HOW TO INSTALL GTR2 and PnG3 in 2019 ?

[GTR233]

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| HOW TO INSTALL GTR2 HQ Anniversary PATCH |
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IMPORTANT :
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- NEW CLEAN GTR2 INSTALL FROM DVD or STEAM + GTR2 HQ ANNIVERSARY PATCH (PART1+PART2) ARE FULLY WORKING ON WINDOWS XP/VISTA/7/8/10/11 !!!

- DO NOT INSTALL SIMBIN PATCH 1.1 / NOCD GTR2.EXE / 4GB PATCH BECAUSE THEY ARE ALREADY INCLUDED AND YOU WILL BREAK GTR2 SETUP !!!


First you will need to install :
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- 7zip archiver to create/open archives : https://www.7-zip.org

Included in GTR2 HQ Anniversary Patch : GTR2_SETUP.CMD will install them automatically if required*
- Microsoft DirectX 9c June 2010
- Microsoft Visual C++ VC redist 2010 sp1 with MFC security update
- Microsoft Visual C++ VC redist 2015-2019

(*) a POP PUP will be prompted if install is required : you just need to click YES to allow install program in this case.


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| 1a) PRELIMINARY FOR DISC VERSION ONLY |
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- insert GTR2 DISC

- choose any language

- install GTR2 directly at the root of one of your drives like D:\GTR2HQ

- DO NOT SET 3D CONFIG : UNTICK 3D CONFIG BOX at the end of install !!!

- DO NOT RUN GTR2 YET !!!

- REMOVE GTR2 DISC and go to 2)


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| 1b) PRELIMINARY FOR STEAM VERSION ONLY |
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- Buy and install GTR2 from STEAM

- NEVER MODIFY ORIGINAL GTR2 STEAM INSTALL, KEEP IT ALWAYS CLEAN!!!

- Copy or make an archive (7z/zip/rar) of your clean GTR2 folder from STEAM\steamapps\common\GTR 2 - FIA GT Racing Game

- Copy or extract your clean GTR2 archive directly at the root of one of your drives like D:\GTR2HQ

- go to 2)


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| 2) GTR2 INSTALL |
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- download and install GTR2 HQ Anniversary PATCH : 1 SINGLE ARCHIVE SPLIT in 3 parts (001 is the header file and this is THE ONLY ONE YOU MUST OPEN, IGNORE 002/003 FILES BECAUSE THEY ARE ONLY READABLE BY 7zip DURING EXTRACTION), YOU MUST DOWNLOAD THE 3 PARTS FIRST THEN YOU CAN EXTRACT 7z.001 FILE (I REPEAT, IGNORE 002/003 FILES BUT THEY ARE REQUIRED AT SAME PLACE AS 001 FOR 7zip EXTRACTION) : RIGHT CLICK ON 7Z.001 FILE, WHILE YOU HOLD RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON YOU MOVE MOUSE POINTER IN YOUR GTR2 FOLDER (where GTR2.EXE is), THEN RELEASE RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON, LEFT CLICK ON "7-zip" >> "EXTRACT HERE" AND click "YES" to overwrite ALL files/folders (check "APPLY TO ALL")
part-1 : https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/gtr2-hq-anniversary-patch-part-1.21415/
part-2 : https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/gtr2-hq-anniversary-patch-part-2.32658/
part-3 : https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/gtr2-hq-anniversary-patch-part-3.54224/


- you can also add HQ 2005 FiaGT season : https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/gtr2-hq-2005-fiagt-mod.32765/

- and finally there is a hotfix to apply :

https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/gtr2-16th-anniversary-patch-hotfix.54281/

- right click on GTR2CONFIG.EXE >> left click PROPERTY >> COMPATIBILITY >> tick ADMINISTRATOR RIGHTS box (you can skip this step only if you use CrewChief plugin because without CrewChief plugin GTR2 will not launch if administrator rights are not set to both GTR2config.EXE and GTR2.EXE)

- right click on GTR2.EXE >> left click PROPERTY >> COMPATIBILITY >> tick ADMINISTRATOR RIGHTS box (you can skip this step only if you use CrewChief plugin because without CrewChief plugin GTR2 will not launch if administrator rights are not set to both GTR2config.EXE and GTR2.EXE)

- use RadeonMod or Nvidia Profile Inspector (available in [OPTIONS]\f-[Windows TOOLS]) to set AA/AF (NVIDIA ONLY: set Antialiasing compatibility to Diablo III and select "replace/override application setting" for AA mode, you can also enable DSRX4).

Moreover on a LAPTOP you need to set both GTR2Config.EXE + GTR2.EXE to your GPU instead of poor integrated graphics.

- now run GTR2config.EXE (choose 32bits resolution, dx9) but Do NOT choose AA/AF here because the antialiasing/anisotropic settings in gtr2config are basic/outdated and doesn't manage advanced AA/AF that you have got with recent nvidia/AMD panel.
Turn off Vsync as FFB in GTR2 is tied to refresh rate (HIGHER FPS = BETTER FFB), moreover Vsync is never a good idea as you get lag.
Nevertheless, if you have +400 fps then you can get missed gear changes so try to limit the fps to 120 with nvidia/AMD panel.

