TS3 and Origin - Says I need to update or play without updating

What does LAA mean?

Also, I've got lagging in TS3 that I didn't have on my old PC - meaning 12 years old running VISTA and so on. Moving to a new Acer Predator and I've got lagging. Not so much when I play live but when I edit, especially CAS, it will literally come to a standstill. If I can wait it out and click live, then go back, I can get a bit more life out of it. I don't know if this is what she's talking about.

@columbia93  LAA stands for large-address aware, meaning a 32-bit app can address (use) up to 4 GB memory, instead of the 2 GB that non-LAA apps can use.  Since Sims 3 has been LAA since a patch in 2010, this is unlikely to have anything to do with your issue.  The only way your install wouldn't be LAA is you installed only the base game and maybe the first couple expansions from disc and never patched it.

For the lag, what do your in-game framerates look like?  Bring up the cheats console (crtl-shift-C) and enter "fps on" without quotes, and a number will appear in the upper right corner of the screen.  ("fps off" amkes it go away.)  This number should never go above the refresh rate of your monitor, maybe 60 Hz but perhaps 144, which is common in the Predator line.  If it's too high or fluctuates wildly, there are ways to manually cap it.

Please also test CAS in a clean user data folder.  Move your entire Sims 3 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  When you launch the game, a clean folder will spawn with no content.  Don't add anything to this folder yet; just start a new save adn see how CAS behaves.  If it's better, you can start moving your content to the new folder from the old one and testing.  Test your custom content first—even one bad cc item can cause exactly the problems you've described.

If CAS lags even in a clean folder, and your in-game framerates aren't the issue, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

Edit:  I've merged your other post into this thread.  To answer the question posed here, the game itself can't be the source of the update, as it hasn't received any updates in four years.  I think the "updates" are really Origin checking for bad product keys and blocking people's access to the game or certain packs if it finds any tied to bad keys.

Normally, I'd say just run the update, I'm sure it's fine as long as you got your content from legitimate sources: Origin itself, sealed disc copies, or authorized third-party vendors.  However, a number of people have had their content disappear for no discernible reason.  At least some of them did own legit copies of the game, but Origin has blocked access nonetheless.  It can often be sorted out by a call to EA customer support, but why deal with that headache when you can avoid it?

If you want to find out whether your codes are okay, you can try installing the game on a different computer, at least temporarily.  Launch it and make sure your packs are all working, restart the computer, see if Origin tries to repair or update the game, and test again, just to be thorough.  If your content is still intact, then you should be fine running the update on your main computer.

I don't think my questions should be merged. They are two totally unrelated issues, regardless the same game. 

The issue with "upgrading" on Sims 3 is something I've only experienced since either an update months ago that made it impossible to just open the launcher without going through Origin, or when I installed on the new PC using only Origin. I honestly don't recall when the issue started but I do know it's been a few months. As I said, clicking on the update portion completely ruins everything so not sure why you're suggesting I do something I've already tried and which causes problems.. So it seems I have to keep clicking to play without upgrading. I know the game hasn't been updated in forever - that is my point. I should not be seeing this. I do not have a bad key code because I've been installing, uninstalling and installing TS3 since the day it came out. The only thing I do on this PC is have the game installed completely through Origin. Before, I had disks until about halfway through when I started just buying them through Origin. Maybe I should uninstall and reinstall with at least one game installed from the disk. I don't know....

As for the other issue, I had no problems with CAS on the old PC and, when I moved to the Win 10 PC, I started having the issues, even though the files were the same. I've done the new folder thing multiple times. I've moved out some, moved in some.... I'll see about doing the fps thing. Ugh.

And yesterday I did a hard uninstall on Origin because the latest update screwed up everything, as usual. I go back on today and I get a message that Update yet again. WTH is going on over there? It's gotten completely out of hand. And this isn't the TS3 thing - this is for Origin. But daily updates? Especially when they don't work and you end up having to mess with your registry? Sorry. Venting. But dang, this is beyond ridiculous.

@columbia93  Patch 1.69, which requires the game to be launched through Origin, was released in November 2015.  I figured if you were playing through Origin, you already had that patch.  Updating further wouldn't make a difference, and it certainly wouldn't "ruin" everything, unless you somehow managed to avoid patch 1.69 for all this time.  If you have, then you don't need me to tell you not to update.

Having a partial disc install wouldn't change anything.  As long as at least one pack is downloaded through Origin, you get the same result, including the same fake updates, as a fully digital install.

I didn't say you had bad codes, I said the Sims 3 "update" might be looking for bad codes, and as long as you didn't have any, you were probably okay.  And you're not the only one who's been asked ot update Origin recently.  I have no idea what's going on behind the scenes; I don't have inside information.  I only see the results.

I don't know why your Origin keeps updating.  Mine updates around once every two weeks, maybe a bit less.

