SMC Pro v2.8

1. Installation & Setup

Quick Install (MT5)

1. Download the SmartMarketStructure.ex5 file (compiled indicator).
2. Open MetaTrader 5 (MT5).
3. Go to File → Open Data Folder.
4. Navigate to MQL5/Indicators/.
5. Paste the SmartMarketStructure.ex5 file into this folder.
6. Restart MT5 or right-click "Indicators" in the Navigator panel and select Refresh.
7. Drag the indicator onto any chart to launch.

Quick Install (MT4)

1. Download the SmartMarketStructure_MT4.ex4 file (compiled indicator).
2. Open MetaTrader 4 (MT4).
3. Go to File → Open Data Folder.
4. Navigate to MQL4/Indicators/.
5. Paste the SmartMarketStructure_MT4.ex4 file into this folder.
6. Restart MT4 or right-click "Indicators" in the Navigator panel and select Refresh.
7. Drag the indicator onto any chart to launch.

Recommended Settings

GMT Offset

Set GMT Offset to match your broker's server time offset from EST/New York. This is critical for Silver Bullet, Macros, CBDR, and NY Midnight Open to work correctly.

2. Dashboard & Controls

The dashboard panel shows real-time information and gives you full control over every feature with toggle buttons.

Information Display

• Ext/Int Trend: Current external (HTF) and internal (LTF) market structure trend.
• Session: Current active trading session (Asia, London, NY, Silver Bullet, Off-Hours).
• Time: Both local and server time displayed.
• Confluence Meter: Real-time setup quality score from 0-10 with visual bar.

Toggle Buttons

Every feature can be toggled on/off in real-time. Green/colored = ON, Gray = OFF. Click any button to toggle.

Candle Timer

A live countdown timer in the top-right of the dashboard header shows the time remaining until the current candle closes (MM:SS format). Invaluable for timing entries at candle close.

Special Buttons

• AI Scan — Runs the AI Trade Scanner (see Section 14).
• User Guide — Opens the in-chart help window.

3. Market Structure (BOS / CHoCH)

Two Levels of Structure

SMC Pro uses two independent levels of swing detection, which is how institutional traders actually analyze markets:

BOS vs CHoCH

This is one of the most critical distinctions in Smart Money trading:

Swing Labels

• HH (Higher High) + HL (Higher Low) = Bullish sequence
• LH (Lower High) + LL (Lower Low) = Bearish sequence

BOS/CHoCH Confirmation Modes

Choose how strictly structure breaks are confirmed. This is set in the BOS/CHoCH Confirmation input:

Live Structure Detection

The indicator performs real-time structure checks. If the current price breaks the most recent swing high/low against the established trend, a "Live CHoCH" line appears immediately — you don't have to wait for a confirmed fractal.

4. PD Arrays: FVG, IFVG, OB, Breaker

Fair Value Gaps (FVG)

An FVG is a 3-candle pattern where the wick of candle 1 doesn't overlap with the wick of candle 3, creating an imbalance. Price has a natural tendency to return and fill these gaps.

• Bullish FVG: Gap where candle 1's high < candle 3's low. Price should return down to fill it.
• Bearish FVG: Gap where candle 1's low > candle 3's high. Price should return up to fill it.
• CE (Consequent Encroachment): The 50% midpoint of the FVG. Often the exact reaction point.

Inverted FVGs (IFVG)

When an FVG gets completely filled (price trades through the entire gap), it "inverts" and becomes a support/resistance zone in the opposite direction.

• A filled Bullish FVG becomes a Bearish IFVG (resistance).
• A filled Bearish FVG becomes a Bullish IFVG (support).

Order Blocks (OB)

The last opposing candle before an impulse move. This is where institutions placed their orders.

• Bullish OB: Last bearish candle before a bullish BOS. Expect price to bounce here.
• Bearish OB: Last bullish candle before a bearish BOS. Expect price to reject here.

A midline is drawn through each fresh OB at the 50% level — this is often the precise reaction point.

