Can MSFS 2020 be downloaded onto one PC and then transferred to another when the other doesn't have an internet connection?

User Support Hub Install, Performance & Graphics
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1

The title pretty much sums it up, but here’s the lowdown:

My living situation is that I am homeless, but I have shelter in a storage locker, where I want to setup my flight sim. There is absolutely no internet connection in there and I can’t even get cell service, so no hope of getting a hotspot going.

I made the mistake of asking microsoft copilot if I could download my copy of msfs 2020 from the Xbox app, onto an external drive that is connected to my internet-connected laptop, and then transfer that install to the offline pc; it said it could be done and it proceeded to give me the steps needed.

Needless to say, copilot is an idiot and I wasted 5 hours following it, and now I am sure my laptop will need to be “restored”.

I still need to get this done, so 1) Is this even possible?, and 2), How?

Thanks.

PS: Please, don’t reply if what you’re going to say is the same as someone else’s reply.

2

Unfortunately, the base program must be downloaded onto the target PC directly from the Internet. It’s not very large, but there’s no way to make that portable from one PC to another. What is portable is the Packages Folders that constitute the bulk of the sim. It makes up most of the 125ish GB of the basic license version.

The fastest way to get the sim up and running is to install the base program, and when it asks for the Packages path, point it to the existing Packages folder which should already be on the target PC. It will adjust for a bit, then proceed to download and update whatever else it needs, then finish.

3

Hi @Assassin11B2P

Do you have (or have a friend with) a car?

A number of years ago I had neither cellphone nor internet service where I lived. I needed to activate Windows and bunch of applications on my re-built Windows 7 PC.

My local library has free wi-fi access, so I explained my situation to the head librarian and they gave me permission to temporarily run an extension cable from the library to my car so I could power up my PC.

The following week I loaded up the PC, keyboard, mouse, monitor & 50-ft extension cord into the passenger side of the car & headed off to the library. Once there, plugged into one of their wall sockets, powered up the PC, connected to the free wi-fi & activated Windows and the apps, ran windows update, etc. etc. 4 hours later, all done.

Considering your circumstance, you might see if your local library will allow you to do the same.

I’ve always found libraries to be very generous and helpful to members of the community who needed assistance of one sort or another.

4

Thank you for your reply. From what copilot said, I would run the Xbox app and tell it that my downloads will go to the external SSD (a Samsung T9); that’s about 2.1GBs currently. Then, when the game ran and needed to download the game and updates, it should’ve have pointed to the T9, but the path was still using the game’s default path on my laptop’s C drive, and I couldn’t get it to change.

copilot then had me run all sorts of scripts in command prompt, terminal, and PowerShell (yes, all three), which constituted the bulk of the wasted time, and also made me weary of the security and performance of my system because there were a lot of permissions changed, locations moved, etc.

In the end, I just ended up screaming and cursing at copilot IN ALL CAPS (LOL). Then real fun began when I decided to clean-install my Book4, something I am dealing with 2 days later, thanks to OneDrive losing a 210GB folder.

If you could, could you detail the process a bit more? If I understand you correctly, I should download MSFS to the PC, but not the updates or the game. Should I then install the game and update it to my laptop and then transfer the files manually to the flight sim PC? If that’s correct, then what folders/files do I transfer from the laptop and where on the PC do I put them?

TIA

5

Yup, I sure do have a car, a nice one, too! :slight_smile:

I could use my phone to get a connection- I would first have to find someplace where the signal is strong, but I’ve seen some circumstances where I would get 500+Mbps on my cell service via Speed Test, only to see it drop to 20-40Mps when using the phone as a hotspot. Still, that’s better than the (no kidding) 4Mbps I am getting in this hotel that the VA put me in temporarily.

I am also waiting on my Elite 200 V2 power station, so once that’s here, I’ll have portable power without having to run the car. One of the lockers I rent (my house), has a power outlet right above the door, so no problems there.

I use one of those touchscreens that Russ Barlow on YouTube uses, so my setup is very portable; your suggestion is interesting, and I will definitely look into it. Thank you for the advice!

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6

Why weren’t you able to change the path? How exactly did you try to change it?

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As @TenPatrol asks - the point where the sim/installer asks you to confirm the path the Packages (125-190GB) would be installed to. You should be able to click that path box and point it to the existing Packages folder.

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While this screen shows the monthly AIRAC update is getting pushed, you should see a similar screen during installation/setup. The circled area - the path box should be editable for you, and then you point it to where the \Packages folder exists. This is what @TenPatrol and I are referring to.

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9

Even if it can be installed in this way, isn’t a network connection required to run the sim?

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The internet connection will only be required once. We will provide instructions on how to make MSFS 2020 work offline later. For now, we won’t complicate things.

