[READ FIRST] Saves, CC/Mods or Library items disappeared? iCloud issues
ISSUE Saves One minute your game is working fine. The next you go to play and the Load Game button has disappeared, there seems to be no way to play an existing save. CC/Mods Newly added CC/Mods do not show up in your game despite being properly installed (for help with installing 3rd party content see here) or CC randomly starts disappearing from your game. Library items Saving Lots, Rooms and Households to your in-game Library doesn't work CAUSE Most likely the internal storage on your Mac is too full and iCloud is pushing any newly added files to your Documents folder in the cloud. This can happen at anytime. You can check the storage level by clicking on the Apple in the top left corner of the menu bar then About This Mac, then the Storage tab. By default, the game stores your Saves, Mods, Tray (where your Library items are saved) and all your user game data in a folder called The Sims 4 in Documents > Electronic Arts. If there is no Sims 4 folder in this location the game will recreate a new one each time it is launched. If you have iCloud Drive enabled and set to store your Desktop & Documents folder in the cloud it may be moving your existing Sims 4 folder to the cloud, hence the need to create a new Sims 4 folder every time you launch the game. You can check the status of various files and folders, and what the little cloud icons mean, here. FIX Firstly, you MUST free up some space on your Mac otherwise doing this is pointless. Empty the Downloads folder, go through your data and see what you no longer need, empty the Bin. If you have large Photos, Music and TV libraries consider storing them on an external drive. Instructions here on how to do this for your Photos library, the principle is the same for the Music and TV apps. Open System Preferences and then your iCloud settings. What you click on can vary by macOS, check Apple's help page here if you can't immediately find where to look. This is where you can choose what gets stored in the cloud. We are only interested in two settings, iCloud Drive and Optimise Mac Storage Click on Options... in the iCloud Drive setting and make sure Desktop & Documents Folders is unchecked. Scroll down to the bottom of this Apple help page to understand what happens to your data when you turn off the setting. Back at the iCloud settings window, Uncheck Optimise Mac Storage below the list of apps using iCloud. This means that your Mac will stop pushing files to the cloud when the internal storage is getting full. For more info on this setting read this help page. Once you have successfully stopped iCloud from moving the contents of your Documents folder to the cloud you need to move the Sims 4 folder back into the default location - Macintosh HD > Users > [User] > Documents > Electronic Arts Apple explain here what the status of the little cloud icons mean. If you're feeling brave you could consider creating a symlink and storing your Sims 4 folder on an external drive. Or maybe change your EA App Games Library location to an external Drive.
Game is Crashing and Glitches randomly during game play
I updated my Sims game today and updated my Mods and I first started getting the error code ec:105 on my EA App and then when i was playing the game, it glitches where i can't click anything anymore or interact with my sims. I don't know what to do and it's really frustrating 😩. I attached screenshots of the issues as well.
