linux Install TruckersMP Launcher on Linux

[Krisi]

Hello Tux users!

 

The TruckersMP Team get questions about Linux support, however, supporting another platform is not an easy task, and because of this, the mod isn't supported on Linux distributions. However, there is a workaround to install and use TruckersMP with some tools.

 

DISCLAIMER: This is not an official support article, and TruckersMP Team cannot assist you if any problem occurs. Also, keep in mind, that the steps are not harmful to your installation, but if you mess up, I'm not responsible for any action you have done. 

 

Getting Started

 

Linux Distro compatibility

 

This forum post should work on any Linux distro, but because I can't test that on every variant of OSes, I can't guarantee that your installation will work instantly after you follow the steps. In that case, please leave a comment, and I'll help you, and post the solution in this post.

 

The tutorial should work on:

• Debian-based distros (Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Pop_OS, elementaryOS, etc)
• Red Hat-based distros (Fedora 39 is working well, I tested that)
• Arch-based distros (Yes, it should work on Steam Deck as well)

 

In this post, I'll use Fedora 39 for a reference.

 

Necessary packages

 

Luckily, there is a tool called truckersmp-cli, which gives a list of necessary packages for us. However, the post is not about that tool, but for more advanced users, I can recommend messing around with it.

 

You will need the necessary packages to install the mod on your system:

• Steam (Flatpack version should work, too!)
• steam-devices (for controller support)
• SDL2
• Wine (Installing Lutris should give all the necessary files for you, and also a good tool to add other games from Windows-only stores, like Epic Games)

 

Updating your system

 

Before you do anything, make sure your operating system is up-to-date. To do that, follow the commands below:

 

For Debian-based distros:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

 

For Red Hat-based ones:

sudo dnf update

 

For Arch-based one:

sudo pacman -Syu

 

Install the necessary packages

 

If you already have the packages, then you can skip this part.

 

For Debian-based distros:

sudo apt install steam steam-devices wine sdl2

 

For Red-Hat based ones:

sudo dnf install steam steam-devices wine SDL2.x86_64

 

For Arch-based one:

yay steam steam-devices wine sdl2

 

There is a chance, that you need to alter the command a little bit or use other commands to install the packages. 

 

Setting up Steam and the games

 

The TruckersMP is not working with Linux binaries, so you need to use the Windows version of the game. To do that, we will use Proton:

1. Open Steam
2. In the left corner, click on Steam -> Settings -> Compatibility
3. Enable Steam Play for all other titles
4. Restart Steam

 

Then go to your Library and do the following for ETS2/ATS:

1. Right-click on the game -> Properties -> Compatibility
2. Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool
3. Select Proton Experimental

 

If you have already installed the game, then Steam will download it again with the necessary Windows binaries. If not, then you can install the game now.

 

You will need the location of the game to make the launcher work.
Locating the game folder:

1. Right-click on the game -> Properties -> Installed Files -> Browse
2. Copy the location of your game installation

 

Mine loos like this:

/home/<username>/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/common/Euro Truck Simulator 2/

 

You will need that later.

 

Install TruckersMP Launcher

 

This is where wine comes in. Without wine, you can't run .exe files on your Linux distro, so with this compatibility layer, you can do that too! Go to the TruckersMP website and download the launcher installation: https://truckersmp.com/download 

 

After you download the file, open the terminal, and navigate to the downloaded file. You can use the cd command to navigate to the Downloads folder:

cd Downloads

 

Then, run the TruckersMP-Setup.exe file with wine like this:

wine TruckersMP-Setup.exe

 

A window will pop up that will say Wine setting up itself. If it asks you to install stuff, just say yes and proceed. We only use Wine to extract the necessary files for us, so the launcher won't start with it, in the terminal, this is what you get:

Simply just press Ctrl + C and ignore this error message. 

 

Add the Launcher to Steam

 

After that, we will use Steam Proton, to simply launch the mod you need to follow these steps:

1. Open Steam
2. In the left corner: Add a Game -> Add a Non-Steam Game...
3. A new window popped up, simply click on Browse...
4. Click on your home directory
5. The launcher is installed in a hidden folder, you need to press Ctrl + H to unhide the files and folder
6. Mine is installed here: /home/<username>/.wine/drive_c/users/<username>/AppData/Local/TruckersMP/
7. Select TruckersMP-Launcher.exe

 

After that, you need to go to your Library and do the same steps you had to do for ETS2/ATS as well in the Compatibility tab.

 

Start the Launcher, and change the settings

 

Open the launcher in Steam with the big green PLAY button. You will get the following:

 

Don't worry that's why we located the game's location. Go to Settings, and change the game's path to the following:
Z:\<games-path> of ex.: Z:\home\<username>\.local\share\Steam\steamapps\common\Euro Truck Simulator 2

 

 

Important! You will need to use backslash "\" instead of slash "/". This is a necessary step to take!

