Redshift 3.6.04 and Houdini 20.5.278 - Install and Fix Render Issues
Attention, Update! On September 10, 2024, the new Redshift version 2025.0.1 was released and now works perfectly with Houdini 20.5.278.
I’ll keep the video up because the next Houdini update is surely on the way.
After all, one update always leads to the next!
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This is the description text before the release of Redshift version 2025.0.1:
Are you using Houdini 20.5 and have already worked with Redshift in previous versions?
Unfortunately, you'll have to wait a bit longer for the final version of Redshift for Houdini 20.5. But don't worry, there's a way to use Redshift in Houdini 20.5 right now!
In this video, I'll walk you through the steps to get Redshift up and running in the new version of Houdini and show you how to fix the render error if your rendering gets interrupted.
You'll also learn where to copy the necessary files so that Houdini can locate them. This can be easily defined using a JSON file, and I'll explain exactly how to do it.
To save you from writing everything down from the video, I've prepared the script for you. Just copy the following lines and paste them into the appropriate file to set everything up correctly:
{
"env" : [
{"REDSHIFT_ROOT":"C:/ProgramData/Redshift"},
{"HOUDINI_PATH" : "${REDSHIFT_ROOT}/Plugins/Houdini/${HOUDINI_VERSION}"},
{"PXR_PLUGINPATH_NAME": "${REDSHIFT_ROOT}/Plugins/Solaris/${HOUDINI_VERSION}"},
{"PATH" : "${REDSHIFT_ROOT}/bin"}
]
}
The exact path wasn't fully shown in the video, so here it is:
C:\OpenColorIO-2.3.0\OpenColorIO-2.3.0\src\OpenColorIO\builtinconfigs\configs
I used the config file
cg-config-v1.0.0_aces-v1.3_ocio-v2.1.ocio
and everything worked perfectly with this setup.
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There’s another way to set this up, which I didn’t show in the video.
To keep things simple, I left it out.
You don’t have to set a system-wide OCIO variable in Windows that affects other 3D programs like Blender.
If you prefer, you can skip that and just edit the houdini.env file in:
C:\Users\User\Documents\houdini20.5.
Add this line to the file:
OCIO=C:/OpenColorIO-2.3.0/OpenColorIO-2.3.0/src/OpenColorIO/builtinconfigs/configs/cg-config-v1.0.0_aces-v1.3_ocio-v2.1.ocio
This way, ACES is only set up for Houdini, and Blender keeps its default color management.
The houdini.env file also recommends using packages, which works fine too.
Maybe I’ll make a separate video on this—let me know if you'd be interested! I doubt anyone is actually reading these lines anyway. ¬‿¬
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A third option, suggested by @szymonsniegocki528, is to use the OCIO config that comes with Redshift instead of downloading one separately. The file is located at: C:\ProgramData\Redshift\Data\OCIO\config.ocio and is optimized for Redshift.
To use it, just update the OCIO path in your environment variable. This works well for Max and Maya with Redshift, but may not be ideal for Blender unless you're also using Redshift there.
I've tested both configs, and the Redshift version is slightly darker than OpenColorIO, but it's likely better to stick with the Redshift config for future updates.
You can skip setting the OCIO path globally. Instead, just edit houdini.env and add:
OCIO = "C:\ProgramData\Redshift\Data\OCIO\config.ocio"
This sets it only for Houdini, and Blender will revert to its defaults. For Karma in Houdini, you can disable the OCIO config by commenting out the line with a # to switch back to Houdini's default.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you'd like a video explaining more. :)
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Today, a new Redshift version with native integration for Houdini 20.5.278 was released.
This is great news because it means we no longer need the workflow I previously showed.
If you're only using Redshift with Houdini, you can remove the Windows system variable 'OCIO'.
With the installation of Redshift 2025.0.1, the included Redshift OCIO config file is automatically applied, and everything works smoothly.
I'm not deleting the video, though, because you’ll likely need it again with future Houdini versions if there isn’t an immediate Redshift update.
If that’s the case, we’ll probably see each other again with the next Houdini version. :)
A big thank you to everyone who contributed!
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