Current Downgrade Methods Surrounding v1.6.1130 (Update Roll Back)

[Arlodon]

I currently have Skyrim 1.6.1130.exe, that is my game now.

I have read this and then some...

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3106769503

It is not that easy to downgrade, reading posts of those who make the journey. Preliminary prepping for downgrade may be the unknown factor for success. Such as maybe completely uninstall, delete your game folder and contents or rename your game folder and keep it saved and make a new game folder for a clean, new, Steam download. NOT clean the files with SSEEDIT...??  Consider this all questions. Because I have not really done/tried a downgrade to success. I wonder if I am better off waiting with 1.6.1130, then with my mods restored, just protect from future updates.

Can we get some opinions from successful downgraders which current method is most likely to succeed and preliminary prepping before using the method? Or maybe just what you experienced downgrading 1.6.1130? Any opinions are helpful such as why not to downgrade at this time.

[epinter]

I didn't follow any guide to downgrade. For me, the best method to keep your game ALWAYS working is to have an installation completelly separated from the one steam updates. In my case, I've made a copy of the game in a folder inside a secondary Steam library (I think any directory should work), so I have two Skyrim installations. All the tools (Vortex, SSEEdit, WryeBash, Nemesis, etc) must be manually configured to point to the directory where the downgraded game is. I just needed to be very careful when moving the installation to not break vortex, so the first step was to "purge" the game in vortex.

 

Steam will still count the play time and detect the game launched from other directories, because the binary is integrated using steam apis, but when I have to update the game I do it manually (copying the files from steam "official" installation).

If I was to start today, the first step is to use DepotDownloader to download the old version (like 1.6.640) in a separated directory outside Steam library. To avoid steam from launching the game if I accidentally click on it, I put this on "Launch Options" (this will launch a command prompt instead of the game): cmd /c pause && echo %command%

 

Keeping the game separated this way, I had zero problems when the game updated, nothing to do. I wouldn't wait the mods to be updated, this time even SkyUI is broken, and there's more update from Bethesda to come and break the mods again. Just be very careful with your modmanager so you don't loose anything and downgrade.

 

To download 1.6.640:

DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489831 -manifest 3660787314279169352
DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489832 -manifest 2756691988703496654
DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489833 -manifest 5291801952219815735
 

Edited December 28, 2023 by epinter

[Arlodon]

On 12/28/2023 at 8:20 AM, epinter said:

I didn't follow any guide to downgrade. For me, the best method to keep your game ALWAYS working is to have an installation completelly separated from the one steam updates. In my case, I've made a copy of the game in a folder inside a secondary Steam library (I think any directory should work), so I have two Skyrim installations. All the tools (Vortex, SSEEdit, WryeBash, Nemesis, etc) must be manually configured to point to the directory where the downgraded game is. I just needed to be very careful when moving the installation to not break vortex, so the first step was to "purge" the game in vortex.

 

Steam will still count the play time and detect the game launched from other directories, because the binary is integrated using steam apis, but when I have to update the game I do it manually (copying the files from steam "official" installation).

If I was to start today, the first step is to use DepotDownloader to download the old version (like 1.6.640) in a separated directory outside Steam library. To avoid steam from launching the game if I accidentally click on it, I put this on "Launch Options" (this will launch a command prompt instead of the game): cmd /c pause && echo %command%

 

Keeping the game separated this way, I had zero problems when the game updated, nothing to do. I wouldn't wait the mods to be updated, this time even SkyUI is broken, and there's more update from Bethesda to come and break the mods again. Just be very careful with your modmanager so you don't loose anything and downgrade.

 

To download 1.6.640:

DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489831 -manifest 3660787314279169352
DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489832 -manifest 2756691988703496654
DepotDownloader.exe -app 489830 -username steamusername -depot 489833 -manifest 5291801952219815735
 

Thank You. This looks similar to this method where it seems I do not have to download the Depot Downloader but it is built in at Steam.  The person works in English and Russian and had font difficulty I do not think I would have. What is your opinion of the procedure below? The command lines are different. It may not be using my credentials that Steam would want.

This option will require a little effort on your part. The guide offers an option for downloading the previous version of Skyrim (1.6.640.0), but later I will explain how you can download earlier versions if you need it.

To begin with, you should press the key combination “Win + R”, and in the window that opens, write: steam://open/console. This will open a console in Steam, which will allow you to download the necessary files.



