Prepar3D v4.5 Features and Enhancements

Release Notes

The latest update to Prepar3D is now available! Prepar3D v4.5 continues to build upon the solid foundation and advancements made to the platform by bringing new features, improvements, and fixes across the board.

Terrain night lighting has been overhauled adding greater visual detail and clarity. Highways illuminate through cityscapes like never before and sprawling urban environments come to life extending to the horizon with higher resolution night textures.

Major optimizations have been made to model loading vastly reducing load times for complex scenery add-ons. Additional enhancements were made across the entire platform ranging from smoother multiplayer animations, greater Virtual Reality (VR) performance, to improved Physically Based Rendering (PBR) lighting and color balance.

Expanded developer features including support for PBR autogenerated vegetation, greater effects customization, and various interface updates and new services further expand Prepar3D's open development architecture enabling richer and more customizable content.

New features added to the Professional Plus product include Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) auto-connection, DIS engagement lines, and Common Image Generator Interface (CIGI) collision detection expand Prepar3D's interoperability between professional simulation platforms. Additionally, multiple improvements to SimOperator including full sound support, a real-time progress log, and object visual ribbons, helps bring interactive scenarios to life while enhancing operator situational awareness.

Take your training to new heights with Prepar3D v4.5!

The following list of updates has been categorized based on the installer required. The Client installer is required for Prepar3D v4.5, however the Content, Scenery, and SDK installers are optional. You must first have Prepar3D v4 installed to utilize the Client only installer.

To install the Prepar3D v4.5 Client, you must first uninstall the previous Prepar3D v4.0/v4.1/v4.2/v4.3/v4.4 Client through Programs and Features in Windows Control Panel. Do not deactivate your license when prompted. If you selected to deactivate your license during uninstallation of your current Client, your will be prompted to reactivate Prepar3D. Please view the Prepar3D v4 Download and Installation Instructions for more information.

Prepar3D Client

General Platform Updates

New Features

Added Network Test UI screen.
Application can now be run over remote connections.
Added native eye tracking support with the HTC Vive Pro Eye.
Added native support for the Varjo VR-1 headset.

New Features (Professional Plus Only)

Added Distributed Interactive Simulation (DIS) auto-connect capability.
Engagement lines can now be drawn in DIS.
Added Common Image Generator Interface (CIGI) collision detection.
Sound now supported in SimOperator.
The scenario Progress Log is now available in SimOperator.
Visual ribbons now render in SimOperator.

