[CURRENT ISSUE] Sims 4 saves/user content disappearing (PC)
Overview jump to: Restoring missing saves jump to: I want OneDrive to keep syncing my files jump to: I don't want OneDrive to sync my files jump to: I want to get rid of OneDrive jump to: My saves aren't in OneDrive jump to: My saves still aren't appearing in-game In Windows, the most common cause of Sims 4 saves or other user files disappearing is OneDrive. User files are stored in Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4, and if no Sims 4 folder is present there, the game will make a new one with no content. It won't look elsewhere for saves or other user content. OneDrive syncs the contents of Documents to cloud storage by default. This syncing may have worked fine for some time, but it can fail for one reason or another, and the result is that the user files are removed from local storage. Then when Sims 4 is loaded, saves, Tray files, and mods and custom content are missing, with the only option being to start a new save. If you have a Mac, please use this thread instead: [READ FIRST] Saves, CC/Mods or Library items disappeared? iCloud issues | EA Forums - 10979712 ↑ Restoring missing saves The first place to look for missing files is within OneDrive's cloud storage. Go to onedrive.com, click Sign in in the upper-right corner, and enter the email address and password associated with your Microsoft account. Please check both My files and the Recyle bin for your missing content. OneDrive does only preserve data in the Recycle bin for 30 days for a free basic account, or 93 days for some premium accounts. If that time has passed, the files may be permanently deleted. If you find your missing files, click them to select, then right-click and select Restore: Once you've downloaded the files from OneDrive, you may need to rename them or move them to the correct folder, as in, the one Sims 4 is reading. If you need more help with this process, please read this. To prevent this in the future, you can change OneDrive's settings. Or you can stop syncing or get rid of OneDrive entirely. If you've never used OneDrive, or it doesn't have your saves, please see this. ↑ I want OneDrive to keep syncing my files If your OneDrive has enough space for all your files, the simplest workaround is to tell OneDrive to keep the Sims 4 user folder on your computer. Right-click the folder and select "Always keep on this device." Please double-check that OneDrive has enough storage, or you may run into more trouble. Right-click the OneDrive icon in the lower-right corner of your screen and select Settings: Under Account, you'll see the current and total storage: If your OneDrive is full, or your "The Sims 4" folder is larger than the storage you have, you can choose to stop automatically syncing Documents overall, or the Sims 4 folder, or some subfolder, for example the Mods folder. (Please see the next section below.) You can still manually upload files to OneDrive as you choose. Or you can buy a subscription for more OneDrive storage. However, an external drive or USB stick is a one-time purchase and a cheaper long-term solution than a subscription, so consider your options before subscribing. ↑ I don't want OneDrive to sync my files The first step is to make a backup of your "The Sims 4" folder, the one in Documents > Electronic Arts. Right-click it and select Copy, then right-click the location where you want your backup to go and select Paste. If you don't have an external drive or USB stick handy, you can paste the folder into your computer's Downloads folder, which OneDrive doesn't sync. The simplest change is to tell OneDrive not to sync the contents of Documents at all. Right-click the OneDrive icon in the lower-right corner of the screen, select Settings > Backup, click Manage Backup, and under Documents, click Stop backup, then confirm the choice. Now you can restore the backup version of your Sims 4 folder to Documents > Electronic Arts, and the game should read your data. If you're not seeing your saves in-game, please read this. If you want to get more granular, you can choose to not sync the contents of the Electronic Arts folder, the Sims 4 folder, or any folder inside. First, make a backup of this folder; as above, you can store it on an external device, or in Downloads. Right-click the OneDrive icon in the lower-right corner of the screen, open Settings > Account, select Choose folders, deselect the folders you don't want OneDrive to sync, and click Okay. Once you deselect the given folder, it will be removed from your computer and stored only in the cloud. You can now restore the backup copy you made, and OneDrive won't sync it. If you forgot to back up this folder, you can still download it from onedrive.com. If you're not seeing your saves in-game, please read this. ↑ I want to get rid of OneDrive If you want to get rid of OneDrive entirely, first make a backup of any synced folders you want to keep. You can right-click the folders and select Copy, then right-click where you want the backups to be and select Paste. An external drive or USB stick is ideal, but if you don't have one handy, you can use your computer's Downloads folder, which OneDrive doesn't sync. You can also find your files later by signing into your Microsoft account at onedrive.com. Right-click the OneDrive icon in the lower-right corner of your screen, select Settings > Backup, click Manage Backup, and click Stop backup for all three categories, then confirm the choice. The reason to do this is to move the default locations of these folders out of the OneDrive folder on your computer, which might otherwise be a more complicated process. Next, right-click the OneDrive icon in the lower-right corner of your screen and select Settings > Account, then click Unlink this PC. It's unnecessary to uninstall OneDrive—without a link to a Microsoft account, it has nothing to do. After the above and before you do anything else, please double-check that your Documents folder is no longer in OneDrive. Type "command" in the Windows search