Sims 4 old back folder doesn't work
PLEASE HELP!!! I cleaned out my mods folder just to make sure I didn't have duplicate mods in the game. Once I was done, I couldn't find the Electronic Arts folder but my saves and mods were still in game. I ended up searching for the EA folder and two came up. It asked if I wanted to replace, I said yes and my entire game was wiped. I tried to use my back up sims 4 folder to add it back to the game and it's not working. Electronic Arts folder doesn't have the sims 4 folder and when I add it in it still doesn't load. I even renamed the folder so a new one could generate but it does not. The Electronic Arts folder has an "EA app" folder and in that folder an "ARD" folder and "machine. ini". When I click on the ARD folder there is a GEADesktop folder that doesn't open when I click on it. I've tried repairing the game, logging out of the app and restarting so a new The sims 4 folder can appear and nothing. That's the only thing that pops up.🛠️ Creating a symlink in macOS to store the Sims 4 folder on an external drive
➡️ This is not to be confused with installing the actual Sims 4 game on an external drive. The game installation location is determined in EA App and there is no need to use a symlink for this. As internal storage gets smaller we're forced to use cloud based solutions to store files and folders or resort to a trusty external drive. Cloud based only storage is not an option for the Sims 4 folder that contains all your saves, Mods, Library items and other user data because the game only looks in one place for your data: Macintosh HD > Users > [your user account] > Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 If there is no Sims 4 folder in that location the game will create a new one. There is no way around this default Sims 4 folder location unfortunately, it is hard coded into the game. Because of this the only option to store the Sims 4 folder on an external drive is to create a symbolic link, otherwise known as a symlink. Creating the symlink is relatively easy provided you understand the concept of what a symlink is and why you are creating it. You should also be familiar with Terminal on your Mac and the security and permission systems in place in whichever version of macOS you are running as these dictate the ability for the game to access the external drive and whether your Mac user account has permission to grant the necessary access. You should also make sure you are using a good quality, fast external drive. You get what you pay for and if you bought a cheap drive, with low quality cables, you will most likely struggle to get the symlink to work because it will be too slow. For help buying an external drive and what to look out for read this guide. I am not going to write step by step instructions here, the post will be far too long. Instead, you can read the detailed and comprehensive guide I wrote several years ago here https://bluebellflora.com/saving-your-sims-4-folder-to-an-external-drive/ If your symlink is not working it is down to user error. It really is that simple. macOS is a Unix based operating system and as such uses Unix commands which are all provided in the above linked guide. This thread is for consolidating all posts related to the Mac symlink process here at Answers HQ. If you're a Windows user read Crinrict's excellent guide here https://crinrict.com/blog/2020/02/moving-windows-documents-folder-to-external-drive-via-symbolic-link.html. What I have provided below are a few of the common issues people face as a result of not entering the commands correctly or having the correct permissions in place. Common issues reported and the solution: Always check your external drive has the correct name in Disk Utility: open Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities) change View to Show All Devices then click on the drive in the left sidebar the Mount Point shows the name of your drive. If there is a number added to the drive name it means the drive has not been properly ejected multiple times Close Disk Utility and eject the drive In Finder click on Go in the menu bar then Go To Folder. Enter /Volumes in the input field and hit return in the /Volumes location, trash the folder(s) that has the same name as the external drive Close Finder, plug the drive back in, open Disk Utility again to check the drive name in the Mount Point. If it matches try to create the symlink In addition to checking the external drive mount point above, the following may also be helpful: Terminal states my access/permission is denied check your Mac user account is an Administrator account and not a Standard account. check that Terminal has access to external drives, also known as Removable Volumes, and your Documents folder. I'm constantly getting "Unable to start... Cannot start because the below file appears to be corrupted" error message make sure the external drive is correctly formatted as either APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled). If it isn't, reverse the symlink, reformat the drive in Disk Utility and start again. check your Mods actually aren't corrupted by downloading a compatible version from the creator. I keep getting the error message "Unable to start... The Sims 4 is already running" make sure the external drive is correctly plugged in and mounted. check