Jak's PC problems guide/ help thread

Is this guide useful?

  • It looks like it could be very useful

    Votes: 44 69.8%
  • It doesn't look very useful

    Votes: 7 11.1%
  • Yes it fixed the computer issue I was having

    Votes: 5 7.9%
  • No I am still having problems with my game

    Votes: 7 11.1%

  • Total voters
    63

Jak

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Hello all
There is always a huge number of threads in this section that are asking for help due the fact that the user is having technical problems playing FM. I thought it may be a good idea to make a thread where all members who are having problems can look and follow instructions on how to fix there game. It gets tiresome saying the same thing on multiple threads so hopefully members will look at this thread first to try and solve their issues. Anyway here is an 9 step guide that will hopefully solve any computer issues you may be having:
Netbook users This guide may not solve your issues. I suggest you use this thread instead to hopefully solve any issues you have. I know it's FM10 but it should hopefully still help you.

1. Check your computer specifications against the game specifications
Some people on this site complain of their game not running properly/at all simply due to the fact that their laptop/pc doesn't have high enough specs to run the game. If this applies to you then the only advice I can give is to buy a new laptop/pc or upgrade your current one (if your PC allows you to). The list of FM 11 specifications can be found here. you can easily check the specifications of your pc by typing 'dxdiag' into 'run' on your computer. Post the results on this thread and I will tell you if your pc is good enough. Equally you could use canyourunit which will tell you if you can run the game.

2. Try reinstalling the game itself
If your pc meets the system requirements of the game then move onto this step. Sometimes certain files in the FM folder (or any game for that matter) can become corrupt and not allow the game to run properly/at all. This could be down to a bad installation or a file just randomly becoming corrupt. Therefore a simple reinstallation of the game can solve this problem and allow you to play problem free. This problem could be especially likely if your pc can run games of similar intensity with no problems. Make sure you back up your saved games to memory sticks or similar to allow you to continue them after the reinstallation. You can find your saved games at 'My Documents'/'Sports Interactive'/'Football Manager 2011'/'games'

3. Try installing with steam
This only applies to those who install using the disc. If you installed FM 11 using a disc then your multiple reinstallations may not be doing any good to helping you to get your game working. This could be due to your disc having a scratch/mark which is making certain files corrupt when they are installed. I suggest downloading steam and using that to install FM11. You can simply go to your library and install FM using your serial key. It will download the files from steam. This will be faster/slower depending on your internet speed.
If you are already using steam then you can try a couple of things to try and fix your game. Go to your games library and right click on Football Manager 2011. Choose the option 'properties' and when the box appears choose the tab 'local files'. Here you can try the options 'Defragment cache files' or 'Verify Integrity of game cache'. Doing these may stop you experiencing problems

4. Download the latest drivers
It is amazing how much having outdated drivers can affect your game. If you don't know what a driver is then you have probably never updated them and then they are probably out of date. Use dxdiag to find out your graphics card and then post back here and I will try and find the latest drivers for you.

5. Make sure you have the latest patch installed
This may sound simple but it solves many problems you may be encountering with your game. You can download the latest patch on this website here. PLEASE NOT ALL USERS OF STEAM DON'T HAVE TO MANUALLY DOWNLOAD THE LATEST PATCH, STEAM WILL DO IT FOR YOU.

6. Try running a different saved game
By the far the most frustrating thing about the FM series is when you get really into a saved game and then suddenly your game stops working. This could be due to your saved game becoming corrupt. You may be able to fix your corrupted game by making a post on the SI forums, after following the proper template. Your saved game is probably corrupt if it works fine but the game always crashes at certain date, no matter how many times you try. If your other saved games work fine then your saved game has probably become corrupt. You can prevent corrupt saves from being too disastrous by constantly backing up your game so you can reload to a point that's not too far back from the affected save.

7. Check Temperatures
If your computer, especially the processor, is running at high temperatures then this can cause your game to crash. You can find out your temperatures of your processor by using a program called coretemps. Report your temperatures in this thead and i will tell you if they are high or not. You can decrease the temperatures of your computer by either buying more fans to put in your computer and therefore creating a better airflow. Buying a new fan called a heatsink which goes on your processor and keeps it cool. Or the best way of decreasing temperatures and increasing airflow (especially in laptops) is by removing dust. Remove it from all fans as it can clog them up and stop them from working properly. You can remove dust from laptops by using compressed air in a can. This is an example of what I mean.

8. XML problems/ crash dumps
These are 2 very common problems that cause users games to stop working. I have never actually got one (touch wood) so can't really help on being able to fix them. All I can do is tell you to visit previous threads that seems to help a lot of people. This thread and this thread may be able to solve your problem

9. If all the above has failed...
Then all I can say is I am out of ideas :) However PM me if this is the case and I will make a post on a brilliant computer troubleshooting forum that will hopefully be able to help you solve your problem. If you have not done all the previous steps I have mentioned in the guide I will not post your problem

Thank you to anyone who actually read through all that, sorry I went on a bit. I just tried to add as much detail as possible to help. If anyone has anything to add/correct/comment on me on then feel free to post and I will add it to the OP Also if I think of anything else to add then I will add the OP so keep an eye out.



