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Installation

1. Import the package​

Assets → Import Package → Custom Package, then import everything.

Upgrading from an earlier version, or from Lite to Pro? Import straight over the top. The assemblies keep their GUIDs across versions and editions, so they are replaced in place - no duplicates, no compile errors, and your settings, libraries and versions stay where they are.

2. Let it install its dependencies​

On first launch the Dependency Installer offers to fetch three Unity packages:

PackageNeeded for
com.unity.animation.riggingIK solving in Pose Edit
com.unity.formats.fbxSkeleton and clip FBX export
com.unity.editorcoroutinesAsync library scanning

Accept and they are installed through the Package Manager. You can decline and add them later - the features that need them simply stay unavailable until you do.

3. First run​

The welcome window walks you through the remaining setup. You can re-open it any time with Tools → Animation Workbench → Show Welcome Window.

The first library scan starts in the background. You do not have to wait for it: browse while it fills in, and thumbnails appear as they render.

4. Set up a preview character​

The one step that actually matters for day-to-day use - without it there is nothing to render previews on.

Tools → Animation Workbench → Characters, then mark a humanoid prefab as default. Full details in Character Setup.

What ends up in your project​

Assets/Settings/AnimationWorkbench/
├── Data/          characters picked per clip, work on characters, audio library, channels, rulesets, palettes
├── Audio/         generated audio mixer and SFX source prefab
├── Controllers/   generated animator controllers for previews
├── Resources/     the baked runtime audio database
└── Versioning/    version history - the index, plus the snapshots in Snapshots~

Library/AnimationWorkbench/        scan results: the clip list, usage, bone maps
Library/AWAnimationPreviewCache/   rendered thumbnails
UserSettings/AnimationWorkbench/   your favorites

:::tip Version control Commit Assets/Settings/AnimationWorkbench/ - that is the configuration your team shares, and the baked audio database has to be in the build.

The Versioning/Snapshots~ folder is part of that. Unity ignores folders ending in ~, which is exactly the point: no .meta file and no import per snapshot. Git treats it as an ordinary folder, so the history travels with the project - unless your .gitignore carries a blanket *~ rule, which would silently drop it.

Leave Library/ out, as usual for Unity. The scan results and the thumbnail cache are machine-local and rebuild themselves; deleting them costs nothing but scan and render time. See How does this work in a team? :::

Opening the tool​

  • Tools → Animation Workbench → Open
  • Ctrl+Shift+W (Windows/Linux), Cmd+Shift+W (macOS)

Continue with the Quick Start.