Tired of reinstalling every few days

[Demious]

So far I've been able to get my FSX running kinda properly. Besides some known issues with the program, I can fly fine, however once I start using my computer further then FSX, FSX starts bugging until a point where I simply cant use it anymore. The program crashes, I get all kinds of problems with the graphics and controls and I even noticed that mid-flight my aircraft just plunges down, without any clear reason to do so.

So what it comes down to, is that I can use FSX the first day after reinstalling the computer from scratch, then it costs me another day to get the rest of the computer running again to do my normal days work and the day after, I can reinstall the whole thing again to be able to fly...
I dont think this is the way it has to work, fly one day, work the next and then reinstall from scratch...

Can someone help me out here?

[Formula_1]

What kinda of programs are you installing that is messing up your computer? Maybe there are patches for them (it) that corrects a known issue.
If the game is running fine one day, and you are using your PC for something else the next and then the game won't run right, it something you have running on you system. Or you have a hardware problem. I don't recall hearing many report such a problem as you are experiencing.

I don't think what is happening to you is common at all. I know my install has been on my drive for years and works like it always has.

[Demious]

Bit of the basics half the world is running on their computer...

General: VLC, iTunes, Firefox, msn(only msn, not a silverlight package, or whatever and its only active when I need it, it doesnt activate at startup from the computer), IZArc
Productive: Word, Lightroom, Photoshop CS5, Illustrator, Avid Studio 14
Games: World of Warcraft(but this one is simply copied, not installed and according to Blizzard, it cant bug any program when used as a copy)

And besides FSX I got some addons for FSX, But those are installed right after FSX and seem to run fine: All UTX/GEX packages, REX Essential, most Mega Airports in Europe, NL2000v4(but only a few airports, not the whole scenery pack) and several aircrafts from Carenado, Eaglesoft, Iris and the PMDG737NGX.

[Bass]

FSX needs a lot of memory, so my advice is to close down as much as possible.

[Jetranger]

Without any Exact Specifications of your Computer, I'm going to Guess that your Computer is the main problem behind this.

I've had FSX Gold/ Acceleration installed on my System for over 1.5 years, without any Glitches like that, I rarely have had any glitches , but then again I don't have all kinds of Add On's jamming up the System and load times.

FSX requires a fairly Good Computer to be able to run/ operate effectively.

My Specs are: 
12GB of Memory
1 TB HardDrive - 
1.5GB XFX Graphics Card -
750 Watt Power Supply - (very Important with upper end Video Cards)
AMD Quad Core Processor

FSX Gold / Acceleration installed
FS SCENE installed 
Several payware & Freeware Aircraft installed - total = 4,888 Aircraft

Few FREEWARE Orbx sceneries installed

2 Pac Sim Sceneries installed

NO REX , none of that other "Stuff" were reading so much about !       

I haven't had 1 problemo' out of anything yet in 1.5 years with the Flight Simulator.

I actually like to Fly, rather than constantly Tinker all the time trying to Fix something, because I'm trying to Cram too much into it, that possibly my System can't Handle and Digest properly.

I use Saitek Digital Flight Yoke
Saiteks Combat Rudder Peddals

Track IR 5

for my Heli's - The Av8r-01 Joystick.

I still believe in K.I.S.S. / "Keep It Simple Stupid". 

Remember to Run FSX even slightly to its fullest capacity, you'll have to have a fairly decent computer and hardware !!     

[Demious]

Well, I've got a 6-month old computer, running a 4-year old program. I bought this computer because this one shouldnt have any problems with running FSX according to 3 different, unconnected specialists, which also has proven itself since everything runs fine, as long as only FSX with addons is installed.
And seeing that my computer performs fine with all the scenery packs installed, it seems unlikely that the capacity of the computer shouldnt be sufficient for what I'm asking from it, as long as there's no other software installed... And no, the extra software isnt running when using FSX.

Its an HP h8-1010nl with Intel Core i5-2310, 8GB RAM, Geforce 550, SSD harddisc for FSX, 1TB Seagate as C-drive, 2 external drives for storage, running 64-bit Win7 and for controls I'm using the Saitek X52-pro.
I installed FSX according to the instructions from NickN and everything that the system can miss out on at startup is also shut off from startup.

Also, my former 8-year old Dualcore computer with 4GB RAM and Geforce 460, running FSX from the C-drive, did exactly the same. As long as only FSX and addons were on it, things were fine and as soon as other programs were installed the same problems occurred. So if this one was already capable of running FSX, the extra capacity of my new computer should seem to be plenty...

