Help - the strangest f***-*p in FS9

[Sascha66]

After installing FS9 anew on a Vista machine I get strange behaviour when installing repaints for some paints.

One example, I installed a repaint pack by Yago9 for Warwick Carter's P-51D and they just will not show! I edit config, even delete one of the old repaints, cfg checks out fine, no changes in FS. Even the deleted one (that is I removed the entry from the cfg-file) still shows up!

I checked to see if I had a double install - I had not!

Reinstalled plane and made same modifications - no result!

The only thing which works is when I remove the cfg file entirely, the plane won't show then!

This has me stumped!

I wonder if the plane cfg information is stored somewhere else too?

Does anyone have an idea what could be at the root of this?

Thanks!
Sascha

[Daube]

Are you absolutely sure that your CFG file keeps the modifications that you have done ?
I'm thinking about an authorisation issue that prevents you from really saving the file.
When you open the aircraft.cfg again, are your previous modifications still inside ?
Your user account has the administrator rights ?

[Lionheart]

Daube is correct.

The original vista (cough cough) wouldnt allow people to modify their config settings.

Sometimes vista (cough) would even make them disapear....


Talk about enduced great eyebrows-itis..

Sweeeeet Mac OSX...


Bill

[Matt Wynn]

Mac OSX is really good ............ for Target Practice, but yeah Vista is a nuisance for CFG changing...

[MudMarine]

MAC! Just kidding Bill!

[Dangerousdave26]

Daube is correct.

The original vista (cough cough) wouldnt allow people to modify their config settings.

Sometimes vista (cough) would even make them disapear....


Bill

Yes sounds like Vista is the Culprit here to me also but there are simple ways around it.

First off Vista does not like you the user make any changes to default Programs Files folder. It has a Heightened level of security on it that requires that changes to it be done by the admin only. Since you are not the admin anymore on a Windows system you can not make those changes. If you make changes it should prompt you to confirm them as the admin. If you have disabled UAC it may not give you this prompt and fail on letting you make the changes. Even if UAC is still active it may fail to properly make changes.

So how do you fix this?

The way around this is NEVER install additional programs in the default Programs File folder.

This also goes for W7

I install all my programs in 3 folders

C:\Flightsim\

• fs9

• gw3
• FSX
• Silver_Wings
• Military_Wings

C:\FS_Programs\ {any program specifically dealing with FS}

C:\MyPrograms\ {all other programs}

This solves that anyoing problem of Vista not letting you make changes to files in the default Program Files folder.

Keep in mind some programs still must be checked to run in XP mode, and as an Admin in order for them to work correctly.

Now there are two ways to fix this.

Complete uninstall and reinstall outside of the Programs Files folder.

Create a new folder on the C drive give it any name and copy the FS9 folder to this new location. You will then need to point your desk top short cut to this install of FS9 (if you have a short cut). You will also need to run the registry repair tool to point your registry to this FS9 location.

The second method is how I would do it as it should be pretty quick.

Another key thing to do is now that your FS9 install is basic with only maybe the 9.1 patch installed. Keep a copy of it some where for later use. Back it up to a cheap 8GB USB drive or just store it on your drive somewhere so you do not need to install it again.

Good Luck

[PHo17]

Daube is correct.

The original vista (cough cough) wouldnt allow people to modify their config settings.

Sometimes vista (cough) would even make them disapear....


Talk about enduced great eyebrows-itis..

Sweeeeet Mac OSX...


Bill

In Finland we used to call Vista Visva (pus) :d

[Daube]

Just a question about this issue in Vista: does this happen when your user account has the administrator rights ?

[Henry]

Just a question about this issue in Vista: does this happen when your user account has the administrator rights ?

yes
H

[Dangerousdave26]

Just a question about this issue in Vista: does this happen when your user account has the administrator rights ?

That is the thing about Vista and W7 most people do not understand.

You no longer have all the True admin powers that you had previously with other Windows OS versions.

In the control panel your status will be listed as Admin but you do not wield admin powers in your normal session. When a task is preformed that is noted as requiring approval from the admin (you) it will ask for approval. Now your admin powers have been invoked.

This did not always happen correctly with Vista but the kinks were ironed out with service packs and in W7 for the most part.

There were few software developers who wrote proper code in their programs so there were issues and growing pains not only with Vista but with many programs themselves. The blame was always laid on Vista but that was not always true. Every piece of software written should not require you to have admin privileges to use it and for a long time that is how Windows programs were written. This is a terrible idea and a humongous security hole.

UAC was the start of a more secure Windows environment and very strangely similar to some Linux Distributions. sudo anyone?

