How to sync blueprints between Steam installation <-> standalone?

[Saiph]

I have two installations of Factorio 2.x (not including the Space Age patch), one on Steam and one standalone. I do this because one is relatively unmodded, with only a few QoL mods. The other I can experiment with, trying out overhaul mods and more ambitious mods.

The problem I'm having is syncing blueprints between the two installations. I've set up some new blueprints in the standalone version of the game, but when I copy the "blueprint*.dat" files from the standalone game directory to the Steam game directory, the new blueprints don't show up at all. I've tried checking to find out where Factorio might be storing the blueprints, but I can't find any other location apart from the "blueprint*.dat" files.

Does anyone know why copying those files between installations doesn't work? Could it be that the Steam cloud save feature is affecting things? Does anyone know of a reliable method that I could use to keep my two installations in sync? Copying game save files back and forth seems to work with no problems. It's just the blueprints which don't show up.

Thanks in advance for any help given.

[Chindraba]

There is an issue with Steam thinking its files are the best and sometimes pushing back down its copy of the blueprint file, overwriting the one you copied it. There are two ways to do it, one easy one not so much, but better long-term. Both require that the stand-alone version be the same, or lower version as the Steam version. Currently default for Steam is 2.0.14.

In the stand-alone experimenting version you can take the prints and copy/move them from the "My blueprints" collection to the "Game blueprints" collection. The "Game blueprints" are saved in that game, not in the 'library'. Save that game then copy it to the Steam saves folder. Open that game in Steam - don't worry about syncing the mods. You can then copy/move the prints from that games "Game blueprints" collection into the "My blueprints" which places them in the Steam collection. Rather easy once you know where Steam hides your save files, but the file can get big and having to always copy it, worry about keeping it updated and the sync mods messages can sometimes get to be a hassle.

Slightly harder is to export each print, or if you make a book all at once, export the book, which can get quite large. Anyway, with the blueprint open you can get a string to share using the button that is a small square with an arrow pointing up and left. Copy that and save it to a regular text file. Give it a nice name and you can keep a backup of each print you make. In the Steam game, in the regular toolbar is an import string button, arrow pointing into a square. Paste the string into that and you will import the print.

Of course, if you have a strong enough computer you can have both versions running at the same time and copy from one then paste in the other, and never worry about saving a file.

The saved file of each blueprint, or book of prints, has a few nifty advantages. Those files can easily be shared with friends. If not too big they can even be shared here. Some Discord servers have a bot which will read those files and make an image so you can share the print, and what it looks like. You can also take your especially brilliant ones and share them on the various websites for sharing Factorio prints. Last benefit is that if you Steam, or stand-alone game takes a crap and wipes out the print library - Steam had done that on rare occasions, you loose nothing and when versions of the game get updated the prints are still usable in older versions, though never older than the version which made them.

Nothing says you cannot use both methods, of course. The easy one for one-shot prints, and the file method for 'keepers'.

[Saiph]

Thanks for the very full and clear reply Chindraba.

So let me see if I understand my current problem correctly:
(a) I copy all the 'blueprint*.dat' files from standalone to Steam.
(b) I go to my Steam library, and start the Steam version of Factorio.
(c) During the startup process, Steam checks my files with the cloud, and sees that some of the files are different. And instead of sensibly checking the file DATES, it simply says "my files are better" and downloads the old cloud versions to the game directory, overwriting my changes.
(d) Steam then starts Factorio.
(e) When I go to the blueprint library in the game, my new blueprints have disappeared because of what happened in step (c).

I've been playing Factorio a long time, so I am very familiar with exporting blueprints and books to strings, and then importing them into the other version of the game. It's an effective method, but it gets a little bit awkward because I have a large number of books (for example a full collection of Nilaus blueprints!) and it can be a bit slow. I tend to get a little bored with the Factorio loading time, and with that orange progress bar showing "Loading sprites"!

I have never tried running both versions of Factorio simultaneously, and using alt-tab to copy the strings between the games. That would be a lot faster. I will try that and see if my PC can cope. Although I have a slightly old i5-4570 CPU, I do have 16GB RAM, so perhaps I'll be able to use that method.

When I read your tip about using the "GAME blueprints" instead of "My blueprints", and then syncing the game save files to transfer the blueprint data, I gave myself a *facepalm*! Why didn't I think of that?

I already have a .BAT file that I run between game sessions to sync my saves between the two versions. If I save the blueprints into the game save file, then they will get synced too. Simple.

Incidentally, because Space Age is new and Wube are fixing lots of bugs, I'm updating my games regularly, and I'm on the 'experimental' Steam branch, so both versions are up to 2.0.14.

Based on your help and suggestions, I will do a bit of testing, and I'm sure I'll be able to find a convenient method of transferring my blueprints between the two versions.

Thanks again!

[Chindraba]

Saiph の投稿を引用：

(a) I copy all the 'blueprint*.dat' files from standalone to Steam.

One final piece. Only the `blueprint-storage.dat` file matters. Anything else is probably ones you made during one experiment of another. The step (c) overwrite is seemingly random. I'm sure there's some flag or other Steam checks to decide it should be BOSS, but I've never found it. You could go 3 weeks without issue and then jinx it by thinking they got it fixed.

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Saiph の投稿を引用：

I already have a .BAT file that I run between game sessions to sync my saves between the two versions. If I save the blueprints into the game save file, then they will get synced too. Simple.

The .BAT file can become 2. One for launching WUBE-Factorio and One for launching Steam-Factorio. (Even better if you can 'hotkey' them.) I think the command in .BAT to launch the Steam-Factorio would be `steam://rungameid/427520`. In Linux if I 'run' the steam-installed executable steam will intercept it and start it's own checks and then relaunch the game. Not sure if the Windows version of Steam and Factorio would do the same or not, but the URL looking one should work, if Steam is already launched at least.

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Saiph の投稿を引用：

I tend to get a little bored with the Factorio loading time, and with that orange progress bar showing "Loading sprites"!

If you don't already know, there is an Advanced secret settings menu. Ctrl+Alt+Click on Settings in the main menu. The Settings menu will now have "The rest" at the bottom. Go there and find 2 settings

• cache-prototype-data
  
• cache-sprite-atlas

Turn both of them on and your load time, without changes in mods, ought to be about 80% faster, or better. A change in mods, either update or enable/disable causes the cache to be reloaded, so the load time is back to normal for the next restart.

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Saiph の投稿を引用：

I have never tried running both versions of Factorio simultaneously, and using alt-tab to copy the strings between the games.

Windows 11 now lets you have multiple desktops, so you could place each game on its own desktop and switch between them that way. Steam likes the Tab key, as does Factorio, and either one might rebind the Alt+Tab. In the Steam version I can't even reverse tab through the fields, like the colors for trains, as Steam steals the Shift+Tab for something else. The switching of desktops is somehow tied to mouse movement - bottom border I think. One less key anyway, if it works.

[jamiechi]

The issues discussed above is one of the main reasons I disabled the Steam Cloud. Copy paste always works better for me.