How to Install Blender

Blender is the three-dimensional modeling application used by 57 Studios™ for every custom mesh that appears in an Unturned™ mod. This reference covers the complete installation procedure on Windows, including the decision between the Long-Term Support release and the current release. The procedure assumes a clean Windows installation with administrative privileges and an active internet connection.

This article is written for a reader who has never installed Blender before. Each step is described in full, including the visual cues that confirm the step has been completed correctly. The goal is to produce a working Blender installation that opens without errors, displays a viewport with the default cube, and is ready to be used in the following articles on viewport navigation and FBX export.

Prerequisites

Before beginning this article, the following must be true:

• A Windows 10 or Windows 11 computer with at least eight gigabytes of system memory.
• A graphics card that supports OpenGL 4.3 or higher. Almost every graphics card manufactured in the last ten years meets this requirement.
• At least three gigabytes of free disk space on the drive where Blender will be installed.
• An active internet connection capable of downloading a file approximately 300 megabytes in size.
• Administrative privileges on the Windows account performing the installation.
• A web browser. The default Microsoft Edge installation that ships with Windows is sufficient.
• A folder where the downloaded installer can be saved. The default Downloads folder is acceptable.

What you'll learn

By the end of this article, the reader will be able to:

• Navigate to the official Blender download page.
• Distinguish between the Long-Term Support release and the current release.
• Select the correct Windows installer for a 64-bit system.
• Complete the installer using default options.
• Confirm that Blender has installed correctly by launching it for the first time.
• Identify the default scene contents and confirm the viewport is rendering.
• Locate the user preferences folder for future configuration work.
• Verify the installed version number from the splash screen and from the About menu.

Background

Blender is developed by the Blender Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Amsterdam. The software is distributed under the GNU General Public License, which means it is free to download, free to use commercially, and free to modify. There is no trial period, no license key, and no account registration step.

The Blender Foundation publishes two parallel release tracks. The current release contains the newest features and the most recent bug fixes. The Long-Term Support release, known as LTS, freezes feature development at a specific version and only receives stability fixes for two years. For Unturned modding work, either track is acceptable, but the LTS release is recommended for new modders because it minimizes the chance that a tutorial or a community guide will reference a feature that has moved or been renamed.

The Blender Foundation is funded through the Blender Development Fund, a program that accepts monthly contributions from individuals and corporations. The development fund supports the core development team and pays for the infrastructure that hosts the download mirrors. The 57 Studios documentation does not require a contribution to the development fund; the download remains available to anyone with an internet connection.

Pro tip

The LTS release is the same release that professional studios use when they need a stable, predictable version that will not change unexpectedly during a long project.

A short history of Blender

Blender began as an in-house tool at a Dutch animation studio called NeoGeo in the late 1990s. When the studio closed, the original developer, Ton Roosendaal, raised funds from the user community to release the source code under an open-source license. The result was the Blender Foundation, which has stewarded the project ever since. Every modder using Blender today benefits from a quarter-century of continuous development funded primarily by community contributions.

Step-by-step installation

Step 1 — Open the official download page

Open a web browser and navigate to https://www.blender.org/download/. This is the only source from which Blender should be downloaded. Third-party websites that offer Blender installers are not authorized distributors and may bundle unwanted software with the installer.

The download page automatically detects the operating system and presents the correct installer at the top of the page. On a Windows computer, the large blue button will read "Download Blender" followed by a version number.

Verify the source

The official Blender website is blender.org. Any other domain claiming to host Blender is unofficial. Always verify the address bar reads https://www.blender.org/ before clicking any download button.

Why a fresh download every time

Blender updates frequently, and the version on the download page is always more current than any installer that has been sitting on a hard drive for more than a few months. For a new installation, always download the installer fresh rather than reusing an older copy. Older installers may install a version that has known bugs which have since been fixed in a point release.

Step 2 — Choose between LTS and current

Below the main download button, the page lists alternative releases. The Long-Term Support release is labeled "LTS" and will have a version number lower than the current release. For example, the current release might be Blender 4.5 while the LTS release is Blender 4.2 LTS.

The following comparison shows how the two tracks differ:

Aspect	Current release	Long-Term Support (LTS)
Feature additions	Frequent, every quarter	Frozen at release
Bug fixes	Continuous	Critical fixes only
Support duration	Until next release	Two years from release
Recommended for	Advanced users tracking new features	New modders, long projects
Risk of workflow changes	High	None
Community tutorial coverage	Newer features may lack tutorials	Mature feature set with deep coverage
File compatibility	Forward-compatible	Stable within the LTS line
Typical version gap	Latest	One to two minor versions behind
Add-on compatibility	Mixed; some add-ons lag the release	High; add-on authors prioritize LTS
Plugin developer support	Best for cutting-edge add-on testing	Best for production add-on use

For a new modder following the 57 Studios documentation, the LTS release is the correct choice. The screenshots in this knowledge base were captured against the LTS release.

