Where Does Zencoder Store Settings and Config?
Zencoder keeps its settings in a .zencoder folder in your home directory, with per-repo overrides. MCP servers go in the editor settings file.
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Zencoder's config is refreshingly small. One global file in your home directory plus an optional per-repo override, and that is the whole model. Machine-wide defaults, project choices, done.
MCP servers deliberately live elsewhere, in the editor's own settings rather than the Zencoder folder. Logs follow the same split: VS Code output channel or JetBrains IDE log. Do not go hunting for an extension storage folder by publisher name. No source documents it, and anything you find by guessing will differ next release.
Where Zencoder stores this, by platform
%USERPROFILE%\.zencoder\settings.json
Global Zencoder settings. Project file at <repo>/.zencoder/settings.json overrides this one. MCP entries belong in VS Code settings under the zencoder.mcpServers key, not in this file.
~/.zencoder/settings.json
Same global file as other platforms. Logs come from the VS Code Output panel Zencoder channel. Zenflow, the separate orchestration tool, uses .zenflow/settings.json instead and is easy to confuse with this one.
~/.zencoder/settings.json
Same global file with per-repo overrides at <repo>/.zencoder/settings.json. JetBrains MCP setup runs through the Settings UI rather than JSON, and diagnostics land in idea.log.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the Zencoder settings file?
Edit ~/.zencoder/settings.json on Mac and Linux, or %USERPROFILE%\.zencoder\settings.json on Windows. Project overrides live at <repo>/.zencoder/settings.json and win over the global file. Run the zen settings reload step after saving or the change sits unread.
How do I configure Zencoder MCP servers?
Add them under the zencoder.mcpServers key in VS Code settings, either the User file or .vscode/settings.json for one project. JetBrains users configure the same servers through Settings, Tools, Zencoder, MCP Servers instead of editing JSON.
Where are Zencoder logs?
Open the Output panel in VS Code and switch to Zencoder, or use Help, Show Log in JetBrains for idea.log. The exact extension storage folder under globalStorage is undocumented, so logs are the reliable trail rather than guessing an internal path.
Notice an outdated path? Let us know.