[INFO] How to Use Mods and CC
Introduction
The Answers HQ Sims 4 Mod/CC Isuses forum is here for your fellow Simmers to help you get playing again when, inevitably, a game update “breaks” some mods and CC. And even though Maxi...
Forum Discussion
Removing and Updating
Index
Modders create new versions of their mods for many reasons. The most important one is that new game code can “break” mods. This isn’t a bad thing. We generally want bugs fixed and new gameplay added and game UI improved. That’s especially the case for console players, who can’t “fix” things or expand the game with mods!
Choosing to use mods/CC means that you’re also choosing to maintain your Mods folder when the game updates. And that will often mean removing files or replacing them with the creator’s new versions.
WHEN to Remove Mods
When a mod is reported here at AHQ or elsewhere as “broken” or “outdated,” or when testing the Mods folder narrows down a problem to that mod, it’s time to delete it, even if you really wish it weren’t broken because you love that mod. Broken mods can do more than just not work as intended (as if they don’t exist) or creating annoying “last exception” reports. They can crash your game when you’re in the middle of playing and haven’t saved all day. They can prevent you from saving. They can corrupt lots, households, worlds, entire saves, or even every file in your Saves folder. Remove these files.
Note: Sometimes mods are listed by a creator as having specific issue but being otherwise okay to use. It’s up to you to decide if you want to keep using that mod. Sometimes broken CC you isolate with testing can be fixed by a batch fix in the tool Sims 4 Studio or you’re just missing a mesh.
HOW to Remove Mods
Deleting mods/CC is, in general, simple: Delete the files from inside the Mods folder and delete the file called localthumbcache.package. This file is located in Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4. If you don’t delete localthumbcache, the game will NOT necessarily know you deleted mods/CC. The game will make a new localthumbcache file; this is normal and expected. Bonus: You might find some non-mod-related glitching also goes away!
IMPORTANT: If you use a mod manager, learn how it manages deletions. You want to know if a mod manager will put mods back in if you manually delete them from the Mods folder instead of using the mod manager. And you want to know if there are any circumstances in which it will delete a mod without you choosing to.
Special Cases
Some mods come with instructions for their deletion. If you use any complex mods, it’s a good idea to check if they come with instructions to follow before removing them. For example, TwistedMexi’s Better BuildBuy has instructions for the best way to uninstall it. For many food/cookbook mods, first delete plates and food make using that mod; not doing this could prevent you from opening a household. For custom careers, if possible have a Sim first quit the career; this could prevent a lot of last exception (LE) errors.
Some mods cannot be deleted without damaging save files. For example, if you delete a mod that adds a new world, you should assume that you won’t be playing with those save files anymore. A very few mods affecting body parts will leave uneditable body parts behind, though sometimes there’s a workaround using another mod. Most presets, sliders, and default/non-default body mods can be safely removed, though.
When you’re updating mods with new versions, don’t just grab the first one you find and drag it into your Mods folder. Make sure that you’re not creating new problems with these steps:
- Check that the version of the mod you’re find online is the updated version. If a mod is hosted by the creator in multiple places, the Curseforge version might be updated a day or more later than other ones because there’s an approval process, and some modders will just stop updating all the locations they originally posted at. A rehosted mod is likely to be the wrong version.
- Check for new instructions for installation, dependencies, files to choose from, and mod use.
- Delete old versions first. Some creators rename mod files, so just putting the new file in won’t remove the old one. Some mod managers rename mods, so this step becomes important. Note: This is a good time to check for duplicates. They might have been causing glitching or lag.
- Don’t delete .cfg files unless the creator says to. These files hold your settings for that mod.
- DO delete localthumbcache! You need the game to have a fresh look at the Mods folder. Its location is Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4. The game will create a new one.
- DON’T update mods until you update the game. Mods updated after a given patch might be broken on an older game version. This forum and most creators will offer support only if your game is up to date.
For more on deleting and updating, see Game Updates and Your Mods.
Organizing Your Mods Folder
When it comes time to find the files you need to remove or replace, having an organized Mods folder really helps.
Keeping an organized Mods folder also helps prevent duplicate mods. If you put peacemaker’s files only in a folder called “peacemaker” or put coffee table files only in a folder called “living room furniture” — not sometimes one, sometimes the other — you’re much less likely to end up with two copies of peacemaker’s coffee tables. Duplicate files can cause errors and lag.