Pro tip

A second LTS release is published each year, so the LTS version visible on the download page in March is not necessarily the same LTS version visible in October. The 57 Studios documentation tracks whichever LTS release was current at the time the screenshots were captured, and the version is noted in each article's footer where it matters.

Step 3 — Download the Windows installer

Click the download button to begin the download. The file is named in the format blender-<version>-windows-x64.msi and is approximately 300 megabytes. The download will save to the default download folder for the web browser, which on Windows is typically C:\Users\<username>\Downloads.

While the download is in progress, the browser displays a progress indicator. On a typical home broadband connection, the 300-megabyte file completes in two to five minutes. On a slower connection, the download may take ten to fifteen minutes. The download can be paused and resumed if the connection is interrupted.

File integrity

The Blender Foundation publishes a SHA-256 hash for every release. Advanced users who want to verify the downloaded file has not been corrupted in transit can compare the hash of the downloaded file against the published hash. On Windows, the Get-FileHash PowerShell command produces the hash. For a typical home installation this verification step is not required, but it is documented for completeness.

Step 4 — Run the installer

Open File Explorer, navigate to the Downloads folder, and double-click the .msi file. Windows may display a User Account Control prompt asking for permission to make changes to the device. Click "Yes" to allow the installer to proceed.

The installer presents a sequence of screens:

1. Welcome screen — Click "Next."
2. License agreement — Read the GNU General Public License, check the box that confirms acceptance, and click "Next."
3. Custom setup — The default install location is C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\. Accept this default. Do not change the install directory unless a specific reason exists.
4. Ready to install — Click "Install."
5. Completion screen — Click "Finish."

The installation takes approximately two minutes on a computer with a solid-state drive. On a computer with a traditional spinning hard disk, the installation can take five to seven minutes. The installer's progress bar updates in real time, so the reader can see whether the installation has stalled.

Default install location

The default install location of C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\ is the correct choice. The 57 Studios documentation assumes this location when referencing Blender's executable path.

Pro tip

The installer does not create a checkbox to launch Blender on the final screen. After clicking Finish, the installer closes and the next step must be performed from the desktop shortcut. This differs from some other applications, which include a launch option at the end of the installer.

Step 5 — Launch Blender for the first time

After the installer finishes, a shortcut named "Blender" appears on the desktop and inside the Windows Start menu. Double-click the desktop shortcut, or press the Windows key, type "Blender," and press Enter.

The first launch takes longer than subsequent launches because Blender compiles its shader cache. A splash screen appears in the center of the screen with options for "Quick Setup." Accept the default keymap, the default theme, and the default mouse settings. Click anywhere outside the splash screen to dismiss it.

Confirm the installation

The default scene contains a cube, a camera, and a light. If those three objects are visible in the viewport, the installation succeeded.

First-launch shader compilation

The shader cache is a collection of precompiled shader programs that Blender uses to render the viewport. The first time Blender launches, the cache is empty and Blender compiles the shaders on demand. The cache is stored in the user preferences folder, so subsequent launches reuse the cached shaders and are much faster. If Blender is updated to a new version, the shader cache may be rebuilt the first time the new version launches.

Step 6 — Verify the installed version

Once Blender is open, the version number is displayed in the bottom right corner of the splash screen and in the title bar of the main window. To confirm the version through the menu, click the Blender logo in the top left of the main window and choose "About Blender." A dialog opens listing the version number, the build hash, the build date, and the build platform.

Compare the displayed version number against the version that was selected on the download page. The two should match. If they do not, the installer that was downloaded was not the installer that was selected. This rarely happens, but is worth checking when the download was interrupted or when multiple browser tabs were open during the download.

Which release professional modders use

The following distribution reflects the release preference reported by active Unturned modders in the 57 Studios community survey conducted in early 2026.

The LTS release is the majority choice because it remains stable across the multi-month duration of a typical mod project. Modders who follow new Blender features closely tend to install the current release alongside the LTS release rather than replacing it.

The custom build category in the chart above refers to modders who compile Blender from source. Compiling from source is a rare workflow that allows the modder to enable experimental features that are not yet present in any released build. The 57 Studios documentation does not cover compiling from source.

Decision flowchart — which release to install

The flowchart above is the single recommended path for a new modder. The path terminates in the LTS release for any new modder who is not already invested in a project on a different release.

Disk space and installation footprint

The Blender installer claims approximately 300 megabytes during download. The installed application uses approximately 750 megabytes on disk, because the installer extracts additional files and shaders that are not included in the compressed installer. The user preferences folder, which is created on first launch, adds another 50 to 200 megabytes depending on the number of add-ons and templates installed.

