Can X-Plane 12 Custom Scenery use another drive or NAS?

Yes. X-Plane 12 can load Custom Scenery stored on another local drive or a mounted network share when each external scenery package is exposed inside X-Plane 12’s Custom Scenery folder through a directory symbolic link or equivalent folder link. Local storage is safer; network scenery depends on uninterrupted access, permissions and sufficient throughput.

Use links for individual scenery packages

We recommend moving selected packages and linking them individually rather than relocating the entire Custom Scenery folder. This keeps installer-managed content and smaller add-ons local, while large orthophoto, mesh or airport packages can occupy another drive.

Do not try to perform the relocation by entering an external absolute path in scenery_packs.ini. The dependable arrangement is a package entry inside Custom Scenery that resolves through the operating system to the real folder elsewhere.

How to move X-Plane 12 Custom Scenery safely

1. Quit X-Plane 12. Do not move or rename scenery while the simulator is running.
2. Move the complete package folder. The target must be the actual scenery package, not a wrapper folder containing another folder of the same name. A normal airport or tile package usually has folders such as Earth nav data at its top level; a library normally has library.txt.
3. Create the link inside Custom Scenery. Give the link the package name you want X-Plane to register. On Windows, a local directory junction can be created with mklink /J "link" "target"; use a directory symbolic link instead when the target is a network share. On macOS and Linux, the equivalent syntax is ln -s "target" "link". The full link path belongs inside X-Plane’s Custom Scenery directory.
4. Start X-Plane and exit normally. This allows it to scan the linked package and update scenery_packs.ini.
5. Check the package entry and ordering. Confirm that the link name appears beneath Custom Scenery and is not marked SCENERY_PACK_DISABLED.
6. Load an area covered by the package. Check Log.txt for missing resources, permission failures or an unresolved path before deleting any backup copy.

Ordinary Windows desktop shortcuts and Finder aliases are not the same as filesystem directory links. We prefer a junction or symbolic link because X-Plane and scenery utilities see a normal directory at the expected location.

Large orthophoto collections are the most common reason for this arrangement. Our orthophoto installation and external-storage guidance covers the package layout and performance considerations specific to photo tiles.

Can X-Plane 12 load scenery from a NAS?

X-Plane 12 can load scenery from network-attached storage if the share is mounted as a stable filesystem location before the simulator starts. A mapped drive that changes letter, a macOS volume that reconnects under a different name or a Linux share mounted at another path will break the link.

A wired connection is preferable because X-Plane may request textures and scenery data as the aircraft crosses tile boundaries. Network congestion, sleeping drives and Wi-Fi interruptions can produce long pauses or resource-loading errors even when the initial flight loads correctly.

• Mount and authenticate the share before launching X-Plane.
• Prevent the NAS and external disks from sleeping during a flight.
• Do not disconnect or remount the share while X-Plane is running.
• Keep add-ons containing plugins or automatic updaters local unless their documentation permits network storage and write access.
• Give each X-Plane installation its own links and scenery_packs.ini, even if several computers read the same permitted scenery files.

Plain scenery packages are largely read-only during normal use, but third-party licensing may restrict sharing one package between computers. A NAS also offers no performance guarantee: the advertised network speed does not account for latency, other users or many small file requests.

Will scenery_packs.ini still work?

Yes, scenery_packs.ini records the linked package by its location beneath Custom Scenery; the operating system resolves where the files physically reside. Moving a package does not change its scenery type, so airports, overlays, orthophotos and mesh still need the usual relative order.

After X-Plane discovers a new link, inspect its position rather than assuming it was inserted correctly. Airports normally belong above overlays, with base mesh and orthophoto packages lower down. Our overlay installation and ordering explanation shows how those layers should relate.

Linked scenery libraries work in the same way, provided the linked folder exposes library.txt at the expected level. If airports report missing objects after a library move, check the structure against our scenery-library folder and registration guidance.

Why is linked scenery not showing?

Linked scenery usually fails because the link is broken, points one folder too high or was unavailable when X-Plane scanned Custom Scenery. The physical disk location alone is not enough; X-Plane must see a valid package through the link.

• Changed drive letter or volume name: restore the original mount identity or recreate the link.
• Network share mounted too late: mount it first, then restart X-Plane so the package is scanned again.
• Nested package folder: recreate the link to the folder containing the package’s actual scenery files.
• Incorrect permissions: verify that the user running X-Plane can list and read every folder in the target path.
• Disabled or misplaced entry: inspect scenery_packs.ini for SCENERY_PACK_DISABLED and scenery-order conflicts.
• Duplicate installation: do not leave both the original package and a linked copy visible in Custom Scenery.

If a linked photo package is registered but the default ground textures still appear, use our custom photo scenery troubleshooting checks to separate storage-link faults from missing tiles, bad folder structure and ordering problems.