Documentation for Substance Designer 3D is now available on Experience League. After March 14th, HelpX pages will automatically redirect to the equivalent Experience League page.
Refer to the FAQ for more information about which documentation is affected.

User Guide

Main toolbar | Substance 3D Designer

Search
Substance 3D Designer

Substance 3D Designer

Open app
  1. Substance 3D home
  2. User guide
  3. Glossary
  4. Getting started
    1. Getting started
    2. Activation and licenses
    3. System requirements
    4. Overview
      1. Overview
      2. What is a Substance 3D file?
    5. Workflow overview
    6. Shortcuts
    7. Tutorials & learning
  5. Workspace
    1. Workspace
    2. Customizing your workspace
    3. Home screen
    4. Main toolbar
    5. Preferences
      1. Preferences
      2. Project settings
      3. Version control
    6. Explorer
      1. Explorer
      2. Send to... / Interoperability
    7. Graph view
      1. Graph view
      2. Link creation modes
      3. Node finder
      4. Node alignment tools
      5. Graph items
        1. Graph items
        2. Dot node (also Portal)
        3. Frame
        4. Comment
        5. Pin
    8. Library
      1. Library
      2. Managing custom content and filters
    9. Properties
    10. 2D view
      1. 2D view
      2. Color sampler tool
    11. 3D view
      1. 3D view
      2. Scene browser
      3. 3D renderers
      4. Camera
        1. Post effects             
      5. Material properties
      6. Deprecated
        1. Iray
        2. OpenGL - GLSLFX shaders
        3. OpenGL - Switching your shaders to OpenGL Core Profile
    12. Dependency manager
  6. Resources
    1. Resources
    2. Importing, linking and new resources
    3. Bitmap resource
      1. Bitmap resource
      2. Bitmap painting tools
    4. Vector graphics (SVG) resource
      1. Vector graphics (SVG) resource
      2. Vector editing tools
    5. 3D scene resource
    6. AxF (Appearance eXchange Format)
    7. Font resource
    8. Warnings from dependencies
  7. Substance graphs
    1. Substance graphs
    2. Substance graph key concepts
    3. Creating a Substance graph
      1. Creating a Substance graph
      2. Material samples
    4. Instances and subgraphs
    5. Graph parameters
    6. Manage parameters
      1. Manage parameters
      2. Exposing a parameter
      3. Parameter presets
    7. 'Visible if' expressions
    8. Inheritance in Substance graphs
    9. Output size
    10. Values in Substance graphs
    11. Publishing Substance 3D asset files (SBSAR)
    12. Exporting bitmaps
    13. Exporting PSD files
    14. Sample Substance graphs
    15. Warnings in Substance graphs
    16. Nodes reference for Substance graphs
      1. Nodes reference for Substance graphs
      2. Atomic nodes
        1. Atomic nodes
        2. Bitmap
        3. Blend
          1. Blend
          2. Blending modes description
        4. Blur
        5. Channel shuffle
        6. Curve
        7. Directional blur
        8. Directional warp
        9. Distance
        10. Emboss
        11. FX-map
        12. Gradient (Dynamic)
        13. Gradient map
        14. Grayscale conversion
        15. HSL
        16. Levels
        17. Normal
        18. Pixel processor
        19. SVG
        20. Sharpen
        21. Text
        22. Transformation 2D
        23. Uniform color
        24. Value processor
        25. Warp
        26. Output
        27. Input
      3. Node library
        1. Node library
        2. Texture generators
          1. Texture generators
          2. Noises
            1. Noises
            2. 3D Perlin noise
            3. 3D Perlin noise fractal
            4. 3D Ridged noise fractal
            5. 3D Simplex noise
            6. 3D Voronoi
            7. 3D Voronoi fractal
            8. 3D Worley noise
            9. Anisotropic noise
            10. Blue noise fast
            11. BnW spots 1
            12. BnW spots 2
            13. BnW spots 3
            14. Cells 1
            15. Cells 2
            16. Cells 3
            17. Cells 4
            18. Clouds 1
            19. Clouds 2
            20. Clouds 3
            21. Creased
            22. Crystal 1
            23. Crystal 2
            24. Directional noise 1
            25. Directional noise 2
            26. Directional noise 3
            27. Directional noise 4
            28. Directional scratches
            29. Dirt 1
            30. Dirt 2
            31. Dirt 3
            32. Dirt 4
            33. Dirt 5
            34. Dirt gradient
            35. Fluid
            36. Fractal sum 1
            37. Fractal sum 2
            38. Fractal sum 3
            39. Fractal sum 4
            40. Fractal sum base
            41. Fur 1
            42. Fur 2
            43. Fur 3
            44. Gaussian noise
            45. Gaussian spots 1
            46. Gaussian spots 2
            47. Grunge concrete
            48. Grunge Damas
            49. Grunge galvanic large
            50. Grunge galvanic small
            51. Grunge leaks
            52. Grunge leaky paint
            53. Grunge map 001
            54. Grunge map 002
            55. Grunge map 003
            56. Grunge map 004
            57. Grunge map 005
            58. Grunge map 006
            59. Grunge map 007
            60. Grunge map 008
            61. Grunge map 009
            62. Grunge map 010
            63. Grunge map 011
