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Texture Baker is an Editor Utility Widget designed for two tasks:

  1. Baking materials that use the Seamless Wrap Function into seamless Texture2D assets.
  2. Converting procedural generators into texture assets (without making them seamless).

There are two types of Texture Bakers:

Texture Baker (Seamless Wrap)

Bakes a material that uses the Seamless Wrap Function, producing a seamless texture.

Texture Baker (Generator)

Bakes the output of procedural generators (for example, Amoeba Color Noise) into a texture asset.
This mode does not create seamless tiling, it only converts the procedural output into a Texture2D.

Both bakers share a similar interface but have different rules for how Source Material and Preview Material work.

1. Texture Baker (Seamless Wrap)

Location in the project:
/SeamlessWrap/Widgets/TextureBaker/SeamlessTexture/EUWBP_TextureBaker_Seamless

in the old version:
/SeamlessWrap/TextureBaker/SeamlessTexture/EW_TextureBaker_Seamless

Texture Baker (Seamless Wrap) is used to bake materials that rely on the Seamless Wrap Function, converting the final wrapped result into a seamless texture asset.

To begin, the user must set Source Material — a material that uses the Seamless Wrap Function. All parameters related to this function will be automatically copied into the internal Preview Material used by the baker.

2. Texture Baker Interface

2.1. Preview Window

Inside the widget, there is a preview window showing the material that will be baked.
Important: this is not your Source Material.
It is a UI-domain Preview Material created specifically for baking.
The Seamless Wrap settings from Source Material are automatically copied into it.

2.2. Settings

The widget exposes several baking parameters:

  • Texture Size
    Default: 1024 × 1024
  • Compression Settings
    Options:
    • Default (BC7 (RGBA)) — default, recommended for full-color textures
    • Greyscale
    • Normal Map
  • Asset Path
    Default: the folder where the widget is located
    The path must be written without /Game, for example:
    /SeamlessWrap/Widgets/TextureBaker/SeamlessTexture
  • Asset Filename
    Default: T_STexture_001
  • Replace File (checkbox)
    • Off (default): existing assets are not overwritten.
      New files will increment automatically: T_STexture_002, T_STexture_003, etc.
    • On: the baker will overwrite the file with the given name.

2.3. Bake Button

After pressing Bake, the material is rendered into a Render Target located in the widget folder, and then saved to a Texture2D asset based on the chosen settings.

2.4. Render Target

The system Render Target is located inside the widget folder.

  • Default format: RTF RGBA8 sRGB
  • The user may adjust the format if needed
  • It is strictly forbidden to delete this Render Target — the baker will break

2.5. Preview Materials Folder

/SeamlessWrap/Materials/TextureBaker/SeamlessTexture

The folder contains internal materials used for copying the baked texture into the Render Target.

⚠️ Do not modify or delete them.
If they are changed, the Texture Baker will stop working.

3. Texture Baker (Generator Mode)

Location in the project:
/SeamlessWrap/Widgets/TextureBaker/SeamlessGenerator/EUWBP_TextureBaker_Seamless_Generator

in the old version:
/SeamlessWrap/TextureBaker/SeamlessGenerator/EW_TextureBaker_Seamless_Generator

This version of the baker is used to bake procedural generators.
It does not make textures seamless, it only converts a procedural output into a Texture2D asset.

3.1. Included Demo Generator

The project includes a demo generator: Amoeba Color Noise
Location:
/SeamlessWrap/Materials/Functions/MF_AmoebaColorNoise

The Generator Mode baker can render this function into a texture.

3.2. Source Material & Preview Material (Generator Mode)

The Generator Mode baker uses two materials:

Source Material

  • Contains the user’s generator parameters
  • Must use the same generator function as the Preview Material
  • All shared parameters (Scalar, Vector, Texture) will be copied from Source to Preview

Preview Material

  • Displayed in the widget preview window
  • Used for rendering into the Render Target
  • Can be replaced by the user

Important Notes

  • Static Bool parameters cannot be copied, because they cannot be set dynamically in the material at runtime.
  • Both materials must share the same generator function, otherwise parameter transfer will not work.

3.3. Creating Custom Preview Materials

Users are free to create their own Preview Materials.

Requirements:

  • The Preview Material must use the same generator function as the Source Material
    (so that parameter copying works correctly)

Known Issue: Color Texture Preview May Appear Blank

When baking color (RGBA) textures, the resulting Texture2D asset may show an empty (white or gray) preview when opened in the Texture Editor.

This is a known Unreal Engine limitation related to textures saved from Render Targets using certain pixel formats (such as BC7).

What still works normally

  • The texture functions correctly in any material.
  • The small thumbnail in the Content Browser shows the correct preview.
  • Grayscale and Normal Map textures always display properly in the editor window.

Why this happens

Depending on:

  • Render Target Format
  • Texture Compression Settings
  • Whether sRGB is ON or OFF

…the Unreal Editor may fail to generate a preview for some full-color textures baked through a render target.

Should this concern you?

No.
The texture itself is valid, safe to use, and behaves exactly as expected in all rendering cases.
This issue affects only the editor preview window, not the texture content.