Fixes and Improvements

Improved terrain night lighting.
Improved rendering performance.
The IP address box is now focused when entering the Direct IP multiplayer screen.
Slightly reduced the light energy on PBR objects to better match non-PBR object lighting.
Fixed bounding box calculations for models.
Fixed Learning Center button in the Virtual Reality (VR) Settings screen.
Fixed mouse picking on Physically Based Rendering (PBR) textures.
Fixed crash seen in aircraft with fewer propellers than engines.
Fixed issue that caused scripted textures to not refresh correctly.
Fixed memory leak that occurred when models contained invalid animations.
PBR is now supported for autogen trees.
Loading a scenario from the Startup Screen will now return to the Startup Screen instead of immediately launching the scenario.
Fixed offset reflections in VR single pass mode.
User objects with 0 hit points will now collide into objects instead of ignoring crashing.
Fix for texture caching to prevent incorrect terrain tile textures from loading in certain cases.
Improve animation smoothness in multiplayer.
Doubled default send update rate frequency in multiplayer.
Fixed issue preventing the C-130 from respecting the unlimited fuel setting.
Fixed issue causing effects to not draw in some cases when multiple views were open.
Fixed issue preventing the multiplayer host from switching vehicles during a scenario if option was enabled.
Fixed loading issue that could sometimes prevent various buildings from loading.
Errors in custom weather settings are now displayed when opening the UI window.
VR now remains enabled after a scenario reset.
Fixed issue where players could join in the wrong vehicle in some cases in multiplayer.
Various performance improvements to single pass VR.
Currently open views are now preserved when entering multiplayer unless specified by the scenario.
Fixed various cases where the main application window was not blacked out when opening certain UI views.
Added default VR window positions for global panels.
Autorudder is now disabled by default.
Fixed minor visual artifacts with focal points in VR.
Fixed incorrect handling of several escape characters in aircraft configuration files.
Fixed issue preventing panels positioned in 3D space from respecting the ignore input setting.
VR gaze controls now support right clicking.
Fixed various UI issues with saving and loading seasons in the southern hemisphere.
Removed Multiplayer HostControlsScenarioEntities setting. This is now always defaulted to true.
Scenario objects are now serialized by the host instead of loaded from the scenario file by each connected client.
Fixed unwanted collisions between host scenario objects.
Fixed issue preventing scenario entities owned by the host from being damaged.
Fixed issue preventing global custom cameras from refreshing correctly after changing vehicles.
Fixed HMD menu toggle button.
Fixed issue where muting sounds would stop and resume sounds instead of playing at zero volume.
Added temperature checks to particle emitter velocity calculations.
Fixed minor visual issues with tree reflections.
Fixed issue in some ground vehicles where vehicle would attempt to steer when not moving.
Objects will now animate even when not being drawn if they have an object such as a weapon attached to an attachpoint.
Various updates to multiplayer interfaces.
Fixed issue where add-ons placed in the Prepar3D v4 Add-ons folder would not write to the app data configuration file.
Fixed issue where sounds would not always disable when hitting 'Q' or pausing the simulation.
Ribbons added in the Navigation Visuals menu can now have their width configured in the UI.
The multiplayer chat window button now works as a toggle.
White space is now prevented from being sent in the multiplayer chat window.
Various layout and icon changes made to the multiplayer chat UI.
Fixed issue where local client's chat window player icons would not update as they were talking.
Fixed sound issues when switching views.
Scenario panels can now be opened while viewing an AI aircraft.
Fixed crash that could occur when playing back recordings with effects.
Fixed radio frequency display in the multiplayer chat window.
The chat window no longer closes when entering multiplayer.
Fixed performance issues with the chat window when receiving new chat messages.
Info text is now displayed when using multiplayer voice communications.
Fixed effect placement issues when objects were frozen.
Added Direct Voice key mapping to talk to players directly regardless of radio frequency settings.
Optimized model loading times.
Object visual ribbons can now have unique colors per association ID.
Fixed the ClientEnableVoice setting in multiplayer.
Unprocessed voice data is no longer sent over the network.
Added an additional optional timeout value to ribbons to prevent them from remaining after an object is no longer moving.
Fixed issue that could cause particle effects to incorrectly emit if the attached model wasn't animating.
Multiplayer chat notifications are no longer sent when players join the lobby.
Added content errors for duplicate autogen IDs.
Fixed issue with docked panels not displaying correctly when loading a view group.
Voice communication is now enabled by default in multiplayer.
Visual ribbons no longer cast shadows.
Added configuration option to group navigation visual icons.
Added documentation covering the missionpanels.cfg file.
Navigation visual icons are now positioned based on the object's bounding box.
Added key event to refresh shaders.
Added multiplayer "Ready Players" button so host can request each player enters the ready state when joining the session.
Added additional tooltips to multiplayer UI windows.
Reverted render mode for UI windows back to software-only.
Fixed issues with attached objects being out of sync with parent object.
Fixed issue where shared cockpit voice intercom could not be disabled by owner aircraft.
Fixed batching issues with objects using two UV channels.
Fixed crash when opening a new docked view with window titles on.
Fixed bug preventing the HideTerrain camera configuration entry from functioning.
Fixed UI hang when closing the Save Scenario screen using the X button.
Fixed crash in the Vehicle Select screen when trying to preview a vehicle with no preview data when in the viewer object.
Fixed issue with the "Use System Time" setting not being respected in some cases.

