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Causes

There is no telling what caused Sims3Pack installs to go missing or become corrupted. But they seem to coincide with EADM/Origin updates sometimes, or after updating, or after installing new packs.

So, it is a good idea to always keep current Backups, before you do any of these activities.

Patch 1.26 changed Sims3Pack icons from Hud 124 sims3pack.png to TS3 Store.png. So ensure you're not mistaking the items with the Store thumbnail icon for an actual Store item. They could be the Sims3Pack content you thought had gone missing. If the issue here is not mistaken icons, then proceed ...


Actions

step 1: create backup

Have you created Backups when prompted before? No? Well, go and create a Backup of your User folders before proceeding.


step 2: refresh some files

  • Make sure Launcher and the Game is not running.
  • Go to the DCCache folder.
  • Remove these files and then try installing again.
    • dcc.ent
    • missingdeps.idx


step 3: rename DCCache folder

  • Rename the DCCache folder so the game won't recognize it anymore. You can call it DCCache.broken (or whatever).
  • Create a New Folder and call it DCCache.
  • Copy and paste the *.dbc files from the renamed DCCache.broken folder.
  • delete Cache and/or thumbnail files
  • Load Launcher to confirm the files can be read, and the content is listed in the Installed Content tab.
  • If yes, load Sims 3 and start a NEW game (because your other content is not restored, yet) and look for your 3rd-party Sims3Pack content.
  • If 3rd-party content now appear, copy over the *.ebc which contains your EA Store items.
  • Load Launcher and then the game as above.
  • If these workarounds don't work, try a more thorough cleansing below.


step 4: rename more folders

For the most part, you can try the below suggestions after renaming DCCache folder only does not work.

  • If you want to be thorough, you can continue by renaming the following:
    1. CurrentGame.Sims3
    2. Library
    3. InstalledWorlds
    4. Saves
    5. SavedSims
  • Repeat the same steps of recreating the folders you've renamed above, and copy the contents from the .broken version to the newly created version.

If you rename the above, you need to also delete Cache and/or thumbnail files, so we're not working with any corrupted or outdated data before you load a test game.


Optional step 4: rename Sims 3 folder

Instead of renaming each of the above folders individually, you can rename the whole The Sims 3 folder and start from scratch.
Start Launcher once to have all the folders regenerated instead of creating new folders manually and copy your stuff over, or reinstall newly redownloaded files.


If you want to learn what each folder or certain file's function is, we have an FAQ on that - Sims 3 User folders explained


Next Step

You can work through the suggestions one at a time, starting from the first or jump directly and choose which is applicable. But, if you do not know the cause of the missing CC, working down the list is the recommended action.

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Verify Sims3Pack Installation


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Uninstall outdated EADM/Origins and reinstall new version


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Move DCCache .?bc files to /Mods/DCCache path


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Use CUSTARD to determine if Sim3Pack is broken



See Also


Sims 3 Game Help Categories:

Custom Content  | Installation  | Gameplay Guides  | Technical & Graphics Issues  | Miscellaneous Issues

MTS Help Q&A Forums