How to install Trainz on an M.2 drive

[JonMyrlennBailey]

I would like to see a step-by-step guide, preferably in video form, about to PROPERLY install TANE and TS 2022 onto an M.2 drive so that both the program and the data reside on that drive.

During the default install, both program and data are homed onto the C drive where the OS also resides. I hear rumors that it is preferable to have Trainz, and especially data, on a drive separate from the one where Windows resides.

It's a shame that N3V did not include a special wizard or genie to make that daunting task a snap for end users.

 

[PerRock]

There shouldn't be any difference from installing Trainz on a regular sata drive vs an M.2 drive; to the end-user both SSD drive types are the same, just a different plug. You install Trainz to it like you would install Trainz to any other non-C drive.

When installing Trainz it'll ask you where you want to install the game, choose a location in your new drive & install it. Once installed follow the instructions online to move your Trainz User Data folder over to the new drive. https://online.ts2009.com/mediaWiki/index.php/Help:Moving_Content

The only exception to this is if your drives were set up as a raid; then there isn't really any way beyond fancy software to determine where any of your files go (not just Trainz) Windows (or your raid software) will put files onto whichever drive it deems necessary.

 

[OddRails]

Thanks for the tip on RAID behavior. I didn't anticipate that.

 

[trainsplace]

Do RAIDs made of spinning platters combined with ssds exist?

To the OP like PerRock says, it sounds like you still have your original platter-based C drive and you want to install on the D or other drive.

So it's already documented, if you bought Trainz directly from N3V. https://online.ts2009.com/mediaWiki/index.php/Help:Installation
See Step 3. Choose a different drive at that step. (most all the Trainz docs are on that Wiki, despite the ancient name)

Now if you have bought Trainz off Steam, you use Steam to decide where the files are installed. There must be some Steam docs on that.

 

[trainsplace]

Now if you're in Steam, go to the game, right click and choose Properties.

Then you get this popup where you can move the game files wherever you want:

In either case, for Steam or for a direct Trainz purchase, then you need to go into the Trainz Settings and choose the Install tab:

And you can see the "Instructions..." button there where you can get docs on the process of moving your data.

The point is, your program files location is one thing, your data files / routes / content are another.

 

[PerRock]

Do RAIDs made of spinning platters combined with ssds exist?

To the OP like PerRock says, it sounds like you still have your original platter-based C drive and you want to install on the D or other drive.

So it's already documented, if you bought Trainz directly from N3V. https://online.ts2009.com/mediaWiki/index.php/Help:Installation
See Step 3. Choose a different drive at that step. (most all the Trainz docs are on that Wiki, despite the ancient name)

Now if you have bought Trainz off Steam, you use Steam to decide where the files are installed. There must be some Steam docs on that.

I don't actually know much of anything about Raids, only that it's the most common way of making your computer treat multiple drives as one.

Peter

 

[ricomon35]

I don't actually know much of anything about Raids, only that it's the most common way of making your computer treat multiple drives as one.

Peter

@PerRock >>> I used to use a RAID array back when I was using a MAC, for video editing. They are very useful, but expensive.

Raid drives main purpose is to lower drive access times when handing large files (Gigabyte to Multi-Terabyte large, or larger) such as high-res video, and also to protect those files from perma-loss by mirroring data across multiple
matched drives. (Mirroring or Striping method). The array uses a RAID Controller to manage the drives > can be software or hardware based.

There RAID levels > 1-10, broken into three categories: standard, nested and nonstandard RAID levels. There are also specialized, (usually proprietary use) non-standard RAID levels.

AID does have its limitations, however. Some of these include:

• Nested RAID levels are more expensive to implement than traditional RAID levels, because they require more disks.
• The cost per gigabyte for storage devices is higher for nested RAID because many of the drives are used for redundancy.
• When a drive fails, the probability that another drive in the array will also soon fail rises, which would likely result in data loss. This is because all the drives in a RAID array are installed at the same time, so all the drives are subject to the same amount of wear.
• Some RAID levels -- such as RAID 1 and 5 -- can only sustain a single drive failure.
• RAID arrays, and the data in them, are vulnerable until a failed drive is replaced and the new disk is populated with data.
• Because drives have much greater capacity now than when RAID was first implemented, it takes a lot longer to rebuild failed drives.
• If a disk failure occurs, there is a chance the remaining disks may contain bad sectors or unreadable data, which may make it impossible to fully rebuild the array.

However, nested RAID levels address these problems by providing a greater degree of redundancy, significantly decreasing the chances of an array-level failure due to simultaneous disk failures.

Detailed info >>> What is RAID?