steam - cannot contact key server

loaded fm09 fine this morning, had to disconnect for 20 mins and now when i double click the icon it says 'failed to contact the key server'. has anyone else had this problem and can offer a solution.

thanks in advance

I've installed though Steam, do I have to run the game through Steam each time I want to play?

No you don't, you can create a shortcut to Football Manager 2009 without having to use Steam. Go to:

C:\Program Files\Steam\Steamapps\Common\Football Manager 2009\

and right click the fm.exe file and choose "send to desktop (create shortcut)"

You don't need to be on Steam, in order to play.

Edit: Do what Nomis suggested, seeing as I took longer to type out my post.

To rectify your Steam error though, here is a link to the article on the Steam Support site: https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=2204-OPGC-4862

I've installed though Steam, do I have to run the game through Steam each time I want to play?

No you don't, you can create a shortcut to Football Manager 2009 without having to use Steam. Go to:

C:\Program Files\Steam\Steamapps\Common\Football Manager 2009\

and right click the fm.exe file and choose "send to desktop (create shortcut)"

You don't need to be on Steam, in order to play.

thanks for getting back to me, i've got a shortcut and if i click on that it gives me the 'cannot contact key server'. if i log out of steam and double click on the fm09 icon it just logs back into it.

thanks for getting back to me, i've got a shortcut and if i click on that it gives me the 'cannot contact key server'. if i log out of steam and double click on the fm09 icon it just logs back into it.

Do not use the shortcut that Steam created for you during installation. Follow Nomis' instructions to create a new shortcut. This bypasses Steam, allowing you to play FM without even being connected to the internet, much less connected to Steam.

Edit: Do what Nomis suggested, seeing as I took longer to type out my post.

To rectify your Steam error though, go to the Steam support site (https://support.steampowered.com/) and see if you can find a solution there.

thanks for that. it has managed to get me playing. however i can't be the only one that thinks steam is a pain in the arse. it might be of benefit to si but for your average gamer it just makes life more difficult. i'm not a computer expert by any means but i managed to follow the instructions above but i know plenty of people that would have struggled. a friend purchase empire total war and because of the amount of people on the server it said it would take 8 hours to download the patch so he could play the game. it can't be right that you pay £40 for a game then can't play it for a day purely because of steam can it?

Do not use the shortcut that Steam created for you during installation. Follow Nomis' instructions to create a new shortcut. This bypasses Steam, allowing you to play FM without even being connected to the internet, much less connected to Steam.

thanks again for your help, i'll try that. i took my laptop away with me when i went on holiday at xmas so i could play fm09 (geek, the missus was thrilled) and i couldn't play it because of that (the missus will be happy that you've solved the problem in time for my next holiday)

thanks for that. it has managed to get me playing. however i can't be the only one that thinks steam is a pain in the arse. it might be of benefit to si but for your average gamer it just makes life more difficult. i'm not a computer expert by any means but i managed to follow the instructions above but i know plenty of people that would have struggled. a friend purchase empire total war and because of the amount of people on the server it said it would take 8 hours to download the patch so he could play the game. it can't be right that you pay £40 for a game then can't play it for a day purely because of steam can it?

thanks again for your help, i'll try that. i took my laptop away with me when i went on holiday at xmas so i could play fm09 (geek, the missus was thrilled) and i couldn't play it because of that (the missus will be happy that you've solved the problem in time for my next holiday)

Do not mention it! However, your missus being happy that you are able to get FM working during a trip away just does not make any sense to me. If anything, shouldn't she be all the more pleased you get to devote more attention on her when FM does not work?

As for Steam being a hassle, well actually you could view it in another light. Steam makes it more convenient because you do not need to go out to a store to buy a game, meaning you can make the purchase during store closure hours. And you do not need to worry about losing your game discs as Steam provides an online database ready for download at any time.

Sure you can also order a game online through Amazon or other such websites and have them deliver it to your doorstep, but the waiting period would be more than just "8 hours" now, would it not?

I've installed though Steam, do I have to run the game through Steam each time I want to play?

No you don't, you can create a shortcut to Football Manager 2009 without having to use Steam. Go to:

C:\Program Files\Steam\Steamapps\Common\Football Manager 2009\

and right click the fm.exe file and choose "send to desktop (create shortcut)"

You don't need to be on Steam, in order to play.

thanks norris (joking, you may remember our heated pre .2 patch discussions) i'll try that, it'll save me much no internet no fm09 future pain.

Do not mention it! However, your missus being happy that you are able to get FM working during a trip away just does not make any sense to me. If anything, shouldn't she be all the more pleased you get to devote more attention on her when FM does not work?

Well, actually you can view it in another light. Steam makes it more convenient because you do not need to go out to a store to buy a game, meaning you can make the purchase during store closure hours.

Sure you can also order a game online through Amazon or other such websites and have them deliver it to your doorstep, but the waiting period would be more than just "8 hours" now, would it not?

the missus being happy was sarcasm, she'll be gutted. you say about amazon but i got my empire total war from an online retailer the day before release and thus avoided the massive download queue therefore the waiting period was minus 14 hours. also if the servers are as bad as they have been the last couple of days and when fm09 was released you'd probably go insance waiting.

the missus being happy was sarcasm, she'll be gutted. you say about amazon but i got my empire total war from an online retailer the day before release and thus avoided the massive download queue therefore the waiting period was minus 14 hours. also if the servers are as bad as they have been the last couple of days and when fm09 was released you'd probably go insance waiting.

Doh, my silly for not picking up on the sarcasm!

Well I guess release day purchases/downloads might be a gamble but even then, I got my FM through Steam on release day and it was smooth sailing. I did not suffer one bit of the activation problems either.

That said, there have been many discussions about Steam and many other more appropriate threads for them too, so I had best leave our discussion as it is.

Doh, my silly for not picking up on the sarcasm!

Well I guess release day purchases/downloads might be a gamble but even then, I got my FM through Steam on release day and it was smooth sailing. I did not suffer one bit of the activation problems either.

That said, there have been many discussions about Steam and many other more appropriate threads for them too, so I had best leave our discussion as it is.

agreed. a civil discussion on the fm forums, who'd have thought it?