Stumped

I had to do a reinstall of my entire Windows 10 system, which includes FS2004. Prior to the reinstall, a friend and I were using multiplayer quite frequently. However, since the reinstall, I have FS9 running, but have noticed that the Multiplayer selection in the File menu is disabled. The 'Open Multiplayer Session' on the Multiplayer dialog is also disabled. Has anybody seen this anomaly and do you know how to correct it?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Tom

Your internet firewall may be blocking FS2004's access to the internet. In the firewall settings give permission to FS2004 to access the net. Using Windows Firewall in System 7 it's Control Panel/Network and Sharing Center/Windows Firewall (lower left)/Allow a Program or Feature through Windows Firewall.

 

It may also be your router if you replaced it as well. You may have to select the ports to forward there as well.

 

https://portforward.com/router.htm

 

Here is an MS article on the ports that need to be available - it's for FSX but I believe FS2004 is the same or at least similar:

 

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/925896/information-about-the-ports-that-you-must-open-in-windows-firewall-to-play-or-to-host-a-flight-simulator-x-multiplayer-game

WOW Tom you are on Flightsim forums too!!!

 

Guess who I am :)

Hello Tom,

 

Thanks for your reply.

 

The router and all port forwarding is still intact from before the crash. As for the firewall, I'm using Norton Security and have a copy of FS2004 running on a laptop (with Norton Security as well) and with all the appropriate firewall settings, and that copy has the Multiplayer link enabled. I've checked and re-checked the firewall settings between the two machines and they match. There must be something somewhere that I haven't found yet that's the culprit. It's driving me nuts.

 

Tom

I'm afraid you've got me. I've been out of the VA circuit for quite a while and age is erasing some of what I used to know quite well.

 

Who the heck are you? :rolleyes:

Tom,

 

One other note I forgot to add... I had totally disabled my firewall and all auto-protect features... tried FS2004 again, and Multiplayer is still disabled. Aggravating!

 

Tom

It may help to try in windowed mode. Not fullscreen.

Thanks il88pp... gave that a try, but still no luck. I did some more detailed reading into the information that tgibson_new provided, and saw that (at least for FSX) unless the sim is activated, the Multiplayer selection is not available in the File menu. Unfortunately, I think this must be the problem behind that selection being disabled in my case, since it's not possible to activate an FS2004 any more,

From Day 1 FS2004 never needed to be activated. That's what disk 4 in the CD drive was for.

 

Make sure you have re-applied the FS9.1 patch.

FS9.1 patch has been applied, however there's apparently something in Windows 10 that is preventing FS9 from accessing disk 4... it never accesses it nor completely starts when you use the original fs9.exe. That's why you have to use the crack and run the program as administrator when running on Windows 10. At least that's the only way I've ever been able to get the sim to run since Windows 10 came out.

Hi,

 

I'm everywhere, I'm everywhere... :)

 

Correct, the disk 4 option is no longer available, unless you deactivate a Windows Update. Are you sure you have updated the sim to FS9.1? Perhaps a version mismatch is causing the problem?

Yes, I'm sure I've run the FS9.1 update (to the number of times I've reinstalled FS9). I've even tried installing FS9 outside of Program Files (x86) and have also been reviewing all the registry entries, ad infinitum. Maybe one day, I'll accidentally hit the right combination???

Well, I finally got Multiplayer working. After digging around on the internet for several days, I stumbled onto an article that said I "might" have to go into the Control Panel, to Programs and to 'Turn Windows features on or off', and to select those features that might not have been turned on properly during the reinstall. I did that, turning on .Net, TCP/IP and a few other things... rebooted, and magically, Multiplayer is now enabled. I'm happily back in business :cool:

Good tip, thanks.