Questions about corrupted saves

[Dubnoman]

To start off this thread, correct me if I'm wrong, but if you mess around with files and mods, can you corrupt a save that can manifest with more buginess and problems later on, as you play more, save more, and make more progress? Could you create a problem at level 7 that could cause you a lot of frustration later on, after you've made so much progress?

 

I lost the ability to use NMM. I forgot the password and I contacted an admin so that I could get a new password so that I could use NMM again. In the meantime, I'm trying to get Skyrim up and running on a new computer. I reinstalled Skyrim via Steam, and then I took a Skyrim folder I saved and copy pasted it into the Steam apps folder, and then I added a handful of mods, and I'm going to add three more mods and then I probably won't add anymore mods until I get NMM up and running again. The Skyrim folder I copied pasted has lots of alterations compared to the default Skyrim folder, and also, some of the mods are probably outdated by now. I was going to take this backed up Skyrim folder and just start a new game with a new character.

 

So...is all that going about things haphazardly? Will I just have a good chance of setting myself up for a corrupted save, and thus, frustration down the road? If I want to start a new game, should I just wait until I have NMM running again, reinstall Skyrim with the default Skyrim folder, and just re-add the mods I want via NMM? Or could I work with things like the way I've been doing?

[Elsarian]

To start off this thread, correct me if I'm wrong, but if you mess around with files and mods, can you corrupt a save that can manifest with more buginess and problems later on, as you play more, save more, and make more progress? Could you create a problem at level 7 that could cause you a lot of frustration later on, after you've made so much progress?

 

I lost the ability to use NMM. I forgot the password and I contacted an admin so that I could get a new password so that I could use NMM again. In the meantime, I'm trying to get Skyrim up and running on a new computer. I reinstalled Skyrim via Steam, and then I took a Skyrim folder I saved and copy pasted it into the Steam apps folder, and then I added a handful of mods, and I'm going to add three more mods and then I probably won't add anymore mods until I get NMM up and running again. The Skyrim folder I copied pasted has lots of alterations compared to the default Skyrim folder, and also, some of the mods are probably outdated by now. I was going to take this backed up Skyrim folder and just start a new game with a new character.

 

So...is all that going about things haphazardly? Will I just have a good chance of setting myself up for a corrupted save, and thus, frustration down the road? If I want to start a new game, should I just wait until I have NMM running again, reinstall Skyrim with the default Skyrim folder, and just re-add the mods I want via NMM? Or could I work with things like the way I've been doing?

 

Ok, lets do a run-down. I'll answer your questions in the order that you asked them:

 

First, yes, if you add a mod at one particular save, say level 7, then remove that mod later down the road at, say 17, then it can cause some issues if you continue doing this. One mod might not be to bad, but you also have to keep in mind that it depends on how heavy the mod is. If you install a mod that is very script intensive like a complex quest mod and/or overhaul, then when you remove that it causes a lot of issues because that save ends up requiring those scripts to function and if they are not present then it can lead to crashes or freezing. It's always good to NEVER delete saves if you are going to be modding the hell out of them so that you will have a previous point to revert to. But if all you do is install small mods like texture replacers, armor/weapon mods, basic companion mods, and so on, then you'll be alright.

 

Secondly, it's never a good idea to blend old files from previous installs with fresh installs. There's no telling what kind of issues you could face from that. The only thing you should use from previous games are saves, and you should do that if those saves have little to no mods installed when they were made (unless you can remember all of what you had installed when you made that save). Also, I would advise you to keep a "mod archive" for when issues arise like the one you are having with NMM so that you'll still have your mods even if you can't use it. NMM saves all the mods it downloads to a specific folder, so when it finishes downloading them, go to that folder and copy the mod(s) into a folder of your creation so that you'll have an extra copy of that mod for when NMM crashes, messes up, or whatever. Of course this all depends on how much HDD space you are willing to use to keep multiple copies of mods, but that's all up to you.

 

The best thing to do at this point is to re-install the game fresh and either start anew with a new character and play with that until NMM is fixed for you, or wait it out. But definitely start fresh with fresh game files and all so that you can be absolutely certain that no problems will happen later down the road. Also, your password for NMM is the same as the password you use to sign into the nexus websites. You should be able to download the new version of NMM and simply start it in offline mode which doesn't require a password (there is an option for it when it first launches) and that'll give you some use of it till you can get it fully functional again.

 

Hope this has cleared things up a bit.

 

-Elsarian

[Dubnoman]

I suspected as much with so many things you said. Well, I think I'll uninstall the game and reinstall it, and start anew. How limited is NMM in offline mode? Will it be able to do easy installs for me in offline mode?

 

Also, to clarify...I have a new computer, and I wanted to get Skyrim up and going on my new computer. So, about the Nexus password, well I can log into the site just fine. I use FireFox and I used FireFox backup tools and transferred saved passwords from my last computer to this new one. However, I'm still out of luck with the NMM. I wrote a message to an admin and they should be able to help me out and all that should work out soon.

[Elsarian]

I suspected as much with so many things you said. Well, I think I'll uninstall the game and reinstall it, and start anew. How limited is NMM in offline mode? Will it be able to do easy installs for me in offline mode?

 

Also, to clarify...I have a new computer, and I wanted to get Skyrim up and going on my new computer. So, about the Nexus password, well I can log into the site just fine. I use FireFox and I used FireFox backup tools and transferred saved passwords from my last computer to this new one. However, I'm still out of luck with the NMM. I wrote a message to an admin and they should be able to help me out and all that should work out soon.

 

Personally, I can't tell the difference between NMM offline, and NMM online, to be honest. It still downloads my mods and everything, so you should give that a try for a temporary fix.