Installation / Activation

Installation

MS Windows
Download and execute the Thea for SketchUp installer from the Thea Render downloads area or the Altair One Marketplace.

Nvidia Optix Denoiser:
This option requires an NVIDIA graphics card.

v35-installation-01

Important:
When installing Thea for SketchUp, set the path of the Thea Data and Thea Temporary folders to a location where every user has full read/write access. If the path doesn't have proper permissions, the plug‐in won't work properly.

macOS
Download and execute the Thea for SketchUp installer from the Thea Render downloads area or the Altair One Marketplace.
Make sure that SketchUp was started at least once before running the installer; otherwise it won't appear in the list. The installer will guide you through the necessary steps. It automatically recognizes previously installed SketchUp versions and offers the corresponding plug‐in installation.

v35-installation-02

Thea Data is written to: Home/Library/Application Support/Thea Render

Activation

After installing the plug‐in, open the license setup window from the main menu: Extensions > Thea Render > License Setup.

Lease Licenses
If you have a Lease License, switch to the Lease tab and use the Altair One credentials (username & password) to get a license from the server.

Educational Licenses
If you have an Education License, then switch to the Node-Locked / Educational tab, click on the Browse button and select the license file (.dat) that you received from the Altair University.
If you do not have one, click on the Register button and fill out the form to receive a one-year Educational license from the Altair University.

If you don't activate your license, you will remain in Demo mode with certain limitations.

Demo Version Limitations:
Please note that when the plug‐in is not licensed, the rendered image resolution will be limited (1920x1080) and watermarks will be added. All other features and functionalities are fully supported.

Switching between v2 & v3.5 (Thea Switch)

If Thea for SketchUp v3.5 is installed over v2, then a Thea Switch option will be visible in the Main Menu allowing you to switch between the two versions (v2 & v3.5).
Go to Extensions > Thea Switch and select the version that you would like to switch to. Restart SketchUp to apply the change.

It doesn't matter which version is installed first. The Thea Switch will appear in either case.