Guide:Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting Guide

Troubleshooting FAQs and other info related to STEP & Skyrim modding

by: frihyland and the Step Team | Forum Topic

WIP

This guide was created back in the early days when Step only worked with Skyrim LE, so many of the links and instructions pertain to LE. Fortunately, much of the same logic applies to SSE and other Bethesda RPGs. We are gradually working to validate and update all of the details to generalize the relevance.

Using the Console

To open (and close) the game console press the tilde key ~ (located under escape on most keyboards).

Missing or Corrupted STRING Files

On some rare occasions, Skyrim's STRING files will either go missing or become corrupt. The STRING files contain text for the game, and is generally what you see when looking at item names, quest descriptions, subtitles, etc. There are two options to fix the missing or corrupted STRING files.

Verify the game cache. This can be done in Steam by right-clicking on Skyrim in the Library list, clicking on properties, and then navigating to the Local Files tab. Once there, click on the Verify Integrity of the Game Cache button. Remember that if you are using Skyrim Unplugged, this will fail to work.
In the case that you either have Skyrim Unplugged, and/or would like updated and corrected English STRING files, you can download English Strings for Skyrim at Skyrim Nexus. This is the preferred option as this is a mod that modifies the STRING files to fix many grammatical errors, as well as make lore accurate tweaks, in the vanilla STRING files.

Purple or Black Textures

If you are seeing purple or black textures while playing Skyrim, you have either corrupted or missing textures. There are several solutions to this problem. It also requires some common sense to determine where the texture is coming from. For example, if a wooden chopping block is purple, it does not come from a mod such as SRO, since that mod does not contain the texture file for the chopping block. However, Bethesda's Hi-Res DLC does contain the texture file for the chopping block. Hence, the DLC is a good start for troubleshooting using the steps below.

Verify the game cache. This can be done in steam by right-clicking on Skyrim in the Library list, clicking on Properties, and then navigating to the Local Files tab. Once there, click on the Verify Integrity of the Game Cache button. Remember that if you are using Skyrim Unplugged, this will fail to work.
Uninstall and reinstall any texture DLCs or mods that you have.
If the problem still persists, it may be that the mod or DLC was corrupted during downloading. Simply re-download and reinstall the mod or DLC that you suspect of containing the corrupted texture file.
If the problem is yet again still present, it may be that you failed to properly uninstall a mod that affects the texture. In this case, it is easiest to perform a complete clean reinstall of Skyrim. See the "Reverting Skyrim to a Pristine (Vanilla) Installation" steps on the top of this page on how to best achieve that.

Exterior Crash to Desktop (CTD)

There are several causes for this. Usually its due to mods. Several solutions are listed here.

Visit the "Are you having constant exterior CTDs? Ive finally found your solution" thread by Yafi on the Skyrim Nexus forum. All credits go to Yafi.

Papyrus Script Errors

Constant error reporting can sometimes be found when performing Papyrus script logging. While these errors can be benign, it can cause stuttering, freezes or CTDs in certain cases. The cause is usually a mod with scripts that are either buggy or poorly written. However, it is also possible for vanilla Skyrim to produce errors. The fixes listed below will be named as to how the script appears in the log.

fxDustDropRandomSCRIPT - Visit the "fxDustDropRandomSCRIPT errors *FIXED*" thread by steve40 on the Skyrim Nexus forum. All credits go to steve40.
dunBluePalaceArenaSCRIPT - Visit the "dunBluePalaceArenaSCRIPT errors *FIXED*" thread by steve40 on the Skyrim Nexus forum. All credits go to steve40.
HelgenRandomSoundScript - Same solution as listed under Exterior Crash to Desktop. Visit the "Are you having constant exterior CTDs? Ive finally found your solution" thread by Yafi on the Skyrim Nexus forum. All credits go to Yafi.
lvlpredatorscript or LvlPredatorScript - Same solution as listed under Exterior Crash to Desktop. Visit the "Are you having constant exterior CTDs? Ive finally found your solution" thread by Yafi on the Skyrim Nexus forum. All credits go to Yafi.

Mods and Savegames

Installing, Uninstalling, & Upgrading

One crucial fact to understand about Skyrim is that information from mods (mods with scripting in particular) can be written into saves and may continue to affect the game even after the mods are removed or updated.

Following is a procedure for attempting to ‘clean’ the effects of a removed mod from a save. It is not guaranteed to succeed, but these advanced cleaning steps will force exterior and interior cells to reset, despawning and respawning almost all actors in the game, among other things. For a more complete description of what a cell reset does, visit this UESP wiki page.

To make sure almost all cells reset, it is necessary to wait for 31 days. Some cells never reset because they are flagged "Never Resets". These mostly include player homes and other important locations. See safe places for the complete list. Forcing cell resets clears almost all containers and respawns random or the original objects contained therein, while deleting anything else like player added items. Therefore, always store important objects inside the containers at these "safe places" locations.

These steps can also be applied when installing mods that modify many cells and actors. In most cases, these mods install correctly and modify all relevant actors. However, in some cases, not all actors are properly modified when installing the mod. These steps force these actors to respawn with the correct modifications.

