Asterobot doesn't take game files or game data from the Dofus you play. It downloads its own copy of the game files from Ankama's download servers, one game version at a time, and works from that copy. Download a game version shows how to get one.
A copy of its own
The Dofus you installed with the Ankama Launcher stays yours. Asterobot doesn't take game data, maps or texts from it, and it doesn't install or update it. The only time it touches that folder is in MITM mode, short for man-in-the-middle: it reads the version number in its version file and changes one line of that file so your game signs in through Asterobot. MITM mode explains that line.
Asterobot's copy is always the Windows version of Dofus, even when Asterobot runs on macOS or Linux. And by default it isn't the whole game, only the files a bot needs:
- the game texts, in every language the game ships;
- the game's data tables: items, monsters, spells, servers and the rest;
- the map data;
- the world travel graph the game uses to plan long trips, through zaaps and boats;
- a few sets of pictures: the server illustrations, the world map artwork, the item icons and the icons drawn on the world map;
- the file that states the version number.
The game's music isn't part of it. You can get it later from the Game page, as Music explains.
Several game versions can sit side by side, each with its own row in Game Manager.
What the copy is used for
Downloading is only half of the job. Asterobot then extracts the game files into game data, which is what everything else reads (Extract game data).
| What | What it needs |
|---|---|
| Adding a bot | A game version that is Ready for bot: the files a bot needs are downloaded and its game data is extracted. A bot that signs in on its own also refuses to connect while its version isn't ready. |
| Scripts | The game data of the bot's game version, to turn the numbers in the game's messages into items, monsters, maps and texts. See Game data overview. |
| The Game page | The game data and the files of the version, for the world map, the map viewer, the game data browser, the texts and the music. See Game page. |
The tested version
Every release of Asterobot is tested with one Dofus version: the tested version. Asteroboard compares each Dofus version you download with it and shows a badge:
- Compatible when the version is the tested version.
- Different version when it isn't. The info icon next to the badge shows "Asterobot is tested with", followed by the tested version of your release, and "This version may not work as expected."
The badge appears in the Compatibility column of Game Manager, on the Information tab of the version's Game page, and under Game version in the Add a bot dialog and on a bot's Settings tab. It's only shown for Dofus versions with the environment dofus3 and the platform windows, the ones bots can use.
When the tested version is downloaded, Add a bot selects it for you. Whenever another version is selected, a Use tested version button, followed by the version number, switches back to it in one click.
A different version isn't blocked: you can still add a bot with it. But the messages Dofus exchanges with its servers change from one version to the next, and Asterobot speaks those of the tested version, so a bot on another version may fail to connect. Map ids, table columns and game texts also move between versions, which means the game data of one version doesn't always match another. When Dofus updates covers what to do after a patch.
MITM mode needs the same version
In MITM mode, the Dofus you play and your bot's game version must be exactly the same version. When they differ, the bot refuses to start waiting for your game. So each time the launcher updates your Dofus, download the new version in Asterobot too. MITM mode shows how to compare the two versions.
Disk space
Game versions live in Asterobot's cache folder, listed in Files and folders. Three kinds of things go there:
- Chunks. Ankama's download servers deliver game content in pieces called chunks. Asterobot stores each chunk once, named after its content, whatever version or game it came from.
- The files of each game version, rebuilt from those chunks.
- The extracted game data of each version.
Because chunks are stored by content, a chunk Asterobot already has is never downloaded again, whichever version needs it. The chunks stay after the files are rebuilt, though, so the same content takes space twice until you remove them. Remove all chunks in Game Manager frees that space, at the cost of a slower next download (Manage game versions).
The code gives a few sizes, which change with game updates:
| Item | Approximate size |
|---|---|
| The world map artwork, part of the files a bot needs | 545 MB |
| The map data, part of the files a bot needs | 450 MB, measured on Dofus 3.6.10.10 |
| The game's music, downloaded only from the Music tab | 900 MB |
Asterobot doesn't check the free space on your disk before a download. If the disk fills up, the download stops and its status turns to Failed. Requirements sums up the space to plan for.