How to do CbB and Sonar Clean Re-Install

[gstring]

How can I clear historical file folder paths before doing a fresh install of CW by Bandlab and Sonar?

I've just completely uninstalled CbB and Sonar Platinum after inadvertently removing and renaming some plugin folders.... big mistake. Nothing was working right after the changes so I'm starting over. 

The problem is that the CbB installation will not let me browse to select different storage locations than what I had before and I'd like to set things up a little differently this time. I'd like to install my OS and program files on a 465 GB NVME M.2 SSD, and place all VST plugins, VSTi stuff and sample files on a separate 1.92 GB SSD, but Bandlab is forcing me to put some of this on a magnetic HDD, which I want to reserve strictly for my music projects. 

Sooooo.....Is there some way to clear out the historical file location paths and start over from scratch? Can I just delete the Users\me\AppData\Roaming\Cakewalk\ folder and all of its contents, or will this invoke a major registry edit, which I'm prepared to do if that's what it'll take to get this working right.  

I also have several other VST plugins and VSTis that were bundled with older versions of Sonar PE that I wish to keep using; hence, I will have to install the core parts of Sonar 4 (maybe not), 7, 8, 8.5, X1, X2, X3 and Platinum in order to register those plugins. I also still use Project5 and have a lot of iK Multimedia, Native Instruments and other 3rd party plugins.

I doubt that I have room enough on drive C to KISS and just put everything there; that's why I am planning to install all of the VST and VSTI stuff on another 1.92 TB SSD.

[scook]

Keep in mind, VST plug-ins do not take up much space. Samples used by plug-ins do.

Also few VST3 plug-ins offer an install path. The spec recommends a path on the C drive and most manufacturers follow the recommendation. Some DAWs require VST3 plug-ins go into the spec'd path.

Most plug-in installers provide a way to relocate samples. For those that lack this feature, directory junctions are a good way to move data from one physical location to another without having to reinstall. This also avoids changing config files and registry changes.

That said - the clean install instructions are here https://help.cakewalk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360034066393-Clean-Install-Cakewalk-by-BandLab

Be aware that step 9

Quote

Open the following directories and delete their contents: C:\Program Files\Cakewalk and C:\Program Files(x86)\Cakewalk

Deletes everything in the default VST folder "C:\Program Files\Cakewalk\Vstplugins"

Whether you want to do this or not depends on how much third party stuff was installed there and how much you want to re-install.

Third party re-install may be avoided by temporarily moving this folder before deleting the Cakewalk folder and putting it back after the deletion.

Of course, if the area has been trashed by previous attempts to free space, it may be the case that everything needs to be reinstalled anyway.

 

As far as installing old Cakewalk products see this thread (it links to others but I am try to save some typing).

 

[scook]

34 minutes ago, gstring said:

after inadvertently removing and renaming some plugin folders.

Just one more mention of directory junctions.

They are the safest way to move data. It is very hard to lose data or create something that cannot be undone.

 

I suggest if you have the space, install everything using defaults and use directory junctions to free up space as needed.

A 400GB system drive is plenty big enough for the foreseeable future.

 

Skipping the tutorials and demo project significantly reduces the footprint of SONAR installs especially for X-series and Platinum. I would not perform full installs of anything older than X2.

 

[gstring]

Thanks Scook for taking your time to help me with this. I've been struggling with my CW setup for years after doing so many upgrades. Fortunately, this is a new pc platform for me and I've only just started rebuilding my DAW, so I don't have too much to lose at this point. The link you provided to do a clean install looks like the best approach for me to take. I really don't understand how to use directory junctions, but it gives me something else to look into for future consideration.

[scook]

Directory junctions are easy.

They rely on a command line tool called mklink.exe

For example, I use a directory junction to relocate the default "Cakewalk Projects" folder.

This lets me leave the default paths for Cakewalk projects and the global audio folder but physically relocate the data.

In my case, the projects are located on the D drive.

To do this, after installation

• I moved "C:\Cakewalk Projects" to "D:\Cakewak Projects" using Windows Explorer
• Open a command window as administrator and typed mklink /j "C:\Cakewalk Projects"  "D:\Cakewak Projects"

Now the DAWs still use the original default paths on the C drive but the data is physically written to the D drive.

 

If you need specific help on moving parts of your installation or questions about the process, I am sure the forum will help.

Directory junctions are am OS feature worth leaning.

[gstring]

Thanks scook. You cleared that up better for me, as I wasn't sure where the actual data folders would be situated. That seems straightforward enough.