Learn how to install and configure GSX in Prepar3D, choose the correct edition, build the airport cache, set profiles and fix missing menus.
To install GSX in Prepar3D, use the legacy Prepar3D-compatible GSX installer—not GSX Pro for Microsoft Flight Simulator—select the correct Prepar3D installation, then let the installer add the FSDreamTeam Addon Manager and Couatl components. Start Prepar3D, accept any trust prompts, rebuild the airport cache, and configure aircraft doors, parking positions and pushback.
Which GSX version works with Prepar3D?
Prepar3D requires legacy GSX; GSX Pro is a separate product for Microsoft Flight Simulator and cannot be installed in P3D.
| Product | Prepar3D compatibility | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Legacy GSX | Yes, when its installer explicitly supports your P3D version | Boarding, baggage, catering, refuelling, de-icing and pushback |
| GSX Level 2 Expansion | Optional legacy expansion | Visible passengers and additional airport and jetway functions |
| GSX Pro | No | Designed for Microsoft Flight Simulator rather than Prepar3D |
The installer must recognise your exact Prepar3D major version. A package labelled for Prepar3D does not necessarily support every P3D release, and files must not be copied from an FSX or different-architecture installation. Our overview of the GSX service workflow and legacy edition explains what each ground-service command does once installation is complete.
How do I install GSX in Prepar3D?
Install GSX with its supplied legacy installer so that its support modules and Prepar3D registrations are created together.
- Confirm compatibility. Check that the legacy installer lists the exact Prepar3D version installed on the computer. Stop if it offers only Microsoft Flight Simulator or GSX Pro.
- Close Prepar3D and Couatl. The simulator and any Couatl process must be stopped before files or registrations are updated. Back up existing custom profiles under
%APPDATA%\Virtualiif this is an upgrade or repair. - Run the supplied installer. Allow Windows elevation when requested and confirm the correct Prepar3D installation if more than one simulator version is detected. Do not manually choose a convenient folder or move the installed files afterwards.
- Install the support components. Let the package install or update Couatl, the Addon Manager and any scenery-support components it requires. Mixing old modules with a newer GSX installation is a common cause of missing menus.
- Activate and update GSX. Complete licence activation through the supplied manager, then run its update function. Installer wording differs between legacy releases, but activation and updating should finish without errors before P3D is opened.
- Start Prepar3D. Accept trust prompts only when they identify the expected GSX, Couatl or Addon Manager component. Check that GSX or Couatl appears under the simulator's Add-ons menu.
- Build the airport cache. Let the first scenery scan finish. If GSX has retained an old airport layout, use its restart or airport-cache rebuild command and then restart Prepar3D.
- Test from a parking stand. Load an aircraft at a recognised gate, set the parking brake and open the GSX menu. The menu should identify the airport and offer the services available at that position.
When several P3D versions or older scenery packages share one computer, follow our guidance on managing Prepar3D add-on registrations safely rather than copying modules between installations.
How should GSX be configured?
Configure the airport first, then the aircraft, because misplaced vehicles are more often caused by an airport-layout mismatch than by the aircraft profile.
Configure the active airport layout
GSX must read the same airport BGL or AFCAD that Prepar3D is displaying. If stock and add-on versions of an airport are both active, GSX may use obsolete stands, taxi links or parking coordinates.
- Open the GSX airport customisation function while parked at the airport.
- Confirm that the selected airport file belongs to the active scenery package.
- Correct parking radius, stop position, airline codes and handling operator where needed.
- Define the permitted pushback direction or custom route supported by your installed GSX build.
- Rebuild the airport cache after changing scenery priority, replacing an airport or editing its BGL files.
Do not delete airport files merely because GSX selected the wrong one. Identify the duplicate, disable the unwanted scenery through its intended registration method, and rebuild the cache.
Configure the aircraft profile
An aircraft profile tells GSX where the doors, cargo holds, stairs, service points and ground equipment belong on that model.
Use the aircraft's supplied or built-in profile when it aligns correctly. Create or import a custom profile when buses park inside the fuselage, loaders approach the wrong side, or GSX requests a door that the aircraft does not expose. Our detailed airport and aircraft profile instructions cover profile folders, AFCAD matching and cache refreshes without duplicating those steps here.
Complex aircraft sometimes use custom variables for parking brakes and doors. In that case, follow the status message shown by GSX and use a profile designed for that exact aircraft variant; a profile for another model in the same family may still have different door coordinates.
How do I verify that GSX is working?
GSX is installed correctly when its menu opens, recognises the active airport and aircraft, and starts a requested service after the stated aircraft conditions are met.
- Park at a defined gate rather than an arbitrary point on the apron.
- Set the parking brake and stop the engines when the selected service requires it.
- Open the GSX menu from Prepar3D's Add-ons menu or assigned command.
- Request one simple service, such as catering or baggage, before testing a complete turnaround.
- Check that vehicles use the expected doors and parking position.
If the menu works at a stock airport with a default aircraft but fails with one add-on, the core installation is sound. Concentrate on that airport's active BGL or the aircraft profile instead of reinstalling GSX.
Why does GSX not appear or work in Prepar3D?
A missing GSX menu usually points to the wrong product build, a stopped Couatl process, blocked files, broken add-on registration or a SimConnect problem.
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| No GSX or Couatl menu | Wrong simulator build, failed registration or quarantined component | Run the legacy updater or repair, check security-software quarantine and confirm that the installer detected the correct P3D version. |
| Menu times out or Couatl reports a connection error | SimConnect is missing or damaged | Repair the relevant P3D client components and follow our Prepar3D SimConnect troubleshooting steps. |
| Vehicles use the wrong gate coordinates | Stale cache or duplicate airport BGL | Make the intended scenery active, remove the conflicting registration and rebuild the GSX airport cache. |
| GSX requests the wrong doors | Missing or mismatched aircraft profile | Select or create a profile for the exact aircraft model and variant. |
| Nothing happens after requesting a service | Aircraft conditions have not been met | Read the GSX status message and correct the parking brake, engine, door or parking-position requirement it names. |
| Jetway options are absent | The airport lacks a compatible jetway configuration or the required legacy expansion | Check the airport's intended jetway method and legacy GSX Level 2 requirements; installing GSX Pro will not add P3D support. |
Keep Prepar3D and Couatl at the same Windows privilege level. Running one as administrator and the other normally can prevent communication. If security software blocked a verified GSX component, restore it and add only the relevant installed folder as an exception rather than disabling protection globally.
Will GSX updates overwrite custom profiles?
Updates normally leave user-created profiles in %APPDATA%\Virtuali, but backing up that folder before a repair, major update or simulator migration protects both aircraft and airport customisations.
After an update, rebuild the airport cache and retest one aircraft at one known airport. This separates an installation fault from a stale airport definition and avoids changing several profiles while diagnosing a single problem.