How to Reduce Wallpaper Engine Storage Usage! (File Compression)

Ever had nearly 500 wallpapers occupying more space than your own Windows installation? Me neither, but I once got quite close to that, simply because of unpolished 300 MB video wallpapers. This guide will teach you how to reduce the file size of your VIDEO wallpapers and really make each MB count.

Requirements

• Install HandBrake[handbrake.fr]
  
• (Optional) Install HandBrake CLI[handbrake.fr]
  
• Find out where Wallpaper Engine saves wallpapers. (You can find that out by right-clicking any wallpaper while on Wallpaper Engine and opening the folder in explorer.)

How to

1. First, open HandBrake and select the video file that you want to compress.
   
   
2. You can configure anything you may want here, but it isn't necessary in most cases. Things that may be important to change based on your setup are screen resolution and framerate, though you can just leave it as "Same as Source" if you'd like to. If you don't want to work the details out, select one of the presets on the right side of the screen, preferably from the General tab.
   (I recommend selecting the 'slowest' version available that corresponds to your monitor screen size.)
   
   
   • 1920x1080 corresponds to 1080p;
     
   • 1366x768 roughly corresponds to 720p;
     
   • Other resolutions may require the creation of a custom preset e.g. ultrawide screens.
   
   
   
   
3. Important! Go to Tools>Preferences>Output Files, and ensure that MP4 File Extension is set to Always Use MP4. HandBrake output defaults to .m4v files, which are not used on Wallpaper Engine.
   
   
   
   
4. After configuring the app, take note of the save path on the bottom part of the screen, or set it to somewhere you can find. Then, press the Start Encode button, finally.
   
   
5. After the compression has finished, go to the directory of the wallpaper file, and replace it with
   the compressed one, making sure that they have the exact same filename.
   
   
6. Congratulations, you just compressed your first wallpaper!

This is boring af, isn't there a faster method?

Well, you can automate the whole process by creating an .bat file that batch searches files and compresses them using HandBrake CLI.

Simply copy/paste the following code into a .txt, edit the paths, save it as an .bat file and run it, for automatic compressing.

This is the folder's path that must be pasted:


It has to contain the folders of every single wallpaper installed on wallpaper engine.
In this specific image, the directory was:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\431960

PS.: If you create/use a custom configuration, save it as a custom preset, and use
--preset-import-file "(Directory)\preset.json" -Z "preset" instead of simply -Z "preset"

for /R "FOLDER CONTAINING WALLPAPER SUBFOLDERS" %%F in (*.mp4) do (
    "HANDBRAKE_CLI PATH" -Z "PRESET TO USE" -i "%%~fF" -o "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4"
    if exist "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4" (
        del "%%~fF"
        ren "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4" "%%~nxF"
    )
)

Example of usage, for comparison sake:

for /R "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\workshop\content\431960\" %%F in (*.mp4) do (
    "C:\Program Files\HandBrake\HandBrakeCLI.exe" -Z "Very Fast 1080p30" -i "%%~fF" -o "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4"
    if exist "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4" (
        del "%%~fF"
        ren "%%~dpF%%~nF_conv.mp4" "%%~nxF"
    )
)

Proof that it works

Configuration used: 1080p Very Fast

Disclaimers

• Not all results will be this dramatic. Some creators do compress their files, after all.
  
• Its not my fault if you somehow end up compressing your system32 folder or anything of the sort. Use this guide knowing that I will not hold your hand if you screw things up. (Though I do tend to offer advice and tips when asked.)
  
• I am grateful for any feedback that may come from the comment section of this guide.

Credits

Credit goes to:

• The HandBrake Team, for creating HandBrake.
  
• This guy, for creating the .bat code.
  
• Me, for taking 2 hours out of my life to create this guide.
  
• You, for liking this guide, cuz i know you will.

[BabaBooey]

tysm for the guide! I did run into a problem where for my 1st file (issa gif) it works fine but now the preview thumbnail is blank. I even converted the compressed file back into a gif but still no preview. You have any suggestions?

[Acrophyllia]

Nice. Saved me around 5Gb of space. Thanks for sharing!

[4p3x_07]

nice one! thanks for this! :)

[SeaBass52]

thanks

[Krevlinmen]

Well, I`d recommend rebooting your pc. If it doesn`t even log in, you`ll have to re-install windows. You can get all your files back tho, just don`t format your HD completely.

[(笑)]

Second. I really liked this guide, but I need some help. I accidentally ended up compressing my system32 folder... what should I do?

[Krevlinmen]

First.