There are many ways to organize your Mods folder. I use a lot more gameplay mods than CC, so my mods folder is organized with a subfolder called “Build Buy” for Build/Buy mode CC, a subfolder called “CAS” for CAS CC, and many subfolders named for gameplay modders. If you use a lot of CC, you might want to organize that by function or creator. Just be consistent in your structure.
I temporarily removed a whole lot for this screencap and then cut off the bottom anyway, but you get the idea!
Some creators don’t put their names in their mods’ filenames, which can be frustrating when all of that’s creator’s mods are reported broken or no longer supported or when mod has tested as broken and you want to search for an update. If you tend to run into these, consider organizing your folder by creator name and/or renaming files to include the creator name. Don’t rename files if a creator’s instructions specifically say not to!
Package Merging
Don’t merge your CC. For Sims 4, merging CC files does little to improve game performance compared to the issues it creates. What it does do is increase the likelihood that you'll end up with duplicate files (which cause lag... which you were trying to get rid of), both old and updated versions of files, and broken files you can't find anymore.
If you want to reduce how long it takes the game to load, look at Options to exclude the list of mods/CC on startup. If the quantity of CC in your Mods folder is causing lag, look for duplicates and consider removing CC you're not actually using.
Mod Managers
Many Simmers naturally want to hand some of the responsibility of handling their mods to a mod managing program. This has advantages and disadvantages. If you use a mod manager (for example, Curseforge), learn what it does and what it doesn’t do. Most mod managers will work best if you don’t reorganize the files in them.
Custom Content and the Gallery
Custom content does not get saved to your Library or uploaded with them to the Gallery when you save or update Households, Lots, or Rooms, not even in content flagged as “modded”. Any custom content that you see in pictures there will not be included when you place downloaded Sims or lots in your game. Some CC will just not be there; some will be replaced with game content.
Some Simmers who upload modded content to the Gallery will include a list of CC that they used so that you know what to look for. If you’d like to include a CC list with your Gallery upload and aren’t sure what you used on a Sim or in a build, you can use the tool Sims 4 Tray Importer to get a list.
If you’re looking for a wider variety of Gallery content and don’t mind that it won’t be exactly as it appears, or if you’re missing some of your own Library content in a search, tick the filter “Include Custom Content”.
Not everything flagged as “modded” in the Gallery uses CC. Also flagged as “modded” are:
- Sims with custom careers, aspirations, traits, etc. These custom features will not download with the Sims.
- Created-in-gameplay photos and paint-by-reference paintings.
Game Updates and Your Mods
Index
- Why Mods and CC Break
- Before the Game Updates
- After the Game Updates
- Obsolete, Broken, Updated, Cleared: Using The Broken/Updated Mods List
- “But I can’t play withoutmy mods/CC!”
Mods (game mods and CC) aren’t created by Maxis — they’re created by Simmers, who tie into The Sims 4 game code. When the game is updated, the code that gets updated is going to be the code that some mod out there “talks” to, which means that mod can “break.” A mod that uses code that almost never changes will almost never break. A mod that uses code that gets changed a lot will need updating often. This is nobody’s fault. It’s just how mods and games work together.
So how does this affect you as a player who uses mods? An outdated mod can cause you problems. It might only result in last exception (LE) error files. It might not do anything in your game when it was supposed to. It might make parts of the game inaccessible or really weird looking. It might stop Sims 4 or your game (save) or a World or a household or lot from loading at all. It might even make a save permanently unplayable.*
* Game bugs can also cause all these problems, but if you have mods/CC, we don’t know you have a game bug, not an outdated mod, until you test “vanilla”. Even then, sometimes a mod actually caused the problem but the problem isn’t reversible.
Consider Preventing Auto-Updates
If you need some time to back up your saves or think you’d rather wait a few days before updating the game, so creators can catch up and so you have time to back up your Saves first, consider turning off the game’s auto-update:
Once you’re ready to update mods, you must also update the game. You can’t put a mod made on, say, game version 1.104 into game version 1.101.
Back Up Your Saves
Because some outdated (“broken”) mods can actually corrupt your save file, before you let the EA App/Origin update your game, back up your Saves folder. You might want to also do this before adding newly downloaded mods/CC, in case you found outdated content.
