Insimenator.org

Hey everybody, I have a few questions regarding Securom.

I had initially installed The Sims 2 on a very old PC which I really didn't care too much about, and basically only used solely for The Sims. However, I recently got a new laptop and I would like to install The Sims 2 on it because the old one is about to die any second. Now, I have a lot of custom content downloaded, and I also had Bon Voyage and Free Time installed. I know Securom leaves traces on your directory, but I'm not too sure what this means. If I copy all of my old characters and my downloadable content into my new game will I still have Securom?? (Even if I only install up to Seasons?) [When I say install I basically mean making a copy of my Downloads file or EA Games file and dragging it to my new computer].

Also, I remember finding a few solutions to Securom where you'd be able to play the new expansion packs WITHOUT Securom, but I can no longer find it. I don't know if this means they don't work or not, but if anyone can lead me to a working way I'd be grateful. BeosBoxBoy's FAQ appears to only remove it if you no longer want to play the game.

Hey ryskia. I've been using all the EPs and SPs through AL on two machines, a desktop and a laptop. I regulary copy my entire EA folder (and subfolders such as downloads, etc.) to a flash drive and then copy that onto the other computer and have had no problems, with securom or anything else. The desktop is an XP machine and the laptop is a VISTA machine, I keep moving my game between them so that I can pick up where I left off, regardless of the machine. Hope that helps some.
 
Oh, and sometimes, if the only difference is one neighborhood or the downloads, I only copy those folders from one machine to the other.

Hey JamesABrown1, when you say you regularly copy your downloads and you have had no problems with Securom at all do you mean you have no problems with Securom re-installing in your computer or you just have had no problems with Securom as a whole??

As a whole. The only reason I know it is there is because I am aware that it came with the EPs.
 
Edit: I have installed, uninstalled and reinstalled both BV and FT. I've only installed AL, but not needed to unstall it as yet.

If you install up to Seasons, you should be able to avoid SecuROM altogether.

Copying over your EA Games folder wholesale is a bad idea in this case. Since your hoods and other files are updated up to FT, they'll just crash your game and won't load at all. If you are not planning on installing BV and FT at all, then you should also plan on starting all your hoods from scratch.

As for the Downloads folder - make sure you go through it on your old PC first and remove any custom content that are recolours of BV and FT items/clothing/hair, etc. Also, plan on getting all your hacks and mods from scratch as well. Since the versions on your old PC would be for FT and not Seasons, you really need to re-download the Seasons versions of all of them. Just like hacks are not forward compatible, many of them are not backwards compatible because they rely on new functions introduced in new EPs. Plus you probably have some BV-specific and FT-specific hacks and you should get rid of them before you transfer your hacks f`older to a Seasons game.

Ryskia, I would start from scratch.  As I understand it, as long as you don't RUN the game from the CD, SuckuRom won't be installed.  You should get a noCD.exe for it, after you install everything.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong about this.

From what I understand, SecuROM gets installed as part of the installation process. Using a noCD/noDVD patch simply never activates it, but it's still there, just dormant.

MoreAwesomeThanYou has a guide about getting rid of Securom, and if I remember correctly I think it was while still running the game? I was considering re-installing all my EPs and just trying that out. Someone told me that if you download the game online you won't have to deal with Securom, but I hope that's not the only option of not having Securom on your comp since I bought all of the EPs CD-ROMs.

I believe you get SuckuRom even with a digital download. Not 100% sure though.

The solution to get rid of it is to have all your expansion packs installed, updated them with the respective patches and then follow the directions given at MATY to boot it out of your computer. Having done that you will need a no-CD/DVD version to run and play the game -- otherwise, every time you use your legal game copy to run the game, SuckuROM will be re-installed. You don't want that!

Instructions to remove SuckuROM found here: http://www.moreawesomethanyou.com/smf/index.php/topic,9929.0.html
If you find the above guide too technical, you can also try these instructions: http://www.reclaimyourgame.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=68&Itemid=40

Getting a Free Time (if this is your latest expansion pack) no-CD/DVD copy to run the game:  http://m0001.gamecopyworld.com/games/pc_the_sims_2_freetime.shtml
Try to get a file made by Vitality. I have a working no-dvd .exe file by him/her at the moment and the game runs smoothly with no problems so far.  Just make sure to get the proper .exe no-dvd.

Thanks guys!