Installation & Setup

What Installation Creates

When you install and first run GearMaster Visual, the application creates a set of files and folders to store your projects, settings, and temporary data.

Folder Structure

GearMaster Visual creates the following directory structure:

GearMaster/
├── GM_Visual/                    # Main application folder
│   ├── help/                     # This help documentation
│   ├── src/                      # Application source code
│   ├── examples/                 # Example projects and workflows
│   ├── tests/                    # Test files
│   └── docs/                     # Additional documentation
│
└── User Data (varies by OS)
    └── GearMaster/
        ├── projects/             # Your saved projects
        ├── config/               # Configuration files
        ├── cache/                # Temporary cache files
        └── logs/                 # Application logs

Important Files & Folders

Application Folder

help/ - This help system and documentation
src/ - Core application code
examples/ - Sample workflows to learn from
requirements.txt - Python dependencies

User Data Folder

projects/ - Your saved workflow projects (.gmv files)
config/ - User preferences and settings
cache/ - Temporary files and cache data
logs/ - Application execution logs (useful for troubleshooting)

Project Files

File Type: .gmv (GearMaster Visual)

Your workflows are saved as .gmv project files. These files contain:

All nodes in your workflow
Connection information between nodes
Node positions and layout
Node configuration and properties
Project metadata (name, creation date, etc.)

Note: Keep your projects folder backed up to avoid losing your work. The application saves changes automatically.

System Requirements

Python: 3.10 or higher
Memory: Minimum 2GB RAM
Disk Space: At least 500MB free space
OS: Windows, macOS, or Linux

Important: Do not manually edit or delete files in the cache or config folders unless you know what you're doing. This may cause the application to malfunction.

First Run

On the first run, GearMaster Visual will:

Create the user data directories
Initialize default configuration files
Load the help system
Prepare the node library

After this setup is complete, you're ready to start creating workflows!