Both. HLSL targets DirectX and Unity URP/HDRP. GLSL for WebGL and raw OpenGL. Vulkan's GLSL-flavored shaders also supported.

What does it generate?

Uniform declarations with types, default values, and editor-friendly metadata (min/max ranges, tooltips).

Integration with Unity ShaderLab?

Yes — Unity's shader property block syntax with all the standard attributes (Range, Color, HDR, HideInInspector).

Plain uniforms or uniform buffer objects?

Both. Older shaders use loose uniforms; modern shaders use UBOs for better performance. Pick based on your target.

Shader Uniform Generator

DevTools Surf

Example: Shader Uniform Generator

A worked example, rendered from real sample data. Sign in to run the tool on your own input.

Input

mainColor:vec4 = (1,0.42,0.21,1)
scrollSpeed:float = 0.5 [0,4] "Texture scroll rate"
noiseTex:sampler2D
worldMatrix:mat4
resolution:vec2
intensity:float = 1 [0,8]

Output

Properties
{
    _MainColor ("Main Color", Color) = (1, 0.42, 0.21, 1)
    _ScrollSpeed ("Texture scroll rate", Range(0, 4)) = 0.5
    _NoiseTex ("Noise Tex", 2D) = "white" {}
    _Resolution ("Resolution", Vector) = (0, 0, 0, 0)
    _Intensity ("Intensity", Range(0, 8)) = 1
}

CBUFFER_START(UnityPerMaterial)
    float4 _MainColor;
    float _ScrollSpeed;
    float4x4 _WorldMatrix;
    float2 _Resolution;
    float _Intensity;
CBUFFER_END

TEXTURE2D(_NoiseTex);
SAMPLER(sampler_NoiseTex);

static readonly MaterialPropertyBlock Block = new MaterialPropertyBlock();
static readonly int MainColorId = Shader.PropertyToID("_MainColor");
static readonly int ScrollSpeedId = Shader.PropertyToID("_ScrollSpeed");
static readonly int NoiseTexId = Shader.PropertyToID("_NoiseTex");
static readonly int WorldMatrixId = Shader.PropertyToID("_WorldMatrix");
static readonly int ResolutionId = Shader.PropertyToID("_Resolution");
static readonly int IntensityId = Shader.PropertyToID("_Intensity");

Block.SetColor(MainColorId, mainColor);
Block.SetFloat(ScrollSpeedId, scrollSpeed);
Block.SetTexture(NoiseTexId, noiseTex);
Block.SetMatrix(WorldMatrixId, worldMatrix);
Block.SetVector(ResolutionId, resolution);
Block.SetFloat(IntensityId, intensity);
renderer.SetPropertyBlock(Block);

std140 uniform block layout — 112 bytes (16 padding)
name         type        offset  size  align  pad
mainColor    vec4             0    16     16    0
scrollSpeed  float           16     4      4    0
noiseTex     sampler2D        —     —      —    —   (texture, bound separately)
worldMatrix  mat4            32    64
…

About Shader Uniform Generator

Shader Uniform Generator preview - Game Dev tool

Generate GLSL/HLSL uniform declarations from parameter descriptions. Part of the DevTools Surf developer suite. Browse more tools in the Game Dev collection.

Use Cases

Graphics programmers scaffolding shader parameter declarations
Game developers converting material properties to shader uniforms
Technical artists setting up custom shader inputs for visual effects
Engine developers generating uniform buffer layouts for rendering

Tips

Group uniforms by update frequency — per-frame vs. per-object
Use vec4 padding for uniform buffer alignment requirements
Add descriptive comments for each uniform's expected range

Fun Facts

GLSL (OpenGL Shading Language) was introduced with OpenGL 2.0 in 2004, replacing the ARB assembly language — it was designed by 3Dlabs engineer John Kessenich.
The term 'uniform' in shader programming means a value that stays constant across all vertices/fragments in a single draw call — it comes from the mathematical concept of uniform distribution.
HLSL was created by Microsoft for DirectX 9 in 2002 — despite being competitors, GLSL and HLSL are syntactically similar enough that cross-compilation tools like SPIRV-Cross can convert between them.

FAQ

GLSL or HLSL?: Both. HLSL targets DirectX and Unity URP/HDRP. GLSL for WebGL and raw OpenGL. Vulkan's GLSL-flavored shaders also supported.
What does it generate?: Uniform declarations with types, default values, and editor-friendly metadata (min/max ranges, tooltips).
Integration with Unity ShaderLab?: Yes — Unity's shader property block syntax with all the standard attributes (Range, Color, HDR, HideInInspector).
Plain uniforms or uniform buffer objects?: Both. Older shaders use loose uniforms; modern shaders use UBOs for better performance. Pick based on your target.

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