How-To: Delete Save Files in the Editor

Goal: delete a single save file, a folder, or a whole save slot during development from the Level Editor play toolbar - no file browser needed.

Prerequisites
CrimsonSaveSystem enabled (its editor module adds the button) and at least one save on disk - see Quick Start: Saveable Systems. The button is hidden while a Play-In-Editor session is running.

1. Turn the button on or off

The Delete Save Game dropdown sits in the Level Editor play toolbar, right after Play, and is on by default. Toggle it at Project Settings -> Crimson -> Crimson Save System Editor -> Utilities -> Enable Save Game Deleter (bEnableSaveGameDeleter on UCrimsonSaveSystemEditorSettings). The toolbar is built once at startup, so restart the editor after changing it.

Verify
With the setting on and no PIE session running, a Delete Save Game button with a delete icon appears in the play toolbar.

2. Delete a slot, a folder, or one file

Open the dropdown. The plugin registers its own file-group provider for the SaveGames domain, so its flat save blobs list under one heading per slot (for example Slot 0), read from whatever directory the configured storage provider writes to - not necessarily Saved/SaveGames/. Each slot heading has a Delete All entry that removes every file of that slot, followed by one entry per file. Real sub-directories list under Save Game Directories as submenus, each with Delete This Folder at the top. Every delete asks for confirmation first.

Delete Save Game dropdown: a slot group heading with its Delete All entry and single-file entries, plus a sub-directory submenu.
Hidden during PIE
The button is disabled and hidden while a Play-In-Editor session is active (HasNoPlayWorld() gate) - deleting saves mid-session would corrupt the running game's state. Stop PIE first.
Verify
Delete a slot with Delete All and reopen the dropdown: the slot heading is gone, and the next PIE session that loads that slot starts from a fresh save.

3. Clean orphaned world rows instead of deleting a whole slot

When a save still holds state for actors you have deleted from a level, you do not need to delete the slot. UCrimsonSaveCleanupStatics::CleanOrphanedWorldRows(SlotIndex, bDeleteOrphans) reports those rows and removes them only when bDeleteOrphans is true. See API Reference -> Save data maintenance (editor).

See also

  • Concept: Where Saves Are Stored - why the platform provider stores blobs flat, and where the files go
  • How-To: Change Where Saves Are Stored - point saves at a custom directory
  • API Reference - Editor tools (CrimsonSaveSystemEditor)