I just spent a couple of hours helping a friend of mine try to fix problems on his FSX Computer. I finally decided that rather than spend another hour trying to find and fix the problems he was having that a new install would be quicker and easier. Here is the method I used for painless installation, First, do not uninstall your current FSX. Instead go into the root directory and rename the fsx.exe file to something else like oldfsx.exe...now the DVD will not recognize the original installation and let you install a new copy, just rename the original main FSX folder to something else so you can use the original folder name and the registry won't know the difference. Now you can just install the DVD and keep all of your settings, add-ons, aircraft, scenery, flights, and whatever else you have done in the original FSX. When I installed the new copy it did not over write the settings in the Documents folder where the fsx.cfg is located. Everything stayed the same as before. All we had to do is copy and paste all of the aircraft, scenery, gauges etc. from the original installation to the new copy and everything was fixed, that is if you don't copy the corrupted files, so be careful...After moving/copying all of the files you want from the original installation to the new one then you can just delete the old one and start flying again. This method does not change the registry settings for the original installation since it is just replacing the original. Everything should be fine if you did everything carefully...We were done in about 90 min and FSX was back to great flying condition and with good frame rates to boot... Fisheye

The problem, if you cant tell which files are causing the problem.I think we need a great solution like this, but if you cant tell what cuased the problem, you could copy it too into your new installation.I am currently taking my time to do a new FSX +addons install since REX2 destroyed my current installation.My new FSX PC as has a 1 Tera storage drive, think ill back up both FSX folder , and user setting folder before installing anything on FSX in future.Reinstalling FSX and getting settings back to where you were is a big pain, and yet we get posts of new addons everyday, and more often this days, its the crapy addons that crap the system.

I just spent a couple of hours helping a friend of mine try to fix problems on his FSX Computer. I finally decided that rather than spend another hour trying to find and fix the problems he was having that a new install would be quicker and easier. Here is the method I used for painless installation, First, do not uninstall your current FSX. Instead go into the root directory and rename the fsx.exe file to something else like oldfsx.exe...now the DVD will not recognize the original installation and let you install a new copy, just rename the original main FSX folder to something else so you can use the original folder name and the registry won't know the difference. Now you can just install the DVD and keep all of your settings, add-ons, aircraft, scenery, flights, and whatever else you have done in the original FSX. When I installed the new copy it did not over write the settings in the Documents folder where the fsx.cfg is located. Everything stayed the same as before. All we had to do is copy and paste all of the aircraft, scenery, gauges etc. from the original installation to the new copy and everything was fixed, that is if you don't copy the corrupted files, so be careful...After moving/copying all of the files you want from the original installation to the new one then you can just delete the old one and start flying again. This method does not change the registry settings for the original installation since it is just replacing the original. Everything should be fine if you did everything carefully...We were done in about 90 min and FSX was back to great flying condition and with good frame rates to boot... Fisheye

I'm confused! Why not just delete the FSX.cfg and restart FSX and let it rebuild itself? Like James Woods, the other poster stated, you have no idea what gauge, file, effect, scenery, config, caused the original problem with the original FSX. Your problem could even be in the registry settings too! Moving all the original files over to the new FSX installation could spell disaster or result in the same problem as before. There are a lot of programs that change the scenery textures (like GEX, REX, FEX, XGraphics). Those programs would have to be reinstalled unless you copy the whole scenery directory and texture directory over to the new install too. It sounds all very complicated and someone who's familiar with computers, file structures, etc., like yourself, should have no problems but I don't think this is a good solution for computer novices. I just did another reinstall and will slowly reinstall all the addons I own. I did keep a lot of things installed, like MegaScenery where I only had to add the scenery to the new scenery library. Thanks anyway for the suggestions. I'm sure it will be helpful to many.Best regards,Jim Young

Hello:I must agree with Jim's caution here, as I believe the installers which upgrade from FSX RTM to SP1 and/or SP2 / Acceleration follows a specific protocol which verifies internal file versions in FS files in an attempt to see that the upgrade is replacing the correct files; as such. the installer may detect a problem of mismatched file versions... and refuse to proceed. :( And confusing some "active" payware add-on aircraft and scenery modules could put you in a time-consuming world of hurt straightening them all out.I would recommend that you instead first go to Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs and attempt a "Repair" of the "current" FSX version install.If that fails, then I would do an un-install of each version of FSX; note that the FSX version label name displayed in Add or Remove Programs will change as each successive upgrade version is un-installed.If one is lucky, one might only have to remove the latest version upgrade and re-install it to resume normal function in FSX... rather than the entire sequence of (3) FSX versions.Hope this helps! :( GaryGB

I echo Jim's sentiments... Step #1 should always be:1. Rename the existing fsx.cfg file, start FSX and allow it to build a new fsx.cfg file.2. If the problem remains, delete the new fsx.cfg file, rename your original fsx.cfg file, then insert DVD#1 and run the "Repair" option.BTW, the same thing applies to FS9 (with appropriate name changes of course) as well... :(

