How to add an auto-downloadable mod to your track

Follow these simple steps to get a mod auto-loading for your track. Notice that there are different steps if you are starting on a new track and are adding a mod to an existing track. If anything is unclear or if you have questions, please post them in the comments.

Warning! To make this work, there has to be at least one mod in your mod folder, but not the mod you are going to use! This might sound confusing, but if you already have the mod you are going to make auto-downloadable in your mod folder, your track will assign the local file, and not the URL to your track.

Step 0: Create a mod folder and add a mod file to it
If you have never used mods before, you probably don't even have a mod folder. Then you manually have to create it. Go to your Trackmania folder, which is located inside "My Documents". Then go inside the folder "Skins". If you do not have a folder called "Stadium" inside the "Skins" folder, create it. Inside the "Stadium" folder, create another folder called "Mod". The folder structure should then look like this:


On my English Windows Vista the path looks like this: C:\Users\Tecfan\Documents\TrackMania\Skins\Stadium\Mod\

Now open the "Mod"-folder, and paste a mod file in this folder. A mod file is only a big .zip file, which you must NOT un-zip. I repeat, DO NOT unzip the .zip file. It is required to use a .zip-archive, .rar or .7z archives won't work. If you do not have any mod files available on your PC, you can download one from our Mod overview page. In order to load the mod, Trackmania has to be restarted once. We can now go into "Editors" and add a mod to a track.

If you are going to create a new track
Step 1: Go into the Advanced editor
First, press "New Track" and then go into the Advanced Editor

Step 2: Hold Ctrl while you select one of the moods
Here, in the "Select a decoration"-window, you have to HOLD DOWN Ctrl on your keyboard while you select one of the decorations with your mouse.

Step 3: Press Select URL
You will now see this mod selection screen. If you do not have any mods in your mod folder, you probably won't see this dialogue. Read the start of the guide to fix that. Here you will see thumbnails of all your mods, and you can also select them. The problem with selecting a mod just from your local mod folder is, that if other people want to play your track with the mod, they have downloaded the mod manually and placed it in the mod folder in order to see it. This means that very few people will see the mod online. Most people will only see the default skin.
So we are not going to select a local mod, (but) we are going to press the "Select URL" button. Then, everyone who plays your track, including you, will automatically download the mod from the internet while driving the track (you might have noticed the orange loading bar in the upper right corner when you play). The mod will be placed in everyone's Trackmania cache.

Step 4: Insert or paste the URL to the .zip file containing the mod
In this window, you have to insert or paste the URL of the mod (the URL will end with .zip). This is called a direct link. It is required to use a host that offers direct linking, else Trackmania won't be able to download the file. If you need help with this, you can contact me, and I will help you.
Remember to include the full URL, including "http://". An example of a mod URL is "http://tecfan.nitrolinken.net/tm/mods/Forest_mod.zip". You can find many more mods if you go here! Press "Ok" when you are ready. You will now get back to the "Choose skin"-window. Do not touch anything, and press "Ok" again. You will now go into the track editor.

Warning! The following steps won't work if you already placed the mod locally in your mod folder.

Step 5: Test if the mod locator works
We are now going to test if the just added mod locator actually works. If you already have this mod in your mod folder, you need to move it to another folder (and then restart Trackmania). The reason why you have to do this is that you will not automatically download the mod if you already have it on your computer, it will just use the local .zip file.
So after you pressed the two "Ok" buttons, you will be redirected to the trackeditor. Enter Racing Mode (press Enter). In the upper right corner, you should now see an orange loading bar. This is probably the mod being downloaded from the URL you previously entered. If you do not see this loading bar, you probably:
a) Entered the wrong URL
b) Already have the mod (.zip) in the mod-folder
c) The server is down (find a new host)
d) Damaged mod file (cutted download, the author of the mod has done something wrong, etc.)
e) Turned off downloading of custom files such as mods, avatars, etc.

How do I know if this loading object actually is the mod being downloaded? (also a useful trick when playing RPGs online - to see whether this is the mod being downloaded, or just someone's car or avatar)
Well, you have to press the "+" button on your keyboard twice. You will now see some nice graphs and text on your screen (like on the picture below). You will know that it is the mod being downloaded if you recognize the file name or the file size.

(press the image too see a larger version)


When the orange loading bar is finished (and disappeared), press "Esc" on your keyboard, and the mod should now be active. You can now build your track with an auto-loading mod. Remember to save often!

If you have already made the track
If you have already started on - or completed - a track, and you want to add a mod, do so by following these steps:

Press "Load track" inside "Editors" when you have logged onto your Trackmania account. Now, you have to HOLD DOWN the "Ctrl" key on your keyboard while you select the track with your mouse. After it is selected, you can let go of the Ctrl key. Click "Edit".

You will now see, the "Select a decoration" dialogue from step 2. You do not need to hold Ctrl while selecting a decoration this time though. From now, you can follow the steps (beginning at step 2) of the other section of the guide. If the track you are updating is already on TMX, look below.



What if my track is already on TMX?
Don't worry. TMX has an update function, so you do not have to post this as a new track. In addition to not losing your awards, comments and replays, (only) a mod update also keeps the Dedimania and local records from online playing. You will find the update button on the track page on TMX, as seen on the screenshot. After you press the button, select the updated track file, and press "Continue", and now your track is updated! Remember to tell all the server admins to re-add your track.