“Backing up” a folder or file means making a copy of it in a different place. You’ll find your save files in Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 > Saves. (Your Documents folder is likely not on your F: drive! I have a lot of drives…)
You can copy that whole folder to somewhere else — such as your desktop, a different folder you make yourself (mine go in Documents > Sims Backups), or a USB key. (Don't rely on OneDrive etc. to automate this, as they don't behave well with Sims 4.) Now you’ll have a pre-patch or pre-new-mods copy to fall back on in case you run into serious problems.
Even after you’ve decided that you’re ready to play the updated game, keep regular backups. You’ll be grateful for them on that day something goes dreadfully wrong for your favorite save or even your whole folder, and the game’s own restorable files don’t go far enough back or are also corrupted.
Read the Patch Notes
Some game updates (patches) affect very few aspects of the game. Some affect a lot. The patch notes, which you’ll find pinned (when new) in Sims 4 News & Updates, show you what’s affected. Patches that are more likely to “break” more mods and CC
- prepare for a new Expansion Pack or Game Pack,
- introduce a new base game feature, or
- fix a lot of bugs.
Check for Known Broken/Updated Mods
Before launching the game, check for which mods are obsolete, broken, updated, or cleared. That includes CC! Yes, your Sim’s eyelashes or that one pair of jeans can break the whole game! Remove obsolete and broken mods. Update updated mods.
When a mod is listed as “obsolete,” that means the thing it “fixed” in the game is now actually fixed by the game update. When a mod is listed as “unsupported,” that means that the creator is no longer going to be updating it. Eventually, it will break. It’s up to you if you want to remove it now or wait till it breaks. Game update time is often when creators decide they’re supporting a mod for the last time.
Some creators will have a look at the patch notes and changes in game code to see if their mods are still compatible with the game. If the mods pass the test, those creators will “clear” their mods for the patch. Some creators do this only for major patches, and others not at all. Many Simmers will wait for a creator to clear their mods before re-enabling mods, especially for complex script mods. BUT... Modders are human and fallible, and a cleared mod can still have issues. The "Cleared" list in this forum is selective with a goal to get you going with some of your mods. It is NOT a replacement for backing up your Saves.
Many mods aren’t reported broken, obsolete, updated, or cleared right away. There are many reasons for this, all of them valid! Modders might have full-time jobs or school, families, health issues, or other personal priorities. The mods might be complex to test and update. Tools that modders use for testing and mod creation might themselves need updating. Please be patient. One of the main reasons modders have stated they're leaving modding has been that impatient Simmers asking about mod status add to the already high stress of patch time.
Re-enable Mods
When you’re ready to play with mods again, re-enable mods/CC in game Options, then restart. (Why re-enable? For most patches, as an extra precaution against outdated mods causing problems, Maxis disables the mod/CC settings in Options.) Remember: Even updated and cleared mods can have issues that weren’t previously known. It’s always okay to exit without saving, and always good to have separate backups of your Saves folder.
If you can’t wait to play, you have options for that, too.
Obsolete, Broken, Updated, Cleared: Using the Broken/Updated Mods List
The current AHQ Broken/Updated Mods & CC list list is pinned in Mod/CC Issues. A new list is started for most patches. If a patch doesn’t require a new list, that info will be in the top post.
Previous lists are linked in the Master Post pinned in this forum, for if you’re coming back to the game after a while or if the prevous list had a lot of updates. If you’ve been away a long time, you might still end up doing a 50-50 on your Mods folder to identify mods/CC needing an update.
The list does not include everything. Reasons for mods/creators not being covered are listed in the list’s first post, but sometimes things aren’t on the list just because they haven’t yet been reported broken or because they broke a long time ago or aren’t enough of an issue or common enough to be on the selective “Previously Broken” list. This is another reason to learn how to do a 50-50 on your mods!
Categories in the Broken/Updated list
- Obsolete – These are bugfix mods that aren’t needed anymore; remove them and delete localthumbcache.
- Broken – These mods/CC must be removed (and localthumbcache deleted), unless there’s a qualification about how their broken that doesn’t apply to your game. If they get updated, they’ll be removed from the list.
