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When Garry’s Mod will not launch, hangs at “Finished,” shows a black screen, loads an empty Workshop list, or displays pink-and-black textures, start with Steam’s file verification and then test the game without addons. Those two reversible checks separate damaged core files from addon, graphics, Steam-service, content, and server-version problems. The sections below give the exact order, launch options, and recovery steps for each symptom.
Use this troubleshooting order first
Change one thing at a time so you know which action changed the result. The following sequence moves from the safest, broadest repair to narrower causes:
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- Verify the installation. Steam can replace missing or corrupted Garry’s Mod files.
- Start with a clean configuration. Use Facepunch’s documented reset and windowed launch options only for testing.
- Disable every addon temporarily. This distinguishes Workshop or legacy-addon failures from a core-game failure.
- Check the graphics adapter, driver, DirectX level, and resolution if you see a D3D-device error, black screen, or an immediate crash.
- Classify service, content, and server messages. An empty Workshop menu, missing textures, and an out-of-date server each require a different fix.
- Save crash evidence if the game still fails, rather than repeatedly changing unrelated settings.
Do not delete addons or reinstall the game before these tests. Verification and launch flags are reversible and preserve your Workshop subscriptions.
1. Verify Garry’s Mod files in Steam
File verification is the safest first repair when the game stopped launching after an update, crashes before the menu, or reports missing files.
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- Open Steam and select Library.
- Right-click Garry’s Mod and choose Properties.
- Open Installed Files.
- Select Verify integrity of game files.
Steam compares the local installation with its expected files and may redownload damaged or missing files. Let the process finish, then start the game normally. If the game launches after verification, do not add launch flags immediately; first confirm that a normal session, a map, and (if relevant) a multiplayer connection work.
Verification repairs core files. It does not diagnose a broken Workshop subscription, an incompatible graphics adapter, missing mounted content, or a server running a different version. Move to the matching section if the same symptom remains.
2. Reset launch settings without making a permanent change
Old test flags can force an unsupported renderer, resolution, or startup mode. In Steam, open the game’s Properties, select General, and edit Launch Options. Enter one test option (or the documented addon pair) at a time, start the game, and remove the option after the test unless you need it.
-autoconfig: one-time settings reset
Facepunch describes -autoconfig as allowing Steam to configure Garry’s Mod with the best settings for the machine. Use it when a bad video setting prevents the menu from appearing or when the game crashes during startup. Add the flag, launch once, and remove it after a successful start so it does not keep resetting your configuration.
-sw: force a windowed start
-sw starts the game windowed. This is useful when fullscreen produces a black screen or the display loses signal. Once the menu is visible, set a supported resolution in the video options, close the game, remove -sw, and test normal startup.
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Forced width and height
Facepunch documents forced -w and -h resolution options. Use values that your monitor supports, for example -w 1280 -h 720. A forced resolution can recover a display that is outside the monitor’s usable range, but an invalid value can create another black screen. Remove both flags after choosing a working in-game resolution.
DirectX level flags
-dxlevel 90, -dxlevel 91, and -dxlevel 95 are documented test choices for DirectX level problems. They are troubleshooting flags, not a recommendation to leave a particular level permanently enabled. Test one, start the game, and then remove it. DX8 is not officially supported, so do not try to solve a startup failure by forcing DX8.
Remove conflicting options before testing
Clear old resolution, renderer, graphics, and experimental flags from the Launch Options box before interpreting a new result. A clean test should contain only the single option you are investigating, or the addon-isolation pair described below. If a reset works only while a flag remains, record the exact flag and the original symptom for a later report.
3. Isolate Workshop and legacy addons
An addon can crash the game before the menu, hang loading at “Finished,” or break a map after an update. You can disable addons without unsubscribing or deleting them.
- Open the Garry’s Mod Properties window in Steam.
- On General, add
-noaddons -noworkshopto Launch Options. - Launch the game and test the same map or action that previously failed.
- If it works, close the game, remove the flags, and re-enable addons in small groups or one at a time.
-noaddons disables legacy addons, while -noworkshop prevents Workshop addons from loading. Together they create a clean comparison: the files and executable are present, but addon code and content are not active.
