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Transferring BGEE Saves to iPad

jedolleyjedolley Member Posts: 9
in iPad (Archive)
Transferring BGEE Saves to iPad

*Credit for this info goes to @Giolon on Twitter. All I did was make it into a guide with screenshots.

***I currently have a 2012 iMac and run the PC version of BGEE in Bootcamp. The program needed for this has a PC and Mac version, but in this guide I use the Mac version because for some reason it would not recognize my iPad when I was running Windows.***

The program you will need is called iFunBox (http://www.i-funbox.com).
http://imageshack.us/a/img839/6010/bgee1.png

First, start out by navigating in iFunBox to the BGEE save folder on the iPad (Baldur's Gate -> Library -> Save)
http://imageshack.us/a/img833/9683/bgee2.png
http://imageshack.us/a/img823/8046/bgee3.png
http://imageshack.us/a/img442/9969/bgee4.png

Once you are in the save folder you should see your existing save folders from your iPad games. This is pretty much the same format as on the PC (and probably will be the same on the Mac). We are going to keep this App on this screen for now while we navigate to the PC save folder.

As I mentioned, I did all this from OSX even though I play BGEE in Windows via Bootcamp. I launched a Finder window and navigated to the BGEE save folder on my Bootcamp drive.

BOOTCAMP Drive -> Users -> [User Name] -> Documents -> Baldur's Gate - Enhanced Edition -> save

*If doing this on the PC.
Documents -> Baldur's Gate - Enhanced Edition -> save

Once you have navigated to the save folder you can simply drag and drop the folder from Finder/Windows Explorer to iFunBox.
http://imageshack.us/a/img11/9366/bgee5.png

One last thing to check... Open up the save folder you just transferred in iFunBox to make sure the filename is ALL CAPS. @Giolon on Twitter specifically mentions the filename BALDUR.GAM, but for sake of consistency I would probably CAPS all of them. However, in this case all my save files were already CAPS so I did not have to make the change.
http://imageshack.us/a/img203/8733/bgee6.png

At that point you should be good to go, but you can hit "Refresh" at the top of iFunBox for good measure.

If you want to transfer the save back to the PC, it's pretty much the same steps but dragging the save folder from the iPad to the PC save folder.
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Comments

  • jedolleyjedolley Member Posts: 9
    It may be due to the way this forum is setup, or my lack of forum skills... But if you want to see the guide with the PICs embedded, I posted this in the Macrumors forum and it looks much nicer there.

    http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=16454255&postcount=1
  • SedSed Member Posts: 790
    edited December 2012
    @Tanthalas @jalily mind stickying this?
  • D3V11_D3V11_ Member Posts: 69
    edited December 2012
    I had trouble with connecting my ipad to windows 7 iFunBox also. I got it working after playing around with it a bit, not sure what step got it to work but hers a list of stuff i did:

    1) set "iFunBox" and "iFunBox Connector" to run as WindowsXP mode and run as administrator (left click .exe-> properties->compatibility->[check the corresponding boxes])

    2) downloaded and installed iTunes

    3) unplugged USB cable, shut down all apple applications, plugged USB cable back in, than started iFunBox up again.



    then it connected and I followed the steps.

    Thank you for this post, It was really helpful because I got the game on PC and iPad as well.
    much appreciated.
    Post edited by D3V11_ on
  • makeitfonkymakeitfonky Member Posts: 4
    Works great to for ipad to pc to ipad! Thanks for the info! Sweet solution for the moment!
  • misharsenalmisharsenal Member Posts: 30
    edited December 2012
    @jedolley

    I'm trying this method on my Mac

    I'm into iFunBox, and I see the Game save folders under Library->saves

    Each Save Game Folder has a bunch of files though - a bunch of ARE file, and some STO files (about 30 misc files in each folder including the .SAV and .GAM files

    As I will be moving this save file to my new iPad from old one, do I just copy paste the entire folder into my new iPad, or do I just select some of the files to transfer?

    Also when I transfer the save file back to my iPad (the whole folder or just certain files?), do I do it via file sharing on itunes, or put it back in the save folder via iFunBox?


    Please help

    Thanks
    Post edited by misharsenal on
  • jedolleyjedolley Member Posts: 9
    misharsenal said:

    @jedolley

    I'm trying this method on my Mac

    I'm into iFunBox, and I see the Game save folders under Library->saves

    Each Save Game Folder has a bunch of files though - a bunch of ARE file, and some STO files (about 30 misc files in each folder including the .SAV and .GAM files

    As I will be moving this save file to my new iPad from old one, do I just copy paste the entire folder into my new iPad, or do I just select some of the files to transfer?