- Updated – These replace your old version. Many were broken, even if they were updated before they made it onto the “Broken” mods or CC list. Don’t skip deleting the old version and localthumbcache!
- Core/Injector Mods – These are script mods that other mods rely on. They're listed here so you have their current version numbers, update dates, and download sites.
- Cleared – These are creators who have said that, to the best of their knowledge and testing, their mods are compatible with the game update and can be used. Some modders don’t clear mods; some do it only for major patches. Any creator may have missed an issue. This list is very selective. If you are relying on creator clearings, check creators' social media or mod pages. Even if you rely on this, keep backups of your Saves folder.
- Previously Broken Mods – This is a selection (not a complete list) of mods that are still broken from previous patches. Remove them.
Other News Sources
For adult mods (or other 18+ mods) and others you don’t see covered at AHQ, check creators’ own social media or mod pages. Many gameplay mod creators keep a master post for mod status, which is extra helpful if you’re coming back to Sims after a long break.
Mod Managers
Mod managers work in different ways. If you use one, you should learn what it does and what it doesn’t do. No mod manager can know for certain by itself if a mod is no longer compatible with the game or is obsolete after an update. Any that even try will never find all instances, especially for obsolete bugfixes. Someone has to feed that info to a mod manager that does mod removals, or you have to remove mods yourself. Most mod managers will update your mods for you if an update is available where the mod manager is looking for it. Curseforge will update your mods after the site approves an update.
"But I can’t play without my mods/CC!"
Please, please, please LEAVE MODDERS ALONE. Don’t ask them when they’re going to test their mods or when an update of a broken mod will be released. This is a very big reason for modder burnout. Don’t be like a 5-year-old in the back seat of the car asking their mom “Are we there yet?” Unlike your mom, a mod/CC creator can just quit. And creators who quit have often given pestering from users at game update time as what the last straw was.
If you want to play Sims 4 instead of waiting, here are your options:
- Remove your Mods folder to the desktop (delete localthumbcache too), and play a “vanilla” (unmodded) save for during the wait.
- Choose to play in spite of risk. If you do this, please first make a backup of your Saves folder!
If you want to wait for updates but it’s driving you crazy, please find other things to do. Pick out another game to play, or find a new book to read/show to watch/hobby to engage in. When not playing Sims nags at you anyway (assuming you’re well enough or able to), go for a walk or throw yourself into a necessary chore. Variety in how you spend time is a good thing to pursue!
When Your Game Doesn’t Work: Finding Broken Mods and CC
Index
- Testing Vanilla
- Making a "Clean" (New) User Folder
- ... and some other useful tricks
- Previous Known Issues
- The Broken/Updated Mods and CC Lists
- The 50-50 Method: Batch Testing
- Other Things to Check For
Sometimes your problem isn’t a mod but looks likely to be one. Sometimes you don’t think it’s a mod but you’ve been asked by a helper to make sure of that. This is called (in Sims world) “testing vanilla.” Here’s how to do it:
- Navigate to Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4
- Drag or move (not copy) the Mods folder to your desktop.
- Delete the localthumbcache file.
- Start Sims 4 and test what’s needed (including whether you’re asked to test in your previous save or a new one). If it works, guess what? It was your mods/CC!
If you’re asked to test on a "clean folder," here’s Crinrict’s method. Mine is similar:
- Drag the folder "The Sims 4" out of Documents > Electronic Arts to the desktop.
- Restart Sims 4.
- Reset your Options (you won't be putting the old file back for that).
- Test in a new game to see if you still have the problems you did before.
When putting content back in after creating a new folder, copy files out of the old folder into the new one. You'll want to copy back these:
- files in Saves
- files in Tray
- files in Mods (but not the Resource.cfg file), but don't forget to test!
- files in Screenshots and Videos
... and some other useful tricks
Some mods leave errors even after being removed. You might need to do a "Save As," have a Sim travel to a new lot, load a different household, or edit a Sim in CAS, for example. Testing a new save or new household can help problem-solve this too. Feel free to post to get support if you're sure your issue is a mod but it seems to persist in your save.
The Mod/CC Issues Master Post lists and links to some recent and common issues that are known to be caused by broken mods/CC. You can also search the Mod/CC Issues forum for previous reports, but note that some symptoms can be caused by many different mods or by different mods after different game updates — the mod that was the problem two years ago might not be the problem now, several game updates later.
