Noob Installation Questions

[neven]

Hello Arma.

I'm a bit overwhelmed here. I ordered a new PC just to play Arma 2 and apart from playing a bit the other day, I've been spending most of my 'free' time in the last few days trying to figure out how to install mods, updates, and 3rd party software. The websites, YouTube install videos, that and installation instructions seem outdated or are not consistent with my system (Dell XPS 8300 W7 64 Ultimate) -or I'm just a noob and can understand all of this.... Probably the latter.

I am sorry if this information is in the forum here or in armaholic, but I have done searches only to get the same threads or a massive amount of threads in my search results.

I purchased Arma 2 CO. After installing, uninstalling, and installing again, I have that finally A2 and OA installed correctly and I am able to see all of the islands by launching Arma II CO. I have the latest patches installed as well.

The next task seems to be to install ACE (CBA?) and ACRE. I have Teamspeak installed but when I downloaded and "manually" installed (as their was no .exe installer in the ACRE zip) the plugins, I get the message in TS3 that "plugin failed to load, API version not compatible".

I've been looking into installing ACE, but now I see I need something called CBA as well. Is there a way to use one application to manage all of the mod installs? Is their a definitive video on YouTube that you can recommend to follow for these install procedures?

I would skip installing ACE and other mods entirely, but the YouTube videos that got me interested in Arma 2 in the first place seem to all be playing with these mods. Is ACE required to play with others online? Are most of the people using this mod?

Sorry for all the questions. I'm just eager to play and have put some cash towards this whole set up only to be stalled by this last bit of configuration that may not be necessary. I will gladly Paypal someone $30 to walk me through this installation over Skype Screen Sharing.

Thanks for you help.

[Günter Severloh]

How to Install Mods

Installing mods are pretty easy, Follow the tutorial below:

Main Directory
1st All mods will go into your main Arma2 Directory
So find your directory, it should be along the lines of this on your computer:
C:\Program Files\Atari\Arma2

Desktop Shortcut
2ndIf you have a shortcut on your desktop for the game then:
right click it and a menu will showup,
go to the bottem of the menu click on properties,
then go to the target line (at top) and the line in the space should read something like this:
C:\Program Files\Atari\Arma2\arma2oa.exe or something similar.

nosplash + -mod= command
3rdAfter the exe put in this code one space after the exe
-nosplash -mod=
the nosplash disables the startup screens of the game so you get to the main menu of the game faster.

-mod= Command
4thAny time you are going to use a certain mod then the title of the mod will go after the -mod= command.
So for example you will require CBA to use as CBA is required for most mods, it looks like this when you use CBA in the code:

Example startup parameters
==========================

For Combined Operations (ArmA II and Arrowhead installed together or Arma2CO):

-mod=@CBA


For a standalone Operation Arrowhead (OA):

-mod=@CBA;@CBA_OA


For ArmA II only (people without Arrowhead or A2):

-mod=@CBA;@CBA_A2


If your going to play with any mods and obviously you are, you will require CBA.

SEMICOLON seperates each mod
5th As you notice after each mod there is a ; Semi colon that seperates each mod.

Mod folders
6th Each and every mod is distinquished by a folder that has a symbol that looks like this:
@ so for example lets say you had ACE installed as a mod you would then need @CBA;@ACE
So you need CBA, and then ACE which seperates CBA and ACE by a semicolon (

so in your shortcut Target line it would look like this:

C:\Program Files\Atari\Arma2\arma2oa.exe -nosplash -mod=@CBA;@ACE

Now lets say you installed another mod or even created on yourself then you would add that to the line like this:

C:\Program Files\Atari\Arma2\arma2oa.exe -nosplash -mod=@CBA;@ACE;@othermod;@mymod

what is a mod folder?
7th Each and every mod is distinguished by a folder that has a symbol that looks like this:
@ as we said above.

A mod folder is really just a folder with another folder inside titled Addons
Inside the addons folder are the files for the mod also known as Pbo's

What is a Pbo?
APbo is a file that has all the info that the mod requires to run. A Pbo is also like a zip file except that game can read the pbo versus a normal zip file.
So a pbo if you open it, also known as extracting, or unpboing, you will get files called configs, and other things, all depends on what the mod is.

