<aside> 💡

TLDR: unless you’re using the latest version of Deep Glow (v1.6.3), Deep Glow won’t work in AE versions 25.2 and later. If you don't use the latest versions of AE, or you are already using v1.6.3, this change won't affect you. Download all versions here.

</aside>

Starting with the release of After Effects v25.2 launching on 27th March 2025, Deep Glow versions older than v1.6.3 will be blocked from loading. Unfortunately no warning message will be given, it will just appear as if the plugin is not installed / missing.

The reason for this is Adobe has received a high volume of system crashes from older versions of Deep Glow and have decided to block the plugin from loading on their end.

The fault lies with us at Plugin Everything. When MFR was introduced, we went through multiple changes to make Deep Glow compatible with the new multi-threaded architecture and unfortunately many of these versions were unstable.

Further complicating this is that during these subsequent releases some bugs were fixed which had the possibility to break visual compatibility. This is likely the reason many people are still using older versions of the plugin, to maintain legacy compatibility.

For those using older versions of Deep Glow you have two options:

1. Keep using older versions of Deep Glow and don’t update After Effects past v25.1, Deep Glow will continue to function as usual
2. Update After Effects to the latest version, and update Deep Glow to v1.6.3

<aside> 💡

The first option being the simplest and requires no further explanation. The second option requires some consideration depending on which version you are currently using.

</aside>

How do I safely update my old project files to use the latest version of Deep Glow v1.6.3?

The possible issues and subsequent fixes depend on which version you are upgrading from and relate to specific settings:

• v1.6.0 and newer: chromatic aberration behaviour when layer is masked by an external layer
• v1.5.4 and older: drastic change in brightness of the glow if unmult is disabled
• v1.4.6 gamma correction when working in gamma 1.0

<aside> 💡

If you are using versions prior to 1.4.0, please exercise extreme caution when upgrading to v1.6.3 as the visual result may have changed drastically due to extensive overhauls of the plugins internal mechanics.

</aside>

If you require clairification for anything relating to upgrading old projects, please contact us at [email protected] and we will be glad to assist.

For downloads of all previous Deep Glow 1 releases, visit this page.

Is Deep Glow 1 still supported?

Yes. It will continue to receive updates required to keep functioning in the newest versions of After Effects in addition to smaller quality of life improvements. It’s likely that no new major features will be introduced.