Although the answer to most people is to disable UAC its not always a good idea. You have at that point just stood the idea of security on its head.

This was all done in the name of Security. For years MS has been beaten up by the people who would cry that the Windows OS was not secure (very true) so the movement was made to try and tighten up the Operating system. Admittedly more security means less ease of usability.

[Sascha66]

Are you absolutely sure that your CFG file keeps the modifications that you have done ?
I'm thinking about an authorisation issue that prevents you from really saving the file.
When you open the aircraft.cfg again, are your previous modifications still inside ?
Your user account has the administrator rights ?

Unfortunately the modifications are still inside, that is the annoying part!

Has me tearing my hair!:violent:

[Daube]

Thanks for the explanations, gentlemen.
I have a desktop computer with Win XP, and a laptop with Vista, but only the desktop computer is used extensively for games etc... I use this laptop only for work and multimedia, so I never faced those problems.

[Sascha66]

Yes sounds like Vista is the Culprit here to me also but there are simple ways around it.

First off Vista does not like you the user make any changes to default Programs Files folder. It has a Heightened level of security on it that requires that changes to it be done by the admin only. Since you are not the admin anymore on a Windows system you can not make those changes. If you make changes it should prompt you to confirm them as the admin. If you have disabled UAC it may not give you this prompt and fail on letting you make the changes. Even if UAC is still active it may fail to properly make changes.

So how do you fix this?

The way around this is NEVER install additional programs in the default Programs File folder.

This also goes for W7

I install all my programs in 3 folders

C:\Flightsim\

• fs9

• gw3
• FSX
• Silver_Wings
• Military_Wings

C:\FS_Programs\ {any program specifically dealing with FS}

C:\MyPrograms\ {all other programs}

This solves that anyoing problem of Vista not letting you make changes to files in the default Program Files folder.

Keep in mind some programs still must be checked to run in XP mode, and as an Admin in order for them to work correctly.

Now there are two ways to fix this.

Complete uninstall and reinstall outside of the Programs Files folder.

Create a new folder on the C drive give it any name and copy the FS9 folder to this new location. You will then need to point your desk top short cut to this install of FS9 (if you have a short cut). You will also need to run the registry repair tool to point your registry to this FS9 location.

The second method is how I would do it as it should be pretty quick.

Another key thing to do is now that your FS9 install is basic with only maybe the 9.1 patch installed. Keep a copy of it some where for later use. Back it up to a cheap 8GB USB drive or just store it on your drive somewhere so you do not need to install it again.

Good Luck

This sounds like a very good idea; I have installed FS9 in the default location and the constant authorization requests are a pain in the a**!

[bull494]

Changing the Fs9 folder permissions to allow modifications by the user is another effective way to getting around this problem. But then again, shutting off the user account control will pretty much do the same thing.

However as Dangerous Dave has pointed out, shutting off UAC is not always a good idea. I have mine still on and simply changed the permissions on the FS9 root folder to allow me to modify and execute all files and folders within the FS9 folder.

[Dman]

OK.. this is what worked for me. I assume windows explorer is open.
Open up the aircraft folder.
Now, look at the top, you should see an icon that says "Compatiabitity Files".. CLICK THIS!!!!

This will show you your hidden aircraft CFG file that hiding. If you delete this, your modified CFG file will be active....

[Sascha66]

OK.. this is what worked for me. I assume windows explorer is open.
Open up the aircraft folder.
Now, look at the top, you should see an icon that says "Compatiabitity Files".. CLICK THIS!!!!

This will show you your hidden aircraft CFG file that hiding. If you delete this, your modified CFG file will be active....

This worked! Thank you all very much for your help!:ernae::ernae::ernae:

[Dman]

No worries.. I was banging my head on this one for years before I cracked the code...

[srgalahad]

Now that the dust has settled...
When I got this computer (new) in January I had heard of these issues.
So, instead of just stuffing software on it I proceeded methodically - separate physical drive for FS, separate folder for Programs on C:/ for other stuff, stepped slowly thru software with lots of tests before installing next program. (Office didn't get installed for 2 months ( but I had my laptop and old comp as backups)

Result: not one bad word that I can say about Vista, FS9 in Vista (except not finding a screenshot program that works in full-screen mode with a dual monitor set-up)

I've had an 18-year belief that cramming everything onto one drive is a route to problems of many kinds and Vista's permissions, UAC etc. would have made my life as miserable as others if I'd gone the "basic" path. (Oh, and a defrag on a nearly-full 1Tb drive should be done while you are away on a tropical holiday )