We often get asked questions about what version of Pro Tools will work with what version of an operating system.

There are some basic guidelines we can offer….

If you want a reliable system stick to the approved systems.

• Compatibility & Upgrade Information for Pro Tools on Windows.
• Compatibility & Upgrade Information for Pro Tools on Mac.

Simply put the current versions of Pro Tools will work on the current versions of the operating systems, like Windows 7 & Mac OS 10.7 or 10.8.

Windows 8 - Nothing is currently supported for Windows 8. Some people are getting it to work, but it is uncharted territory. If you want a reliable system then use Windows 7.

Mac OS 10.8 - Mountain Lion. It is approved for the latest versions of Pro Tools but a lot of people are still having trouble with it. We would currently recommend Lion 10.7.5 is the most reliable solution for Pro Tools.

Pro Tools LE - If you want Pro Tools LE to work with a relatively current version of an operating system you need to get Pro Tools 8.0.5 LE. This should work with Mac OS 10.7, but may not be reliable with Mac OS 10.8.

So you have Pro Tools 8 or 9 etc and you want to find what the last update version was and download it?

The Avid website is an absolute nightmare to find what you are looking for so I’m linking to some very important pages that get you exactly what you need.

For Windows Users:
Compatibility & Upgrade Information for Pro Tools on Windows. 

For Mac Users:
Compatibility & Upgrade Information for Pro Tools on Mac. 

For Windows XP follow this guide: 
http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/en349591

For Windows 7 follow this one: 
http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/en349411

Click to read more ...

Getting Blue Screens or BSOD’s with the Windows Operating system can be a real PITA !
Diagnosing the problem can be like hunting for a needle in a haystack.
Heres a link to the Microsoft Community pages that gives some insight into how to try and narrow down the cause and then what to do about it. (Scroll down past the initial question and read the Answers)

Microsoft Community BSOD Troubleshooting 

http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/en423791

Optimizations

• Required Optimizations
• Configure System Preferences

Click to read more ...

The very helpful app from Jean-Charles Deshaies.

More here

There are different versions depending on your version of Pro Tools

For Pro Tools 10.3.5 onward’s
This is a self contained installer that extracts the app to the correct places, It includes the option to update a previous Trasher 10 install, Read the ReadMe .pdf included for full details. 

Download

For Pro Tools 10.0 up to 10.3.4

Download

Place inside your Documents folder (NOT public Documents folder) and run. a full Read Me will be available once launched.

Backs up and Restores Pro Tools Preferences and DAE Prefs.
Backs up and Restores Pro Tools I/O Settings.
Backs up and Restores Pro Tools Plug-Ins Settings.
Recycles Pro Tools Preferences and DAE Prefs.
Recycles Pro Tools Databases
Opens RTAS Used and Unused Plug-Ins folders.
Opens AAX Used and Unused Plug-Ins folders.
Opens Pro Tools 10 Reference Guide and Documentation - ReadMes folder.
Opens Avid Log Files folder.

For Pro Tools 8.04 through 9

For Pro Tools 8.01 and earlier

Here’s a couple of apps for backing up a Mac.

• Carbon Copy Cloner
• Super Duper

Convert sessions to/from ProTools, Audition, Vegas, Cubase, Nuendo, Samplitude/Sequoia, Reaper, Tracktion, Ardour, Studio One, Studio Live, Wavelab, Pyramix, Audiofile, Fairlight, Waveframe, DAR, N-Track, Sadie, Tascam, Logic, Logic Pro, Media Composer/Adrenaline, Paris, Soundscape, Sonar, Digital Performer, Grass Valley, Lightworks, Cool Edit Pro, Premiere, Final Cut Pro, SAW Studio, TripleDat, Ableton Live.

Full Info on the AA Translator Website

You have got some audio sampling CDs?

You’d like to have all samples in WAV format but you don’t want to spend countless hours cutting and trimming every sample manually using a WAV-editor?

Then WaveKnife is what you are looking for !
 
Get it here

Header Investigator will allow the user to open WAV audio files and display the header information and make changes.  The actual audio data is never changed… simply the header information.  This is useful if the user has accidentally recorded audio while locked to an external digital clock source so that the header sample rate is a mismatch to the actual sample rate of the data – which causes the sound file to play back at the wrong pitch.  By simply changing the sample rate in the header – the WAV files can be corrected without having to retransfer or sample rate convert the file.

Full info and Download

An indespendable shareware tool, Max from Sbooth, converts virtually any audio format back and forth.

One I reach for on a regular basis. Get it here

Experience total communication between Mac & Windows with the industry’s highest performing file system technology

Paragon HFS+ for Windows is the only solution that provides full read-write access to HFS+/HFSX partitions on any type of disks (GPT, MBR) under most of Windows versions!
Access Mac-formatted partitions in Windows systems with the fastest and most stable HFS driver on the market.

http://www.paragon-software.com/home/hfs-windows/

Click to read more ...

http://www.maintain.se/cocktail

Cocktail is a general purpose utility for OS X that lets you clean, repair and optimize your Mac. It is a powerful digital toolset that helps hundreds of thousands of Mac users around the world get the most out of their computers every day.

The application serves up a perfect mix of maintenance tools and tweaks, all accessible through a clean and easy to use interface. Cocktail’s features are arranged into five categories that helps you manage various aspects of your computer. It also comes with an automatic Pilot mode that allows you to simply press a button and relax, knowing that Cocktail will take care of the rest.

When unregistered, Cocktail (Mountain Lion Edition) for OS X 10.8, Cocktail (Lion Edition) for OS X 10.7 and Cocktail (Snow Leopard Edition) for OS X 10.6 runs in demo mode and will expire after the tenth launch. Cocktail (Leopard Edition) for OS X 10.5 is distributed as freeware and does not require a license.