached), I went with 5.0 as that was what I was testing in at the time. I noticed the warnings too and ignored them as the meshes clearly were in use. Perhaps N3V want us to stop using lm.txt and start using mesh table LOD, but if that's the case they should publish documentation to that effect instead of (as you say) leaving us to work it out for ourselves.

Click to expand...

AFAIK, .lm was always suggested for objects that were animated or use attachment points. Not sure if that has changed recently.

G.M. said:

Unused meshes or textures should not be there ofc.
but they don't hurt the game, cause they are simply never loaded.
Seems a redundant warning only confusing for users.
Don't think any asset beside a route and a session require a buildnumber above 4.6

Click to expand...

The material pbrcamerafacing does require a build higher than 4.6, 4.9, I believe. The other metadata tag for bending normals upwards (2D planes) only works beyond 4.6 as well.

GDennish said:

..
The material pbrcamerafacing does require a build higher than 4.6, 4.9, I believe....

Click to expand...

pbrcamerafacing? Nothing in the WiKi that I can see.