Mod Troubleshooting

General Mod Troubleshooting Steps

First, make sure you have a rough idea of what you're doing.

• If you're using the Steam Workshop and the Skyrim Launcher to add and manage mods but you're still pretty new, read this first:
  • Skyrim Mod Troubleshooting: Best Practices
  • For basic Steam Workshop mod activate/deactivate and remove procedures, I've added a section below.
• If you're using Nexus Mod Manager, they have some amazing video tutorials on mod management located here:
  • NMM Video Tutorials

Identifying conflicts

1. Read the mod's description!!!
   • You may find that the "problem" you're having is simply part of the mod's design (i.e. you may have to be a certain level to access it), or it could be a known issue. Either way, if you complain that "I can't pull the sword out of the stone" and the mod's description clearly indicates why, you'll be the laughing stock of millions of your peers. Millions.
2. Make sure you have the latest version of Skyrim AND the mod in question.
   • Steam Workshop subscribers must start Skyrim through Steam so the "launcher" will appear - it handles all your updates.
   • Nexus users please check the latest version (Nexus Mod Manager should do that for you if you're using it).
3. Backup your saves!
4. Disable ALL your other mods except the one you're trying to get working.
   • Yes, all of them. Don't panic - you don't have to play without your mods, you're just performing a test.
5. Load up a recent game (the game will likely complain about your missing mods, that's okay) and see if the mod you're attempting to troubleshoot is working.
   • If yes, the mod is probably just conflicting with another installed mod.
     • If you want to be very helpful at this point, turn on your other mods one at a time and observe which causes the original to stop working. It is very important that you report your findings to the mod creator (see below), or the conflict can never be fixed.
     • Also note that if you've found a conflicting mod, you may simply have to make a choice between which mod you want to run until the authors have a chance to fix the conflict.
   • If no, it is possible there is something wrong with the installation - see the Resetting/Clearing a mod section below.
6. Once you've found a resolution, don't forget to re-enable the rest of your mods.

Resetting/Clearing a Mod

If you've determined that that you're not having a mod conflict, or the mod is functioning with strange behavior, you might try the following steps. WARNING: doing this will reset/remove any changes to the game that the mod has made.

1. Delete the mod from your system (Steam users see below, Nexus see the link above).
2. Start Skyrim and load your current save game. You'll get the message about missing data, click OK. Confirm that the mod is actually disabled by observing something that the mod would effect.
3. Save your game and quit Skyrim.
4. Re-install the mod.
5. Start Skyrim and see if the mod is functional or if any strange behavior has persisted.

Additional Tips/Suggestions

• Make sure you run all installation software (Steam/NMM) and Skyrim as the Administrator on your computer, else mods may not install correctly.
• A similar approach (which is basically a binary search) can be used to diagnose mod conflicts that aren't a result of a recently installed mod:
  • Pick a point roughly midway between your list of installed mods.
  • Disable half of the mods above or below that point. See if your conflict is resolved.
  • If so, pick a point midway between mods you just narrowed down and repeat.
  • If not, pick a point midway between the remaining mods without the ones you just excluded and repeat.

Contact the author

If you've run through all the steps above and are still encountering problems, you should contact the author of the mod. This can usually be done via the page where you downloaded the mod. Here's a few things to keep in mind when requesting help:

1. Be polite. Mod creators don't spend their free time and effort making mods to upset you. If something is going wrong, it's likely something the author didn't anticipate. More often than not, they are happy to get your feedback, fix bugs, and make improvements.
2. Be specific. Posting statements like "this mod doesn't work" or "my game crashed" is about as helpful as the response you'll receive in return for such comments. Which is none. If the mod isn't working, tell the author exactly what steps you take to come to that conclusion (i.e. "I go to the stone, the sword is there, but I can't pull it out"). If your game is crashing, when does it crash? Immediately upon start up? When you load a specific save game? When you interact with some part of the mod? Etc. The more detail you give here, the better response you'll get (and the more likely the author will be inclined to help you).

Additional Resources

Steam Workshop Skyrim Mod Management

Disable/Enable

1. Open the Skyrim Launcher (i.e. the little picture of the mountains where you can click Play) and wait for any of your subscribed mods to update (in fact, if you get any updates at this time you should just play normally as a bug might already be fixed).
2. Click the "Data Files" button and a list of all your currently installed mods will appear.
3. Uncheck/check the box next to any mod you want to disable/enable the next time you play. NOTE - this does not delete your mods or any associated files.

Removal

1. To delete a mod, simply follow steps 1 and 2 above, click to HIGHLIGHT the mod you want to delete, then click the "Delete Selected" button.