{% endhint %} When selecting from the dropdown arrow of your engine, please choose one of our currently supported engine versions unless otherwise directed.
# Upgrading Carbon on existing projects
Migrate an existing Carbon project to a new version of Unreal Engine
## Upgrading project in-place
Follow these steps to perform the in-place upgrade of your Carbon project:
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### Prerequisites
Prior to commencing the upgrade process, please ensure the following prerequisites are met:
* **Unreal Engine Installation:** Verify that the desired Unreal Engine version is\
[installed via the Epic Games Launcher.](https://support.carbonforunreal.com/knowledgebase/getting-and-installing-unreal-engine?hsLang=en)
* **Carbon for Unreal Installer:** Obtain the latest Carbon for Unreal installer from the [Carbon Portal](https://portal.carbonforunreal.com/).
* **Custom Modifications (Optional):** If you have made any modifications to Carbon blueprints, it is highly recommended to document these changes (e.g., modifying fixture settings).
{% endhint %}
### **Step 1: Close Unreal Engine**
To avoid any issues, ensure that all instances of Unreal Engine are completely saved and closed on your machine.
### **Step 2: Backup your Project**
Before proceeding with any modifications to your project, create a complete backup of your entire Unreal Engine project folder. **Copy the entire project directory** and paste to a secure and separate location, such as a dedicated "backups" directory.
{% hint style="warning" %}
It is highly recommended to compress the backup project to a ZIP file to reduce file size and protect your project.
{% endhint %}
### **Step 3: Delete the Existing Carbon Plugin**
Navigate to your project's **Plugins** folder, located at `
### **Step 5: Install the New Carbon Plugin**
Execute the Carbon for Unreal installer package. During the installation wizard, it is crucial to select the newly associated Unreal Engine project as the target directory for the plugin installation. For a more thorough walk-through on the Carbon installation process, please follow the article on [Installing Carbon for Unreal.](/carbon-for-unreal/installation/installing-carbon-for-unreal)
### **Step 6: Open Your Upgraded Project**
Once the plugin installation is complete, open your project. You can do this either through the Epic Games Launcher or by double clicking the **.uproject** file. After the project has fully loaded, verify that Carbon for Unreal is installed in your project
# Menus, Panels, and Tools
# Carbon Menu
The Carbon Menu hosts everything you will need to utilize Carbon for Unreal in a project, and is located on Unreal Engine 5's main toolbar on the top left of the editor. The dropdown menu provides access to all core panels and tools included with the Carbon for Unreal plugin.
# Panels
# Account
Activate and Manage Carbon Licenses with Ease through the Account Panel.
The Account Panel allows for the management and activation of Carbon licenses. The first time the panel is opened, a welcome page will appear with options to sign into your Imaginary Labs account. After login, users are able to activate and check the status of licenses assigned to their account.
After logging in, a license can be activated by simply selecting the license that you wish to use, then click the "Activate Selected License" button. If the license is active, Carbon will enable DMX functionality. This can be verified by looking at the status bar on the bottom right of the editor.
Input DMX data from any of these sources can be received and mapped to Carbon Universes to control fixtures. It is important to remember fixture patches in Carbon for Unreal refer to the Carbon Universe that the fixture is patched to, not necessarily the universe of the protocol being used to send the data. Connecting a protocol’s data to a Carbon Universe is done in the Connection tab. New connections are created with the “+Add Connection” button near the top of the panel in the Connection tab of the Carbon Core toolbar. Connections will be added to the list below the “+Add Connection” button. Each connection is contained in a collapsible section. The section can be collapsed and expanded by clicking on the connection’s header bar. The header bar will always display the connection name, Carbon Universe range, and protocol type of the connection, as well as indicators if the connection has been muted or is soloed. A red exclamation mark will also appear in the connection header if there are any issues with the connection configuration. Connections can be removed by clicking the “X” button to the right of the “Name” text field when the section is expanded. 1viz-key support is not available for all Carbon for Unreal license types. ## Connection Settings ### Common Settings
#### Fixture State
Opens the fixture state viewer. This panel displays light function and other parametric data for the selected fixture during play mode. Simply select fixtures in the outliner after initiating play.
# Tools
# Import Patch
Streamline your show setup in Carbon for Unreal by importing patch and fixture data from external sources
## Using the Import Patch Tool
Carbon for Unreal has the ability to import entire shows (patch, fixture position, etc.) from a single spreadsheet (CSV) or MVR file. Using the Import Patch Tool, users can prepare a show externally, either from software like Vectorworks and GrandMA2 3D, or manually, and import that data into Carbon for Unreal.
The Import Patch Tool panel can be accessed via the Patch Panel, by pressing the "Import Patch*"* button on the top left.
3. Verify DMX Camera Switcher: * The first DMX Camera added to the level will automatically instantiate the DMX Camera Switcher.
*Ensure that a DMXCameraSwitcher asset has been spawned in the level outliner*
Crash when launching project with Carbon
Ensure that the Unreal project is not installed in a shared storage folder (e.g. Dropbox, OneDrive)Crash when disabling Ndisplay
This is a known bug from Epic Games, but we have a procedure to repair your project after disabling Ndisplay. * Open your Unreal project folder in a file explorer window and navigate to the "Config" folder. * Delete the "Windows" folder. * Re-open Unreal. For future projects we recommend using project template Game-BlankFixtures may not function correctly after an update.
Unreal levels may hold onto cached versions of old Blueprints. To re-assert fixtures using the new version of the fixture, hit "reload fixtures" in the patch panel.