Lets recap:
A mod folder works like this:
1. Create a folder, give it the @sign, and then a title (name the folder whatever you want for your mod.

2. open the folder you just created, and then create a folder inside that folder, and name it addons (dont misspell it!)

3. If you had downloaded a mod, or an addon, or want to create a small mod from downloaded addons and or mods then take the pbos of those addons and put them into your new mod's addons folder.

so it goes like this:

@Mod/Addons/Pbo's

Some mods have other files that come with them, those are usually the following:

For example I will use ACE:

@ACE
keys
userconfig

all of these files would go into your main Arma2 Directory.
==========================

[Manzilla]

Check the beginning of the ACE2 thread for installation info. You can either use the Six Updater to install ACE2, it's sub-mods and CBA. If there are links for the stable release DL of ACE2 and CBA at ArmAholic and others.

To use the Mods use the mod folder setup. Do not put anything in the main A2 AddOns folder, it just causes a headache. To learn how to use the mod folder method check ArmAholic. On the download page for every mod there is a link where it is explained very well.



Here's a random mod I chose.

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=14099

Just look at the Installation part of the page and click on where it says FAQ. If you use steam the next part of that section has a like for mod folder setup using Steam. Just click on FAQ in that part.(I cant get ArmAholic working at the moment. The site may be down temporarily or it could be my PC.)


And here's the actual Mod folder FAQ link but it doesn't open for me at the moment.

http://www.armaholic.com/plug.php?e=faq&q=18

I would highly recommend ACE2 and it's sub-mods but be aware that some other mods aren't compatible, but most of them seem to be. Again just make sure you use the mod folder installation method instead of dropping things in the main AddOns folder. If there is a conflict it really makes it a pain in the ass to keep mods/AddOns organized. ACE2 really makes it a whole new game and adds a ton of new features and content.

Yes, if you want to play ACE2 missions online then you need ACE2 installed.

Enjoy the game and welcome! It's always good to have more folks getting into this fantastic game and joining this community. It really is a fantastic group of people.

[neven]

Hey! Thanks for all the info! I'll continue to try and figure this out. It's gotten kinda late here, I'll report back tomorrow.

Thanks again.

[neven]

I wanted to stop back by and thank you once again. I have the mods downloaded and installed. Everything seems to be working now. I used 6 Updater. This video came in very handy if anyone else needs some noob direction.

I used the 6th Sense server to get all the mods. Downloaded about 5 gigs worth and it all seems to be working.

I did screw up one thing though;

Apparently you are supposed to start and run the game from 6 Updater. I didn't know this at first and I launched the game from the main Arma2 CO 'arma2oa.exe'. This loaded the game fine, and then I went to look at the "Expansions". Sure enough they were all listed there. A long list. So I preceded to click the ACE, CBA, ACEX, and ACRE, and perhaps a couple more. Yes, this was a mistake. I exited the game thinking this was the way to load the mods. No. When I now launch the game from arma2oa.exe or the shortcut that belongs to it, I get an error and the game doesn't load.

Error: Include file x\cba\addons\main\script_macros_common.hpp not found.

I should say that I am running the latest beta patch and the game runs fine, when I use the launcher for the shortcut for the beta,(target: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\Expansion\beta\arma2oa.exe" -mod=Expansion\beta;Expansion\beta\Expansion -nosplash). It also runs fine when I load the game from 6 updater.

My concern is that I somehow screwed up the base game by turning on these expansions manually. Is there a way to clear this "turning on of expansions". Like some sort of preference file I can delete to put it back to normal? So that it doesn't attempt to load them when I load the base Arma2 CO? Is this going to be a problem for the future? Should I uninstall and reinstall everything?

Thanks again for all your help! It's great that I've at least got a working game and now I can help my friend install everything and attempt to play online -once I get better acclimated with the controls.

This is a great community and I'm glad to have such great folks around to answer questions.

[Günter Severloh]

Run your target line like this:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\beta\arma2oa.exe" -nosplash -mod=@CBA;@ACE;@ACEX;@ACRE

Move the beta folder to the arma2 directory, as well as all of the mods.

Mods you have should look like this with title:
@CBA
@ACE
@ACEX
@ACRE

The expansion which is OA loads up using the arma2oa.exe, so you dont need to load them up manually.