            64. Grunge map 012
            65. Grunge map 013
            66. Grunge map 014
            67. Grunge map 015
            68. Grunge rough dirty
            69. Grunge rust fine
            70. Grunge scratches dirty
            71. Grunge scratches fine
            72. Grunge scratches rough
            73. Grunge shavings
            74. Grunge splashes dusty
            75. Grunge spots
            76. Grunge spots dirty
            77. Liquid
            78. Messy fibers 1
            79. Messy fibers 2
            80. Messy fibers 3
            81. Microscope view
            82. Moisture noise 1
            83. Moisture noise 2
            84. Perlin noise
            85. Plasma
            86. Caustics
            87. Voronoi
            88. Voronoi fractal
            89. Waveform 1
            90. White noise
            91. White noise fast
          3. Patterns
            1. Patterns
            2. 3D linear gradient
            3. 3D volume mask
            4. Alveolus
            5. Arc pavement
            6. Brick 1
            7. Brick 2
            8. Brick generator
            9. Checker 1
            10. Cube 3D
            11. Cube 3D GBuffers
            12. Fibers 1
            13. Fibers 2
            14. Gaussian 1
            15. Gaussian 2
            16. Gradient axial
            17. Gradient axial reflected
            18. Gradient circular
            19. Gradient linear 1
            20. Gradient linear 2
            21. Gradient linear 3
            22. Gradient radial
            23. Height extrude
            24. Mesh 1
            25. Mesh 2
            26. Panorama shape
            27. Polygon 1
            28. Polygon 2
            29. Scratches generator
            30. Shape
            31. Shape extrude
            32. Shape mapper
            33. Shape splatter
            34. Shape splatter blend
            35. Shape splatter data extract
            36. Shape splatter to mask
            37. Splatter
            38. Splatter circular
            39. Star
            40. Starburst
            41. Stripes
            42. Tile generator
            43. Tile random
            44. Tile random 2
            45. Tile sampler
            46. Triangle grid
            47. Weave 1
            48. Weave 2
            49. Weave generator
        3. Filters
          1. Filters
          2. Adjustments
            1. Adjustments
            2. Apply color palette
            3. Auto levels
            4. Channel mixer
            5. Chrominance extract
            6. Clamp
            7. Color match
            8. Color to mask
            9. Contrast/Luminosity
            10. Convert to linear
            11. Convert to sRGB
            12. Create color palette (16)
            13. Grayscale conversion advanced
            14. Hald CLUT
            15. HDR range viewer
            16. Height map frequencies mapper
            17. Highpass
            18. Histogram compute
            19. Histogram equalize
            20. Histogram range
            21. Histogram render
            22. Histogram scan
            23. Non-uniform histogram scan
            24. Histogram select
            25. Histogram shift
            26. ID to mask grayscale
            27. Invert
            28. Lighting cancel high frequencies
            29. Lighting cancel low frequencies
            30. Luminance highpass
            31. Min max
            32. Modify color palette
            33. Pow
            34. Quantize color (Simple)
            35. Quantize color
            36. Quantize grayscale
            37. Replace color
            38. Replace color range
            39. Threshold
            40. View color palette
          3. Blending
            1. Blending
            2. Color (Blend node)
            3. Color burn
            4. Color dodge
            5. Difference
            6. Dissolve
            7. Linear burn
            8. Luminosity (Blend node)
            9. Multi switch
            10. Switch
          4. Blurs
            1. Blurs
            2. Anisotropic blur
            3. Blur HQ
            4. Median filter color
            5. Median filter grayscale
            6. MLV color
            7. MLV grayscale
            8. Non-uniform blur
            9. Radial blur
            10. Slope blur
          5. Channels
            1. Channels
            2. RGBA merge
            3. RGBA split
            4. Alpha merge
            5. Alpha split
            6. Pre-multiplied to straight
            7. Straight to pre-multiplied
          6. Effects
            1. Effects
            2. 3D texture position
            3. 3D texture SDF
            4. 3D texture surface render
            5. 3D texture volume render
            6. Ambient occlusion (HBAO)
            7. Ambient occlusion (RTAO)
            8. Anisotropic Kuwahara color
            9. Anisotropic Kuwahara grayscale
            10. Bevel
            11. Bevel smooth
            12. Cross section
            13. Curvature
            14. Curvature smooth
            15. Curvature sobel
            16. Diffusion color
            17. Diffusion grayscale
            18. Diffusion UV
            19. Directional distance
            20. Edge detect
            21. Emboss with gloss
            22. Extend shape
            23. Flood fill
            24. Flood fill mapper
            25. Flood fill to Bbox size