Next we need three commands:

download_depot 489830 489831 3660787314279169352
download_depot 489830 489832 2756691988703496654
download_depot 489830 489833 5291801952219815735

Just enter them one at a time to download files you'll need later. Important! Do not enter the next one until the previous has finished loading.

When you have downloaded everything you need, go to the folder "steam/steamapps/content/app_489830". There will be three more folders with all the necessary files, which should now be moved to the Skyrim directory, replacing the files. Voila, your mods now work as before and you're (hopefully) happy again.

[epinter]

8 minutes ago, Arlodon said:

Thank You. This looks similar to this method where it seems I do not have to download the Depot Downloader but it is built in at Steam.  The person works in English and Russian and had font difficulty I do not think I would have. What is your opinion of the procedure below? The command lines are different. It may not be using my credentials that Steam would want.

This option will require a little effort on your part. The guide offers an option for downloading the previous version of Skyrim (1.6.640.0), but later I will explain how you can download earlier versions if you need it.

To begin with, you should press the key combination “Win + R”, and in the window that opens, write: steam://open/console. This will open a console in Steam, which will allow you to download the necessary files.



Next we need three commands:

download_depot 489830 489831 3660787314279169352
download_depot 489830 489832 2756691988703496654
download_depot 489830 489833 5291801952219815735

Just enter them one at a time to download files you'll need later. Important! Do not enter the next one until the previous has finished loading.

When you have downloaded everything you need, go to the folder "steam/steamapps/content/app_489830". There will be three more folders with all the necessary files, which should now be moved to the Skyrim directory, replacing the files. Voila, your mods now work as before and you're (hopefully) happy again.

Using steam console is more convenient for the average user, but you will download inside the steam library. I prefer to use DepotDownloader because it's easy to use and I can do what I want with the files. Obviously you can also use the steam console and then move/copy the files before it starts to update it again. At the end of the day, what matters is to have the files of 1.6.640.

 

[Arlodon]

5 hours ago, epinter said:

Using steam console is more convenient for the average user, but you will download inside the steam library. I prefer to use DepotDownloader because it's easy to use and I can do what I want with the files. Obviously you can also use the steam console and then move/copy the files before it starts to update it again. At the end of the day, what matters is to have the files of 1.6.640.

 

I am an average user compared to you. If I were to get the 1.6.640 files and put them in a game folder called MySkyrim would Vortex see it as a new game to manage and not try to use the staging folder of SSE? Or do I still need to purge sse from the staging? Then it sounds like Steam still has the possibility of launching from this folder(MySkyrim) though it is outside the library, I do not get this, so you head off Steam with a launch command at Steam.? Or in Vortex using SKSE64_Loader in its command line parameter? Yep, average might be a compliment for me.

You have given me more of a sense of confidence to jump in and do it. Pretty sure I can pull off getting the 1.6.640 files, the folders and Vortex and Steam a little sketchy for me to be honest but with copies I can start over if I botch it too bad.

[epinter]

1 hour ago, Arlodon said:

I am an average user compared to you. If I were to get the 1.6.640 files and put them in a game folder called MySkyrim would Vortex see it as a new game to manage and not try to use the staging folder of SSE? Or do I still need to purge sse from the staging? Then it sounds like Steam still has the possibility of launching from this folder(MySkyrim) though it is outside the library, I do not get this, so you head off Steam with a launch command at Steam.? Or in Vortex using SKSE64_Loader in its command line parameter? Yep, average might be a compliment for me.

You have given me more of a sense of confidence to jump in and do it. Pretty sure I can pull off getting the 1.6.640 files, the folders and Vortex and Steam a little sketchy for me to be honest but with copies I can start over if I botch it too bad.

If you put the 1.6.640 in a folder named MySkyrim, you will have to set manually the game folder in Vortex to that folder (it's better to purge before change the game folder).

The staging folder is where Vortex unpacks each of the 7z and zips from the mods you download when you click install.

When you deploy a mod, Vortex works by creating a hardlinks (like a shortcut on the windows filesystem) of the files from the staging folder to your game directory. Hardlinks are like if the file is in two places at the same time, but only have one unique content pointed by that two places. When you go to Vortex and click on Purge, it will unlink the files from the game directory (will delete the hardlinks, effectively removing the "files" from the game folder), so your mods installation will stay inside the staging folder, but your game directory will be clean. All your mod files are stored inside the staging folder, in a ideal scenario when you purge,  you shouldn't loose anything, but if you for any reason copied manually a file to the game folder that file will not be linked by Vortex, so you have to look at the game folder when you purge and plan to move the game to anywhere else. You have to be careful to keep the Vortex configuration (stored in AppData\Roaming\Vortex) in sync with your staging folder. Don't move your staging folder if you don't need to. You can see the links and understand it better going to any file inside Data in your Skyrim folder, going to properties, and clicking on "Link Properties". When you disable a mod and deploy, Vortex will remove all the hardlinks from game folder, and keep the mods files in your staging folder.

