FAQ Guide

Differences Between Free and Professional Versions

Regarding maps:

  • The Free version provides access to ArcGIS, Bing, and Google Maps.
  • The Professional version offers additional map sources with superior image quality and more frequent updates.

Regarding features:

  • The Free version is limited to medium image quality, while the Professional version supports high-quality settings.
  • The Free version does not include map color adjustment capabilities.
  • The Free version does not support the preloading feature.
  • The Free version does not support high-resolution ground textures.

New features and optimizations are typically introduced in the Professional version first.

WinFSP Mounting Errors

Please check if the base package and X-Plane are on NTFS drives. Other file systems like exFAT are not supported for mounting.

Reported X-Plane Running, But It’s Not

Please check if there is a process named X-Plane running. If so, terminate it in the Task Manager. Sometimes, certain plugins may prevent X-Plane from exiting properly, causing the interface to close while the process remains active.

My XPlane Crashed

In the Mod, click “Start”, wait a few seconds, then click “Stop”, and exit the Mod. This ensures that all operations performed by the Mod are completely cleaned up. Then re-enter the game. If it still crashes, it might be an issue with the game itself.

If the game crashes after launching the mod, first check the X-Plane log file (Log.txt) to diagnose the cause. The mod is generally stable, so crashes might be caused by other plugins.

If you have limited available memory, you can enable the “Memory Optimization” option in the “Advanced Settings” to reduce memory usage and decrease the likelihood of crashes.

Troubleshooting steps:

  • Check the X-Plane log file (Log.txt) for the last error message and search for it online.
  • Ensure the scenery_packs.ini file has the scenery patches at the bottom.
  • Remove other plugins or airports to see if they are causing the issue.
  • Make sure your computer is not running out of memory and has virtual memory set (set virtual memory to system managed).
  • Ensure your map enhancement is up to date.
  • Ensure your computer is not overclocked. Map enhancement consumes a lot of CPU and memory, and unstable overclocking might cause crashes. Try reducing the overclocking.
  • Ensure your graphics card driver is up to date.

Blurry Maps

Map blurriness typically results from network loading issues and is considered normal behavior. As network performance improves, map clarity should increase. You can also adjust map resolution settings to reduce network bandwidth requirements.

Troubleshooting steps:

  • Enable the “Preload” feature in settings (Professional version only).
  • Try switching to a different map provider, as some may load more efficiently under your specific network conditions.
  • Ensure your network timeout setting is not too restrictive; maintain the default value of 30 seconds.
  • Confirm that the number of concurrent connections is adequate; the default value of 200 is recommended.
  • Note that comparison with offline maps like Ortho4XP is not appropriate, as they store all data locally and don’t rely on network connections.
  • Try switching ground texture resolution to “Normal”

Slow Map Loading

Map loading performance is directly related to network quality. Poor network conditions will result in slower loading times.

Under normal circumstances, loading takes approximately 1-2 minutes, with 10,000-20,000 images being processed. This varies based on network conditions and the number of airports in the loading area.

If loading exceeds 20,000 items without completion (a rare occurrence), consider these potential causes:

  • Antivirus software may be scanning the base package, reducing performance. Consider temporarily disabling your antivirus or adding the base package and X-Plane directories to its exclusion list.
  • Plugin conflicts may be occurring. Try disabling plugins in the Resources\plugins directory one by one to identify any conflicts.
  • Scenery plugin conflicts may exist. Try disabling other scenery plugins to identify potential conflicts.

Additional troubleshooting steps:

  • Switch to an alternative map provider
  • If you’ve installed the game, cache files, or base package on a slow storage device (such as a USB drive or HDD), move them to faster storage (SSD).
  • Evaluate your router’s performance. The application utilizes approximately 200 parallel loading threads. If your router cannot efficiently handle this load, try reducing the network loading threads value in settings (try 150, 100, or 50) to determine the optimal configuration.
  • Incrementally increase the “Network timeout” value by testing settings of 35, 40, or 45 seconds. Avoid setting excessively large values.
  • Disable the “Retry failed request” option in “Network settings”

Why is My Gigabit Network Still Slow?

A gigabit connection only indicates the speed provided by your ISP to your home network. It doesn’t guarantee high-speed connectivity between your home and remote servers. This is analogous to having a highway directly outside your residence, but encountering narrow roads further along your journey, which ultimately limits your travel speed.

Game Images Not Loading, Still Showing Default Scenery

  • If you have Ortho4XP installed, you need to remove it because Ortho4XP will override the enhanced maps.
  • Ensure that the base package for the area you want to fly in has been downloaded; otherwise, the default scenery will be displayed.
  • Other scenery plugins might be overriding the enhanced maps, so you may need to disable them.

Currently known conflicting scenery plugins:

  • Ortho4XP
  • X-Plane HD Mesh Scenery

Network Errors

A few network errors are normal. However, if you encounter many errors in a short period, it indicates network access or configuration issues. Please refer to the previous settings for troubleshooting.

Black Squares with Text

Black squares with text appear when map tiles fail to load, typically due to network connectivity issues. If only a few appear occasionally, this is not a concern. However, if numerous black squares persist, consider switching to a different map provider or troubleshooting your network connection.

Error

Sudden Terrain Gaps

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Possible causes:

  • Network connectivity issues are the most common cause. These gaps typically resolve themselves after a short period.
  • Insufficient system memory. If you’ve disabled or significantly limited your system’s virtual memory, this can lead to memory shortages. Enhanced maps require substantial memory resources to function properly.

High CPU Usage During Loading

High CPU usage during map loading is expected behavior. The process involves handling and processing a large number of high-resolution images, which is computationally intensive. While ongoing optimizations are being implemented, this remains a resource-intensive operation.

Note that the preload feature may cause particularly high CPU usage when high-resolution ground textures are enabled. If you experience performance degradation in the simulator, consider temporarily disabling this feature.

Occasional Stuttering During Gameplay

X-Plane is designed to load scenery assets from local storage, which offers consistent access times. However, with enhanced maps, these assets are retrieved over the network. When network conditions are suboptimal, request times may exceed 10 seconds, resulting in temporary stuttering.

Additionally, the processing and compression of numerous images contribute to CPU load, which can affect performance. To mitigate these issues, it’s strongly recommended to enable the “Preload” feature, which caches map data in advance.

Is XP11 Supported?

While X-Plane 11 has been tested and is compatible with this enhancement, users may encounter various issues, particularly with loading speeds. For the best experience, X-Plane 12 is recommended. Please note that X-Plane 11 is not officially supported.

Why is CPU Usage So High?

X-Plane 12 doesn’t natively optimize for enhanced map processing, requiring the application to handle substantial image processing and DDS file operations. This naturally results in elevated CPU utilization. Continuous optimization efforts are ongoing, but the resource-intensive nature of these operations remains a challenge.

Device Blocked

This issue typically occurs due to connectivity problems with the verification server. To resolve this:

  1. Close the application completely
  2. Restart the application
  3. If the issue persists, please contact developer support

Additional Support

For any other questions or issues not addressed in this manual, please submit an issue at: https://github.com/derekhe/xplane-map-enhancement-release/issues