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I am migrating to a newer version of Adobe After Effects on my MAC (17.0.6 build 35 to 24.6.1). Need help with migrating / backing up ALL settings presets etc.

Forum|Forum|21 days ago
July 8, 2026
5 replies
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I am migrating to a newer version of Adobe After Effects on my MAC (17.0.6 build 35 to 24.6.1). I want to backup /migrate ALL Settings, Presets, workspaces, keyboard shortcuts, plugins, templates, scripts etc. I found this tutorial that mentions one folder location to copy files over to new version but want to make sure I am not missing anything else that I should migrate over. New to AfterEffects and want to make sure the migration is successful. Here’s the steps I found:

Step 1: back up scripts, presets, settings, keyboard shortcuts, workspaces. Copy over the entire folder.

PC folder path: %AppData%\

MAC folder path: /Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe/After Effects/[Version Number

Thank you

Correct answer JohnColombo17100380

Hi @melissag57222326

@Kevin-Monahan is correct to avoid copying the whole preferences folder manually — moving those around yourself is likely to cause problems. To address each item you mentioned:

1. I highly recommend using the built-in migration feature: After Effects > Settings > Startup & Repair > Migrate Previous Version Preferences. This should detect your 17.x preferences and migrate them over to 24.6. It will migrate all the application preferences, workspaces, keyboard shortcuts, and any scripts installed in the preferences folder (e.g. if you installed them using File > Script > Install Script...)

2. Presets — Copy any custom .ffx files from ~/Documents/Adobe/After Effects [old version]/User Presets/ into the equivalent User Presets folder for 24.6.1. Skip the presets inside /Applications/... — those are just factory defaults and are already included in the new version.

3. Scripts — Check /Applications/Adobe After Effects [old version]/Scripts/ (and Scripts/ScriptUI Panels/). Copy .jsx/.jsxbin files into the matching 24.6.1 locations.

4. Plug-ins — I’d recommend to reinstall these from an installer if possible, rather than copy them over. A lot changes under the hood over 4 years, so it would also be a good idea to check if there are any updated versions from the developer so you get compatibility fixes too. Only copy raw files as a last resort for plug-ins no longer being distributed.

One more thing worth considering: rather than only installing 24.6.1, you could also install the latest version (26.3) alongside it. It's got a lot of stability fixes and workflow improvements over 24.x that will make your day-to-day work faster, and installing them side-by-side won't disturb whatever anything with 24 — so you can migrate once and try both before deciding which to use.

Cheers,

- John, After Effects Engineering Team

M

melissag57222326Author

Inspiring

thank you!

JohnColombo17100380

Correct answer

Community Manager

Hi @melissag57222326

@Kevin-Monahan is correct to avoid copying the whole preferences folder manually — moving those around yourself is likely to cause problems. To address each item you mentioned:

1. I highly recommend using the built-in migration feature: After Effects > Settings > Startup & Repair > Migrate Previous Version Preferences. This should detect your 17.x preferences and migrate them over to 24.6. It will migrate all the application preferences, workspaces, keyboard shortcuts, and any scripts installed in the preferences folder (e.g. if you installed them using File > Script > Install Script...)

2. Presets — Copy any custom .ffx files from ~/Documents/Adobe/After Effects [old version]/User Presets/ into the equivalent User Presets folder for 24.6.1. Skip the presets inside /Applications/... — those are just factory defaults and are already included in the new version.

3. Scripts — Check /Applications/Adobe After Effects [old version]/Scripts/ (and Scripts/ScriptUI Panels/). Copy .jsx/.jsxbin files into the matching 24.6.1 locations.

4. Plug-ins — I’d recommend to reinstall these from an installer if possible, rather than copy them over. A lot changes under the hood over 4 years, so it would also be a good idea to check if there are any updated versions from the developer so you get compatibility fixes too. Only copy raw files as a last resort for plug-ins no longer being distributed.

One more thing worth considering: rather than only installing 24.6.1, you could also install the latest version (26.3) alongside it. It's got a lot of stability fixes and workflow improvements over 24.x that will make your day-to-day work faster, and installing them side-by-side won't disturb whatever anything with 24 — so you can migrate once and try both before deciding which to use.

Cheers,

- John, After Effects Engineering Team

M

melissag57222326Author

Inspiring

Migration has my head spinning.. Not sure if what I posted originally is correct. If I am grabbing all files or select files. And if there is more than one folder location to migrate files.

Here’s the other tutorial found (see steps below), looking for an expert who can confirm the process. Thank you!

1. ~/Library/Preferences/Adobe/After Effects/[Version]

This hidden folder handles your App Behavior & Workspace UI. It does not contain .ffx animation presets, despite what its deep folder paths look like. [1, 2, 3]

What to copy: Only copy the ModifiedWorkspaces folder (your custom UI panel layouts) and your aetxt keyboard shortcut files.
What to ignore: Ignore everything else, especially the master preference text files. Moving old core preference files across a huge 4-year version gap will likely corrupt your v24 settings. [1]

2. /Applications/Adobe After Effects [Version]/Presets/

This is the System Application Folder where Adobe installs its factory-default presets (like standard text animations, shapes, and behaviors). [1]

What to copy: Nothing, unless you manually dragged third-party or downloaded .ffx files directly into this application folder in the past.
What to ignore: Ignore the whole folder. Version 24.6 already includes its own updated factory presets. Note: If you have custom scripts, look in the sister folder next to it: /Applications/Adobe After Effects [Version]/Scripts/. [1, 2, 3]

3. ~/Documents/Adobe/After Effects [Version]/

This is your Personal Assets Folder. This is the actual location where any preset you clicked "Save Animation Preset" on inside After Effects is kept. [1, 2]

What to copy: Copy the entire User Presets folder. This contains your actual, custom-made .ffx design assets. Move this directly into the corresponding After Effects 2024 documents folder. [1]

K

Kevin-Monahan

Community Manager

You're on the right track, but I wouldn't recommend copying the entire Preferences folder from AE 17.x to 24.x. That's a major version jump, and older preference files may not be compatible.

Instead, migrate your custom assets, such as:

User Presets (.ffx)
Custom workspaces
Keyboard shortcuts
Scripts and any third-party plug-ins (reinstalling plug-ins is recommended when installers are available)

Let After Effects 24 generate a fresh set of preferences on first launch, then copy over your custom assets. This helps avoid bringing forward older preference settings that may not be compatible with the newer version.

Does that work for you? Let me know.

Thanks,
Kevin

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