I don't think this is all solved because I'm rather confused now. Mootilda are you saying that we should install sims, like this one https://www.modthesims.info/d/514091 into the lot catalog? I've always installed them into the Saved sims folder. Or are you talking about downloading occupied houses? I didn't think the OP was even sure they had installed occupied houses. I thought they had downloaded sims and sent them to the lot catalog by mistake.

Mootilda was talking about installing occupied lots. I know the OP doesn't remember installing any - but I'm not sure how you could install sims into the LotCatalog by accident. Even the Clean Installer doesn't offer LotCatalog as an install target.

I don't download sims very often and haven't installed any for ages so I wasn't sure on CI default setting. I just had a look and mine is set simply to go to downloads as the default setting. I don't think sims would work in there either, would they? I know anytime in the past when I did install a sim I did have to manually tell CI to send it to the saved sims folder.
It would seem the op would have to manually set CI to send downloaded sims to the lot catalog so it does look like they did download occupied houses. Not a hard thing to do if they downloaded them off the exchange.

There is only one place where you will find files with the format specified by the OP: "cx Character cx". That's the sims associated with an occupied lot in the LotCatalog.

I don't recommend that people install occupied lots. However, if you have a file named cx_Character_cx_<lot id>_<sim id>.package, then there's only one place where that file belongs: with the lot named cx_<lot id>.package in the LotCatalog folder.

The OP has somehow decided that these files do not belong in the LotCatalog folder, but the OP is wrong. Moving those files somewhere else will not make them work. The files were correctly installed into the LotCatalog folder and that's the only place where you should find them.

joandsarah77, you are confusing the right way of downloading sims (create a new sim from a downloaded template), and the wrong way of downloading sims (with an occupied lot). The OP installed occupied lots. We know this because of where the sims were installed.

Sims named cx_Character_cx_<lot id>_<sim id>.package are actual sims, not templates of sims. Sim templates (the ones that show up in BodyShop and CAS) can go into the Downloads folder or into the SavedSims folder. However, actual sims (with specific names, skills, relationships, etc.) that are included in an occupied lot are installed into the LotCatalog folder (after a brief temporary stay in the Teleport folder).

I understand, but I am still confused since I usually do NOT download houses (lots), surely not as many as they are Sims in that bin (unless they were all in one file). I play this game mainly because of being able to build the houses and not download them (I'm a BATter at SC sites), but i believe you since these are files that belong in there. How they got there and why, I don't know, and it doesn't matter anymore since I found some of those Sims again and I installed them manually, making sure that they now get installed in the right place. I can't use or extract anything from these files anyways and none of those Sims appear on any of the downloaded lots in this bin. Thanks.


mrb

One house can contain far more than 8 sims, since improperly cleaned occupied lots will contain not just the sims on the lot, but all of the sims that are known by any of the family members. If the family was played in a normal neighborhood, the occupied lot could contain tens or hundreds of sims.

Really? My gosh what a mess even downloading one occupied lot could make.

That's why we don't recommend downloading occupied lots. That's also why MTS doesn't allow uploads of occupied lots.

I knew it caused corruption, but I didn't know it brought all the others the sim knew along with it. MTS doesn't allow occupied lots but it does allowed previously occupied lots. I deleted one I had downloaded today as I thought the price was too cheap. Went back and read the thread and see in the comments that the creator tested the lot with sims in it and used the stay all shrub. A lovely lot but I don't think that is safe myself.

I don't remember that I ever downloaded an occupied lot, but it is a possibilty, and I also have seen that many descriptions on downloads are not complete (especially TSR), many of them not indicating for what EP they are or what they contain, and when I download them, they either crash the game or make strange reactions. Maybe some of them don't even do anything and we have them in the folder lying around by dozens if not hundreds.
Usually I have a testing folder for these and I test all my downloads first. A way to make sure that I don't get a corrupt neighborhood or lot.

mrb

These files can also be created if you move an occupied lot from your neighborhood into your Lot Bin. Note that this is a bad idea, because it will corrupt the neighborhood that originally contained the lot.

I suppose one has to know which lot that is or was.....lol. 'Cause I have noo idea, never seen any Sims on a lot that I downloaded. Besides it's too late now, my LotCatalog is empty, I used the ones I liked and deleted everything else, incl. the 27 Sims.

Thanks for the tip though, I will make sure if I ever download a lot again to see if it has Sims included.

mrb