 

After that, click on Save, and go back to "Play". Download the updates, and it should look like this now:

 

 

Last Step: Enjoy!

 

Simply, press the play button, and the game should start without any problem.

 

What is working?

 

The following things are working without any issues:

• Euro Truck Simulator 2
• American Truck Simulator
• Xbox Game Controller
• Steam Overlay
• DirectX11

 

Things which should work but haven't been tested:

• Season Mods
• ProMods
• Client Themes

 

Things are not working at that moment:

• Plugins, like job trackers (Needs redis files, still haven't figured out how to install them)

 

For any issue, please leave a comment, and we will figure out. If you have solutions for us, feel free to share here, and I'll try to add some of them into the main post.

 

I hope this forum post will help you, and finally you can enjoy the game on your favorite Linux distribution!

[Almeida.]

This is a good topic for Linux users who are interested in playing TruckersMP. 

[Guest]

Nice!

[Agricultor [PT]]

Nice topic!

Good work!

[Casatack]

I use the Steam Flatpak, and I want to emphasize that I'm not an expert in Linux. This is my approach, and perhaps it can be of assistance or inspiration. There's no need to adhere strictly to my suggestions.

 

I encounter issues running the MP Setup because Wine or Proton consistently runs as a Windows Administrator, resulting in an error message prompting me to "re-run this installer as a normal user instead". To overcome this, I installed the component in a Windows VM and then retrieved the necessary files from %localappdata%\TruckersMP , transferring them to the following directory on Linux: /PathToSteamFolder/steamapps/compatdata/227300/pfx/drive_c/users/steamuser/AppData/Local/ .

 

In the Original Game's Launch Options (Properties/General), I added the following line:

PROTON_LOG=1 "/PathToSteamFolder/steamapps/common/Proton 9.0 (Beta)/proton" waitforexitandrun "/PathToSteamFolder/steamapps/compatdata/227300/pfx/drive_c/users/steamuser/AppData/Local/TruckersMP/TruckersMP-Launcher.exe" && echo %command% > /dev/null

 

This method is rather convoluted and consistently triggers multiplayer mode when launching the original game from Steam. Consequently, it won't function offline. Perhaps it's advisable to refer to the guide provided in the original post. However, there's a chance this process may spark ideas for someone else.

 

If launch successful, navigate to the Z: disk to locate the game folder, as mentioned in the original post, and you're all set.

BTW, I believe it's more beneficial for both the game and multiplayer functionality not to be buried deep within directories. I've placed them in /home/user/games/steam/ with appropriate permissions set using Flatseal, as opposed to /home/user/.var/app/com.valvesoftware.Steam/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/ .

 

Edited May 13, 2024 by Casatack
I don't know English, for real.

[KuraiSiruru]

I am trying to do this with Fedora 40 41 and I have Wine 9 10 and the launcher won't install.

 

I get a popup error saying the installation has failed and in the terminal it states:

 

0174:err:module:import_dll Library iconv.dll (which is needed by L"Z:\\usr\\share\\wine\\mono\\wine-mono-9.0.0\\bin\\libmono-2.0-x86_64.dll") not found
0174:err:mscoree:load_mono Could not load Mono into this process

 

Edit: I realize now my mistake, i am looking for iconv.dll, not libmono. however, this still begs the question: how do i fix iconv.dll?

 

Edit 2: Still no solution to this issue. I have followed and re-followed the steps exactly as listed and I run into the same problem. Any help would be appreciated.

[Lennuk]

Hey, this guide worked great for me except for one thing:
 

OS: openSUSE Tumbleweed
 

Unfortunately I can't join a promods server. I just downloaded and installed all the latest promods a few days ago. In single player everything works fine, and I can join servers without mods without any problems.
When I try to join a Promods server, I get an error message saying there are missing mods or that I have the wrong mods installed.
 

Has anyone encountered the same problems and been able to fix them?

[zwyklosoba]

First I had a problem with .NET installation and now I can't run the installer because I can't run it as a normal user. I don't know how to do it. Can someone help please?

!!! After 2 days i found the solution! Just to launch use this command instead of wine <executable>: wine start <executable>

Edited July 3, 2024 by zwyklosoba
Solution found

[FQQD]

On 6/28/2024 at 6:08 PM, Lennuk said:

Hey, this guide worked great for me except for one thing:
 

OS: openSUSE Tumbleweed
 

Unfortunately I can't join a promods server. I just downloaded and installed all the latest promods a few days ago. In single player everything works fine, and I can join servers without mods without any problems.
When I try to join a Promods server, I get an error message saying there are missing mods or that I have the wrong mods installed.
 

Has anyone encountered the same problems and been able to fix them?

 

I unfortunatly currently experience the same problem. I've installed Promods and it works in normal ETS, but I can't join the TruckersMP server.

