With the release of 4D 6.5, the ability to share plug-ins between all 4D databases residing on the same machine has been added. Placing a Win4DX or a Mac4DX folder containing common plug-ins in the ACI subfolder of the System folder enables the plug-ins in these folders to be used in all your 4D databases. This new feature makes both installation and upgrade of plug-ins used in several databases easier. This feature is available in 4th Dimension and 4D Server. This installation is fully compatible with the current installation method (Win4DX or Mac4DX folder located at the same level as the structure file). Depending on how the plug-ins are to be used, the developer can choose to install the plug-ins in one of two places:

1. To make plug-ins available to in all the databases, they should be installed in the Win4DX or Mac4DX folder of the ACI subfolder inside the system folder (in the preferences subfolder on the Mac).

2. The plug-ins that are to be available in only one database only should be installed in the Win4DX or Mac4DX folder located in the same folder as the structure file of a database.

Note: This control works for ACI plug-ins only (internal ID <15000). It is impossible to detect conflicts with the plug-ins developed by Third parties. Consequently, be careful when you install third-party plug-ins.

Sharing Plugins wirth 4D Server
The contents of the Win4DX and Mac4DX folders located in the ACI subfolder on the server are automatically downloaded to every client, no matter which database it connects to. These folders will be created on each client machine in the database structure folder or the ACI subfolder in the system, depending on where it is located on the server.