When uninstalling a mod that uses scripts, sometimes the scripts continue to be present in the save. Basically, any script that attaches to an object in-game via a mod remain attached to that object, even if mod is removed. See here and here on the Creation Kit WIKI for a more complete description of how scripts can affect save-games.

The following procedure is probably overkill for most situations, but it is much simpler to present (and follow) a comprehensive procedure than to explain the varieties of different mods and different uninstall requirements for each of them. This is a uniform catch-all procedure.

Clean Savegame Procedure

NOTE

To travel to the Testing Hall, type "coc qasmoke" (without quotes) in the console. Note that using objects within this location creates savegame corruption and possibly CTD, so exiting the testing hall requires using the console command, "coc <cellname>" (without quotes). The <cellname> must be replaced with a valid location name. Before traveling to the Testing Hall, it is a good idea to know the location name that will be used to exit. To discover the name of a location, type "help <location> 0" (without quotes) in the game console in the location of interest. The <location> must be replaced with name of the location.

Open (or create) SkyrimCustom.ini file in .../My Documents/My Games/Skyrim. MO users can simply click > "INI Editor". Add the following lines to that file. This creates a log that shows information about the savegame and how much is removed by the procedure. Alternatively, these lines can be added to Skyrim.ini... or change the =0 to =1 if they already exist.

[Papyrus]
bEnableLogging=1
bEnableTrace=1
bLoadDebugInformation=1

With these settings on, the game creates a new folder at %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Logs\Script with the logs named as Papyrus.#.log with the # number going from 0 to 3. The 0 log is always the newest and 3 the oldest.
Download and install the No Boring Sleep-Wait Menu from Skyrim Nexus. This mod makes waiting for 31 days simple and was created with mod cleaning in mind.
Deactivate or uninstall any 'survival-realism' mods that require the player character (PC) to eat, sleep, drink, stay warm, etc. for survival, such as Total Realism - Basic Needs. If these are not disabled, ythe PC will die instantly after following these steps.
Start Skyrim, and load the savegame to be cleaned.
If mods will be uninstalled, all objects, including clothing, can be safely stored in a player home or other "safe place" as mentioned previously.
Check to make sure all active effects on the PC are clear. If not, go into the console, click on the PC, and type: "dispelallspells" (without quotes). This also cures vampirism and lycanthropy, so they will need to be re-added via the console after finishing the procedure.
Make a new save by typing "save <name>" (without quotes) in the game console. If the name contains spaces, it must be enclosed in double-quotes, i.e. save "My Skyrim Save". Make sure this is a unique name.
Exit Skyrim by typing "qqq" (without quotes) into the game console.
Uninstall the relevant mod(s) that need to be permanently removed. Or (NOT and), install the mod(s) you want to have in Skyrim. If doing both, first uninstall and complete the entire procedure, then install new mods and complete the entire procedure again.
Load your savegame. A dialog stating that the save file relies on missing content is to be expected. Choose "Yes".
Travel to another world space that IS NOT classed as the Skyrim world space. The best options are the Skyrim Testing Hall or an empty unmodded player home. See the Testing Hall note above.
Once in the Testing Hall or home DO NOT pick up or open or use anything! Open the game console and type "pcb" (without quotes).
Next, in the game console, type "tfc" (without quotes). This enables free camera mode, and helps reduce the waiting time required for 31 days to pass.
Exit the game console, and press "T" on your keyboard to enable the waiting menu. The change in appearance is due to the No Boring Sleep-Wait Menu mod you installed.
Move the slider all the way to the right until 31 days appears.
Press "Enter" on your keyboard. You need to wait for 2-3 minutes if you toggled free camera mode with the "tfc" command, or 12 minutes if you did not.
Next, in the game console, type "tfc" (without quotes). This disables the free camera mode that was enabled before.
Make a new save by typing "save <name>" (without quotes) into the game console. If the name contains spaces, it must be enclosed in double-quotes, i.e. save "My Skyrim Save". Make sure this is a unique name.
Exit Skyrim by typing "qqq" (without quotes) into the game console.
Rename skyrimcustom.ini (so it doesn't load and you won't have to recreate it later if you need it again) or change Skyrim.ini settings added above =0. Now check the logs to see what changed and to make sure you don't have crazy errors.
Reactivate your realism mods, start Skyrim and load your save.
Open the game console and type "pcb" again (without quotes).
Travel to your preferred destination using the game console "coc <cellname>" (without quotes).
Play! (Thanks to apoJake, MontyMM, Madwizard25, and Frihyland for contributions).

Saving and Reloading Games

As a best practice, disable autosaving. Avoid overusing quicksave, and only save indoors.

When reloading a savegame, exit the game completely first to clear out any trash in memory and allow the savegame to initialize properly.

It is best not to rely on autosaves or quicksaves because overwriting a save can result in corruption or more commonly loss of a useful save. In game settings disable all save on options (rest, wait, travel, menu). This also speeds up transition times between areas and prevents many CTDs. It also requires you to manually save at appropriate times. Use the console command save <savename> to name your saves as you like. If the name contains spaces it must be enclosed in double-quotes; i.e., save "My Skyrim Save". Make sure this is a unique name because you will not be prompted to overwrite.