Preferences

This section shows you which preferences you can set up for Katana. You can find the Preferences at Edit > Preferences.

Note:  To reset the preferences to their default values, you can delete the Prefs2.ini file in the following location: $KATANA_HOME/katana.

Application

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

Application

codefontFamily

Consolas

Font family to use for displaying and editing code and logs in the Katana UI. Some UI components cache things like font or control size. Restart Katana for font family change to take full effect.

codefontSize

9

Font size to use for displaying and editing code and logs in the Katana UI. Some UI components cache things like font or control size. Restart Katana for font size change to take full effect.
fontFamily Verdana Font family for Katana UI. Some UI components cache things like font or control size. Restart Katana for font family change to take full effect.
fontSize 8 Base font size for Katana UI. Some UI components cache things like font or control size. Restart Katana for font size change to take full effect.

macroSavePath

N/A

Specify the default location for saving macros.

numberOfRecentProjects

10

The number of recent projects that are shown in the File > Open Recent menu. The maximum number of recent projects that are stored is 100.

crashFile

numberOfActions

50

Set the number of actions before automatically saving the current project to a file from which the project can be restored after a crash.

time

5

Set the time in minutes before automatically saving the current project to a file from which the project can be restored after a crash.

rendering

allowConcurrentRenders No Allows multiple renders to run in parallel. If disabled, existing renders are cancelled upon starting a new render.

interactiveRenderThreadOverride

Yes

Use the interactiveRenderThreads settings below to control the number of threads used in an interactive render.

When set to No, the renderer-specific settings from the scene are used.

interactiveRenderThreads2D

9

Set the number of render threads for interactive 2D renders, including hot renders. This value has to be larger than 0.

interactiveRenderThreads3D

1

Set the number of render threads for interactive 3D renders, including hot renders.
renderVariablesPinnedByDefault No Determines whether Live Renders start with their Graph State Variables and Graph State Frame Time in a mutable state (unpinned), or immutable state (pinned). Once the Live Render has started, the state can be toggled from the Catalog tab for each individual Catalog Item.

restartLiveRenderOnTimeChange

Yes

Specify whether or not a Live Render session should be automatically restarted when the selected time changes.

updateMode2D

Manual

Specify what UI actions trigger a render of the currently viewed 2D node.

• Manual - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations don’t trigger a render update. To have the changes take effect, click the Trigger 2D Update button.

• Pen-up - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations trigger a render update only when the mouse button is released or a parameter change is applied.

• Continuous - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations, including some manipulations in the Viewer tab, continuously trigger a render update.

Note:  Setting this preference to a value other than Continuous is particularly useful when rendering large images where constant render updates would be too time-consuming.

updateMode3D

Continuous

Specify what UI actions trigger an update (recook) of the scene.

• Manual - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations do not trigger an update of the scene. To have the changes take effect, click the Trigger 3D Update button .

• Pen-up - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations trigger an update of the scene only when the mouse button is released or a parameter change is applied.

• Continuous - changes to materials, lights, or geometry transformations, including some manipulations in the Viewer tab, continuously trigger an update of the scene.

Attributes

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

attributes

showInternalNodesInAttributeHistory

No

Show internal nodes in Attribute History in the Attributes tab.

Catalog

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

catalog

createPerRenderProjectSnapshot

Minimal

Specifies if additional metadata about the project should be created and stored in new catalog items.

Choose between one of three options:

Minimal: Stores names, values, and enabled states of global Graph State Variables, and names of Interactive Render Filters that are active.

Full: Stores the entire node graph, including details of global GSVs and IRFs.

Off: Stores no project snapshot data.

Color

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

color

enableDisplayTransformDefault Yes Controls whether the Enable Display Transform checkbox in color picker dialogs is turned on by default.

restrictRGBAComponentsDefault

No

Controls whether the Restrict RGBA Components checkbox in color picker dialogs is turned on by default.

Documentation

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

documentation

source

Local

Controls where Katana's documentation should be served from.

• remote - uses help.thefoundry.co.uk/katana.

• local - uses a local copy of the documentation.

Dopesheet

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

dopesheet

showToolTips

Yes

Specify whether or not to display the tooltips with key values.

ExternalTools

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

externalTools

editor

gedit

Enter the command for launching an external text editor.

imageViewer

eog

Enter the command for launching an external image viewer.

pdfViewer

evince

Enter the command for launching an external PDF viewer.

webBrowser

firefox

Enter the command for launching an external web browser.

