How to get the AAX Avid icon to show up in Win file manager?

[Nonlinear]

Question for those making AAX plugins for Windows: some AAX plugins show up in Windows file manager with the Avid plugin logo while others show up with just the basic Windows file folder icon (see attached screenshot).

I have copied the AAX plugin.ico file from the AAX SDK to my built aaxplugin folders and have set the file properties to use it - but it doesn't "stick". If the plugin is copied or moved it goes back to the default Win folder icon.

How is that icon being set? Does it require a compiler post build setting of some kind?

[earlevel]

Originally Posted by Nonlinear

How is that icon being set? Does it require a compiler post build setting of some kind?

You need to set the system attribute, and have the desktop.ini and PlugIn.ico files (which are hidden).

For example, if you have another AAX plugin showing the icon correctly, you can open PowerShell as administrator and...

cd "c:\Program Files\Common Files\Avid\Audio\Plug-Ins"
copy-item OtherPlug.aaxplugin\desktop.ini YourPlug.aaxplugin\desktop.ini
copy-item OtherPlug.aaxplugin\PlugIn.ico YourPlug.aaxplugin\PlugIn.ico
attrib +s YourPlug.aaxplugin

[Nonlinear]

Originally Posted by earlevel

You need to set the system attribute, and have the desktop.ini and PlugIn.ico files (which are hidden).

For example, if you have another AAX plugin showing the icon correctly, you can open PowerShell as administrator and...

cd "c:\Program Files\Common Files\Avid\Audio\Plug-Ins"
copy-item OtherPlug.aaxplugin\desktop.ini YourPlug.aaxplugin\desktop.ini
copy-item OtherPlug.aaxplugin\PlugIn.ico YourPlug.aaxplugin\PlugIn.ico
attrib +s YourPlug.aaxplugin

Thank you. It does apply the icon BUT it's not preserved if I zip the aaxplugin folder afterwards (for distribution). For some reason zipping/unzipping removes the icon - even though the plugin.ico and desktop.ini files are still in the folder.

In other words, the icon shows before zipping but after unzipping it shows the standard Windows yellow folder icon.

Any idea why THAT is happening?

[earlevel]

I don't know. Check your Desktop.ini and PlugIn.ico file attributes to make sure they are system (they're typically "H"idden and "R"eadonly too, but that shouldn't matter).

[Nonlinear]

Originally Posted by earlevel

I don't know. Check your Desktop.ini and PlugIn.ico file attributes to make sure they are system (they're typically "H"idden and "R"eadonly too, but that shouldn't matter).

OK, I see what's happening here. Before zipping the files have SYSTEM ownership. After zipping they have local user ownership, even if marked as read only before zipping.

I tried zipping/unzipping some commercial plugins and zip removed their icon as well.

So, apparently the AAX plugins that show up with icons in the file tree had their ownership set by their installer after file copy/unpacking.

I noticed many 3rd party developers (two big ones, Izotope and Waves) don't even bother with the plugin icon. The plugin.ico file is not even in their aaxplugin folders. So...

[earlevel]

Makes sense.