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GUIDE: What to back up in your Sims 3 folder.
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Intro:
As Simmers, we love to create, and as creators we love to NOT see our creations utterly destroyed by ill-timed hard drive crashes or viruses.
In order to protect our creations, the smartest thing a Simmer can do is create backups often. The best and easiest way to do this is to copy the entire Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder from your Documents and place it on an external storage device. This way, you can always copy the folder back into your Documents after a fresh install and continue your game right where you left off.
Unfortunately, sometimes the game's folder can grow well over the size of your average storage device. At this point, it becomes useful to go through the folder and pick and choose which files and folders are important to you and which ones can be safely disposed of for space. In the process of separating my essential files from the garbage, I came up with the following guide.
First off, there are multiple files in the Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder itself. If removed, default versions of these files will automatically generate the next time you boot the game, so most of them are safe to exclude from your backup. However, two of these files may be important to you:
* userpresets.package: If you've created and saved any custom patterns in Create-a-Style, this file will exist and contain them, and you may want to back it up. If you've created no custom patterns, this file won't exist.
* Options.ini: this file contains your game preferences (such as your graphic and sound settings). If this file is missing, the game will simply create a new one the next time you play, and you'll just have to readjust your settings back to however you like them.
Apart from userpresets.package and Options.ini, none of the loose files in this folder are irreplaceable; the game will re-create them if it can't find them.
Saves -- Your most important folder.
The Saves subfolder contains your saved games. Always save this folder. Each saved game contains all of the data that is likely most important to you: the Sims you've created, the Lots they live on, the neighborhood they live in, their relationships with each other... pretty much everything that matters.
InstalledWorlds, DCCache & Mods -- Your downloaded content.
InstalledWorlds contains worlds you've downloaded, such as Riverview, Barnacle Bay, or any custom neighborhoods created with Create-a-World. You can always download EA's worlds from the official site so it's not 100% necessary to back up (although it's a good idea to just so you don't have to download it again), but if you have any CAW worlds that you enjoy, you should back up this folder to avoid having to find and download them again, or discover that they're no longer available.
Important note: if you try to play a saved game in a world that isn't installed, the game will delete that saved game. So make sure your worlds are installed before trying to play.
DCCache contains any content you've downloaded and installed from The Store. These items can also be downloaded from your Purchase History page on the official site, but if you don't want to go through the hassle of downloading everything all over again, you should back up this folder. (Also, you may have downloaded items that for one reason or another are no longer available, such as the 2009 Toyota Prius or the Dr. Pepper promotional items. Backing up this folder will ensure that you still have access to those items.)
As for the Mods folders: if you downloaded any mods or custom content and went through the steps to install them, then this folder will exist and contain them, and you'll want to back it up. If you don't have any mods or custom content, then you can ignore this folder. Actually, you won't even have to because it won't exist.
Library & SavedSims -- The creations in your bins.
The Library folder contains any Households or Lots you've saved to your Library (the bin that appears at the bottom of the screen in Edit Town mode). This folder also contains Households and Lots you've downloaded and installed from The Exchange. Similarly, SavedSims contains any Sims you've saved to your Create-a-Sim bin or downloaded and installed from The Exchange. If any of those creations/downloads are important or irreplaceable to you, you should back up these folders.
Screenshots & Recorded Videos -- Your pictures and videos.
Screenshots contains pictures you've taken in-game, and Recorded Videos contains videos you've captured in-game. These folders can get humongous if you take a lot of pictures/video, so you may want to consider backing them up separately. In my case, I had 8 GB of screenshots, so I burnt them to an appropriately-sized disc and deleted them from my hard drive so that I never have to deal with them again when performing my regular backup.
DCBackup -- One important file plus several hundred megabytes of questionable worth.
There is one important file in the DCBackup folder called cc.merged. If it exists, you'll want to keep it, otherwise any premium content you've downloaded from The Store may not work properly.
Also in DCBackup are many large package files with long, garbled-up names. These are not entirely necessary to keep unless you tend to upload Sims with custom content to The Exchange. The game uses these files to attach the custom content to your uploaded Sims, and if the files aren't present, this process simply won't happen, and other Simmers won't see those items when they download your Sims. If you don't care at all about that, you can safely delete these package files and it won't affect your game at all. It'll also save you several hundred megabytes worth of space.
Downloads, Exports & Custom Music -- Disposable folders.
The Downloads folder contains the original package files for your downloaded content. When you install these package files, the launcher writes their content to one of several files in DCCache, where it becomes ready to use in-game. Once the content is written to DCCache, the purpose of the original package file is complete, and it no longer becomes necessary to keep. But you may optionally want to back it up, in the event that you need to reinstall everything (like if a bad EA update corrupts your game) and don't want to re-download your Store items.
