FAQ

Microsoft Windows

• I can't run the game because the launcher does not detect the components as installed (No green check marks in the Installer tab)
  
  This seems to happen to very few people, but it indicates a problem when trying to access your Windows Registry most likely due to some permissions rule or sandboxing. Please make sure you have whitelisted FreeSO Launcher in your antivirus or disabled it if it is persistent. After installing everything you should be able to turn your antivirus back on.
  
  Alternatively, you could just run FreeSO.exe from the FreeSO installation folder (by default C:/Program Files/FreeSO/FreeSO.exe). Right click it and Run as Administrator.
  
  If this happens to you, I would like to debug it with you. Please submit a GitHub issue so we can look into it.

• The launcher update downloads but it keeps asking me to update
  
  This means the launcher cannot run the installer it just downloaded. To update, re-download the launcher from https://beta.freeso.org and reinstall it. Make sure to have no running instances of the launcher in order to reinstall.
  
  Note: this FAQ is irrelevant from 1.7.5 onwards since manual updates are now enforced instead of them being automatic.

• "End of central directory signature not found" when installing a component
  
  This means your download was cut short and corrupted as a result. Make sure you do not have any software that may be blocking downloads (some antiviruses and firewalls do this). If it's due to our servers, it should resolve itself if you try to download the component for a second or third time.
  
  In some cases, people don't have access to the launcher's resource central. You can test this out by opening https://beta.freeso.org/LauncherResourceCentral in your browser. If it loads and shows a list, then you're OK. If you can't connect to it, then your network is blocking it.

• Optional components do not have the green checkmark
  
  Optional components are not supposed to have a green checkmark when installed, so don't look for them.

Mac OS X

• The Mono install takes a long time. It might have gotten stuck?
  
  Mono will take a few minutes to install depending on your computer. It is normal and should be left to finish.

• I click Play on the launcher but FreeSO does not pop up.
  
  This has been fixed in issue #8 so it shouldn't happen with new installs, but if this is happening to you, make sure you try redownloading the launcher from https://beta.freeso.org. If it keeps happening, try reinstalling the FreeSO MacExtras from the Installer tab.

• I have to force-close FreeSO when I close the game from the traffic light controls.
  
  This is a known issue and shouldn't bring any problems. Just force-close the game. A way to avoid this is to exit from the game itself instead of the traffic light controls.

• Does FreeSO work on the new Apple M1 systems?
  
  There have been reports of the launcher and FreeSO working without issues on Rosetta 2. If you seem to have problems on new Apple hardware, make sure to submit a GitHub issue so we can look into it.