[CURRENT ISSUE] Sims 4 DLC shows as installed, won't load in-game
jump to: I have the CAS Demo installed
jump to: I don't have the Demo or I'm not sure whether I do
jump to: I have a Steam or Epic install
jump to: I'm lost/please help
There is currently an issue with Sims 4 where newly installed packs won't load in-game. The cause is that the EA App installs these packs into the wrong folder. The App shows the affected packs as installed, but the game doesn't read their data.
The most common cause is having the Sims 4 CAS Demo installed, but this can also happen if a computer somehow has two copies of Sims 4 itself installed. In both cases, the game is running from one folder but the pack data is in the other.
The fix is to find the folder where the packs are being installed, remove or rename this folder, clear the EA App's cache, and download the missing packs again.
If you have the CAS Demo installed, it will likely be here:
Look inside the folder for your missing packs, for example in this case, EP13 (Growing Together) and SP16 (Tiny Living) are installed into this folder:
The quick fix, which works at least some of the time, is to move these folders into the folder for the Sims 4's program files. You can find the proper file location within the EA App: open your library, click the Sims 4 icon, select Manage > View properties, and you'll see the file path. The pack folders, in this case EP13 and SP16 , need to go inside this Sims 4 folder; you can simply drag and drop them, or cut and paste.
Once you've moved the folders, clear the EA App's cache and repair the game: open your game library, click the Sims 4 icon, and select Manage > Repair. Then load the game and see whether the affected packs load.
If this doesn't help, you can rename the CAS Demo folder; any new name or additional characters should suffice. Or, if you have no use for the CAS Demo anymore, you can simply uninstall it through the Windows control panel or Start menu. If you get an error when trying to uninstall the Demo, restart your computer. Alternately, open the Task Manager, find the EABackgroundService in the background processes list, right-click its name, and select End Task, then try again.
If you've already moved the packs' folders to the proper Sims 4 folder and it didn't work, it's best to delete these, clear the EA App's cache, and download fresh copies. You can download them through Manage > Manage Add-ons.
I don't have the CAS Demo/I'm not sure
If you don't have the CAS Demo installed, or you're not sure whether you do, you can run a search for the missing pack(s). Open a File Explorer window, click This PC in the left panel, then enter the name of the folder for an affected pack in the search field in the upper-right corner. (See this article for a full list of pack folder names.) For example, if Growing Together isn't loading in-game, search for EP13:
You can see here that the folder is inside the CAS Demo folder, but you may also find that you have two "The Sims 4" folders for other reasons; these guidelines apply in any case. You'll also see a folder inside __Installer\DLC, usually a folder inside Delta, and perhaps other files if the pack includes a new world. These can be ignored; the only result that matters is the one directly inside a folder with "Sims 4" in the name, as underlined in red.
In contrast, this is the result when searching for a properly-installed pack, in this case EP05 (Seasons):
Once you locate the folders for the missing packs, you can try moving them to the proper location, i.e. the location the EA App lists for the game's program files. Clear the EA App's cache and repair the game afterwards. You can find it by opening your game library, clicking the Sims 4 icon, and selecting Manage > View properties:
If this doesn't fix the issue, you can rename or uninstall the CAS Demo, if you have it, or delete the secondary folder. (If you get an error, restart your computer, or open the Task Manager and kill the EABackgroundService.) If this doesn't help either, you may need to do a clean uninstall and reinstall of all Sims 4 content, minus your user folder, as well as the EA App.
- Put aside your Sims 4 folder in Documents\Electronic Arts and rename it to something that doesn't include the words "Sims 4."
- Download Revo Uninstaller (the free version is fine) from here.
- Launch Revo, select Sims 4 from the list, and click Uninstall.
- Once the game is uninstalled, select "Moderate" under "scanning modes," and click Scan.
- Review the list, in case there's something you want to save; otherwise, click Select All, and then Delete.
- Close Revo, and restart your computer.
Uninstall the EA App with Revo as well. I don't have instructions for that at the moment, but the process should be straightforward. Restart again when you're done.
Install the EA App, then create a new folder into which you'll install Sims 4. The folder should be on the root level of the drive of your choice, for example C:\Games is fine, but not C:\Program Files\Games.
I have a Steam or Epic install
If you've installed Sims 4 through Steam or Epic, but you at some point installed the game through the EA App, the App may be installing packs into an old Sims 4 folder rather than the one that Steam or Epic uses. Here again, the first step is to search for one of your missing packs. Open a File Explorer window, click This PC in the left panel, then enter the name of the folder for an affected pack in the search field in the upper-right corner. (See this article for a full list of pack folder names.) For example, if Growing Together isn't loading in-game, search for EP13:
The only thing that matters here is the EP13 folder installed directly inside "The Sims 4": this is the pack itself, and it needs to be in the same location as the rest of the game data. You can see that above, however, EP13 itself is installed into an EA Games folder, even though other folders labeled EP13 are inside Delta and __Installer within the Steam install's folder.