Exports contains any content you've uploaded to The Exchange. This content can normally be found either in your game or in your Studio, thus this folder can safely be excluded from your backup if you so choose.
Custom Music: unless you put your own music in this folder, it's probably full of a bunch of songs you don't like that the game will keep regenerating anyway if you delete them.
Note: There are several folders I didn't go into detail about because they don't contain anything important when it comes to backing up one's creations. CurrentGame.sims3 is where the game stores your saved game as you are playing the game, but it will be empty if you're not playing. Thumbnails is where the game stores the various icons for items and patterns in the game -- if you delete it, it will simply recreate itself (although that takes a while). The same goes for IGACache, SigsCache, and any of the aforementioned folders.
If I'm missing any information (or am just flat out wrong), please feel free to add to this or correct me! I'd like for this guide to be as accurate as possible, and I won't take offense. But your Simself may find itself in a dungeon full of ugly kids.
As Simmers, we love to create, and as creators we love to NOT see our creations utterly destroyed by ill-timed hard drive crashes or viruses.
In order to protect our creations, the smartest thing a Simmer can do is create backups often. The best and easiest way to do this is to copy the entire Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder from your Documents and place it on an external storage device. This way, you can always copy the folder back into your Documents after a fresh install and continue your game right where you left off.
Unfortunately, sometimes the game's folder can grow well over the size of your average storage device. At this point, it becomes useful to go through the folder and pick and choose which files and folders are important to you and which ones can be safely disposed of for space. In the process of separating my essential files from the garbage, I came up with the following guide.
First off, there are multiple files in the Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder itself. If removed, default versions of these files will automatically generate the next time you boot the game, so most of them are safe to exclude from your backup. However, two of these files may be important to you:
* userpresets.package: If you've created and saved any custom patterns in Create-a-Style, this file will exist and contain them, and you may want to back it up. If you've created no custom patterns, this file won't exist.
* Options.ini: this file contains your game preferences (such as your graphic and sound settings). If this file is missing, the game will simply create a new one the next time you play, and you'll just have to readjust your settings back to however you like them.
Apart from userpresets.package and Options.ini, none of the loose files in this folder are irreplaceable; the game will re-create them if it can't find them.
Saves -- Your most important folder.
The Saves subfolder contains your saved games. Always save this folder. Each saved game contains all of the data that is likely most important to you: the Sims you've created, the Lots they live on, the neighborhood they live in, their relationships with each other... pretty much everything that matters.
InstalledWorlds, DCCache & Mods -- Your downloaded content.
InstalledWorlds contains worlds you've downloaded, such as Riverview, Barnacle Bay, or any custom neighborhoods created with Create-a-World. You can always download EA's worlds from the official site so it's not 100% necessary to back up (although it's a good idea to just so you don't have to download it again), but if you have any CAW worlds that you enjoy, you should back up this folder to avoid having to find and download them again, or discover that they're no longer available.
Important note: if you try to play a saved game in a world that isn't installed, the game will delete that saved game. So make sure your worlds are installed before trying to play.
DCCache contains any content you've downloaded and installed from The Store. These items can also be downloaded from your Purchase History page on the official site, but if you don't want to go through the hassle of downloading everything all over again, you should back up this folder. (Also, you may have downloaded items that for one reason or another are no longer available, such as the 2009 Toyota Prius or the Dr. Pepper promotional items. Backing up this folder will ensure that you still have access to those items.)
As for the Mods folders: if you downloaded any mods or custom content and went through the steps to install them, then this folder will exist and contain them, and you'll want to back it up. If you don't have any mods or custom content, then you can ignore this folder. Actually, you won't even have to because it won't exist.
Library & SavedSims -- The creations in your bins.
The Library folder contains any Households or Lots you've saved to your Library (the bin that appears at the bottom of the screen in Edit Town mode). This folder also contains Households and Lots you've downloaded and installed from The Exchange. Similarly, SavedSims contains any Sims you've saved to your Create-a-Sim bin or downloaded and installed from The Exchange. If any of those creations/downloads are important or irreplaceable to you, you should back up these folders.
Screenshots & Recorded Videos -- Your pictures and videos.
Screenshots contains pictures you've taken in-game, and Recorded Videos contains videos you've captured in-game. These folders can get humongous if you take a lot of pictures/video, so you may want to consider backing them up separately. In my case, I had 8 GB of screenshots, so I burnt them to an appropriately-sized disc and deleted them from my hard drive so that I never have to deal with them again when performing my regular backup.
DCBackup -- One important file plus several hundred megabytes of questionable worth.
