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Device 0 cannot run this title

DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
edited March 2018 in The Sims 3 Bugs & Issues
So I am getting the dreaded error message:

"Unable to start game

Device 0 cannot run this title.
No supported video graphics card detected. Please check your system hardware."

From what I have read around the internet it could be one of two things. My graphics card is too new for the game to recognize it: Its a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, or its because I have two graphics cards, which I do seem to have.

I cannot for the life of me figure out what to do. I tried to follow the instructions on editing the SGR files but apparently I didn't do it right or it just didn't work.

So any advice I could get would be amazing. BTW according to GeForce Experience, my graphics drivers are indeed up to date.

Here's my DxDiag in case this will help:

https://www.publishthis.email/ryiZx1Puz
Post edited by DarkZephyr on

Comments

  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    edited March 2018
    1 - If you haven't already set this up, the Nvidia Control Panel should be used to do up a profile for TS3.exe (for Patch 1.69) or TS3w.exe (for 1.67) so that the correct card gets used and vsync is arranged for. TS3 has no built in frame rate limiter so this step is essential and yes, it will otherwise often reach for the "wrong" card on dual systems.

    See the visual under the first spoiler here: http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/16049378/#Comment_16049378

    If that doesn't work out, then Nvidia Inspector (next spoiler on the same thread above) is usually what one should move onto. It's okay to have both.

    2 - If you have the recently released Windows Creator Update, part of Windows Updates for Win 10 now, it can be getting in the way. It just doesn't play well with older games (and many newer ones). Here is how to disengage it: http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/15902876/#Comment_15902876

    3 - On which drive is TS3 installed and where is your user game folder? You don't have nearly enough free space on C for Windows to function properly and if this is where the game and your Documents folder are located the game doesn't have free space to function properly either.

    4 - Can you put your default sgr files back in place? If they were edited incorrectly or are now not being read, then yes the game will refuse to launch at all.
    Post edited by igazor on
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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    igazor wrote: »
    1 - If you haven't already set this up, the Nvidia Control Panel should be used to do up a profile for TS3.exe (for Patch 1.69) or TS3w.exe (for 1.67) so that the correct card gets used and vsync is arranged for. TS3 has no built in frame rate limiter so this step is essential and yes, it will otherwise often reach for the "wrong" card on dual systems.

    I have already done that, yes, thanks. Unfortunately, that didn't help. (Thank you very much for replying. I really appreciate it!)
    igazor wrote: »
    See the visual under the first spoiler here: http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/16049378/#Comment_16049378

    If that doesn't work out, then Nvidia Inspector (next spoiler on the same thread above) is usually what one should move onto. It's okay to have both.

    2 - If you have the recently released Windows Creator Update, part of Windows Updates for Win 10 now, it can be getting in the way. It just doesn't play well with older games (and many newer ones). Here is how to disengage it: http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/15902876/#Comment_15902876

    I will try all of these and then get back to you about whether or not it worked. Thanks!
    igazor wrote: »
    3 - On which drive is TS3 installed and where is your user game folder? You don't have nearly enough free space on C for Windows to function properly and if this is where the game and your Documents folder are located the game doesn't have free space to function properly either.

    My main harddrive is fairly small, its a Solid State Drive and this laptop has a 1TB secondary D drive which is where I have Sims 3 installed.
    igazor wrote: »
    4 - Can you put your default sgr files back in place? If they were edited incorrectly or are now not being read, then yes the game will refuse to launch at all.

    Yes I can, I kept backups. The problem was occurring before I made the attempted edits, but I can certainly restore the originals, though they contain no information about my graphics card otherwise. Thank you again! Here's to hoping I can get the game to work!

  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    edited March 2018
    Well, sadly, nothing is working. I guess I can no longer play Sims 3. :(
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    edited March 2018
    I wouldn't give up quite so quickly, clearly the game is not detecting your graphics card. Not formally recognizing is to be expected and I can help you with those pesky sgr edits to address that, but not even detecting it would of course not allow the game to launch. This should not be impossible to fix.