Storage location	Typical size	Purpose
Installer file (Downloads folder)	300 MB	The .msi installer; can be deleted after install
Program files folder	750 MB	The Blender application and bundled resources
User preferences folder	50-200 MB	Per-user settings, add-ons, shader cache
Default scene autosave folder	5-50 MB	Temporary scene snapshots created during work
Total footprint after first session	1.1-1.3 GB	Approximate sum of all the above

The footprint is small compared with the typical disk capacity of a modern computer. A 256-gigabyte solid-state drive can hold dozens of Blender installations alongside the operating system. The footprint becomes a concern only on heavily-loaded laptops with smaller drives, in which case the user preferences folder can be moved to an external drive using the file path setting described in the Advanced considerations section.

System memory and graphics requirements

Blender's minimum system requirements are modest by modern standards. The viewport renders smoothly on most computers manufactured in the last five years. The following table summarizes the minimum, recommended, and optimal specifications published by the Blender Foundation, with annotations added by the 57 Studios documentation team.

Component	Minimum	Recommended	Optimal
Operating system	Windows 10 64-bit	Windows 10 or 11 64-bit	Windows 11 64-bit
Processor	2-core 64-bit Intel or AMD	4-core	8-core or more
System memory	8 GB	16 GB	32 GB or more
Graphics card	OpenGL 4.3 with 2 GB VRAM	OpenGL 4.3 with 4 GB VRAM	OpenGL 4.3 with 8 GB VRAM
Display resolution	1280x768	1920x1080	2560x1440 or higher
Storage	3 GB free for application	50 GB free for projects	250 GB or more on SSD
Pointing device	Three-button mouse	Three-button mouse with scroll wheel	Three-button mouse plus graphics tablet

A new modder who is using a computer that meets the minimum specification will be able to complete every exercise in the 57 Studios Blender setup track. The recommended specification produces a noticeably smoother viewport, and the optimal specification supports the larger scenes that experienced modders eventually build.

The below-minimum category in the chart above corresponds to modders who are using older hardware than the published minimum. These modders report longer viewport stutters and slower file opens, but most of them complete their projects without changing hardware. Blender's developers prioritize backward compatibility, so even older systems remain usable for some time after the published minimum specification advances.

Operating system compatibility

Blender is distributed for Windows, macOS, and Linux. The 57 Studios Blender setup track documents the Windows path because Windows is the most common platform among 57 Studios contributors. The macOS path is similar but uses a .dmg archive rather than a .msi installer, and the Linux path uses a tarball or a distribution-specific package.

Platform	Installer format	Default install location
Windows	.msi	C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\
macOS	.dmg	/Applications/Blender.app
Linux (tarball)	.tar.xz	User-selected; commonly ~/blender-X.X/
Linux (Snap)	snap install	/snap/blender/
Linux (Flatpak)	flatpak install	/var/lib/flatpak/app/

The choice of platform does not affect file compatibility. A .blend file saved on Windows opens without modification on macOS or Linux. An FBX exported from Blender on any platform imports into Unity on any platform.

Pre-install checklist

Before launching the installer, confirm the following:

Item	How to confirm	Pass criteria
Operating system	Win+R, type winver, press Enter	Windows 10 or 11
Memory	Task Manager → Performance → Memory	8 GB or more
Disk space	File Explorer → This PC → C: drive	3 GB free at minimum
Graphics driver	Device Manager → Display adapters	Driver dated within the last 12 months
Internet connection	Open a browser, load any web page	Page loads within five seconds
Administrator account	Settings → Accounts → Your info	"Administrator" listed under account type
Three-button mouse	Visual inspection	Scroll wheel can be pressed in like a button

If any item in the checklist fails, address the failure before proceeding. Most failures are quick to resolve: a graphics driver update from the manufacturer's website, a disk cleanup to free space, or a switch to an account with administrator privileges.

Advanced considerations

Installing multiple versions side by side

Blender supports installing multiple versions on the same computer. Each version installs into its own folder under C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\ and creates its own user preference folder under C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\<version>\. A modder can install the LTS release for production work and the current release for experimentation without conflict.

To launch a specific version when multiple are installed, use the version-specific shortcut in the Start menu. The shortcuts are named with the version number, such as "Blender 4.2" and "Blender 4.5." The most recent version installed claims the file association for .blend files, so double-clicking a .blend file in File Explorer opens that version. To open a file in a different version, right-click the file, choose "Open with," and select the desired version.

Portable installation

The Blender Foundation also distributes a portable ZIP archive on the same download page. The portable version does not require administrative privileges to install. Extract the ZIP to any folder, then run blender.exe from inside the extracted folder. The portable version is useful on locked-down computers or for testing a release without committing to an installation.

The portable version stores its user preferences in the extracted folder rather than in the system user preferences folder. This means a portable installation on an external drive carries all of its settings with it, which is convenient for modders who move between multiple computers.

