Installation Instructions

Version 3.0.0 (for GIMP 3.0)
- Install pre-built binaries
- Building version 3.0.0 from source
Version 2.0.1 (for GIMP 2.10)
- Install pre-built binaries
- Building version 2.0.1 from source

This page explains how to install the GIMP Image Registration Plug-in for both GIMP 3.0 and GIMP 2.10.

Installation differs depending on which version of GIMP you are using.

Version 3.0.0 (for GIMP 3.0)

Install pre-built binaries

Pre-built binaries are available at:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/gimp-image-reg/files/version-3.0.0/

Download the binary package that matches your system and unpack it as-is (including the top-level directory) into one of your GIMP plug-in folders. The archives are already arranged according to the directory structure required by GIMP 3, so no renaming or rearranging is necessary.

After restarting GIMP, the plug-in will appear as Image Registration... under the Tools menu.

If no binary package is available for your system, please build the plug-in from source following the instructions in the section below.

How GIMP 3 locates plug-ins

GIMP 3 uses a new folder layout:

Each plug-in must be located inside its own directory.
The executable inside that directory must have the same name as the directory.

The provided ZIP archives already follow this layout.

Locating or adding GIMP 3 plug-in folders

In GIMP 3, plug-in folders can be viewed or added via:

Edit → Preferences → Folders → Plug-Ins

You may add additional directories using the + button.

Building version 3.0.0 from source

Cross-platform build workflow

The build process works the same on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

By using cmake (≥ 3.20) together with the ninja build tool, the commands and workflow are nearly identical on all platforms, avoiding platform-specific complications and allowing for a unified build procedure.

Requirements

A C++ compiler
(On Windows, clang and gcc/MSYS are known to work. MSVC has not been tested.)
cmake ≥ 3.20
ninja (recommended)
– provides a consistent build workflow across all systems
msgfmt (optional)
– used to generate translation files (only German is currently available)

Build steps

Download and unpack the source package
Download
- https://sourceforge.net/projects/gimp-image-reg/files/version-3.0.0/gimp-image-reg-3.0.0-source.zip
and unpack into a folder named, for example, sources.
Create a build directory
Create a sibling directory named, for example, build:
```
sources/
build/
              
```

Configure with cmake

cd build
cmake -S ../sources -B . -G "Ninja Multi-Config"

Build and install

cmake --build . --config Release
cmake --build . --config Release --target install

The plug-in will be installed into

build/install/

Create a binary package

cmake --build . --config Release --target package

This creates a ZIP archive such as:

gimp-image-reg-3.0.0-windows-amd64.zip

Unpack this ZIP file into any GIMP 3 plug-in folder.

After restarting GIMP, the plug-in will appear as Image Registration... under the Tools menu.

Version 2.0.1 (for GIMP 2.10)

Version 2.0.1 is available in two variants, which we refer to as

Python variant, and
Native variant (written in C/C++).

Both plug-in variants behave identically from the user’s perspective. The Python variant (Python user interface with a C++ engine) was created primarily to support platforms such as Windows and macOS, where the GIMP 2.10 development libraries needed for the native variant of the plug-in were either difficult or inconvenient to install.

Starting with version 3.0.0, only the Python variant is provided.

Install pre-built binaries

Pre-built binaries are available at:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/gimp-image-reg/files/version-2.0.1/

Each ZIP archive contains a pre-built binary package for a specific operating system. Download the package that matches your system and unpack it as-is into one of your GIMP plug-in folders.

GIMP 2.10 detects plug-ins by scanning for executable files directly in those folders.

After restarting GIMP, the plug-in will appear as Image Registration... under the Tools menu.

If no binary package is available for your system, please build the plug-in from source following the instructions in the section below.

Locating or adding GIMP 2.10 plug-in folders

In GIMP 2.10, plug-in folders can be viewed or added via:

Edit → Preferences → Folders → Plug-Ins

You may add additional directories using the + button.

Building version 2.0.1 from source

Cross-platform build workflow

The build process works the same on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

By using cmake (≥ 3.13) together with the ninja build tool, the commands and workflow are nearly identical on all platforms, avoiding platform-specific complications and allowing for a unified build procedure.

Requirements

A C++ compiler
(On Windows, clang and gcc/MSYS are known to work. MSVC has not been tested well.)
cmake ≥ 3.20
ninja (recommended)
– provides a consistent build workflow across all systems
msgfmt (optional)
– used to generate translation files (only German is currently available)

Additional requirements for the native C/C++ plug-in

pkg-config
libgimp-2.0 development files
libgimpui-2.0 development files

Building the Python plug-in

Download and unpack the source package
Download
- https://sourceforge.net/projects/gimp-image-reg/files/version-2.0.1/gimp-image-reg-2.0.1-source.zip
and unpack into a folder named, for example, sources.
Create a build directory
Create a sibling directory named, for example, build:
```
sources/
build/
              
```

Configure for building Python variant

cd build
cmake -S ../sources -B . -G "Ninja Multi-Config"

Build and install

cmake --build . --config Release
cmake --build . --config Release --target install

The plug-in will be installed into:

build/install/

Create a binary package

cmake --build . --config Release --target package

This creates a ZIP archive such as:

gimp-image-reg-2.0.1-linux-x86_64.zip

Unpack this ZIP file into any GIMP 2.10 plug-in folder.

Building the native plug-in

The steps are identical to the Python variant, but you must choose the native plug-in build during configuration.

Configure for building native variant

cd build
cmake -S ../sources -B . -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -D create_native_plugin=TRUE

Build and install

cmake --build . --config Release
cmake --build . --config Release --target install

The plug-in will be installed into:

build/install/

Create a binary package
```
cmake --build . --config Release --target package
              
```
This creates a ZIP archive similar to the Python variant such as:
```
gimp-image-reg-2.0.1-linux-x86_64.zip
              
```
Unpack this ZIP file into any GIMP 2.10 plug-in folder.

After restarting GIMP, the plug-in will be available as Image Registration... under the menu Tools.