# Cannot install external library with Processing 4
**URL:** https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302
**Category:** Processing
**Created:** [November 8, 2024, 2:27pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302 "2024-11-08T14:27:51Z")
**Posts on this page:** 9
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Kingarthursdog](https://discourse.processing.org/u/Kingarthursdog)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2024, 2:27pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/1 "2024-11-08T14:27:51Z")
I have been trying to install an external library (PEmbroider) to use with Processing 4, but with zero success. The documentation states that you should be able to install an external library by dropping the new library folder into the libraries folder which is contained within the sketch folder. In other words, this should work:
Processing \> libraries \> PEmbroider
But it doesn’t … neither can you install via import Library … as that does not contain any options to choose an external library. What is going wrong here? I have followed different solutions from many sources, but none work. The installation itself is fine, and Processing will run the example programs.
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### Author:  [@sableraph](https://discourse.processing.org/u/sableraph)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2024, 2:40pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/2 "2024-11-08T14:40:53Z")
Hi @Kingarthursdog, welcome to the community!
Here’s a step-by-step guide to manually installing the PEmbroider library:
1. **Download the Library**
Download the PEmbroider library [.ZIP file for processing 4](https://github.com/CreativeInquiry/PEmbroider/blob/master/distribution/PEmbroider/download/PEmbroider_for_Processing_4.zip) and extract the folder from it.
2. **Open the Sketchbook Folder from Processing**
Open Processing, go to **File \> Sketchbook…** , then click the **Show Folder** button, which will take you directly to your sketchbook folder.
3. **Move the Library to the Libraries Folder**
In your sketchbook folder, find (or create) a folder named `libraries`. Drag the entire extracted PEmbroider library folder into this `libraries` folder.
4. **Restart Processing**
Close and reopen Processing to ensure it detects the new library.
After restarting, you should be able to use the PEmbroider library in your sketches. Let me know if this helps!
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### Author:  [@Kingarthursdog](https://discourse.processing.org/u/Kingarthursdog)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2024, 4:13pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/3 "2024-11-08T16:13:07Z")
Thank you for your help. Unfortunately this also does not work. I placed the PEmbroider library into the libraries folder (which was generated by Processing) but the new library does not show. I have tried installing a library using:
Sketch \> Import Library … \> Manage Libraries
and the new library appears to function correctly and the newly installed library does show under contributed libraries. Manually dropping a new library into the libraries folder (and restarting) does not seem to work though. The library that I want to install (PEmbroider) is not available to install through ‘Manage Libraries’, which is frustrating.
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### Author:  [@robertesler](https://discourse.processing.org/u/robertesler)
#### Post date: [November 9, 2024, 8:35pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/4 "2024-11-09T20:35:13Z")
Hi @Kingarthursdog!
@sableraph’s directions work for me on both macOS and Windows. Perhaps you’re on a different operating system or older hardware? Double check that the folder is not inside another folder with the same name. Sometimes when a folder unzips it can put itself inside another folder depending on the software.
The file structure for a library has to look like this:
```auto
PEmbroider/
/examples
*.pde
/lib
core.jar
library.properties
/reference
/src
*.java
```
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### Author:  [@Kingarthursdog](https://discourse.processing.org/u/Kingarthursdog)
#### Post date: [November 11, 2024, 1:54pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/5 "2024-11-11T13:54:18Z")
Hmm … I have tried this on my Macbook and it still does not recognise external libraries. This is a screenshot of the directory structure:
I dropped the PEmbroider library into the libraries folder, restarted Processing, but when I opened the example program, it did not recognise the class. Very frustrating …
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### Author:  [@mnse](https://discourse.processing.org/u/mnse)
#### Post date: [November 11, 2024, 3:57pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/6 "2024-11-11T15:57:11Z")
Hi @Kingarthursdog ,
Would you please go one step further and show the content of the PEmbroider folder from your screenshot on the right side.
Thanks and Cheers
— mnse
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### Author:  [@Kingarthursdog](https://discourse.processing.org/u/Kingarthursdog)
#### Post date: [November 11, 2024, 4:34pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/7 "2024-11-11T16:34:05Z")
Sure, here it is:
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### Author:  [@mnse](https://discourse.processing.org/u/mnse)
#### Post date: [November 11, 2024, 6:08pm UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/8 "2024-11-11T18:08:41Z")
Hi @Kingarthursdog,
That’s the problem. This looks like you have downloaded the GitHub repo not the processing library…
Move the whole folder aside.
Look into the folder distribution/download
Inside you should find some zip files named ie. PEmbroider\_for\_Processing\_4.zip.
This is the library you want to install to the libraries folder, so extract that to the library folder, restart processing and it should be there.
Cheers
— mnse
This is how it should look like in the end:
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### Author:  [@Kingarthursdog](https://discourse.processing.org/u/Kingarthursdog)
#### Post date: [November 12, 2024, 9:39am UTC](https://discourse.processing.org/t/cannot-install-external-library-with-processing-4/45302/9 "2024-11-12T09:39:33Z")
You’re absolutely right, it was the github repo, not the processing library … thanks mnse.