[AA, EL] Save data, settings, moving the game, and backing up...

For help with SW3DG game related technical issues.
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[AA, EL] Save data, settings, moving the game, and backing up...

Post by Vice »

I'm providing this post as a central location for instructions on backing up your pilot profiles, settings, and for general information on where this data is kept and why. Those of you using the default folder location during installation can also use this information in case you want to back up specific profiles, settings, or transfer such data to a new computer.


Save Data Folder Locations

For Arvoch Alliance and Evochron Legacy (the two latest SW3DG games, 2011/2015 and their 'SE' version counterparts released in 2020 and 2021 respectively), save data and settings are saved in this location by default (you can optionally change it, if desired):

\Users\[username]\Documents\GameName

If the '\Documents' folder is unavailable to the game for any reason, the final save data location attempt will be:

Users\YourUserName\AppData\Local\AGKApps\GameName\GameName

To determine which location is being used, simply open file explorer (Windows Key + E) and navigate to either folder location. If the '\Documents' folder either doesn't exist or doesn't contain a 'GameName' folder inside, then the backup location in '\AppData' is likely being used. You can also view the current save data folder location in the Available Pilot Profiles menu by holding the mouse pointer over the game's logo in that menu. The 'AppData' backup location is not recommended as Steam's cloud backup isn't able to access the location and it can be hidden by Windows (requiring the user to enable hidden files and folders to make it visible). So if the game is unable to use the default '\Documents' folder, it is recommended that you resolve the issue on your system so default Windows functionality is restored and the folder is available to the game. Once you are able to restore default Windows functionality to allow the game to access the '\Documents' folder, you can copy all save data files from the '\AGKApps\GameName\GameName' folder over to the '\Documents\GameName' folder.

The save data folder is separate from the game's install folder, which is generally either \sw3dg\GameName or \Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\GameName for the direct download version or the Steam version respectively.

You can specify a different folder during installation for the core game files (binary, certain static data files, instructions, etc) for the direct download version, however, files that the game needs to save data to are kept in the save data folders listed above. This is done for several important reasons:

- To accommodate the limitations of UAC in Windows. When the files were kept with the game binary folder, problems surfaced with Windows (Vista at the time originally). Some players would install the game into a protected folder (a folder blocked for writing access by UAC). Those players would then encounter problems with their profiles and settings not being saved. Windows file virtualization for UAC only worked for deleting and writing to files, it didn't adapt to file detection. So saving and then retrieving that data from files failed to work because Windows did not report to an application that a file existed in the virtualized location properly. It allowed the check in the application folder, but then directed the app to the virtualized location when it wanted to write new data. So an application was not allowed to save or edit data within a folder that is blocked by UAC. Using a dedicated known 'allowed' folder lets the game manage important profile/settings data with UAC on rather than forcing an additional prompt and alteration of privileges level every time the game starts.

- Players wanted to be able to manually set the location of the folder, so the option was included to let them move it to any location they desired using the method explained in the instructions and below.

This setup works with any compatible version of Windows so it's easy to transfer the files from one OS to the other and from one computer to the other.


Pilot Profile Filenames

Pilot profiles are saved with the filenames 'pilot#.sw' (non-SE editions of the games) and/or 'pilot#se.sw' (SE editions) where # is a number ranging from 0 to 99. Evochron Legacy SE may also have 'pilotsb#se.sw' files for sandbox mode profiles. Each '#' number corresponds to the slot for the profile, starting with 0 at the top. These are the most important files to back up. It's a good idea to back up these files periodically so you can restore your progress in the future, if needed.

You can also optionally copy or move a profile over to another save slot. Simply copy/move a pilot profile file to a different available number and the profile will then appear in the alternate location. You can also save to a different slot in-game, but this manual option is also available. Once you copy or move a profile, you'll need to click on the game logo in the Available Pilot Profiles menu to prompt the game to refresh all available profiles and display each one's callsign in the list.


Setting and Control Mapping Files

Settings are saved using the filenames 'sw.cfg', 'keymap8.sw' (Limited control mode) and/or 'keymap8-advanced.sw' (Advanced control mode) as well as 'stickt.sw' and/or 'stickt-advanced.sw'. These files are not critical for backing up, but can be useful in case you want to save your key/button and joystick axis control mappings along with video, audio, detail, and other control settings. If these aren't backed up, the game will simply rebuild them the first time you launch a new installation of a game and you can remap your controls and change settings as desired. If you install the game on a new system, it's a good idea to let the game rebuild the 'sw.cfg' file anyway to accommodate differences the new system may have compared to an old one. The game will attempt to optimize settings based on the configuration it detects.

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Moving the Game and/or Save Data Folder to a Different Folder or Drive

To move the game's installation location for the direct download version, just move the c:\sw3dg\GameName folder group to where you want it, make sure to update your desktop icon to point to the new location. If the install folder location is changed, then in the future when you install updates, you'll need to point the installer to the new install folder location so it can update the required files as needed.

To move the game's save data location, create a text file in the game's new install location (in the game's folder where EXE is located) within the subfolder '\media' named 'savedir.txt' and in the first line, put the drive and folder location. The game will automatically add the '\GameName' folder to the value you enter in the 'savedir.txt' file, so you only need to list the drive and folders that come before the game's name. Make sure not to move the save data folder location to a protected folder with Windows 10/11's UAC on, otherwise the game won't be able to properly save your settings and pilot profiles.

For example, if you want to move the \Documents\GameName save data folder to a 'D' drive, your savedir.txt file would look like this:

d:

With nothing else after it. The game will add the \GameName folder and use the new location. So the final output folder destination will automatically be 'd:\GameName'.

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Arvoch Alliance and Evochron Legacy Multiple Users

The more recent SW3DG games will use the '\Users\[username]\Documents\GameName' folder by default. So save data is linked to the current user (where [username] is replaced with the name of the current user). If you want to share game settings, profiles, and other data files between different users, simply copy the desired files from the original user to the new user in the same '\GameName' folder location within '\Users\[username]\Documents'. You can also optionally point the game to a specific desired folder location using the 'savedir.txt' option described above. Just be sure to copy/move the files from the original user's '\Users\OldUserName\Documents\GameName' folder to the new '\Users\NewUserName\Documents\GameName' folder location you want to use.

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Note for Steam Users:

Make sure not to route the game to the '\Users\[UserName]\Documents\sw3dg\EvochronLegacy' folder using the 'savedir.txt' option. Steam uses that folder for its cloud save operations and pointing the primary save data folder to the Steam cloud save data folder can create conflicts. To avoid conflicts, be sure to route the game to '\Users\[UserName]\Documents\EvochronLegacy' or some other folder if you want to have the game store save data files in the documents folder.

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**** Edit: May 7th, 2018 - This post has been updated to include information for changes that were applied to Arvoch Alliance (2.0708 and up) and Evochron Legacy (1.0808 and up).

**** Edit: July 10th, 2020 - This post has been updated further to include new information for changes that were applied to Arvoch Alliance for the 'SE' version.

**** Edit: February 28th, 2021 - This post has been updated further to include new information for changes that were applied to Evochron Legacy for the 'SE' version.

**** Edit: July 18th, 2021 - This post has been updated to account for changes applied to EL and AA to account for conditions where the '\Documents' folder may not be available and the games then use a backup location.

**** Edit: October 21st, 2021 - Post updated to add details on refreshing the list of available pilot profiles after copying or changing their associated files.

**** Edit: January 30th, 2023 - Post updated to include details for the advanced control mode and to expand descriptions for backing up other files.
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