Notice my rF2 was bigger, I always know with a few GB and this was 20-30GB out. I had the same issue before ages ago and was only a few installed folders and had not seen it since now. This time it affected all DLC ( well oddly except for the Ligier LMP3 and a couple FE tracks I think) I deleted all folders and just let rF2 menu install them again. However If you have mods like BTCC skins or Porsche Cup you must keep the highest version folder and the mod packages intact. Think I regained 24 or 27GB so worth checking. First example in installed vehicles: rFactor 2\Installed\Vehicles\AstonMartin_Vantage_GT3_2019\3.60 rFactor 2\Installed\Vehicles\AstonMartin_Vantage_GT3_2019\3.60 (1) So you have the car mas twice ( 126mb) and 3.60 will now have a blank MFT This gets a lot bigger for the tracks which I had 14 affected.
The (x) folders appear when rF2/Steam has some kind of ambiguity i guess. The version is a.bc but the manifest doesn't correspond, so he keeps the wrong (or right ?) a.bc in a.bc (1) folder and old mods use this version. That's where everything become screwed. It happens when some mod is updated but the version doesn't change which happens quite often due to the dependencies of upgrades and the "odd" version. If modders would do it right you would still have : 3.61, 3.62, 3.63 Instead of : 3.61(2), 3.61(1), 3.61 Problem is if modder do a 3.63, S397 can do it too ... and screw all again. The versionning rule is quite obscure ... Personnaly, i have a batch that removes all (*) folders and use it quite often. Steam redo the verification and rF2 at start gets everything back working normally.
I could be wrong, BUT I believe that these duplicate folders are created when we install league mods/skin packs which have been done correctly upgrading from the lower numbered version but using ModManager instead of via the UI. When we do it via ModManager and then rF2 boots, it seems that it does the whole upgrade process again and that is when it - at least seemingly - duplicates the base folder. Official content, with double folder structure, obviously.
I would also Ilike to understand what's going on exactly. Things i noticed : That is a pure client phenomenon, i think, which allows multiple upgrades from same base version. For some GT3, in my game i already had 4 upgrades from the same base mod : The official one, the LFM, my own C22 and other league GST. Everything works fine most of the time except when i get a (1) folder. I never use ModManager on my Client/Game. I only use ModManager on my dedicated. I never see those folders on my dedicated. It can't happen because i can't install two upgrades from the same "non odd" base version. Install choice disappears after first upgrade, so it can't happen to install two upgrades on a dedicated for me. For me, it's like the workshop decides to not remove the old one but still creates the new one and keep the old one as (1). Most of the time, when you see x.yz and x.yz (1) and you have troubles with x.yz, removing the two folders and restart rF2 solves the problem. The analyse i made : The game identifies mods by their manifest and not only the folder alone. The rfmod files refers to a manifest. If a rfmod uses a manifest, rF2 decides to keep the upgrade as (1) so the mod with the good manifest is still there, but there are bugs when it couldn't find the (1) or uses the wrong one for some unkown reason.
AFAIK, the reason for the duplicate downloads are empty mft files. At some point, unknown to me, the mft becomes an empty file. Then, the next time you start Steam, the content is downloaded again, but the old versions remains on our HD. Sometimes, the new download creates an empty mft file and the content is downloaded again. I don't know where the problem comes from, but you will see that only one of these folders has the correct mft. If you delete the folders with the empty mft nothing happens and everything works correctly.
I never checked the manifests content. But it really looks like some kind of error linked to the manifest management at some point of the content update.
Like I said MFT were blank but I only checked size and notepad for a few. 0 bytes size 0 bytes no characters for 3 or 4 I did
What i can add, is, when i create an Update for a DLC Component for Example and install it with the MAS2 Tool at the End of the Creation Process, the mft File of the Base Component gets emptied.
Well all I do is make simple rfmods, I never update or mod anything. The one bug I have is with 3rd party that uses the same package name for all updates. When you have this sort of content in rfmods and do manual updates... You uninstall the rfmod, MAS 2 edit mod, delete old version add new version. Package install go to mod manager it will be damaged rfmod. You must also uninstall the old package first before you open MAS2 then all is okay. I think that is because I leave mod manager open beside Mas2 with the present uninstalled rfmod which gets overwritten. So I can see exact car and track list if I create replacement rfmod.
I don't think it is related to this. The Mod Manager doesn't do anything automatically. If you create an rfmod, ModMgr doesn't even know about it, until you hit the update button. In this case, I think the problem could be related to creating a new rfmod without uninstalling the old one.
But if the folder with the correct Manifest is the one name with the (1) as duplicate file, should we delete the original folder (which now has an empty Manifest file) AND after remove the (1) or should we leave it? I have the impression that, if the correct folder with the working Manifest is named (1) or (2) or whatever duplicate, you will have issues entering servers which use the original DLC.
I can not definitely say, if the ModManager, when you e.g. install an Update with it, can empty a mft File. I only can definitely say, that, if i create an Update for a DLC Component and install it from the MAS2 Tool at the End of the Creation Process, the mft File of the Base Component, to that i update, gets it mft File emptied. In such Cases, i Nowadays don't do any extented Tests anymore, i just take it as it is and use other Methods, to get what i want to achieve.
Yes, you are right. I forgot to mention it. When i have done it i have removed the (1). But i suspect that it will work without removing it, becouse the info of the version number and the updated version is in the mft file of the folder. I think that rF2 browses all the folders of the component (car track, etc) and reads the mft files. If the mft file is empty, doesn't take in account the content of this folder If the mft isn't empty, reads, among other things, the type of content, the Id of the content, if it's an update and the Id of the component updated. With this info is enough to use the component.
No I never meant to infer my issue is that problem. However when you package a rfmod close Mas2 and refresh mod manager if it says "Damaged mod" the pkginfo and RFM corrupt so you can't even load the original mod. You must start all over again and my rfmods have a lot of content That is why I use GME ( JSGME/OVGME) and save all mastemp/pkginfo to reuse. Damaged mod only be consequence of updating v1 rfmod to v1 ie: I never updated them but overwrite them. You can only make so many rfmods before mas2 will crash. By saving individual mastemp/pkginfo solves problem. I have tired to make rfmods that I can update DLC, does not work as soon as you add updated or new DLC to the existing mod they won't package.
Oh I thought I had mentioned phantom update above. rF2 had been updated but no indications. I never expected it would be DLC. Like is there any log here template was updated. Wouldn't painter want to know that ? Anyway that must be what the small download was. The phantom update I mentioned was a week ago syncs with file date.
@8Ball Can it be, that this Thread changed the Object? It started with "double (1) Folder get created" about "overfilled cmpinfo and pkginfo dat Files not working anymore" to "Phantom Updates". It's a bit confusing, at least for me.
