The linktab.ini file automatically translates paths between Linux and Windows environments. When Softimage finds a linktab.ini file, it uses it to ensure that scenes will remain compatible across platforms.
Each line in a linktab file contains a Windows-style path and a Linux-style path, indicating where Softimage or resources such as textures are located on both operating systems. This allows access to required files regardless of operating system.
You need a linktab.ini file defined on each machine involved in the following scenarios:
When the render network uses a mix of Windows and Linux operating systems, a linktab file must be present on the master and each slave computer involved in a distributed render.
When a workgroup uses a mix of Window and Linux operating systems, a linktab file must be present on each machine that needs to share scene files.
When the paths are all relative and saved only within the project structure, there are no problems. However, if scenes reference texture files, particle simulation (*.ptp) files, photon maps, output paths, etc. on shared drives using absolute paths, then a linktab file is required.
