Mising DLC? - [SOLVED]

[Smile44]

Hi I know that this on the surface is a missing textures problem for which there are other posts but from what I have seen they don't cover what I am experiencing. I have been trying to solve this problem with fresh installs of the game / packages etc. but I need some help.

 

When I run Skyrim un-modded everything is fine, but when I add textures through Step 2B, i get purple shapes etc.. which are missing and or corrupted files. Problem is when I uninstall them, I still have the same missing textures - I am using WB to install them and have done so without problems in the past. So I use steam to validate the game cache and it starts on a big file download. Looking in my data folder I find that the Bethesda HD DLC 2 bsa has disappeared from the data folder. In other words WB has uninstalled and deleted it. This happened recently but I assumed I had deleted it by accident - not the case apparently.

 

This is pretty freaky and I wonder if anyone has come across this before. Hopefully something ridiculously obvious - that I am not doing.

[Smile44]

I used to be something of an IT guy, a long time ago - so I know this doesn't make sense. There is no way that WB should be in any way messing with the bsa files in the data folder. I have even removed WB and installed it again with a new download but no dice. Here's another weird thing in that there is no logic to this at all. But prior to SRO being removed I made some different graphics packs based around SRO both HD and light. I tested these packages out but my results were confusing to say the least as I had found before this that a full Step install with TPC was too much for my system with a very low frame rate, so I used a much more stripped down version based on Bethesda DLC optimised, SRO, SMIM, Better Dynamic Snow, Vurt's SFO, Water and Skyrim performance plus, I added no stretching and Ruins clutter improvement, and had a much better frame rate plus 10 to 15 fps. I sought to demonstrate this as at the time you all were (still are) working towards the next Step pack. For some strange reason when I built all my packages and tested them my frame rate didn't change at all regardless of how many graphics mod I used or how high def they were which completely defeated the purpose of my test and was confusing to say the least. Then SRO got pulled and my experiment became even more pointless. So I gave up on that and went back to my favourite group of graphics files as detailed earlier and found they had corrupted - this was the first time I started to get the missing textures - all my SRO packs were doing the same thing. So I rebuilt them - installed the individually etc.. gone back to standard 2.2a STEP install for graphics (have all the zips) but here I am struggling with disappearing textures. There is no way that SRO being pulled has anything to do with my texture issues just coincidental timing - very twilight zone. Oh well Steam has just finished fixing my game time to try again - definitely going to build packages this time rather than use individual mods, far less messy but I will be doing this all again soon when 2.2.1 comes online fully and Frostfall, Last seed etc..

 

Thanks for giving this some thought, I agree that it's possible that WB is not operating within acceptable parameters at least for me - I have noticed numerous glitches such as mods not showing sub-packages in the right hand pane consistently, not uninstalling mods and needing me to restart windows in order to be able to do so - definitely not right.

I can tell you with 100% certainty that you are suffering from a case of user error (no offense). Getting frustrated will only increase the likelihood of misunderstanding and mistakes.

 

Read through the SIG and get your rig cleaned up and prepped. THEN, I recommend:

• forget about DDSopt for now. You need to better understand how to use Wrye Bash to successfully install a relatively simple modded setup.... simplify.
• Begin by methodically following the WBG, beginning with "Establish a Clean Skyrim Install" ... and follow that to the letter.
• Once you have a clean skyrim install, launch skyrim and create a new character. Save the game after creating, and you should have 2 saves to use as a base for testing purposes. This will also eztablish the INI files and prove that you have a functional install.
• COPY YOUR SKYRIM DIRECTORY to another location so that you can easily restore it, and reference the latest STEP Guide to help with pre-install configuration
• Go back to the WBG and follow along with installation of WB (v302.1) and BOSS 2.0+ (hold off on installing anything else)
• Carefully read about BAIN structure and the examples of BAIN package restructure (you are not repacking mods correctly if they are not showing their contents in the right-hand panes)
• follow the guide very carefully and Install only the Unofficial Patches, SMIM a texture overhaul and a couple of mods with plugins using WB. Ensure that these are installed and that your game directory is consistent with what you have done thus far.
• Run BOSS, and reference the latest STEP Guide to help with post-install configuration

If anything wierd happens, then you have a ghost in your machine, the universe is not behaving correctly ... or you did not reference and successfully interpret and implement the instructions provided in the guides I have referred to.

