--- title: "Portable Installation" canonical: "https://documentation.chaos.com/space/VMAYA/111739503/Portable%20Installation" format: markdown --- This page provides information about the portable installation of V-Ray for Maya. > ⚠️ Please do not use multiple V-Ray installation methods at the same time. If you plan on creating a Portable V-Ray installation for Maya, make sure you have uninstalled any other V-Ray version for Maya. ## **Overview** --- The V-Ray installer can be unpacked and used as a portable version. Creating a Portable Installation provides several advantages over the regular installer: - The Portable installation allows for setting a custom environment when starting each Maya instance. To compare, running the regular installation multiple times overwrites the V-Ray [environment variables](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VNS/pages/115605616). - The Portable installation can be used to run V-Ray for Maya and V-Ray Standalone from any location or even a network drive. That way, multiple users can start Maya along with V-Ray using just a script that sets up the environment variables without the need to run local installations. - Upgrading a Portable installation is a lot easier, as you don't need to run the installer on every user's computer. - The Portable installation allows for quick switching between different V-Ray versions without reinstalling it. Note that Chaos Cosmos is not included in the V-Ray for Maya Portable installation file. You can [download ](https://download.chaosgroup.com/?platform=47&product=62)and install Chaos Cosmos separately. To use the Chaos Unified Login (a single login into whichever Chaos application grants access to all Chaos applications) with the V-Ray portable installation, [download ](https://download.chaos.com/?platform=47&product=67)and install it separately.  When using V-Ray from a Portable installation, the [EULA and the Chaos Global Consumer Privacy Policy](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VMAYA/pages/111739501) need to be accepted to start a render.  > ℹ️ If you are using a V-Ray version **older than V-Ray 6**, please refer to the [Installation from zip guide](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VMAYA/pages/111740384), as the Portable Installation is not available for those V-Ray versions. ## **Required steps to run V-Ray** --- To create a Portable installation, you need to: 1. Download V-Ray. > Macro (ui-button) 2. Unpack the installation file. *See the **[Unpack the installation file](#Unpacking-the-installation-file)** section of this page for more information*. 3. Set up the environment variables needed to run V-Ray for Maya / V-Ray Standalone. *See the **[Environment setup](#Setup-for-Maya)** section of this page for more information*. 4. Set up your license. *Visit the **[Licensing](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VMAYA/pages/111738993)** page to find out how.* 5. Run Maya or V-Ray Standalone. ## **Unpacking the installation file** --- Unpack the installation to a suitable location that you can later use to run V-Ray on any computer. Here is a detailed step-by-step guide: > Macro (refined-tabs) > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > 1. Download the V-Ray installer executable (.exe). > 2. Open a Command Prompt. Type out: the location of the installer that you just downloaded **-unpackInstall= **location where you wish to unpack. Alternatively, you can drag and drop the installer and a target folder for unpacking into the Command Prompt to insert their directories. Press **Enter **to run the command. As an example, you can create a new folder called vray_builds to hold all portable V-Ray builds. Then, you can create other sub-folders and name them according to the V-Ray build version, for example, *vray_60002_maya2023*. It should look something like this: > After unpacking the installation, your folder structure should look like this: > Here is an example with two different V-Ray 6 builds for Maya 2023 - each can be deployed with its own shell script and environment. > > > ℹ️ The D:\vray_builds location is an example. The Portable Installation can be placed anywhere. > > 3. Set the necessary environment variables in a new Command Prompt and run V-Ray for Maya or V-Ray Standalone. > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > 1. Download the V-Ray installer. > 2. Open a Terminal. Type out: the *location *of the installer that you just downloaded **-unpackInstall= **location where you wish to unpack. Alternatively, you can drag and drop the installer and a target folder for unpacking into the Terminal to insert their directories. Press **Enter **to run the command. As an example, you can create a new folder called *vray_builds* to hold all portable V-Ray builds. Then you can make other sub-folders and name them according to the V-Ray build version, for example, vray_60002_maya2023. It should look something like this: > After unpacking the installation, your folder structure should look like this: > Here is an example with two different V-Ray 6 builds for Maya 2023 - each can be deployed with its own shell script and environment. > > > ℹ️ The /opt/vray_builds location is simply an example. The Portable Installation can be unpacked anywhere. > > 3. Set the necessary environment variables in a new Terminal and run V-Ray for Maya or V-Ray Standalone. > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > 1. Download the V-Ray installer *.dmg* file, then double-click it to mount it. By default, it mounts to */Volumes*. > 2. Open a Terminal and type out */path/to/run_installer* **-unpackInstall**=**. > For example, you can create a new folder called *vray_builds* in your root directory to hold all portable V-Ray builds. Then you can make other sub-folders and name them according to the V-Ray build version, for example, *vray_60002_maya2023*. An