View Modes

Breaker Blocks

When a swing point fails (gets broken through), the level becomes a Breaker Block. It flips from resistance to support (or vice versa). These are drawn with gold-colored zones.

Zone States

5. Liquidity: EQH/EQL & Sweeps

Equal Highs & Equal Lows (EQH/EQL)

When two swing highs (or lows) form at nearly the same price, it creates a liquidity pool. Retail traders place stop losses above equal highs and below equal lows. Institutions target these levels.

• EQH $$ = Double/Triple top area. Stop losses sitting above. Price will likely sweep this level before reversing.
• EQL $$ = Double/Triple bottom area. Stop losses sitting below. Price will likely sweep this level before reversing.

Liquidity Sweeps (Stop Hunts)

This is one of the highest-probability signals in ICT trading. A sweep occurs when:

1. Price moves beyond a swing high/low (taking out stops).
2. Price then reverses and closes back inside the range.
3. The reversal candle has significant size (measured against ATR).

Sweeps are marked with a bold "x" symbol and a dotted line to the swept level.

6. Premium / Discount & OTE Fibonacci

The Dealing Range

The indicator automatically identifies the current dealing range using the most recent external swing high and swing low. The range expands live as price makes new highs/lows.

OTE Fibonacci (Optimal Trade Entry)

The golden highlighted zone between the 61.8% and 78.6% Fibonacci retracement levels. This is the "sweet spot" for institutional entries.

Additional Fibonacci Levels

The 25% and 75% levels are also drawn to help gauge price position within the range. These are shown as subtle gray dotted lines.

7. ICT Time Concepts

ICT trading is as much about when as it is about where. These time-based tools are critical for filtering setups.

NY Midnight Open (True Day Open)

The price at 00:00 EST (New York midnight) is the True Day Open. ICT considers this the real start of the trading day, not the broker's daily candle open. Shown as a blue horizontal line.

• Price above NY Open = bullish bias for the day
• Price below NY Open = bearish bias for the day
• Price returns to NY Open = potential entry point

Silver Bullet Windows

ICT's Silver Bullet model identifies specific 1-hour windows where FVG entries have the highest probability:

Shown as gold-bordered rectangles on the chart.

ICT Macros

Short 20-minute windows where significant price movements and reversals tend to cluster:

• 9:50 - 10:10 EST — Pre-Silver Bullet reversal
• 10:50 - 11:10 EST — End of AM session reversal
• 13:10 - 13:40 EST — Post-lunch reversal
• 14:50 - 15:10 EST — Pre-PM Silver Bullet
• 15:15 - 15:45 EST — End of day positioning

CBDR (Central Bank Dealer Range)

The range established during the Asian session (approximately 2:00 PM - 8:00 PM EST). This range sets up the framework for the next day's moves.

• CBDR Box: Yellow-bordered rectangle showing the range
• ±1 SD: First standard deviation projection. Price reaches this ~68% of the time.
• ±2.5 SD: Extended projection. Major move target.

Session Killzones

Colored boxes showing the high/low range of each major trading session:

• Asia — Accumulation phase. Range forms the CBDR.
• London — Manipulation phase. Often creates false moves (Judas Swings).
• New York — Distribution phase. The real move of the day.

8. Key Levels

Previous Day/Week Levels

Monthly & Weekly Opens

• Monthly Open (M.Open): The opening price of the current month. Acts as a major S/R level and directional bias tool. Purple line.
• Weekly Open (W.Open): The opening price of the current week. Key intraday reference. Gold line.

9. Candle Patterns & Long Wicks

Detected Patterns

The indicator automatically detects and labels the most important ICT-relevant candle patterns on your chart:

Long Wick Detection (LW)

Flags candles where the upper or lower wick exceeds a configurable threshold (default: 1.2x ATR, adjustable in inputs). Long wicks indicate:

• Upper long wicks = Rejection from above. Sellers stepped in aggressively. Bearish signal.
• Lower long wicks = Rejection from below. Buyers absorbed selling pressure. Bullish signal.

Long wicks at EQH/EQL levels or swing points often signal stop hunts / liquidity sweeps.

