Error - Unable to save data... an ongoing problem since Feb 2018

[Thineboot]

Error - Unable to save data because there is no free memory on the system storage. You need to free up more space to enable saving again.[i.postimg.cc]

I've tracked this bug back to February 2018. Since than several threads were started and several times you've told us that this bug is gone. See reference part below including some more or less correct answers trying to deal with this ongoing problem.

Railway Empire keeps synchronizing despite the fact that Steam Cloud is deactivated.[i.postimg.cc]
Left shows what happened yesterday. Second part is valid before and after I've enabled Steam Cloud, forced synchronizing my local files, deleted most of them, and finally deactivated Steam Cloud again. Both right parts show the actual behaviour between one new local save game and two game starts.



Some answers to quotes you can find below:

Forcing Steam Cloud to synchronize by gardlt:
You're describing what I see and what I did. Despite the fact that the cloud is deactivated Railway Empire is still synchronizing with Steam Cloud on each game start.

restart your Steam Client by kalypso_Lord MK:
Nice idea but save games stored in the Steam Cloud don't vanish just by restarting the Steam Client.

remotecache.vdf by xxx78:
"[...]\Steam\userdata\[userid]\503940\remotecache.vdf" keeps track of not existing save files. For instance

	"savegames/save100.trn"
	{
		"root"		"0"
		"size"		"0"
		"localtime"		"0"
		"time"		"0"
		"remotetime"		"1573831062"
		"sha"		"0000000000000000000000000000000000000000"
		"syncstate"		"1"
		"persiststate"		"2"
		"platformstosync2"		"-1"
	}

I can't even get rid of entries for zip files that don't exist anymore. Deleting these false entries won't work as they get synchronized again and again and again with each game start.

Local save games by NetPCDoc:
In theory Dray is right. In practice the error massage talks about the Steam Cloud, not your own system. I have plenty of space free on my system drive as well as the drive my steam library is located on. And while Railway Empire is located in the dedicated steam library the save games are still stored wherever steam is installed: [...]\Steam\userdata\[userid]\503940\remote\savegames



Steam Cloud

Developers are able to completely customize how The Steam Cloud is used for their games, including which user files are uploaded.

The fact that there are not raging crowds of steam players all over the internet is an indirect proof that that's not a Steam issue but a Railway Empire issue.

The Steam Cloud can be toggled for individual games, or as a global Steam setting for all games. When Steam Cloud functionality of a game is disabled, all progress that would normally be saved via the cloud will only be saved locally on the machine where the progress was made.

And still Railway Empire is synchronizing to Steam Cloud. Just to make it clear: I have only one Steam account, there are no other Steam accounts on my machine, and Steam Cloud is deactivated in global Steam setting.

If it were the other way around with Steam Cloud not working troubleshooting on my side would be the proper way to deal with it. But when a game insists on synchronizing to Steam Could no matter what since it's release on Jan 26, 2018, with regularly new threads started pointing at the same problem it seems a bit more likely that the problem has something to do with the game and not the user.



23 Feb, 2018 @ 8:35pm: Can't save my game anymore

Originally posted by gardlt:

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1311041246

Have plenty of free room on my hard disk, 200GB+.

Details of save game folder
167 files (includes the 4 autosaves)
94.1MB in size

Last save is 1,475kb. [...]

Originally posted by gardlt:

I removed all but the last save and its working again but the numbering order is now reversed. It's counting down from 162.

So I manually renamed the file to "save0" and now it's starting to fill the folder again in the correct order.

From this, my guess would be a simple number limit, but of course I don't really know what's happening behind the scenes.

Originally posted by gm_feirefiz:

Hi,

did you try to disable steam cloud-saves?

Originally posted by gardlt:

I had Steam cloud Sync turned off for my entire account. In the Settings for the game specifically the option was greyed out and appeared "unticked."

Thanks to your comment I set my account to allow Steam cloud Sync and then when I checked the game specific settings the tick was on. Turned that off, turned the setting for my account back off, reset the numbering, shuffled files around and it's working past #162, so assuming FIXED.

6 Sep, 2018 @ 4:31pm: Save Game Error

Originally posted by Mr_D:

Hi, I've just installed and ran the game for the first time. From the onset I keep getting this message, cannot save at all.

Checked the forum, and could only find something about turning off cloud saves, however this is not working for me.

Anyone have advice please?

"Error - Unable to save data because there is no free memory on the system storage. You need to free up more space to enable saving again"

I have pleanty of space on all my drives, so dont understand the issue.

Multiple similar reports.

Originally posted by kalypso_Lord MK:

Hey guys,

we are already working on it, it has something to do with the Steam Cloud integration. Our devs switched something around today and that broke it. We hope to have it fixed within hours! I am very sorry!

A developer of this app marked a post as the answer to the topic above.

Originally posted by kalypso_Lord MK:

Okay guys we fixed it, all you need to do is restart your Steam Client!

