Below is an outline of every step in the pro plugin. Each tab in the plugin aims to guide you linearly though creating your first revision. We believe it is beneficial to see your model running on our platform as soon as possible to identify what you need to improve.
At a high level you will be:
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1. Prepare your model for processing
1. Prepare your model for processing
Copy your max file into a new folder. We create temporary files and folders next to your Max file, this will just prevent messy file directories.
Consider your exposure settings. Space Pro does not support per camera exposure settings so keep in mind that you can only use the global exposure settings. Create a new (standard) camera and use it as a frame of reference for your lighting which may result in having to adjust the exposure and lighting of your scene. This can also quickly be resolved by using the colour correction tools in the Vray or corona frame buffer.
Unsupported Settings
The plugin will disable the settings below by default. Do not enable these settings if you wish to use Space Pro
Materials with displacement maps will display black. Refer to the setting below:
Time Output in render settings is also set automatically to "single". If any other options are checked the light baking process will not function.
2. Import template
2. Import template
We highly recommend utilizing the scene template when starting a new conversion to assist in categorizing your scene and breaking it into smaller parts.
Main Objective: Move objects or groups of objects into their relevant layer names from the template.
Notes/Tips:
You are free to delete any layers from the template that are not relevant to you.
You are welcome to add additional layer names or edit existing ones if the default names do not align to your scene. Although, we do apply some automation logic based on layer names that include "Plants", "Trees" or "Veg". So ensure that these specific relevant layer names are retained for the best results.
If you do intend on changing the layer names, make sure to maintain the 4 digits along with the underscore. See an example: 0200_Ceiling -> 0200_ExampleLayer.
If there are objects you wish to keep in the file but want to exclude from being processed or used in the final model put them into the “ZZZ_NOT_EXPORTED” layer. Think of it as a ‘recycling bin’.
3. Scene Cleanup
3. Scene Cleanup
The Scene Clean up tool runs a quick check over your entire model and flags anything that may not be compatible with the process. You will need to fix any of the items shown before you can continue to the next step otherwise you will likely run into conversion issues when processing layers or baking the lighting.
4. Organizing packs
4. Organizing packs
At this point you have organized your scene into our layer template, but there are benefits to dividing up the scene further into smaller parts.
We do this for a few reasons:
Creating smaller layers allows for more 'undo' points to revert to when doing revisions of the model so you don't have to undo larger parts of the model.
Unwrapping and optimizing less complex objects reduces error rates with the unwrapping and optimization system.
If further optimization is required later to hit performance targets, it is easier to optimize specific parts of a model instead of larger parts of it.
It's good to have transparent and reflective materials broken into their own layers so you can edit their materials specifically later in the process.
You can control texture quality at a more granular level. For example, if everything’s on one layer you can only tweak the room’s overall quality. Alternatively, if you put the bed on its own layer, you can boost just its texture quality.
Start by pressing 'validate all layers' to check what layers we recommend breaking up further. Then you can use our 'Scene Layer Toolkit' to break up the layers that are reporting issues.
Important Note: All the tools in the 'Scene Layer Toolkit' will only work if:
You have run the 'Validate All Layers' feature in the 'Organizing Packs' window as we use the surfaces area's that are calculated at that time to make other tools function correctly
Objects are editable polygons. If you have not resolved issues in the previous 'Scene Cleanup' section we recommend you do before proceeding.
Suggested process for first revision:
Open the 'Scene Layer Toolkit'
Press 'Auto Split Scene'
Press 'Select Transparent'
Press 'Explode by Material'
Press 'Select High Reflection'
Press 'Explode by Material'
Notes/Tips:
If you wish to break the the scene manually, enable the surface area calculator. This can help you decide what selections to put into new layers.
For any layer whose name includes “Plants,” “Trees,” or “Veg,” split out just the foliage elements (leaves, branches, etc.) into their own layer. You’ll use that foliage layer later to create billboards, while keeping non‑vegetation parts (pots, trunks, etc.) separate. Read the "Vegetation" section for more details.
Before moving on ensure you have selected 'Validate all layers' to check you have correctly completed this step.
5. Process layers
5. Process layers
'Processing layers' refers to the process of sending each layer for UV unwrapping and optimization (i.e. decimation). The Enviz Pro plugin will send the layers you pick for processing to the cloud and when they are complete they will be returned to you. To process an entire scene may take a few hours per step.
The goal is to reduce the polycount of the model for better performance and UV unwrap the objects so they can have their lighting baked onto textures.
Suggested process for first revision:
Press 'Show all layers' to have every later appear in the UI
Select every layer and leave the settings to default for the first attempt
Press 'Optimize'
Periodically check their status by pressing 'refresh list'
Press 'Import All' when all layers that were "processing" are "Import Ready". You can also press 'import all' if you just want the currently complete items to visually see how much progress has been made.
Repeat this process for 'Unwrap'
Note: When layers are being processed they will be removed from your scene to ensure there are no duplicates. We backup all layers in the Enviz Pro folder so don't stress that items are gone. If there are failures the plugin can restore the layer to the state it was in before it was sent.
Tip: You can process both unwraps and optimization of different layers on the cloud at the same time so you don't need to wait until every process is complete before processing more.
If you want to make any manual edits to the unwrap, you can make the changes once a layer has been processed through the unwrapping step. The processed layer will then have an additional UV channel that has been packed which you can make any adjustments before moving on to the next step.