10. Liquidity Voids & Opening Gaps (NDOG/NWOG)

Liquidity Voids

A Liquidity Void is a massive single-candle move (default: body ≥ 1.5x ATR, configurable) where price moved so fast that very little trading occurred within the range. This creates an imbalance similar to an FVG, but on a single candle.

• Shown as colored rectangles spanning the full candle range.
• Price tends to return and "fill" these voids, similar to FVGs.
• Voids that align with OBs or FVGs create extremely strong reaction zones.

NDOG (New Day Opening Gap)

The gap between yesterday's close and today's open. This is an ICT concept where the opening gap acts as a higher-timeframe FVG.

• Shown as a shaded rectangle with a CE (50%) midline.
• Price frequently fills the NDOG during the London or NY session.
• An unfilled NDOG acts as a magnet for price.

NWOG (New Week Opening Gap)

The gap between last week's close and this week's open. The weekly equivalent of NDOG, and often an even stronger level.

• Shown as a shaded rectangle with a CE midline.
• NWOGs can take several days to fill.
• The 50% level (CE) of the NWOG is a critical institutional reference point.

11. SMT Divergence

Smart Money Technique (SMT) Divergence compares swing points between your current symbol and a correlated symbol to detect institutional manipulation.

How It Works

Correlated pairs (like EURUSD and DXY, or NAS100 and US30) should make similar swing highs and lows. When they diverge, it signals that smart money is positioning:

Setup

1. REQUIRED: Set SMT Symbol in the inputs to your comparison symbol (e.g., "USDJPY" or "NAS100"). SMT will not display anything if this field is blank.
2. Toggle "SMT" on the dashboard.
3. Look for "SMT" or "SMT" labels at swing points where divergence is detected.

Recommended Pairs

12. Multi-Timeframe Analysis & MTF Trend Dashboard

The MTF feature draws Higher Timeframe zones directly on your current chart. This is critical because HTF zones are significantly stronger than LTF zones.

How It Works

1. Set HTF Period for MTF Analysis to your desired higher timeframe (e.g., H4 while on M15).
2. Toggle "MTF" button on the dashboard.
3. HTF Order Blocks and FVGs appear on your chart with thicker borders.

Recommended MTF Pairings

MTF Trend Dashboard Panel

When MTF is enabled, a separate panel appears below the main dashboard showing the structure trend across 4 configurable timeframes.

• BULLISH = HH + HL sequence (higher highs and higher lows)
• BEARISH = LH + LL sequence (lower highs and lower lows)
• RANGING = Mixed or indeterminate structure

The default timeframes are M15, H1, H4, and D1, but you can customize all 4 in the indicator inputs (MTF Trend Panel: Timeframe 1-4). When all 4 timeframes align in the same direction, it creates the strongest possible trend confirmation. Mixed signals suggest caution.

13. Volume Profile & ADR

A simplified daily volume profile showing where the most trading activity has occurred.

Key Elements

• POC (Point of Control): The gold bar/line. Price level with the highest volume. Acts as a magnet and strong S/R.
• Delta Markers: Green = net buying, Red = net selling at each price level.
• Day Delta: Total net buying/selling volume for the day. Shows overall order flow bias.

Volume Profile Strategy

• Bullish bias: Price above POC + Positive day delta
• Bearish bias: Price below POC + Negative day delta
• High volume areas = consolidation zones (expect ranging)
• Low volume areas = fast price movement (expect breakouts)

ADR (Average Daily Range)

When ATR is enabled, the indicator also draws ADR projections from the current day's open price. The ADR uses the average range of the last 20 trading days.

• ADR Hi: Day Open + ADR. Upper expected range limit.
• ADR Lo: Day Open - ADR. Lower expected range limit.

These levels help gauge how much further price is likely to move within the current day. If price has already reached the ADR Hi, the probability of a further upside move drops significantly.

14. Confluence Scoring System

The indicator calculates a real-time confluence score from 0 to 10 that rates the current setup quality. This is displayed on the dashboard and in the AI Scanner.

