Step-by-step guide
Svarn Audit Pack
Check a Svarn export and read warnings, failures and byte changes in JSON, text or HTML reports.
You exported sprite slices with the Svarn Aseprite extension and want an independent check before handing the folder to someone else, or you want to see exactly which PNGs changed between two exports.
See it in use
Audit and compare sprite export folders
A screenshot walkthrough with fictional practice data. Select a step to explore.
The command/report screenshots and saved comparison text show separate fictional sprite exports; this is a command-line tool.
1. Start with
Audit and compare sprite export folders
The practice pack has clean, changed and damaged fictional PNG folders.
Sample files and contents
examples/svarn-audit-pack/ contains three small fictional folders laid out like a Svarn schema-1 export (16×16 PNG squares, not real artwork): export-v1 (frog_1, frog_2, lily_1), export-v2 (frog_2 recoloured, lily_1 removed, dragonfly_1 added) and export-damaged (a copy of export-v1 with one byte flipped inside lily_1.png).
Practice files and guides are free. The complete app is included only where the product page says so.
2. In the app
Try it in three steps
- Run the auditor on export-v1.
- Compare export-v1 with export-v2.
- Run the damaged-folder check and inspect the transcript.
Show every click and setting
- In a terminal, change into the extracted svarn-audit-pack folder.
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v1
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v1 --compare /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v2
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-damaged
3. The result
A separate demonstration
The separate command transcript shows one added, one changed and one removed PNG; a corrupted PNG fails CRC validation.
The command/report screenshots and saved comparison text show separate fictional sprite exports; this is a command-line tool.
What to check in the practice result
1) "status": "verified" with "files": 3 and exit code 0. 2) Also verified, plus "comparison": added ["dragonfly_1.png"], changed ["frog_2.png"], removed ["lily_1.png"]. 3) AUDIT FAILED: PNG CRC mismatch, exit code 1.
See the workflow at a glance
Choose a short explanation, then follow the worked example below. Check the requirements and compatibility before using your own files.
Three file changes. One readable handoff check.
A folder can look familiar while its contents have changed. Svarn Audit Pack checks schema-1 export manifests, PNG structure and SHA-256 hashes, then reports added, removed and byte-changed files. In the pond example, dragonfly appears, frog changes and lily disappears; a separate damaged copy fails its CRC check. Run it locally with Python 3.10 or newer. It does not fully decode pixels or compare artwork with the Aseprite source, and Svarn and Aseprite are separate.
View the illustrated card
Before you start
- Extract the complete svarn-audit-pack-0.1.1.zip. Python 3.10 on Linux and HTML reports in Chrome 152 on Linux were checked. Other operating systems, browsers and customer workflows remain unverified.
- Python 3.10 or newer, run from a terminal.
- An export folder from the Svarn Aseprite extension (schema 1): it contains svarn-manifest.json next to the PNG files. Svarn and Aseprite are separate downloads and are not included.
- The Svarn Audit Pack ZIP from your purchase (see the Buying and downloading guide).
Your first result
Buy, download and extract
Buy from /store/svarn-audit-pack/ and extract the complete svarn-audit-pack-0.1.1.zip. Open a terminal in its svarn-audit-pack-0.1.1 folder, which contains audit.py, an illustrated manual, examples and licence files. No extra Python packages are needed.
Export with the Svarn extension
In Aseprite, export your slices with Svarn as usual. Keep the export folder as Svarn wrote it: svarn-manifest.json plus the PNG files, with no extra PNGs added by hand.
Check one export
Run python3 audit.py /path/to/svarn-export --format text for a readable check, or omit --format to keep the JSON output. A verified export exits with code 0; review any reported warnings before handing it over. Failures exit with code 1.
Compare two exports
Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/old-export --compare /path/to/new-export. Both folders are checked first; the output then adds a "comparison" section listing "added", "removed" and "changed" PNG names. "changed" means the file bytes differ, not that the pixels were inspected.