Also when WoW was running Wrath of the Lichking, I talked to so many people, running 5-10,000 euros, custombuild gaming machines, who were having huge latency problems when in the main city, while my computer never showed one single glitch. Same goes for Tera, a WoW-like game running TRUE photorealistic scenery.
Simply put, my former, as well as my current computer, outperform dedicated Gaming-machines, many times the cost of mine... I think that should be a statement in itself.

[Demious]

Ok, this is what happens now when I started working with the computer, after installing FSX.

After defragmentation I tested FSX and everything ran perfectly fine.
I installed iTunes, no problems at all.
I installed Photoshop, no problems at all. Worked with photoshop and did several different things with it and still FSX ran fine.
This morning I started up FSX, choose my flight and wanted to load the environment, but after loading got to 100% the program stopped responding...

I did a system restore back right after FSX was installed and the disks where defragmented, a point where I should be sure FSX was ok, but still the program stops responding right after loading hit 100%

This time I was testing FSX itself, I installed FSX according to NickN's instaltion guide, only installed a single addon, the Carenado C337H Skymaster and besides itunes and photoshop nothing had been installed yet.
I tested FSX with only photoshop before and that didnt seem to make any problems at all, used it extensively for over a week, before installing any other programs and not one simgle glitch, so its hard to imagine that photoshop would be the problem.
And iTunes always has been on the computer at any time that FSX ran fine, so also there, I cant imagine any problems.

Simply put, I'm prety much stunned about what happens here...

[Formula_1]

Check to see if there is an error message for it, if you haven't already.
Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Event Viewer.
Look under Summary of Administrative Events at the Error section. Under Last Hour you should have a 1 (or more) showing. Just scroll down the list until you see what that "1" is listed for (and if more than 1, what they are too). It most likely will be Application Error.
Anyway, once you find it, double click it and it will open a window showing the cause. Click on the Details tab > tick Friendly View (if it isn't already) and click on System in the window.
You should get a full report of what happened.

[Demious]

Ok, I found the error section in the event viewer and there are 2 items with a 1 behind it, in the collom 'last hour': WMI application and Printservice Microsoft-Windows-Printservice/Admin.
When I rightclick those, I get a whole list of errors and under details is some text that doesnt mean anything to me...

What am I gonna do with the information I find there?

[Boikat]

All in all, I would begin suspecting that I had a currupted set of FSX disks.

[Demious]

Last year, I've been working on things with support from Microsoft and to make sure the CDroms werent the problem, they send me a whole new package, FSX as wel as Acceleration and both packages show exactly the same issues, so either both should be defective, or neither one of them is...

[Boikat]

Are you installing FSX in the default location C:\Program Files (x86)?  If so, try creating a FSX folder on the C drive (Not in any other sub folder) and installing in the new C:\FSX folder.

[Formula_1]

Ok, I found the error section in the event viewer and there are 2 items with a 1 behind it, in the collom 'last hour'

Sorry, I may have been misleading with the Last Hour bit.
A error for FSX or anything else will only be listed in the Last Hour section if it has been 1 hour or less since the error occured.
So, unless you had ran FSX and it crashed within an hour of looking in Event Viewer, the error (again, if any) would be listed under 24 hours or 7 days, depending how long it had been.

Not sure if you actually tried to run the game prior to looking at Event Viewer or not.
Anyway, if you didn't, try running it and then if it crashes go straight to Event Viewer and see there is anything listed.

[Demious]

@Boikat I run FSX from a sepperate 100GB SSD drive.

@Formula_1 I got that and FSX had been running that last hour and I also had a look at the 24h and 7days lists.
The 2 items mentioned, along with CAPI2 Application have been the 3 major items over the past week, but I dont see anything about FSX in any of the 3 lists, there.
So, if FSX isnt mentioned there, I dont have to worry about the rest?

[RAMPRAT]

First, let me say I really like the new format. Now for the question. Had same problem after installing AVG PC TUNE-UP program and running it. It messed up alot of FSX files and cancelled my admistrator rights so I couldnt do any add-ons. Had to uninstall AVG program and FSX and reinstall FSX and reset my user account to administrator then go into FSX properties and click the full administrator box to let me add-on my scenery etc. Everything working fine now. Will stick with Windows Security Essentials and other MS hardware from now on.