Base Arma2CO would be using the arm2oa.exe with out mods in your target line, fi you wanted to run arma2 alone then use the arm2.exe,
but with Arma2CO you can play arma2 without having to run the arma2 exe by itself.

[Drew]

May I suggest something easier....download and install a MOD manager application like this one.

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id...RMA+II+LAUNCHE

read the instructions very simple.

make sure you use @MODNAMEHERE along with Addons folder in the actually mod folder itself

[neven]

It's not an installation. It's an adventure.

Wow! This seems to get more confusing by the day. I thought I had it set up and now I realize I wasn't even using the beta, ace, or any mods when playing the game.

I've gotten to play some single player. The game is awesome and is what I hoped for! I've already completed EW and British Forces (as I bought that too). I just want to stop having to deal with all of this configuration which is cutting into my very precious daily game-time.

I restate my initial offer for cash to anyone that wants to walk me through a proper installation/configuration of this game. And now I raise it to my final offer of $40. I will gladly paypal you the cash once I have a live Skype tutorial on how to install, update, and successfully join a session with team speak using Acre. I have all the installation and Mod files, so it shouldn't take too long.

Call me a "chump" is fine. I am a good guy, and I'm just trying to get going with this game. The barrier of entry for me is a bit steep. Me and a friend dumped about $3300 collectively on PCs just for this game! We were both initially fans of OFDR on XBOX, and realized it was crap compared to this. We have since boycotted "Conmasters" and "Operation Cashpoint" and my new XBOX slim is now collecting dust. Thanks BI.

Though, with 2 different forums, betas, alphas, mods, and conflicting advice on how to approach a solution, I am wanting to skip the open source approach and offer cash money to someone who needs it and has the time. You can report back here when you receive the cash so that everyone knows I'm on the level. My friends new PC arrives in a couple days, and I want to have a method for installation that is the best.

For the record though:

@Günter Severloh
I have all my mods in the main arma 2 directory (put there by 6 Updater), but I don't have the beta there as you pointed out. This beta apparently installed everything in "expansion", which is wrong? Why does it install there then?... I notice that the expansion folder has other folders in it apart from the beta... Am I to also place all of those files into the corresponding folders in the main arma2 directory? Please look For example, their is an addons directory in both the expansions folder and also the main Arma 2 folder. Example here: Am I to transfer/replace/copy the files from the expansions "addons" directory (keys, BattleEye, dta) into the main Arma2 addons directory? Is this something that is always done anytime a beta is installed?

Also, is the "expansion" area in the menu UI of the actual game pointless? That is where this issue started. I checked the mods on in this area, and then this problem occurred when I relaunched the game.

@drew
Is this Arma II Launcher that you recommend, a replacement for "6 updater"? If so, does it download and install the mods, betas, and syncs automatically like 6 updater does? Is it better than 6 Updater? Will it conflict with 6 Updater and should I uninstall 6 updater? I can't stop saying 6 updater...

The only way I can see ACE or the Beta is when I launch from 6 updater, then their is this Binging tone sound repeating every 2 seconds. Don't know what it is, as their is no notification. It might be Team Speak as it joins me to the 6th Sense TS rooms.

Meh... So many questions. So little gaming time.

[Günter Severloh]

@Günter Severloh
I have all my mods in the main arma 2 directory (put there by 6 Updater), but I don't have the beta there as you pointed out.
This beta apparently installed everything in "expansion", which is wrong? Why does it install there then?...
I notice that the expansion folder has other folders in it apart from the beta... Am I to also place all of those
files into the corresponding folders in the main arma2 directory? Please look For example, their is an addons directory
in both the expansions folder and also the main Arma 2 folder. Example here: Am I to transfer/replace/copy the files from the
expansions "addons" directory (keys, BattleEye, dta) into the main Arma2 addons directory?
Is this something that is always done anytime a beta is installed?

Also, is the "expansion" area in the menu UI of the actual game pointless? That is where this issue started.
I checked the mods on in this area, and then this problem occurred when I relaunched the game.

Your current setup is correct based on the screenshots,
DO NOT TOUCH THE ADDONS FOLDERS IN EITHERS FOLDERS! DONT LOOK AT THEM, ADD TO THEM, MOVE
THEM, RENAME THEM, ANYTHING,YOU WILL SCREW UP YOUR GAME!