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

flipbook

colorspace

n/a

Default output colorspace for flipbook images.

format

n/a

Default file format for flipbook images.

Layout

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function
layout

default

N/A

Specify which Katana UI layout you want to start in by default.

hotkey1

Monitor

Specify the layout assigned to F9.

hotkey2

Lighting

Specify the layout assigned to F10.

hotkey3

Dual Lighting

Specify the layout assigned to F11.

hotkey4

Composite

Specify the layout assigned to F12.

Monitor

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

monitor

allowKeylessTabletInteraction

Yes

Specify whether or not to allow the tablet interaction without pressing the modifier keys.

When set to Yes, you can use the stylus pen buttons to perform actions such as zooming, panning, and so on.

When set to No, you need to use modifier keys along with the stylus pen to perform actions.

renderIDPass

Yes

Specify whether or not an ID pass is rendered when rendering from a node in the node graph.

The ID pass allows the Pixel Probe in the Monitor tab to identify pieces of geometry under the pointer, for which the name of a corresponding scene graph location is then displayed in the Pixel Probe toolbar.

Tip:  You can also toggle on and off the Render ID Pass preference in Katana's main menu in the Render > 3D Rendering > Render ID Pass menu, or in the Monitor tab in the 3D > Render ID Pass menu.

showColorTimingEditor

No

Specify whether or not to display the color timing editor.

showCommentEditor

No

Specify whether or not to display the comment editor.

showOverlayControl

No

Specify whether or not to display the overlay controls.

showPanel

Yes

Specify whether or not to display the monitor panel at each render.

showPixelProbe

No

Specify whether or not to display the pixel probe.

showSwipeLine

Yes

Specify whether or not to display the swipe line.

ShowTextResolution

Yes

Specify whether or not to display the resolution name for the image sizes in the monitor information.

backgroundColor

N/A

Choose the color values.

For more information, refer to the Color Widget Type in Common Parameter Widgets.

manipulatorLockedColor

N/A

manipulatorNormalColor

N/A

manipulatorSelectColor

N/A

swipeLineColor

N/A

NodeTags

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

nodeTags

menuCategories

constraint,lookfile,
resolve,output,color,
composite,source,
i/o,keying,transform,filter,foundry,views,
_macro

Enter the categories to display in the node menu.

Nodegraph

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

nodegraph

allowKeylessTabletInteraction

Yes

Specify whether or not to allow the tablet interaction without pressing the modifier keys.

When set to Yes, you can use the stylus pen buttons to perform actions such as zooming, panning, and so on.

When set to No, you need to use modifier keys along with the stylus pen to perform actions.

autoConnectOnCreate

No

Specify whether or not to auto-connect new nodes based on selection.

autoScroll

Yes

Specify whether or not to auto-scroll while selecting, dragging, and so on.

defaultShadingNodeViewState

Expanded

Specify whether new nodes added to a shading network are expanded or collapsed by default.

When showPagesConnectedOnly is enabled, setting this control to Connected Only displays the whole page containing connected inputs and outputs not just the connected inputs and outputs themselves.

dimNodesUnconnectedToViewedNode

No

Specify whether or not to dim nodes unconnected to the viewed node.

dimNonContributingNodes

No

Specify whether or not to dim nodes not contributing to the viewed node.

drawLowContrast

Yes

Specify whether or not to draw the node graph with a low-contrast look.

findOnlyNodesInThisGroupDefault

Yes

Specify whether or not to set the default state for the Show Only Nodes in this Group checkbox in the find pop-up of the Node Graph tab.

flagErrorsFileIn

Yes

Specify whether or not to flag FileIn node errors automatically.

flagErrorsNodeConnection

Yes

Specify whether or not to flag node connection errors automatically.

lockStickyNoteNodes

No

Specify whether or not to lock backdrop nodes.
prefixWildcardToTabMenuSearch Yes When enabled, searches for nodes in the 'Tab' menu will match to any part of a node name.
shakeToExtractResistancce 5 Defines a resistance for triggering the Extract function when shaking the mouse with nodes following the cursor. A setting of 1 is the least resistive, meaning that the extraction will trigger with less shaking required. A setting of 0 will disable the extraction completely.

showExpressionLinks

Yes

Specify whether or not to display expression links.
showNestedBookmarks Yes Show nested bookmarks in the Jump to Bookmark menu.