 

If you run the game outside the Steam library (in your MySkyrim folder) by double clicking on the SkyrimSE.exe or skyrim64loader, it will work and Steam will detect the game because of the steam apis. Let's consider you already downgraded successfully. When you have two game installations and run the game from Steam, that Steam installation is the 1.6.1130, the game will modify your .ini, will modify the plugins.txt inside "AppData\Local\Skyrim Special Edition". You don't want that, you want only 1.6.640 modify your inis, savegames, etc, so you will never use Steam to launch to avoid 1.6.1130 to mess your files. In my case I use Vortex, or a shortcut pointing to skse64 loader. I set the launch option in steam so it never launch the game, just a cmd, so my "Documents/My Games/Skyrim Special Edition" files keep untouched by an accidental steam launch.

 

The Skyrim installation have the following:

• folder "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition"

is the directory where the plugins.txt is stored, managed by the game and Vortex. Paste %localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition in your windows explorer location bar, it works

• folder "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition"

 your savegames and ini

• registry key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\bethesda softworks\Skyrim Special Edition"

This registry key have a value "installed path", the content is the Skyrim directory installation. In my case it points to my Skyrim 1.6.1130 installation that Steam keeps updated. This value is generated when the SkyrimSELauncher.exe is run from the folder where Steam installed your game.

• game folder (only the game folder and its files are managed by Steam, the documents and localappdata are managed by the game and the tools you use, Steam don't touch them)

When you run SkyrimSE.exe, the game simply reads the files in the folder of the .exe you just clicked, so that registry key is used by Steam and other tools to detect the game without ask you like Vortex, SSEEdit, etc... 

 

As you can see, there's no hidden things. It's files and folders, and one registry key.

 

In my case, I have 4 Skyrim installations. The one I play (1.6.640), another 1.6.640 for development, the steam official 1.6.1130, and one GOG version for development). When I run any of the development installations, I have to rename the "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" and "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" to keep my ini and all the files intact. But this renaming is just to this case of development. For you, you just block steam changing the launch option to guarantee your ini and other files will be modified only by the installation you want.

 

In any case, you can backup the folders I listed above. If you need a full backup, you need to backup your whole vortex staging folder and "%appdata%\Vortex"

 

Remember to be very careful with your Vortex and its staging folder. If you mess with it, you might be forced to reinstall all mods. The purge feature is very easy to use, you should not have any problem. As an example, Vortex always purge the game folder when you switch between profiles if you use them. Use the purge all the time, but try to never move your vortex staging folder.

Edited December 30, 2023 by epinter

[Arlodon]

4 hours ago, epinter said:

If you put the 1.6.640 in a folder named MySkyrim, you will have to set manually the game folder in Vortex to that folder (it's better to purge before change the game folder).

The staging folder is where Vortex unpacks each of the 7z and zips from the mods you download when you click install.

When you deploy a mod, Vortex works by creating a hardlinks (like a shortcut on the windows filesystem) of the files from the staging folder to your game directory. Hardlinks are like if the file is in two places at the same time, but only have one unique content pointed by that two places. When you go to Vortex and click on Purge, it will unlink the files from the game directory (will delete the hardlinks, effectively removing the "files" from the game folder), so your mods installation will stay inside the staging folder, but your game directory will be clean. All your mod files are stored inside the staging folder, in a ideal scenario when you purge,  you shouldn't loose anything, but if you for any reason copied manually a file to the game folder that file will not be linked by Vortex, so you have to look at the game folder when you purge and plan to move the game to anywhere else. You have to be careful to keep the Vortex configuration (stored in AppData\Roaming\Vortex) in sync with your staging folder. Don't move your staging folder if you don't need to. You can see the links and understand it better going to any file inside Data in your Skyrim folder, going to properties, and clicking on "Link Properties". When you disable a mod and deploy, Vortex will remove all the hardlinks from game folder, and keep the mods files in your staging folder.