box, open Command Prompt, and enter this command: reg query "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders" /v "Personal" This will spit out the location of the Documents directory for this Windows account. The file path should no longer include OneDrive, but if it does, as here: Then you'll need to change the location manually. The simple way is to right-click Documents in the left panel of a File Explorer window and choose Properties > Location, then Move, then click This PC, then choose this: C:\Users\[your username]\Documents Click Apply, then Yes. You may get an error that says "Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected." The normal workaround is to stop OneDrive from backing up the location of Documents, as described above. If this hasn't helped, you can change the location of Documents by editing the relevant registry entry: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/operation-to-change-a-personal-folder-location-fails-in-windows-ffb95139-6dbb-821d-27ec-62c9aaccd720 Please be very careful when editing your computer's registry. One simple typo can have significant consequences. Make a backup before you do anything: click File > Export, and save a copy of the entire registry. If you mess up the edit, just restore the backup by double-clicking the saved file. You can check your work with the same Command Prompt command as above. This also applies to the Desktop and Pictures folders if they've previously been directed to OneDrive. ↑ My saves aren't in OneDrive If you don't use OneDrive, or you can't find your saves there, you can search your computer for the saves. Open a File Explorer window, click This PC in the left panel, and enter Slot_ in the search field in the upper-right corner. When the scan finishes, if it's found any saves, click one and select the "Open file location" menu button (or right-click the file and select "Open file location"), and you'll jump to wherever the save is, which will hopefully be where the rest of your user files are. Move the saves and any other files you'd like to keep to the relevant subfolders within the Sims 4 folder the game is reading, as it appears in-game: https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2018/07/how-to-find-your-user-folder/ If your saves still aren't appearing in-game, please read this. If your content has disappeared, and it's not hidden on your computer and not in OneDrive, it's worth doing a virus scan. This is not to say you definitely have a virus, only that it's a good idea to check. Download Malwarebytes (the free trial is fine) from here: https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download Open it, click Scan > Custom Scan > Configure Scan, check all the boxes for all scans and for all your drives, and let it do its job. This can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours, so you may want to set the scan to run while you're doing something else. If you'd like someone to take a look at the results, please start your own thread and attach the report. ↑ My saves still aren't appearing in-game The two common reasons your saves and other user files might not load in-game is that they're in the wrong folder or they're named improperly. To make sure the files are in the correct folder, load the game and find the full file path to that folder, as described here: https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2018/07/how-to-find-your-user-folder/ To see the full file path of a given file or folder, right-click it and select Properties > General, then look for the Location. If you're having trouble opening the correct folder, click This PC in a File Explorer window instead, then double-click the correct drive (probably C), and open the corresponding folders from there. OneDrive may also have renamed the saves to avoid duplicate files or folders. For example, after changing some settings back and forth, I wound up with this in my saves folder: Saves need to be named in a specific format: Slot_ followed by an eight-digit hexidecimal (base-16, so numbers 0 to 9, letters a to f) number followed by .save , with no extra characters. Each save needs to have a unique number as well. All of these are valid save names: Slot_00000006.save Slot_0000000c.save Slot_00000012.save In the above screenshot, for the affected saves (red arrows), I would delete the - Copy and the space and also renumber the saves, as other saves already have those same numbers. The order in which you number the saves doesn't matter. Choose whatever names are convenient for you, although Sims 4 has occasionally been unable to read saves that start with a digit other than 0. Saves with a .verx on the end are backups of your main saves: the game saves the data from the last five times you saved your progress before the current one. These can be renamed in the same way; once the .verx extension is deleted, the game will read these files as well. The same principles apply to Tray files: they need to be named properly and in the correct Tray folder. But because Tray file names can be more difficult to work with than saves, please start your own thread asking for help if you need it. In that case, include a screenshot or two of the contents of Tray so that the person helping you can identify the problem. Include the address bar, above the list of files, in the screenshot, as in my saves screenshot above. ↑My game wont start nor update
When i try starting it says that I have a disk write error and when I go to look for the mentioned file (C:\program files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\The Sims 4\Game\Bin\TS4_Launcher_x64.exe) it just doesn't exist? Google said that I should repair it in the EA app but it doesn't give me that option, like the button isn't even there? Also in steam it wants me to resume an update that will not go past 99% every time I go to the game's page there? Im guessing thats because of the missing file. I was also suggested to try to repair the EA app in the settings, but it only gives me the uninstall option.