Fixes and Improvements (Professional Plus Only)

Added delete object callbacks for High Level Architecture (HLA).
Client roles are no longer reset when the scenario is restarted in SimOperator.
Fixed issue preventing SimOperator from executing certain scenario actions.
Attachments are now updated after the loadout is loaded instead of waiting for the first simulation update.
Weapons and countermeasures that fail to register in multiplayer are now removed.
Fixed issue where weapon effects would not draw in some cases after they were detached.
Fixed issue where "Pause On Lost Focus" would not stop the simulation time in SimOperator.
Updated AttackerBehavior to support firing weapons multiple times within a second.
AttackerBehavior no longer fires against enemies with no health.
Countermeasure System now utilizes the system on flag.
Fixed crash that could occur when ending a scenario with ongoing delay actions.
SimOperator now always starts the scenario paused.
SimOperator will now display the correct player name and "Observer" role in lobby.
The Measuring Tool is now available outside of staging mode in SimOperator.
SimOperator now correctly persists Editor ribbon button and window states.
Fixed inconsistent pause states when staring SimOperator.
ControllableCameras now track weapon system targets.
SimOperator can no longer enter roles or change user ownship.
Fixed issue preventing "Center On" from working correctly in SimOperator.
"Snap to Ground" is now available in SimOperator.
Moving aircraft in SimOperator will no longer cause them to fly.
Fixed issue when canceling an exit in SimOperator could cause the UI to freeze.
Fixed issue that could cause the SimOperator confirmation prompt to appear multiple times on exit.
Fixed issue where both multiplayer and SimOperator confirmation prompts would appear on exit in some cases.
Fixed issue where launching a SimOperator session would sometimes return to the login screen.
Fixed issue preventing recording from playing back correctly in multichannel.

SimDirector Updates

New Features

Added StopFlightRecordingAction to stop a currently playing flight recording on an object.
Play and stop recording actions can now be triggered on player objects.
ScaleformObjects can now be added in Virtual Instructor mode.
Added wait cursor to display when SimDirector is saving the scenario.
Added ControlEventTrigger to process actions based on control input.
Added Association ID object with friend/enemy support.

Fixes and Improvements

Improved performance when making modifications to objects in large scenarios.
Added angular data to the measure tool.
Added additional validation to area objects.
Crash detection is now correctly restored when leaving Virtual and Flight Instructor modes.
Fixed bug preventing tail numbers from being set on entity objects.
Fixed incorrect speed tree rotations when using the rotation gizmo.
Scenario menu prompts can no longer be manually closed by the user without selecting an option.
Simplified AI creation by removing unsupported types.
CylinderPathAreas can now be moved with the mouse.
SetTargetActions can now be applied to player objects.
Goals objects can now be configured to pause the scenario when bringing up the goal completion popup window.
Fixed issue with ObjectActivationActions not updating the next point of interest if applicable.
Touch zoom now continuously updates instead of zooming only when touch was released.
Fixed cases where alert messages would show below the Prepar3D window.
Fixed object placement issues when using touch controls.
Fixed issue with action triggers re-firing before child actions completed.

Prepar3D Content

New Content

Leopard APC AI object.
Tiger APC AI object.
Animated Focal.swf file for use in scenario development.
Donkey and cart scenery objects.

Fixes and Improvements

Added dynamic lighting to fire, explosion, and firework effects.
Updated S-97 external AI model with pilot silhouettes, added configurable tail numbers, and improved rudder animations.
Several C-130 fixes to switches and lights.
Added missing afterburner effect to the R-11 Scud missile.
Improved R-11 Scud Transporter vehicle handling.
Fixed missing light effects on beacon lights and extended the dynamic lighting range.
F-16 wing rails are now always visible instead of being added as an attachment.
Tuned several explosion and impact effects.
Fixed F-16C HUD text to only display when looking through the glass.
Fixed illogical stall speed in F-16A.
Corrected pylon positioning to fix gaps.
Added dynamic lighting to muzzle flash effects.
Fixed issue with Pilot and Sensor reticles missing elements when opened on multiple displays.
Updated autogen models to reduce flickering at long distances.
Updated roles in the example multiplayer scenario to include the C-130 and F-16.
Beacon lights scale based on distance.
Fixed F-16 afterburner effect to no longer bleed through certain areas of the model.
Updated Indago to reference common pilot and sensor reticle files.
Additional minor tuning to various weapon objects.
Updated Jet Fighter Time Trial scenario to prevent speed build up before selecting aircraft.

