Keeping Blender Configs Synced Across Multiple Machines with Dropbox
Learn to use Dropbox to sync your Blender Settings across all your machines
If you use Blender on multiple machines, such as a desktop machine and a laptop, then chances are you get tired of constantly update your settings to match the other machine. This is particularly annoying anytime a new feature comes out and you change your default settings. Suddenly both machines are out-of-sync again.
In my studio, I have three machines. A 27″ iMac and a 15″ Retina Macbook Pro both running Mac OS X Mountain Lion, and then a custom desktop box running Ubuntu Linux. I use Blender on all of them. But due to the nature of constantly updating and improving my default configurations, I’m constantly finding the machines to have slightly different settings. More than anything, this is annoying for custom hotkeys.
For a while I simply stopped customizing my settings so that I wouldn’t have to worry about it being out of sync. Then I decided to solve this once and for all by making all of the machines sync automatically.
This is actually a little easier than it sounds.
Step 1: Use Dropbox
If you don’t already use Dropbox in your daily life then you’re missing out. It is an incredible piece of software that has become ingrained in daily life here at CG Cookie. We use it for everything. Seriously. It allows you to keep all of your files in sync across multiple machines, so long as those files are within the Dropbox folder.
If you’re not already familiar with Dropbox, then check out their tour HERE. Otherwise, I’m going to assume you already have it and know how to use it.
Step 2: Move Blender Config to Dropbox
Anytime you save your settings in Blender, it saves out specific files in a pre-defined location. This is also true for all user-installed add-ons, custom themes, etc. This location is known as the Blender Config folder and can be found at these locations:
Mac OS X: /Users/{user}/Library/Application Support/Blender/
Linux: $HOME/.config/blender/
Windows Vista/7/8 : C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\
Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Blender Foundation\Blender\
First you’ll need to find the directory above. In recent version of Mac OS X, and in Windows, the Library/ and AppData\ directories are hidden. But you can access them from the location bar in Windows by typing in the exact path, and in OS X by pressing Cmd+G from your home user home and typing “Library”.
Once you have found the Blender/ directory, we need to move it into the Dropbox. In my case, I’ve moved it to Dropbox/Blender-Config/Blender/
Note: while doing this don’t do ANYTHING with Blender. If you open or save anything with Blender during this move it’ll create a new settings directory, which you’ll have to remove.
We are now ready to do the real magic, making symbolic links.
Step 3: Make Symbolic Links
If you’re not familiar with symbolic links, then you’re in for a treat! Symbolic links act a bit like shortcuts, but they’re better. When you create a symbolic link from one location to another, it creates a connection between the two locations, making your computer think they both go to the exact same place, when in reality only the original location is real.
This is useful because it means we can store our Blender config directory in Dropbox and yet make Blender think it’s still in the original location.
For this tutorial, I’m going to show you how to create the symbolic links via command line on Mac OS X and Linux. If you’re on Windows then check out this tutorial from HowToGeek for the symbolic link portion:
To create the symbolic link first open a command prompt (on OS X use /Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app). Next do the following (be sure you’ve moved your Blender/ directory to Dropbox!):
Mac OS X:
cd Library/Application\ Support/
ln -s /Users/username/Dropbox/Blender-Config/ Blender
Linux:
cd .config/
ln -s $HOME/Dropbox/Blender-Config/ Blender
That’s it! You should now have a symbolic link from the original config location to Dropbox. You can test this by going to the original location and checking for a Blender/ directory. Opening that directory will then take you to Dropbox/Blender-Config/Blender/. This also means that now when Blender saves out any settings, Blender will think it’s saving them to the normal location, when it’s actually saving all settings to Dropbox. Nifty huh?
But wait, there’s more.
Step 4: Repeat for Each Machine
You now need to recreate the above symbolic link for each of your machines that you want synced. Otherwise the syncing will not do any good.
Once you have done this you are ready to go!
Step 5: Live in Peace
With all machines now synced with Dropbox, and the symbolic links in place for each machine, your Blender settings will automatically be synced. This includes all add-ons you install, any themes your create, any layouts you change, and even any custom hot-keys you add.
Enjoy!
FAQs:
Q: Can I use other syncing software, such as Sugar Sync with this technique?
A: You sure can! Any software that keeps files in sync between multiple machines should do the trick. The symbolic links are what make this work, not the syncing software specifically.
Yes! Great that you should post about this. Been doing this for about six months myself. What a time-saver!
Thanks Jonathan, This is really helpful I use multiple stations and I always end up adjust theme by hand..
