missing exportDB.package files
Hello – I have Sims 3 64 bit on a macbook; I recently got the newest macbook air M3 upgrading from an old macbook pro intel model and I hadn't been able to run TS3 succesfully for ages (mainly storage issues)
in getting a new laptop I tried sims again and it works! but in trying to play my old saves I am running into some issues.
essentially I had the same issues as this post – my game folder was ~100 GB and saves had over 5000 files in. I have now cleaned that up and we're down to ~30 GB and only the necessary files. except they aren't all there and I think its causing issues, specifically, the exportDB.package files are missing in some saves. I've attached pictures of a recent save I made vs. an old save which isn't running properly and crashes as soon as I try to do basically anything
is there a way to resolve this?? I have all the .nhd files and I'm quite sentimental about these saves so would be ideal if it could be fixed! from what i could google the .nhd seems more important but I can't really gather if there's a solution to this specific problem
@Lizziecakepop There are too many reasons a save could crash to predict what is wrong with these particular saves. But one common problem is if the saves used expansion packs that you currently don't have installed. So please make sure all your packs are loading correctly in-game.
If that's not the problem, and you're willing to try a few mods, I'd suggest installing NRaas ErrorTrap, Overwatch, Register, and MasterController. The first three do their cleanup work in the background, without need for player input; MC doesn't do anything at all unless you use it to issue a command. More information and download links are here:
Load one of these saves, let the game clock run for a few sim-minutes, then click on City Hall and select NRaas > MC > Town Options > Reset Everything. When the reset is done, which might take a minute or two, let the clock run for a few more sim-minutes, then use "save as" to rename the save so the original remains intact as a backup. Quit, delete the cache files, reload, and see how the save runs. For reference, these are the files:
- CASPartCache.package
- compositorCache.package
- scriptCache.package
- simCompositorCache.package
- socialCache.package
ErrorTrap in particular will be very chatty, reporting on everything it finds to fix, and you'll likely see a bunch of errors the first time you load the game and one or two at every successive load. This itself is normal and nothing to worry about. But if you see repeated errors in the run of play, or there's an error that shows up right before a crash, let me know. You can find the scripterrors in the Sims 3 user folder.