Prepar3D Scenery

Fixes and Improvements

Added more building scenery objects.
Added several SpeedTree variants.
Fixed visual errors in various tree models.

Prepar3D SDK

New Features

3ds Max 2019 is now supported.
Added functions to get bounding and crash boxes for objects through the Prepar3D Development Kit (PDK).
Added flag to inhibit rudder input with nose wheel steering on tiller-equipped airplanes.
Kill effects are now customizable for all SimObjects and support different effects when on the ground or in the air.
Additional global panel configuration files can now be added through the add-on system.
Added various PBR material templates and updated model template documentation.
Added function to enable and disable the sending and receiving of DIS packets to the DISManager PDK.
Added simulation and program variables to retrieve position freeze states.
Added InitPosition function to IBaseObject.
Added TargetLeadTime property to the WeaponSim guidance system.
Particle effects emitters can now be configured to scale based on distance.
Added VR PDK Service.
Added Gaze Data Capture PDK sample.
Added GUID validation for modeldef.xml files. Errors will be displayed during 3ds Max export.
Added Unicode support to several SimConnect functions and events.
Added ControllableCamera function to track the current target from the fire control system.

Fixes and Improvements

SimConnect weather observation queries will now return global weather station data if the specified station does not have weather defined.
Fixed incorrect reticle alignment in the Targeting Pod Sample.
Fixed issue where changing global weather over SimConnect would not properly clear clouds and precipitation.
A controllable camera is now automatically created when any corresponding variable is requested from an XML gauge or Scaleform.
Fixed null return case in GetCurrentWindow with multiple views.
Added GetGroundAlt to CameraPDK.
Updated the Oil Rig sample .x and .max files.
Updated AIR sample files in documentation.
Use of global terrain view can now be set using the CameraPDK.
Added CameraSystem PDK functions to control single pass rendering.
Corrected return values in the Sound PDK service.
Fixed issue where 3D sounds created through the PDK would always loop.
Added missing latitude and attitude key events to the gauges header.
Fixed issue preventing some sample projects from building correctly in debug.
Fixed XtoMDL error that could cause certain elements to be incorrectly flagged as animated.
Updated outdated documentation referencing dll.xml files instead of add-on.xml files.
Fixed issues with camera sensor mode not updating when set using SimConnect.
Updated helicopter sample flight model with min/max collective angles.
Fixed crash when trying to create non-aircraft objects with the SimConnect_AICreateNonATCAircraft function.

Prepar3D v4.5 Hotfix 1

Client Fixes and Improvements

Fixed performance issues seen on some systems and configurations.
Fixed issue where the interpolated wind direction value would be invalid in some cases.
Added configuration option to toggle UI hardware acceleration mode (UIHardwareAcceleration).
Fixed crash when re-enabling Virtual Reality (VR) while using the Oculus headset.
Fixed crash that could occur in some cases after a plugin removed its textures from the system.
Varjo VR-1 eye tracking is now supported.
Improved performance when using the Varjo VR-1 headset.
Fixed issue where CreateEffect callbacks would not be issued unless both xyz and pbh offsets were present.
CIGI ownship ID now set to 0 for versions prior to CIGI 4.0 (Professional Plus Only).
Fixed error with empty EntityAffiliation tags being written out in saved scenarios.
Fixed issue where sound volume could be incorrect when switching between interior and exterior views.
Fixed issue where PBR textures could be black in interior views when first entering a vehicle.
Fixed incorrect unit conversions for camera eyepoint altitude P variables.

Content Fixes and Improvements

Fixed missing PBR texture in F-16A.
Removed light scaling from beacon effects.

Scenery Fixes and Improvements

Increased beacon light visibility distance.