Scoring Breakdown

Score Interpretation

15. AI Trade Scanner

Click the "AI Scan" button to run a comprehensive multi-factor analysis of the current market.

What It Analyzes

1. External market structure trend direction
2. Current position in Premium/Discount range
3. Proximity to OTE fibonacci zone
4. Nearest unmitigated Point of Interest (OB/FVG/Breaker)
5. Recent liquidity sweep events
6. Current trading session/time window
7. Overall confluence score

Signals

Position Size Calculator

The AI panel automatically calculates the optimal lot size based on:

• Your account balance
• Your risk percentage (set in inputs, default 1%)
• The distance from entry to stop loss
• The symbol's tick value and tick size

It also shows the dollar risk and potential dollar reward.

Backtest

Click "Backtest" in the AI panel to test the OTE strategy on the last 50 swing cycles. It shows:

• Total trades found
• Wins, Losses, and Open (unresolved) trades
• Win Rate percentage

16. Alerts & Notifications

Automatic Alerts

Alert Delivery

• Popup: MT5 alert dialog box
• Push Notification: Sent to your MT5 mobile app
• Sound: Plays an alert sound

Manual Alerts

Click "+Alert" on the dashboard to place a yellow horizontal line at the current price. Drag it to your desired level. When price crosses the line:

• An alert fires (popup and/or push)
• The line turns gray and changes to dotted (triggered state)

17. The Complete Trading Model

This is the step-by-step process for finding and executing A+ setups using SMC Pro v2.8:

Step 1: Determine Bias (HTF Analysis)

1. Look at External Structure. Is it making HH/HL (bullish) or LH/LL (bearish)?
2. Check the Monthly and Weekly Opens. Is price above or below?
3. Note the previous day/week high/low as liquidity targets.

Step 2: Identify the Dealing Range

1. Enable P/D zones. Note the Premium/Discount boundary (EQ).
2. For buys: Wait for price to pull back into the Discount zone.
3. For sells: Wait for price to rally into the Premium zone.

Step 3: Find the Entry Zone

1. Look for a confluent POI in the correct zone: OB + FVG overlap, or OB in OTE zone.
2. The ideal entry has an unmitigated OB inside the OTE (61.8-78.6%) zone with an FVG nearby.
3. Check if an MTF (HTF) zone aligns with your entry zone for extra confirmation.
4. Check for NDOG/NWOG alignment — price near an opening gap CE adds confluence.
5. Check SMT Divergence with correlated pair for institutional manipulation clues.

Step 4: Wait for Entry Trigger

1. Drop to lower timeframe (or use Internal Structure).
2. Wait for a CHoCH on internal structure in your trade direction.
3. Look for a candle pattern at entry (Engulfing, Morning/Evening Star).
4. Check for long wick rejection at the POI zone.
5. Ideally, enter during a Silver Bullet window or Killzone.
6. A liquidity sweep before your entry is the strongest confirmation.
7. Use the candle timer to time your entry at candle close.

Step 5: Manage the Trade

1. Stop Loss: Below/above the POI zone (order block low/high).
2. Take Profit: Target the opposing liquidity — EQH, EQL, PDH, PDL, ADR Hi/Lo, or the other end of the dealing range.
3. Minimum R:R: 1:3 or better. Never risk more than the AI-calculated lot size.
4. Check ADR — if price has already hit the ADR Hi/Lo, the move may be exhausted.

18. Risk Management & Position Sizing

The 1% Rule

Never risk more than 1-2% of your account balance on a single trade. The AI Scanner automatically calculates the correct lot size based on your risk input.

How Position Sizing Works

The formula used by the AI Scanner:

• Risk Amount ($) = Account Balance × Risk Percentage
• Pip Risk = Distance from Entry to Stop Loss
• Lot Size = Risk Amount / (Pip Risk / Tick Size × Tick Value)

The result is automatically capped between the broker's minimum and maximum lot sizes.