- install Bill's process manager or Bitsum Process Lasso, and set GTR2.EXE "CPU AFFINITY" to use at least 2 cores of your CPU (you can skip this step if you use CrewChief Plugin)
You can also do it manually each time after launching GTR2 by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+ESC then click on PROCESSUS tab, right click on GTR2.EXE and set AFFINITY to ALL CORES.

- RUN GTR2_SETUP.CMD
>> page I choose language
>> page II choose HUD
>> page VI choose binary (NOCD IS SET BY DEFAULT)
>> page VII choose plugin (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
>> page VIII choose defviews FOV (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
>> page IX choose PLR* FFB (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
(*) you can rename later "PLAYER.PLR" file in "GTR2\UserData\PLAYER" then "PLAYER" folder in "GTR2\UserData" with same NAME of your choice
>> set other options as you like or skip them with S key


- from now you can run GTR2.EXE


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| 3) Power & Glory 3 (PnG3) INSTALL |
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note: since I have made the GTR2_SETUP.CMD the install order GTR2>>HQ PATCH>>PnG3 or GTR2>>PnG3>>HQ PATCH is no more important. Indeed SETUP allows you to install GTR2 or PnG3 UI and other options afterward so you will have the same content in the end. The only small issue if you do GTR2>>HQ PATCH>>PnG3 is that PnG3 installer will detect modified files from HQ Patch as "corrupted" but just ignore these error messages because my HQ files are patched but not corrupted.

- follow STEP 1a) or 1b), then 2) to create a clean GTR2 install in D:\PnG3 by example

- you must run GTR2 at least once before installing PnG3 MOD

- download and install PnG3 mod : https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/power-glory-for-gtr-2.21450/

- RUN GTR2_SETUP.CMD
>> page I choose language
>> page II choose #9 HUD PnG3 Anniversary
>> page VI choose binary (NOCD IS SET BY DEFAULT) #1 without CrewChief or #2 with CrewChief
>> page VII choose plugin (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
>> page VIII choose defviews FOV (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
>> page IX choose PLR* FFB (MANDATORY EVERY TIME YOU MODIFY BINARY WITH SETUP!!!)
(*) you can rename later "PLAYER.PLR" file in "GTR2\UserData\PLAYER" and "PLAYER" folder in "GTR2\UserData" with same NAME of your choice
>> page XI choose Settings.DDB file : HQ AI is recommended for offline but PnG3 version is required for festbierbude.de online
>> page XII choose UI PnG3 #A or #B (I added 24h/driving school lines in main menu plus many other tweaks)
>> page XV you can type #1 to remove safely all modern GTR2 cars (base+hq) which are not required for PnG3 mod
>> page XVI choose #1 OR #2 PnG3 HQ Anniversary if you want moving wipers and important fixes
>> page XVII choose #1 for wipers without CrewChief or #2 if you have CrewChief plugin installed (nvidia RTX recommended)
>> page XVIII choose #B for patched Mustang Safety Car
>> page XXXI choose #4 PnG3 Driving School cars


- from now you can run GTR2.EXE


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| 4) CrewChief plugin (CC) INSTALL |
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- visit thecrewchief.org to download CC app called "CrewChiefV4.msi"
- install CrewChiefV4.msi in DEFAULT PATH (DO NOT CHANGE IT!)
- run GTR2_SETUP.CMD :
>> page VI you MUST set #2
>> page VII select either #4 to copy CC files in your GTR2 without openvr_api.dll (NO VR), or #5 if you want to use openvr_api.dll for VR headset
>> page VIII you MUST update defviews FOV
>> page IX you MUST update PLR
>> page XVII choose #2
Now you can exit setup with "X" key

- now your GTR2/PnG3 install is READY FOR CREWCHIEF



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| UNINSTALL |
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Just delete folder D:\GTR2HQ or D:\PnG3


That's all folks!

 

[A Casual Sim Racer]

Gtr2 is a directX9 game (like RRE) and dx9 library is not included in Win10 by default so I guess dx9 games will not work 100% if some elements are absent (missing textures or this kind of glitches)

@Durge Driven told me that nvidia profile inspector works with his AMD graphics so you can try too but it is not mandatory of course, especially if gtr2 works without it

Okay then I will download dx9 but probably leave the other alone unless I run into issues.

Do you know of a working P&G link? The one on racedepartment and most other places has a corrupt file so it won't extract correctly.

 

[Durge Driven]

I think you must have misunderstood something I said Paul

I did say the 2 control panels are alike as in quality outcomes and that was using the cheapest onboard video and slowest CPU 3200G-Vega8 versus 3900X and RTX 2080

I also said GTR2 looked better with AMD ...imho
I have 3400G-Vega11 as everyday tower now ( GPL, GTL ,GTR2, PnG and rFactor )

 

[StoffelWaffle]

This might be a dumb post but here it goes :

I made a fresh install (non-steam version) for the SuperTouring mod. Works great.
Decided to do the same for the Absolute Le Mans mod, so I made a new folder named GTR2 - ABSLM (on the same disk) and copy pasted everything needed (minus the ST mod files).
Works great ! But once I try to drive in any mode the game crashes. What have I done wrong ? The game launches fine, the cars appears, there's nothing wrong... Until I launch a session lol.

