A general query about overwrites

[NikiRandom]

I was wondering about overwrite mods in general, eg output from SKSE, FNIS, Bodyslide etc.

Where is the best place for the overwrites, in the sense of load order? Should they be placed with the mods that generate them, or just after any mods that they might effect, or should they go right at the bottom where the original overwrite entry is?  I read somewhere about "dynamic" mods needing to go at the bottom, and I'm thinking that overwrites probably qualify as dynamic.

I've experimented with all of these and it often seems to make little or no difference, but when I've installed a few dozen mods and CTDs start rearing their heads then I start thinking about what various contributing factors there might be.

I've also experimented with the "Create Files in Mod instead of Overwrite" option. Particularly with FNIS which seems happier that way. Without this option ticked I have to run FNIS twice every time I use it, otherwise it says "ERROR(53): Could not find file 'temporary_logs\Skeleton.xml'."  It's like FNIS doesn't know where to look for the xml. Am I doing the correct thing here or is there a better solution?

On a vaguely related topic too ... when SKSE has overwrite data, is it best that it all goes into the same overwrite mod or would it be better to create a different overwrite for each mod that creates the SKSE data? So far I've only done the former and it seems to work ok, but again when I start getting CTDs then I wonder about anything that might be contributing in any way.

Thanks, and sorry if these are daft questions.
 

[Greg]

Generally you want to move files out of Overwrite into either the mod that generated the files or into a new mod immediately after the files are created. When you create the bashed bash, the files in Overwrite should go into a Bashed Patch mod. When you run GenerateFNISForUsers, the files should go into a mod named something like FNIS Output. When you run the game the first time, you may find some files in Overwrite created by SKSE and these can be moved into the SKSE mod or into a new mod of your choice. Whichever option you chose isn't that important and I seem to recall that some files from SKSE continue going into Overwrite each time you run the game so I wouldn't worry too much about cleaning these out after every playthrough. It's really more important to ensure Overwrite is clean before generating files that should be moved into a mod (like Bashed Patch, FNIS, etc.) so you don't end up with a mixture of files in Overwrite that's difficult to manage.

 

It's been a while since I've generated the FNIS animations, but I think you're doing it right. I remember the last time I installed FNIS, I ran into similar issues and finally set the option to create files in mod instead of Overwrite.

[NikiRandom]

Generally you want to move files out of Overwrite into either the mod that generated the files or into a new mod immediately after the files are created. When you create the bashed bash, the files in Overwrite should go into a Bashed Patch mod. When you run GenerateFNISForUsers, the files should go into a mod named something like FNIS Output. When you run the game the first time, you may find some files in Overwrite created by SKSE and these can be moved into the SKSE mod or into a new mod of your choice. Whichever option you chose isn't that important and I seem to recall that some files from SKSE continue going into Overwrite each time you run the game so I wouldn't worry too much about cleaning these out after every playthrough. It's really more important to ensure Overwrite is clean before generating files that should be moved into a mod (like Bashed Patch, FNIS, etc.) so you don't end up with a mixture of files in Overwrite that's difficult to manage.

 

It's been a while since I've generated the FNIS animations, but I think you're doing it right. I remember the last time I installed FNIS, I ran into similar issues and finally set the option to create files in mod instead of Overwrite.

Thanks for your comments.

 

Yes, I do move stuff out of the overwrite folder every time. I was just wondering about where is the best place to put my output mods once I've made them. I don't know if they belong with (i.e. immediately beneath) their "parent" mods, or if they should go at the bottom of the list just above the overwrite folder. Or even whether it makes any difference at all.

[Greg]

That only ones I can think of off the top of my head that really matter are the smashed/bashed patch, FNIS output, Dual Sheath Redux patch, TextGen and DynDoLOD. These should all go towards the bottom in the order generated. The files created by SKSE are basically log files so I usually just move these into the SKSE mod since order doesn't matter.

[NikiRandom]

That only ones I can think of off the top of my head that really matter are the smashed/bashed patch, FNIS output, Dual Sheath Redux patch, TextGen and DynDoLOD. These should all go towards the bottom in the order generated. The files created by SKSE are basically log files so I usually just move these into the SKSE mod since order doesn't matter.

Thank you, this is all very helpful.  At the moment I have my outputs (FNIS and Bodyslide and SKSE) almost at the bottom except for a dozen or so compatibility patches and a couple of mods where the authors say that they need to be last (XPMSE and Alternate Start).  I only just started using Wrye Bash yesterday and I've put that with the other outputs.

 

Touch wood and not wishing to jinx anything but I seem to have a relatively stable game right now : )

 

Thanks for your input.

 

(edit, not sure how I quoted myself here but I can't seem to remove it now. Ah well.)

 

Thank you, this is all very helpful.  At the moment I have my outputs (FNIS and Bodyslide and SKSE) almost at the bottom except for a dozen or so compatibility patches and a couple of mods where the authors say that they need to be last (XPMSE and Alternate Start).  I only just started using Wrye Bash yesterday and I've put that with the other outputs. I'll put the SKSE one back with its parent then, if it doesn't really matter. Just to keep things tidy.

 

Touch wood and not wishing to jinx anything but I seem to have a relatively stable game right now : )

 

Thanks for your input.

 

 

Edited July 26, 2019 by NikiRandom