 

After you get this all behaving correctly, then you can mess with DDSopt, as this may be what is ultimately making your BSAs "dissapear". (it is very easy to mess up BSA extraction and compression locations, as that application is a bit clunky in these regards).

 

HTH

Whew a very detailed and well explained answer. I would have to agree that pilot error is the likely underlying cause of my problems but in order for you to suggest an optimum solution you would need to see what I am doing with respect to packaging mods otherwise you have to assume the type of errors I am making and they are not the ones you suggest. I was talking about mods like SMIM not showing sub-packages in the right hand pane - I didn't package that. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't show up - this is because the correct panes are not showing up in the right pane in installers tab. Sometimes they are there sometimes not - I guess I may have inadvertently switched off that function but I haven't yet seen how to do that.

 

Anyway I will follow your suggestions if only to find out what is going wrong or where at least I am going wrong. By the way in the WB guide on the wiki there is what seems to be a completely incomprehensible section about configuring WB before use, in that configuring the ini with so little to go on doesn't bear thinking about.

 

"Configure

 

If no previous backup of bash.ini is available, copy and then rename "bash_default.ini" to "bash.ini," and place this alongside the former. The INI defines many useful things including where WB looks for installers. Edit bash.ini, and replace the "\Oblivion Mods" directory references with "\Skyrim Mods" and update any other paths or settings as necessary. Many users prefer to keep Skyrim Mods\ on a different hard drive. Do not try to change the "\Bash Installers" directory reference, as that is hard coded, and Bash will create it inside Skyrim Mods."

 

Oblivion crops up all over the place does the text mean to replace the word "oblivion" with "Skyrim" wherever it occurs? Is it even important? If it is then this may have something to do with the problems I am having with WB.

 

We seem to have gotten the DDSopt discussion going again if in the wrong thread - perhaps one day there will be all the easy to use tolls both modders and users need to get lots of clean, optimised non conflicting mods working together happily. I do believe that there is a great deal of work going on to that end which is all to the good and especially for companies like Bethesda who are getting a lot of free development work done for them and as such are unlikely to fix their glitchy software.

 

I have a clean install as per guide as well as a clean WB install with Boss and so will get to testing WB again. I have used WB successfully in the past but a deeper understanding of the software may well lead to understanding why things are not working now.

 

Adios.

[z929669]

... /snip ... I was talking about mods like SMIM not showing sub-packages in the right hand pane - I didn't package that. Sometimes it does sometimes it doesn't show up - this is because the correct panes are not showing up in the right pane in installers tab. Sometimes they are there sometimes not - I guess I may have inadvertently switched off that function but I haven't yet seen how to do that.

WB can be a bit buggy sometimes and *sort of* hide these windows. In my XP, they just get scrunched to the top and you have to drag them apart. Not really *disappeared* but reduced to a separator.

Anyway I will follow your suggestions if only to find out what is going wrong or where at least I am going wrong. By the way in the WB guide on the wiki there is what seems to be a completely incomprehensible section about configuring WB before use, in that configuring the ini with so little to go on doesn't bear thinking about.

 

"Configure

 

If no previous backup of bash.ini is available, copy and then rename "bash_default.ini" to "bash.ini," and place this alongside the former. The INI defines many useful things including where WB looks for installers. Edit bash.ini, and replace the "\Oblivion Mods" directory references with "\Skyrim Mods" and update any other paths or settings as necessary. Many users prefer to keep Skyrim Mods\ on a different hard drive. Do not try to change the "\Bash Installers" directory reference, as that is hard coded, and Bash will create it inside Skyrim Mods."

