Service Depot: Installing Command & Conquer Gold & The Covert Operations

This guide will show you how to install Command & Conquer Gold and its The Covert Operations expansion pack on modern operating systems, with different sections covering different releases of the game.

Installation – retail CD version or freeware 2007 version from Electronic Arts

  1. Insert either Red Alert disc to the CD/DVD drive, or mount the ISOs from the freeware release using Windows 10/11’s native option, or an external tool like WinCDEmu. Check this guide to see what this means (but don’t use it to install the game, this guide is more up-to-date).
  2. If running a 32-bit system, exit the autorun and run setup.exe from the disc’s setup subfolder as administrator. (not applicable for Windows XP)
    If running a 64-bit system, use WineVDM to run setup.exe from the disc’s setup subfolder to properly emulate it as a 16-bit application.
  3. Install the game.
  4. Patch the game to the latest version of Nyerguds’ unofficial 1.06 patch (which includes The Covert Operations expansion pack).
  5. Apply the desired settings (resolution, graphics levels…) from the CCConfig.exe file that is now present in the Command & Conquer Gold directory. Make sure that the “No-CD” option is enabled.
  6. Browse to the game’s directory and set C&C95.exe to always run as administrator and in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3. (not applicable for Windows XP)
  7. Run the game.

Installation – freeware version from Nyerguds

  1. Download and install the full release from this page.
  2. Apply the desired settings (resolution, graphics levels…) from the CCConfig.exe file that is now present in the Command & Conquer Gold directory. Make sure that the “No-CD” option is enabled.
  3. Browse to the game’s directory and set C&C95.exe to always run as administrator and in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3. (not applicable for Windows XP)
  4. Run the game.

Installation – retail The First Decade version

Although the installer of The First Decade enables you to select the games you wish to install, this guide assumes that you intend to install Command & Conquer Gold and The Covert Operations only. For a more complete solution, check out the guide titled Fully Updating The First Decade.
  1. Insert The First Decade disc to the DVD drive.
  2. Exit the autorun, and run setup.exe on the disc as administrator. (not applicable for Windows XP)
  3. Follow the instructions on the screen. Choose a custom installation and select Command & Conquer and The Covert Operations to install.
  4. Patch the game to the latest version of Nyerguds’ unofficial 1.06 patch.
  5. Apply the desired settings (resolution, graphics levels…) from the CCConfig.exe file that is now present in the Command & Conquer Gold directory. Make sure that the “No-CD” option is enabled.
  6. Browse to the game’s directory and set C&C95.exe to always run as administrator and in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3. (not applicable for Windows XP)
  7. Run the game.

Installation – Steam and EA App versions

  1. Download and install the game from the Steam or EA App client.
  2. Patch the game to the latest version of Nyerguds’ unofficial 1.06 patch.
  3. Apply the desired settings (resolution, graphics levels…) from the CCConfig.exe file that is now present in the Command & Conquer Gold directory. Make sure that the “No-CD” option is enabled.
  4. Browse to the game’s directory and set C&C95.exe to always run as administrator and in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3.
  5. Run the game.

Alternate renderers

Explanation

For many old games which used DirectDraw to display graphics, including C&C Gold, there have been problems when running on Windows Vista and newer due to deteriorating support for that library.

Multiple custom-made display wrappers have appeared over the years. They differ in their implementation, and perform better in different games and for different hardware.

Usage

If the default renderer from the Steam or EA App versions (DDrawCompat by narzoul) does not work on a particular system, switch to any of the following alternatives by extracting them to the game directories:

Multiplayer

For online multiplayer, please refer to the CnCNet service.

LAN will not work by default on modern systems as they rely on the deprecated IPX protocol. Solutions:

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