 

[gwaldock]

If you add " -trace=1000" to a GTR2 shortcut (i.e. D:\GTR2\GTR2.exe -trace=1000), then open "\GTR2\UserData\LOG\trace.txt" the error(s) will be noted near the bottom.

 

[Jempy]

The best is ..... what I wished to say but @gwaldock was quicker

Absolute LeMans Mod is very huge and needs a lot of files install ( I'm in fact a member of this team ), an important file is maybe missing or even a full folder

This trace file will maybe tell us what's and where's the problem.

I have all packs installed on my own PC with a non-steam and only Group C with a Steam version and everything is working without any problem.

 

[StoffelWaffle]

Trace file incoming. Wanted to say that it happens with the base GTR2 cars - so ABLM isn't the culprit.

edit : never used a trace file before - is it the way to make one ? Cause like that it doesn't work lol.

 

[Jempy]

It looks fine.

But where did you create the shortcut ? On your desktop for example !
Are you sure you ran the config.exe and run gtr2.exe with admin rights ?

 

[StoffelWaffle]

Yep, it's on the desktop, ran config then GTR2 in Admin mode and no trace file in LOG.
There's a tmp.trk file, though.

But as I said I just can't race - base car, mod car, base track, mod track ,nothing works ahah.

(steam version works fine, as does the non-steam one. It's just this copy that refuses to race anything)

 

[Jempy]

I think that your problem lies in your Userdata as you surely copied them from the other install and some infos in a file still pointing to the other install surely remained as they were.

I guess that creating a new profile and try to start a session even with only the keyboard as controller might help to see if the game can be started that way..... without any link to the previous install.

 

[StoffelWaffle]

Already did that ! Made sure the previous UserData didn't carry over. I've restarted it 3x to no avail - the cars who up, the game runs fine then it doesn't when I try to race.
And the bloody trace file doesn't work.
Well... Guess I'll have to find a non-legit GTR2 copy eh ?

 

[Jempy]

You can install the Steam version more than once as it doesn't need Steam to work

No trace file if the session crashes before loading anything.
You surely made a mistake somewhere when creating the copy but where and why ... I really don't know.

 

[StoffelWaffle]

Really ? How would I do that ? Didn't know that. And yeah must've broken something somewhere ahah.

 

[The Iron Wolf]

Also, you no longer need to run gtr2.exe as admin to isolate UserData. CrewChief plugin has setting:

disableMyDocumentsProfile = 1

This will make game read and write data only from drop folder.

 

[GTR233]

With HQ Anniversary Patch you can run GTR2_DEBUG.CMD to launch gtr2 with trace command line and trace.txt will automatically be open after gtr2 session.

 

[StoffelWaffle]

Well second time is the charm - everything works. I still don't know what happened with the first install lol. Thanks for your help guys you've been more than helpful.

 

[Retrolux]

Thanks for the updated guide on how to install P&G today.

Is there an easy way to remove the HQ tracks from the ingame list when all the HQ elements are applied to the normal tracks. Moving the HQ folders out of the locations dir causes that the regular tracks crash when loaded.

 

[GTR233]

Thanks for the updated guide on how to install P&G today.

Is there an easy way to remove the HQ tracks from the ingame list when all the HQ elements are applied to the normal tracks. Moving the HQ folders out of the locations dir causes that the regular tracks crash when loaded.

hq tracks are independant from stock tracks...except if you enabled HQ textures for stock tracks via GTR2_SETUP.
So you can delete all HQ Tracks by deleting all HQXXXXX folders from GTR2\GAMEDATA\LOCATIONS
but you also need to disable HQ textures from stock tracks via GTR2_SETUP.
FYI even with same HQ textures your game experience will be rather different if you compare the same track STOCK vs HQ because Lighting, AI settings and patches are different.

 

[Bjarne Hansen]

Thanks for the updated guide on how to install P&G today.

Is there an easy way to remove the HQ tracks from the ingame list when all the HQ elements are applied to the normal tracks. Moving the HQ folders out of the locations dir causes that the regular tracks crash when loaded.

You know you can install Gtr2 anywhere. Doesn't need steam at all.
Think it is best to have a standalone P&G install with just P&G installed and gtr2 cars removed..

 

[Retrolux]

Ohh good to know that. I thought that through the setup all HQ upgrades could be transfered to the default tracks so that they can be used in the P&G championships. Another thing learned.

 

[Retrolux]

You know you can install Gtr2 anywhere. Doesn't need steam at all.
Think it is best to have a standalone P&G install with just P&G installed and gtr2 cars removed..

Yes that is what I have done. One anniversary GTR2 and one P&G installed in a way the guide here suggested. (and one stock GTR2 as drop in). I was just wanted to remove the duplicate content out of P&G (HQ tracks) but i learned that they are different on many aspects not just the textures etc.