If testing vanilla showed that your issue wasn’t mod-related even though it really looked like it was, you might also find it in that post, or head to Game Issues or Bug Reports.
The Broken/Updated Mods and CC Lists
The Broken/Updated Mods & CC lists kept in AHQ (and, previously, on the earlier Sims forums) give players a convenient first stop when they have an issue and a way to generally keep up with mod news. A new list is started for most patches. If a patch doesn’t require a new list, that info will be in the top post. When you’ve found by testing vanilla that a mod is the cause of your problem, or if it seems really likely that it’s a mod, checking the lists might save you the hassle of more complicated testing.
More on using the current list is in this post above.
When to Check Previous Lists
If a recent patch was for an EP or a major addition to the game (on the scale of when Infants were added, for example), there will have been many mod updates. Many of those mods won’t need another update for a long time. Some of you with a lot of mods hoping not to have to test all of them might want to check the most recent major update list. You’ll find those linked in the Mod/CC Issues Master Post.
The 50-50 Method: Batch Testing
Often, the lists don’t solve your problem. That might be because you’re using mods that we can’t discuss at AHQ. It might be because you found a mod that broke a really, really long time ago. You might have found one that hasn’t made it to a “broken” list yet.
Thankfully, you don’t have to test every gameplay mod and set of alternative eyelashes separately, one at a time! You can batch-test with a system that Simmers call the 50-50 method. Here’s how:
- If you didn't do that already, test vanilla — without mods or custom content.
- Drag your Mods folder to your desktop and delete the localthumbcache file from Electronic Arts > The Sims 4.
- Start Sims 4 then exit.
- If you have enough disk space, make a test copy of your original Mods folder on your desktop. You can the test copy for the 50-50 so that you don’t lose the organization of your original folder.
- Divide your folder up into batches. You might not need to do much for this step depending on how your Mods folder is already organized. You can start with batches as big as half your Mods folder.
- Some mods depend on other mods to work. That might be a CC mesh or an injector mod like XML Injector or a core library mod. Make sure dependencies are batched with the mods that depend on them. Otherwise, a mod might seem to not work, but it could just be an installation error.
- Start with one batch. Copy it into the new Mods folder the game made. Try it out. Is it all okay? If yes, delete it from Mods, delete localthumbcache, and drag that batch to a folder for cleared batches.
- If a batch fails, test part of it. Somewhere in that failed batch is a problem. Separate it into smaller batches and test those separately. It’s common to take out half the batch, hence “50-50.” Remember to keep track of what’s already tested and what isn’t, and keep deleting localthumbcache. Test these sub-batches and keep making them smaller and smaller to narrow down the cause of the problem.
- Finally, test the likely culprit alone or with only the mesh/injector/core mods it requires.
A 50-50 won’t always find a mod problem. It will, for example, miss issues that aren’t a result of a game patch, like duplicate files, mod conflicts, missing dependencies, having mods you don’t have required packs for, and wrong mod installation. However, while you’re doing the 50-50, you might notice some of these issues, and it’s a great opportunity to make your Mods folder better organized for next time.
- Duplicates: Having two copies of a mod, especially an older version and a newer one, can cause lag and other game issues. NOTE: Better Exceptions by TwistedMexi will identify and show you the location of duplicate files. Do not use tools that retain older file dates instead of newer ones. This makes literally no sense. The best way to find duplicates is to
- Keep your files organized by creator.
- Actually look in the folder when you add or replace files
- Delete the old files
- Installation issues: Are your mods that have ts4script files only one folder deep? Do you have mods requiring packs you don’t have? Are you missing mesh/core/injector mods your mods/CC depend on? Have you installed mods that are listed by their creators as conflicting with each other?
- And more: Are your mods in the right folder? Is OneDrive or another syncing app messing with them? Do you have merged .package files that could include broken content?
A Note on “Conflict Detectors”
Mod “conflict detectors” are, unfortunately, accurate only for finding duplicate files and Sims 3 mods. When they point out that two mods “speak” to the same piece of game code, they aren’t telling you if they do that in a way that causes any problems. In other words, they don’t accurately show you that two mods conflict in a way that is meaningful. They also can’t tell you if a mod is outdated.