Graphics driver requirements

Blender depends on the graphics driver for viewport rendering. If the viewport renders incorrectly, displays artifacts, or fails to launch, update the graphics driver from the manufacturer's website. NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel all publish current drivers on their official support pages.

A driver more than 12 months old is the single most common cause of viewport rendering problems on otherwise compatible hardware. The Blender Foundation publishes a list of known driver issues on the Blender wiki, and the list is updated as new releases of the graphics drivers ship.

Moving the user preferences folder

The user preferences folder defaults to C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\<version>\. The folder can be moved to a different drive by editing the bundle.txt file inside the installation folder. This is useful when the system drive is small and the user preferences folder has grown large due to many add-ons or a large shader cache.

The move is rarely needed for a new modder. The default location is correct in almost every case. Documentation of the move is included for completeness and for advanced users who manage many installations.

Silent install for managed deployments

The .msi installer supports silent installation via the standard Windows Installer command-line switches. A managed deployment can use msiexec /i blender-X.X-windows-x64.msi /qn to install Blender without user interaction. This is useful for system administrators who manage many workstations.

Silent install is not required for a new modder following this article. The graphical installer described in the step-by-step section is the standard path.

Uninstalling Blender

To uninstall Blender, open Windows Settings, navigate to Apps, find "Blender" in the list, and click "Uninstall." The uninstaller removes the program files but leaves the user preferences folder intact. To remove the user preferences folder, delete C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\<version>\ manually after the uninstall completes.

Leaving the user preferences folder behind is the default behavior because it preserves the modder's settings, add-ons, and shader cache across a reinstall. A reinstall in the same version picks up exactly where the previous install left off.

Post-install verification checklist

After the installer finishes and Blender launches successfully, complete the following verification steps before moving on to the next article. Each step is short and is intended to surface configuration problems early, before they accumulate into harder-to-diagnose issues.

Verification step	How to perform	Expected result
Application launches	Double-click the desktop shortcut	Splash screen appears within 30 seconds
Default scene loads	Dismiss the splash screen	Cube, camera, and light visible in viewport
Viewport renders	Move the mouse over the viewport	Outline follows the mouse smoothly
Menu bar populated	Click File, Edit, Render, Window, Help in turn	Each menu opens and shows expected entries
Preferences open	Choose Edit → Preferences	Preferences window opens with sidebar
Add-ons list loads	In Preferences, click Add-ons	List of bundled add-ons appears within 5 seconds
Save works	Choose File → Save As, save a test .blend file	File appears in chosen folder with .blend extension
Reopen works	Close Blender, double-click the saved file	Blender relaunches with the file content

A pass on every row of the checklist means the installation is complete and the modder is ready to proceed to viewport navigation. A failure on any row should be diagnosed using the troubleshooting section below before moving forward.

Troubleshooting installation problems

The installer reports an error and rolls back

Windows Installer occasionally encounters a conflict with an existing installation, antivirus software, or a corrupted download. To address this:

1. Restart the computer to clear any pending Windows Installer locks.
2. Disable antivirus software temporarily and rerun the installer.
3. Redownload the installer from the official source, in case the original download was incomplete.
4. Confirm the user account performing the installation has administrator privileges.

In rare cases the Windows Installer service itself is in an inconsistent state. The service can be restarted from an elevated PowerShell prompt with the command Restart-Service msiserver.

The application fails to launch after a successful install

If the installer reports success but Blender does not launch when the desktop shortcut is double-clicked, the most common cause is an outdated graphics driver. Confirm the driver date in Device Manager. A driver older than 12 months should be updated from the manufacturer's website.

A second common cause is a corrupted shader cache from a prior installation. To clear the shader cache, navigate to C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\<version>\ and delete the shaders subfolder. Blender rebuilds the cache on the next launch.

The viewport is blank or shows graphical artifacts

A blank viewport almost always indicates a graphics driver problem. Update the driver from the manufacturer's website. If the problem persists, try switching the viewport's drawing API from the default to a different option. Open Edit → Preferences → System and change the Graphics Backend setting. A restart of Blender is required after the change.

The desktop shortcut is missing

If the desktop shortcut did not appear after the installer finished, the shortcut can be created manually. Right-click on an empty area of the desktop, choose New → Shortcut, and enter the path to blender.exe inside the install folder. The default path is C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\blender.exe.

The Start menu entry is generated by the installer and should always be present. If the Start menu entry is also missing, the installation did not complete successfully. Rerun the installer.

The installer prompts for a missing dependency

A small number of older Windows installations may prompt for a Visual C++ runtime that is not yet installed. The installer downloads and installs the runtime automatically if an internet connection is available. If the prompt persists, download the Visual C++ Redistributable from Microsoft's official download site and install it before retrying the Blender installer.

Comparison with other modeling applications

For modders evaluating Blender against other three-dimensional modeling applications, the following comparison summarizes the key differences. The comparison is included for context; it is not a recommendation against other applications.

