Install Mitsuba on MacOS Big Sur

This is a document recording my experience when installing Mitsuba 0.6 on my Macbook. Hope it will help you!

Mitsuba 0.6 official website: http://www.mitsuba-renderer.org/index_old.html

Github page: https://github.com/mitsuba-renderer/mitsuba

Environment

• Python2.7, you can use anaconda to create one, because Mitsuba is written in Python2:

$ conda create -n mitsuba_env python=2.7
$ conda activate mitsuba_env

• Scons (I use V3.1.1)

$ pip install SCons

or

$ conda install -c anaconda scons

• Xcode (V13.2.1) and Xcode Command Line Tools

To install command line tools, open Xcode -> Open Dev Tool -> More Dev Tools and install the correct version for your Xcode.

Installation

1. Clone Mitsuba 0.6.0 repo:

$ git clone --recursive https://github.com/mitsuba-renderer/mitsuba.git

2. Go to your cloned directory (mitsuba), clone Mitsuba dependencies V0.6.0 for Mac:

$ git clone https://github.com/mitsuba-renderer/dependencies_macos.git

But don't use the dependencies link provided in official Mitsuba document because it's for Mitsuba V0.5.0

3. Change the name of dependency folder:

$ mv dependencies_macos dependencies

4. Copy /mitsuba/build/config-macos10.12-clang-x86_64.py configuration file into the root /mitsuba directory:

$ cp ./build/config-macos10.12-clang-x86_64.py config.py

5. Open config.py and change from:

PYTHON27INCLUDE= ['/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/Headers']

to

PYTHON27INCLUDE= ['/System/Library/Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/include/python2.7/']

6. Open config.py and change the MacOS SDK path from:

'/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/MacOSX.platform/Developer/SDKs/MacOSX10.12.sdk'

to

'/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/MacOSX.platform/Developer/SDKs/MacOSX.sdk'

Remember that you should make the change in both CCFLAGS and LINKFLAGS.

7. Go to /mitsuba/dependencies folder, open the file named 'version', delete everything in it (which is a string '0.6.0').

8. Create a file 'version.txt' and input '0.6.0'(also in the dependencies folder).

9. Go to /mitsuba/build folder, open SConscript.configure, in line 283, change

versionFilename = GetBuildPath('#dependencies/version')

to

versionFilename = GetBuildPath('#dependencies/version.txt')

10. Head back to /mitsuba folder, run Scons to compile Mitsuba

$ scons

It sould take several minutes to finish.

11. Set path for mitsuba

$ source setpath.sh

Now you can start rendering with Mitsuba!

If you have any question, please email me:

wjchou2931@gmail.com

Wenjian Zhou

Reference

• https://github.com/ShilinC/Mitsuba_Install_MacOS