You still don't get it. I know what I'm doing. Did you even look at the picture I attached? I've been playing The Sims since the beginning and I know how the games work. I also have worked enough with Origin to know how it works. I also have built a PC AND have an ivy-league degree. I'm not stupid. I'm able to retain information and build from that, as well as reason and identify. 

I bought a new PC in September. Everything I installed with regards to Origin items were installed via Origin. Everything worked fine. Then a couple of months ago, one of the patches "broke" the way Origin interfaces with The Sims 3 (as well as others).

           1.   Prior to this, I was able to open Sims 3 via my GeForce app, where several of my apps can be accessed. I liked using GeForce because I could insure that the

                                   settings were maintained easily after updates AND I can access games on both Origin & Steam from the same place. Now I get a blank screen

                                   and nothing more for TS3.

                   a.   Additionally, most of the older Origin games I try to access through GeForce will open Origin but I get that same screen - Play without Updating.

                   b.   The Sims 4 returns a message of "Unidentified Game".

                   c.   The Steam games on GeForce still open fine. Obviously this is an Origin issue. Origin has been updated several times since this happened initially, and I've even

                                         done a couple of hard/manual uninstall/reinstalls. 

          2. When I open Origin and choose the games from there, TS4 will open without any additional messages but most of the other older games bring up this

                                   "Play without updating" message.

                   a. Older games that I redownload seem to start working without error messages. However, there is an additional problem.

                            1.  Bejeweled - came up with that same message of "Play without Updating". I clicked "Repair" and now I can play without that

                                                    message but it seems to have erased all my progress, requiring me to choose a Screen Name.

                            2.   Dead in Bermuda - for some reason, I had to "download" it. I've played it many times but it's been awhile and now, first I've noticed but who knows if it's just

                                                    today or a couple of weeks, it says I have to Download. I did. Again, I've lost all progress.

                            2. I NOW see that several of my games that I've been playing have an "Update Available" link on their icon but I also now know that, if I do, I will lose all progress.

                                                    With Origin, it is literally one step forward and two steps back EVERY SINGLE TIME. I guess I can see If I can find and save those files before I update.

                                          A.  FYI, there is NO Update link on the icon for TS3. Since EA doesn't bother with the Forums, instead using unpaid players who don't always seem

                                                                    to grasp the situation and is of no use to most of us with issues outside the norm, it seems I'll have to uninstall and reinstall TS3

                                                                    and see if that fixes this problem.

It also needs to be stated again that combining the two issues of TS3 lagging badly on Windows 10/Acer AND this other OBVIOUSLY ORIGIN ISSUE, is ridiculous and should NEVER HAVE HAPPENED.

@columbia93  If you're not interested in providing a dxdiag, there's not much I can say about the lag you're seeing in Sims 3.  It's an old game that doesn't always get along with Windows 10, but most of the problems can be either fixed outright or managed.  If GFE isn't working correctly with Sims 3, then maybe try not using it, at least as an experiment.  Other than that, I can't really offer anything else without a dxdiag.

The issue with GFE not recognizing Sims 4 may be due to the fact that the game has two executables (TS4.exe and TS4_x64.exe), and GFE may only recognize one of them.

This is the first you've mentioned issues with any other games, or with GFE for that matter.  If you're having general Origin problems, you should ask in the Origin forum.

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Origin-Client-Web-Technical/bd-p/origin-technical-issues-en

Good luck.

@columbia93  First I will address the LAA. LAA stands for large address aware. Most assemblers and compilers in use for 32 bit programs can only compute a jump instruction of only 2Gb. When an executable program loads in the header there is a byte that contains data on how the program can run. One bit of that byte determines the state of LAA. Turned on it allows the program to use about 500Mb more of memory. If I remember correctly this adds one more bit to the address fetch cycle. This is no longer required for 64 bit code. One of the Sims 3 patches turned the LAA on. I believe this is checked with all patches after that.

Now you can not compare Windows Vista to Windows 10. They are two very different creations. Microsoft changed the way previous Windows operating system is maintained. Windows 10 is a service that gets major updates to add features and fix issues. After a major update the life cycle is extended. It was said the Windows 10 would be the last Windows version. Last I heard this may change. Microsoft is the 800 pound gorilla - it does what it wants to do.