Is not working for me.
Got windows XP and theres no “roaming” directory
In XP, it is “C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Blender Foundation\Blender\”.
That’s weird, it took out “username” in angle brackets…
Anyways it is: “C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Blender Foundation\Blender\”
Thanks for this! I’ve updated the original post.
And btw, it’s “C:\Users\{username}\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\” in Windows Vista/7.
Can I save a blend file in windows 7 and bring It into Ubuntu with no problems? Are there extra steps if I’m doing that?
Jeremy
(Sorry haven’t watched video yet if you answer that in the video)
You shouldn’t have any problem at all opening a .blend file in Ubuntu that was created in Windows 7.
No problems at all! Blend files are OS independent.
having just gotten over a severe ubuntu crash and having to port over everything to windows 7 makes this a great thing! having blender so open plateform is great! greeeeaaaat i tell you!
I’ve got a Win7 system in both computers and am just a little confused as to what folder I connect to, to make Blender look there for start-up. I’ve got the move the config file to the Dropbox and select that as the “Pick Link Source” but I’m not sure what folder to click on for the “Drop As” folder and what mode to select once I do that. Anybody else on Windows 7 here?
Anybody?
You will need to do the symbolic links as shown on this page
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/16226/complete-guide-to-symbolic-links-symlinks-on-windows-or-linux/
- Alex
Thanks Alex. I finally managed to figure out that Blender had to look where it was looking before for the file. Duh!
Kewl, never thought about this tip
Kewl, never thought about this tip. Very clever
Hobie?
Good idea with dropbox.
I’m using git with github.com for my Dotfiles on my linux box – to sync and versioning my blender config files.
Defiantly going to be doing this. I wasn’t sure it was possible or I’d have probably tried something like this awhile ago.
Please its nearly the weekend. Don’t do it defiantly, take a cool pill and definitely do it
Sweet stuff, I’m going to do this with my GoogleDrive.
Thank Jonathan!
I use this for my blender and minecraft files. I can play/work at home/work and never miss a beat.
For Windows Vista, 7 and 8 the path is wrong. It’s:
C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\
Thanks for the fix Amin! I’ve updated the post with the correct path.
If you are having trouble finding the directory on windows, you can open a explorer window (not Internet Explorer…) and just type in %appdata% in the directory box and press enter and you will be in the directory where the “Blender Foundation” folder is located.
I believe this has worked since Windows Vista at least.
I should add that the exact path can differ between windows versions (XP, Vista, 7, 8 etc…) and between different language versions and regions.
It might also be configured to be in a completely different place if you are on a machine on a corporate network for example.
Great tip, very useful indeed.
Never thought of doing this, but that’s ingenious!
Great tip!
Thanks for the tip, Jonathan. Want to know what happens when we update Blender in Ubuntu and Windows? Does it affect the installation process or what?
>2012
>using macs
I’m on a mac and Blender is not in the Application Support Folder. I don’t know how to find the Blender/directory. Help!
I don’t use a mac but try searching your hard drive for blender.
-Alex
There are two ‘Library’s on a Mac. Look in both. Mine was in Users/myname/Library/
That is different from /Library (or Macintosh HD/Library).
On a Mac, I copied the path to the new location, entering it as:
ln -s /Users/mthrapp/Desktop/DROPBOX – ESAEO/Dropbox/- LIBRARY/Blender Library/- Config/Blender
And the Terminal returns “No such file or directory”. I copied it verbatim. What am I missing
Sounds kind of long. Not sure how you have Dropbox set up on your Mac, but on mine, I don’t go through the desktop. My command on your computer would be ln -s Users/mthrapp/Dropbox/Blender-Config/Blender
Make sure though, you do that after cd Library/Application\ Support/
ATTENTION Mac users, I was having the “No such file or directory” Terminal message too, but it was in response to the cd Library/Application\ Support/ command, not to the ln -s /Users/username/Dropbox/Blender-Config/Blender one.
It appears the first command line was missing a part, and I actually put my actual username in both of them (only small letters), so the whole thing as it worked for me was:
cd /Users/myactualusername/Library/Application\ Support/
ln -s /Users/myactualusername/Dropbox/Blender-Config/Blender
And only that made the alias folder, none of several other options had worked first. Some others created a sort of “alias blanc file”, but it never really worked and the test suggested in the cgcookie instructions never took me to the original folder in Dropbox, and it does now. So don’t be misguided, this worked for me.
Hope it helps.
Best,
Demian