6. Bake Lighting
6. Bake Lighting
This process will apply your current scene's lighting directly onto textures. This allows for detailed lighting to perform well in VR and on mobile. This process can only be run on layers that have been unwrapped during the 'Process Layers' section.
Pre-bake checklist
Once you are ready to bake, make sure your scene is good to go (treat it like a render).
All objects are visible that are necessary to the render
Lighting is on
Note: Use a normal render to check everything is correct, if needed.
Suggested Process for first revision:
Press 'Refresh List'
Select all layers that can be baked (ones that are unwrapped)
Select 'Mark For Bake' (this will change their status to 'ready to bake')
Leave the resolution settings to default
Press 'Bake All'. This will greatly slow down your computer and will likely freeze 3ds Max.
Wait until all layers are baked, press 'Import All'
Change the viewport to 'Flat Color' to see how the model will look when uploaded to the Enviz platform.
After importing your bakes, review the scene and identify any textures that look low quality. For those layers, raise their resolution and re‑bake only the affected layers (you must undo the Mark for Bake step before baking again). We support up to 8K, if an 8K layer still isn’t sharp enough, split it into smaller layers before baking.
Recommendation: Baking lighting for a whole scene will likely take 10-40 hours. It is advised you trigger this overnight.
Keeping within total texture usage:
Before submitting the model to our portal make sure that the total texture usage fits within the budget highlighted in this part of the plugin. Changing the resolution of layers will change the total. Do not exceed 100%. If you are new to this process you can just bake with your percentage above 100% to get a sense of how the model's textures turn out.
7. Vegetation
7. Vegetation
Note: This step may not be necessary depending on the complexity of your scene. You can use the 'Compatibility Tools' in the next tab to check individual views. Or you can just upload it to our platform and see if you feel like performance is acceptable on our supported platforms (Meta Quest/Web/Mobile/Apple Vision Pro)
Plants/tree's and general vegetation are frequently the highest triangle count objects in any scene. We have the ability to transform these objects into billboard representations of the original objects which greatly improves performance.
Example (mesh on left, billboard on right):
Important: Only layers containing the word "Plants", "Trees" or "Veg" will be visible in the vegetation section.
Suggestion: If you had for example a pot plant, you do not want to billboard the pot, but you would the branches and the leaves. So it is important to have those elements on their own layer.
To billboard a layer:
Press "Refresh List" to have all potential layers appear in the UI
Select a layer or several layers that you wish to billboard
Press "Billboard Vegetation"
Press "Refresh List" to check the status of the item sent to the cloud
When it is "Import Ready" you can press "Import Billboards" to import the result from the cloud.
You can always undo if you don't like the result.
An alternative to billboarding if you are attempting to improve performance would be to optimize using the "Processing Layers" tab.
8. Reflections
8. Reflections
Model's uploaded to our platform will automatically receive reflections if the settings of the materials are correct. Below are some suggestions for material settings that we believe look best on our platform, although you are welcome to experiment by uploading your model multiple times to get your preferred results.
Generic Glass:
Use a Physical material and use identical or similar settings to the below image.
Generic Mirror (Experimental):
Use a Physical material and use identical or similar settings to the below image.
Opaque Reflections
Texture glass can also be applied to a material by attaching the desired texture to the Base Color Map node (this method will only accept PNGs). You can do this to apply metallic effects to things like taps or tables.
Tips:
If you want to make something look shiny, make roughness below 0.2
If you want to tint reflections by the base colour and set the metalness to 1
You can change the opacity to whatever you wish to get your desired effect
9. Check for compatibility
9. Check for compatibility
The compatibility tools help you evaluate if:
The model will load without crashing on all devices
Performance will be stable on low end devices, but more importantly in VR as performance issues in VR cause motion sickness.
Note: You may wish to skip this step if you are choosing to only support specific hardware such as high end devices like the latest iPad Pro. You may feel comfortable with it not being a good/functional experience on other platforms if they are not relevant to you.
There are two parts to the compatibility tool:
The 'Mesh Limit' evaluator - This aims to limit the amount of mesh data in your scene. Too much mesh data will take up memory on low end mobile/web and will causes the model to crash.
The 'Performance Tester' - This allows you to measure triangle count's for specific views by targeting a camera and judging from that position. This is important for VR and low end mobile web compatibility. It will provide you a list of the objects in view and their triangle count to help you identify what layers could be optimized further using the 'Processing Layers' tab.
10. Validate and Export
10. Validate and Export
Before exporting we suggest running a final validation to make sure you are aware of what you are about to upload.
This warns you about if the model is likely to crash on lower end devices (if the triangle count and texture usage stats are too high) and tells you about layers that have not been unwrapped or if lighting was not baked.
It is not a requirement that you meet all of the final checks to upload your model to the Enviz platform, especially if you are uploading drafts for review purposes. Important! If you intend to distribute draft models keep in mind the limitations with your compatibility and visual issues.
Once exported, visit our portal (portal.enviz.co) to upload your .evpro file. Read our guide on how to publish to the Enviz platform if you are not aware of the process.
Be aware that once you uploaded it may take up to two hours to become available, you will receive an email when it is.
Important! You must have an active Enviz Pro Space to upload and view your model. Please reach out to our team if you need help with purchasing an Enviz Pro Space.
11. Final Polish
11. Final Polish
You may find that the first version of your finished space has some visual issues. If this is the case, you may need to revisit your model to fix some items and re-process the file through the steps above.
Visit our troubleshooting article as it details some common issues that may arise and how you can fix them.
Reach out to [email protected] with any other questions or issues that we have not covered in that article.