 

Oblivion crops up all over the place does the text mean to replace the word "oblivion" with "Skyrim" wherever it occurs? Is it even important? If it is then this may have something to do with the problems I am having with WB.

I will add more clarity to that since you mention it; however, the intent is that you replace the blocks of text appearing in the quotes: "\Oblivion Mods" gets replaced by "\Skyrim Mods", including the backslash. If you do not include these specifics and only replace "Oblivion" with "Skyrim", you will break the variables (e.g., sOblivionMods & sOblivionPath)

 

HTH

[stoppingby4now]

 

... /snip ... the STEP guide is profoundly inefficiently wrote for complete noobs. I'm a IT guy and I'm sure that I could figure it out but the guide confuses me in several places so I haven't touched it. It's been stated many times and in different threads that the guide needs a overhaul, but no one that is proficient with DDSopt has yet to take it on.

I will clarify the DDSopt guide if you would please go into that guide and add some notes indicating anything that is unclear. To be honest, you are the only person that has indicated that it is difficult to follow ... some of the specifics no longer apply, and that has been stated.

 

Even better, use the Talk page to provide specifics. I am quite certain that it does not need a completer rewrite, as most of the info there still applies.

 

techangel is not the only one to indicate that the guide is difficult to follow. To be honest, even I have found it difficult to read, and there are a number of users based on their questions and ultimate user error that indicate such as well.

 

Aside from some content that may no longer apply, I certainly believe that the presentation needs an overhaul.

[Smile44]

Hi it is still not clearly explained

 

"I will add more clarity to that since you mention it; however, the intent is that you replace the blocks of text appearing in the quotes: "\Oblivion Mods" gets replaced by "\Skyrim Mods", including the backslash. If you do not include these specifics and only replace "Oblivion" with "Skyrim", you will break the variables (e.g., sOblivionMods & sOblivionPath)"

 

In that the only parts of the ini that have "\Oblivion Mods" etc are in the General part and are also used as examples. Also there are copies for each line with "\Skyrim Mods" underneath the ones with oblivion in.

 

[General]

;--sOblivionMods is an alternate root directory for Bash Installers and other Bash data.

; Putting it under the game's install directory can cause performance problems

; during gameplay, so by default it is placed at the same level as the game folder.

; Here are the Oblivion and Skyrim defaults, and two other examples.

;sOblivionMods=..\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=..\Skyrim Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Games\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim Mods

 

 

;--sBashModData is the directory containing data about your mods, ini edits, etc.

; If using MOM, mTES4 Manager, or other utility to manage multiple installs,

; you will want to change this to keep the Bash data with your saved games.

; You'll need to use an absolute path to your saved games folder, so here

; are the defaults and a few examples.

;sBashModData=..\Oblivion Mods\Bash Mod Data

;sBashModData=..\Skyrim Mods\Bash Mod Data

;sBashModData=C:\Documents and Settings\Wrye\My Documents\My Games\Oblivion\Bash Mod Data

;sBashModData=C:\Users\Wrye\AppData\Local\Skyrim\Bash Mod Data

 

;--sInstallersData is the directory containing data about which installers

; are installed by Wrye Bash. If you changed sBashModData above, you'll

; probably want to change this one too. Examples:

;sInstallersData=..\Oblivion Mods\Bash Installers\Bash

;sInstallersData=..\Skyrim Mods\Bash Installers\Bash

;sInstallersData=C:\Documents and Settings\Wrye\My Documents\My Games\Oblivion\Bash Installers\Bash

;sInstallersData=C:\Users\Wrye\AppData\Local\Skyrim\Bash Installers\Bash

;sInstallersData=C:\Users\Wrye\AppData\Local\Skyrim\Bash Installers Data

 

These all appear to be examples so it's not clear what to change or where.

 

When you mention updating any other paths or settings as neded this would mean that I need to specify where mods are installed but it is hard to spot the command line for that. Shouls all references to tes4 be changed to tes5?

