You don't need Origin to play the game, only to download it.
Using any kind of ccleaner on your Mac is bad news. They can destabilise the operating system by removing files they shouldn't.
Are you showing as logged in on the Launcher page, before you press Play?
Oh, no. An advisor told me to use ccleaner. I'm glad I know not to use it again in the future though!
Here, I'll attach some screenshots:
The first photo is the message box that pops up, telling me that I'm not logged in, even though I am. The second photo was taken directly after that message popped up when I went back to the welcome screen. So yes, the launcher is telling me I am logged in before playing! I'm stumped and haven't a clue why I cannot upload anymore.
Hm, I'm not running any antivirus programs. I do have the Overwatch and NoIntro mods though. I wonder if those could be affecting my launcher? That's the only other possible thing I can think of.
@fridasunde Can you login and access the game's online features while you're playing, or is that blocked as well? Do you get the same error message as posted above? And are you on a mac or PC?
Make sure your antivirus software isn't interfering, and temporarily disable it if necessary. Try changing your password, clearing all of your browser caches (make sure you're not preserving data for favorite sites), and logging out and logging in again. If that doesn't work, drag your entire TS3 folder out of Documents and onto your desktop, then repeat the process. (There's a file in the folder that stores your login credentials.) If you used to play on another computer, it might be helpful to check if that computer can still upload content.
I've tried all of that now, but it still won't let me upload. I have no problem logging in and everything else both in game and in the launcher works perfectly fine, it just keeps saying I'm not logged in when trying to upload something to the exchange. I play from an iMac and only have sims 3 installed on this, no other computer. I didn't have this problem a few years back, but I somehow had two ea accounts and ea now blocked the user I was originally using for 9 years on the sims3.com. This new user is what isn't working and given that ea has stopped letting us email or chat them in my country I have no clue what to do. I'm going to try deleting the file from the launcher and uploading it again, I did have problems deleting it so it might just be the file that was wonky. Thanks for the help!
Hi, just wondering if you managed to fix the problem? I'm having that exact same issue myself - login appears to be completely fine, until I try and upload something. Any help would be much appreciated!!
@Jaime_Girl84 Sometimes the exchange stops functioning for a few hours or even a day. But if the issue is on your end, you can try clearing all of your browser caches. Be sure to uncheck the box to preserve data for favorites.
If that doesn't help, you can change your password (try using https://store.thesims3.com/ if you're having trouble) and then clear your caches again. The other thing you can do is look in Downloads inside your game folder—it's in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Downloads—and trash the file that's labeled [your email].bin. Then clear caches again and see if it changes anything.
I've experienced the same thing- did you ever find a solution?
@azimuth7 Try clearing your browser caches, and make sure to uncheck the box to preserve data for favorite sites. (This is the mac section, but if you happen to be using Windows, make sure to clear Internet Explorer's cache too. Even if you never use it, the store does for some purposes. This doesn't apply to macs, obviously.)
If that doesn't help, pull your entire TS3 game folder out of Documents and onto your desktop. When you launch the game again—no need to go farther than the Main Menu—a clean folder will spawn with no content. If you can login, and all the functions work, with the clean folder in place, you can move your saves and other content into the new folder from the old one. Here's a list of everything you'll find in your game folder, along with what the files are for:
Thank you for the reply. I have a Mac- I’ve never cleared my browser (Safari) cache. Is it in the standard settings menu?
@azimuth7 Here's a guide to clearing data on Safari:
https://kb.wisc.edu/page.php?id=45060
You can also clear your history by clicking on the History dropdown menu.
Posts merged by CM
After trying all that you recommended and it not working (by the way, I do appreciate your advice nonetheless), I tried deleting some of my previously installed content which was considerable. And it worked! In the past, if you had too many items in your studio (mine are mostly still photos), you would get a notice in the Sims 3 community. Now it just says that you're not logged in when you are.
Thanks again and share this- myself I'm too off and on with the gaming community to readily provide advice.
Try deleting uploaded content from your Studio on the Sims 3 Community website. I had over 500 items in the media section of my studio. I deleted an one picture and the sim I wanted to share from the upload section of the Launcher loaded up no problem. What happened is that in the past, we used to get a message stating that you had too many items to upload any more, now it just gives the "Not Logged In" advisory. If you have pics you want to keep, just do a "Save As" to a folder on your computer so you'll have it. Then you can delete it from your Studio. Sims you've created can also be saved to a folder or thumb drive. I hope this helps-- it worked for me after trying puzzleaddict's suggestions had no result (God bless him, regardless).
Hey @fridasunde -- I think it's because of too many items in your studio, try deleting an item or two and see if it helps. It worked for me-
Hi @Jaime_Girl84,
Try deleting some of your existing studio content- after everything else failed, I deleted one of the 500+ pics in My Studio and lo, and behold, the new sim I wanted to share uploaded without an issue. Apparently the old “too much content “ message doesn’t pop up anymore when you have exceeded the limit. Now it just says that you’re not logged in when you really are. See my other replies for more details-
Hi @puzzlezaddict,
I found the solution- I had too many items in my studio. After trying all you suggested with no results, I tried deleting some of my previous items and the new sim I wanted to share uploaded with no issue.
Edit to update: i spoke too soon- after the one upload the problem came back. So I would probably have to follow your directions again in order to upload again.
i have one of the later generation MacBooks with the Touch Bar, perhaps it has something to do with the OS. Don’t have it front of me at this time or I’d tell you-
Community ManagerHi @azimuth7, could you confirm for me if you've followed @puzzlezaddict's suggestion and:
Hey, I've been having the exact same problem and it's highly frustrating. I'm on a MAC which according to the EA advisors is a death sentence to your sims 3 game (apparently EA fired their MAC staff 4 years ago and decided to only make games compatible with PC's) I have no antivirus software on my computer and run my game (boycotting the origin app) through the applications folder. I am signed in always while playing but when I try to upload base content (no cc from anything but store or exchange), it automatically says I'm not signed in which I am...Weirdly enough, when my game runs, I'm signed in while playing...I'm super annoyed about this and was wondering if anyone had a solution.
I have tried:
-deleting games and re installing
-deleting cache on browser
-moving the TS3 folder to my desktop
-moving my game onto an external HD
- changing my EA password
If anyone has a solution they'd like to suggest I'm all ears (The only solution EA provided was to buy a PC!!?? wtf EA)
@Jasmine8394 There are a couple of other things I can think of for you to try. Please clear the caches for all of your browsers; it's not always obvious which one the Sims 3 launcher is using in macOS. (Be sure to uncheck the option to preserve data for favorite or frequently visited sites, however it's worded.) And move your game folder to your desktop again, just to be thorough.
If those steps alone don't help, change your password to something with letters and numbers only, no special characters, and repeat the above steps.
If that doesn't help either, try uploading a different file. You mentioned using items you found on the Exchange, which means you might well have third-party custom content. Store stuff should be fine, but player-made Exchange uploads often have cc along for the ride. The Exchange can be finicky about what content it allows, so it would be a good test to try to upload something with no cc at all.
And you definitely don't need to use Origin for any of this. Nor would it help to install to an external drive, although that shouldn't normally cause this type of problem.