I echo Jim's sentiments... Step #1 should always be:1. Rename the existing fsx.cfg file, start FSX and allow it to build a new fsx.cfg file.2. If the problem remains, delete the new fsx.cfg file, rename your original fsx.cfg file, then insert DVD#1 and run the "Repair" option.BTW, the same thing applies to FS9 (with appropriate name changes of course) as well... :(

If you delete fsx.cfg, the newly genrated file fsx.cfg probably wount work for addons. cuase some addon entries in the file could only be fixed by comparing both files in a long time consuming process.Or reinstalling the addons after the new FSx.cfg is generated.And if the newly generated file does not solve the problem and you have taken the time to solve the issue of addon entries, you might find its easier to have gone for full reinstall from the start.Until someone comes up with a viable solution, i think the best way for me so far is to have a huge storage drive where you can drop fsx main folder, and your entire document settings folder. Do this back occasionaly and before installing any new addon.Lets face it, FSx is complicated system, and there is'nt enough money in fsx addon sales to attract a lot of software man power required to produce bug free products. And since FSX is now retired by microsoft, this aint getting any better. So expect to be beta testas for every new fsx product out there. And system administrator of your flight sim system.Backup of whole fsx folder and settings folder is what works for me now, but you need huge storage drive for that.

If you delete fsx.cfg, the newly genrated file fsx.cfg probably wount work for addons.

In well over a decade of simming, I've yet to encounter anything like that, irrespective of addons...As a matter of fact, well over ninety-percent of problems folks I've helped have ultimately been caused by either a fubared fs9 or fsx.cfg file, or the default.flt file. The same thing applies to the handful of times I've had "issues..."In any case, it take less than five minutes to test, and could eliminate many wasted minutes chasing a phantom.For what it's worth, I've never had to install either FS9 or FSX but once... :(

In well over a decade of simming, I've yet to encounter anything like that, irrespective of addons...As a matter of fact, well over ninety-percent of problems folks I've helped have ultimately been caused by either a fubared fs9 or fsx.cfg file, or the default.flt file. The same thing applies to the handful of times I've had "issues..."In any case, it take less than five minutes to test, and could eliminate many wasted minutes chasing a phantom.For what it's worth, I've never had to install either FS9 or FSX but once... :(

I have had some sucess with regenerating new fsx.cfg file, and it solved problems.But i stopped using it when i had addons like ASA/REX/RC4/pmdg etc cuase the newly genrated file will not have entries for addons.A newly generated fsx.cfg will not contain any info that might have been put there for addons. So how do you get round this issues when you regenerate fsx.cfg.Also since fsx.cfg regeneation works for you, can i ask what addons you use with FSX, cuase i suspect from what you say , i dont need to worry about the addon issue, of new fsx.cfg file.Please let me know what you think of this, reinstall takes days for me each time.What i do now is just blanket copy whole document settings folder, and fsx folder, from time to time i backup on a 1 tera drive i have.

I have had some sucess with regenerating new fsx.cfg file, and it solved problems.But i stopped using it when i had addons like ASA/REX/RC4/pmdg etc cuase the newly genrated file will not have entries for addons.A newly generated fsx.cfg will not contain any info that might have been put there for addons. So how do you get round this issues when you regenerate fsx.cfg.Also since fsx.cfg regeneation works for you, can i ask what addons you use with FSX, cuase i suspect from what you say , i dont need to worry about the addon issue, of new fsx.cfg file.Please let me know what you think of this, reinstall takes days for me each time.What i do now is just blanket copy whole document settings folder, and fsx folder, from time to time i backup on a 1 tera drive i have.

Not sure what you're talking about as rebuilding the FSX.cfg should have no effect on addons (except MyTrafficX which requires a "SimObjectsPath" line to be manually inserted). Otherwise, your addons like, PMDG aircraft and other aircraft will add Trusted Gauges in the FSX.cfg as you load each aircraft. It won't affect your scenery files either as I know of no scenery program that adds anything to the FSX.cfg (MegaScenery does some suggested changes but you don't need to do those and you can always make those manually). I'm wondering if you're talking about the DLL.XML which should not be deleted but repaired. A lot of people like me rename their FSX.cfg as FSX.old then restart the sim and build a new FSX.cfg. If it solves the problem, then you keep it and maybe copy and paste some of the lines in the old cfg to the new one. If it doesn't solve the problem, then you simply rename the fsx.old to fsx.cfg and continue on trying to determine the source of your problem. Hope this helps!Best regards,Jim Young

Not sure what you're talking about as rebuilding the FSX.cfg should have no effect on addons (except MyTrafficX which requires a "SimObjectsPath" line to be manually inserted). Otherwise, your addons like, PMDG aircraft and other aircraft will add Trusted Gauges in the FSX.cfg as you load each aircraft. It won't affect your scenery files either as I know of no scenery program that adds anything to the FSX.cfg (MegaScenery does some suggested changes but you don't need to do those and you can always make those manually). I'm wondering if you're talking about the DLL.XML which should not be deleted but repaired. A lot of people like me rename their FSX.cfg as FSX.old then restart the sim and build a new FSX.cfg. If it solves the problem, then you keep it and maybe copy and paste some of the lines in the old cfg to the new one. If it doesn't solve the problem, then you simply rename the fsx.old to fsx.cfg and continue on trying to determine the source of your problem. Hope this helps!Best regards,Jim Young

