How to Run Multiple Expert Advisors (EAs)?

How to run Expert Advisors on MT4

Acquiring EAs

Generally, traders can acquire EAs through any of the following ways:

MetaTrader Market

The MT4 platform gives traders direct access to the “MetaTrader market”. Just click on the “Market” tab within the platform, then click on the “Experts” tab.

MetaTrader market

Here, you will find a large collection of EAs and indicators for free, rent, or purchase. You can click on any EA of your choice to view its details such as description, screenshots, specifications, user reviews, price, etc.

To download any EA, you need to first log in to your MQL5 account. If you have none, you can easily create one at no cost. If you wish to test the EA before buying, click on “download demo”.

Developing your own EA

A Forex trader can automate his strategies by coding them into an EA. This can be done in the “MetaEditor” app using the MQL4 programming language. To start the process, open the MT4 platform, right-click on “Expert Advisors” in the Navigator window, and select “Create in MetaEditor”.

If you cannot code, there are EA builder softwares that can help you build an EA without coding. Some of them are EA Builder Pro, EA Studio, StategyQuant X, etc.

Third-party sources

Forex traders can also acquire EAs through third-party websites where they can purchase and download the EA installable files into their computers. Also, free EAs can be obtained in some Forex forums where traders share resources among themselves. Furthermore, some brokers offer traders free EAs. If you do not know how to begin your search for EAs, you can take a look at this article “What Is The Best Forex EA For MT4”.

Installing an EA on the MT4 platform

Downloading EAs from the MetaTrader market automatically installs it on the MT4 platform. It becomes ready for use immediately. But, if you got your EA from another source, follow the steps below to install your EA:

• Copy the EA files.

• Go over to your MT4 platform and log into your account.

• From the Menu bar, click File> Open Data Folder.

• A new window opens, open the “MQL4” folder.

• Open the “Experts” folder and paste the EA files here.

• Close the MT4 platform and restart again. This will enable the changes to take effect.

• Login to your MT4 again. On the Menubar, click View> Navigator.

• When the navigator window opens, click on the + sign beside “Expert Advisors” to display all the EAs.

• Open the chart you want the EA to trade.

• Choose the EA you want to activate and drag it over the chart. Alternatively, you can right-click the EA and select “attach to a chart”.

Installing an EA

• Set the EA parameters and Click OK.

For more details, check out the article “How To Install Forex Expert Advisor (EA)”.

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1

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Review

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Study Review

2

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Your capital is at risk.

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Study Review

Possible problems and how to solve them

Zip Files

If you downloaded your EAs from websites, it is possible that you downloaded archived or zip files. Zip files will not work if you copy them to the MT4 Experts folder. To unzip a file, right-click it and select “extract all”.

EA not visible in MT4

If your EA is not displayed in the Expert Advisors section of the “Navigator” window after pasting it there, log out of the MT4 platform and close the window. Relaunch the MT4 and log into your account.

Make sure that the downloaded file is in the correct format which is the .ex4 extension. Check again to ensure that your download was not interrupted.

EA is not working

To activate your EA on the charts, click the “AutoTrading” button on the toolbar of the MT4. It will display a green indication when active and red when inactive. If your EA is working, you will see a smiley face on the top right-hand corner of the chart. If you see a sad face, it means that the EA is not active.

Check the activation of the EA

Enable DLL Files if Required

Some EAs use .dll files and you need to enable dll before it works. On the MT4 menubar, click Tools>Options. Click the “Expert Advisors” tab and check “Allow automated trading” and “Allow DLL imports”. Click ok.

Allow DLL imports

Next, from the Navigation window, double-click on the EA. Check the “Allow DLL imports” checkbox and click “ok”.

Allow DLL imports

Can you run 2 Expert Advisors at the same time?

Yes, on the MT4, you can only run one EA per chart. If you try to open another EA on the same chart, a dialogue box opens and asks if you want to stop the current EA and execute the new one.

EA chart on the MT4

This means that you can run up to 100 EAs simultaneously because the MT4 platform allows you to open up to 100 charts at a time.

EA charts on the MT4

Magic number

This is a unique number assigned to every EA to distinguish the orders it opens. If you have multiple EAs trading the same pair at different timeframes using different strategies, tracking orders placed by each EA becomes challenging. But, with the magic number assigned to each EA, it will be able to identify and manage all its trades without interfering with other trades.

The magic number is very important for monitoring and assessing the performance of each EA especially when you have numerous EAs deployed simultaneously. It can be found under “inputs” in the “properties” window of some EAs. It will also display as a screen tip when you hover your mouse pointer over an active order on the “trade” tab of the MT4.

Unique EA number

Pros and cons of running multiple EAs