lost households
Hello., I've lost all of my households. I was having a few issues with my game at the start, so i deleted the folder named ' tray ' as i thought it was irrelevant.. turned out i needed that folder, so i uninstalled sims then redownloaded it again. My tray folder came back with only 1 item in called ' Slot ' with a bunch of numbers after it... logged onto sims and my households have all disappeared. I didn't save them in the gallery only saved the house. Is there any way i can get them households back or do i need to factory reset my laptop and start all fresh? Not something i want to do but i haven't been able to play sims for ages because i've been having a right chew on with the game. Help would be strongly appreciated[CURRENT ISSUE] Sims 4 DLC shows as installed, won't load in-game
Overview 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 Before doing anything else, please clear the EA App's cache, repair the game (Sims 4 > Manage > Repair), and restart your computer, then see whether your packs load. Sometimes the fix is really that simple. 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. I have the CAS Demo installed 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. ↑ 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. ↑ I'm lost/please help 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. ↑Stop deleting my game folders with patch
I dont know what keeps happening but every few months i lose all my game. I dont do anything to my files/folders and it seems to happen after a patch or new expansion. I hate the way this whole game is constructed with saving, and should be a main server like other games such as World of Warcraft. if we are buying and downloading from EA or Steam then it should be. i cant be bothered to play if this keeps happening....... and i shouldnt have to back up my games every month just incase you all create a patch which deletes my game folder. I know its EA as i havent played for a number of weeks and the folders are all new on 23/07/2023. definitely wasnt me i have been playing a different game.Missing household
So I had uninstalled Sims 4 due to the fact that I wasn't playing for months. I reinstalled the game, and all of my households are gone. I don't know where to look to try to see if I can find them and get them back. I also never ran any mods for the game or CC. I had gone through the forms to see if anyone had a similar issue, and it seems that it had been mod problems.Won't load, have tried all the recommended tactics
Hi, I cannot get either Sims 4 or 3 to load on my laptop. It's saying game data is missing or damaged. I've redownloaded, tried the new user trick, repaired, and I'm now completely stuck. I've run the dxdiag and will attach them below. I'm completely stuck!
Missing Saves from Library
Hi, here's the issues I discovered. I am unsure how long they been missing because I just noticed this week. My saved sims 4 library of any builds I have done, sims made, and anything saved from early 2025 to 2023 when I started is gone. Only a couple random households, lots, and recent downloads are left. However when I checked my sims 4 tray files they're still files dating back to 2023. Is there anyway to reload my library and get back everything I've lost? I've tried removing my mods and cc. I've tried repairing. I've looked under cc. I've removed the tray, created a new one, launched the game, and reinsert my tray. I uninstalled One Drive and went through it, nothing. Please I need any help or advice. I'm beyond frustrated with how many years of work is missing. I don't upload everything to gallery because my legacy families and some builds are personal. SOS A DESPERATE SIMS 4 PLAYER
Sims 4 Frequent Crahses
Before you ask: No, I never play with mods and have none installed. Yes, my OS is updated. Yes, my game is updated. Yes, I've repaired my game. Yes, I deleted and reinstalled the EA app. Yes, I've deleted the localthumbcache.package. Yes, I've deleted the onlinethumbnailcache folder. Yes, I renamed my Sims 4 folder and moved it to the desktop, yes, I started a new save . And yes, I've restarted my computer. I've been playing this game for over a decade, I know the basic and advanced troubleshooting methods better than I know my own parents, so I think its time EA address that they are the ones breaking this game, not the users. Ever since the Destroyed by Nature expansion pack came out, my game crashes about every 40 minutes. I know it's not just me having this problem as every simmer on YouTube is experiencing the same problem. As a consumer, it's not to much to ask for a functional product, or a refund for the $1000+ we/I have spent on broken and unplayable DLC Fix the frequent crashes Thanks