Read a failure
If anything is wrong the tool prints one line starting with AUDIT FAILED: and the reason (for example "PNG CRC mismatch", "PNG dimensions differ from manifest", "unlisted PNG in export folder" or "Svarn export is incomplete"), and exits with code 1. Re-export with Svarn and run the check again.
Keep the result
For a browser report, run python3 audit.py /path/to/svarn-export --format html > report.html and open report.html. Add --compare /path/to/new-export to see file changes. Redirection saves the report; the audit never changes your export folders. A failed audit still exits with code 1.
See warnings and changes clearly
Choose a text or HTML report to read export warnings and failures. Compare two exports to see added, removed and byte-changed PNG files. The reports check files and manifest data; they do not assess artwork or compare pixels.
A worked example
Pond sprites: a clean export, a changed export and a damaged copy (original practice pack)
Input: examples/svarn-audit-pack/ contains three small fictional folders laid out like a Svarn schema-1 export (16×16 PNG squares, not real artwork): export-v1 (frog_1, frog_2, lily_1), export-v2 (frog_2 recoloured, lily_1 removed, dragonfly_1 added) and export-damaged (a copy of export-v1 with one byte flipped inside lily_1.png).
- In a terminal, change into the extracted svarn-audit-pack folder.
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v1
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v1 --compare /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-v2
- Run: python3 audit.py /path/to/examples/svarn-audit-pack/export-damaged
Expected result: 1) "status": "verified" with "files": 3 and exit code 0. 2) Also verified, plus "comparison": added ["dragonfly_1.png"], changed ["frog_2.png"], removed ["lily_1.png"]. 3) AUDIT FAILED: PNG CRC mismatch, exit code 1.
Earlier editions and examples
More application screens
See warnings and changes clearly
Actual 0.1.1 HTML report from fictional included examples, captured in Chrome 152 on Linux.
1. See warnings and changes clearly
Troubleshooting
See warnings and changes clearly
Choose a text or HTML report to read export warnings and failures. Compare two exports to see added, removed and byte-changed PNG files. The reports check files and manifest data; they do not assess artwork or compare pixels.
AUDIT FAILED: [Errno 2] No such file or directory: '.../svarn-manifest.json'
The path does not point at a Svarn export folder. Point the command at the folder that directly contains svarn-manifest.json.
AUDIT FAILED: unlisted PNG in export folder
A PNG in the folder is not listed in the manifest (for example a file copied in by hand or left over from an older export). Export into an empty folder and check again.
AUDIT FAILED: not a supported Svarn manifest, or Svarn export is incomplete
Only complete schema-1 manifests written by Svarn are accepted. Re-run the export in Svarn and resolve any failures it reports first.
AUDIT FAILED: unsupported PNG geometry or format
Only 8-bit, non-interlaced RGB, indexed or RGBA PNGs are supported, which is what the Svarn extension writes.
python3: command not found
Install Python 3.10 or newer. On some systems the command is python instead of python3 (other platforms were not tested).
Compatibility & limits
- Checks PNG structure, compressed data, row filters and SHA-256 hashes; it does not fully decode pixels or compare them with the Aseprite source file.
- Tested with one saved Aseprite export on Linux (ordinary, corrupt, changed and missing-file cases); other platforms are untested.
- Run a terminal command; optional HTML reports open in a browser. No graphical file-picker app is included.
- Separate paid tool: the Svarn Aseprite extension keeps working the same with or without it.
Need a hand?
Tell us the product, host application and version, what you tried, and the exact error. Contact support with a fictional example; keep private customer files and passwords out of your message.
Need to create the sprite export first?
Svarn is a separate $4.99 one-time download containing the Aseprite exporter, guide and examples. Its online guide and practice files are free to inspect; the public practice ZIP does not contain the exporter. Audit Pack is an optional, separate $2.99 purchase. Aseprite is licensed separately.
Read the Svarn guide and download requirements