showNodeIcons

Yes

Specify whether or not to display icons on nodes where available.

showOffscreenFlagArrows

Yes

Specify whether or not to display off-screen flag arrows.

showRolloverNodeNames

Yes

Specify whether or not to display node names on rollover.

showViewMasks

No

Specify whether or not to display the view mask flags and link colors.

snapToGrid

No

Specify whether or not to snap nodes to grid.

stickyDrag

No

When this preference is set to Yes, nodes that are dragged in the Node Graph tab stick to the pointer when the mouse button is released, so that they can be moved without keeping the mouse button held down. In this mode, nodes are placed only when the mouse button is clicked again. This grab-and-drop behavior may help prevent repetitive strain injury (RSI).

useColorFromInputPortForConnections

Yes

Specify whether the color of a connection is determined by the color of the input port on the target node or the output port on the source node.

autoLayout

emptySelectionIsAll Yes Toggles whether an empty selection should layout all nodes or none.
autolayout > NetworkMaterialNodeGraph
centred No Toggle whether the arrangement is centered perpendicular to the alignment axis.
lengthSpacing 30 Spacing between nodes perpendicular to the alignment axis.
widthSpacing 250 Spacing between nodes along the alignment axis.
autolayout > nodeGraph
centred Yes Toggle whether the arrangement is centered perpendicular to the alignment axis.
lengthSpacing 30 Spacing between nodes perpendicular to the alignment axis.
widthSpacing 60 Spacing between nodes along the alignment axis.
networkMaterialNodegraph
connectionStyle Bezier Curve

Changes the connection noodle style within the NMX context nodes.

Choose between one of three options:

• Line

• Short Curve

• Bezier Curve (default)
defaultShadingNodeViewState Expanded

Changes the View State that is set by default when creating new Shading Nodes.

Choose between one of three options:

• Collapsed: Ports will not be visible.

• Connected Only: Only connected ports will be visible.

• Expanded: Shows all ports (default)
showPagesConnectedOnly No Enable option to show Pages when nodes are set to the Connected Only (minimized) view state.
useColorFromInputPortForConnections Yes Controls whether the color of a connection between ports in the Network Material context is determined by the color of the input port on the target node (preference turned on -- the default), or by the color of the output port on the source node (preference turned off).
performance
heatColorMap Standard Colormap to use when the heat mode is enabled.
usdLayerExportGroup
autoMergeOutput Ports Yes When collapsing multiple nodes into a UsdLayerExportGroup via the Nodegraph's Collapse Selected Nodes to UsdLayerExportGroup option, this preference enables the creation of a Merge node which will merge any unconnected output ports into a single output before being connected to the final UsdLayerExport node.

Nodes

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

nodes > gaffer

syncSelection

off

Specify the default selection sync option for the GafferThree.
nodes > lookFileManager
addasLookFileGlobalsDefault No Sets the default state for the Add as Look File Globals checkbox in the Add Look File using Browser asset browser dialog.
nodes > usdGaffer
maxSizeOfArrayParameter 100 The maximum size of an array parameter that can be created by default in UsdGaffer.
syncSelection in/out The default selection sync option for UsdGaffer.

Parameters

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

parameters

cacheEditors

Yes

Specify whether or not to cache node parameters editors.

openCelParametersEditors

No

Specify whether or not to open CEL parameters editors.

selectParameterValueOnFirstClick

No

Specify whether or not the text of parameter values (including project settings and preferences) is selected when first clicking into a value field.

Note:   By default, when clicking into a value field, the text cursor is placed where the text has been clicked, and no text is selected.
This single-click-to-select behavior may help prevent repetitive strain injury (RSI).
singleDigitScrolling Yes Enables single digit scrolling of values.

stickyScrub

No

Allow modifying a number parameter by clicking once on its label and moving the mouse. A second click commits the modification.

Python

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

python

autoCompletionBehavior

Shell

Select the auto-completion behavior in the Python tab. Choose from these two options:

• Shell - when pressing the Tab key, tokens are completed based on matches with possible completions. If there is more than one possibility for completion, a list of possibilities is printed to the result area of the tab.