Nice.. you answererd my question- fsx.cfg is rarely linked to addons, and any minor diferences in newly generated file can be easily sorted out.Its unlike dll.xml which is very addon linked cause of all the addon entries in there.Thanks i will add regenration of fsx.cfg to my list of fsx quick fixes,along with unsitall and reinstall of fsx service pack SP2 or acceleration.

i just tried to fix a problem am having with eaglesoft citation x, by regenerating new fsx.cfg.it did not fix the problem, i wasnt expecting much either, cuase problem is specific to this aircraft.However doing this test has prooved to me once again that , DO NOT REGENERATE FSX.CFG WITHOUT MAKING BACKUP OFfsx.cfg and standard.xml (this contains settings for keys and joystick)Forcing the generation of fsx.xfg by deleting it forced both files to default settings.Also UT2 did not work either, until i put back my backedup fsx.cfg.Conclusion, regenerating fsx.cfg can help, but expect to go through the file line by line to find what needs editing into your new fsx.cfg, from your old file.In my case Ut2 failed to start with new fsx.cfg, that must be cause there is something inside the file that UT2 needs, and i dont have a clue what it is.It still seems far easier to try this first before a full fsx reinstall, both keep old copy of fsx.cfg and standard.xml, just in case it does not fix the problem.

Get a copy of the freeware WinMerge from http://winmerge.org/It will graphically (side-by-side) display the differences between the old and new cfg files, and automate the insertion of any missing text lines from the old into the new file.Great time saver, and less chance for errors.John

Also UT2 did not work either, until i put back my backedup fsx.cfg.Conclusion, regenerating fsx.cfg can help, but expect to go through the file line by line to find what needs editing into your new fsx.cfg, from your old file.In my case Ut2 failed to start with new fsx.cfg, that must be cause there is something inside the file that UT2 needs, and i dont have a clue what it is.It still seems far easier to try this first before a full fsx reinstall, both keep old copy of fsx.cfg and standard.xml, just in case it does not fix the problem.

Not sure what UT2 is. Ultimate Terrrain? In any case, the FSX.cfg contains your basic FSX settings, not those of addons like UT2. If for some reason UT2 did not work after you rebuilt the FSX.cfg, run the program again and it will either repair the original installation or reinstall the program again and insert any settings required. I don't know why UT2 didn't work after you rebuilt the FSX.cfg but it was not the new FSX.cfg that caused the problem. I realize the FSX.cfg changes settings like your joystick settings, etc., but the settings when the FSX.cfg is rebuilt may fix the problem you're having as it will lower the resolution of your scenery sliders, and change the AI settings, etc., and this may be good as you may have had them too high in the first place creating issues. Best regards,Jim Young

I sure started something I see. However I probably didn't make it clear that the computer I was trying to fix, which I did by the method I mentioned, belongs to an elderly gentleman that has been in our SimFlite Group for many years. I go to his assisted living quarters and help him every so often so I am somewhat familiar with his system. That said the problems he was having was not only buildings in his oceans and bays in San Diego but the color of the water in the background of those buildings. The suggestion of rebuilding the fsx.cfg file is a valid one but only when you know for sure what add-ons you have installed, he was not sure. I did not copy any of the main Scenery, Texture or other files from the old installation but only transferred the Aircraft, which worked, the add-on scenery folder, gauges folder, and effects folder. Because I didn't uninstall the original version, the new install did not overwrite any of the files in the Documents and Settings FSX folder. So all of the flights were saved, settings in the fsx.cfg, exe.xml, dll.xml, Cameras.cfg, scenery.cfg, etc. I was not sure that would be the case but it worked and the sim is back up running perfectly and has all of the add-ons active and it removed the problems with the scenery. The problems must have been in the main Scenery/Texture folders somewhere.. I only posted this fix for those who I assumed would know what I had done and would understand the methods used. It was not to try to confuse those who don't dabble in these areas and cause them any grief. I have been playing with Flight Simulator even before Microsoft did during the BAO days. I probably expect others to have the same experience as myself and therefore cause some confusion. Besides being in my seventies and having vision problems I might not have proof read my post close enough. I just hope it helps some and doesn't get others in trouble....fisheyePS. The statement about the Service Packs causing problems was not an issue probably because he had the Gold version with Acceleration with all Service Packs included.

Get a copy of the freeware WinMerge from http://winmerge.org/It will graphically (side-by-side) display the differences between the old and new cfg files, and automate the insertion of any missing text lines from the old into the new file.Great time saver, and less chance for errors.John

JOHNTHANKS FOR INFO & LINK -- A BIG HELP!JackD