Several threads, same date, same reports, same answers:

6 Sep, 2018: [TECH] Bugreport Thread Railway Empire version 1.5

6 Sep, 2018: Not enough save space

Originally posted by kalypso_Lord MK:

Hey everyone,

we are experiencing the same problem, too. Since we did not upload a new version it might be a problem that is Steam related, we did not change anything compared to yesterday.

Nevertheless I'll ask the devs to look into this asap!

Originally posted by kalypso_Lord MK:

We fixed it guys, all you need to do now is to restart your Steam Client!

21 Sep, 2018 @ 5:43pm: Save bug

Originally posted by xxx78:

"Unable to save data because there is no free memory on the system storage"
First I restarted steam and that fixed it, but then it came back again. I thought this was the save bug that came a few weeks ago when no one could save, but this save bug is probably something else. I have manged to get to work again after starting a new game and then loading the old game where I had save bug.

I see that I had 321 saves, can this be the reason? Have anyone found out why this save bug pop up from time to time?

A developer of this app marked a post as the answer to the topic above.

Originally posted by xxx78:

ok I found the issue, the cache file cache all files in remote folder. I have on several occasions moved files from savegame folder to remote folder into numbered folders. The problem is that the cache file count all files in remote folder and it was over 900 save files in the cache file :D
So if you get any problems with saves take a look in remotecache.vdf.

19 Dec, 2018 @ 8:51am: Unable to save data .. no free memory on the system storage...

Originally posted by 54Bear:

"Error - Unable to save data because there is no free memory on the system storage. You need to free up more space to enable saving again"

Disabled (and tried re-enabling) cloud sync = no joy.

Workaround (successful) = move all but last save file (save166.trn) to a subfolder, rename remaining file to save0.trn and was able to load the save and the game will now save ok. Presumably I'll have to manually do this again unless it gets fixed.

Playing the public beta with all the DLC's except Andes. [...]

Originally posted by gardlt:

I have had some issue with this in the past as well. But always resolved it with fiddling, such as on/off cycle with steam cloud: it should be off normally, removing other files etc.. On the first run I think I got to 200-something then the game spat this message. I think I reported that instance. Afterwards I have gotten it 2 more times. Once when I was approaching save1000, that time I emptied the save folder and started from scratch. This worked until I hit save167. But this time I couldn't save even after removing all save files. In the end I dumped all my screenshots out of their folder. This let it work again.

This message sounds like something for consoles. Somehow I suspect Steam itself: why would amount of screenshots make a difference otherwise?


@dieterkanne, the first time I reported this, the first thing I was told to do was turn cloud storage off for this game.

A developer of this app marked a post as the answer to the topic above.

Originally posted by NetPCDoc:

Note: Saves are being stored in your Steam Library - should the hard disk containing this library be running short of free space, then you are likely to see issues such as this; more so with Microsoft Windows 10 running on an sd drive where your Steam Library is in one of window's Program FIles folders on the boot drive.

Should this be your case I would recommend either moving the entire Steam Library to another disk drive -or- establishing another Steam Library on another drive and moving your Railway Empire game to this other Steam Library.

(for me) back to: "working on the rail way, all the live long day ..."

5 Sep, 2019 @ 8:33pm: Unable to save

Originally posted by snikodemus:

I can´t save my game, Error - Unable to save data because there is no free memory on the system storage. You need to free up more space to enable saving again. Wasn´t it same problem some time ago? Or is it just me?

Originally posted by gardlt:

I had a lot of trouble with steam cloud storage on this game. Early on you could turn it off, at one point I had almost a thousand saves in the folder. But late last year it stopped working for me, no matter how I set steam cloud. All I can do now is to manually dump my savegame folder somewhere else. But in order to access an old save I think you need steam cloud off and also to overwrite files with the same name, otherwise the game wont "see" them.

Early on one of the devs said to turn steam cloud off, but the later advice, from someone else, is to have it on. I don't know if it's something they changed, I didn't see a report, or more possibly issues with Steam itself.

Originally posted by snikodemus:

Thank you for your help! I have followed three different guides on how to remove saved games from steam. No saved games are longer available in the game, steam cloud is still full and even tough I disabled Steam Cloud Save I can´t save. To tired to care right now, will have too look at it tomorrow. I can´t help but wonder why you can´t just delete your steam cloud saves in steam 🤔

[Skybreaker]

Hi Thineboot,
thank you for the update.
We will have a look into this right now.
As soon as I have an update on this, I will surely update this thread accordingly.

-cheers

[Thineboot]

RE isn't only synchronizing on game start. While my Steam Could is disabled(!) RE keeps synchronizing with each save. When there is not enough space left in Steam Could I can't save anymore. I had to delete two older saves just to save a new (bigger) one. So RE is synchronizing all the time. Per se a good thing - unless you have deactivated the damned Steam Could completely.

[Skybreaker]

Hi Thineboot,
I have forwarded this to the devs to have a look into this.

-cheers

[chaney]

I remember someone else having trouble with saving and Steam Cloud state being sticky several months back. My search skill is poor and yours seems to be really good so I'll leave it to you to see if it is the same issue.

