OBMM Destroys my game!

[Akaviri701]

I am an amateur mod maker. Or at least I would be, if Oblivion Mod Manager would stop corrupting all the files in my game!

I use a windows 7, 64-bit computer, and my GOTY edition of Oblivion runs very well, especially when I get to use the mods posted on tesnexus. I want to start creating my own mods, so I've been delving into the secrets of the Construction set, trying to figure everything out. I'm just confident in my usage of the construction set now as I was before, but one thing all the veteran modders say is TEST, TEST, TEST! So, I open up my OBMM, with the construction set still on, to activate what little of the mod I have completed, and it gives me an error message, stating that an "Unhandled Exception" occurred, or something along those lines. Bottom line is, that error message completely destroys the master files for Oblivion, renders the construction set useless, AND prevents me from saving my mod.

 

I don't have the error message on hand, but it states that some files should have been moved to the "crashdump," and those files weren't moved.

This isn't just linked to the construction set being open, either. Most of the time, this happens when I'm simply turning on the computer to play my game, having not touched the construction set for days.

 

I'll upload the error message the next time it occurs.

 

If anyone, ANYONE of you knows how to solve this problem, PLEASE SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE WITH ME. I'm sick of having my projects ruined by this piece of freeware, and I'm sick of having to run scandisk on the computer for three hours just to (temporarily) fix that one bug!

[LHammonds]

open up my OBMM, with the construction set still on, to activate what little of the mod I have completed

That is your mistake right there I believe. It is an "Open File" issue and I'll bet it has everything to do with how open files work on the operating system and how you are using them.

 

Always save and close the construction set before jumping into the game or OBMM. Same goes with Oblivion, always close Oblivion before going into the CS. You don't want to create contention on your .esp plugin and having these program open (and all trying to gain control over the .esp plugin) is a bad idea.

 

You also have to be careful when modding with OBMM installed an in active use. If you download a mod, convert it to an OMOD and activate/install the mod, then start making changes to the plugin, meshes and/or textures, you can loose all of it if you deactivate/uninstall the OMOD. ;-) When creating models and textures, try to keep them somewhere out of the "Data" folder (such as "My Documents" somewhere) and copy them over when you make changes. This allows you to backup your source files (such as "My Documents") and keep them safe even if Oblivion's Data folder gets completely trashed or your computer dies. Just don't forget to copy your .esp plugin somewhere safe as it is one item that actually gets created in the Data folder.

 

LHammonds

[Megatarius]

I frequently play Oblivion with Blender, nifskope, Gimp, Photoshop, and the CS all running at once. I think I've even played it with Maya running. Never had this problem. I have Windows 7, 64 bit computer, and an older version of Oblivion, DLC Shivering Isles, and the latest patches.

 

If you get this error outside of anything Oblivion related, I would guess it's something with your Windows. Perhaps you have a virus? Next time you get the error message, Google it as well post it here.

[nosisab]

I frequently play Oblivion with Blender, nifskope, Gimp, Photoshop, and the CS all running at once. I think I've even played it with Maya running. Never had this problem. I have Windows 7, 64 bit computer, and an older version of Oblivion, DLC Shivering Isles, and the latest patches.

 

If you get this error outside of anything Oblivion related, I would guess it's something with your Windows. Perhaps you have a virus? Next time you get the error message, Google it as well post it here.

Edit: wrong post to answer.

[nosisab]

It's a very bad computer practice keeping demanding softwares open while playing. It's worse while modding because one can't be sure the eventual issue is because a mod being unstable or the system just overloaded.

 

Now, keeping CS open is a really bad idea, remember the being edited ESP is not the only file that is opened, many vanilla ones are too.

 

Anyway, one can't blame others for the own mistake, it's not OBMM is ruining your game, it's that very bad practice and computing misunderstanding that is doing it.

[Jenrai]

Running multiple high demand tasks, particularly ones that rely on the same source files such as Oblivion and the CS, is never a good idea. You can actually kill your computer doing that because you can cripple necessary operating files when you make them do things they are not designed to do.

 

Yeah, yeah, I know, modern computers CAN run several high demand programs side by side... but they are still built on files, data and programs that are only supposed to be accessed once at any particular time. Hence, particularly during software installs, you are told to shut down all other programs. Frankly, if you've ONLY broken your Oblivion install by doing this, you're a very, very lucky laddie.

 

The one time I had the CS minimized and tried to fire up the game through Wrye Bash, it killed OBSE. And crashed my computer outright. No CTD. Just "Boom! BSOD" Murdered the OBSE dll & the exe. IIRC it actually changed the extension of the .exe... don't remember what to though. And if I'm honest I only noticed it because the "enable obse" check box had vanished from Wrye when I tried to start it again. That wasn't deliberate though. I just forgot I still had the CS open, until I spotted the mod I was working on at the time was back to the bottom of my load order. Oopsky.. But that is the kinda thing that can happen on a cascading level right down through your computer if you make a habit of this. The higher demand the programs, and the more critical files they use & share, the more likely you're really gonna rip your system apart from the inside out.

 

Jenrai