At least it appears to be trying to set up a boxed FSX layout otherwise would be \FSX-SE. You do have C:\Users\[you]\Documents\ and C:\Users\[you]\Pictures\? Next I would try adding a new user Local Account Administrator, logging in as that user and installing from there, after doing the full cleanup.

I have those folders, just no FSX subfolders.  I'll have to try installing as another user next.  Thanks for keeping the ideas coming...

Just tried again using a new user admin account - same result.

There could be something awry with the file system...

That only affects FSX? I have plenty of other software (including other Steam games) installing fine. I'm having a hard time thinking of an issue that could only show up in this particular circumstance.

 

Not saying you are wrong, just trying to make sense of it. I'll do some diagnostics just to see if I can find anything...

I'm having a hard time thinking of an issue that could only show up in this particular circumstance

Me too. But when all else is eliminated...

I'll run an SFC when I get some time and let you know what I find.

I don't mean a surface problem, perhaps some screw up in the folders or junctions.

I just ran an 'sfc /scannow' which should turn up any file system errors, but it returned that it 'did not find any integrity violations'.

 

By the way, Dovetail never responding with anything more than a stock message about Windows 10 troubleshooting...

If you have FSX boxed, you could try that to see if it can make the docs and pics folders, if it can do that you know it's really an FSX-SE/Steam issue.

Unfortunately I don't have the boxed version. I was pretty late to FSX because I had an FS9 install with plenty of add-ons that I had running well. One of the Steam sales lured me in to giving FSX-SE a try.

 

That being said, I started from a working FSX-SE from Windows 7, so the full folder structure was there when I started having problems in win10.

Weird that those folders are not created. Can you manually create folders there?

I manually created these missing folders:

 

Libraries\Documents\FSX

C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\FSX

 

Note that the ProgramData\Microsoft\FSX and AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\FSX are successfully created during installation, so I didn't need to add those.

 

The result was the same error message and no files were created in those two new folders.

Something's got to be up with folder access for the installer, since it can't do those.

 

You found the All users folders are OK, but those belonging to the User are not created.

What goes in those folders (particularly the AppData\Local folder)?  Would those be generated during installation, when FSX is run the first time, or only if particular things are created / saved like flights, etc?  The AppData\Roaming folder only contains dll.xml and exe.xml - is that what you would expect?

While I'm grasping at straws, this is what dll.xml contains:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="Windows-1252"?>

<SimBase.Document Type="Launch" version="1,0">
  <Descr>Launch</Descr>
  <Filename>dll.xml</Filename>
  <Disabled>False</Disabled>
  <Launch.ManualLoad>False</Launch.ManualLoad>
  <Launch.Addon>
    <Name>Object Placement Tool</Name>
    <Disabled>True</Disabled>
    <ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
    <Path>..\Microsoft Flight Simulator X SDK\SDK\Mission Creation Kit\object_placement.dll</Path>
  </Launch.Addon>
  <Launch.Addon>
    <Name>Traffic Toolbox</Name>
    <Disabled>True</Disabled>
    <ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
    <Path>..\Microsoft Flight Simulator X SDK\SDK\Environment Kit\Traffic Toolbox SDK\traffictoolbox.dll</Path>
  </Launch.Addon>
  <Launch.Addon>
    <Name>Visual Effects Tool</Name>
    <Disabled>True</Disabled>
    <ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
    <Path>..\Microsoft Flight Simulator X SDK\SDK\Environment Kit\Special Effects SDK\visualfxtool.dll</Path>
  </Launch.Addon>
</SimBase.Document>

And this is exe.xml:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="Windows-1252"?>

<SimBase.Document Type="Launch" version="1,0">
  <Descr>Launch</Descr>
  <Filename>EXE.xml</Filename>
  <Disabled>False</Disabled>
  <Launch.ManualLoad>True</Launch.ManualLoad>
  <Launch.Addon>
    <Disabled>True</Disabled>
    <ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
    <Name>Addon Application</Name>
    <Path>C:\MyPath\Addon.exe</Path>
    <CommandLine></CommandLine>
    <NewConsole>True</NewConsole>
  </Launch.Addon>
</SimBase.Document>