[Steam] Clean install - "no connection" error preventing package download

User Support Hub User Interface & Activities
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While writing my post, I finally solved my issue, but I thought it was worth sharing my solution with the community.

I’ve left the original post I was going to make at the bottom for extensive detail, however, the TL;DR is I just bought the game on Steam, so it was a completely fresh install, no mods etc… and I could not get the game to download packages, I just got a “No Connection” error message like this:

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My solution to the issue was to revoke all Xbox Live credentials in the Windows Credentials Manager. It seems this will only fix issues related to always being asked to log in to Xbox every time you open the game and if your Xbox avatar does not show in the top right of the Installation Manager screen.

So here are the steps to take to solve that:

Method 1 - Slower

  1. Press start
  2. Type “Credential Manager”
  3. Click “Windows Credentials”
  4. Find all entries starting with “Xbl”
  5. Click to expand the entry
  6. Click “Remove”
  7. Click “Yes”
  8. Repeat steps 5-7 for all entries starting with “Xbl”
  9. Go back to Steam and launch the game
  10. When you’re asking to sign in to your Xbox account, choose “Sign in with a different account”
  11. Re-enter your sign-in credentials

Method 2 - Faster

  1. Press start
  2. Type “powershell”
  3. Press Ctrl + Shift + Enter or Right-click and select “Run as administrator”
  4. Paste this snippet and hit the Enter key
    cmdkey /list:Xbl* | ForEach-Object{if($_ -like "*Target:*"){cmdkey /del:($_ -replace " ","" -replace "Target:","")}}
  5. Once it’s finished, close the PowerShell window
  6. Go back to Steam and launch the game
  7. When you’re asking to sign in to your Xbox account, choose “Sign in with a different account”
  8. Re-enter your sign-in credentials
Original help post

I bought MSFS just over a week ago on Steam, but I can’t get the game to install packages. When launching the game from Steam I’m asked to sign into my Xbox Live account (every time), I then see a “checking for updates” message followed by a connection lost error. It’s done this right from the start and nothing I’ve tried has progressed it to the point where I can actually install the game.

To note, this is a clean install from Steam. I’ve never modded it because I can’t even get the game to install fully, so everything is as provided by Steam.

I’m in contact with MSFS support, but they’re taking a long time to respond. The Steam refund cutoff date is on the 7th and I’m not keeping this if I can’t even play it. I went all out and got the premium deluxe edition which felt like far too much for any game IMO, I was hoping the quality of the game would make it worth it though…

Here’s a whole bunch of things I’ve tried:

  • Steam’s verify game cache
  • Removing and reinstalling the game (launcher?)
  • Restarting my PC
  • Reset Xbox networking connection
  • Using a VPN (ProtonVPN)
  • Changing my DNS server 1.1.1.1 (CloudFlare) and also 8.8.8.8 (Google)
  • Tethering my mobile’s data connection, 5G and 4G
  • Logging in with a different Xbox account
  • Resetting the Windows Store cache
  • Installing the game (launcher?) to a different drive
Other steps troubleshooting steps given by MSFS support

STEP 1 — INSTALL PENDING UPDATES
• Click on Start (the Windows icon in the bottom left corner of your screen)
• Select Settings
• Go to Update & Security
• Stay on Windows Update
• Click the Check for Updates button.
• Wait until the verification is finished.

STEP 2 — INSTALL STORE UPDATES AND SIGN OUT
• Click the Store icon pinned to your menu bar or type “Store” in the “Type here to search bar” next to the Start icon then select “Open”
• In the top right corner of the Microsoft Store app—next to your profile icon—click on the Arrow icon or the three-dots menu.
• In the drop-down menu, select Downloads and updates.
• Click Get updates then Update all and wait for the updates to install.
• Once the updates are installed, click on your profile icon in the top right corner of the screen.
• Click on your email address.
• Click on Sign out.

STEP 3 — SYNCHRONIZE TIME SETTINGS
• Go back to Start, then select Settings > Time & Language.
• Select Date & Time and toggle the “Set time automatically setting" and “Set time zone automatically” to ON.
• Click on Synchronize your clock to synchronize your system’s clock with an Internet time server.
• Then click Region, and double-check that your country or region is correctly set up (for example if you live in Canada, make sure that the region isn’t automatically set to the USA or vice-versa)

STEP 4 — RESET THE MICROSOFT STORE CACHE
• On your keyboard, press the “Win Logo” + “R” keys
• Type: WSReset.exe and press “Enter”
• A black window will pop up
• Wait until the pop-up disappears and the Store comes up

STEP 5 — REBOOT THE COMPUTER
Do not skip this step, as it is to ensure all changes are correctly applied.

STEP 6 — SIGN BACK INTO THE MICROSOFT STORE APP
• Open the Microsoft Store app and click on the profile icon again, then select “Sign in” and enter your credentials
• Make sure to sign back into the Microsoft Store with the Microsoft account used to purchase Microsoft Flight Simulator