I'd personally get rid of 6 updater, and maybe use the mod folder method suggested by drew, or better yet
use a shortcut on your desktop. this stuff is not hard, what makes it hard is using programs to run your game
when you really dont know how the folder system works.

This is why i always suggest and or tell new guys to use the manual system of setting up a shortcut to learn
how to setup target lines, mod folders, and to understand how the folder system of Arma works.

Why is that important compared to other games? Because Arma2 community is a huge modding community,
I'd say bigger then most, and if you have no idea on how the folders, and shortcuts work then your not doing
yourself any favors when it comes to mods, making mods, and or changing shortcuts be it a program or whatever.

I really dont think you need to use the beta right now, wait til BIS gets a full patch out then use it,
your just adding more confusion to your situation.

Do something simple You have ACE installed, just go into ace folder pull out the keys and userconfig,
set it up in your target line and play, I dont see the point of struggling with an updater.

[neven]

First off, thanks for you patience, persistence, and warnings.

You are right. I got into this game because of the modding and the never-ending gameplay that will ensue. I plan to mod. I need to learn how the structure is set up. So I'll get rid of 6 updater.

Though I still haven't been able to address that error from earlier when I attempt to launch the game. The error that was created from turning on the mods in the expansions game UI. Example: Error: Include file x\cba\addons\main\script_macros_common.hpp not found.

This only happens when I attempt to launch the game from the native exe. Now I understand that I can use a shortcut to bypass this, but only when using the beta at the moment. I originally could just open the game with the native exe or a shortcut based on it, prior to turning on the mods in the expansion menu UI. I was asking how to revert that action without being in the game -since it won't launch. Is that possible, without having to do a complete reinstall?

This shortcut, which I assume was created by the beta installation, works but doesn't load any of the mods. I changed the name to reflect "Launch Arma2 CO". I assume I can append this one from below.

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\Expansion\beta\arma2oa.exe" -mod=Expansion\beta;Expansion\beta\Expansion -nosplash

To this:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\Expansion\beta\arma2oa.exe" -mod=Expansion\beta;Expansion\beta\Expansion -nosplash -mod=@CBA;@ACE;@ACEX;@ACRE

Though when I do, the game crashes. Must be a directory thing again, since the beta is in Expansion\beta and the mods aren't. And as you said,

Move the beta folder to the arma2 directory, as well as all of the mods.

Soooo...

FTR... Earlier, I moved the entire demo directory into the Arma2 directory. So that the directory was C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\beta\beta-files. Were you trying to say, to actually pull the beta-files out of the beta directory and replace the .exe/s and such? Replace from left to right, like this... Cause when I just put the entire beta folder/directory in the Arma 2 directory, the game wouldn't launch at all –no error, had to use task manager. So I put it back in expansion. And if I replace the native exe with the beta exe, I'm not sure what that will do... Maybe fix my error -dunno. I am sure i will have to append the shortcuts at that point. If so, would the target for the new shortcut be...

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA 2\arma2oa.exe" -nosplash -mod=@CBA;@ACE;@ACEX;@ACRE

I really dont think you need to use the beta right now, wait til BIS gets a full patch out then use it, your just adding more confusion to your situation.

And I agree with you about not using the beta. Can I uninstall it then? I see an uninstaller (uninstall_oa_beta.exe), but I remember it saying I would have to reinstall the entire game if I uninstalled it. Please remember, I am running Combined Ops.

Thanks

---------- Post added at 07:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:02 AM ----------

@Drew

May I suggest something easier....download and install a MOD manager application like this one.

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id...RMA+II+LAUNCHE

read the instructions very simple.

make sure you use @MODNAMEHERE along with Addons folder in the actually mod folder itself

Seriously. That launcher is 1000 times more easier to understand than 6 updater. i know it's not an updater, but I can update files manually, as you guys have told me. I just uninstalled 6 updater and used the launcher. Simply copied the "ArmA II Launcher.exe" in my main ArmA 2 directory and it just works.

That binging noise btw is caused by the ACRE mod. Not sure what it is, but it's gone when I don't load it. I can now use the beta expansion, ace mods, and cba with this launcher. I can't say it fixed anything, but it's made things easier to load and I can create different shortcuts with different setups.

Thanks again for the advice!