R:R Guidelines

19. Pro Tips & Best Practices

Chart Setup

• Enable "Dark Theme" for the best visual experience.
• Use a clean chart — disable MT5's built-in grid and volumes.
• The Standard defaults (Struct, Int.S, FVG, OB, EQH/L, Sweeps, P/D, Labels) are a great starting point. Add features gradually as you learn.

Standard Layout (Default)

On first load, SMC Pro activates the Standard layout — 8 essential features covering the three pillars of SMC: Structure, Zones, and Liquidity. Everything else remains available as individual toggles on the dashboard.

Feature Combinations

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Trading against the HTF trend. Always align with external structure.
2. Entering at 50% (Equilibrium). Never enter at the EQ line. Wait for Discount/Premium.
3. Trading mitigated zones. Fresh zones are significantly more reliable.
4. Ignoring time. A perfect price setup during off-hours is still a bad trade.
5. Over-leveraging. Stick to the 1% rule no matter what.
6. Not waiting for confirmation. Price at a zone is not an entry. A CHoCH at a zone is.

Keyboard Shortcuts

• All toggles are accessible via the dashboard buttons (no keyboard shortcuts in MT5 indicators).
• Use MT5's built-in Ctrl+I to manage indicator inputs.
• Use Ctrl+B to see all chart objects created by the indicator.

20. FAQ & Troubleshooting

Q: The indicator is slow / chart is lagging

Reduce "Max History Bars" to 500 or less. Disable features you don't need (especially Volume Profile and MTF). Close the AI panel when not in use.

Q: Silver Bullet / Macros / CBDR times look wrong

Check your "GMT Offset" input. It should reflect the difference between EST (New York time) and your broker's server time. Most brokers use UTC+2 or UTC+3, which means the offset should be -5 (EST) relative to that.

Q: Zones appear but quickly disappear

If "Hide Invalidated" is ON, zones that price has closed through will be removed. Turn it OFF or enable "Mitig" to see mitigated/invalidated zones.

Q: No BOS/CHoCH lines showing

Increase "Max History Bars" or reduce "External Swing Bars" size. You need enough data for the indicator to detect swings and structure breaks.

Q: AI Scanner says "WAIT" all the time

This is normal and actually a good sign — it means the indicator is properly filtering setups. A+ setups don't occur on every chart at every moment. Try different timeframes or symbols.

Q: Can I use this on multiple timeframes simultaneously?

Yes. Add the indicator to multiple charts. Each instance is independent. Use the MTF feature to see higher timeframe zones on your trading timeframe.

Q: How do I set up SMT Divergence?

Enter the comparison symbol name in the SMT Symbol input (e.g., "USDJPY", "NAS100", "DXY"). Make sure the symbol name exactly matches what's listed in your broker's Market Watch. Leave the input blank to disable SMT.

Q: NDOG/NWOG shows no gap

If yesterday's close equals today's open (common in forex which trades nearly 24h), there's no gap to show. NDOG/NWOG are most useful on indices, commodities, and stocks which have actual session gaps.

Q: Which BOS mode should I use?

Wick is best for scalpers and aggressive entries. Body is the standard ICT approach and works well for most traders. 2-Candle is the most conservative and best for swing traders. Start with Body and adjust based on your style.

Q: Is SMC Pro available for MT4?

Yes. SMC Pro is available for both MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 with the same features, dashboard, and default Standard layout. The MT4 file is SmartMarketStructure_MT4.ex4.

Q: How do I update the indicator?

MT5: Download the latest .ex5 file. Replace the old file in your MQL5/Indicators/ folder. Restart MT5 or refresh the indicators list.

MT4: Download the latest .ex4 file. Replace the old file in your MQL4/Indicators/ folder. Restart MT4 or refresh the indicators list.

Q: What is the Standard layout?

On first load, SMC Pro activates a clean Standard layout with 8 essential features: External Structure, Internal Structure, FVG, Order Blocks, Equal Highs/Lows, Liquidity Sweeps, Premium/Discount, and Labels. All other features (Breaker, OTE, Sessions, Patterns, NDOG/NWOG, MTF, SMT, etc.) are OFF by default but can be toggled on from the dashboard at any time. Your preferences are saved automatically.