Smart Asset Finder

Configuration

Customize Smart Asset Finder settings for optimal performance and workflow.

Access Settings

Go to Edit → Editor Preferences → Plugins → Smart Asset Finder

Settings Overview

Scanning Settings

Scan Paths

Default: ["/Game"]

Directories to scan for assets. Multiple paths supported.

Examples:

/Game                     # Scan entire Game folder
/Game/Characters          # Scan only Characters
/MyPlugin/Content         # Scan plugin content

Use case: Limit scanning to specific folders to speed up index builds.

Target Asset Classes

Default: All supported types

Select which asset types to include in the index.

Supported types:

  • Texture2D
  • StaticMesh
  • SkeletalMesh
  • Material
  • MaterialInstance
  • ParticleSystem
  • PaperSprite

Use case: Exclude asset types you don’t need to reduce index size.

Exclude Paths

Default: Empty

Paths to exclude from scanning.

Example:

/Game/Dev              # Exclude development assets
/Game/Test             # Exclude test assets
/Game/Deprecated       # Exclude old assets

Include Engine Content

Default: false

Include engine content (/Engine folder) in scans.

Warning: Significantly increases index size and build time.

Use case: Only enable if you need to search engine assets.

Performance Settings

Rebuild Batch Size

Default: 10 Range: 1-100

Number of assets to process per batch during manual rebuild.

Guidelines:

  • Lower (1-5): Less memory, slower speed
  • Medium (10-20): Balanced (recommended)
  • Higher (50-100): Faster, more memory

When to adjust:

  • Low memory: Reduce to 5
  • High-end CPU: Increase to 20-50
  • Very large projects: Reduce to prevent memory issues

ONNX Inference Threads

Default: 0 (auto-detect) Range: 0-16

Number of CPU threads for AI inference.

Options:

  • 0 (Auto): Uses 50% of CPU cores (recommended)
  • 1 (Single): Low-end CPUs or background processing
  • 2-8: Fixed thread count for consistent performance
  • 8-16: High-end workstations

Guidelines by CPU:

CPU CoresRecommended Setting
4 cores0 (auto) or 2
6-8 cores0 (auto) or 4
8-12 cores0 (auto) or 6
12+ cores0 (auto) or 8

Enable Detailed Logging

Default: false

Enable verbose logging for debugging.

Warning: May impact performance. Use only for troubleshooting.

Output: Check Output Log for detailed plugin messages.

Auto-Update Settings

Enable Auto-Update

Default: true

Automatically monitor and update index when assets change.

Recommended: Keep enabled for active development.

Auto Update Batch Size

Default: 5 Range: 1-50

Assets processed per batch during auto-update.

Guidelines:

  • Lower (1-5): More responsive, frequent updates
  • Higher (10-20): Fewer interruptions, slower to reflect changes

Auto Update Debounce Time

Default: 3.0 seconds Range: 0.5-60.0 seconds

Delay after last asset change before processing.

Purpose: Prevents continuous re-indexing during rapid editing (e.g., bulk import).

Guidelines:

  • Short (1-2s): See changes quickly
  • Medium (3-5s): Balanced (recommended)
  • Long (10s+): Reduce CPU usage during heavy editing

Max Queue Size

Default: 100 Range: 10-1000

Maximum assets to queue before warning user.

Purpose: Prevents memory issues during bulk imports.

When to adjust:

  • Frequent bulk imports: Increase to 500
  • Low memory: Keep default or reduce to 50

Pause During PIE

Default: true

Pause auto-update during Play-In-Editor sessions.

Recommended: Keep enabled to avoid performance impact during testing.

Storage Settings

Index Storage Path

Default: "SmartAssetFinder" (relative to Saved/)

Directory for index storage.

Full path: YourProject/Saved/SmartAssetFinder/

Use case: Change if you have custom backup/sync workflows.

Configuration Profiles

Default (Balanced)

RebuildBatchSize: 10
OnnxInferenceThreads: 0 (auto)
AutoUpdateBatchSize: 5
AutoUpdateDebounceTime: 3.0
EnableAutoUpdate: true
PauseDuringPIE: true

High Performance (Fast indexing)

RebuildBatchSize: 50
OnnxInferenceThreads: 8
AutoUpdateBatchSize: 10
AutoUpdateDebounceTime: 1.0
EnableAutoUpdate: true
PauseDuringPIE: true

Use when: High-end workstation, want fastest index builds.

Low Memory (Resource-constrained)

RebuildBatchSize: 5
OnnxInferenceThreads: 1
AutoUpdateBatchSize: 3
AutoUpdateDebounceTime: 5.0
EnableAutoUpdate: true
PauseDuringPIE: true

Use when: 4GB RAM, low-end CPU, or background processing.

Large Projects (10k+ assets)

RebuildBatchSize: 10
OnnxInferenceThreads: 0 (auto)
AutoUpdateBatchSize: 5
AutoUpdateDebounceTime: 10.0
EnableAutoUpdate: false  # Manually trigger updates
PauseDuringPIE: true

Use when: Very large projects where auto-update is impractical.

Optimizing for Your Hardware

High-End Workstation

  • CPU: 12+ cores
  • RAM: 32GB+
  • Settings: High Performance profile
  • Expected speed: ~2 seconds per 100 assets

Standard Development PC

  • CPU: 6-8 cores
  • RAM: 16GB
  • Settings: Default profile
  • Expected speed: ~1 second per 50 assets

Low-End / Laptop

  • CPU: 4 cores
  • RAM: 8GB
  • Settings: Low Memory profile
  • Expected speed: ~2-3 seconds per 50 assets

Troubleshooting Settings

Index builds are too slow

Solutions:

  1. Increase RebuildBatchSize to 20-50
  2. Increase OnnxInferenceThreads to 4-8
  3. Limit ScanPaths to necessary folders

Editor freezes during index build

Solutions:

  1. Reduce RebuildBatchSize to 5
  2. Reduce OnnxInferenceThreads to 1-2
  3. Close other applications

Auto-update is too aggressive

Solutions:

  1. Increase AutoUpdateDebounceTime to 10-30 seconds
  2. Reduce AutoUpdateBatchSize to 3
  3. Temporarily disable auto-update during heavy editing

Out of memory errors

Solutions:

  1. Reduce RebuildBatchSize to 3-5
  2. Reduce AutoUpdateBatchSize to 3
  3. Exclude large asset folders via ExcludePaths
  4. Disable IncludeEngineContent

Settings not taking effect

Solutions:

  1. Restart the editor after changing settings
  2. Delete index folder (Saved/SmartAssetFinder/) and rebuild
  3. Check Output Log for errors

Best Practices

  1. Start with defaults: Only adjust if you have specific needs
  2. Test performance: Try different batch sizes to find optimal for your hardware
  3. Monitor memory: Watch Task Manager during index builds
  4. Use exclusions: Exclude temp/test folders to reduce index size
  5. Enable auto-update: Keep index synchronized during development
  6. Disable during imports: Turn off auto-update before bulk imports, re-enable after

Next Steps

  • Features - Explore all plugin features
  • FAQ - Common questions and issues