EA App has access to the external drive in System Settings > Privacy & Security. Give it Full Disk Access if necessary. disable iCloud Drive if the symlink folder in Documents is a white page instead of a folder with the little arrow the symlink has broken. Trash it and attempt to recreate the symlink. Check the Mount Point in Disk Utility shows your exact external drive name and doesn’t have a number added to the drive name. If it does this means your drive has not been properly ejected multiple times. To fix it: eject the drive in Finder click on Go in the menu bar then Go To Folder enter /Volumes in the text field and hit Enter/Return in the Finder window that appears you should see a folder, not a drive icon, with the same name as your external drive. Trash it. plug the drive back in, check the mount point in Disk Utility is the exact drive name with no appended numbers, then try to create the symlink again. if the mount point is still showing a number you have problems with your drive. Consider reformatting it, trying different connector cables, or getting a better drive. Terminal tells me No such file or directory did you copy and paste the command from the guide and correctly substitute the name of your external drive? If you didn't copy and paste you may have used the wrong letters in the command. Copy and paste from the guide. Does the folder you are trying to move or create a symlink to exist in the location you are stipulating in the command? Terminal tells me Directory not empty in Step 1 Is there already a folder on the external with the same name as the folder you're moving? i.e. have you already copied over the Electronic Arts folder? If there is already a folder with the same name as the folder you're moving, Terminal will return this result. Terminal tells me File already exists in Step 2 of the guide Did you correctly complete step 1 or is there still an Electronic Arts or Sims 4 folder in your Documents folder? If the folder is still there you have not correctly moved it in Step 1. If you have iCloud Drive enabled to store your Documents folder in the cloud and Optimise Storage enabled, it will cause issues with the symlink. I strongly advise to disable this iCloud feature otherwise you will have issues, especially if you use Mods. As a reminder, creating this symlink is aimed at people storing their Electronic Arts/Sims 4 folder locally. Using iCloud Drive stores your folder in the cloud and locally. For help with iCloud see this thread https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-Mac/READ-FIRST-Saves-CC-Mods-or-Library-items-disappeared/m-p/10242133SIMS_4_V2_PC_CLIENT folder appeared in Mac Home folder
After patching Sims 4 to 1.115.216.1230 this folder has appeared in my Home directory: with the version number at the main menu being correct but [SDK: UNKNOWN] added: There is only one file, appears to be JSON, in the folder and nested folders that contains the following information (I've tidied it up into a more readable format): { "eadp.nexus.connect.grpc.v1": "https://accounts.grpc.ea.com", "eadp.eaid.grpc.model": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com", "eadp.identity": "https://accounts.ea.com", "eadp.identity.proxy": "https://gateway.ea.com/proxy", "eadp.auth.account": "https://signin.ea.com/", "eadp.stats": "https://stats.gameservices.ea.com:11000", "eadp.leaderboards": "https://leaderboards.gameservices.ea.com:11000", "eadp.leaderboards.v2": "https://leaderboards-api-ext.leaderboards.ea.com:443", "eadp.pushnotification": "https://pn.tnt-ea.com", "eadp.realtimemessaging": "https://rtm.tnt-ea.com:9000", "eadp.authentication.useJwtToken": "false", "eadp.candi.offer.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.offer.v2.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.catalog.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.entitlement.v2.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "shadowbroker.grpc.service.subscription": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.drm.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.valuetransfer.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.valuetransfer.v2.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.pin": "https://pin-river-grpc.data.ea.com:443", "eadp.candi.firstpartycheckout": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com:443", "eadp.experimentation.grouping.v1": "https://experimentation-grpc.data.ea.com", "eadp.experimentation.grouping.v2": "https://experimentation-grpc.data.ea.com", "eadp.experimentation.tracking.v1": "https://experimentation-tracking-grpc.data.ea.com", "eadp.experimentation.tracking.v2": "https://experimentation-tracking-grpc.data.ea.com", "eadp.playersearch.grpc.search.v1.service": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com", "eadp.mcr": "https://api.mcr.ea.com:4430", "eadp.mcr.query.service": "https://q.mcr.ea.com", "sony.commerce.serviceLabel": "0", "kanas.commerce.serviceLabel": "0", "eadp.instrumentation.service": "https://freeform-river.data.ea.com", "eadp.social.presence.v1": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.social.gameinvite.v1": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.crossplaycontentmart.v1": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.playercard.v1": "https://gateway.grpc.ea.com", "eadp.social.groups.v1": "https://groups.social.ea.com", "eadp.social.groups.v1.GroupNotifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.um.v1": "https://pin-em-grpc.data.ea.com:443", "eadp.friends.v1": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.friends.v1.FriendListNotifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.friends.notifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.friendrecommendations.v1": "https://friend-recommendations.