            26. Flood Fill to gradient
            27. Flood Fill to grayscale/color
            28. Flood Fill to index
            29. Flood Fill to position
            30. Flood Fill to random color
            31. Flood Fill to random grayscale
            32. FXAA
            33. Glow
            34. Mosaic
            35. Multi directional warp
            36. Non-uniform directional warp
            37. Reaction diffusion fast
            38. RT irradiance
            39. RT shadow
            40. Shadows
            41. Shape drop shadow
            42. Shape glow
            43. Shape stroke
            44. Summed area table
            45. Swirl
            46. Uber emboss
            47. Vector morph
            48. Vector warp
          7. Normal map
            1. Normal map
            2. Bent normal
            3. Facing normal
            4. Height normal blender
            5. Height to normal world units
            6. Normal blend
            7. Normal combine
            8. Normal invert
            9. Normal normalize
            10. Normal sobel
            11. Normal to height
            12. Normal to height HQ
            13. Normal transform
            14. Normal uncombine
            15. Normal vector rotation
          8. Tiling
            1. Tiling
            2. Make it tile patch
            3. Make it tile photo
          9. Transforms
            1. Transforms
            2. 3D texture offset
            3. Auto crop
            4. Cartesian to polar
            5. Clone (Filter node)
            6. Mirror (Filter node)
            7. Noise upscale 1
            8. Noise upscale 2
            9. Noise upscale 3
            10. Non-square transform
            11. Non-uniform rotation
            12. Polar to cartesian
            13. Quad transform
            14. Safe transform
            15. Skew
            16. Symmetry
            17. Symmetry slice
            18. Trapezoid transform
        4. Material filters
          1. Material filters
          2. 1-click
            1. 1-Click
            2. Bitmap to material light
          3. Effects (Material)
            1. Effects (Material)
            2. Height blend
            3. Material height blend
            4. Season filter
            5. Snow cover
            6. Water level
          4. Transforms (Material)
            1. Transforms (Material)
            2. Material transform
          5. Blending (Material)
            1. Blending (Material)
            2. Material adjustment blend
            3. Material blend
            4. Material color blend
            5. Material switch
            6. Multi-material blend
          6. PBR utilities
            1. PBR utilities
            2. BaseColor / Metallic / Roughness converter
            3. Base material
            4. PBR Albedo safe color
            5. PBR BaseColor / Metallic validate
            6. PBR Dielectric F0
            7. PBR Metal reflectance
            8. PBR render
            9. PBR render mapping
          7. Scan processing
            1. Scan processing
            2. AO cancellation
            3. Atlas scatter
            4. Atlas splitter
            5. Clone patch
            6. Color equalizer
            7. Crop
            8. Material clone patch
            9. Material crop
            10. Multi-angle to Albedo
            11. Multi-angle to Normal
            12. Multi-clone patch
            13. Multi-color equalizer
            14. Multi-crop
            15. Smart auto tile
        5. Mesh-based generators
          1. Mesh-based generators
          2. Mask generators
            1. Mask generators
            2. Bottom to top
            3. Cloth wear
            4. Dirt
            5. Dripping rust
            6. Dust
            7. Edge blur
            8. Edge damages
            9. Edge dirt
            10. Edge notch
            11. Edge select
            12. Edge speckle
            13. Edge wear
            14. Fiber glass edge wear
            15. Grease
            16. Ground dirt
            17. Leaks
            18. Leather wear
            19. Light
            20. Mask builder
            21. Metal edge eear
            22. Paint wear
            23. Selective dirt
            24. Sun bleach
            25. Surface brush
          3. Weathering
            1. Weathering
            2. Cracks weathering
            3. Fabric weathering
            4. Leather weathering
            5. Metal weathering
            6. Moss weathering
            7. Rock weathering
            8. Rust weathering
          4. Utilities (Mesh-based generators)
            1. Utilities (Mesh-based generators)
            2. 3D planar projection
            3. Material mesh data blender
            4. Material selector
            5. Mesh data combiner
            6. Triplanar
        6. Spline & Path tools
          1. Spline & Path tools
          2. Working with Path & Spline tools
          3. Paths to spline
          4. Path tools
            1. Path tools
            2. Paths format specifications
            3. Paths 2D transform
            4. Mask to Ppths
            5. Paths polygon
            6. Preview paths
            7. Paths warp
            8. Quad transform on path
            9. Paths select
            10. Paths vertex processor
            11. Paths vertex processor simple
          5. Spline tools
            1. Spline tools
            2. Point list
