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Microsoft Flight Simulator Packages installation & decompressing issues - Troubleshooting

Tom
Updated

Packages installation and decompressing issues can be caused by software or hardware. The following troubleshooting steps are particularly useful if you're experiencing the following issues:

  • Download "loops" on the same package
  • The download stops 
  • Download speed drops too low

CHECK AVAILABLE FREE SPACE

Make sure there is enough space to decompress the files. If you are downloading 15 GiB of data, you will need about 30 GiB of free space on the drive.

CHANGE YOUR WINDOWS 10 USER ACCOUNT TYPE TO ADMINISTRATOR
Sometimes running the sim as an admin is not enough. Please ensure that you have full administrative privileges, and permission to make all changes on the computer.
  • Open Settings
  • Click on "Accounts" then "Family & other people"
  • Select your account then click the "Change account type" button.
  • Set your account as "Administrator"

DELETE THE PACKAGES

  • Close the sim
  • Navigate to the Package installation folder
  • Delete the packages *.fspatch or *.fspackagefs_pacth_fs_package_files.PNG 
  • Reboot the computer
  • Relaunch the sim and try again
You may need to do this operation several times.

CHECK YOUR ANTIVIRUS OR ANTI-MALWARE | ANTI RANSOMWARE

  • Sample of Virus & malware checkers that have been known to flag particular files and prevent Microsoft Flight Simulator from updating or launching:
    • BitDefender
    • Malwarebytes
    • Trend Micro Maximum Security
    • Comodo Antivirus
    • Sophos
    • Emisoft Anti-Malware
    • Avira
    • Avast & Avast Cleanup
    • Bullguard
    • Kasperky

Open Windows Defender and turn off real-time protection.
  • In the Cortana search box, type "Windows Security"
  • Open "Windows Security" > "Virus & Threat protection" > "Manage settings"
  • Disable "Real-time protection"

Stop Windows Defender from blocking Microsoft Flight Simulator by adding the launcher to the exclusions list
  • Go to Start  > Settings  > Update & Security  > Windows Security > Virus & threat protection.
  • Under Virus & threat protection settings, select Manage settings, and then under Exclusions, select Add or remove exclusions.
  • Select Add an exclusion, and then select Microsoft Flight Simulator. A folder exclusion will apply to all subfolders within the folder as well.

Temporarily disable your security program(s) before launching Microsoft Flight SimulatorFalse positives occur when your antivirus software incorrectly identifies safe software as malicious. If your antivirus or anti-malware falsely flagged Microsoft Flight Simulator remove the file from quarantine if necessary then whitelist Microsoft Flight Simulator. To do so follow the instructions from your manufacturer.

DISABLE IPV6

  1. Right-click on the “Network  / Wi-Fi ” icon on the bottom right corner of your screen to open up the menu shown below.
  2. Click on Open Network and Sharing Center.
  3. In the Network and Sharing Center window, click on Change adapter options. 
  4. You will then see a list of network adapters available on your computer.
  5. Right-click on your active network adapter (Ethernet or Wi-Fi) and select Properties.
  6. In the Properties window, scroll down until you see Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6). 
    Note: If you’re connected to the internet wirelessly, the corresponding adapter should be “Wi-Fi“. However, if you’re connected to the internet via a LAN cable instead, the corresponding adapter should be “Ethernet“.
  7. Uncheck the Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) checkbox and click on OK to save the changes.
Now that IPv6 has been disabled on your computer, reboot your computer for the setting to take effect .Note: If you do not see a significant improvement, we recommend enabling IPv6.

USE A VPN 

You may be in a remote location or your bandwidth may be throttled. Try using a VPN (you can find free trials online) to connect to another datacenter or prevent your ISP from seeing what kind of traffic is coming and going on your line. 
CLOSE BACKGROUND TASKS
Allocate more resources to the task. Close any unnecessary background applications and web pages, and disable any overlays (Steam, Discord, etc). Close the launcher, wait a few minutes, then try again.

SLEEP MODE

The download will pause when your primary, secondary, or external hard disk drive goes to sleep. Make sure that your hard drive doesn't go into sleep mode, thus preventing the data to be written on the drive.

DAMAGED RAM

Memory errors can cause issues with the installation process. To investigate possible issues with your system memory, please do the following:
  • Close all applications on your computer
  • In the "type here to search" bar, next to the Start menu type "Memory Diagnostic"
  • Click on "Restart now and check for problems"
  • Wait for the tool to finish running the diagnostic

Alternatively, you can use memory testing software such as https://www.memtest86.com/
 

If the above steps have not resolved the issue, move on to the steps below.

 

 

The download seems stuck on "big files"

If the download is stuck on a package such as "pc-fs-base-bigfiles-0.1.59.fspackage"

DISABLE WINDOWS AUTO-TUNING 

  • In the Windows search bar, type Command and look for ‘Command Prompt’

  • In the menu select “Run as administrator”

  • Enter: netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled

  • Press enter

  • Reboot your computer

USE NETLIMITER

Some users reported that using Netlimiter and setting the download speed between 5 and 20 Mbps helped them bypass the looping issue. 

WARNING: Do not set up a 5 or 20 Mbps "Data Bandwidth limit" within the game instead. If you do, you will limit ALL downloads. 

FILE ATTRIBUTE

Files and folders incorrectly flagged as Read-Only or Hidden cannot be changed or deleted. Make sure that you have the correct writing rights and that no community files have the wrong attributes.

LEFTOVER FILES AND CORRUPTED INSTALLATIONS

Leftover files from the community of official folders can prevent the installation of the packages. Manually delete leftover files or do a clean installation. 

If a clean installation fails, get rid of outdated and corrupted files, run cleanmgr.exe and System File Checker 

For detailed instructions, visit 

 

 

The download is stuck on small files/packages

 If the download is stuck on a particular aircraft or activity package such as "asobo_aircraft_b787_10_0.1.42.fspatch" or "asobo_bushtrip_nevada0.1.35fspatch" please do the following.
  • Close Microsoft Flight Simulator
  • Go to the Community folder. 

By default, this folder is installed at the following locations, depending on your platform:
Microsoft Store edition 
C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\Packages\Community
Steam edition 
 C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft Flight Simulator\Packages\Community
Retail Disc Version 
 C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\MSFSPackages\Community
  • Search any non-official content corresponding to the package that is stuck. For instance "b787" or "bushtrip"
  • Delete the corresponding non-official content
  • Reboot your computer
  • Relaunch the download
If you cannot identify the package causing the issue:
  • Temporarily rename the Community Folder into "Test Community" 
    • or 
  • Copy-cut (CTRL+X) the Community Folder
  • Paste (CTRL+V) the Community Folder on your desktop or a drive of your choice
  • Relaunch the sim and try again.
Once the download is complete, restore the community folder by reverting the name back to "Community" or moving it back to its original location.

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