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To install a friend’s Garry’s Mod addon from a folder, copy the complete addon folder into garrysmod/addons/ in your game installation. Keep its internal files and folder structure intact. If your friend uploaded the addon to the Steam Workshop, check the Addons menu’s Friends Uploads view first; subscribing there is usually simpler and gives Workshop-managed updates.

Before copying: check whether the addon is on the Workshop

Garry’s Mod calls its mods “addons.” Open the game’s Addons menu and look at Friends Uploads. If your friend’s upload is listed, you can use the Workshop route instead of transferring files. Workshop subscriptions are managed through the menu; unsubscribing removes the addon from the game, while disabling an addon stops it from loading but does not prevent it from updating. Facepunch’s Addons Menu documentation describes these controls.

Manual copying is useful when your friend has only a local addon folder, the addon is not available to you through the Workshop, or you specifically want a local copy. Copying a folder does not create a Workshop subscription, so it does not provide Workshop-managed updates. Facepunch’s Workshop addon documentation distinguishes folder-based addon packaging from Workshop distribution.

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How to transfer and install the folder

  1. Close Garry’s Mod. Keep the game closed while its addon files are being changed.
  2. Get the complete addon folder from your friend. Your friend can send the folder directly or archive it first. Use a convenient transfer method, such as an existing cloud file-transfer service, local network, or USB drive.
  3. Open the game installation in Steam. In your Steam Library, open Garry’s Mod’s Manage menu and choose Browse local files. This opens the installation directory.
  4. Open garrysmod/addons/. If the addons directory is not present, create it inside garrysmod.
  5. Place the addon folder inside addons. The result should look like .../garrysmod/addons/addon_folder/.... Each addon needs its own folder in this location, with its content kept together. Facepunch’s folder-structure documentation specifies this layout.
  6. Start Garry’s Mod and check the addon. Look for it in the game’s addon controls or verify that its features work in the relevant game mode.

Keep the addon’s folder structure intact

Copy the folder that contains the addon’s files—not just selected files from inside it. Do not place the addon at the garrysmod/ root, and do not merge its contents into another addon’s folder. The expected layout is one addon folder under garrysmod/addons/, with that addon’s files and subfolders inside it.

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Facepunch’s documentation states: “Each Addon for Garry’s Mod needs its own folder in garrysmod/addons/ that will hold all of its content.” See Lua Folder Structure.

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If the addon does not appear or work

  • Check for an extra folder level. If the transferred folder contains another folder with the addon’s actual files, make sure you have placed the actual addon folder at the intended level rather than nesting it accidentally.
  • Confirm the destination. The addon folder belongs under garrysmod/addons/, not directly under garrysmod/.
  • Make sure the transfer was complete. Ask your friend to resend the complete addon folder if files or subfolders may have been left out.
  • Check whether the addon depends on something else. A folder can be in the right place and still fail if the addon requires other content or has its own setup requirements. Ask the friend for the addon’s instructions.

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