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Interpreting the result
| Result with both flags | Likely scope | Next action |
|---|---|---|
| The game reaches the menu or loads the map | An addon or Workshop item is involved | Remove the flags and enable groups, then individual items, until the failing item is identified. |
| The same crash or hang occurs | Core files, graphics, configuration, or another system/service issue | Verify files, test graphics options, and collect crash evidence. |
| The menu works but one server fails | Server content or server version may be responsible | Compare with another server and read the server-specific message. |
Do not re-enable every addon at once after a successful test. Grouping makes the search logarithmic: if half the addons work, test that half first, then narrow the failing group.
4. Fix “Failed to create D3D device,” black screens, and graphics startup crashes
“Failed to create D3D device” generally points to graphics initialization rather than a Workshop subscription. Facepunch identifies incompatible adapter selection, drivers, DirectX level, and resolution as relevant causes.
Force the dedicated adapter
Systems with integrated and dedicated graphics can start the game on an adapter that cannot provide the required device. In your operating system’s graphics settings or the graphics driver control panel, assign Garry’s Mod to the dedicated GPU, then restart Steam and test again. The exact menu name varies by Windows and driver version, so use the per-application graphics setting rather than changing the global adapter for every program.
Update or roll back the graphics driver
For an unexplained startup crash, Facepunch recommends updating the driver. If the failure began immediately after a driver update, rolling back to an older driver version is also a documented option. Restart the computer after changing the driver and retest with addons disabled so two variables are not changing together.
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Combine the graphics checks with the reversible options from the previous section:
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- Use
-autoconfigfor a one-time settings reset. - Use
-swto bypass a fullscreen mode that produces a black screen. - Use a monitor-supported
-wand-hpair if the current resolution is unusable. - Test a documented
-dxlevelvalue (90, 91, or 95) only when DirectX initialization is suspected, then remove it.
If the game still cannot create a device after a verified installation, clean addon test, adapter selection, and driver check, save the exact error text and crash dump rather than repeatedly forcing more DirectX values. A dedicated graphics card is a conditional hardware remedy only when the existing adapter is genuinely incompatible; it is not the first step for an ordinary launch failure.
5. When the game hangs at “Finished,” never reaches the menu, or crashes after an update
These symptoms overlap, so use a controlled comparison instead of guessing:
- Verify files.
- Start once with
-autoconfig. - Start with
-noaddons -noworkshop. - Try windowed mode with
-swif the display is black or frozen.
If the clean addon launch works, the update likely exposed an incompatible addon; narrow the set by re-enabling items in groups. If the clean launch fails in exactly the same place, the problem is outside the addon layer and should be investigated as a file, graphics, configuration, Steam-service, or crash-reporting issue.
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6. Fix an empty Workshop menu (“Nothing Found”)
If the addon browser says “Nothing Found” even though your subscriptions exist, Facepunch describes a Steam-side issue that can affect several Workshop games. It is not necessarily evidence that all of your addons were deleted.
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- Synchronize the computer’s clock with the correct time source.
- Check the BIOS/firmware clock as well; an incorrect hardware clock can keep the system out of sync after a reboot.
- Restart Steam and check the Workshop menu again.
- If the list remains empty, contact Steam Support, because the failure may be on Steam’s service side rather than in Garry’s Mod files.
This procedure addresses an empty Workshop listing. It does not repair an addon that causes a crash after it appears in the list; use -noaddons -noworkshop for that case.
7. Repair pink-and-black textures and ERROR models
Pink-and-black checkerboards and large ERROR models normally mean the game cannot find the material, model, or map content being requested. In Garry’s Mod, that commonly happens when required mounted games or Workshop content are missing.
Check the content requirement
- Identify which game or content pack the map or addon expects.
- Install that required content if you own it.
- Make sure the required game is mounted and available to Garry’s Mod.
- For a multiplayer server, check the server’s stated required addons and content.
File verification cannot create content from another game that is not installed or mounted. Likewise, subscribing to an unrelated replacement addon will not fix a map that specifically references missing materials. If only one server shows checkerboards while other maps are normal, compare that server’s requirements before changing your local graphics settings.