SDK Fixes and Improvements

Fixed issue where the PBRMaterial's effectFile property would not be updated during load.
Fixed issue with 3dsMax exports causing material mismatch errors when P3DMaterial and PBRMaterial were being used in the same scene.
Fixed issue with drawing and loading Annotator vegetation polygons.
Fixed several minor errors in documentation.

Prepar3D v4.5 Hotfix 2

Client Fixes and Improvements

Fixed Startup Screen UI issue where the incorrect date would be displayed after loading a scenario.
Fixed bug preventing SSAA from being applied on PBR objects.
Fixed issue where AI cargo doors would not close before taxi/takeoff in some cases.
Fixed issue where AI baggage carts could get stuck in the TAXI state causing AI aircraft to remain in the PreFlight state.
Fixed issue preventing pylons without attached weapons from serializing in multiplayer.
Tracer rounds now render in multiplayer.
VR recalibration origin can now be configured including an option to calibrate with a custom origin without triggering calibration from OpenVR.
Fixed crash that could occur when DIS labels were active with high traffic settings.
Improved fallback logic when a container title is not found in the DISEntityTypes.xml.
Fixed bug where attach points would not animate in some cases.
Fixed several positioning bugs with mixed reality portals.
Improved portal editing including the ability to modify their PBH and name.
Added FOV edit mode for VR controllers.
Different shapes can now be used for portals including cylinders, spheres, and rectangles.
Gaze detection can now be enabled in VR settings.
Fixed crash that could occur when crashing the aircraft while using a Varjo VR-1 headset.
Fixed light and text sizing, g-effects, and inverted eye openness values in Varjo VR-1 headsets.
Fixed bug preventing 3D airport navigation visuals from drawing in some locations.
Fixed crash that could occur during scenario validation if VI sessions were empty.
VR mouse cursor is now hidden when not in use.
Tooltips are now stored in each pick request.
Fixed bug preventing VR tooltips from appearing if other external pick requests were active.
Added an AllowLoopback DIS option to allow processing of packets sent by the local machine.
Any VR interface can now be enabled on startup.
Fixed bug affecting the visibility of attached effects.
Added eye panel data to VR settings.
Fixed issue causing brightness in HDR to be too low in some cases.
Fixed issue where objects with PBR materials would have incorrect vertical positions in some cases.
Scaleform panels now serialize local variables (L:Vars) in multiplayer.
Added VR passthrough camera settings screen.
Fixed issues preventing weapon targets from recording and playing back correctly in some cases.
Simplified playback complete dialog text.
Entities will now maintain their current course when a PlayFlightRecordingAction completes.
Added CIGI auto-start capability.
Fixed issue where OnCompleteActions would not fire after AI completed a waypoint list.
Improved VR tracker calibration including the ability to use a tracker puck as the camera origin.
Fixed bug where add-on airport LLA would not be updated in some cases.
DIS pull to ground is now on by default.
DIS pull to ground now uses CG height instead of the bounding box for placement.
DIS pull to ground transition is now smoothed as well as clamping pitch and bank.
Added button to calibrate eye tracking for Varjo VR-1 headsets.
Fixed issue where add-on land class textures would not be loaded in some cases.
Stereo mode now supported for Vive Pro Eye passthrough camera.
Improved handling of alpha values in terrain vector textures.
Eye tracking in supported VR headsets is now automatically enabled.
Fixed issue where airport runway secondary landing attributes would be ignored and processed as primary landing attributes.
Added VR Tuning Guide to the Learning Center.

Content Fixes and Improvements

Fixed incorrect fire weapon voice control binding and added default fire gun command.
Fixed DIS enumeration for wander boat.
Fixed text display, target distance, and target aspect angle issues in the F-16 HMD overlay.
Removed the momentum effect from the Virtual Cockpit Only camera.
Fixed visibility issues with the explosion flak effect.
Added Eye Tracking Demonstration Scenario.
Moved F-16 eyepoint forward slightly.
Fixed default DIS entity mappings for Lowboy Semi-Tractor Trailer and Tanker Truck Yellow to prevent collisions.

