MSFS 2020 CTD during loading with or without NVIDIA app installed (DX11)

[TenPatrol]

There are many threads about CTD during MSFS 2020 loading. They include some workarounds, but none of these threads have the “bug logged” tag.
I want this thread to be a main thread where players affected by this issue can post. The game developers should take this CTD seriously and work together with NVIDIA to find a fix.

CTD during MSFS 2020 loading on systems with NVIDIA GPU and NVIDIA app installed appeared with driver version 572.16, over six months ago and there still is no fix. A workaround is not a fix.

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ISSUE DESCRIPTION

Description of the issue:
When MSFS 2020 is manually set to use DirectX 11, TAA (not DLSS) in the graphics settings, a CTD may occur during the loading phase on systems with NVIDIA GPU and NVIDIA app installed.

[PC Only] Did you remove all your community mods/add-ons? If yes, are you still experiencing the issue?

• Yes

FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

How often does this occur for you (Example: Just once, every time on sim load, intermittently)?

• CTD occurs every time during the loading phase.

REPRODUCTION STEPS

Please list clear steps you took in order to help our test team reproduce the same issue:

It is important that MSFS 2020 uses the original nvngx_dlss.dll and nvngx_dlssg.dll files, not ones replaced by tools like DLSS Swapper.

1. Make sure that MSFS 2020 is set to use DX 11, not DX 12 (beta) and TAA not DLSS.

2. Install latest 580.88 NVIDIA driver and NVIDIA app.
   

   

3. After installation, launch NVIDIA app.
4. Select Game Ready Driver and click Next
   
   
5. Click the toggle switch to disable “Optimize games and creative applications”
   
   
6. After disabling the optimization, click Next.
   
   
7. Click the toggle switch to disable “NVIDIA Overlay”.
   
   
8. Click Done.
   
   

Do not change anything in the NVIDIA app, do not optimize any games - just close NVIDIA app.

9. VERY IMPORTANT - restart PC.
10. After restarting PC, wait a moment, then launch MSFS 2020.
11. Wait patiently, and if loading bar reaches around 50%, a CTD should occur.

Reminder - this is important: Do NOT change anything in NVIDIA app. I repeat: DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING.

To be clear - for example, in NVIDIA app and profile for MSFS 2020 - under the driver settings, everything related to DLSS must be set to Application Controlled.

No tweaking, no experimenting - leave it as it is.

And - if you already had NVIDIA app installed - I hope you know that you must uninstall everything that has NVIDIA in its name.

No leftovers. Clean it all out.

[PC ONLY] FAULT BUCKET ID

If you experienced a crash on PC, sharing your Fault Bucket ID would be extremely helpful. You can learn how to find that ID here: How to find your Fault Bucket ID after a crash [PC]

Fault bucket 1612783983015702999, type 5

YOUR SETTINGS

If the issue still occurs with no mods and add-ons, please continue to report your issue. If not, please move this post to the User Support Hub.

What peripherals are you using, if relevant:

Gaming Rig

• MSI MPG X870E Carbon WIFI - BIOS 1A30
• Virtualization - disabled
• Re-size bar - enabled
• PSU MSI MEG Ai1300P
• Ryzen 7 9800X3D
• AIO Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360
• 64GB Ram CL26 DDR5 6000 2x32GB G.Skill
• MSI MAG 271QPX E2
• Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC / 580.88
• USB HUB
• Logitech X56 H.O.T.A.S
• VKB Gladiator NXT Evo Space Combat Edition
• Honeycomb Alpha Flight Controls XPC Yoke
• Logitech Flight Rudder Pedals
• Airbus EFIS Winwing
• Airbus FCU Winwing
• Airbus MCDU Winwing
• Boeing 737 MCP Core Flight
• Boeing 737 EFIS Panel Core Flight
• Boeing FMC/PFP 3N Winwing
• Thrustmaster T300 RS racing wheel
• Sound Blaster X5
• Sound Blaster Katana v2
• 4xNVMe // 4TB for MSFS2022/2024
• 1xSSD
• 1xHDD
• Windows 11 PRO 24H2 26100.4770

[PC Only] Are you using Developer Mode or have you made any changes to it?