example unpacking command should look like this: > After unpacking the installation, your folder structure should look like this: > Here is an example with two different V-Ray 6 builds for Maya 2023 - each can be deployed with its own shell script and environment. > > > ℹ️ The /vray_builds location is simply an example. The Portable Installation can be unpacked anywhere. > > 3. Set the necessary environment variables in a new Terminal and run V-Ray for Maya or V-Ray Standalone. ## **Setup for Maya** --- The easiest way to deploy V-Ray is to use the V-Ray module file that comes with the Portable Installation. The V-Ray module is located in /maya_root/modules. It contains all the variables needed to run V-Ray for Maya. It also has a README part with instructions on how to set the environment using a module file. It can be set using one of two ways: - **Recommended**: Extend the MAYA_MODULE_PATH variable to contain the folder with the module file. Open Command Prompt or Terminal and type. > Macro (refined-tabs) > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > > ℹ️ The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6 **for **Maya 2023** on **Windows**,** **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_x64.exe** has been unpacked into **D:\vray_builds\vray_60002_maya2023\**. > > ℹ️ > > ℹ️ Here is a list of environment variables, their descriptions, and examples. An example of a complete setup is given further below. > > ``` > set MAYA_MODULE_PATH=D:\vray_builds\vray_60002_maya2023\maya_root\modules;%MAYA_MODULE_PATH% > ``` > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > > ℹ️ The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6** for **Maya 2023** on **Linux **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_centos7** has been unpacked into** /opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/**. > > ℹ️ > > ℹ️ Here is a list of environment variables, their descriptions, and examples. An example of a complete setup is given further below. > > ``` > export MAYA_MODULE_PATH=/opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/maya_root/modules:$MAYA_MODULE_PATH > ``` > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > > ℹ️ The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6** for **Maya 2023** on **macOS **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_mavericks_x64.app** has been unpacked into** /vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/**. > > ℹ️ > > ℹ️ Here is a list of environment variables, their descriptions, and examples. An example of a complete setup is given further below. > > ``` > export MAYA_MODULE_PATH=/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/maya_root/modules:$MAYA_MODULE_PATH > ``` - Alternative: Move the module file to Maya's module folders. - You will need to edit the file to replace "../../maya_vray" with the full path to the **maya_vray** directory. - Then move the module file to the respective Maya versions' modules location. Here are the locations for Maya 2023: > Macro (refined-tabs) > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > ```plaintext > C:\Program Files\Common Files\Autodesk Shared\Modules\Maya\2023 > ``` > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > ```plaintext > /usr/autodesk/modules/maya/2023 > ``` > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > ```plaintext > /Users/Shared/Autodesk/modules/maya/2023 > ``` > ✅ A truly portable installation can be deployed with a .bat (Windows) or shell script (Linux, macOS) that extends MAYA_MODULE_PATH and starts Maya. You can have multiple scripts, each starting Maya with the module for a different V-Ray version. > ✅ > ✅ Moving the module file inside Maya's folders is useful for a quick setup, but not truly portable. > Macro (anchor) ## **License setup** --- [1](#1.1). Before you run V-Ray, make sure it can find a valid license. You can set up your license using the [Change License Settings tool](https://documentation.chaos.com/space/LIC5/124657079/Changing+the+Product+License+Setup#Starting-the-Change-License-Settings-utility) to set or change your license settings. Alternatively, you can use the **VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH**[*](#Setup-for-V-Ray-Standalone) environment variable and point it to the folder containing a *vrlclient.xml* file that holds the V-Ray license server settings (IP address and port number). If you use the VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH environment variable and need to create the *vrlclient.xml* file manually, use the following example as a reference: > Macro (rw-ui-expands-macro) > > > Macro (rw-expand) > > ```xml > > > > 10.0.0.100 > 30304 > > 30304 > > 30304 > > > > > ``` ** ** ## **Setup for V-Ray Standalone** --- ### **Environment variables** --- The portable install can also be used to run only V-Ray Standalone without running V-Ray for Maya. In this case, the number of environment variables to set is reduced. The list of variables to set requires unpacking the same installation build. Read the [Unpacking the installation file](#Unpacking-the-installation-file) section for more details. Before you run V-Ray, make sure that it can find a license. See the [License setup section](#License-setup) of this page. > Macro (refined-tabs) > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6** for **Maya 2023** on **Windows **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_x64.exe** has been unpacked into **D:\vray_builds\vray_60002_maya2023\**. > > Here is a list of the environment variables and their descriptions and examples. An example of a complete setup is provided below. > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable ** | **Location** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | Windows | Extend | **VRAY_FOR_MAYA*****nnnn*****_PLUGINS** | \maya_vray\vrayplugins> Macro (anchor) | Needed for V-Ray Standalone. | set VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS=D:\vray_builds\vray_60002_maya2023\maya_vray\vrayplugins;%VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS% | > | Windows | Set | **VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH*****[1](#PortableInstallation-std_note_1)****** ****** ***** ** | arbitrary location | Points V-Ray to a V-Ray license. | set VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH= | > > > Macro (rw-expand) > > If you are using a V-Ray version older than V-Ray 6, update 1, you also need to set the following variables > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable** | **Location** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | Windows | Set | **VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA** *nnnn* | \vray\opensl | Loads OSL plugins for V-Ray. | set VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA2023=D:\vray_builds\vray_60002_maya2023\vray\opensl | > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6** for** Maya 2023** on **Linux **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_centos7** has been unpacked into** /opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/**. > > Here is a list of the environment variables and their descriptions and examples. An example of a complete setup is provided below. > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable** | **Location** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | Linux | Extend | **VRAY_FOR_MAYA*****nnnn*****_PLUGINS** | /maya_vray/vrayplugins> Macro (anchor) | Needed for V-Ray Standalone. | export VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS=/opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/maya_vray/vrayplugins:$VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS | > | Linux | Set | **VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH*****[1](#PortableInstallation-std_note_1)****** ****** ***** ** | arbitrary location | Points V-Ray to a V-Ray license. | export VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH= | > > > Macro (rw-expand) > > If you are using a V-Ray version older than **V-Ray 6, update 1**, you also need to set the following variables: > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable** | **Location** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | Linux | Set | **VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA** *nnnn* | /vray/opensl | Loads OSL plugins for V-Ray. | export VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA2024=/opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/vray/opensl | > | Linux | Extend | **LD_LIBRARY_PATH** | /vray/lib | Required to run V-Ray itself. | export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/opt/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/vray/lib:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH | > > > Macro (refined-tab) > > The example directory and version names below are for **V-Ray 6** for **Maya 2023** on **macOS **where **vray_adv_60002_maya2023_mavericks_x64.app** has been unpacked into** /vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/**. > > Here is a list of the environment variables and their descriptions and examples. An example of a complete setup is provided below. > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable** | **Location ** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | macOS | Extend | **VRAY_FOR_MAYA***nnnn***_PLUGINS** | /vray/VRay.App/Contents/MacOS/plugins
> Macro (anchor) | Needed for V-Ray Standalone. | export VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS=/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/vray/VRay.App/Contents/MacOS/plugins:$VRAY_FOR_MAYA2023_PLUGINS | > | macOS | Set | **VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH****[1](#PortableInstallation-std_note_1)**** ** | arbitrary location | Points V-Ray to a V-Ray license. | export VRAY_AUTH_CLIENT_FILE_PATH= | > > > Macro (rw-expand) > > If you are using a V-Ray version older than V-Ray 6, update 1, you also need to set the following variables: > > | **OS** | **Action** | **Variable** | **Location** | **Description** | **Example** | > | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | > | macOS | Set | **VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA** *nnnn* | /vray/opensl | Loads OSL plugins for V-Ray. | export VRAY_OSL_PATH_MAYA2023=/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/vray/opensl | > | macOS | Extend | **DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH** | /vray/lib | `Required to run V-Ray itself.` | export DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH=/vray_builds/vray_60002_maya2023/vray/lib:$DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH | ### **Tags** --- The **[STDROOT]** and **[PLUGINS]** tags in the script are typically replaced by the V-Ray installer with their respective directories. However, if you are using a version earlier than V-Ray 6, update 1, and performing a portable installation, you need to manually replace these tags. The **[STDROOT]** tag needs to be replaced with the *full path to the vray folder in the portable file*. The **[PLUGINS]** tag needs to be replaced with the *full path to the maya_vray folder in the portable file*. The tags are located in the following files: --- If you want to use any additional tools, such as the [standalone denoiser](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VMAYA/pages/111739618) or the [VRIMG to OpenEXR converter](https://docs-chaos.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/VMAYA/pages/111738976), add /*vray/bin *to the **PATH** environment variable. > ⚠️ - Please note that by default the V-Ray installer will set the **TdrLevel** (that is GPU timeout detection and recovery) to 0 (disabled). > ⚠️ - V-Ray Standalone cannot be run if *Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable v143+* is not installed.