 

If you run the game outside the Steam library (in your MySkyrim folder) by double clicking on the SkyrimSE.exe or skyrim64loader, it will work and Steam will detect the game because of the steam apis. Let's consider you already downgraded successfully. When you have two game installations and run the game from Steam, that Steam installation is the 1.6.1130, the game will modify your .ini, will modify the plugins.txt inside "AppData\Local\Skyrim Special Edition". You don't want that, you want only 1.6.640 modify your inis, savegames, etc, so you will never use Steam to launch to avoid 1.6.1130 to mess your files. In my case I use Vortex, or a shortcut pointing to skse64 loader. I set the launch option in steam so it never launch the game, just a cmd, so my "Documents/My Games/Skyrim Special Edition" files keep untouched by an accidental steam launch.

 

The Skyrim installation have the following:

• folder "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition"

is the directory where the plugins.txt is stored, managed by the game and Vortex. Paste %localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition in your windows explorer location bar, it works

• folder "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition"

 your savegames and ini

• registry key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\bethesda softworks\Skyrim Special Edition"

This registry key have a value "installed path", the content is the Skyrim directory installation. In my case it points to my Skyrim 1.6.1130 installation that Steam keeps updated. This value is generated when the SkyrimSELauncher.exe is run from the folder where Steam installed your game.

• game folder (only the game folder and its files are managed by Steam, the documents and localappdata are managed by the game and the tools you use, Steam don't touch them)

When you run SkyrimSE.exe, the game simply reads the files in the folder of the .exe you just clicked, so that registry key is used by Steam and other tools to detect the game without ask you like Vortex, SSEEdit, etc... 

 

As you can see, there's no hidden things. It's files and folders, and one registry key.

 

In my case, I have 4 Skyrim installations. The one I play (1.6.640), another 1.6.640 for development, the steam official 1.6.1130, and one GOG version for development). When I run any of the development installations, I have to rename the "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" and "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" to keep my ini and all the files intact. But this renaming is just to this case of development. For you, you just block steam changing the launch option to guarantee your ini and other files will be modified only by the installation you want.

 

In any case, you can backup the folders I listed above. If you need a full backup, you need to backup your whole vortex staging folder and "%appdata%\Vortex"

 

Remember to be very careful with your Vortex and its staging folder. If you mess with it, you might be forced to reinstall all mods. The purge feature is very easy to use, you should not have any problem. As an example, Vortex always purge the game folder when you switch between profiles if you use them. Use the purge all the time, but try to never move your vortex staging folder.

I appreciate all that, though I am thinking I would be weak on swapping game folders. i.e., MySkyrim to Skyrim Special Edition. 

Windows registry and Vortex already knows the Skyrim TESV/LE folder (and its staging).

What if I just use my Skyrim (LE} game folder for 1.6.640? Then I would have a separate set of inis, staging folder and save games.

Steam doesn't mess with LE do they? It's not a problem for me to reload the Skyrim LE staging folder with 1.6.640 mods, I only use 388 mods.   

What is your opinion of going this route instead of another folder unknown to Vortex and the registry?

[epinter]

7 hours ago, Arlodon said:

I appreciate all that, though I am thinking I would be weak on swapping game folders. i.e., MySkyrim to Skyrim Special Edition. 

Windows registry and Vortex already knows the Skyrim TESV/LE folder (and its staging).

What if I just use my Skyrim (LE} game folder for 1.6.640? Then I would have a separate set of inis, staging folder and save games.

Steam doesn't mess with LE do they? It's not a problem for me to reload the Skyrim LE staging folder with 1.6.640 mods, I only use 388 mods.   

What is your opinion of going this route instead of another folder unknown to Vortex and the registry?

If you use the LE game folder, there's a chance steam still mess with it. Everything will be confused... The paths "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" and "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" will never change, they are hardcoded in SkyrimSE.exe, and all versions uses the same (except GOG). I don't recommend put a game inside another game's folder.

Everything Steam does is download the game and keep it updated, and backup savegames if you enable cloud sync.

Vortex would need to be configured to point to the new directory anyway. Steam doesn't manage any of this.

 

I think you make a test, to see it working... Download 1.6.640 with DepotDownloader to a different directory, then rename the folders:

"%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" to "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition.bkp"

"Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" to "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition.bkp"

DELETE SkyrimSELauncher.exe from the 1.6.640. And launch the game in that folder using SkyrimSE.exe. It should work.

