Moving your Vortex Mod Setup to a new Computer
Considerations
While it is possible to move your Vortex and mod setup to a new device (computer/laptop), there are several requirements that need to be met to ensure Vortex's functionality on the target computer. Depending on your setup, it may be preferable to simply install Vortex and your mods anew.
To speed this up, you can grab your downloaded mod archives by accessing your download folder.
- Go to Settings > Downloads > click the hyperlink to open your Vortex downloads folder
- Grab your archives from the downloaded mods
- On the new computer, install Vortex (download the latest version from Nexus Mods)
- Drag and drop your mod archives into the Mods landing zone
Following that, simply reinstall your mods picking your preferred options.
Moving Vortex and installed mods to a new device
After installing Vortex on your new device make sure to copy the Vortex folder found in User/AppData/Roaming/ to the same exact location on your new computer/laptop. This folder also contains the archives of all your mods. It is separate from the mod staging folder, which is elsewhere on your PC (for Skyrim, it should be on the same drive as the game installation and will typically be named Vortex Mods). It is also wise to have a backup of your original game directory, in case there are any tools that are stored directly there (such as SKSE).
Further, it is crucial that your mod staging folder, as well as the mod download folder, are both created in the new environment (new PC) at the exact same location as they were on your old device. Do not run Vortex on the new computer until you have moved your mod staging folder and download folder to the new device at the exact same location. Otherwise, Vortex will assume your mods/downloads have been deleted. If you open it by mistake, and/or need to make a change and start over, you can close the app and overwrite the User/AppData/Roaming/Vortex folder again with your backup. Once you've done this successfully and can see your mods, you may need to go into the Plugins tab and reactivate some (or all) of your plugins, even if the mods show as enabled in the mods pane.
Likewise, you need to install all tools such as BodySlide, xEdit, etc. in the same directories, which you can simply copy over from your backup.
Please, note that even following these steps a smooth transition is not guaranteed and it is therefore recommended to start anew by reinstalling your mods. However, if you are patient and willing to take the time to resolve any mod conflicts, it can be a relatively straighforward process.
Reminder: If you need to run Nemesis/FNIS/Pandora to generate any animations, be sure to use the executable located in the game's Data directory, not the one located in the Vortex Mods folder, as it will not find your animations.
