BSA Files

BSA (Bethesda Softworks Archive)

BSA files are archives that contain game data. Mod creators who wish to create custom meshes and/or textures, or alter existing ones, will first need to unpack the game's BSA files. Programs with the ability to unpack BSA files are listed here: BSA Unpackers.

Extracting

Before committing to extracting the files, you should know the base game install is 4.7 GB and by extracting 'all' the BSA files, you will need another 5.2 GB

You don't have to extract everything. You can extract just the groups or files you need, here's a breakdown of file sizes for the various groups:

• Meshes: 1.27 GB
• Sounds: 1.97 GB (1.66 GB for voices, 315 MB for sound effects)
• Textures: 1.92 GB
• The rest (menus, facegen, trees & distantlod) are only 11 MB.

See Also

• BSA Unpacker Tutorial
• Creating your Own BSA files
• Archive Invalidation