Fix: Nexus Mod Manager not Downloading

The Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) is a free and open source piece of software through which you can download, install, update and manage your mod files. It integrates with the Nexus sites to provide you with a fast and much less hassled modding experience.

However, several users are getting into a situation where you go to “Nexusmods” site and try to download any mod files by clicking the button “Download with Manager” and it does a little loading but Nexus Mod Manager just won’t download the clicked file.

What Causes the Nexus Mod Manager to not download?

We investigated this particular issue by looking at various user reports and the repair strategies that were used for resolving this particular problem. Based on what we gathered, there are few common reasons that are known to cause this issue for the users:

Now that you know what is causing this issue, let’s move towards the methods that will help you resolve this problem.

Method 1: Associate with NXM URLs:

This method is focused on the settings of Nexus Mod Manager where you will find the option about associate with nxm URLs. Sometimes this particular option will be the bug for the problem and not letting manager communicate with nexus URLs that you are trying to download. So to fix this follow the steps below:

1. Open “Nexus Mod Manager” by double-clicking the shortcut and go to “Settings“
2. In the General tab at the top, you will see “Associate with NXM URLs“
3. If this is grey out, close the Nexus Mod Manager

   

4. Right-click on the NMM shortcut icon and choose “Run as Administrator“
5. Go back to the “Settings“, and uncheck the “Associate with NXM URLs” (if it’s already checked)
6. Close settings, then again open settings and check the box back

   

7. Try if you are now able to download through NMM

Method 2: Checking Firefox for NXM Preferences

In this method, we will be checking the Firefox browser settings related to the Nexus mod manager. There can be a possibility for the nxm to be associated with a wrong application or none selected in your settings. Changing the settings for nxm will resolve this issue of unable to get downloads in the manager from the website. Steps for checking and fixing this option are:

1. Launch “Firefox” by double-clicking the shortcut and go to “Options“
2. Select the “Applications” tab on the left-hand side and then select “Nexus Mod Manager” for nxm in the list

   

3. If NMM is not in the drop-down list, choose “Use Other“
4. Click “Browse“, and select the “NexusClient.exe” in the installed folder

   

5. Now go and try downloading through NMM

Method 3: Using Vortex (An Alternative)

If the Nexus Mod Manager still doesn’t work, then switching to Vortex can be helpful for downloading mods. Vortex is the nice middle ground between Nexus Mod Manager (NMM) and Mod Organizer (MO). It has a few features that are better and not available on the other ones. Vortex has moved from the alpha, beta testing phase, and is now available with a full release.

With NMM if you install two mods you will get no indication as to which was set to override the other, which will make conflict. For Vortex, it will inform you about the existence of a file and its conflict in your load order. Also provides the ability to change the settings about which mod should win the conflict by going last, without needing to reinstall and the program informs you about the presence of a file conflict in your load order.