ableton-vst-inventory

A minimal Ableton Extension for exporting all locally-installed VST plugins (VST 3, AU, and other formats) into one organized list. Multiple output filetypes (JSON, CSV, TXT, MD).

Discover what you have, for reference or archival purposes.

Features:

• Automatic scanning of system VST install directories
• Export plugin inventory as JSON, CSV, TXT, or MD
• Cross-platform support (macOS/Windows)

Use Cases:

• Quickly audit what plugins you have
• Generate a list for documentation or backup
• Identify unused VSTs

Usage

1. Download the latest .ablx file from the releases/ directory and install it by dropping it onto the Extensions page in Live's Settings/Preferences.
2. Enable the extension in the Extensions list (it should be enabled by default after install).
3. In Live, right-click any audio track and choose VST List Exporter: Scan & Export Plugin Inventory….
4. Browse the scanned inventory — filter by name or format (VST3 / VST2 / AU), pick an export format (JSON, CSV, TXT, or Markdown), and click Export.
5. The inventory file is written to the extension's storage directory; a confirmation dialog shows the full path.

Scanned directories:

• macOS: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/{VST3,VST,Components} and the ~/Library equivalents
• Windows: Common Files\VST3, Common Files\VST2, Program Files\VSTPlugins, Program Files\Steinberg\VstPlugins

Building

Requires Node.js ≥ 22.

npm install
npm run build   # Type-check + production bundle → dist/extension.js
npm run package # Build + package as dist/ableton-vst-inventory.ablx

Install the extension by dropping the .ablx file onto the Extensions page in Live's settings.

Development

Copy .env.example to .env and set EXTENSION_HOST_PATH to your local Ableton Live installation (see the comments in that file for how to find it). Then enable Developer Mode in Live's Extensions preferences, and run:

npm start # Build + launch the Extension Host with this extension

Note on storage: when installed normally via the .ablx file, Live provides and manages context.environment.storageDirectory automatically — no configuration needed. When running the standalone dev Extension Host with npm start, however, that directory isn't set unless explicitly provided. The start script therefore passes --storage-directory ./.storage --temp-directory ./.temp so exports work the same way during development.

See the Extensions SDK docs for details.