• NO

[PC, MSFS 2020 Only] Are you using DX11 or DX12?

• DX11

[PC Only] Many issues may be due to an outdated graphics card. Please state your Graphics Card Driver Manufacturer (NVIDIA, Intel, AMD) and Version:

• NVIDIA RTX 4090 Gaming OC, drivers ver. 580.88
  // CTD during MSFS 2020 loading occurs if the NVIDIA app is installed with game optimization disabled and DX 11 selected in MSFS 2020 graphics settings, using NVIDIA drivers in the following versions: 572.16, 572.42, 572.47, 572.60, 572.70, 572.83, 576.02, 576.28, 576.40, 576.52, 576.80, 577.00 and 580.88 (latest -dated July 31)

Windows 11 PRO 24H2

• Gaming mode - ON
• HAGS - ON

MEDIA

Please add a screenshot or video of the issue occurring.

[END OF FIRST USER REPORT]

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For anyone who wants to contribute on this issue, Click on the button below to use this template:

Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
•

Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
•

If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
•

[Mihaita]

Good pro-active initiative…let`s hope someone is looking !

[TenPatrol]

Thanks, vote mate

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If you know anyone experiencing the same issue, send them the link to the thread - the more people report the bug, the higher the chances it gets fixed.

It’s time for the MSFS 2020 developers to seriously address CTD during loading.

[TenPatrol]

Reminder - this is important: Do NOT change anything in the NVIDIA app. I repeat: DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING.

To be clear – for example, in the NVIDIA app, under the profile for MSFS 2020, in the driver settings, everything related to DLSS must be set to Application Controlled.

No tweaking, no experimenting – leave it as it is.

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I’m seeing posts on the forum where someone claims they’re running MSFS 2020 in DX11 with the NVIDIA app installed and they’re not getting CTDs during loading.

But when I check their post history, I see mentions of playing with DLSS using profile K, messing with NVIDIA Profile Inspector, possibly swapping DLSS files via DLSS Swapper and even selecting a DLSS override in the NVIDIA app.

These kinds of changes can prevent the CTD from occurring but that’s not because the issue is resolved - it’s because “the system” is no longer in a clean, unmodified state that would normally trigger the bug.

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So just to be clear: MSFS 2020 must be running in DX11 with TAA, not DLSS and NVIDIA app must be completely untouched – clean as a whistle.

No old leftover settings, no tweaks, no overrides. Nothing.
If your system has any remnants of previous NVIDIA settings, they might interfere and that invalidates the test case.

[Pilotfirst9999]

I downloaded the MSFS2020 game today. When trying to start the game, I get to the part where it asks me to start in Safe Mode or Normal Mode. 1st time I picked normal mode as I think I only have the Ini 350. It then crashed after it said it was checking for updates and showed the World map updates. The 2nd time I picked Safe mode and it did the same thing.

[TenPatrol]

If you voted because you’re experiencing CTD during the loading of MSFS 2020, try uninstalling the NVIDIA app then restart PC.

[Pilotfirst9999]

We already uninstalled it in the 5080 thread. I cant check whether I have DX11 or TAA because I dont get to that screen even.

[TenPatrol]

This isn’t a thread where I’m helping with CTD issues.

But just as a one-time tip - try installing an older version of the NVIDIA driver, but make sure to completely uninstall the current one first.
You’ll easily find guides online on how to do that properly.

[Pilotfirst9999]

I don’t think I want to do that (not now in any case) as I wont be able to play SU3Beta 2024. So testing in 2020 will have to wait until MS/Asobo fix something somewhere.

[theoldtannery]

Thought it easiest if I just copied in my experience of this issue from another thread below. Of course, I vote to have this looked at as soon as possible.

I had been having this issue from a few months back and came across the solution involving Nvidia App as described above and had a fairly stable system with DX11 and HAG on in MSFS2020 with Nvidia app uninstalled and the latest NVidia drivers.

