Old VST's don't load

So I recently tried to load up some old projects that I created quite a while ago (diff version of windows and sonar).   I got a long list of plugin's that it says are missing, but I know for a fact that some of them are installed.  EWQL Silver for example.  

Is there any way to point Sonar to the proper VST again? 

Thanks,

That's the thing, is that the instruments are there for me to add, it's just not recongizing them when I open the old files.

Maybe you could remove the VST's in your old project and insert them again with VST's you know will work?

i'm having this same problem. So this is a Sonar bug between versions, then? (caused by the old VST Adapter, no doubt)

I was running into that too.   EZ drummer, and a bunch of effects would show as missing when I opened the projects.  Then I realized (at least in my case)  that I had recorded them in 32 bit and was trying to open them in the 64 bit realm.  If this is the case, as long as you do not save it in the 64 bit version (deleting all the saved information for the 32 bit plugs) when you back out and open it in the 32 bit version of sonar everything should be there as you left it.

Maybe 32 bit plugs on a 64 bit OS?  


Just guessing here. You said Older projects on a different version of Sonar and a different Operating System.....That's what makes me think the plugs are 32 bit and the OS is now 64. 


If you have updated the OS to 64 bit and have also installed the 64 bit plug version updates, you should be able to change the plugs by simply deleting the old ones listed in the FX bin and replace them with the new 64 bit versions. Probably will need to re-set the parameters, but that should solve it.

I get the missing plug warning as well on some really old projects or ones that people send to me to work on where I do not have those particular plugs in my DAW.  I delete the old non-working ones and replace them as needed. 

i've had more interaction with Cakewalk Tech Support on this topic and here are the notes i've made to them in my latest response indicate some progress (it's not just Sonar stupidity, but Sonar isn't helping - at least there's progress). i'm posting this here in case anyone else needs to search this forum for help on this or similar topics:

Per the info you've provided about differing versions of plug-ins causing CLSID mismatches, I'm finding some progress by way of locating & installing older versions of plug-ins, in older versions of Sonar, loading the project file with them present and copying the settings to recreate them in the newer editions. For reference, here are some details:



• Echomania, by Interruptor, changed its VST ID between version 1.0 & 1.1. This is clearly a case of plugin-caused problem, not Sonar, but it would be immensely helpful if Sonar provided tools to resolve such things, such as indicating the VST ID of the missing plugin.



• Reaktor & Kontakt, by Native Instruments, eliminated DXi support somewhere along the line. i apparently used the DXi versions in this project file, instead of the VST version. Again, not Sonar's fault but it DOES make troubleshooting excessively difficult when Sonar does not clearly identify the plugin format in use when there is potential for two different formats. Please make a request to the development team to provide a clear & obvious marking in Sonar to distinguish between a VST & a DX plugin and, if possible, again it would be helpful if Sonar provided a facility to map a missing plugin to an existing plugin when the difference is merely the plugin's format (I'm not aware of whether Sonar projects store plugin settings differently between VST & DX, so maybe this is not possible?).



• daHornet, by Dash Signiture / NUSofting also appears to have changed VST ID between the public free version 1.34 & the donation-acquired update version 1.43. 



• Sonar does not provide, from what i can see in my experience with 8.5.3, any information to determine which versions of plugins were in use when project files were saved. From the plug-in names presented by the Synth Rack to the fabled "place-holder plugin interface" that refuses to appear when i double-click on missing plug-ins (or click the "properties" button) in the Synth Rack.



• Sonar will not reliably unfreeze synths on the Synth Rack even when the plug-ins are present and the correct versions/IDs. i've had to repeatedly re-open a project file because my progress in unfreezing plug-ins on the Synth Rack has halted for no known reason. On one attempt, an instance of Kontakt 2 would unfreeze, but the second instance would not. On another attempt, the reverse order was the case. Both are the same in all but specific settings and one or the other can be unfrozen, but not both. Through repeated project loading and unfreezing, i identify the settings i need to reproduce and then recreate the plug-in and settings manually.



• i have an instance of Cakewalk Sonar's Sonitus Echo effect plug-in listed in the Synth Rack. Why? It's functional, but i have no idea why it's there and what problems that might indicate.



• Sonar will apparently NOT notify the user of a missing plug-in on project file opening when said plug-in is a frozen DXi or VSTi in the Synth Rack. Opening the project file warns me of the missing/mismatched EFFECT plug-in (Echomania, VST effect), but not the synths deHornet (VST, frozen), Kontakt (DXi, frozen) and Reaktor (DXi, frozen). i hypothesize that this may be because a simple name search of plug-ins is all that's used for frozen plug-ins (because they're frozen and not active, maybe Sonar treats them as mere text references??) so these are "present" by name alone, despite the plug-in not being loadable due to format or CLSID mismatch (this is a wild guess; obviously i cannot verify). Why would this be different from warning the user about a non-frozen VSTi/DXi? Have the developers investigate this.



To Sonar developers: If Sonar would provide the name & version number (assuming developers have included those two in the DLL) as well as the VST ID & Cakewalk Sonar CLSID of missing plug-ins when the plug-in interfaces are requested by the user, these problems could be troubleshot. As I may have noted in my tech support request & on the forum, Sonar is not giving me any info on missing plug-ins despite the fact that I have once seen a "plugin placeholder" that shows such info (i think it was a totally missing plug-in, not present in any version of any kind and i've not seen it with any mismatches). Plus, the button for web info on the "missing plugin" notice at project load time does NOT provide the plugin CLSID as reportedly it should. Why would this be missing?



It's critical for a failure to be as graceful and informational as possible so that users and tech support can troubleshoot and solve it. As is, Sonar 8.5.3 is doing a very poor job of gracefully failing.



Yes, I had all of these issues combined in one single project; you can maybe see how the combination of DXi vs VST, mismatched VST IDs & versions, missing placeholders, missing warnings, etc., all at one time left me utterly confounded.



I'm willing to say that the problems i'm experiencing here might not be explicitly Sonar (i fully intend to publish my findings on the forum once all is said and done, to maintain a balanced and fair view), but Sonar is definitely not providing any facility to troubleshoot these conditions, despite various obvious ways in which it potentially COULD do so.



Consequences of solving missing plug-ins: Now that i've located and replaced the missing Echomania plug-in, i'm finding that it freezes Sonar 32-bit and freezes the entire system in Sonar 64-bit (which i tried for S&G). This is strange because this is the same OS and plug-in used to create this project file and users on the forum listed Echomania as compatible with Sonar 8.5 64-bit on the sticky thread at the top. Can a sound driver/device conflict with specific plug-ins? That's all that i've changed since this project file was created (from Echo Mona or Echo Layla 3G to TC Electronic Digital Konnekt x32).



Question regarding plug-in search paths. You indicated that having the Desktop in the plug-in search path is problematic. Why is this? Is there a limit to the number of character in a path? If so, what is that limit? The typical Microsoft 16-bit era limit of 255 characters? i organize my VSTplugins folder (both 32-bit and 64-bit) by Developer/Author (if there are a lot of one brand) and by type (instrument/effect/etc). It's important to know of the limitations in paths. i have witnessed that the greater thenumber of paths present in the VST search path list, the more likely some plug-ins will NOT register (seemingly randomly). Removing paths has enabled certain VSTs that would not get registered otherwise. For example: i would have 8 paths listed (specifically to control what is and is not scanned, without removing content from the C:\Program Files (x86)\vstplugins\ folder). Some plug-ins would simply not get registered. Removing half of the paths and rescanning caused the missing plug-in to get registered. What's the official technical limit here?