    But first, you have a 256 GB C drive running Windows. It's good that the game is installed on D (is your Documents folder where your TS3 user game folder spawns also redirected to D?), but the drive only has 15 GB free. That's not enough free space for Windows itself to maneuver. Even if that's not what is causing the current failure, I would strongly suggest freeing up some space there as it's going to cause other issues regardless. Windows really needs at least 15% or at least 35 GB free space to work properly. Your D drive, although 1 TB capacity, is also pretty full with only 56 GB free.
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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    edited March 2018
    igazor wrote: »
    I wouldn't give up quite so quickly, clearly the game is not detecting your graphics card. Not formally recognizing is to be expected and I can help you with those pesky sgr edits to address that, but not even detecting it would of course not allow the game to launch. This should not be impossible to fix.

    But first, you have a 256 GB C drive running Windows. It's good that the game is installed on D (is your Documents folder where your TS3 user game folder spawns also redirected to D?), but the drive only has 15 GB free. That's not enough free space for Windows itself to maneuver. Even if that's not what is causing the current failure, I would strongly suggest freeing up some space there as it's going to cause other issues regardless. Windows really needs at least 15% or at least 35 GB free space to work properly. Your D drive, although 1 TB capacity, is also pretty full with only 56 GB free.

    Ha ha yeah I have quite a few games installed. I guess I don't need ALL of them installed at once. lol

    I will free up some space on both drives.

    Originally I had edited this into my previous post but I don't know for sure if you caught it:

    Interesting bit of information. On a whim I decided to use the nVidia Control Panel to set the Sims 3 to use the integrated graphics card rather than my nVidia card...and the game worked (on low settings) but it worked. So it truly does seem to be a matter of the game simply not recognizing my newer card. If only I didn't suck at editing those sgr files because it seems like that would be the ticket to getting this working for me. Incidentally, I have read that sometimes you can get the game to work in windowed mode, so while it was working via the integrated card I set it to windowed mode, changed it back to my nVidia card and still got the original error message. BUT it does work with the integrated intel graphics card. It simply doesn't recognize the existence of my newer nVidia card.

    Edit: And btw THANK YOU SO MUCH for helping me. This is very kind of you.
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    edited March 2018
    Okay, if you send me by PM a copy/paste of the first 40 lines of your latest DeviceConfig.log (not the long lists of game options, the parts before all that) from your TS3 user game folder, I can send you proper instructions on editing those sgr files. This might be tricky though because I need the exact device ID number code of your Nvidia card, not the Intel chip. But I think I can get that from your dxdiag report so we have a chance of making this work still.
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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    edited March 2018
    igazor wrote: »
    Okay, if you send me by PM a copy/paste of the first 40 lines of your latest DeviceConfig.log (not the long lists of game options, the parts before all that) from your TS3 user game folder, I can send you proper instructions on editing those sgr files. This might be tricky though because I need the exact device ID number code of your Nvidia card, not the Intel chip. But I think I can get that from your dxdiag report so we have a chance of making this work still.

    It appears to be blank at the moment. I think its from when trying to start it using the nVidia card. Let me recreate it by starting the game with the integrated card.

  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    edited March 2018
    Even after the game starts up successfully using the Intel chip? Strange.

    Okay, I'll send the instructions as best I can without that then.

    Edit: Our messages crossed. But I've already sent you the instructions.
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  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    For those following along here (if anyone), the OP seems to have this all sorted out now, the card is recognized and no more Device 0 errors. :)
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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    And its all thanks to Igazor!
  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    Well, it just up and started doing that error again. Not sure why. Was working fine yesterday and then today I tried installing some new downloads and got the error and I also now get it when I try to start the game itself. All of the settings I changed are exactly as they were. I even saved those changed files and uploaded them to mediafire so that I always have them. So now I am stumped completely. I wish EA would come up with an updated patch that acknowledges newer cards.
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    DarkZephyr wrote: »
    Well, it just up and started doing that error again. Not sure why. Was working fine yesterday and then today I tried installing some new downloads and got the error and I also now get it when I try to start the game itself. All of the settings I changed are exactly as they were. I even saved those changed files and uploaded them to mediafire so that I always have them. So now I am stumped completely. I wish EA would come up with an updated patch that acknowledges newer cards.
    Could you perhaps be a bit more specific about what "installing some new downloads" means? Are we talking about CC here, mods, something else, something not even related to the game...?

