I am purchasing a new PC ( the ASUS ROG Strix SCAR 18 laptop) and I would like to know how to install MSFS 2020 that I already purchased to this new laptop with out loosing any of my settings and key alocation of my joystick.
Thanks
Stelios
In theory this is a straightforward process.
If you have the MS Store version of MSFS then ensure you log into the new PC windows store with the same account that you purchased MSFS.
When you install MSFS, the first time you run it, in theory it should download from the cloud all the relevant information from your cloud profile, including the settings for your controllers such as your joystick.
One of the things it will probably not remember is any customised graphics settings, so you may need to adjust those yourself.
I assume a steam installation is similar, but I am not totally sure.
If you have the MS Store version of MSFS, then your custom profiles for controllers (e.g. joystick) and your log book and other cloud profile saves are also kept locally on your hard drive in what is called a “wgs” folder.
The location for this is usually:
C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\SystemAppData
I always keep a back up of this “wgs” folder and if I run into any “cloud profile” related issues I restore the folder above with the backup. In theory you could transfer this folder to your new PC once MSFS is installed there- however I can’t guarantee that this will definitely work as the folder names within that wgs folder may be unique to each pc rather than each account. Again, this is for the MS Store version of MSFS.
If you were to try copying this “wgs” folder to the new PC then ensure you also make a backup of the existing wgs folder on the new PC that you can restore from, in case the folder is not compatible. I would only attempt to copy over this “wgs” folder if after installation MSFS didn’t download your cloud profile successfully and you found you didn’t have your joystick settings.
I hope your transfer to a new PC goes well.
Note: This old thread may help as well
https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/clueless-grumpy-old-man-wants-noddys-guide-help-about-installing-msfs-on-to-new-pc/505138/
Maybe some forum members who have done this recently may also chip in with what worked for them!
A couple of years ago I had to reinstall the sim due to an unrelated issue with my PC; this is a different scenario from yours but it still applies.
I had all the packages (that’s the sim data, not the sim itself) in a custom folder in a different drive, as I think most people do. I made a copy of that folder and downloaded the sim again; this isn’t a huge download.
On installation, when asked where I wanted to put the packages, I pointed it to my custom folder and it was happy. That saved me a massive download.
Thanks for all the info. I did purchase the MS Store version .
If you use custom camera views, best to make a copy of them as they don’t get saved in the cloud and can take a long time to set up again.
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I migrated to a new PC just 10 days ago, and my experience was not not too bad:
- Graphics profiles were not kept (as it was to be expected), but in any case I would have to have adjusted them anyway. Just selected “Ultra” and a few more tweks, and no problem.
- All controller bindings were kept unchanged. That was great. Nothing to do. Just select the controller profile and ready to go.
- Some other settings were randomly modified. Especially in the “Traffic area”. It went from “No traffic” (as I use FSTL) to “Real time traffic”, and also 0% cars, 0% boats, etc. Took me more than a week to realize that there were no cars on the roads, so I checked the full menu and corrected everything (luckily I had copied all my previous settings into a MS-Word file).
So, my two cents: - Just copy all your settings (including control assignments) into a text file (Notepad, Word, etc.)
- Install MSFS and tweak graphic settings to your new hardware
- Check all the other configuration menus, just in case something went amiss with the migration (this is the one I forgot to do)
Just went through this exact issue:
- Uninstall MSFS from old PC.
- Download all the Gaming Services/X-Box stuff from the MS Store, make sure it’s updated.
- Run X-Box thing, find MSFS2020 and then start downloading the icon and installer. Once you have icon, click that, start download. I would download all the package, as the old PC has specific stuff in that install the new PC does not have, and I got a error messages by trying to copy my old backup to the new pc.
- Once MSFS on new pc. I opened it, made sure it loaded, then stop sim, closed to desktop, restarted PC.
- I then reinstalled all the planes I had purchased, i.e., DC Designs F-14 and PMDG 737-700. I did not update content manager out of the gate, as lots of that stuff I don’t want or need now.
- Verified F-14 worked and flew-verified PMDG 737 was upto date in their operations center, and then tried on MSFS. It worked to open. Again, closed sim, restarted. Then configured PMDG as needed for new install. Then good to go.
For my flight controls, I have word document showing my assignments for each device specific to MSFS and X-Plane and try to make them as close as possible in both sims so I don’t have as much to remember. Keeping that documentation up to date is important. And virpil devices do not STORE configuration in SIM, they store their config inside the device. MSFS stores HOW I have them assigned in game.