Question 1

What is Plugoff?

Accepted Answer

Plugoff is a free DAW plugin manager for Mac and Windows. It scans your system for audio plugins (AU, VST, VST3, AAX), organises them by manufacturer, format, and category, and lets you offload unused plugins to a safe folder so your DAW loads faster.

Question 2

Is Plugoff free?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Plugoff is completely free during our introductory period — all features are included with no limitations. Plugoff will transition to a paid product in the future, but if you download it now you get the full experience at no cost.

Question 3

What plugin formats does Plugoff support?

Accepted Answer

Plugoff supports AU (Audio Units), VST, VST3, and AAX plugin formats. On Windows, AU is not available as it is a macOS-only format.

Question 4

Do I need to create an account?

Accepted Answer

Yes, a free registration is required on first launch. You can sign in with Google, Apple, Microsoft, or email.

Question 5

What are the system requirements?

Accepted Answer

macOS 12 (Monterey) or later, or Windows 10 or later. Plugoff runs as a standalone desktop application — no DAW integration is required.

Question 6

What does offloading a plugin do?

Accepted Answer

Offloading moves a plugin from its installed location to a safe vault folder (by default ~/PlugoffOffload), however changing this to an external drive is easy and recommended. The plugin is removed from your DAW's plugin list but can be restored at any time with one click.

Question 7

Can I restore offloaded plugins?

Accepted Answer

Yes — select any offloaded plugin and click Restore. Plugoff moves it back to its original location. Your DAW will pick it up on its next scan.

Question 8

How do I set the offload path to an external drive?

Accepted Answer

In the Setup panel, you can change the offload folder to any location including external drives. Plugoff will warn you if the chosen folder is inside a cloud-synced directory (iCloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive).

Question 9

Will offloading break my DAW sessions?

Accepted Answer

If you offload a plugin that is used in an existing session, your DAW will show it as missing when you open that session. You can restore the plugin at any time to fix this. Plugoff does not modify your DAW sessions or project files.

Question 10

Can I permanently delete offloaded plugins?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Offloaded plugins can be permanently deleted from the offloaded view. A confirmation dialog requires you to type DELETE to prevent accidental removal. Deleted plugins are sent to the system Trash.

Question 11

How does UAD license detection work?

Accepted Answer

Plugoff reads a System Profile export from the Universal Audio Connect app. This profile contains the license status of all your UA plugins. Plugoff matches these against your installed plugins to show which are authorised, in demo, or expired.

This feature relies on the System Profile export that Universal Audio provides through UA Connect. If Universal Audio changes or removes this export option in a future update, UAD license detection may be affected.

Question 12

How do I export my UA System Profile?

Accepted Answer

Open UA Connect, go to Help > Save Detailed System Profile, and save the file. In Plugoff, click Import in the Setup panel (or follow the guided popup) and select the saved file.

Question 13

Does Plugoff separate UADx and UAD plugins?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Native/CPU plugins (UADx) and DSP/hardware plugins (UAD) are shown as separate manufacturers in the sidebar, making it easy to manage each type independently.

Question 14

How do Smart DAW Recommendations work?

Accepted Answer

In the Setup panel, select the DAW(s) you use. Plugoff will identify plugin formats that are not required by your chosen DAWs and tag them for offloading. For example, if you only use Logic Pro (which uses AU), Plugoff will flag VST, VST3, and AAX formats as redundant.

Question 15

Can I review recommendations before offloading?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Recommended plugins are tagged in the main view so you can review them. You can untag individual plugins before offloading if you want to keep them.

Question 16

What does Plugoff do to my files?

Accepted Answer

Plugoff is designed to move, copy, and delete audio plugin files on your computer. It moves plugin files from their installed locations to a designated vault folder, and can restore them to their original locations. If you choose the permanent delete option, Plugoff will remove plugin files from the vault folder.

Question 17

Does Plugoff require administrator privileges?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Plugoff requires administrator privileges to move or delete files in system-protected directories. You are responsible for authorising these operations when prompted.

Question 18

Should I back up my plugins before using Plugoff?

Accepted Answer

We strongly recommend backing up your system before performing bulk offload or restore operations. You are solely responsible for maintaining backups of your plugin files and any other data on your system.

Question 19

What are the risks of using Plugoff?

Accepted Answer

While Plugoff is designed to operate safely, file operations carry inherent risk. We are not liable for data loss, corrupted files, plugin incompatibilities, or any other damage resulting from the use of Plugoff. For full details, see our Terms of Service.

How can we help?

Getting Started

Offloading & Restoring

Universal Audio

DAW Recommendations

File Operations & Safety