[Krisi]

5 hours ago, FQQD said:

 

I unfortunatly currently experience the same problem. I've installed Promods and it works in normal ETS, but I can't join the TruckersMP server.

 

On 6/28/2024 at 6:08 PM, Lennuk said:

Hey, this guide worked great for me except for one thing:
 

OS: openSUSE Tumbleweed
 

Unfortunately I can't join a promods server. I just downloaded and installed all the latest promods a few days ago. In single player everything works fine, and I can join servers without mods without any problems.
When I try to join a Promods server, I get an error message saying there are missing mods or that I have the wrong mods installed.
 

Has anyone encountered the same problems and been able to fix them?

 

The reason for this is simple, the base game and TruckersMP Launcher use different prefix folders, you need to insert the mods into the folder where the TruckersMP Launcher Proton prefix folder is located. 

I'll post a more detailed fix, but if I give a clue for you until that, I'm glad I was able to help.

 

[WannabeBR]

Hello!

 

First of all thanks for the tutorial.

Linux user trying to get it working too.

I managed to play Promods on TruckersMP after I stumbled on this tutorial:

Check it out, a bit different approach, using Steam Tinker Launch

Anyways, following this closely to see how it gets better over time, hopefully.
 

 

[[ULUSES] Mehmet [15]]

I'm getting Steam not opening error in Truckers MP; Before starting the game, log in to Steam and ignore this notification. I press the Play button and it tells me this. Please wait before restarting. If I don't open Truckers MP, it won't open again.

Is there a way to fix this

[OrangeVulture]

On 5/18/2024 at 1:52 AM, KuraiSiruru said:

I am trying to do this with Fedora 40 and I have Wine 9 and the launcher won't install.

 

I get a popup error saying the installation has failed and in the terminal it states:

 

0174:err:module:import_dll Library iconv.dll (which is needed by L"Z:\\usr\\share\\wine\\mono\\wine-mono-9.0.0\\bin\\libmono-2.0-x86_64.dll") not found
0174:err:mscoree:load_mono Could not load Mono into this process

 

Edit: I realize now my mistake, i am looking for iconv.dll, not libmono. however, this still begs the question: how do i fix iconv.dll?

 

Same distro and same error!! Could you find any fix for it?

[Rocraftis]

I am unable to start the installer. It shows this. Can someone help me fix this?

[Myrdin]

On 8/29/2024 at 10:16 AM, Rocraftis said:

I am unable to start the installer. It shows this. Can someone help me fix this?

Having the same issue and no clue how to fix it.
Anyone else know how to fix this?

[[ITA] s_sidon]

i cant open the truckersmp setup with wine/proton, having the same issues as the people above me

 

UPDATE: ok so i got it working, but now i cant open the game and when i can it can't see my profiles

Edited October 26, 2024 by [ITA] s_sidon

[temucina66]

hello, when i press start ets 2 dont start

[Leafa]

This did not work for me, but what did work was using truckersmp-cli to achieve the same result.

[Nasus20202]

On 8/5/2024 at 11:10 AM, OrangeVulture said:

 

Same distro and same error!! Could you find any fix for it?

Also running F40, this fixed my issue: https://askubuntu.com/questions/841847/mono-package-for-wine-is-not-installed

 

However, I still cannot launch the game via Steam, it crashes after displaying logo.

[[ITA] s_sidon]

On 10/28/2024 at 4:09 PM, Nasus20202 said:

Also running F40, this fixed my issue: https://askubuntu.com/questions/841847/mono-package-for-wine-is-not-installed

 

However, I still cannot launch the game via Steam, it crashes after displaying logo.

Having the same exact issue, truckersMP crashes upon displaying the logo

[SanQuan]

On 10/28/2024 at 5:09 PM, Nasus20202 said:

Also running F40, this fixed my issue: https://askubuntu.com/questions/841847/mono-package-for-wine-is-not-installed

 

However, I still cannot launch the game via Steam, it crashes after displaying logo.

I had the same problem, i started the update.exe one time.

After that i could run the launcher.

[OrangeVulture]

@SanQuan What is update.exe? 

[Ryαn]

Nice topic, good work!

[SanQuan]

On 11/20/2024 at 1:47 PM, OrangeVulture said:

@SanQuan What is update.exe? 

There is a update.exe in the same folder as the TruckersMP-Launcher.exe

[KuraiSiruru]

On 10/28/2024 at 12:09 PM, Nasus20202 said:

Also running F40, this fixed my issue: https://askubuntu.com/questions/841847/mono-package-for-wine-is-not-installed

 

However, I still cannot launch the game via Steam, it crashes after displaying logo.

What precisely did you do that fixed it? there were multiple fixes there, many without good instructions and one that i tried that gave me an "incompatible OS" error when i tried to install TruckersMP.