Install Skyrim

Do all these steps on both systems (gaming PC and portable device)

• Prepare for installation on different drive - if your PC only has one partition (C:), you MUST add a new partition for all of this to work. NOTE: You do NOT have to partition both systems (PC and portable) in the exact same way; the only relevant thing is that on both systems, you have another drive besides the default Windows drive C: where you can install your modded Skyrim.

  • Install "Skyrim: Special Edition" in Steam (NOTE: While it's labelled "Special Edition", this really is the so-called "Anniversary Edition", which is important to notice when you dabble with modding later on, as you sometimes have to chose the right version of a mod).
  • Install on drive D:\ (or E: or whatever, just not the default drive). The reason for this is that by default, the directory where Steam installs its games on drive C: is in a directory branch with some special protection by the Windows OS, which can interfere with the whole modding setup. Because of that, you should install it in another location. But since Steam does not allow (anymore) to create a second installation directory on the same drive, you will HAVE TO create a new installation location on a different drive, e.g. D:.
  • disable automatic updates: Right-click "Skyrim" in Steam, open "Properties", and change "AUTOMATIC UPDATES" to "Only update this game when I launch it" (explanation: you will NOT launch the game with Steam later on, but with MO2 directly, thereby avoiding unwanted updates that could break compatibility with your mods)

• Once installed, launch the Skyrim launcher from within Steam by clicking "Play".

• Save the settings (details not important) and exit the launcher (DO NOT actually launch the game - you will be doing that with MO2 later).
• You should now have a directory "D:\SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Skyrim Special Edition" where the actual game is installed.