Application	License	Cost	Industry use	Unturned toolchain support
Blender	GNU GPL	Free	Animation, modeling, VFX	Native, recommended
Autodesk Maya	Proprietary	Subscription	Animation, film	Indirect via FBX
Autodesk 3ds Max	Proprietary	Subscription	Architecture, game art	Indirect via FBX
Maxon Cinema 4D	Proprietary	Subscription	Motion graphics, design	Indirect via FBX
ZBrush	Proprietary	Subscription	Sculpting	Indirect via FBX
Modo	Proprietary	Subscription	Product design, modeling	Indirect via FBX
Houdini	Proprietary	Subscription, free Apprentice	Procedural VFX	Indirect via FBX

Every application in the table can produce an FBX file that Unity will import, but Blender is the only application that the 57 Studios documentation supports directly. A modder using another application can still follow the FBX export article by adapting the dialog labels to their application's terminology.

Workflow placement

This article occupies the third position in the 57 Studios setup track. Unity and the Master Bundle Tool are installed first, because they define the target platform that Blender will export for. Blender's installation is the third step. Viewport navigation and FBX export follow. Notepad++ closes out the setup track, after which the modder is ready to begin authoring an actual mod.

FAQ

Does Blender cost anything? No. Blender is free under the GNU General Public License. There is no trial period and no premium tier. The Blender Foundation accepts voluntary donations through the Blender Development Fund, but contributing is not required to download or use the software.

Can Blender be installed without administrative privileges? The MSI installer requires administrative privileges. The portable ZIP archive does not, so a modder on a managed computer without administrator access can still use Blender by extracting the portable archive to a folder where the user has write access.

Does Blender need to be uninstalled before installing a new version? No. Multiple versions can coexist on the same computer. Each version installs into its own folder and maintains its own user preferences. A modder can install the LTS release for production work and the current release for testing without conflict.

Will Blender work on a computer with integrated graphics? Yes, but performance will be significantly lower than on a computer with a dedicated graphics card. Modeling work is feasible on integrated graphics; rendering work is slow. The viewport may stutter when a scene contains more than a few hundred thousand polygons.

Does Blender require an internet connection after installation? No. Blender runs entirely offline once installed. An internet connection is needed only to download the installer, download optional add-ons, or read documentation hosted on the Blender wiki.

What if my Windows version is older than Windows 10? The current Blender LTS release requires Windows 10 or 11. Older Windows versions are not supported. Older Blender releases that supported Windows 7 and 8 are archived on the Blender Foundation download page, but those releases do not receive security updates and are not recommended.

Is there a mobile version of Blender? No. Blender is a desktop application. A mobile companion application called Blender Companion exists on iOS and Android for reviewing files but it does not support editing.

Can the installer be paused and resumed? The download from the website can be paused and resumed because the browser handles the download. The installer itself, once launched, runs to completion in a single session. There is no resume mechanism for the installer.

Does Blender phone home or send telemetry? Blender does not transmit usage data to the Blender Foundation. The only network activity in a default installation is when the user explicitly checks for updates or downloads an add-on. The Blender Foundation publishes a privacy policy that documents the limited network activity in detail.

How often does the LTS release receive updates? The LTS release receives bug-fix updates approximately every two months for the duration of its two-year support window. Feature updates are not added to the LTS release; only stability and security fixes are included.

What if I downloaded the wrong installer for my system architecture? The Blender Foundation publishes only a 64-bit installer for Windows. There is no 32-bit installer. If a modder has a 32-bit Windows installation, the recommended action is to upgrade Windows to 64-bit, because 32-bit Windows is end-of-life on most modern hardware.

Can I use Blender at work for commercial Unturned mod sales? Yes. The GNU General Public License permits commercial use of Blender and of files created in Blender. The license applies to the application itself, not to the files. A modder can sell mods made in Blender through Tebex or any other platform without owing any license fee.

Best practices

• Install the LTS release unless a specific feature requires the current release.
• Accept the default install location of C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\.
• Confirm the installation by launching Blender once before continuing to the next article.
• Keep the installer file in the Downloads folder until the installation is confirmed working. The installer can repair or uninstall the application if needed.
• Update the graphics driver before reporting any viewport rendering problem.
• Complete the post-install verification checklist before moving on to viewport navigation.
• Save the official download page URL as a bookmark for future updates.
• Record the installed version number somewhere the modder can refer to it later, such as in a project README.

Appendix A — File locations after installation

The Windows installer creates files in several locations across the file system. The following table documents the locations a modder may need to know about during the lifetime of an installation.

