MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

General discussion about the Tickstory Lite software package.
jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

Hi

I have a 250 G solid state *C* drive and a 2 TB = *F* drive in my desk top.. I would like to download my MT4 platform and the tickstory - program- data, onto the F drive because of the size of the files for back testing etc.. Though every time I download it to the F drive the tickstory data and the MT4 - history files, turn up in my C drive.. Is there anyway I can stop this ? and is there a way for a smooth operation where everything ends up on my F drive ?

I would appreciate any help..

Thanks...Ja

tickstory
Posts: 4883
Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2013 12:27 am

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by tickstory »

Hi Jay,

To export to an external hard-drive, you will need to use MT4 in "portable" mode. MT4 usually writes data to the "User\AppData" directory which is usually on the C: drive. To force it to write to the same folder as the installation files, you need to:

1) Install a new instance of MT4 to your external drive.
2) In Tickstory File->Settings->MT4 Settings, put the command-line parameter "/portable" (without quotes). This will trigger MT4 to work in portable mode when it starts.
(If you have an MT4 short-cut on the desktop, make sure it has the "/portable" command-line as well, just in case you accidentally use it).
3) In Tickstory, File->Settings->MT4 Settings, set your MT4 Data Folder to be the same as the MT4 installation folder (i.e. it should exist on the external drive).
4) Export your data (note that Tickstory should be indicating that it will export to your external drive) and then back-test as normal.
5) Launch MT4 by pressing F8 in Tickstory. When MT4 starts, you should be able to go to File->Open Data Folder in MT4, and it should display the installation directory on your external drive.

Hope this helps.

jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

tickstory wrote:Hi Jay,

2) In Tickstory File->Settings->MT4 Settings, put the command-line parameter "/portable" (without quotes). This will trigger MT4 to work in portable mode when it starts.

Hi.. Thanks for your reply.

in the command-line I already have /skipupdate for using the back-dated 910 build ? please can you clarify..

Many Thanks for your help..

Ja..

jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

1) Install a new instance of MT4 to your external drive.
Every new Install ends up on the C drive even when I specify down-loading to the F drive ?

Many thanks

Ja..

tickstory
Posts: 4883
Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2013 12:27 am

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by tickstory »

Hi Jay,

There should be a "Settings" button on the first page of the MT4 setup which allows you to specify the installation folder.

Regards.

jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

Hi

Yes.. When down-loading a new platform ,in settings I specify for it to be downloaded into a file on the F drive..

Though Meta quotes automatically places the history file on the C drive>>appdata>>history file..

Also.. Please could you answer my second question ..

Is there an easier way to run quality back-tests than going through this procedure ?

Thanks for all your time it's appreciated..

Ja..

tickstory
Posts: 4883
Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2013 12:27 am

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by tickstory »

Hi Jay,

The only way MT4 will attempt to store the data in the installation folder is if you use the /portable command-line parameter. Of course, you need to ensure that MT4 is installed in a folder that can be written to (C:\Program Files is not suitable since Windows requires admin permissions to write to this folder). Once you have launched MT4 via Tickstory, you should be able to go to File->Open Data Folder in MT4 and verify it is using the expected folder. If this isn't the case, something is incorrect with your command-line setup.

There's unfortunately no other way we're aware of to do back-tests with tick data. Once you get your back-testing environment set up, you'll hopefully find things easy to maintain and use going forward!

Hope this helps.

jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

Ok, many thanks for spending the time to reply, I really appreciate it..

Ja..

jay
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 8:20 pm

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by jay »

Hi

I think you are going to have some problems in the future with this model as most desktops now are designed around the C drive being a small - solid state drive, having a secondary Drive to hold all the chunky data leaving the C drive to hold just the important programs..

MQL4 wants to be on the C drive and keeps migrating to it..

I can get the MT4 platform on to the External drive (all files) but I just cant transfer any data without it migrating back to the C drive... and yes... I've followed all the links for help etc...

Is there a way of downloading the data into a CSV file, changing it to - CSV time series data - and then placing this file into the MT4 history folder bypassing the tickstory program ? I'm happy with the end quality being 90%..

Many thanks

Ja..
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tickstory
Posts: 4883
Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2013 12:27 am

Re: MT4 & External Drives ('F' Drive download)

Post by tickstory »

Hi Jay,

It is MT4 that decides where it locates its files - not Tickstory. MT4 provides the ability to specify /portable command-line to enable users to locate the data files in the same directory as the installation. The very bare-minimal startup procedure is (without requiring Tickstory) are:

- Install a fresh copy of MT4 to your external drive. Do NOT yet start the application until instructed in the following steps.
- With the MT4 short-cut/start up icon, right-click and go to Properties. In the "Target" box, add "/portable" to the end of the command. For example, the full text should look something like:

"E:\MetaTrader 4\terminal.exe" /portable

- Use the short-cut to start MT4.
- In MT4, go to File->Open Data Folder. If the data folder is not on the external drive (E:\Metatrader 4 in our example), then something is wrong with the above steps. Please send screenshots.

Once you have established your MT4 is working correctly in portable mode, you need to configure Tickstory:

- Go to File->Settings->MT4 Settings and select the MT4 Installation folder.
- Select the Data Folder to be the same as the installation folder.
- In command-line settings, put "/portable" (without the quotes).
- Press OK to accept the settings, then press F8 to launch MT4.

If you are still having problems, please provide detailed screenshots of your setup.

Thanks.

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