 

Then rename the folders back to its original names when you don't  want to test this 1.6.640 anymore. You might want to make a zip of each folder before start this.

 

Knowing everything about hardlinks, vortex files, game folders, etc, I think there's another option. I've never done this way, but I think it might work:

- Purge the game on vortex

- Check for any important files left in the game folder and copy them

- Uninstall the game on steam. At this point, I think the registry key will be missing, I don't think it will be a problem.

- Download 1.6.640 with DepotDownloader to another folder outside steam library

- Change the game folder on Vortex (using the option "Manually Set Location")

- Deploy

 

This way you will have just one Skyrim installation, not managed by Steam, just manually by you.

I don't remember if Steam tracks time and achievements of "uninstalled" games.

 

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by epinter

[Arlodon]

4 hours ago, epinter said:

If you use the LE game folder, there's a chance steam still mess with it. Everything will be confused... The paths "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" and "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" will never change, they are hardcoded in SkyrimSE.exe, and all versions uses the same (except GOG). I don't recommend put a game inside another game's folder.

Everything Steam does is download the game and keep it updated, and backup savegames if you enable cloud sync.

Vortex would need to be configured to point to the new directory anyway. Steam doesn't manage any of this.

 

I think you make a test, to see it working... Download 1.6.640 with DepotDownloader to a different directory, then rename the folders:

"%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" to "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition.bkp"

"Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" to "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition.bkp"

DELETE SkyrimSELauncher.exe from the 1.6.640. And launch the game in that folder using SkyrimSE.exe. It should work.

 

Then rename the folders back to its original names when you don't  want to test this 1.6.640 anymore. You might want to make a zip of each folder before start this.

 

Knowing everything about hardlinks, vortex files, game folders, etc, I think there's another option. I've never done this way, but I think it might work:

- Purge the game on vortex

- Check for any important files left in the game folder and copy them

- Uninstall the game on steam. At this point, I think the registry key will be missing, I don't think it will be a problem.

- Download 1.6.640 with DepotDownloader to another folder outside steam library

- Change the game folder on Vortex (using the option "Manually Set Location")

- Deploy

 

This way you will have just one Skyrim installation, not managed by Steam, just manually by you.

I don't remember if Steam tracks time and achievements of "uninstalled" games.

 

 

Thanks, for pointing that out!

OK, I will give it a try and see how it goes. ( I have Steam cloud services off) Sounds like a clever test plan to me, thanks! 

Will I be able to use the Creation Kit somehow with this manually managed Skyrim? or will that be sacrificed?

I may come to do this like your first suggestion after seeing how to rename  the shared folders of different installations of SkyrimSE.exe. I wasn't sure how to rename them and what to do after they wrote their own files for each installation. I guess in your case you have 4 sets of possible renamed bkp files in "%localappdata%\" and "Documents\My Games\". Does that look something like GOG.bkp, 1.6.640.bkp, etc. and you just have to rename the appropriate one back to skyrim special edition to use it? I would think so... for me it would be in consideration of keeping a 1.6.1130 version and a 1.6.640. Just two installations. In case 1.6.1130 becomes the better choice in the future.

You have been very kind, hope to not wear you out, I am just about out of questions and just need to proceed and become experienced.

 

[epinter]

I don't you will need to keep two "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" or "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition". My suggestion to rename, it's just to not loose any data from your ini or save game. After you test, put back your current folders and delete those created during the test. To rename, just open Windows Explorer and select the rename.

If you really follow this plan to keep two installations, just keep the 1.6.640 as your main. Then you can follow the mods until they are updated. At some point, all the mods should be updated, then you simply upgrade your 1.6.640 to 1.6.1130. In the mean time, if you want to test the 1.6.1130, I recommend you to really rename the folders to preserve the inis.

 

I have a "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition" and a "Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition-test". I also have a "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition" and a "%localappdata%\Skyrim Special Edition-test". When I need to test 1.6.1130, I rename the current folder to .bkp, then the -test to the name the game uses. When I undo my tests, I rename them back, so 1.6.640 finds my inis. But in your case, you will only need this if you want to run 1.6.1130. Just stick with 1.6.640 until all mods are updated.

I don't use CK, so I didn't test much. But last week I installed the CK for 1.6.640 and I was able to run it using this mods, it started and I was able to select the esps from my 1.6.640:

Unofficial Creation Kit Patch

Creation Kit Platform Extended

Edited December 30, 2023 by epinter