8. Resolve “The server is out of date” and version-mismatch messages
Messages that say the server is out of date, or that the client and server use newer or older versions, require the server to update. The client cannot downgrade Garry’s Mod to match an outdated server.
- Wait for the server administrator or host to install the current server update.
- Try another server to confirm that your client can connect elsewhere.
- Do not remove local files or force DirectX options; those actions cannot change the remote server’s version.
If every server reports a mismatch, verify your own files and note the exact version text. If only one server fails, the evidence points to that server’s update state rather than a general installation failure.
9. Collect crash evidence that is useful to support
When the preceding tests do not resolve the crash, provide reproducible details instead of only saying that Garry’s Mod “doesn’t load.” Facepunch’s support guidance identifies the relevant dump locations and the context a report should contain.
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Find the dump
- On Windows, crash dumps are usually
.mdmpfiles inSteamApps/common/GarrysMod/. - For the x86-64 branch, dumps are in the
crashes/folder.
Write down the reproduction
- The exact error text, including capitalization and punctuation.
- Whether the crash occurs before the menu, while loading a map, at “Finished,” or after joining a server.
- The map name and whether the test was singleplayer or multiplayer.
- Whether
-noaddons -noworkshopwas enabled. - Which verification, launch-option, driver, or adapter test changed the behavior.
Attach the appropriate dump and these steps when contacting support. A report that distinguishes a clean launch from an addon-enabled launch lets support investigate the core game instead of asking you to repeat the same isolation tests.
Quick Recap
Choose the fix by symptom, reversibility, and evidence
| Symptom | First test | Reversibility | Scope | Useful evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crash before the menu | Verify files, then -autoconfig |
High; both are reversible | Core files and configuration | Error text and dump |
| Hang at “Finished” | -noaddons -noworkshop |
High; flags do not delete addons | Legacy and Workshop addons | Map, singleplayer/multiplayer, clean-launch result |
| Black screen | -sw, then supported -w/-h |
High; remove flags after testing | Display mode and resolution | Monitor resolution and whether windowed mode works |
| “Failed to create D3D device” | Force the dedicated adapter; check drivers and DirectX flags | Medium; driver changes need care | Adapter, driver, DirectX, resolution | Exact D3D message and driver version |
| Workshop says “Nothing Found” | Synchronize system and BIOS clocks | High; clock correction is reversible | Steam Workshop service or time synchronization | Whether other Workshop games are affected |
| Pink-and-black textures or ERROR models | Install and mount required content | Depends on the missing game/content | Mounted games and Workshop assets | Map/server name and stated requirements |
| “The server is out of date” | Wait for the server to update | Not a local repair | Remote server version | Exact version message and whether other servers work |
What not to do
- Do not leave every experimental launch flag enabled; one flag at a time produces a meaningful test.
- Do not assume an empty Workshop list means every subscription vanished; synchronize clocks and check Steam’s service.
- Do not buy hardware before testing adapter selection, drivers, resolution, and DirectX initialization.
- Do not expect file verification to supply a missing mounted game or to repair a remote server’s version.
- Do not delete all addons when launch flags can isolate them without losing subscriptions.
A compact recovery checklist
- Steam Library → Garry’s Mod → Properties → Installed Files → Verify integrity of game files.
- Remove old Launch Options; test
-autoconfigonce if settings may be invalid. - Test
-noaddons -noworkshop; if successful, re-enable addons in groups. - For a black screen, test
-swand a monitor-supported-w/-hpair. - For D3D errors, select the dedicated adapter and update or roll back the driver; use only documented
-dxlevel 90,91, or95tests. - For “Nothing Found,” synchronize the system and BIOS clocks, then contact Steam Support if the list remains empty.
- For checkerboards or ERROR models, install and mount the required games or Workshop content.
- For an out-of-date server, wait for the server to update; the client cannot downgrade.
- For an unresolved crash, include the correct
.mdmpor x86-64crashes/dump, reproduction steps, map, game mode, and addon status.
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