Cannot use Blueprints in 0.16.51 after switching back from 0.17.14

[OutlawStar]

I switched to 0.17.14 for a few hours today to try out the new tutorial campaign. It was cool and i didn't run into any issues. At one point i used one of my blueprints. Afterword i reverted the game back to 0.16.51 and tried to load up a map from that same version.

The game says : Loading blueprint storage failed : Map version 0.17.14 cannot be loaded because its higher than the game version (0.16.51)., backing up current storage to (backup path). The map starts, but all my blueprints are gone.

This message doesn't even make sense because the map is a 0.16.51 save but it's as if the game thinks ALL saves are 0.17.14 saves now.

I then loaded up my blueprint backup and tried to load a different 0.16.51 save file and got the same error.

Next i switched back to 0.17.14 and tried to load up the 0.16.51 save i wanted to play. It worked and all my blueprints survived. At this point I don't know what else to try. It appears as though my blueprints will only work on 0.17 now.

Mods: None
OS: windows 10 x64

[Bilka]

Your blueprint library was migrated to 0.17, meaning that is no longer usable in 0.16. This is expected behaviour.

[OutlawStar]

is there no way to unmigrate it?

[Bilka]

is there no way to unmigrate it?

No.

[ManaUser]

is there no way to unmigrate it?

You can export blueprints from 0.17 and import them in 0.16 (at least in some cases, I did a quick test, but I can't confirm there aren't any issues). If you want to keep playing 0.16, your best bet IMHO would be to make a second install of the game so you can access both versions conveniently, and then export and re-import the blueprints to get them back in 0.16 format.

[OutlawStar]

thank you for the workaround idea! I have installed a second instance on another drive but when i booted it up it gave me the same blueprint error. It appears as thought its using the same folder in AppData to store game data. How do i change that? Or am i misunderstanding something?

[Zavian]

thank you for the workaround idea! I have installed a second instance on another drive but when i booted it up it gave me the same blueprint error. It appears as thought its using the same folder in AppData to store game data. How do i change that? Or am i misunderstanding something?

Use the .zip download for the second install. That way you have a completely portable and self contained copy of factorio that doesn't use AppData to store gamedata.

[OutlawStar]

ok i installed using the .zip file but now i am realizing how much a huge pain it would be to export/import. Can i not export/import whole books at a time? and do i have to place a blueprint and then use a new blueprint planner on it to export them one at a time? It would take hours doing it this way...

[ManaUser]

ok i installed using the .zip file but now i am realizing how much a huge pain it would be to export/import. Can i not export/import whole books at a time? and do i have to place a blueprint and then use a new blueprint planner on it to export them one at a time? It would take hours doing it this way...

You should be able to export a whole blueprint book at a time, yes. That's what I tested, actually.

P.S. Sorry I forgot to mention the zip install thing. I've been using the game installed that way so long I kind of forgot the other version doesn't save things in its own folder.

[OutlawStar]

can you explain to me how to export a book? I can't see anything pointing to it in-game and even a google search has proven useless.

[ManaUser]

can you explain to me how to export a book? I can't see anything pointing to it in-game and even a google search has proven useless.

Same way as an individual blueprint. Right-click it, then click the icon that looks like a square with an arrow coming out of it. However, and this is a little bit odd now that I think about it, it appears the book must be in your inventory first. I can't see any way to do it directly from the library menu.

[OutlawStar]

that button is simply not there for me for any of my blueprint books. I put them into my hotbar and all i can do is edit the name or delete. As for individual blueprints the export arrow only shows up if i place the blueprint on the ground and then use a new blueprint on it. Otherwise i can only edit the name or delete them. What is going on here???

[ManaUser]

that button is simply not there for me for any of my blueprint books. I put them into my hotbar and all i can do is edit the name or delete. As for individual blueprints the export arrow only shows up if i place the blueprint on the ground and then use a new blueprint on it. Otherwise i can only edit the name or delete them. What is going on here???

In 0.17 the hotbar is actually not "inventory" per se. It's shortcuts. If you place a blueprint [book] on the hotbar straight from the library it's a shortcut to the library, and you still don't get the item in your inventory. So that part makes sense.

I honestly have no idea why we can't export a blueprint from the library though, that seems weird.

But I just tested it again. As long as the blueprint book is in your main inventory, exporting seems to work fine. So press B for the blueprint library, pick up the book, while still holding it press E twice (close library, open inventory) and just drop it in there.

[OutlawStar]

ahh i didn't think i could actually put books in my inventory anymore. Now it works! Thank you for your patience. Now im struggling with BP books not allowing me to change the order in which the BPs are arranged like i used to be able to... Is it locked to alphabetical order now?