 

This may well be cheeky to ask but would it be possible to see a correctly configured ini or part thereof so that I can get an idea. The Skyrim inis as well as ENB inis are a walk in the park by comparison.

[TechAngel85]

 

 

... /snip ... the STEP guide is profoundly inefficiently wrote for complete noobs. I'm a IT guy and I'm sure that I could figure it out' date=' but the guide confuses me in several places so I haven't touched it. It's been stated many times and in different threads that the guide needs a overhaul, but no one that is proficient with DDSopt has yet to take it on.

I will clarify the DDSopt guide if you would please go into that guide and add some notes indicating anything that is unclear. To be honest, you are the only person that has indicated that it is difficult to follow ... some of the specifics no longer apply, and that has been stated.

 

Even better, use the Talk page to provide specifics. I am quite certain that it does not need a completer rewrite, as most of the info there still applies.

 

techangel is not the only one to indicate that the guide is difficult to follow. To be honest, even I have found it difficult to read, and there are a number of users based on their questions and ultimate user error that indicate such as well.

 

Aside from some content that may no longer apply, I certainly believe that the presentation needs an overhaul.

 

[z929669]

 

 

 

... /snip ... the STEP guide is profoundly inefficiently wrote for complete noobs. I'm a IT guy and I'm sure that I could figure it out but the guide confuses me in several places so I haven't touched it. It's been stated many times and in different threads that the guide needs a overhaul, but no one that is proficient with DDSopt has yet to take it on.

I will clarify the DDSopt guide if you would please go into that guide and add some notes indicating anything that is unclear. To be honest, you are the only person that has indicated that it is difficult to follow ... some of the specifics no longer apply, and that has been stated.

 

Even better, use the Talk page to provide specifics. I am quite certain that it does not need a completer rewrite, as most of the info there still applies.

 

techangel is not the only one to indicate that the guide is difficult to follow. To be honest, even I have found it difficult to read, and there are a number of users based on their questions and ultimate user error that indicate such as well.

 

Aside from some content that may no longer apply, I certainly believe that the presentation needs an overhaul.

 

 

You both need to be specific or cease and desist.... Neither of you are offering any constructive criticism at this point

 

I am working on it now as best I can (no thanks to anyone but Farlo!)

[z929669]

Hi it is still not clearly explained

... / snip / ...

When you mention updating any other paths or settings as neded this would mean that I need to specify where mods are installed but it is hard to spot the command line for that. Shouls all references to tes4 be changed to tes5?

 

This may well be cheeky to ask but would it be possible to see a correctly configured ini or part thereof so that I can get an idea. The Skyrim inis as well as ENB inis are a walk in the park by comparison.

 

Woops, my bad. It looks like they updated the bash.ini file (by ading the skyrim paths) some time ago and I never noticed. Great point on providing an example INI. I will do that now and update the guide again

[stoppingby4now]

 

 

 

 

... /snip ... the STEP guide is profoundly inefficiently wrote for complete noobs. I'm a IT guy and I'm sure that I could figure it out but the guide confuses me in several places so I haven't touched it. It's been stated many times and in different threads that the guide needs a overhaul, but no one that is proficient with DDSopt has yet to take it on.

I will clarify the DDSopt guide if you would please go into that guide and add some notes indicating anything that is unclear. To be honest, you are the only person that has indicated that it is difficult to follow ... some of the specifics no longer apply, and that has been stated.

 

Even better, use the Talk page to provide specifics. I am quite certain that it does not need a completer rewrite, as most of the info there still applies.

 

techangel is not the only one to indicate that the guide is difficult to follow. To be honest, even I have found it difficult to read, and there are a number of users based on their questions and ultimate user error that indicate such as well.

 

Aside from some content that may no longer apply, I certainly believe that the presentation needs an overhaul.

 

 

You both need to be specific or cease and desist.... Neither of you are offering any constructive criticism at this point

 

I am working on it now as best I can (no thanks to anyone but Farlo!)

