Since 3.1.5

The configuration file

There is a configuration file which stores the settings of Gaia Sky. This file is in the YAML format and is located in $GS_CONFIG/config.yaml (see folders). The default location is:

  • Linux: ~/.config/gaiasky/config.yaml

  • Windows: C:\Users\[username]\.gaiasky\config.yaml

  • macOS: ~/.gaiasky/config.yaml

The default config.yaml file in our code repository is annotated with comments describing each setting. Some settings can’t be modified from the user interface within Gaia Sky, but still can be edited in the configuration file itself. A double colon :: in the list below indicates nested settings.

  • graphics::backBufferScale – fixed scaling factor for the backbuffer. Increase this to improve image fidelity at the expense of performance. If dynamic resolution (see this) is enabled, this setting is ignored.

  • data::skybloxLocation – contains the location of the default skybox used for reflections.

  • scene::fadeMs – how long does the fade transition last when changing the visibility of objects or types, in milliseconds.

  • scene::star::textureIndex – the index of the texture used for stars.

  • scene::octre::maxStars – the maximum number of stars loaded at any single time for LOD catalogs.

  • scene::initialization – contains the lazyTexture and lazyMesh properties, which enable the lazy initialization of textures and meshes respectively.

  • program::minimap::inWindow – enables the rendering of the mini-map in a window.

  • program::net – this group contains the configuration of the REST server, as well as the master-slave infrastructure. Find more information in the connect instances section.

  • program::scriptsLocation – default location of script files in the file system.

  • program::url – contains the URLs for the version check ,the data repository mirror and the data descriptor file.

  • program::offlineMode – Gaia Sky won’t attempt any HTTP connection to the internet in this mode. This means that the data descriptor file containing the information on server datasets can’t be fetched. You need to download the desired datasets manually and extract them in your data folder. More information can be found in our Gaia Sky datasets repository.

  • postprocess::fisheye – enable the legacy fisheye post-processing effect, which emulates the planetarium mode without incurring in the same performance penalties. More info in the planetarium mode section.

  • proxy – configure an HTTP/HTTPS proxy. More information in the proxy configuration section.