The official SI FAQ about problems running the game can be found here.
 
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You came here expecting a quote eh? Naaaaah, Jak made it all up. ^^)
 
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Reckon this would be stickyworthy, personally. Really useful, condenses stuff down and collects links into one place. Good job, thanks for posting it.

Really appreciate the comment Godcubed. Was getting a bit worried that no one was looking at it ;) If it gets enough views then hopefully it will be stickied :)
 
My laptop's been getting incrementally slower of late and huffs and puffs a bit more than it should when playing FM, so I think I might have to get some compressed air.

Very useful guide.
 
Gonna put a link to the thread in my sig to hopefully boost the visits

My laptop's been getting incrementally slower of late and huffs and puffs a bit more than it should when playing FM, so I think I might have to get some compressed air.

Very useful guide.

Thanks a lot mate. If that doesn't solve it then feel free to come back here and I'll try and help :)
 
I messed up some settings. I tried to implement a new skin, and I failed, and unticked the "Use skin cache" box. Now I only see parts of my FM page. Is my only option to re-install the game, or will that even help?

Hope someone got a tips for me here ;)

Great topic btw!
 
I'm not an expert on skins but I would think reinstalling the game would solve the issue. Just remember to backup your saved game ;)
 
Nice guide mate, if only it was up last sunday......
 
Yup....but there is more you can add as i didnt do none of that really...
 
This could be useful for most people
My laptop passed the requirements with flying colours (H)
 
I always forget, so sorry to ask. How do i take a screenshot, please?
 
I always forget, so sorry to ask. How do i take a screenshot, please?

You need to create a screenshot folder you can do this by going to Documents > Sports Interactive > Football Manager 2010 and then create a new folder called screenshots. When you are on the game and you are on the screen you want to take a screenshot of press ALT + F9 and then that will take the screenshot and that will now be in your screenshot folder
 
Those who voted this thread to not look useful could you explain why you think that so I can try to improve the thread?
 
Really usefull thread, got a problem though. I made a db using the editorand it crash dumps when i try and start it. Any other db works exept that one. I've tried the defragmentation thing on steam but it was useless, do you know what I can do? Cheers
 
I have tried everything to prevent crash dumps! I cannot get them to go away! my pc was very close on getting a beating last night!

its happened since I can remember! I have tried reinstalling Fm11, I have tried having NO Facepack's, logo's (all other downloadable extras's) setting all to defualt. I have tried starting new games, I have the latest official 11.2.1 patch installed!

I have removed my Shortlists, tactics, schedules, editor data, everything that was added!! Skins, everything! it still Crash Dumps on me!

I have a good Pc (AMD 4.8 Duo Core, 2gbs Corsair Transcend RAM, Nvidia Gt 430 1024 gb DDR5 RAM graphics card, 1tb hard drive space (2 500 gb) Gigabyte PRO SLI Motherboard!

I have the correct amount of nations and leagues loaded, so that is not a problem! I am really into my current save at the moment and since getting it in November last year, I have not had a decent save!! its so ******* irritating!!

I am going to just try start a new game while having everything set to its normal default
 
Really usefull thread, got a problem though. I made a db using the editorand it crash dumps when i try and start it. Any other db works exept that one. I've tried the defragmentation thing on steam but it was useless, do you know what I can do? Cheers

If every other db you load works then maybe it's something wrong with your db that is causing it to crash? Double check to make sure what you have done is correct.

I have tried everything to prevent crash dumps! I cannot get them to go away! my pc was very close on getting a beating last night!

its happened since I can remember! I have tried reinstalling Fm11, I have tried having NO Facepack's, logo's (all other downloadable extras's) setting all to defualt. I have tried starting new games, I have the latest official 11.2.1 patch installed!

I have removed my Shortlists, tactics, schedules, editor data, everything that was added!! Skins, everything! it still Crash Dumps on me!

I have a good Pc (AMD 4.8 Duo Core, 2gbs Corsair Transcend RAM, Nvidia Gt 430 1024 gb DDR5 RAM graphics card, 1tb hard drive space (2 500 gb) Gigabyte PRO SLI Motherboard!

I have the correct amount of nations and leagues loaded, so that is not a problem! I am really into my current save at the moment and since getting it in November last year, I have not had a decent save!! its so ******* irritating!!

I am going to just try start a new game while having everything set to its normal default

Well sounds like you have done about everything. What Operating system are you running? 2GB is not loads, especially if running windows 7 or vista 64 bit. Do all other games run fine?
 
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