Final Cut Express 2: How to Delete the Preference Files

When troubleshooting Final Cut Express, one step you can take is to delete the Final Cut Express preference files. Doing this restores Final Cut Express to the default settings and behavior. These files contains user preferences for scratch disk settings, capture settings, window layouts, and so forth.

To delete the Final Cut Express preferences files, do the following:

1. Quit Final Cut Express.
2. Click the Finder icon in the Dock.
3. From the Go menu, choose Go to Folder.
4. Type: ~/Library/Preferences/ Note: The tilde "~" refers to your home directory. For more information see "Mac OS X: Using Your Home Directory".
5. Click Go.
6. Drag the file named "com.apple.FinalCutExpress.plist" to the Trash.

7. Double-click the folder named "Final Cut Express User Data".
8. Drag the file named "Final Cut Express 2.0 Preferences" to the Trash.
9. Drag the file named "Final Cut Express POA Cache" to the Trash.

10. Open Final Cut Express.

Important: Do not delete any of the other files in the Final Cut Pro User Data folder.

Once this process is completed Final Cut Pro reverts to its installed defaults. Reset all of your desired application preferences to match what they were before--in particular your Scratch Disk Preferences, keyboard mappings, and the selected Sequence Settings.

Back up configured preference files

To avoid recreating all your custom settings in the event you have to delete the preference files again, follow these steps to save a clean copy of the file:

1. Make a backup copy of the "Final Cut Express 2.0 Preferences" and the "com.apple.FinalCutExpress.plist" files immediately after it is configured for the first time.
2. Put the backup copy of the files in a safe place.

If you have to delete the preference files again, you can simply replace them with the backup copy of the saved, clean files. This preserves your desired preference settings, while eliminating any unwanted behaviors that may have been caused by a faulty Final Cut Pro Preferences file.

Note: It is not necessary to back up the Final Cut Express POA Cache file.