S K Y R I M . I N S T A L L A T I O N . S W A P P E R

SIS IS COMPATIBLE with NMM, Steam and Wrye Bash. See compatibility notes below.

::::::INSTALLATION::::::

To install, unpack the contents of the zip file to any safe folder (i.e. - one that isn't going to be part of your skyrim installation, for instance) and run the exe file.

::::::WHAT IT DOES::::::

Let's you create up to ten individual skyrim installation "profiles" which can be swapped in and out easily. (Kinda like MOM did for Oblivion.) A "profile" consists of any files in the skyrim game folder that are NOT a vanilla game or CK file, as well as the contents of the mydocs\my games\skyrim folder and the appdata\local\skyrim folder.

::::::USAGE::::::

This utility assumes that you already have Skyrim installed. The version you have installed does not have to be vanilla. You can define and manage up to 10 different installs, called profiles in this utility.

Upon first run, you will be guided through a few setup steps including setting your game folder location and your inactive profiles location. When complete, it'll ask if you want to keep the script in memory. Click ok, and then use Ctrl-Shift-F1 (always available) to pull up the main menu.

Each profile can be given a unique name, and hotkeys are customizable. Not all of them work perfectly yet.

Currently functional hotkeys include:

Main Menu:
Ctrl-Shift-F1
Ctrl-`
Ctrl-Shift-S
Ctrl-Shift-D

Reload the script:
Ctrl-Shift-R

Abort the script:
Ctrl-Shift-End

Activate a profile:
Ctrl-Shift-# where # is numbers 1-0 on your regular keyboard, for profiles 1-10

::::::HOW IT DOES IT::::::

FULL DETAILS about how this mod functions are available in the development thread, here:
http://www.darkcreations.org/forums/topic/1721-relz-sis-skyrim-installation-swapper/

NOTE THAT This is still in beta. I believe the utility is solid and without any major bugs, but if you find one, please report it here:
http://www.darkcreations.org/bugzilla/enter_bug.cgi?product=Skyrim%20Installation%20Swapper%20(SIS)

To recap, the utility:

Copies/Swaps your LOCALAPPDATA\Skyrim folder (Plugins.txt is in here)
Copies/Swaps your MYDOCS\My Games\Skyrim folder (Save Games in here)
Copies/Swaps your GAME FOLDER (While not touching the vanilla game and CK files)

When you create a new profile, or swap a profile, SIS creates and deletes folders in the storage path. For each profile, 1-10, there will be a folder at YourStoragePath\ALT# where # is the # of the profile. Inside this folder are three folders, \GAME.ALT#, \DOCS.ALT#, AND \APPDATA.ALT#. This is where SIS will store the contents of each type of folder being managed by SIS. If you are creating a blank profile, you will have nothing in these folders except a file called zzz.SIS.BOOKMARKER.FILE.DO.NOT.REMOVE. These are created by SIS when making a blank profile so that the folder is not ignored during file-copy and file-move operations. Without any contents, a folder is ignored and not created in the storage bin when swapping out a profile and I wanted to be sure there's always 3 folders in the storage bin folder.

Whenever the utility is commanded to copy or move an ACTIVE profile, it uses a special routine which reads the contents of vanillainstallfiles.dat into a string, and then checks the file about to be moved/copied against that string and if it's in the string, that means it's a vanilla file not to be moved or copied, and is thusly ignored. The .dat file can be manipulated manually using TAB as a delimiter and including all relative file paths. It's planned to be included in the GUI to add to the list of files being ignored but that won't be done through the vanillainstallfiles.dat file. This file shouldn't be edited if at all possible.

::::::COMPATIBILITY::::::

SIS does not conflict with NMM, Steam or Wrye Bash. w00t! Note that you have to install Wrye separately for each profile. In order to do so, you'd need to activate the profile first, then you can install wrye to it.

Total Conversion Mods: At this time, they may or may not be compatible, depending on how the conversion mod handles its conversion. If the mod replaces any vanilla files with its own files, then at this time, SIS would be incompatible with those mods. A fix is planned for the final release.

>>>Some important notes about using NMM and/or Steam to install mods <<<

If you choose to use NMM to install mods (which is an incredibly bad idea - you've been warned) and you want to manage your skyrim installation (like installing and uninstalling mods) manually, with wrye bash, or literally with anything OTHER than NMM, NMM will report inaccurate information on it's Mods tab about what is and isn't installed. This is an NMM bug and it needs to be fixed by NMM.

The problem is that NMM does not do any real checking to see if a mod is installed when it reports on the mods tab that it is installed by placing a checkmark next to the mod. NMM places a checkmark next to a mod when you use NMM to install that mod. If you change that installation in any way other than through NMM, NMM never checks again. It just continues to gleefully report that the mod is installed. So if you use NMM, it will have problems with any changes of any kind made to your installation without those changes being made by NMM, whether manually, with SIS, or anything else. Talk to the devs on that one if you think that's as stupid as I do.

Steam Mod Subscriptions: Steam will automatically download and install any uninstalled mods you have subscribed to through steam when you launch the exe. So if you switch to a blank/vanilla profile and want to play with a vanilla profile, or test your mod with a vanilla profile, you will need to be sure you aren't actively subscribed to any mods through steam before running the steam game. If there's any way to prevent steam from automatically installing missing plugins to which you are subscribed, I don't know what it is. I *strongly* advise not handing over the installation of your mods to steam.

In both cases, the problem is not with SIS, nor the user who wishes to control what is on their PC. In both cases, the problem lies with NMM and Steam for being unwilling to accommodate anything other than absolute authority over your install. [In other words, if you choose to use these tools and have problems maintaining control of your installation, this is no surprise to me.]

Thanks for your interest. We hope you enjoy using SIS!

I am sorry, but i dont really understand what this mod does? Does it allow me to have different mod presets? Or something else entirely?

I sure miss MOM from Oblivion for this. Thanks for making Skyrim gaming a bit easier.

I am sorry, but i dont really understand what this mod does? Does it allow me to have different mod presets? Or something else entirely?

This allows you to have separate versions of Skyrim on your computer that you can swap out when you want to have different mods installed. This i really nice for testing out mods that might not be compatible with each other.

MiMi will manage skyrim, oblivion and morrowind probably too. But if you want something to use now, for skyrim, this would be an option. MiMi looks like it'll be prettier if/when it's released.

You bet. And as InsanitySorry InsanitySorrow [I do that almost every time. Hello, my shadow.] pointed out, MiMi will manage skyrim, oblivion and morrowind probably too. But if you want something to use now, for skyrim, this would be an option. MiMi looks like it'll be prettier if/when it's released.

I like this. Thanks for making it.