Scenery Fixes and Improvements

Fixed incorrect transparency values in several autogen objects.

SDK Fixes and Improvements

Fixed incorrect ordering of C-gauge tokens.
Fixed variable naming for ISimObject attachment units and updated documentation.
Fixed missing GetGeneralTimeOfDay function in the IGlobalDataV430 interface.
Custom SimObject properties that override native SimVars now work over SimConnect.
Added an OpenGL Panel sample.
Updated the picking sample with an example of using world ray interrogation.
Fixed a memory leak in the Custom Icon sample.
Fixed bug preventing columns from being customized in the Traffic Toolbox tool.
Added an Eye Tracking SDK sample.
Fixed UV channel optimization issue causing vertex count mismatches in some cases.
Added addition simulation categories to SimConnect_RequestDataOnSimObjectType.
Added additional VR SDK interfaces.
Added world object PDK service to create, place, and remove objects by GUID.
Added world object PDK service sample.
Added OpenCVStereoCamera PDK sample.
Fixed crash that would occur when using the panel system InitializeVarByName function.

Prepar3D v4.5 Hotfix 3

Client Fixes and Improvements

Added support for the Varjo XR-1 Mixed Reality (MR) headset.
Fixed bug preventing gaze select cursor from appearing in some cases.
Ownship can now follow waypoints when using the ActivateWaypointsAction.
The ActivateWaypointsAction now correctly sets waypoint requested distance values.
Fixed bug preventing waypoint list data from being queried by the PDK when running SimDirector.
Fixed bug preventing Camera System PDK calls from accessing the latest interface version.
Improved DIS wildcard handling and fixed issue preventing entity types from corresponding correctly in some cases.
Fixed bug preventing preview windows from rendering in SimDirector in some cases.
Fixed issue where shared cockpit would lag with more than four players in a vehicle.
Fixed QueryService call for the IDISManagerv450 interface.
Fixed issue causing irregular movements on nested attached objects.
Fixed multichannel startup crash seen in some cases.
Fixed issue where sound would still be muted in some cases when leaving multiplayer UI screens.
Fixed wave animation issues when changing wind directions over the 0/360 degree boundary.
Slew is now enabled by default in multichannel.
Added a command line argument to launch Prepar3D directly into playing back a flight recording.
Fixed cases where certain objects would have irregular movements in recording playbacks.
Fixed issue preventing metallic occlusion properties from loading correctly.
Fixed crash seen when loading airports with no taxiway paths.
Fixed issue where scenario actions would not fire when starting directly into multiplayer.
Improved handling of near clip in VR.
Fixed issue where autopilot state would not load correctly in some cases.
Fixed issue causing incorrect pitch to be set when loading an uncompressed 32 bit DDS texture.
Added controls to emulate the mouse scroll wheel when using Gaze Selection in VR.
Added support for the Varjo XR-1 Mixed Reality (MR) headset.
Multichannel clients can now use direct IP autostart.
Fixed issue where scenario objects would not handle events correctly in multichannel.
Fixed crash when resetting structured scenarios in multichannel.

Content Fixes and Improvements

Updated several DISEntityTypes.xml entries to ensure each default object is unique.
Removed invalid FuelTruck object from DISEntityTypes.xml.
Fixed flap configuration for the F-35A.
Fixed issue with F-16 effects being added twice by removing effect file extensions in F-16 config entries.
Fixed minor issues in the Basics of Flight scenario.

SDK Fixes and Improvements

Added functionality to the PDK for Structured Scenario support for Mission Objectives, Goals and Flight Segments.
Added additional multiplayer PDK service functions.
Fixed TrafficToolbox dump airport list to correctly parse airspace types.
Fixed issue preventing ImageTool from loading certain DDS textures.
Fixed event ID filter for mouse inputs to allow custom ISimObject instance-based properties.
Added [ClampingOnGround] variables to SimObjects to prevent stationary vehicles from sliding in some cases.

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