How do I fix FSX Error 1722 during installation?

FSX Error 1722 means a Windows Installer custom action failed. In boxed Microsoft Flight Simulator X, stale licensing data is the usual cause; clear the failed install, reset the licence state, then rerun setup.exe as administrator. For FSX: Steam Edition, repair the named prerequisite instead—its licensing system is different.

What does FSX Error 1722 mean?

Error 1722 is a general Windows Installer message, usually displayed as “There is a problem with this Windows Installer package.” It tells you that a component launched by the installer failed, but not necessarily which component caused it.

How do I fix Error 1722 in boxed FSX?

For boxed FSX, use the following order; repeatedly running the installer without clearing its failed state commonly produces the same 1722 and 1603 errors.

1. Restart Windows first. This clears pending Windows Installer operations. Sign in with a local administrator account and close any other installers before trying again.
2. Remove the failed FSX installation. Open Windows Installed apps or Control Panel’s Programs and Features. If present, uninstall Acceleration before the base simulator. If an FSX entry is stuck and normal removal fails, use Microsoft’s official Program Install and Uninstall troubleshooter to remove the broken installer record. Avoid registry cleaners and do not delete Windows licensing folders manually.
3. Reset boxed FSX licensing when appropriate. This is chiefly for a reinstall or a failure late in setup, not an early read error on a first-ever installation. Use only an authentic copy of Microsoft’s legacy Software Licensing System Reset Tool for FSX, identified by KB928080. After extracting it, open Command Prompt as administrator and change to its folder. With the documented default folder, the commands are cd /d C:\MicrosoftKB928080 followed by resetsldl -All. There must be a space before -All. Restart Windows after the tool completes.
4. Run the correct installer. Start setup.exe from Disc 1 as administrator; do not open an MSI file buried on the disc. Make sure both discs are readable. A CRC or copy error points to the media or optical drive, not the licensing reset.
5. Choose a simple installation path. A dedicated folder such as C:\FSX avoids many later permission problems associated with protected Windows folders. Do not enable compatibility mode unless setup still fails for a separately identified reason.
6. Launch the base simulator once. Complete its first start before installing Acceleration, service packs or add-ons. Our clean installation and first-launch order for boxed FSX and Steam Edition explains which update route to use.

What if Error 1722 occurs in FSX: Steam Edition?

Do not use the boxed FSX licensing reset on FSX: Steam Edition because Steam Edition uses a different installation and licensing system.

• Core Steam installation: restart the Steam client and run its Verify integrity of installed files command for FSX.
• Named prerequisite: if the error identifies DirectX, SimConnect or a Visual C++ package, repair or reinstall that supplied prerequisite. Do not download individual DLL files as a substitute.
• Add-on installer: launch FSX: Steam Edition once so that it creates its folders and registry entries, then select the Steam installation path in the add-on installer. See our explanation of how legacy add-on installers detect FSX: Steam Edition when an installer expects the boxed version.

How can I find the component that is still failing?

The action immediately before Return value 3 in a Windows Installer log usually identifies the real failure behind Error 1722.

If setup generated a log, look in %TEMP%, sort by modification time and inspect the newest installer log. Check the lines above Return value 3 for a component name, file path or access-denied message.

• Confirm that the Windows Installer service has not been disabled.
• Check free space on both the destination drive and the Windows temporary drive.
• If the log shows access denied under %TEMP%, retry from a fresh local administrator account.
• If Windows security blocked setup.exe, allow that genuine installer rather than disabling protection across the whole system.
• If the failing action explicitly reports MSXML 4, use the repair steps for the separate FSX MSXML 4 failure.

Error 1603 often follows Error 1722 because Windows Installer rolls back the failed installation. Fix the component named before 1722 rather than treating 1603 as a second, unrelated fault.

How do I know the repair worked?

The repair has worked when base FSX completes setup and reaches its opening screen or a default flight before any service packs or add-ons are installed. If installation succeeds but boxed FSX then reports an expired or out-of-date licence on Windows 11, that is a separate activation fault covered by our licensing repair for the “out of date license” message.