    Also when I transfer the save file back to my iPad (the whole folder or just certain files?), do I do it via file sharing on itunes, or put it back in the save folder via iFunBox?


    Please help

    Thanks

    You want the whole save FOLDER. For example, in my screenshots you can see the folders usually start with alot of 0s 0000000016-KryianFP1. You drag the save FOLDER you want to the iPad directory.

    To move save files from your iPad back to the PC/Mac you do not use iTunes, you would still use iFunbox. You highlight the save FOLDER you want to transfer and click on the Copy to PC/Mac button which will bring up a directory box where you navigate to the folder you want to save (preferably the folder your BGEE saves go).
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    I just can't copy anything from the IPad using IFunbox for Mac. Does it need to be jailbroken?
  • jedolleyjedolley Member Posts: 9
    Are you trying to copy from iPad to Mac/PC using a Mac? If you are, you cannot copy directly to the Bootcamp drive. Copy to a USB or External Drive, and once you boot into Windows you can copy the folder to your save directory in Bootcamp.
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    I'm trying to copy to the OSX partition. Anyway i have Paragon's NTFS installed so I shouldn't have any problem copying from/to bootcamp partition as well.

    Whenever I select the save folder or any other file it just asks where I want to copy it to and then does nothing.
  • jedolleyjedolley Member Posts: 9
    I'm at work right now so it's hard for my to visualize the steps. I had a problem that sounded similar, but that only happened when I was using iFunbox (on Mac OSX) and was trying to "Copy to Mac" but I was selecting the save game folder on my Bootcamp partition. I did not have this problem when saving to an USB Thumb Drive (FAT) or the OSX partition.

    When I have a chance tonight I will try to do another guide to copy back from the iPad to Mac/PC. I know it works as I play BGEE on my iPad at work and then copy the save folder back to my Mac and play in bootcamp at home.
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    Hmmm I will try to transfer to an usb drive and see if it works. Maybe it has some bug preventing it to copy to the same drive it's installed on...
  • GiolonGiolon Member Posts: 22
    edited December 2012
    Nice write up. Twitter only leaves so much space for instructing folks on how to do stuff. :)

    As for the file name capitalization, it seems that builds prior to 2009 left BALDUR.GAM in lowercase, but 2009+ has the proper case.
  • misharsenalmisharsenal Member Posts: 30
    Thanks for all the help!

    Btw, I noticed if you back your old iPad up, and restore a new one from the old backup, BG transfers your save games along with the game file. Only IAP's need to be repurchased.

  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    D3V11_ said:

    I had trouble with connecting my ipad to windows 7 iFunBox also. I got it working after playing around with it a bit, not sure what step got it to work but hers a list of stuff i did:

    1) set "iFunBox" and "iFunBox Connector" to run as WindowsXP mode and run as administrator (left click .exe-> properties->compatibility->[check the corresponding boxes])

    2) downloaded and installed iTunes

    3) unplugged USB cable, shut down all apple applications, plugged USB cable back in, than started iFunBox up again.



    then it connected and I followed the steps.

    Thank you for this post, It was really helpful because I got the game on PC and iPad as well.
    much appreciated.

    It did not work for me first time, ifunbox failed to recognise my device. Used your steps and it worked! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
  • toanwrathtoanwrath Member Posts: 621
    Thank you for the assistance! I was trying to figure out a way to get the elven chain mail (which I CLUAed in on my PC since it is unobtainable currently) from my PC game onto my new iPad. I didn't think it would be this simple.
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,402
    Okay, I'm willing to be the stupidest gamer in history. I've got iFunbox set up, it has recognized my iPad. I moved a Portraits folder and a save game file I wanted to the appropriate places.

    But it won't actually transfer anything to the iPad? iFunbox looks exactly like the screencaps linked here. But the iPad hasn't changed at all. No new portraits, no new saved game. The refresh button seems to do nothing. Is there a "just do something already" button I'm missing? iFunbox still shows all the changes I made even after opening and closing a couple times, and re-connecting with my iPad. But it hasn't actually moved anything over?!
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,402
    Okay nevermind, I got it, just had to finish renaming things at a deeper level than I expected.
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,402
    Just to clarify one point, maybe this was explained above and I missed it, but custom portraits are in the individual SAVE folder, not a separate portraits folder on the iPad. So be sure to copy BOTH the large and small portraits from your PC portraits folder into the iPad's save folder. No other renaming is needed, apparently once the custom portrait is assigned in a PC save, the iPad will look for that custom portrait in the save game folder.
  • AlhoonAlhoon Member Posts: 9
    Guys, a question just popped into my mind:

    what would happen if I buy both the PC version and the iPad version, continue my game on PC with a save copied from iPad (for example while waiting for a patch that fixes the ranged APR bug) and encounter Neera/begin her quest ???

