Compatibility & Upgrade Information


Pro Tools 8 Information

December 17, 2008 — Pro Tools® 8 software for Pro Tools|HD®, Pro Tools LE®, and Pro Tools M-Powered™ systems on Mac OS X 10.5, Windows XP, and Windows Vista (32-bit) is now shipping. For more information about how to purchase Pro Tools 8, new features, system requirements, and free updates for recent purchasers of a Pro Tools system, please see the following:

December 17, 2009 —The current version of Pro Tools software is Pro Tools 8.0.3 for Mac OS X 10.5/10.6, Windows XP/Vista. For additional details (including Windows 7 information), see the following:


Pro Tools Compatibility Grids — With Pro Tools Update & Upgrade Information



The following compatibility grids are available for quick reference. These list all Pro Tools 6 and higher versions, which version of Mac OS X or Windows is required, which Digidesign core systems or M-Audio interfaces are supported with each version of Pro Tools, and information about Pro Tools updates and upgrades.

For information on official Pro Tools qualification with specific Mac OS X and Windows OS versions, see the following pages:

Pro Tools M-Powered Essential Software

Additional Compatibility


Detailed Compatibility — Where to Look



Detailed compatibility information for all Pro Tools 7 and Pro Tools 8 systems is available in the Support & Downloads section of the website:

Digi Tech Support has also put together the following instructions for collecting information about your PC and how to cross-reference that information against the compatibility information on the Digidesign website:
Is My PC Compatible With Pro Tools? (for Windows XP & Vista)

Pro Tools HD Systems
To view compatibility information for a particular version of Pro Tools HD, select the Pro Tools HD version from the list under Pro Tools HD in the Support & Downloads section.

Pro Tools LE Systems
To view compatibility information for a particular version of Pro Tools LE for 003 Family, Digi 002 Family, Mbox 2 Family, and original Mbox systems, select the Pro Tools LE version from the list under Pro Tools LE in the Support & Downloads section.

Pro Tools M-Powered & Pro Tools Academic Systems
To view compatibility information for a particular version of Pro Tools M-Powered for qualified M-Audio systems, select the M-Powered or Academic version from the list under Pro Tools M-Powered in the Support & Downloads section.

Compatibility Archives — Pro Tools 6 & Earlier
For Pro Tools 6 and earlier compatibility information, please see the Compatibility Archives for your system on the archives website: Digidesign Support Archives


Compatibility Alerts




Internet Explorer 8
Digidesign is currently investigating reports of Pro Tools not launching for some users after installation of Internet Explorer 8 on either Windows XP or Windows Vista. At this time it is recommended that customers avoid installing IE8 until we complete our investigation. For more information, including how to uninstall Internet Explorer 8 and revert to IE7, see the following page:


Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard)
Pro Tools Software versions below 8.0.3 are not compatible with Snow Leopard. Pro Tools 8.0.3 is a free update for Pro Tools 8 owners. Version 8.0.3 supports the following Mac OS X versions, on Intel-based Macs only:
  • Mac OS X 10.6.1 – 10.6.2 (Snow Leopard)
  • Mac OS X 10.5.5 – 10.5.8 (Leopard)

Please Note: Pro Tools 8.0.3 software (and higher) does not support some retired products, including:
  • Mbox (original model)
  • Macintosh PowerPC Computers
Please read the EOSS (End of Software Support) Announcements for more information.

To update to Pro Tools 8.0.3, see the following:


Pro Tools Software Versions Below 7.4.2 Are Not Compatible With Leopard
  • Pro Tools 8.0 software requires Mac OS X 10.5.5 or higher, and is not compatible with earlier versions of Leopard.
    • Digidesign testing has shown no known differences between 10.5.5, 10.5.6, 10.5.7, or 10.5.8; all are officially qualified with Pro Tools HD, LE and M-Powered version 8.0.
  • Pro Tools 7.4.2 software requires Mac OS X 10.5.3 or 10.5.4, and is not compatible with earlier versions of Leopard.
    • Pro Tools 7.4.2 software not tested or qualified with Mac OS X 10.5.5 and higher

For more information, including how to update your Mac OS X software for compatibility, see the following page:

Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) & Pro Tools Launch Problems
  • Pro Tools 7.4 is officially supported on Mac OS X 10.4.9
  • Pro Tools 7.3/7.3.1 is officially supported on Mac OS X 10.4.8 and 10.4.9
  • Although Mac OS X 10.4.10 and 10.4.11 have not been tested or qualified by Digidesign, the only known issue at this time has to do with Pro Tools failure to launch in some cases due to improper prebinding.
  • Reports suggest that Mac OS X 10.4.11 may contain fixes for some of the Mbox 2 USB interface problems such as kernel panics on newer Intel-based Macs.
If your computer came with Mac OS X 10.4.9 or 10.4.10 preinstalled, or you have updated other Apple software such as QuickTime, you may experience failure of Pro Tools or other applications to launch (for instance, if the Pro Tools icon bounces in the dock). In many cases, downloading and running the Mac OS X Prebinding Script from PACE may resolve the issues described above:
For more information and officially qualified Mac OS X requirements with Pro Tools, please see the following:

FAT32 Volumes Not Supported for Recording with Pro Tools 7.4 and Higher for Windows
  • Pro Tools 7.3.x is the last version of Pro Tools that supports FAT32 for Recording.
  • Pro Tools 7.4 and higher for Windows XP and Windows Vista do not support FAT32 for recording, but will continue to support FAT32 formatted volumes for Playback and Transfer.

Windows 7 Public Beta Compatibility Information



December 17, 2009 — Avid is pleased to announce that the recently released 8.0.3 version of Pro Tools® software provides public beta compatibility with 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system for Pro Tools HD, LE, and M-Powered. This public beta is provided as a convenience for Windows 7-based Pro Tools 8.0.3 users who may wish to begin their transition to Windows 7 before fully tested and qualified Windows 7 support for Pro Tools becomes available. Based on which device you are running, you may need to download and install additional drivers to complete your Windows 7 preview functionality.

For more information, please see the following:

Important: Windows 7 compatibility with Pro Tools 8.0.3 HD, LE, and M-Powered is not fully tested or supported by Avid. We recommend backing up your system and work files before using this software, or installing a fresh copy of Windows 7 on a different boot drive. In preliminary testing we have found most plug-ins to be compatible with Pro Tools 8.0.3 and Windows 7.

Windows XP



Windows XP Service Pack 3
April 23, 2008 — Digidesign has officially qualified Windows XP Service Pack 3 with all products listed as qualified with Windows XP Service Pack 2, including systems with Avid video. There are currently no known compatibility differences between systems with XP SP2 or SP3. All compatibility information regarding Windows XP Service Pack 2 also applies to systems with Windows XP Service Pack 3.


Windows Vista



Officially Qualified with Pro Tools LE & M-Powered 7.4 and Higher & Pro Tools HD 8.0 and Higher
  • Windows Vista Business or Ultimate Edition
    • 32-bit OS Installation Only
  • Not Supported:
    • Windows Vista 64-bit (any version)
  • Not Tested:
    • Windows Vista Home and Home Premium Edition
    • Although Windows Vista Home and Home Premium Edition have not been tested or qualified by Digidesign, there are currently no known issues with Vista Home and Home Premium 32-bit operating systems with Pro Tools compared to the supported Windows Vista Business or Ultimate Edition operating systems.

Pro Tools M-Powered & Vista 64-bit Systems
Pro Tools M-Powered 8.0.1 has been extensively evaluated on Microsoft's Vista 64-bit operating system by a select group of users in the Pro Tools community. To date, no major issues have been reported. While not officially supported, we believe customers can confidently use Pro Tools M-Powered 8.0.1 with Microsoft's Vista 64 operating system.

64-bit drivers for M-Audio devices are required, and available for download here:

For more information, see the following:

Please Note: Currently, there is no 64-bit support for Pro Tools LE or HD devices. A Windows XP or Vista 32-bit operating system is required to use Pro Tools LE or Pro Tools|HD audio interfaces.

Windows Vista Service Packs

Pro Tools HD, LE, M-Powered 8.0.3
  • Qualified with Windows Vista Service Pack 2
  • Windows Vista SP1 Not Tested
  • SP1 or higher required for Pro Tools 8 installation

Pro Tools HD, LE, M-Powered 8.0/8.0.1
  • Qualified with Windows Vista Service Pack 1
  • Windows Vista SP2 Not Tested (no known issue)
  • SP1 or higher required for Pro Tools 8 installation

Pro Tools LE, M-Powered 7.4
  • Qualified with Windows Vista without Service Pack 1 or 2
  • Windows Vista SP1 and SP2 Not Tested (no known issues with either service pack)

Not Compatible with Vista
  • Pro Tools LE and M-Powered 7.3.1 and earlier (7.4 or higher required)
  • Pro Tools HD 7.4 and earlier (8.0 or higher required)
  • Avid video peripherals such as Mojo SDI® are not supported with Pro Tools LE 7.4 on Windows Vista. Support for Avid video peripherals with Vista is included in Pro Tools HD 8.0 and Pro Tools LE 8.0 and higher.
    • If you are purchasing a new Windows computer and need to use Pro Tools LE or M-Powered 7.3.1 or earlier, check to see if the manufacturer offers the option to configure with Windows XP Home or Windows XP Professional preinstalled. If that is not an option, the following article offers some suggestions: Install Windows XP on Your Pre-Installed Windows Vista Computer
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