 

I had voiced a lot of my confusion many moons ago and an update of the guide was also put on the back burner. Unfortunately, I also don't have the time to go through guides currently. My main point of replying was to point out that tech is not the only that has had trouble with the guide as many users have had issues. So, take it or leave it.

[z929669]

I had voiced a lot of my confusion many moons ago and an update of the guide was also put on the back burner. Unfortunately, I also don't have the time to go through guides currently. My main point of replying was to point out that tech is not the only that has had trouble with the guide as many users have had issues. So, take it or leave it.

 

OK, I'll take it ;)

[z929669]

Hi it is still not clearly explained

... / snip / ...

When you mention updating any other paths or settings as neded this would mean that I need to specify where mods are installed but it is hard to spot the command line for that. Shouls all references to tes4 be changed to tes5?

 

This may well be cheeky to ask but would it be possible to see a correctly configured ini or part thereof so that I can get an idea. The Skyrim inis as well as ENB inis are a walk in the park by comparison.

Woops, my bad. It looks like they updated the bash.ini file (by ading the skyrim paths) some time ago and I never noticed. Great point on providing an example INI. I will do that now and update the guide again

Update #2 complete ... let me know if that clears it up.

[TechAngel85]

I'm running through the mod tables and downloading any missing mods. Nexus is having issues today. I'll run through the guide after than and some dinner. :)

[Smile44]

Thanks for doing that so quickly, it is a little clearer now at least I know what I'm looking for and have made the changes except for the fact that I'm not sure what you mean by ""uncomment" the following lines."

 

;sOblivionMods=..\Skyrim Mods

 

My ini now has this in that section

 

sOblivionMods=..\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Games\Skyrim Mods (the line that I changed)

;sOblivionMods=C:\Games\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim Mods

 

Should I delete the rest or is something missing - if not then job is done - and you have my thanks.

 

That said this last one is confusing ;sOblivionPath=G:\Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim - Why a G:\Steam? I changed it to "C:\Games\SteamApps\common\Skyrim" which would be accurate as the Steam folder only has a couple of files in it - there is no such path as is. I think what I have done is correct. Please let me know if I goofed.

[z929669]

Thanks for doing that so quickly, it is a little clearer now at least I know what I'm looking for and have made the changes except for the fact that I'm not sure what you mean by ""uncomment" the following lines."

 

;sOblivionMods=..\Skyrim Mods

 

My ini now has this in that section

 

sOblivionMods=..\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Games\Skyrim Mods (the line that I changed)

;sOblivionMods=C:\Games\Oblivion Mods

;sOblivionMods=C:\Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim Mods

 

Should I delete the rest or is something missing - if not then job is done - and you have my thanks.

 

That said this last one is confusing ;sOblivionPath=G:\Steam\SteamApps\common\Skyrim - Why a G:\Steam? I changed it to "C:\Games\SteamApps\common\Skyrim" which would be accurate as the Steam folder only has a couple of files in it - there is no such path as is. I think what I have done is correct. Please let me know if I goofed.

Those paths are examples of various configurations whereby Steam and/or Skyrim/Oblivion are installed on non-standard drives (i.e., D-Z). Comments in INI files are semicolons. Anything placed after a semicolon on a single line will be ignored by the program. I will add clarification on this as well.

[TechAngel85]

Using DDSopt tab...

DDSopt Configuration...

 

The configuration screens should note that you already have a file opened in the screenshots. I open DDSopt to check against the screens and immediately I was confused as to why all the option were not present. Then I seen the shots were taken with a file loaded.

[z929669]

Using DDSopt tab...

DDSopt Configuration...

 

The configuration screens should note that you already have a file opened in the screenshots. I open DDSopt to check against the screens and immediately I was confused as to why all the option were not present. Then I seen the shots were taken with a file loaded.

Yep, I am still working on that. lots more to do. Feel free to add as you see fit.