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mggundy16's avatar
2 months ago

I need help sorting out my Sims 3 files on OneDrive

I am running Sims 3 on my fairly new laptop. I kept getting Error Code 16, and when I Googled that it told me my save file was too large but I knew that couldn't be the case as it was a brand new save. I do have some CC but not that much. Further Googling told me that OneDrive might be the problem. I moved the Electronic Arts/Sims 3 folder to my desktop and disabled OneDrive. That seemed to help. That was a few days ago. When I logged into play today, I realized none of my mods are installed (just the NRAAS ones). I couldn't select NRAAS menu, no story progression in game, etc. I logged out and back in and realized the start up script where it lists all the mods wasn't coming up. Uh oh.

Through some more sleuthing, I figured out what was happening. The OneDrive Electronic Arts folder is still there - I had 2 Sims 3 files and the game was reading the other one. I dragged that one to desktop too (I don't want to use OneDrive anymore) and launched the game, but it spawned a whole new brand new one without any of my saves. Now when I look at my computer I see all these different Sims 3 files and I've just confused myself at this point. 

Here are the different folders I have now: two Sims 3 folders and another one inside that Electronic Arts one:

The Sims 3 folders are different iterations of the game. I can tell because the Save files are different. One is my 'Morton County' save and the other is my 'Oshkosh' save.

I have a Mods folder and know how to set it up.

I just don't know what to do about having all these different game folders! Do I just pick the one I want to keep, and delete the others?

I am confused though... like I said when I started up the game last it just prompted me to start a brand new game. None of my saves were able to be selected, but obviously they are there because I can still see the file paths. I would like to continue my Oshkosh County game. How do I do that, and make sure the mods are installed correctly?

Thanks for any advice!! I am not great with technology as you can see.

1 Reply

  • @mggundy16  When you moved the Sims 3 folders to the desktop, you prevented the game from reading their contents.  You can restore the saves and anything else you'd like to keep, but first, it would be best to deal with the OneDrive issue.  Is the new Sims 3 folder in OneDrive's version of Documents?  If so, here's how to get rid of it and restore the default location:

    https://answers.ea.com/t5/PC/CURRENT-ISSUE-Sims-4-saves-user-content-disappearing-PC/m-p/12475370#Remove

    The guide was written for Sims 4, but the OneDrive part applies here too.

    Make sure the game is reading the location you want going forward.  Right-click the new Sims 3 folder that gets created, select Properties > General, and look at the Location.  It should be this:

    C:\Users\your username\Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3

    You can move your saves to the Saves folder inside, and drop your Mods folder in there too, plus anything else you'd like to keep.  Here's a description of the files in that folder:

    https://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/01/faq-user-files.html

    Feel free to ask for help with any step of this process.

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