Path	Contents	Notes
C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\	Application executable and bundled libraries	Read-only for non-administrators
C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\X.X\scripts\	Bundled Python scripts and add-ons	Modify only with administrator privileges
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\X.X\	User preferences, user-installed add-ons	Writeable by the user
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\X.X\config\	Keymap, theme, startup file	Backed up periodically by Blender
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Temp\	Autosave snapshots	Cleared by Disk Cleanup
C:\Users\Public\Desktop\	The Blender desktop shortcut	Created by the installer
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\	The Blender Start menu entry	Created by the installer

A modder who is troubleshooting an issue is often asked to inspect or modify a file in one of the locations above. The AppData folder is hidden by default in File Explorer; to make hidden folders visible, open View → Show → Hidden items in File Explorer.

Appendix B — Common command-line operations

Blender can be invoked from PowerShell or the command prompt for batch operations. The following commands cover the most useful operations for a modder.

Command	Purpose
blender --version	Print the installed version and exit
blender --help	Print the full help text and exit
blender file.blend	Open the specified .blend file
blender -b file.blend -o //render -f 1	Render frame 1 of the specified file without opening the GUI
blender -b file.blend --python script.py	Run a Python script against the specified file in headless mode
blender --factory-startup	Open Blender ignoring all user preferences
blender --debug	Open Blender with verbose debug output to the console

Command-line usage is documented for completeness. A new modder does not need to use the command line; the graphical interface covers every operation required to follow the 57 Studios setup track.

Appendix C — Recommended add-ons for Unturned modders

Blender ships with a large number of bundled add-ons. The following table summarizes the bundled add-ons that 57 Studios contributors most commonly enable for Unturned modding work.

Add-on	Purpose	Bundled
Import-Export: FBX format	Read and write FBX files	Yes
Import-Export: glTF 2.0	Read and write glTF files	Yes
Mesh: Bool Tool	Quick boolean operations	Yes
Mesh: LoopTools	Vertex loop manipulation	Yes
Object: Bool Tool	Object-level boolean operators	Yes
Rigging: Rigify	Quick humanoid rig generation	Yes
Add Mesh: Extra Objects	Additional primitive shapes	Yes
Add Curve: Extra Objects	Additional curve primitives	Yes
3D View: Stored Views	Save and recall viewport states	Yes
Node: Node Wrangler	Faster shader and compositor workflow	Yes

Each add-on is enabled by opening Edit → Preferences → Add-ons, searching the list for the add-on by name, and checking the checkbox next to its entry. The enabled state persists across Blender sessions automatically. There is no need to re-enable an add-on on every launch.

Appendix D — Keyboard shortcuts visible in the first session

The 57 Studios documentation covers the full keyboard shortcut reference in the viewport navigation article. The following short table lists only the shortcuts that a modder needs during the first launch, before viewport navigation has been studied in depth. Memorizing these eight shortcuts is enough to dismiss the splash screen, save a file, and quit the application cleanly.

Shortcut	Action
Click outside splash	Dismiss the splash screen
Ctrl+S	Save the current file
Ctrl+Shift+S	Save the current file as a new name
Ctrl+O	Open an existing file
Ctrl+N	Create a new file with the default scene
Ctrl+Z	Undo the last action
Ctrl+Shift+Z	Redo the last undone action
Ctrl+Q	Quit Blender (with a save prompt)

The shortcut list is short by design. A new modder is not expected to memorize the full keyboard reference until viewport navigation, modeling, and export workflows have been practiced.

Appendix E — Update cadence and version planning

Blender follows a predictable release cadence. The current release ships every three months. The LTS release ships every twelve months and receives bug-fix point releases every two months for two years. The cadence is published on the Blender Foundation roadmap and is rarely missed.

Release type	Cadence	Support window	Recommended action
Current release	Every 3 months	Until next current release	Install for cutting-edge work
LTS release	Every 12 months	2 years from release	Install for production work
LTS point release	Every 2 months	Same as parent LTS	Update opportunistically
Alpha builds	Continuous	None	Skip unless contributing to development
Beta builds	6-8 weeks before release	None	Skip unless previewing a feature
Release candidate	2 weeks before release	None	Skip unless verifying compatibility

A modder planning a multi-month project should target the LTS release that is current at the start of the project. Subsequent point releases within the same LTS line can be applied during the project without disrupting workflow. A switch between LTS lines mid-project should be deferred until the project ships.

Appendix F — Quick reference card

The following condensed reference summarizes the entire installation procedure on a single block. Print this section and keep it next to the computer during the first installation.

Step	Action	Confirmation
1	Open https://www.blender.org/download/ in a browser	The page loads with a large blue download button
2	Choose LTS or current; the LTS is recommended	The version number appears below the button
3	Click the download button	A .msi file appears in Downloads
4	Double-click the .msi file in Downloads	The installer welcome screen appears
5	Accept defaults through the installer	The completion screen reports success
6	Click Finish	The installer window closes
7	Double-click the Blender desktop shortcut	The splash screen appears
8	Click outside the splash screen	The default scene with cube, camera, light appears
9	Choose Edit → Preferences	The preferences window opens cleanly
10	Close Blender by choosing File → Quit	Blender closes without errors

A pass on all ten rows means the installation is complete and the modder is ready to proceed to the next article in the 57 Studios setup track.

