Troubleshooting

The Unishade window lists what it found at startup and any problem since. Most messages say what to do. Only the newest version is supported, so update first.

Most of this page is about Windows. Where macOS and Linux differ, it says so. See also macOS and Linux.

ReShade was not found, is too old, or didn’t load the add-on

Windows only. Run Unishade Setup from the Start menu and choose Update or change add-ons. It installs the ReShade build with full add-on support, which the menu needs.

If you installed without Setup, install ReShade again with full add-on support, pick Unishade.exe and choose DirectX 10/11/12. ReShade set up for DirectX 9 or OpenGL shows no effects.

No effects found

• Windows: run Setup again to download them.
• macOS and Linux: click Download effects and presets in the launcher.

A shortcut is in use by another program

Pick another key for it in the menu’s Settings, or close the other program. If it’s the menu’s key, the menu can’t open, so change ToggleKey in the settings file and restart Unishade:

• Windows: RobloxShadeHost.ini in Unishade’s install folder. Unless you picked another folder in Setup, that’s %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Unishade. To open it, press Win+R, paste the path and press Enter. An install updated from RobloxShadeHost stays in RobloxShadeHost’s folder.
• macOS and Linux: Unishade.ini in the data folder, which the launcher’s Data folder link opens.

The game isn’t detected

• Run the game in windowed or borderless mode.
• Check that the game is in the Unishade window’s list and switched on.
• If the game moved to another folder, remove it and add it again.
• Try Pick a window in the Unishade window. On macOS and Linux, pick the game’s window from the launcher’s list.
• On Linux, check that the game draws through X11 or XWayland. Games that draw to Wayland directly can’t be captured.

Some games block screen capture or overlays, and those may not work.

Unishade is inside Roblox’s folder

Windows only. Roblox replaces its folder when it updates, which deletes Unishade. Uninstall and install again into another folder.

Lower frame rate

Effects cost frame rate. Turn off the heaviest ones or pick a lighter preset. On Windows, depth estimation costs some too.

On Windows, Settings > Performance, in the menu or the Unishade window, can limit the frame rate and lower the effect resolution and depth detail. Each saved game keeps its own values.

The log

• Windows: Open log in the Unishade window opens Unishade.log. The previous run’s log is Unishade.old.log in the same folder. Setup writes its own log to %TEMP%\Unishade-Setup.log.
• macOS and Linux: the launcher’s Log link opens Unishade.log in the data folder, next to Unishade.old.log.

Get help

Ask on Discord and attach the log.