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.friends.v1.InviteListNotifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.social.privacy.v1": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.social.privacy.v1.BlockListNotifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.social.privacy.v1.MuteListNotifications": "https://api.k.social.ea.com", "eadp.chat": "https://rtm.tnt-ea.com", "eadp.chat.tcp": "https://rtm.tnt-ea.com:9000" } Trashing the SIMS_4_V2_PC_CLIENT folder just forces the game to recreate a new one when next launched. I have no idea what the contents of this file are but it looks like some kind of data collection I think? If so, why does it still recreate when I have Share Usage Data disabled in Game Options? Or is it completely unrelated? Should the game be creating data in the User account Home folder? I don't think it should. Or maybe this has always been there but hidden and the latest patch unhid it? I can stop the game creating it by changing permissions on the PROD folder in SIMS_4_V2_PC_CLIENT > 0 > eadp-sdk > persistence to Read Only for my user account (right-click on PROD folder, > Get Info, change to Read Only at the bottom of the info window under Sharing & Permissions).Sims 4 Mac crashes with GraphicsRules.sgr file in the ConfigOverride folder
Ever since the January 2025 patch, placing a copy of the GraphicsRules.sgr file in the Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 > ConfigOverride folder causes the game to not launch with a specific error message "There was an error processing the startup configuration script": It doesn't matter if it's a simple, unedited version of the file or an edited version, the game won't launch. This only applies to the GraphicsRules.sgr file. Placing a copy of the Default.ini file and GraphicsCards.sgr file in the ConfigOverride is fine. Current workarounds: edit the GraphicsRules.sgr file directly in The Sims 4.app > Contents > Resources folder which defeats the purpose of the ConfigOverride folder and requires a game repair to set back to the default vanilla setting place a copy of the Ts4CommonRules.sgr file from The Sims 4.app > Contents > Resources folder in the ConfigOverride folder (BIG thanks to karoschmitz for discovering this) place a copy of the GraphicsRules.sgr file in the ConfigOverride folder, open it and remove the third line at the top of the file include "Ts4CommonRules.sgr" (I have not tested for any adverse reactions in-game when not including this file at launch)How to save Sims data when wiping Mac?
I have to wipe my Mac as I've been having performance issues with it. I thought my Sims data would be saved in the EA app, but luckily, I looked it up first, and I saw it's saved locally on my computer. I've been playing with the same family for over 2 years and would be extremely upset to lose that data. How do I make sure to keep it? Thanks so much!
CC disappeared immediately after downloading and moving into "content folder"
I just downloaded sims on my new macbook yesterday, and spent hours today downloading new custom content for it. I downloaded probably 400+ files. I assumed they went into the "content" folder, and moved all of the files there. Then opened the game, and none of it was there despite cc and mods enabled. When I opened up finder all of it was gone. Can anyone help me with this? It's no longer in my downloads because I moved it all into the content folder. I am hoping there is some way I don't have to go back through and spend hours downloading it all again. Thanks!!Trying to Restore Mom's Old Saves
Hello, My mom has been playing The Sims 4 for years and recently told me she somehow lost access to all of her saves after an update sometime last year (she doesn't remember exactly when). She says she opened the game after the update and could only select "New Game." She plays on a Mac computer and has no mods. I found a backup of her old Sims 4 folder from last year, but when I put the files from the "saves" folder into her current "saves" folder, the game doesn't recognize them at all. I've tried putting them in one by one, but none of them will open (it just shows "New Game" or just the default sims that come with the game). I also tried to "repair" the game. The saves in her backup folder almost all look like this: Slot_00000008.save 2.ver2 Slot_00000008.save 3.ver2 Slot_00000008.save 4.ver3 Etc. etc., going all the way up to: Slot_00000008.save 1091.ver1 Slot_00000008.save 1564.ver1 Slot_00000008.save 1565.ver1 There are over 300 like this in the save folder. I saw a site that said to delete the "ver" part of the file name (after ".save") but they almost all start with "Slot_00000008", so I'd have almost nothing left. She had many different families. Does anyone have any insight into how I can manipulate these files to bring her old sims back? It would make her so happy. Thanks!