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I don’t know why it couldn’t be changed. There was no drop-down list of available drives and when I clicked in the box, I wasn’t able to overwrite the path listed.

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Should have, but it didn’t. I couldn’t get the path to change at all, hence my posting in here.

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Please upload a screenshot after clicking on the Path so we can see exactly what appears there.

14

I saw something similar, but the path text was under the required space/available space numbers and the path was much, much longer, using hidden folders and such (really going into the weeds for the folder location).

As mentioned before, I could not get that path to change. I don’t know why.

15

You can designate a PC to run the game without an internet connection, and in this case, I wouldn’t be receiving any WX, scenery, or game updates. MS also limits you to changing this like 3 times a year.

16

I would, but I am staying in a hotel that has much faster internet than the last place I was in…130Gbs now vs. the (no kidding) 4Mbs before. The connection I was using at the airport only had about 50Mbs. So my plan is to download and install the game and drivers and such, and get it running, then cut it off from the internet.

I am 4 hours in @ 72% of a 162GB download…

17

I want to thank everyone here for their assistance. Again, I do not know what happened and why I couldn’t change the path or such, but being where I am now, I am able to download the game directly to the flight sim PC and get it setup.

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18

Thanks for the update. Just a heads-up - you’ll be able to edit the UserCfg.opt file manually if needed in the future.

Also, don’t forget to set this PC as your offline device in the Microsoft Store app settings - that way, you won’t run into issues if you’re playing without an internet connection.

Microsoft Store app
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Xbox app

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19

Thanks again for everyone’s assistance. Now I am facing new issues and it’s really stressing me out:

  1. Whenever I ran the game, about 3 in 4 times it would tell me that I needed to updated World something XIX for Brazil, New Guiana, and some other place. No matter what I did (manually uninstall and download again), worked. Heard it’s a “known issue”?

  2. Offline mode worked only like 1 in 5 times, then worked all the time, then stopped working. It told me to install the game disc (which I don’t have, obvioulsly). Offline permissions were set in the Store and in the Xbox app.

  3. Trying to figure out how to clear my online cache, in case something was botched in that and was the cause of some of what I was seeing. Nope, every article I saw was for local caches or on the console, and Xbox support was lame (their “assistant” just kept going in a loop of “how can I help?”)

  4. copilot had recommended that I install the game to a new folder in order to avoid all of the permissions and other hassles. Installed to C:\MSFS 2020. Clearly nothing really changed.

  5. Store says I have the Premium Deluxe version. Xbox used to show all three editions I owned, but now just says MSFS 2020. Wow. MS is a hot mess.

Guys, I think I’ve lost ten years of my life over this. This whole ordeal has forced me to clean install the OS both on my laptop and on the flight sim PC (yeah- I nuked them). Something got so botched that, when using disk cleanup, it would run, but the system would still say the same numbers (like Temp folder had 12GB in it).

Going to install it one last time today. Fingers crossed.

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First of all – do not use Copilot.
That thing is trash, plain and simple. It’s not made for real troubleshooting, especially not for something as complex as MSFS. The best help you’ll get is right here on this forum – from actual users who know the sim inside out.

Also, don’t try to fix things that aren’t broken. Regarding your point #3 – trying to “clear online cache” without knowing exactly what you’re doing probably made things worse, not better. You posted your issue on the forum, which is great – but then you went ahead and started making changes and reinstalls on your own, instead of just waiting for help. That’s what the community is here for. We probably could’ve helped you get MSFS running offline with just a couple of simple steps.

It sounds like you had it nearly ready to go offline and in trying to rush through things, you’ve now made a much bigger mess.

Just saying it like it is - next time, slow down, ask us first and wait. You’ll save yourself a ton of stress and probably some gray hairs too.

Start by assigning a permanent drive letter to your external drive and make sure it’s the same letter on both computers:

  • the online PC (the one that downloads MSFS and updates), and
  • the offline PC (the one you use for flying).
    If you’re using only one machine, then of course just set it there. But if you have both, the drive letter absolutely needs to match on both systems.

Next, install the MSFS launcher – this is the 2GB install that includes the .exe that actually runs the sim. Install it to the default location, which is:

c:\XboxGames

Copilot told you to install it to a custom folder like C:\MSFS 2020 – bad advice. That often leads to permission issues, broken links …

Once the launcher is installed in the correct default folder, stop there and post an update here. Don’t keep going on your own - we’ll tell you exactly what to do next to avoid more frustration.

edit
P.S. It would help a lot if you could tell us what times (in Zulu) you’re usually available to check the forum. That way, we can try to respond when you’re online and offer help in real time.
Zulu time is universal time – it doesn’t matter where in the world we live, it’s always the same reference for everyone.