Material Property Diff

Module: Tech · Category: Debugging · Tool ID: MaterialPropertyDiff

Side-by-side parameter diff between two Material Instances. Highlights: parameters with different values, parameters overridden in one but not the other, redundant overrides (value matches parent default — usually safe to remove), scalar/vector/texture/static-switch comparison, parent material info, and color swatches for vector parameters.

Diff with two MIs picked, results showing mix of Different / Same / Redundant entries, color swatches visible for vector params.

When to use it

• Diffing two MIs to confirm they were authored consistently
• Finding redundant overrides for cleanup
• Migrating parameters from one MI to another
• Pre-merge review on shared materials

What it isn’t for

• Don’t expect cross-parent diff to be meaningful. Diff is most useful when both MIs share the same parent.

Opening the tool

1. Open the EQLabs Hub and search for Material Diff (or browse to Tech → Debugging).
2. Click the tool card.
3. Drop two MIs into A + B pickers, click Compare.

Interface tour

Section	What it does
Material A / B pickers	The two MIs to compare
Compare	Computes the diff
Swap Materials	Quick swap A ↔ B
Show Only Differences	Hide Same rows
Type filters	Scalar / Vector / Texture / StaticSwitch toggles
Parent Info	Shows whether both MIs share a parent
Copy Results	Plain-text dump
Diff list	Per-row: param name, type, value A, value B, status, color swatches (vector only)

Status values

Status	Meaning
Different	Same param, different values
Only in A / Only in B	Param overridden in only one MI
Same	Both equal
Redundant A / B / Both	Override exists but matches parent default — safe to remove

Diff list showing a vector parameter with different values in A vs B, color swatches visible.

Workflow

1. Drop both MIs.
2. Click Compare.
3. Toggle Show Only Differences to focus on actual changes.
4. Cross-reference with the source MI editor to fix or migrate.

Settings reference

Field	Default
Show Only Differences	false
Filter toggles	all on

Settings file: [Project]/Saved/EQLabs/Settings/MaterialPropertyDiff.json

Output

• In-panel diff list
• Clipboard. Copy Results.
• No edits. Read-only.

Tips and gotchas

• Redundant overrides happen when a parameter was set then the parent default changed. Cleanup is safe.
• Color swatches make vector diffs intuitive. Easy to see “these are different shades of blue”.
• Static switch state matters. Affects which parameters are actually in use.

Related tools

• Material Instance Manager — hierarchy + override tracking
• Material Preset Manager — capture / apply parameter sets