Installing HEIO

Installing HEIO is not as straightforward as most other addons. It requires .NET 8 to be installed, as the addon relies on C# Libraries to boost performance and reduce on the amount of code needed to manage. You will have to ensure that you have the .NET 8 Runtime installed before being able to use the addon to its fullest.

Installing .NET 8

If you are unsure of whether your machine already has .NET 8 installed, you can check by opening the console and running dotnet --list-runtimes.

The output should look similar to this:

../_images/installing_dotnet8.png

Notice the line marked in green, Microsoft.NETCore.App 8.X.X. if you find this (or a newer version) among your installed runtimes, you have all you need!

If you don’t have the needed runtime installed, head over to the download page and install the runtime.

Note

The website recommends downloading the SDK (Software Development Kit). Unless you are a developer, you may only want the runtime. You can head over to “All .NET 8.0 downloads” and download the Desktop runtime from further down, saving space on your machines storage.

Installing Blender

The Addon is only supported on Blender version 4.3 and above.
It is recommended to install blender through Stream. This will ensure you’re always using the latest release version.

Installing the Addon

Warning

As of now, there is no release version, only a dev version!

This addon utilizes the blender extension system. Yet, due to various reasons, we cannot host the addon on the official blender extension repository. That is why we have set up our own repository under https://Justin113D.com/blender/release/, which will always host the newest release of this addon.

To set up the repository and download the addon, follow these steps:

  1. Open blender

  2. Open the preferences and open the Get Extensions tab

  3. Expand Repositories on the top right

  4. Click the + on the top right and select Add remote Repository

  5. Enter https://justin113d.com/blender/release/index.json for the URL and check Check for Updates on Startup

  6. Confirm

  7. Rename the newly added list entry from Justin113D.com to Sonic I/O

  8. Select the list entry, expand the advanced section and change the module from justin113d_com to sonic_io

  9. Press the 🔄 button in the top right to refresh the module

  10. Search for Hedgehog in the search bar and install the Hedgehog Engine Blender I/O addon

Congratulations! You have successfuly installed the addon!

Note

If you are interested in testing the WIP dev version, you have to repeat these steps for the developer repository:

  • In step 5. enter https://justin113d.com/blender/dev/index.json for the URL

  • In step 8. change the module to sonic_io_dev

Updating the addon

  1. Repeat steps 1-3 from the installation

  2. Click the v button in the top right

  3. Press the 🔄 button

  4. Search for the installed addon in your list

  5. Click the update button

Addon dependencies

HEIO requires other addons to unfold its full potential:

  • Blender DDS Addon: Allows for exporting DDS textures out of blender, as well as providing a better import.