How to make a custom Roblox skybox

More specifically, converting PNG files into TEX files for use in the Roblox client.

Table of Contents

1. Getting skybox textures

2. Image resizing

3. Converting to TEX

4. Replacing skybox files

5. Enjoy your custom skybox

1. Getting skybox textures

First, you need skybox texture files. You can find these online, I personally found mine on the Roblox toolbox.

You will need textures for the following directions:

• back
• down
• front
• left
• right
• up

2. Image resizing

All skybox textures need to be 512x512 pixels in size. If you need to resize all you images, I personally found the following website to be useful: https://bulkresizephotos.com/

3. Converting to TEX

• For every skybox texture file, you will need to convert it to the DDS file format, with BC1/DXT1 compression. I personally did this using GIMP.
• Once you have the DDS files, you will need to rename them to the following names:
• back.dds -> sky512_bk.tex
• down.dds -> sky512_dn.tex
• front.dds -> sky512_ft.tex
• left.dds -> sky512_lf.tex
• right.dds -> sky512_rt.tex
• up.dds -> sky512_up.tex

Note 1: No conversion is required for DDS to TEX conversion for Roblox, simply renaming works.

Note 2: Roblox's TEX file format is NOT the same as LaTeX.

4. Replacing skybox files

Now that you have the skybox textures in the correct format, you can replace the default skybox textures in Roblox.

To do this, there are a few common methods:

• Using Bloxstrap or similar to replace the skybox textures in the Roblox client. This is the most straightforward method.
  1. Download and install Bloxstrap (or Fishstrap) from https://bloxstraplabs.com/ if you haven't already.
  2. Place your skybox TeX files in the appropriate folder, usually located at %LocalAppData%\Bloxstrap\Modifications\PlatformContent\pc\textures\sky\. Note that you may need to create the folders if they do not exist, Bloxstrap does not by default create folders.
  3. Replace the existing skybox TeX files with your custom ones, ensuring you keep backups of the original files.
  4. Launch Roblox, and your custom skybox should now be visible in-game.
  5. If your skybox is black, you may have missed a step or incorrectly converted some of the files. Contact @k_ws on Discord for additional support, only after you've attempted the instructions once more.
• Manually replacing the skybox textures in the Roblox client files. This method is more complex, and differs based on your operating system. I recommend saving a copy of the existing files in the folder before making any changes.
  1. Navigate to the Roblox installation directory, typically found at %LocalAppData%\Roblox\Versions\version-xxxxxx\content\textures\sky\.
  2. Replace the existing skybox TeX files with your custom ones, ensuring you keep backups of the original files.
  3. Launch Roblox (relaunch it if it was already open), and your custom skybox should now be visible in-game.
  4. If you skybox is black, you may have missed a step or incorrectly converted some of the files. Contact @k_ws on Discord for additional support, only after you've attempted the instructions once more.

5. Enjoy your custom skybox

Once you've replaced the skybox textures, you can launch Roblox and enjoy your custom skybox in any game that uses the default skybox textures.

If you encounter any issues, double-check the steps above, ensure your textures are correctly formatted, and that you've replaced the files in the correct directory.

Note: This tutorial is based on the current state of Roblox and may change in the future. Always refer to the latest documentation or community resources for updates.