            3. Scatter on Spline color
            4. Scatter on Spline grayscale
            5. Scatter Splines on Splines
            6. Spline 2D transform
            7. Spline (Cubic)
            8. Spline (Poly quadratic)
            9. Spline (Quadratic)
            10. Spline append
            11. Spline bridge (2 Splines)
            12. Spline bridge (List)
            13. Spline bridge mapper color
            14. Spline bridge mapper grayscale
            15. Spline circle
            16. Spline fill
            17. Spline flow mapper
            18. Spline mapper color
            19. Spline mapper grayscale
            20. Spline merge list
            21. Spline render
            22. Spline sample height
            23. Spline sample thickness
            24. Spline select
            25. Spline warp
            26. UV mapper color
            27. UV mapper grayscale
        7. 3D view (Library)
          1. 3D view (Library)
          2. HDRI tools
            1. HDRI tools
            2. Blackbody
            3. Color temperature adjustment
            4. Exposure
            5. Exposure preview
            6. HDR merge
            7. Nadir extract
            8. Nadir patch
            9. Panorama 3D position
            10. Panorama rotation
            11. Gradient 2 points
            12. Gradient linear (HDRI)
            13. Line light
            14. Physical sun/sky
            15. Plane light
            16. Shape light
            17. Sphere light
            18. Straighten horizon
  8. Substance function graphs
    1. Substance function graphs
    2. What is a Substance function graph?
    3. Create and edit a function
    4. The Substance function graph
    5. Variables
      1. Variables
      2. Built-in variables
      3. Get a variable value
      4. Create a variable
    6. FX-maps
      1. FX-Maps
      2. How it works
      3. The Iterate node
      4. The Quadrant node
      5. Using Substance function graphs in FX-Maps
        1. Using Substance function graphs
          in FX-Maps
        2. Iterate and $number variable
        3. Using the Sampler nodes
        4. Using the Set/Sequence nodes
    7. Warnings in Substance function graphs
    8. Sample Substance function graphs
    9. Nodes reference for Substance function graphs
      1. Nodes reference for Substance function graphs
      2. Function nodes overview
      3. Atomic function nodes
        1. Atomic function nodes
        2. Constant nodes
        3. Vector and Swizzle nodes
        4. Get nodes
        5. Sampler nodes
        6. Cast nodes
        7. Operator nodes
        8. Logical nodes
        9. Comparison nodes
        10. Function nodes
        11. Control nodes
      4. Function node library
        1. Function node library
        2. Color
        3. Random
          1. Random
          2. Hash functions
  9. MDL graphs
    1. MDL graphs
    2. Main MDL graph concepts
    3. Creating an MDL graph
    4. MDL library
    5. Exposing parameters in MDL graphs
    6. Substance graphs and MDL materials
    7. Exporting MDL content
    8. Warnings in MDL graphs
    9. MDL learning resources
  10. Working with 3D scenes
    1. Working with 3D scenes
    2. Overriding scene materials
    3. Extracting materials' values and textures
    4. Exporting scenes
  11. Bakers
    1. Bakers
    2. Bakers legacy interface
  12. Best practices
    1. Best practices
    2. Filesize reduction guidelines
    3. Graph creation etiquette
    4. Performance optimization guidelines
  13. Pipeline and project configuration
    1. Pipeline and project configuration
    2. Project configuration files - SBSPRJ
    3. Configuration list - SBSCFG
    4. User preferences - Automating setup
    5. Retrieving the installation path
    6. Environment variables
  14. Color management
    1. Color management
    2. Spot colors (Pantone)
  15. Package metadata
  16. Scripting
    1. Scripting
    2. Plugin basics
    3. Plugin search paths
    4. Plugins packages
    5. Plugin manager
    6. Python editor
    7. Accessing graphs and selections
    8. Nodes and properties
    9. Undo and redo
    10. Application callbacks
    11. Creating user interface elements
    12. Adding actions to the Explorer toolbar
    13. Using color management
    14. Using spot colors
    15. Logging
    16. Using threads
    17. Debugging plugins using Visual Studio Code
    18. Porting previous plugins
    19. Packaging plugins
    20. Scripting API reference
  17. Technical issues
    1. Technical issues
    2. Warnings and errors
    3. Cannot create/load a project
    4. Application does not start
    5. Crash when rendering graphs
    6. Parameters not working as expected
    7. Incorrect image output
    8. 3D View issues
    9. Baking issues
    10. User interface issues
    11. Python issues
    12. Substance model graph feature is missing
  18. Release notes
    1. Release notes
    2. All changes
    3. Version 15.1
    4. Version 15.0
    5. Version 14.1
    6. Version 14.0
    7. Version 13.1
    8. Version 13.0
    9. Version 12.4
    10. Version 12.3
    11. Version 12.2
    12. Version 12.1
    13. Version 11.3
    14. Version 11.2
    15. Version 2021.1 (11.1)
    16. Old versions
      1. Old versions
      2. Version 2020.2 (10.2)
      3. Version 2020.1 (10.1)
      4. Version 2019.3 (9.3)
      5. Version 2019.2 (9.2)
      6. Version 2019.1 (9.1)