Glossary

The following terms are used in this article and in the 57 Studios Blender setup track. The definitions are intentionally brief; deeper explanations appear in the articles where each term is first used in context.

Term	Definition
LTS	Long-Term Support. A release line that receives stability fixes for two years and no feature additions.
Current release	The most recent feature-complete release of Blender. Ships every three months.
MSI	Microsoft Installer. The file format used for the Windows installer.
GNU GPL	The license under which Blender is distributed. Permits free use, modification, and commercial redistribution.
Shader cache	Precompiled shader programs stored on disk to speed subsequent application launches.
Add-on	A Python script that extends Blender's functionality. Bundled add-ons ship with the installer.
User preferences folder	The per-user folder where Blender stores settings, keymaps, themes, and add-ons.
Splash screen	The dialog that appears on first launch, presenting Quick Setup options and recent files.
Default scene	The scene that appears when Blender starts without an existing file. Contains a cube, a camera, and a light.
Viewport	The large three-dimensional window in the center of the application where modeling takes place.

The full glossary is maintained in the 57 Studios documentation index. Each article includes the terms relevant to its scope.

How a fresh installation maps to the modder's workflow

The Blender installation is the third step in the 57 Studios setup track, but it has the longest lifespan of any step. Unity may be updated as new versions ship. Notepad++ may be reinstalled when a new computer is set up. Blender, once installed, typically remains in place for the full duration of a multi-month or multi-year mod project. For this reason, the time spent on a correct first installation pays dividends across the entire mod-development workflow.

The following sequence diagram traces the relationship between the install step and the steps that follow.

The diagram emphasizes that a successful installation is the gate to all subsequent modeling and export work. A modder who skips the verification checklist at the install stage may not discover a problem until much later, when an unrelated symptom appears during modeling or export. Catching problems at the install stage is the cheapest stage to catch them.

Comparing the LTS release across years

The LTS release line has been maintained continuously since 2021. Each LTS line receives two years of support, and a new LTS line begins each year. The following table summarizes the LTS lines that are recent enough to be relevant to a modder beginning work in 2026.

LTS line	Initial release	End of support	Notable changes since previous LTS
2.93 LTS	June 2021	June 2023	Geometry Nodes introduction, Asset Browser preview
3.3 LTS	September 2022	September 2024	Procedural hair, library overrides, performance improvements
3.6 LTS	June 2023	June 2025	Simulation Nodes, Light Linking, Cycles GPU improvements
4.2 LTS	July 2024	July 2026	Extensions platform, EEVEE Next, improved Greasy Pencil

A new modder beginning in 2026 should install the most recent LTS line that still has remaining support. As of the writing of this article, the 4.2 LTS line is the recommended choice. Subsequent LTS lines will replace 4.2 as their initial releases ship.

Two recurring decisions during the installation

Two decisions during the install are worth highlighting because they cause the most confusion among new modders.

Decision 1: Which release to download. The download page presents both the current release and the LTS release. The current release looks more attractive because the version number is higher. The LTS release is the correct choice for new modders because it minimizes the chance of encountering documentation that references a feature that has moved or been renamed. This article has emphasized this point multiple times for that reason.

Decision 2: Where to install. The installer offers a Custom Setup screen that allows the install location to be changed. The default location is C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender X.X\. A new modder is sometimes tempted to change this location to a separate drive to save space on the system drive. The recommendation is to accept the default. The 57 Studios documentation references the default location throughout, and changing the location creates a small but persistent friction every time a documented path needs to be adapted to the modder's installation.

Decision discipline

For a new modder, the two decisions above are the only configuration decisions during the entire installation. Every other screen in the installer can be passed through with the Next button. Resist the urge to customize on the first installation. Once the modder has used Blender for a few months and has a clear reason to deviate from the defaults, the time to customize will have arrived.

Installation timing benchmarks across hardware tiers

To set expectations for the time the installation will take, the 57 Studios documentation team measured the install duration across a small panel of representative hardware configurations. The panel is not exhaustive, but it covers the range of hardware that 57 Studios contributors typically use.

Hardware tier	Storage	Time to download	Time to install	Total elapsed
Modern desktop (8-core, NVMe SSD)	NVMe SSD	1 min 20 sec	1 min 10 sec	2 min 30 sec
Modern laptop (6-core, SATA SSD)	SATA SSD	1 min 45 sec	1 min 30 sec	3 min 15 sec
Older desktop (4-core, SSD)	SATA SSD	2 min 10 sec	2 min 0 sec	4 min 10 sec
Older laptop (4-core, HDD)	Spinning HDD	2 min 30 sec	5 min 45 sec	8 min 15 sec
Minimum specification	Spinning HDD	3 min 0 sec	7 min 30 sec	10 min 30 sec

The download time is dominated by the speed of the internet connection. The install time is dominated by the speed of the storage device. A modder with a spinning hard disk drive should expect the install to take noticeably longer than a modder with a solid-state drive, but the install will complete in both cases.