[tententenge]

Dear, Unnerde
so, this problem is still not fixed?
Im waiting for more than 3,4 months though

[mayhem_sci]

I cannot believe that at 28 May 2020, I am still experiencing this issue. I recently came back to the game to play the DLCs several years after I bought it during release, and have been going through the procedure of deleting and saving. Why is it so difficult??

[t.schmidt]

I had the same problem just today 05.06.2020. So it is still not fixed and very fustrating, that several hours of progress in a game can't be saved.

Why can't wie just browse to a folder of your liking?

[Thineboot]

Dear Unerde,
it's half a year later and according to your posts

Originally posted by Unerde:

Hi 신윤섭,
please be aware that there is no new DLC planned for Railway Empire, as our developers are already working on their next game: Port Royale 4.

-cheers

Originally posted by Unerde:

I do not know or see about any DLC being added somehow :D
Therefore, I can just stick to what is fact: Down Under is the last DLC added to Railway Empire.
Next: Port Royale 4 and Railway Empire Nintendo Switch Edition.

-cheers

Besides the fact, that there is indeed an entry in Steam DB[steamdb.info] suggesting there is a new DLC in the work you may not be aware of or it's a false positive as Steam DB is not affiliated with Valve or Steam but a 3rd party. Just to make you aware of what 신윤섭 is referring to since you don't know.

Back to topic, you've forwarded this to the dev to have a look into this and ... yeah, what exactly is the status quo? People still have the same problem and there was no update by you within the last six months. And now our developers are already working on their next game: Port Royale 4. All of them? I mean six months are a long time to not have a look into this. Has anyone touched this in the last six months and you've just forgotten to update this thread as promised? Is it impossible to fix for the devs or just not worth the time and money fixing it would cost?

[Skybreaker]

Hi Thineboot,
best would be getting all essential and possibly releavnt details you are able to share (reproduction steps, full system requirements, maybe even a small video clip of the problem and how it is reproduced) directly to our technical support, that we can have a closer look into this.
Our technical support can always be reached via [e-mail]

Thank you in advance.

-cheers

[Thineboot]

Sorry Unerde,
but two and half year later and you still have no clue what all these people are reporting?!?

To reproduce it just save games til you hit the error. You really need a video clip showing me saving RE over and over again on drives with hundreds of free GB when RE pretends that there is no free space anymore? It's not our physical space, it's RE and a deactivated Steam cloud RE is constantly synchronizing to.

Sorry, but I've wasted enough time dealing with this more than once and I'm simply not willing to throw away time just to get you footage of an error that's reported since short after the release of RE!

To be honest I'm dumbstruck by your request. If Kalypso Media and it's subsidary Gaming Minds Studios don't care at this point - our developers are already working on their next game: Port Royale 4 - just say it. I could deal with that. But to ask me half a year after I've gathered various reports for you and your promise to forward this to your devs for a video and all essential and possibly relevant details as if there are no such infos by others and myself in the original post and in the linked thread too I feel offended by your Thank you in advance.

-no cheers but sober

[gardlt]

t.schmidt, there is a way you might be able to keep your work. Try to delete a couple autosaves from the Load menu. Then try again to save your game. Once it saves you can go and dump at least part of your folder outside the game. Savegame location: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\[Your UserID]\503940\remote\savegames"


I have cleared the save folder more than 10 times since getting the game. The numbering system doesn't let us see the name we put for the file. It's hard to manage the files outside the game.
It used to annoy me more than it does now. We can't see the name for example. Anyway, new things came along that annoy me more.

Do you actually want to receive folders full of useless savegames for "reproduce"?

I have 201 saves including auto saves. I'm expecting the notice any time now. . . . My steam cloud looks like this: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2120690248

Not sure what those figures mean, probably not useful. I would suspect that steam setting of cloud storage OFF, is not getting recognized by the game. A problem of communication?

[chaney]

Originally posted by gardlt:

It used to annoy me more than it does now. We can't see the name for example. Anyway, new things came along that annoy me more.

This is the most spectacularly wise coping mechanic I have ever encountered, wonderful!

[gardlt]

As expected I got the error again.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2122774942
I zipped up the saves and sent that to [e-mail] in case it helps.

[gardlt]

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2134086112

With large files thanks to build-out for the Funnel Web achievement, I'm almost to 14M pop, I only have 60 in the savegame folder before this error.

[Omogoto]

Wow Thineboot nice job, lots of hard work by you. Very interesting.
The only thing i can add is, when i got this error i was in sandbox trying to grow a city as high as i could, so the map was very very busy, all cities were large, and i was running millions of trains. It was like the game was in overload, and could not handle the amount of stuff going on. I quit the map, mostly cause i could not "save" the map. I started a new small map, and could save the new game just fine. So i don't know how the game can be broke on one map and run fine on another.
Once again, thanks for all you effort and response to my post, looks to me like somebody cant figure out whats wrong. A lack of detail in any report or post is no excuse for not getting in there and figuring out whats wrong.
And yes, my PC has all kinds of horsepower to run a simple game like this.