From Sim to Live: How to Transition Your Trade Copier Setup When You Pass Your Evaluation

Passing an evaluation feels like the finish line. For your trade copier setup, it's more like a configuration checkpoint — several things need to change as the account moves from evaluation to funded status. Getting this transition right prevents trading live funded capital with the wrong risk parameters, the wrong account credentials, or the wrong consistency tracking baseline.

What Actually Changes When You Get Funded

When a prop firm funds an account after a passed evaluation, they typically:

• Issue new account credentials for the funded account (separate from the evaluation account)
• Apply different rule parameters — the funded stage often has different profit targets, different daily loss limits, and sometimes different drawdown structures than the evaluation
• Remove or modify the consistency rule (at some firms)
• Set a new payout cycle baseline (cumulative profit resets to zero for the new cycle)

All of these changes require updates to your copier configuration. An account that's still connected with evaluation credentials won't trade the funded account; it'll either fail to connect or trade the expired evaluation account.

The Transition Checklist

Step 1: Update the Broker Connection

In NinjaTrader, go to Tools → Accounts and update the credentials for the account. The funded account may have different login credentials from the evaluation account at some firms — particularly if the firm operates evaluations and funded accounts through separate systems.

Verify the new connection is showing the correct starting balance and account details before proceeding.

Step 2: Update Copilink Configuration for This Account

In Copilink, open the follower settings for the account and update:

• Daily loss limit: The funded account may have a different daily loss limit than the evaluation. Update the Copilink threshold to 85% of the funded account's official limit.
• Trailing drawdown type: Some firms change from EOD to intraday (or vice versa) between evaluation and funded stages. Confirm which model applies and update the drawdown monitoring type accordingly.
• Consistency rule: If the funded account removes the consistency rule (Tradeify SELECT Flex, MFFU Core/Scale), disable consistency tracking for this account. If the rule continues (Apex 30% in the funded stage), keep it active with a reset cumulative baseline of zero.
• Profit target: The evaluation profit target should be removed or updated to the funded-stage payout target (or left as an alert threshold rather than a hard stop).
• Contract ratio: If the funded account has a different size than the evaluation, update the ratio accordingly.

Step 3: Reset Cumulative Profit Baseline

The consistency rule tracking in Copilink uses a cumulative profit baseline. When an account transitions to funded, the baseline resets to zero — the funded payout cycle starts fresh. Update this in the account settings so the consistency calculation is correct from day one of the funded stage.

Step 4: Verify Overnight Hold Permissions

If the evaluation prohibited overnight holds but the funded account permits them (e.g., Topstep), your copier's session end configuration needs updating. Remove any evaluation-specific end-of-session flatten rules from the funded account's configuration.

Step 5: Run a Test Session

Before trading the funded account for real, run a test session:

• Place a test entry on the leader — verify it replicates to the newly configured funded account
• Verify the daily loss limit is correctly configured (simulated threshold test)
• Check that the consistency tracking baseline is at zero
• Confirm connection stability over a full session before trading

First Session on the Funded Account

The first funded session is often psychologically different from evaluation trading — real consequences feel different from evaluation consequences, even when the infrastructure is identical. A few things that help:

• Trade at reduced size for the first 2-3 sessions (configure a lower contract ratio temporarily) until you confirm the setup is stable and the strategy is performing as expected in the funded stage
• Review the per-account risk dashboard at the start and end of the first session to confirm all parameters are reading correctly
• The hard limits are there; trust them. If the account hits the daily loss limit on the first day, it auto-flattens. That's the system working correctly, not a catastrophe.

The full transition guide is in the Copilink onboarding documentation at copilink.com/faq.