Installing Plugins On Windows
Please do your best to thoroughly read the installation instructions. Not all plugins are identical, and there are going to be some variations depending on the plugin.
Pay close attention to which versions of OBS is supported. If it hasn't been updated for a long time, its possible it will not work on the latest release.
Before you start, make sure obs is closed. If you get messages about files being in use, obs is most likely running. Either restart the computer (dont start any other software), or end obs64/32.exe in the task manager.
Plugins usually come in two different installation types.
Recommended when the option is presented. Mostly automatic, might require correcting the path to OBS.
Exceptions would be when its a portable OBS, or you dont have admin access on the machine.
Compressed file (zip or other archive) containing the folders and files needed. They need to be extracted or copied into the obs-studio folder
Make sure you download the correct file. If you got the source code, that is the wrong one.
Source: The downloaded archive (zip).
Target: The root folder of OBS (obs-studio), by default located in:
C:\Program Files\obs-studio
Want to check the location of your OBS? Right click your OBS shortcut, and chose "open file location".
Keep in mind that it will take you a few levels into the folder structure (in bin\64bit(or 32bit)). The location we want is two steps up (the obs-studio location).
Now that we have our source and our target, we can get to copying/extracting the contents into our obs-studio folder.
When you open the archive (zip) you should be able to see folders named "obs-plugins" and "data". Sometimes you will also see "bin" or other folder names. Its important to extract/copy all of the folders. If you dont see any folders with those names, you need to enter the next folder, often called "windows" or <plugin name>.
At this point we are just playing the matching game. Drag or copy the folders into the obs-studio folder which should have matching folder names.
This will cause Windows to try to merge the folders. You will most likely get a prompt asking for admin permission in order to continue. Hit "continue"
If windows asks if you would like to merge the folders, you should answer "yes".
You are not supposed to move or delete any of the folders in the obs-studio folder, they should automatically merge.
If you happen to delete folders, you should be able to install the latest version of OBS again to get them back.
That should be it, unless the installation instructions mentioned other extra steps. Launch OBS Studio and confirm that you have the plugin installed.
Make sure you read any "ReadMe" files or "how to use" steps, in order to understand how the plugin is supposed to be used and/or how to set it up, once installed.