Environment variables

Environment variables are text strings that contain information to dynamically configure a software application when it is launched. For example, to specify a particular drive, directory path, preference setting, or file name.

Environment variables can be set locally for a single user account by the user or more globally for an entire system of users by a system administrator.

In Mudbox, the following environment variables can be set to configure Mudbox in specific areas. They are intended to be optional, and address specific situations that are not encountered by the majority of users.

For information on setting environment variables for your system, consult the documentation for your specific operating system.

Environment Variable	Platform	Usage/Notes:
MUDBOX_SETTINGS_PATH	All	Overrides the default directory path where Mudbox stores general settings and preferences. This directory requires very little space.
MUDBOX_DATA_PATH	All	Overrides the default directory path where Mudbox creates and stores data such as map extraction files.
MUDBOX_WORKING_FILES_PATH	All	Overrides the default directory path where Mudbox creates and stores temporary files. (By default, temporary files are stored in a subdirectory of the data path directory.) This directory can require large amounts of space for short periods of time. For Mudbox to read and write files to this directory efficiently, you must set it to a local directory where you have lots of space (a location on the same machine as your CPU, not a network location).
MUDBOX_PAINT_CONTEXT_FLUSH	All	Forces Mudbox to flush texture caches on the GPU after each brush draw of the Paint tool, fixing a paint corruption issue that can occur with some graphics card drivers. Warning Setting this environment variable does have a negative effect on painting performance. Set only if you experience display artifacts while painting.
MUDBOX_PLUG_IN_PATH	All	Mudbox searches for plug-ins at specific locations, depending on your operating system. Use this environment variable to specify additional search paths for plug-ins. For a description of the default search paths, see File environment. For example, in a production environment, multiple users can share plug-ins placed in a common location (server) or in a project-specific location. You can specify absolute paths or relative directory paths. When relative paths are specified the variable: $MUDBOX_LOCATION should precede the relative file path. For example, if Mudbox is installed on Windows at C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Mudbox2012 this becomes the value used by the $MUDBOX_LOCATION variable. In that situation the relative path specified might be: $MUDBOX_LOCATION\plugins\game_project_plugins
MUDBOX2009_SUBDIVIDE_SMOOTH_UV	All	This environment variable alters how the Smooth UVs property works when subdividing a model. When this environment variable is set, the Smooth UVs property works as it did in Mudbox 2009. That is, the entire UV shell, including its UV borders, are smoothed when subdividing a model whenever the Smooth UVs property is turned on. If this environment variable is not set, the default Mudbox 2010 UV smoothing behavior occurs. That is, smoothing only occurs for the interior UVs in a UV shell, leaving the UV shell border edges unsmoothed. Which UV smoothing method you choose to use is entirely dependent on your individual rendering pipeline requirements and render application used. For more information on the Smooth UVs property, see Mesh menu.
MUDBOX_FORCE_GPU_RAM	Windows	Overrides the amount of graphics card (GPU) memory that Mudbox detects. This addresses a limitation on some systems where Mudbox detects an incorrect GPU memory value, causing unnecessary warnings to appear as you work with layers. Set this value between 256 and 4096 MB. For example, if Mudbox reports 1 MB of memory and your GPU actually has 1.5 GB, set this variable to 1536 (1.5 * 1024). Non-numerical values are ignored. TipTo determine whether Mudbox detects an incorrect memory value, verify your GPU memory in the nVidia or ATI Control Panel, then compare to the value listed in Mudbox (Help > System Information.)
MUDBOX_USE_LOWRES_TABLET_DATA	Windows	Forces Mudbox to use low-res cursor position values from your tablet in order to correct a problem where the cursor can appear offset from your sculpting if Stamp Spacing is on. This can occur on some Wacom Cintiq tablets. Set this environment variable if you use your tablet in Mouse mode and experience this limitation. Important Mouse mode is not recommended when using your tablet with Mudbox.
MUDBOX2011_SKIP_GRAPHICS_CHECK	Windows	Disables the warning message that automatically appears at startup if Mudbox detects that the graphics hardware and or related drivers on the computer do not match qualified specifications. Non-qualified graphics hardware and related drivers are unsupported and can adversely affect the operation of the application. For more information, see http://www.autodesk.com/mudbox-hardware.
MUDBOX2011_SKIP_OSX_VERSION_CHECK	Mac OS X	Disables the warning message that appears at startup when Mudbox detects that the Macintosh operating system does not meet the minimum hardware qualifications. Use of a non-qualified operating system may adversely affect the expected operation of the application. For more information, see http://www.autodesk.com/mudbox-systemrequirements.