However, yesterday I updated to SU16 and completed all the world updates and ran up MSFS as normal and all seemed fine. But then the second time I started the sim, it crashed out during the loading screen. Went all round the houses removing community folder items etc and eventually remembered about the Nvidia app issue, but in my case, it had already been uninstalled for a long long time. I then came across another thread on this forum about the same subject and the last poster said he too didn’t have Nvidia app installed and was getting a crash just like me. His initial solution was to reinstall Nvidia app and then immediately uninstall it. I tried this and to my immense surprise it worked. However, after closing the sim and immediately restarting, it again crashed.

So, it seems now that under SU16 the workaround for this issue no longer works consistently. My best guess is that because the sim now has a fix for the not shutting down properly bug, this is in some way tidying up or removing something left behind after uninstalling the Nvidia app which allowed the sim to fire up. Installing and uninstalling the app works fine every time for the first run up of the sim and thereafter fails again.

I am not seeing much on the forums about this so far, maybe most people do not use DX11 and HAG on. When I first had this problem, I just went for DX12 and all was well except that I started to get fairly random crashes, sometimes after quite a long period into a flight and eventually decided DX11 was more stable and so switched back. Since using DX11 I have had no crashes or issues to speak of.

So where does this leave us, hopefully someone out there has a new suggestion on how to workaround the issue. Would like to hear from anyone who has reliably got DX11 ands HAG to work in MSFS2020 with latest Nvidia drivers and SU16. Given there have been some changes to VRAM handling in SU16 I may revert to DX12 again and see if things have improved since I last used it, we will see!

[TenPatrol]

As I’ve already mentioned - I’m not here to provide CTD support.

However, it’s starting to look like a new bug has surfaced - similar to the one I previously described, but it’s not the same.

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Try:

• Roll back to an older NVIDIA driver version and see if the issue goes away.
• Or, open the UserCfg.opt file, change DX11 to DX12.

To do this, you need to edit usercfg.opt file and modify the line
PreferD3D12 0

Change the number 0 to 1

and save the changes.

[WindingSheep395]

Same problem when update Nvidia drive to 580.88 and with the new SU16. Never got into the sim after update. But before SU16 update, it works fine. Seems the .dll file may the cause.

[udidwht]

MSFS 2020 CTD after todays 8/7 update

Just had (2) consecutive CTD while the sim was loading. This was after I had already updated to SU 16 the other day and had several successful flights. Upon start of sim it wanted to update again (Nav aid update?) . Once it updated it began loading then approximately 50-60 percent into loading it crashed. It did this (2) in a row. Running 580.88 drivers (clean install and no NVIDIA app). Did not have this issue prior to today’s update. The following are the event logs… Log Name: Applicati…

[udidwht]

Started a thread on the NVIDIA forum….

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[BearsAreCool510]

So as already mentioned in another thread, I have the exact described issue EXCEPT I don’t have the nvidia app installed. And the issue only occurs with certain drivers. 572.83 for example works fine.

Is this thread still for me?

[udidwht]

Correct. It is happening with both the app or without. I just had the issue and do not have the NVIDIA app installed. Issue has been ongoing for at min 6 months. Can’t imagine that NVIDIA hasn’t been tipped off about it. Give my instructions a go and you may be surprised. Have a look in your event logs in Windows.

The (2) CTDs I had showed the following file…1B0_E658703.dll, 1B0_E658703.dll_unloaded

[TenPatrol]

@BearsAreCool510

So as already mentioned in another thread, I have the exact described issue EXCEPT I don’t have the nvidia app installed.

You don’t have the CTD this thread is about - your issue is DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG, which is something completely different. Please don’t confuse your DXGI … with the bug being discussed here.

[BearsAreCool510]

Sorry, got mixed up. You never replied to the error msgs / event viewer you wanted to see btw. Should I send it again via PM?

[TenPatrol]

You can send it again via PM if you want, but just to be clear - I don’t provide help for issues related to DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG

[BearsAreCool510]

I mean you’re the one that asked for it to verify something, I wasn’t specifically looking for help. You said you were interested, I don’t mind either way.