Uninstalling and deleting the game

[willsaul10]

Hi. I'm thinking about deleting Train simulator but one question I'd like to ask. Would all of my add-ons and data go as well?

[Highball Simulation]

Originally posted by willsaul10:

Hi. I'm thinking about deleting Train simulator but one question I'd like to ask. Would all of my add-ons and data go as well?

If you delete the Railworks folder, you will have to reinstall all addons. You will not lose scenario data, however.

[Duke Dudeston]

Originally posted by willsaul10:

Hi. I'm thinking about deleting Train simulator but one question I'd like to ask. Would all of my add-ons and data go as well?

It all depends on whether the add-ons has been installed as individual packages (like if their 3rd party installers)

All steam add-ons should be deleted along with the uninstall, its probably a good idea if you do have 3rd party add-ons (like JustTrains for example) to uninstall these first, then uninstall the game, you might also want to go to your steamapps install and delete the Railworks folder there to make sure all traces are gone.

[Phase3]

WS10

Hi. I'm thinking about deleting Train simulator . . .

By implication you will be reinstalling?

Why Delete??? Can you describe the issues/problems you may be having?

[rogerbailey777]

I have deleted this game and uninstalled it several time and I have never lost anything.

[ronlasker]

I'm thinking the same thing, out of memory problem can't get solved.

[willsaul10]

I installed the game in 2012 on windows 7. There have been a lot of updates including add-ons like the US and UK Loco packs that did not feature or work because I had been using the same computer that wasn't a gaming one. Then 5 years later, I switched to Windows 10 using the same account and when I bought more add-ons like the Big Boy Loco that were conflicting with ones that weren't working, the new ones worked and now I'm thinking of cleaning up this mess once and for all by deleting and removing the whole game and the add-ons from the steam library so that I can start over unless there's a more subtle solution.

[OldAlaskaGuy]

Some time a clean install is a good thing but time consuming depending on how many assets you have. As a suggestion, copy your Railworks folder to a separate back up drive first. If you have any 3rd party assets or modifications these all will need to be installed manually. I hope that you have saved all the installation files for these if not you will need to download these again. I have saved every 3rd party installation file, You can simply add asset folders from your backup to your new clean installation if you need to. You can also play TS from this backup drive to test.

[Adam Beckett]

I keep repeating myself - so if you have read this before, please ignore. Yes, there is a more 'subtle' solution.

How to load TS20xx lightning fast with never crashing on start:

1. Push your Routes folder outside TS, or rename it to _Routes (so TS does not see it).

2. Use Hardlinks(!) aka "Microsoft Junctions" to hardlink folders from Place A (where they physically are) to Place B (the "Routes" folder - where TS THINKS they are.

3. Only hardlink a couple of routes, you want to play at a time. (It's just a quick mouse right-click ... like creating a shortcut).

While TS20xx has become better with creating the scenario database cache on start (not crashing at all for me, if only Steam content (not workshop) is loaded), it will take loooooooooonger and looooooonger, the more routes (and therefore 'scenarios') you have installed.

If you also have 3rd party website Payware/Donationware/Freeware you will go insane ... unless you learn how to manage your bloating stuff.

I have a full 1TB SSD with only TS content - and I install only the basic Steam game on new PCs, while I link my already downloaded Steam routes, assets and 3rd party AND Workshop routes, from my SSD. (The danger that my TS SSD will not have the 'up-to-date patches' of the lastest TS content is minimal, not to say not existing).

Here's a link to a more in-depth description (skip the text until you see "Read This Part":

https://steamcommunity.com/app/24010/discussions/8/4917340730754227513/

Another thing is "How to sub to more then 10 Workshop items, without ending in a "download/decompression" loop: Only sub to up to 10 Workshop items. Start TS. Wait until the download/install has finished. Then copy the routes/scenarios OUT of the Railworks\Routes folder and only LINK to what you will play at a time (*see above).

Then "unscubscribe" from those items.

Since you 'put them away' they won't be lost. Go back to the Workshop and do this with the next 10 etc... To remember which one you already have downloaded, use "Favourite" button on the Workshop item site, so you know that THAT item, you already have backed up.

I have 200 GB of Workshop routes and scenarios, 600 GB of overall Assets and circa 300 GB of Routes all together. TS20xx - as good as it works for the last 10+ years - will falter eventually (mostly because of ONE broken Workshop scenario download, which you will never find!).

[Phase3]

AB
Are you referring to HardLinks, Junction Points, or Symbolic Links? or all 3?
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/96813c92-5476-44d3-bdb9-d46fc7f4c901/symlinks-vs-junction-points-vs-hard-links?forum=w7itprogeneral

[willsaul10]

Thanks. I'll try it when I'm ready.

[Adam Beckett]

Originally posted by Phase3:

AB
Are you referring to HardLinks, Junction Points, or Symbolic Links? or all 3?
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/96813c92-5476-44d3-bdb9-d46fc7f4c901/symlinks-vs-junction-points-vs-hard-links?forum=w7itprogeneral

Thanks for asking. I keep using the term 'hardlink' improperly!

A brief, official, one liner definition on what-is-what here:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/fileio/hard-links-and-junctions

On Windows and NTFS, it is called and referred to as "Junction":

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/junction

I highly recommend the amazing freeware tool "Link Shell Extension"

https://schinagl.priv.at/nt/hardlinkshellext/hardlinkshellext.html

after it's installation, you will only

1. right-click on a top-folder ('Create Link Source')

like "Assets" or a specific route folder, like "00000001-0000-0000-0000-000000000000" (= Great Western Main Line),

which is outside your Railworks folder (on any local harddrive or partition) and then

2. right-click again ('Drop as Junction')

Apologies, for the confusion. I confused myself, always using the term 'hardlink' in conversations.