The fix here is to delete the "The Sims 4" folder inside C:\Program Files\EA Games, or wherever that extra folder is. (If you can't delete it, restart your computer, and make sure the EA App and EABackgroundService are NOT running in the Task Manager.) Then clear the EA App's cache, restart your computer, and install only the affected packs, not the base game, through the EA App.
If this doesn't help, you'll need to do a clean uninstall and reinstall of Sims 4 and the EA App. Please see here for more details.
If the above doesn't help, please see the accepted solution of this thread, which should appear immediately below this post. You can also run a search for one or two missing packs, as described above, and post screenshots of the results in this thread. If you do this, be sure to list the packs that aren't working and those, if any, that do show up in-game.
Other fixes for packs not loading in-game
jump to: Checking for purchase/account issues
jump to: Clean-uninstalling Sims 4
jump to: I still need help
If the steps in the first post of this thread didn't help, you may have a purchase or account issue, for example a partial refund that's blocking the App from loading a pack. Or your account may be fine, in which case you need to do a clean uninstall and reinstall of Sims 4. See below for details.
Checking for purchase/account issues
If the suggestions in the first post of this thread don't help, the next step is making sure the EA App thinks your packs are installed. Open the App's game library, click Sims 4, then Manage > Manage add-ons, and you'll see a list of installed packs:
If a missing pack is listed with a Download button, click it. If you get an error when trying to install, please create a new thread in this forum. Post a screenshot of the error message, and list the affected pack(s) and where you bought them.
If a missing pack shows as installed, and the steps in the first post of this thread didn't help, please make sure there's nothing wrong with your purchase. Go to ea.com, sign in, click your avatar in the upper-right corner of the screen, click Account Settings, then select Order History, and find your pack's purchase on the list.
If it says Processing, or Failed, or anything other than Completed, or you find a full or partial refund listed, please create a new thread in this forum. List the affected pack(s) and what your Order History says about them.
If your packs' orders are all listed as Completed, please proceed to the next section.
Sometimes moving around folders, as described in the first post of this thread, is not sufficient to fix this issue. In that case, it's necessary to do a clean uninstall and reinstall of Sims 4 and the EA App. This applies to all versions of Sims 4 installed in Windows. If you play through Steam or Epic, it's unnecessary to install that game launcher, just Sims 4 and the EA App.
To clean-uninstall Sims 4, you'll want Revo Uninstaller. (The free version is fine, either the standard or portable version; there's no need to pay for a license.) You can download Revo from here:
https://www.revouninstaller.com/revo-uninstaller-free-download/
Before proceeding, put aside your Sims 4 folder in Documents\Electronic Arts and rename it to something that doesn't include the words "Sims 4." This will preserve your saves and other user data.
Launch Revo, find Sims 4 on the list, right-click, and select Uninstall. Revo may list a couple other packs it finds and ask if you want to remove them as well. This is normal, and say yes. Note: The application size Revo lists is only for the base game, but all installed DLC (expansion/game/stuff packs/kits) will be removed as well. You may also want to uncheck the box to create a system restore point, especially if your computer is low on storage. You don't need this restore point.
Revo will note that all add-ons will be removed; click Yes again. When the game is uninstalled, select "Moderate" under "scanning modes," and click Scan.
Click Select All, but before deleting, review the list to make sure there's nothing you might like to keep. For example, if you have a backup Sims 4 folder with your saves, this may appear on the list. If you find a folder you want to preserve, uncheck the box next to it. Then click Delete to remove the rest, and click Finish if the window is still open.
Uninstall the EA App as well. As above, right-click its entry, select Uninstall, cancel the system restore point, and the EA App may open a window. Click Uninstall, then in the Revo window, click Moderate under Scanning modes, and Revo will present a list of registry entries. Click Select All, then Delete: you don't need or want to preserve these entries.
For the leftover files and folders, click Select All, review the list and deselect anything you'd like to keep (this is unlikely, but it's worth checking), click Delete, and you're done. Close Revo, and restart your computer.
Download a fresh copy of the EA App installer from here:
Reinstall it, then Sims 4. If you play through Steam or Epic, that's fine, just install through that launcher instead. If you're using a custom install location, i.e. not the default location your game launcher offers, do NOT install Sims 4 into Documents or Downloads. The folder should be at least one level deep on the drive of your choice, for example D:\Games\The Sims 4, not simply D:\The Sims 4.
Launch the game once and make sure all your packs are loading. If you're still missing one or more packs, please see the section above covering possible account issues.
Once your packs are loading properly, you can restore your saves, Tray files, mods and custom content, and screenshots (if you want to keep them) from the Sims 4 user folder you renamed before uninstalling the game. Move these files to the corresponding new folders within Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4, and you'll be able to pick up where you left off.
Please review all the sections of both this post and the first one of this thread. In particular, make sure there are no issues related to the purchase of the affected packs, as described above. This is the most likely explanation when a pack is installed properly but doesn't load in-game.
If you're truly stumped, please run the search described in the first post of this thread:
for two or three missing packs, take screenshots of the results, and post those screenshots in a reply to this thread.