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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    edited April 2018
    I bought some store content as I always wanted to try Grandpa's Grove. BUT its all moot because I restarted my PC and it was working again. Sorry for the delayed reply but I didn't realize my post had actually made it through as the internet was wonky that day. I don't know why restarting fixed it but it did! :) Thanks for your quick reply!

  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    The only time my Internet goes down for more than a few minutes at a time is when I'm doing something really time sensitive and mission critical for work (or for NRaas). I don't believe anyone really has Internet issues that plague them at any other time, someone here is not telling the entire story...okay of course I am kidding and have no idea where I was going with this when I started. ;)

    Glad that's sorted itself out, then. :)
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  • DarkZephyrDarkZephyr Posts: 62 Member
    Thanks!

    The internet was wonky for me that day because Xfinity was out in my area and it went out as I was trying to send my post. That's why I didn't realize it had actually succeeded.

    I am playing the game though, so that's good! lol
  • 1wolf1wolf Posts: 2 New Member
    Hi igazor,

    I am getting the device 0 error on my Win10 system running NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970. I spent hours working with ES trying to get sims 2 ultimate collection to run but they gave up and gave me sims 3. What steps can I take to get this running? here is my dxdiag: pastebin (DOT)com/VzqP7qrx
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    edited April 2018
    1wolf wrote: »
    Hi igazor,

    I am getting the device 0 error on my Win10 system running NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970. I spent hours working with ES trying to get sims 2 ultimate collection to run but they gave up and gave me sims 3. What steps can I take to get this running? here is my dxdiag: pastebin (DOT)com/VzqP7qrx
    This may appear to be the same issue, but it's not. The OP has a laptop with dual graphics and the error was being generated during the intended handoff from their Intel integrated chip to the Nivida card as the game was starting up. You have a desktop and do not have dual graphics that I can see in the dxdiag, so there shouldn't be any handoffs.

    Let's start with:
    1 - Are your updated graphics card drivers actually from the computer's manufacturer?
    2 - Is this the original graphics card for this computer and if it's something you have upgraded to on your own, are you certain that your power supply is able to handle it along with everything else it's running?
    3- Have you taken the steps to mitigate the Win 10 Creators Update, which you do have? It does not play well with older games, or proving to for many newer ones either.
    http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/15902876/#Comment_15902876
    4 - This came up in a similar context elsewhere recently. Please verify that your Windows user (login) account and the path to its Library files (usually your user name show up there) does not have any unusual characters in it like $-signs.

    If none of that helps, then we'll switch to PMs and work on getting the game to formally recognize your GTX 970.
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  • 1wolf1wolf Posts: 2 New Member
    Hey, Thank you for the quick reply.

    before addressing your points I would like to mention that back when I first got TS2: Ultimate collection as a digital download through sometime last year, IIRC, I was able to play it after running it in comparability mode, as an administrator and in windowed mode (' -w' after the target in the properties of the shortcut.) Origin has updated and now requires games to be either launched from it or from a shortcut that still open trough the origin application. My TS3 is a copy from Origin as well. I dont know how pertinent these fact are but i wanted to lay them all out there.

    1. This is an ITX computer that I built myself. The drivers are from NVIDIA. One of the steps that EA had me complete while trying to trouble shoot TS2 was to uninstall and then reinstall all of the drivers from NVIDIA.

    2. Since its homemade I suppose the answer would be both. This is the original GC that this computer has had and it was added by me. I am fairly certain that the power supply is not the issue has I have been able to play fully modded out skyrim and have had no issues with other,albeit newer, games like Wolfensien: New Order and Divnity 2. I have also run RAM hungry 3d rendering software without issue.

    3. I have turned off game mode with the registry files. I have turned off the game bar using the tggle in settings. I disabled fullscreen optimizations. My night light is turned off. I have gone through the steps and nothing seems different.

    4. I am not exactly sure how to check that but it looks like its without '$': "C:\Users\USERNAME" and "C:\Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 3\Game\Bin\Sims3Launcher.exe" If that is not the right place to check path please assist.
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    In (4), I meant C:\Users\USERNAME. If your Windows username is something like $im$player, there could be issues. But anyway, sounds like you have a handle on these things. Moving onto PMs for card recognition as said.
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