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Missing Visible USD Prims

Error code: MISSING_VISIBLE_USD_PRIMS

"It looks like your USD file contains information, but doesn't have any visible geometry that can be rendered."

What This Means​

Miris was able to open your USD file, but found no geometry that is visible and renderable. The file may contain prims (objects) that are hidden, have no mesh data, or are defined in a way that produces no output.

Common Causes​

  • All geometry prims have their visibility attribute set to invisible — this hides them from rendering even though they exist in the file
  • The USD file only contains cameras, lights, or empty grouping nodes — no actual mesh geometry was included
  • The defaultPrim metadata is missing or points to a grouping node that has no mesh geometry underneath it
  • Geometry was accidentally deleted or not included during export from a DCC tool
  • A prim has been deactivated (active = false) — deactivated prims are completely skipped during processing, even if they contain geometry. This can happen accidentally in Houdini's LOP network or in Omniverse's Stage panel
  • The geometry prim has its purpose set to "guide" or "proxy" rather than "default" or "render" — Miris only processes geometry intended for final rendering
  • Houdini: A LOP network was exported without a SOP Import node, or the SOP Import node was cooking with an error — Houdini will write a valid USD file with the scene structure but no mesh data
  • The asset uses a variant set, and the default variant selection resolves to an empty or non-geometry variant. Miris always uses the default variant.

How to Fix It​

  1. Open the USD file in your DCC tool or in USD View and confirm geometry is visible in the viewport. In Houdini, check the Scene Graph Tree panel; in Maya, check the USD Stage editor; in Omniverse, check the Stage panel.
  2. Check that geometry prims are not hidden — look for visibility = "invisible", active = false, or purpose = "guide"/"proxy" on your mesh prims
  3. Check your defaultPrim: first confirm it is set in your file's metadata, then confirm the named prim actually has mesh geometry underneath it — an empty group or transform node with no mesh children will also produce this error
  4. If using variant sets, confirm that the default variant contains geometry. Miris uses the default variant and will not fall back to others.
  5. Re-export from your DCC tool and confirm the mesh is included and active before re-uploading

Still seeing this error after following the steps above? Contact support with your asset name and a description of what you've tried.