Fix missing autogen scenery in MSFS, FSX, Prepar3D or X-Plane by checking density, layers, exclusions, annotations and add-on conflicts.
Missing autogen is usually caused by a zero density setting, absent annotation or overlay data, a scenery exclusion, incorrect layer priority, or a conflicting add-on. In Microsoft Flight Simulator, FSX, Prepar3D and X-Plane, first test a stock area, restore default scenery settings, then isolate add-ons before repairing any files.
What counts as missing autogen scenery?
Autogen means automatically placed buildings, trees and other repeated objects. It is separate from the terrain mesh, ground imagery, handcrafted airport objects and Microsoft Flight Simulator photogrammetry.
A flat satellite image with no buildings usually indicates missing autogen or overlays. Correct hills but absent houses do not point to a mesh problem. In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and 2024, melted or incomplete 3D cities are more likely to involve photogrammetry or streaming than conventional autogen.
How do you restore missing autogen?
Establish the scope. Load a default aircraft at a stock airport or city with no custom scenery enabled. If buildings are missing everywhere, suspect a global setting, disabled base package or damaged default file. If only one region is affected, concentrate on that scenery package, its dependencies and exclusions.
Raise the relevant scenery settings. Check Autogen Density, Scenery Complexity, Object Density, World Objects or Object Level of Detail, depending on the simulator and version. Move the applicable control above its minimum, reload the flight and restart the simulator if the scenery engine does not refresh immediately.
Test without third-party scenery. Temporarily deactivate custom airports, regional scenery, vegetation replacements, object libraries and global enhancement packages. On PC versions of MSFS, test with an empty active Community folder and disable other optional scenery through the content manager. On consoles, use the simulator's package-management controls rather than PC folder instructions.
Check scenery priority. FSX and Prepar3D scenery must be active and arranged so that the intended local package is not suppressed by another layer. In X-Plane, airports and overlay packages normally belong above orthophoto or mesh packages in
scenery_packs.ini. Duplicate versions of the same airport are a frequent source of exclusions and missing objects.Confirm that companion data is present. FSX and Prepar3D photoscenery needs its expected
.agnannotation files in the package's texture folder. X-Plane orthophoto needs a suitable overlay package for roads, buildings and vegetation. Custom scenery may also depend on separate object libraries that must be installed and active.Look for exclusions and overwritten definitions. Airport packages often include exclusion rectangles or polygons to remove default buildings before adding replacements. If the replacements or their library are missing, the area remains empty. Older FSX and Prepar3D installers may also overwrite shared autogen definitions instead of merging them correctly.
Rebuild the scenery database only when appropriate. Let FSX or Prepar3D refresh its scenery database after changing library entries. For persistent MSFS package-index problems, follow the safe procedure for rebuilding the MSFS SceneryIndexes data. Do not delete random cache, configuration or default scenery files.
Restore packages in batches. Re-enable several add-ons at a time until the autogen disappears again, then test that smaller group individually. This identifies the conflicting package much faster than reinstalling the entire simulator.
Which settings and files matter in each simulator?
| Simulator | Check first | Common local cause |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020/2024 | Object detail, online scenery services, installed content and third-party packages | Community package conflict, disabled world data, missing dependency or stale package index |
| FSX | Autogen Density, Scenery Complexity, active Scenery Library layers and texture folders | Missing .agn files, exclusions or overwritten autogen definitions |
| Prepar3D | Autogen settings, scenery registration, add-on dependencies and layer priority | Incorrect add-on registration, incompatible definitions or regional exclusions |
| X-Plane | World-object density, installed Global Scenery, overlays and scenery_packs.ini | Missing overlay, absent object library or mesh placed above the overlay |
For simulator-specific diagnosis, our FSX autogen and scenery checks cover annotation files, density controls and shared definitions. Prepar3D users should follow the Prepar3D missing-building troubleshooting process before reinstalling scenery.
Why does photoreal scenery remove buildings and trees?
Photoreal ground imagery does not automatically contain three-dimensional objects. FSX and Prepar3D require autogen annotations, while X-Plane orthophoto normally needs a separate overlay containing buildings, roads and vegetation.
A mistake we see constantly is installing only the image or mesh portion of a multi-part package. Check the download's folder structure and dependencies: an extra nested folder can leave the scenery active while its texture, overlay or library data remains invisible to the simulator.
Microsoft Flight Simulator handles imagery differently, but an add-on can still exclude procedural buildings without supplying working replacements. If the fault began after adding an airport or city package, use our MSFS scenery-conflict isolation method.
What if autogen appears only when you get close?
Autogen that appears at short range is usually being limited by object level of detail, object density or automatic performance scaling rather than being completely missing. Increase the relevant setting one step and retest from the same position.
If the simulator is already CPU-limited, raising object distance may cause stutters without fixing the underlying problem. Reduce another CPU-heavy setting, such as traffic or dense airport objects, instead of pushing every scenery control to maximum. For MSFS areas that remain empty rather than merely appearing late, work through the package, streaming and scenery-loading checks.