• IDE - while typing in the command area of the tab, possible completions are shown in a pop-up widget. Select completions with the up and down arrow keys, and chosen by pressing the Tab or Return/Enter key. Press Esc to close the pop-up widget.
autoIndent Yes If turned on, new lines entered will be auto-indented according to the line above.
formatter YAPF The formatter to be used when Format All or Format Selection are triggered. The selected formatter needs to be available in the system. If not installed, try: pipx install ruff
formatterStyle N/A Style (or config) for the selected formatter. For some formatters, this may be a path to a file.
highlightTrailingWhitespace Yes If turned on, trailing whitespace will be highlighted with a red background color.
rulerPosition 79 Ruler position (in characters). Default is 79, as advocated by PEP 8.

showHelpTooltips

No

Specify whether or not to display tooltips with help on the item under the pointer within the Python tab, both in the result and the command areas of the tab.
showRuler Yes Show ruler at the position specified by the rulerPosition preference.
wordWrap No Enables word wrapping in the command area at the right edge of its text edit widget.

Scenegraph

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

scenegraph

findLocationsFilterDefault

Selected

Sets the default filter used by the Find Scene Graph Locations pop-up in the Scene Graph tab.

showLightsColumn

Yes

Choose whether or not to display the Lights column in the Scene Graph tab.

showRenderColumn

Yes

Determine whether to show Render Working Set column in the Scene Graph tab.

The title of the Render column can be clicked to turn the use of the render Working Set on. The render Working Set determines the scene graph locations for which geometry is rendered in Preview Renders and Live Renders.

The Monitor tab contains a corresponding button to turn the use of the render Working Set on, in order to render only objects from the Render column of the Scene Graph tab. The button is only shown when this preference is set to Yes.

showViewerVisibilityColumn

Yes

Show Viewer Visibility Working Set column in the Scene Graph tab.

The title of the Viewer Visibility column can be clicked to turn the use of the viewerVisibility Working Set on. The viewerVisibility Working Set determines the scene graph locations for which geometry is drawn in the Viewer tab.

The Viewer tab contains a corresponding button to turn the use of the viewerVisibility Working Set on, in order to show only objects from the Viewer Visibility column of the Scene Graph tab. The button is only shown when this preference is set to Yes.

scenegraph > userColumns

userColumns > Add

N/A

Select from the dropdown menu and define the custom columns to display in the Scene Graph tab.

Viewer

Control (UI)

Default Value

Function

viewer

antiAliasing Full Defines the number of samples used for multi-sample anti-aliasing. When set to Full, a maximum of 16 samples will be used, depending on the capability of your workstation's graphics card. When set to Medium or Low, 1/2 or 1/4 of the number of samples that would be used when set to Full will be used, so up to 8 and 4 samples, respectively.
continuousManipulation Yes Enables continuous manipulation of manipulators beyond the Viewer boundaries. Allows the mouse pointer to wrap around the viewport boundaries so that mouse move events are not limited by the screen dimensions. This option may not be suitable for remote desktop sessions where both Katana and the remote desktop client may compete for programmable movement of the mouse pointer to arbitrary positions. In such case, disabling this option may be desirable.
manipulationFreezePeriod 250 The Viewer delays the processing of interactive updates for a short period of time. This allows updates to be processed in batches, and increases responsiveness. This setting determines the length of this delay in milliseconds.
viewer > backgroundColor 0.0400 0.0400 0.0400 1.0000 Color of the background.
viewer > faceSelectModeColor 0.0000 0.1300 0.2200 1.0000 Color of objects in face select mode.
viewer > faceSelectionColor 0.7900 0.2200 0.0300 1.0000 Color of the selected faces.
viewer > manipulators
scale 1 Global scale for the manipulators' size.
viewer > monitorLayer
highlightColor 0.7157 0.4452 0.1356 1.0000 Color of the highlight on hover location during ID Buffer mode.
selectionColor 0.5906 0.3140 0.0742 1.0000 Color of the selection during ID Buffer mode.
viewer > screenWindow
dashed Yes Specified whether the screen window should be drawn as a dashed line, rather than a solid line.
lineWidth 2 The width of the line to use to draw the screen window.
color 0.0000 0.3300 0.0900 0.5000 Color to use to draw the screen window.
viewer > selectionColor 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 Color of the selected locations.
viewer > snapping
hitAreaSize 100 All geometries that fall within this area will be considered for snapping.
orientAxis +Z Axis and direction along which the object will be oriented
upAxis +Y Up direction for normal orientation
hitAreaColor 0.8710 0.7100 0.4040 1.0000 Color of the Snapping hit area
wireframeColor 0.3000 0.3000 0.3000 1.0000 Color of the wireframe of the targeted object.