With me so far? The Sims 3 was released with SecuROM and SafeDisc for DRM (antitheft software). SecuROM limited the number of installs provided with the game license. SafeDisc required you have a game disc in the optical drive to play. Two things happened. Optical drives were disappearing and Microsoft and Apple OSX ceased to support SecuROM and SafeDisc due to their poor support and the fact they really didn't stop piracy. EA developed Origin in a manner like Valve's Steam. Steam was (and still is very popular). there are others that work in much the same way. Since Origin there is no install limit and you don't require a disc in the optical drive to play. If you already have a working game installed you need to download and run the 1.67 version patch. Once the game is at 1.67 Origin will patch the game to 1.69. The version 1.69 is an Origin only patch. As far as I know there is no correct way for Steam owners to patch to version 1.69. Steam provides a key to redeem the game in Origin. Origin is the DRM for this game. When you buy the game (and other games) you do not own the game. What you are paying for is a license to use the software under the EULA (end user license agreement) you remember that thing you agreed to the very first time you ran the game. Origin is a stand alone program and if not updated for a while it will not update properly and a reinstall is required. Steam provides digital distribution which is nice for users with no optical drive. I'm sure EA was not happy about changing the DRM for a popular game already in use.

Many programs need to access operating system functions. One way this can be done through API's (application programming interface) in Windows Internet Explorer. Thank you very much Mr, Gates. As many programmers use these APIs, to remove Internet Explorer would stop many programs from running correctly.

This is just scratching the surface as you can see how complex things can get.   HTH 

I only asked about LAA because it was an acronym I saw when I was looking around for my problem. I know what it is because I used to use CFF Explorer (?) to adjust the memory. I just hadn't seen the LAA in a few years so it slipped my mind....a dead horse, so to speak.

I also know that Vista and Windows 10 are different. My first PC was purchased in 1990 and my previous computer was built by me. I'm not completely unversed in computer-ese. My point was simply that I had Vista prior on a 12-year old PC and TS3 ran fine on it with minimal lagging. I purchased this PC in September and moved my files over. Nothing new, nothing different, and it has NEVER played as well as it did on the Vista. That doesn't seem right and that is why I'm questioning what is causing this. The ONLY reason I bring up the OS is to show that, of the two, the previous setup should have been performing worse, not the other way around.

I also have been playing TS3 via Origin and no disk since prior to this new PC, and all without issue. On the new PC, I didn't bother to physically install the game from discs, choosing instead to install in it's entirety via Origin. I only mentioned that perhaps installing at least via one disk would take care of the other error I'm getting because there were no responses. Again, lumping my two separate and unparalleled issues into one thread has merely created a huge problem by obfuscating both issues, as I repeatedly said it would. I had provided a screenshot, I'd responded several times that this is the same content, that it's installed via Origin, that it's fully patched, etc., but it seems to be a problem that needs to go elsewhere. Because of that, I'm "undoing" what was done - withdrawing the "Run Without Updating" issue. I'll have to go elsewhere for that now. SMH

I have every EP & SP and OF COURSE, everything is updated. I"m a pretty smart cookie and have been playing the Sims since the beginning, as well as I know how to get into files and such, and have even created a couple of mods. I feel certain that I'm making this clear every time but I can't seem to get assistance beyond a remedial level. Honestly, you don't need to waste your time with teaching me about Windows or the basics of the Sims game because I've been "with you" for years! I'm confused as to why we're discussing patch 1.67 because I've been fully patched because Origin automatically updated to 1.69. I literally had no choice. Just as I don't know why we're discussing "bad codes" with the previous person because I told them that my game was downloaded entirely via Origin.

I will stress again that the game I run on this PC is the same as the one I ran on the Vista PC. The variable appears not to be the content of the game but the PC itself. I literally have a file called "TS3 Working File" where I put package files that I've checked in the game, then taken out to then check others. Nothing in my game hasn't already been in and gone and in again.

So, with all that background, that leaves the remaining topic of a lagging game that can actually come to a standstill while in CAS or build mode. It has crashed a couple of times but mostly it just doesn't do much until it gets moving again. While I was NEVER asked to supply a diagnostics, in spite of a comment I received, I was told to check the fps. To be clear, I know what it stands for and know generally what it means, but knowing that it waivers from 40-200 means little to me. I was going to mention this previously but this thread, as I said, had become ridiculous and confusing. So now, ONLY lagging!!!!

Several months ago I found that someone else with an Acer was having similar issues but they weren't responded to either, beyond an initial query. So what I (and this other user) are experiencing is a near shutdown when we are in Build/Buy mode, especially when CAS is involved. As I've said before, I can exit build mode to live and it will sort of "expel" that traffic jam. I can even go to Buy mode and enable myself to go back to Build mode for a teensy-bit more. So, back to the fps. 40-200 It seems like around 200 is when it seems to just stick. Essentially when it stops, nothing moves, including the fps.

Also, what this other user talked about was how he would go to his Task Manager and his Disk would be at 100%. That happens to me, too. They didn't have an answer for him so....

roberta591, unfortunately this hasn't much to do with what you were talking about so I guess I have to ask you now if you are with me! Have I been clear enough with what the main issue is that I want to address here - lagging, fps, Acer, etc.? Is this something you think you can help me with?

🙂