VPinMame Upgrade - Best Practices

[VPUThomas]

Howdy!
 

Currently have 3.5 installed, looking to move to 3.6 and would like to know the safest way of doing this.

 

Unsure if relevant but figured it best to note that I originally used Baller Installer for initial VPX installation. 
 

Specifically:

• What should I backup? 
• Is there a particular package e.g. minimal vs xxxxxx that I should use on GitHub?
• What are the recommended steps to install?  e.g. run X, copy over Y etc.

 

I have numerous tables configured for some time and would prefer avoiding breaking/having to re-tweak everything after installation, so any tips, tricks and hints you can provide would be greatly appreciated. 
 

I am aware that not upgrading is the best way to avoid grief.  

 

For bonus points, I have the same question(s) when it comes to upgrading to new VPX builds.  Current best practice(s)?

Thanks in advance.
 

Thomas

 

 

 

[zero35]

Hey Thomas,

Moving from 3.5 to 3.6 (and VPX) is pretty straightforward if you follow a few steps.

What to backup (This is the most important step)
Before doing anything, make a copy of your entire Visual Pinball folder and save it somewhere safe (like your desktop). Why? This is your safety net. If anything breaks, you can just delete the updated folder and restore this backup to get everything working again instantly.

Which package to download
Since you used the Baller Installer, you likely have a 64-bit setup. Go to the PinMAME Releases page on GitHub and download the following file: VPinMAME-sc-3.6.x-xxx-win-x64.zip (Get the latest 3.6 version. The "sc" stands for "Stern Color," which is the standard version you should use). A quick note on the "Minimal" vs. other packages: That concept applies more to VPX. For PinMAME, just grab the standard VPinMAME-sc-...-win-x64.zip.

Recommended steps to install
Here is the safest, most reliable manual process:

Unblock the ZIP: Right-click the downloaded .zip file, select Properties, and check the "Unblock" box. Click OK. This prevents weird Windows security issues.

Extract and Copy: Open the .zip file. Copy all the files from inside it.

Paste and Overwrite: Paste the files into your PinMAME folder (usually C:\Visual Pinball\VPinMAME). Allow it to overwrite any existing files when asked. A critical warning about your settings! By default, this will not break your finely tuned table settings. Your per-table configurations are stored elsewhere. However, if you have ever manually edited the VPMAlias.txt file, do not copy the new one over it. For 99% of users, overwriting everything is perfectly safe.

Register the Install: Go into your PinMAME folder and right-click on Setup.exe (or Setup64.exe) and select "Run as Administrator". In the window that pops up, click the "Install" button. You should see a quick confirmation. Then click "Quit". That's it! You have now successfully updated to PinMAME 3.6.

Bonus: The same question for VPX builds
The process for VPX is nearly identical:

Backup: Same as before - backup your whole Visual Pinball folder.

Download: Go to the VPX Releases page on GitHub. As a standard desktop user, you want the VPinballX_GL-10.8.x-xxx-Release-win-x64.zip (the 64-bit OpenGL version). You can also get the Main.Download.Minimal.-.VPinballX80_Minimal.zip package which includes everything.

Unblock and Copy: Right-click the zip -> Properties -> check Unblock. Then open the zip and copy all its contents into your main Visual Pinball folder, overwriting when asked.

Run Once: After copying, manually double-click on VPinballX_GL64.exe (or your renamed default .exe) and close it. This finalizes the setup.

The most important takeaways are 1) always backup, and 2) always re-register PinMAME (Setup.exe) after copying new files.

Hope that helps clear things up, and good luck with the upgrade!