IMPORTANT: Auto-migration only works with the latest versions of Cubase 12 (and higher), Nuendo 12 (and higher), Logic Pro 10.8 (and higher), Pro Tools 12.3 (and higher) and Maschine 2.16.0 (and higher). Do not try to perform the auto-migration on other DAWs! And do not perform auto-migration if you are still working on your project!
Kontakt 7 has introduced a so-called "auto-migration" of plug-in versions in supporting DAWs. The same feature is available for Kontakt 8.
Auto-migration means that if a DAW project includes instances of Kontakt, but this older Kontakt version has been removed from the system or cannot be found in the DAW's plug-in folder, the Kontakt Instruments will be loaded in Kontakt 7 (or 8) if it's installed.
If the DAW project was created with an older Kontakt version and the corresponding plug-in is still present in the plug-in folder, the auto-migration will not be applied and the original Kontakt version will be used.
The latest versions of the following DAWs support auto-migration: Cubase, Nuendo, Logic Pro, Pro Tools and Maschine. It also works with Komplete Kontrol.
What does this mean for my old and new projects?
1. If you want to keep using an older Kontakt version in your existing DAW projects, you don't have to do anything. You just have to make sure that the older Kontakt plug-in is installed and seen by your DAW. You can install Kontakt 7 / 8 additionally, if you prefer using it on newer projects.
2. If you want to migrate to Kontakt 7 or 8 in DAW projects that contain older Kontakt instances, please uninstall the older Kontakt version.
Please note that Kontakt 6 is named "Kontakt".
Windows: Auto-migration works down to Kontakt 3.5 on Windows. Please uninstall your older Kontakt version as shown in this article. If the auto-migration doesn't work, the Kontakt plug-ins have been moved after the installation. In this case, please check which VST folders are scanned by your DAW and remove the Kontakt plug-ins manually from those folders. Please see the "References" below.
macOS: Auto-migration works down to Kontakt 3.5 on Mac. Please uninstall you older Kontakt version as shown in this article.