Re: Can I move my Sims 4 and packs onto an external hard drive?

@vanture2  You can't change where a new pack is installed: it'll go to wherever the game itself is installed.  And in the EA App, you can't move the game location once it's installed.  So if you want Sims 4 on your external drive, you'll need to uninstall and reinstall everything.

Make sure to create a backup of the Sims 4 folder in Documents > Electronic Arts before uninstalling the game.  This folder contains your saves and other user content, and while it shouldn't be deleted during the uninstall process, it's better to be safe.  You can put the backup on your flash drive or upload it to a free filesharing service like Google Drive or Dropbox.  I'd recommend zipping it first: right-click and select Send to > Compressed (.zip) file.

Hi, I seem to be having a similar issue. Daughter plays Sims 4 and has TONS of files/mods/downloads. She’s needing to move those and the game to a portable HD to free up space. How do we launch Sims 4 and get it to see those files on the portable HD. I changed the download location in EA app but when I try to remove the files from the laptop HD, it won’t launch Sims at all. 

Is it as simple as uninstalling Sims 4 and redownloading (with new external drive and install location)?

@dsoltes76  Yes, to move the game's program files, you need to uninstall through the EA App and reinstall in the new location.  Simply changing the install location and moving the files isn't sufficient.

This is a separate matter than moving the user folder, for which you need to use a symbolic link.  The location of the game's program files has no impact on where Sims 4 looks for the user folder, which will always be Documents > Electronic Arts.

@morkledorkle  Instead of putting %userprofile% in the command, please write out the exact file path.  You can find it in-game:

https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2018/07/how-to-find-your-user-folder/

You don't need to use the part after The Sims 4 , of course, just the rest of it.  For the command, if my account had the username test , and I wanted to move the user folder to D:\The Sims 4, as it looks like you do, this would be the command:

MKLINK /J “C:\Users\test\Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4” “D:\The Sims 4”

@ConnieEcc  Once you've installed Sims 4 into the new location, launch it once to make sure it works.  If your saves and other user files are present, then you don't need the backup, although I'd still keep it around for a while just to be safe.  If your saves are gone, then you put the backup in Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4, where the game should read it again.

If that doesn't work either, here's how to find the correct folder:

https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2018/07/how-to-find-your-user-folder/

I was wondering about one thing, if you upload the sims to your external hard drive, can you still get all the updates and buy new packs to the game? And also connect to the gallery in the game? 

@ConnieEcc  Did you do anything else besides reinstall Sims 4 onto your external drive?  Do you use a third-party antivirus, and if so, did you add exceptions for the game and the EA App?  You'd need to create a new exception after reinstalling the game anyway.

Having the game itself on your external drive wouldn't affect how you install new packs or your access to the Gallery.

Hi,

I've been reading through this forum and following the steps. I could make the symbolic link, however, when I loaded the game, it made a new folder in the Documents/Electronic Arts labeled The Sims 4, completely bypassing the symbolic link. I ended up reversing the process, and it worked that way.

Do you know how to fix it so it doesn't make a new folder and have it use the symbolic link?

Thank you in advance.

@aellyscoqui  It looks like there might be a space in front of "The" in the symbolic link's name.  If that's the case, the name wouldn't be an exact match and the game would create a new folder.

If you still have the symlink, try rewriting its name.  If not, try creating it again, making sure the name is exactly right.

Please help me with the symbolic link!

I think Ive done it right but there is no Sims 4 folder in the Electronic Arts one let alone one with a link! Will it still work?

scratch that, there is the folder with the arrow but now my computer wont let me run Sims - it says its already running (it isnt).  

@amy6302  Did the game work before you created the symbolic link?  Is your user folder now on an external drive, and if so, what format does the drive have?  You can view it in Disk Management (hit Windows key-X to see the option to open it) if you're not sure.

Additionally, if you use mods or custom content, please rename the Mods folder, so the game can't read it, and try again to play.  I'm not saying you can't use mods, only that this is a helpful test.

@puzzlezaddict I followed your directions and was able to make a symlink to move the game to my hard drive, but when I open the game, none of my data are in the actual game--as in none of my mods are in there, none of my saves, etc. It's like it started completely from scratch, but when I look in my folders in the hard drive, all my saves, mods, etc are still there.