There is one important file in the DCBackup folder called cc.merged. If it exists, you'll want to keep it, otherwise any premium content you've downloaded from The Store may not work properly.
Also in DCBackup are many large package files with long, garbled-up names. These are not entirely necessary to keep unless you tend to upload Sims with custom content to The Exchange. The game uses these files to attach the custom content to your uploaded Sims, and if the files aren't present, this process simply won't happen, and other Simmers won't see those items when they download your Sims. If you don't care at all about that, you can safely delete these package files and it won't affect your game at all. It'll also save you several hundred megabytes worth of space.
Downloads, Exports & Custom Music -- Disposable folders.
The Downloads folder contains the original package files for your downloaded content. When you install these package files, the launcher writes their content to one of several files in DCCache, where it becomes ready to use in-game. Once the content is written to DCCache, the purpose of the original package file is complete, and it no longer becomes necessary to keep. But you may optionally want to back it up, in the event that you need to reinstall everything (like if a bad EA update corrupts your game) and don't want to re-download your Store items.
Exports contains any content you've uploaded to The Exchange. This content can normally be found either in your game or in your Studio, thus this folder can safely be excluded from your backup if you so choose.
Custom Music: unless you put your own music in this folder, it's probably full of a bunch of songs you don't like that the game will keep regenerating anyway if you delete them.
Note: There are several folders I didn't go into detail about because they don't contain anything important when it comes to backing up one's creations. CurrentGame.sims3 is where the game stores your saved game as you are playing the game, but it will be empty if you're not playing. Thumbnails is where the game stores the various icons for items and patterns in the game -- if you delete it, it will simply recreate itself (although that takes a while). The same goes for IGACache, SigsCache, and any of the aforementioned folders.
If I'm missing any information (or am just flat out wrong), please feel free to add to this or correct me! I'd like for this guide to be as accurate as possible, and I won't take offense. But your Simself may find itself in a dungeon full of ugly kids.
Post edited by EA_Solaire on
0
Comments
I haven't used Time Machine yet, but from my understanding it will back up your Documents, including the Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder. :-) As long as it's backing up to a separate drive (like an external drive or a secondary hard drive), your backup should be safe and ready to go in the event that you ever need to use it.
I have bookmarked
Bookmarked
You are welcome
It especially caught my eye since I had to do a system restore after downloading the latest patch ( can't say for sure the patch caused it, but I have my suspicions!).
I normally back up Stuff to CD-R discs. You actually have more than I do! I looked my sims 3 folder is 7.11 GB.
I know about saving "saves", and I back up my downloads a lot, and worlds.
But I didn't know the whole downloads folder And DCBackup can all be deleted? I'm afraid to do it. It Would free up A lot of space though.
Just curious but where does the Launcher fit into all this. I know everything I've downloaded and installed is in Launcher SO if I delete downloaded sims3 packs , and this DCBackup - is the stuff all still in Launcher?? Or does it matter?
edit: all I can say is I hope when and if I get Fast Lane OR another patch comes out, my "saves" will install back in, uncorrupted if need be.
The patch borked my latest saved 'hood, and I had to delete it and start new.
So it is a good idea to copy it, you might want to store the backups/downloads folders in case you need to reinstall.
I think I get it. Downloads folder has ALL those tons of sims3 packs, The Launcher installs it and shows it all,and can also uninstall it.
But the DCCache is actually what has it in the game, or the game folder that contains all the downloaded stuff.
DCCache was only 6 items, I had to save it to 2 discs because of the MB's, BUT installing those 6 items will be one heck of a lot easier than worrying about installing hundreds of sims3 packs!!!
DO NOT - PM me tech ?s/issues. ▬ DO create a thread in it's respective Technical Forum. Vacation goes by way too fast!
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That's a good point. I'll make sure and add that players may optionally want to backup their Downloads folder in the event that they need to reinstall items. But I do still think DCBackup is useless considering it contains all of the same package files as Downloads. I've read quite a few threads where even players like Twallan can't figure out why DCBackup exists, lol.
Thanks for the input!
Yup! The Downloads folder contains your downloaded content in package form, which is basically a "ready-to-install" file format. When you do install a package file, the launcher writes its content to one of several files in DCCache, where it becomes ready to use in-game. Once the content is written to DCCache, the purpose of the original package file is complete and it no longer becomes necessary.
So optionally you can delete your packages or, as Nicarra60 just mentioned, you may decide to keep them in the event that you need to reinstall everything (like if a bad EA update corrupts your game). But if you choose not to keep your package files, you can always download them again from your Purchase History on The Store if you ever need them for one reason or another.
In it, Nichaedemus confirms that the DCBackup folder can safely be deleted. :-)