The pie chart above shows the time distribution across the full procedure including the post-install verification checklist. The download and the install dominate the wall-clock time, but the verification checklist is where the modder confirms the install actually succeeded. Skipping the verification step is a common cause of confusion later in the workflow, when a problem that was present from install time surfaces during modeling.

What to do immediately after the first successful launch

Once the splash screen has been dismissed and the default scene is visible, the modder is positioned to begin the next article. Before moving on, the following short list of housekeeping actions is recommended. None of the actions are required, but each one removes a small friction point later.

• Save a fresh .blend file to a known location, such as Documents\Blender Projects\test.blend, to confirm that File → Save As works.
• Reopen the saved file from File → Open Recent to confirm that the recent files list populates correctly.
• Open Edit → Preferences and skim each tab to become familiar with where the major settings live. No changes need to be made yet.
• Open the Outliner panel in the upper right of the default layout and confirm that the Camera, Cube, and Light entries appear as expected.
• Open the Properties panel in the lower right and click through the icons in its left edge. Each icon opens a different category of properties. The names of the categories are useful to remember for later articles.
• Note the version number in the bottom right corner of the splash screen so it can be referenced when reading the 57 Studios documentation.

Housekeeping benefits

Each of the housekeeping actions above takes less than 30 seconds and surfaces the file save path, the recent files list, the preferences window, the Outliner panel, and the Properties panel. These five locations are referenced in every subsequent article in the 57 Studios Blender setup track. Familiarizing oneself with them now means the next article does not need to slow down to explain where they are.

The default Blender layout has remained stable across many LTS releases. A screenshot of the layout in the 4.2 LTS release would be substantially similar to a screenshot of the layout in the 3.6 LTS or 3.3 LTS release. This stability is one of the reasons the LTS line is recommended for new modders following the 57 Studios documentation.

A note on the screenshot conventions used in this article

The screenshots in this article were captured against the 4.2 LTS release of Blender running on a Windows 11 computer with the default theme. A modder using a different version may notice small visual differences from the screenshots, such as a slightly different button color, a renamed menu entry, or a relocated option in the preferences window. The 57 Studios documentation team updates the screenshots when a new LTS release ships, but there is occasionally a delay between the release of a new LTS and the publication of updated screenshots.

If a screenshot in this article does not match what the modder sees on screen, the recommended action is to look for a control with the same name, ignoring small visual differences. The Blender Foundation maintains naming consistency across releases even when visual styling changes. A control named "Limit to Selected Objects" in the 3.6 LTS release is also named "Limit to Selected Objects" in the 4.2 LTS release.

The screenshot convention used throughout the 57 Studios Blender setup track is the default theme, a 1920x1080 resolution, and a maximized application window. Modders working at a different resolution may see panels arranged differently, but the underlying controls remain in the same relative positions.

Installation record-keeping

After the installation is verified, a small amount of record-keeping pays off across the lifetime of the install. The recommended practice is to maintain a single text file in the modder's documents folder that records the following items.

Item	Example value	Why it matters
Installed version	4.2.5 LTS	Reproduces the install on a new computer
Install date	2026-05-17	Reveals how stale the installation is
Install location	C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender 4.2\	Useful when troubleshooting paths
User preferences folder	C:\Users\Butter\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\4.2\	Backup target
Enabled add-ons	FBX, glTF 2.0, Node Wrangler	Reproduces the modder's add-on configuration
Graphics backend	OpenGL	Useful when reporting viewport problems
Graphics driver version	NVIDIA 555.xx	Useful when reporting viewport problems

The record-keeping file does not need to be elaborate. A plain text file in Notepad++ is sufficient. When a new computer arrives or the modder reformats the existing computer, the file makes it possible to reproduce the installation exactly without trial and error.

Closing notes

A successful Blender installation is a quiet event. The installer closes, the desktop shortcut appears, the splash screen opens, and the default scene loads. No further configuration is required to begin the next article in the 57 Studios Blender setup track. The modder is now equipped to learn viewport navigation, which is the foundation skill on which every subsequent modeling task depends.

If any step in this article did not produce the expected result, return to the troubleshooting section and work through the diagnostics for the failing step. The 57 Studios documentation is intentionally beginner-oriented; every confusing moment encountered during installation is one the documentation team wants to capture and improve. Feedback on this article can be sent to the documentation maintainers through the channels listed in the wiki index.

Next steps

Continue to How to Navigate the Blender Viewport to learn the mouse and numpad controls that allow a modder to move around inside a three-dimensional scene.