Installation Instructions

Install Original Game
To use OpenMW you need a base ESM file. Currently Morrowind.esm is the only one available; see http://openmw.org/faq/, section "Do I need Morrowind?"

Note: you do not have to use Wine to install Morrowind data files on Linux. See this article for details.

The (easier) Binary Way

 * Simply get the right archive for your OS here : http://code.google.com/p/openmw/downloads/list
 * Extract it
 * Launch "omwlauncher.exe" if your are under Windows, or "omwlauncher" if you are under Linux/Mac
 * Play!

The (bleeding edge) Source Way
See Development Environment Setup for detailed instructions.

After building the engine:


 * Launch "omwlauncher"
 * Play!

The Debian (and Ubuntu) Way
Repositories are available for several Linux distros, including Debian Wheezy and all recent (12.04+) Ubuntu versions. If you are using one of these distros, you can add OpenMW to your sources and install it via your regular package manager.

Add OpenMW to your sources and install (Debian)
Become root with su - or sudo -i, depending on your preference. These instructions use aptitude for package management, but replace it with apt-get if that is what you normally use.

Running OpenMW
After the installation is complete, run " ". You will get an error message stating "Error detecting Morrowind installation". Do not be alarmed, this is perfectly normal. Press the "Browse..." button and navigate to the directory containing the file "Morrowind.esm" and select it. For example, if you have Morrowind installed in Wine via Steam, this file will be located in.

You will be asked if you wish to import settings from Morrowind.ini. Select "Import", otherwise OpenMW will not work. You do not need to check the box "Include selected masters and plugins". The OpenMW launcher window should now open. Switch to the "Data Files" tab and check the box to the left of "Morrowind.esm". You are now ready to play!