    Wouldn't that make a MAJOR mess-up when I transfer that save back to an iPad where I didn't get her as IAP ???

    1- if the quest is on or she is still in my party, wouldn't that savegame crash the BG on my iPad because of missing content ?

    2- if the quest is done and she has already left my party, wouldn't that savegame have some lurking bug anyway, such as having a second "first encounter"/quest kick-in if later I got her ALSO as IAP ? (I know there would be no reason to get that IAP if the quest is done, but suppose they someday add Neera for free, for example.)

    3- a potential ::compatibility:: fix might be to manually add the Neera content to iPad, but that might create a problem of another kind: although I paid for her content in PC, manually adding it to iPad might frustrate the devs' purpose of having her there as IAP. (Actually, even if the PC savegame included all necessary content for Neera and her quest and it transferred to iPad bug-free, it would still amount to a free IAP.)
    - It might also mean that full (dev-supported) savegame compatibility might never be available between PC (OSX too?) and iPad, since they might have to connect the PC/OSX purchase to the App Store IAP purchase in some weird (and maybe overreaching) way.

    This might be a can of worms, but I'm just being bluntly honest.

    A penny for your thoughts. Anyone?
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    @Alhoon There's no compatibility problem. If your savegame has any of the new NPCs already, they'll work normally in the IOs version.
  • AlhoonAlhoon Member Posts: 9
    @mlnevese I see. If what you say is correct, then two thirds of the question would be answered. But even if, as you say, the savegame with a new NPC effectively allows by itself all their related content to work, it would still carry the content over to the iPad without IAP purchase. Unless you consider that paying for the PC version already entitles the buyer to play that content on the iPad without purchasing IAPs, which is a reasonable possibility.
  • AlhoonAlhoon Member Posts: 9
    @Aosaw Thanks a lot. The answer was precisely what I hoped for; it would be very hard to integrate the platforms otherwise.
  • blipmusicblipmusic Member Posts: 36
    Has there been any announcement regarding cloud saves (iOS <-> OS X) for the Mac version when it arrives? Or is there perhaps a plan that will include our adventuring Windows (and Linux) brothers and sisters as well? A simpler export/import routine directly supported from within the game would be ok even with some manual work if that's the more cross-platform and support friendly way (including custom portraits/sounds hopefully).
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    Works perfectly, thanks!!
  • mlnevesemlnevese Member, Moderator Posts: 10,214
    @blipmusic Cloud saves will be implemented in the future. The devs said it would be cross-platform compatible.
  • blipmusicblipmusic Member Posts: 36
    mlnevese said:

    @blipmusic Cloud saves will be implemented in the future. The devs said it would be cross-platform compatible.

    Sounds great!
  • catch6229catch6229 Member Posts: 29
    For some reason ifunbox no longer sees any sub folders under the baldurs gate app on my iPad. Has anyone else experienced this? I see the Baldur's Gate app under Ifunbox but there's no subfolders under it. I've been able to use Shadowkeeper to edit before, but for some reason it only worked once.
  • CodebakerCodebaker Member Posts: 23
    I drop cross platform save games any time for iCloud. Sorry, but I don't want a third party cross platform sync service. Its pointless since the app don't live long enough to wait years for this., while iCloud can be from day one.
  • VilanceVilance Member Posts: 11
    edited May 2013
    How to edit character files:

    I am reposting this as it related...With this kind of editing I did stats. Did not try xp, gold, items, kits, thief skills. and so on but they are also available.

    WARNING: You must understand how to do some basic hex math to make this work in a sane or speedy manner.

    Step 1:
    Used IFunbox and copied over my character files (Library/characters/*.CHR) to my PC.
    See how to transfer save games from IPad sticky

    Step 2:
    Once there used HxD and edited the CHR file manually. I used this page as a guide to the file:
    http://iesdp.gibberlings3.net/file_formats/ie_formats/cre_v1.htm
    NOTE: To use the above link just add 64 in hex to each value, as the CHR is the CRE file with 64 hex bits at the front (aka a header). The list of editable values is very extensive.

    Found that guide thanks to this link:
    http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/12715/character-file-format)

    Step 3: Back to ifunbox and replaced the files with the edited ones. Also HxD automatically backs up your .CHR files, if you are going to use another editor make sure you save the original before you upload.
    NOTE: Often the first time you load new CHR files in it may crash on the character inport selection screen

    Step 4: Create new single player game, add new character or use multiplayer version and add them.

    In theory you could use this method on existing characters in any multiplayer game.

    Hope this helps some people, After 2 hours of fighting with Shadowkeeper to use my BGEE Ipad app version I realized this method would probably work better for some character editing.
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