The main toolbar

This page describes the Main toolbar and menu of Substance 3D Designer, which appear at the top left of the main window.It consists of two parts: the drop-down main menus, and quick-access buttons. All quick access button functions can also be accessed through the File and Edit menu's.

Main toolbar

Table of contents

Quick access buttons

File

Edit

Tools

Windows

Help

Quick access buttons

  New Substance graph...: (Ctrl+N) Presents you the New Substance graph window, then creates a new package with a Substance graph.

  New MDL graph...: Presents you the 'New MDL graph' window, then creates a new package with a MDL graph.

  Open...: (Ctrl+O) Open an existing Substance package (.SBS, .SBSAR, .SBSASM).

  Save All: (Ctrl+⇧+S) Saves all packages listed in the Explorer.

  Undo: (Ctrl+Z) Undo the last operation.

  Redo: (Ctrl+Y) Redo the last undone operation.

File

New: opens a sub menu to create a graph or package:

  • New Substance graph...: (Ctrl+N) Presents you the New Substance graph window which lets you set up a new Substance graph;
  • New MDL graph...: Presents you the 'New MDL graph' window, which lets you set up a new MDL graph;
  • New Substance function graph: Creates a new package with a Substance function graph;
  • Empty: Creates an empty package.

Open...: (Ctrl+O) Open an existing Substance package (.SBS, .SBSAR, .SBSASM).

Recent packages: Displays a list of recently opened packages. Click on an entry to open it.

Open last session packages (#): Opens all packages that were open when the last session closed or was ended.

Save all: (Ctrl+⇧+S)  Saves all open packages, including packages loaded in the background.

Close all: Closes all open packages.

Reload resources: Forces Designer to reload all resources, including bitmaps and SVG data.

Exit: (Ctrl+Q) - Close Substance 3D Designer.

Edit

Undo: (Ctrl+Z) Undo last operation.

Redo: (Ctrl+Y) Redo last undone operation.

Preferences...: Opens the Preferences Window.

Note

This dialog is accessed from the Substance 3D Designer menu in the taskbar on macOS.

Tools

Cancel rendering: (Esc) Stops current operation for the Substance Engine. Can be used to abort an unwanted, heavy operation.

Suspend engine: (⇧+Esc) Suspends the rendering engine. This can speed up editing of complex Substance graphs.

Switch engine...: (F9) Offers a choice of rendering engines, including GPU engines ('DirectX' on Windows, 'OpenGL' on macOS) as well as the CPU engine ('NEON' on Apple Silicon, 'SSE' on all others).

Substance Player: Manage Designer's integration with Substance Player:

  • Locate Player...: Let Designer know where Player is installed;
  • Download Player...: Opens the Substance Player documentation's landing page, where Player can be downloaded.

Plugin Manager...: Opens the Plugin Manager window, where you can install, load and unload Python Plugins for Substance 3D Designer.

Windows

New Explorer: Opens a new Explorer dock. You can have multiple Explorer docks open.

New 3D View: Opens a new 3D View dock. You can have multiple 3D View docks open.

New Library View: Opens a new Library dock. You can have multiple Library docks open.

Python Editor: Opens the Python Editor used to evaluate and create scripts.

Reset layout: Resets the workspace to the default layout. All windows will be re-arranged, and some windows might be hidden again. Use in case of problems with program layout.

Unmaximize window: When any panel is maximized, this option unmaximizes it and restores the layout as it was before the window was maximized

Explorer: Show/Hide the Explorer Window(s).

Graph: Show/Hide the graph Window(s).

Parameters: Show/Hide the Properties Window.

Console: Show/Hide the Console Window.

3D View: Show/Hide the 3D View(s).

Dependency Manager: Show/Hide the Dependency Manager.

2D Views: Show/Hide the 2D View(s).

Library: Show/Hide the Library Window.

Main toolbar: Show/Hide the Main Toolbar (quick-access buttons only).

Note
To learn more about Designer's panel management, its customisation and workflow-enhancing features, go to the Customizing your workspace page of this documentation.

Help

Tutorials: Opens the Substance 3D tutorials website (formerly Substance Academy).

Release notes: Opens a window with latest version's changelog.

Technical requirements: Shows you the technical requirements to run the application.

Documentation: Opens your default web browser on this documentation.

Scripting documentation: Opens your web browser on the local Python API docs.

Forums...: Opens your web browser on our Support Community forum to get in touch with the community and ask questions.

Report a bug...: Open bug reporting window.

Export log...: Exports current log files to a compressed (.zip) file, to provide to technical support.

Give feedback...: Opens your web browser on Adobe's Support Community home page.

Substance 3D assets: Browse premium 3D content for subscribers (formerly Substance Source).

Substance 3D community assets: Lets you browse free community assets (formerly Substance Share).

Manage my account*: Opens the webpage for your Adobe account.

Sign in/Sign out...*: Lets you sign into/out of your Adobe account.

Home screen...: Displays the Home screen dialog.

What's new...: Displays a screen, which highlights the features added to Designer's latest release

Welcome screen...*: Displays the a screen which guides new users through Designer's purpose and its place in the Substance 3D ecosystem

Partners: Lets you access the disclaimers and notices for third-party integrations from our partners in Designer.

About Substance 3D Designer...: Displays information about the application and its components, such as version number.

*: These options are only available in the version of Designer installed through Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop, which requires a Substance 3D subscription.

Adobe, Inc.

Get help faster and easier

New user?

Quick links

View all your plans Manage your plans
View quick links
Hide quick links

Legal Notices    |    Online Privacy Policy