04 · The browser
The Browser
A live list of every node group of the current type. The Geometry columns are described below; Shader and Compositor follow the same pattern.
| Column | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Checkbox | Select this row for batch operations. |
| ★ Star | Toggle Favorite. |
| Shield | Toggle Fake User (protects from deletion). |
| Asset dot | Filled when the group is marked as an Asset Browser asset. |
| Active dot | Filled when the group belongs to the active/selected object. |
| Folder / ▶▼ | Marks a top-level group; in Tree View this becomes an expand toggle. |
| Name | Click to make active; the pencil renames inline. A red name = orphaned or over budget. A "Stray" badge = only stray objects use it. |
| Groups (G) | Number of directly nested child groups. |
| N | Node count. |
| Obj | Objects using the group (red when 0). |
Tree View
Toggle the outliner icon to switch the flat list into a hierarchy. Top-level groups gain a ▶/▼ expander; expanding reveals nested children inline, indented with a └ connector. Circular references are handled safely.
PerformanceChild-group lookups are cached, so scrolling and hovering stay responsive in files with many large groups. On a test file of 40 groups averaging 160 nodes each, this reduced list-drawing overhead by roughly 14×.
05 · The browser
Filter, search & sort
- Search field — case-insensitive substring. Toggle
.*for full regex. - Sort By — Name, Object Users, Node Count, Nested, References, or Complexity; the arrow flips direction.
- Name → Tag — treat a version suffix in the name (e.g.
MyGroup_v2) as a version tag automatically.
| Filter | Shows only… |
|---|---|
| Unused | Groups with zero real users. |
| Orphaned | Groups not used by any modifier (including nested). |
| ★ | Favorited groups. |
| Sel | Rows you've checked. |
| No Ver. | Hides groups whose names carry a version suffix. |
| Object icon | Groups used by the active viewport object (direct + nested). |
Global Search (3D Viewport surface): the Search All Trees… button searches Geometry, Shader and Compositor at once and jumps to the first match.
06 · The browser
The Active Group panel
Click any row to populate this panel with the selected group's details and tools:
- Header — the group name, plus an "Asset Marked" note if applicable.
- Open (with a Pin toggle), Duplicate, Rename, Batch Replace.
- Select Users, Assign to N Obj (adds the group as a GN modifier to selected objects), Remove+Nested, Remove.
- Stats —
N:nodes,L:links,G:nested,Obj:users,Cx:complexity, plus Validate. - Version row with edit/clear + a Sockets report; then Changelog, Socket Descriptions, Save Snapshot.
- Dependencies expander — parent groups ("Used in") and child groups ("Contains"), each with a quick-open button.
07 · The browser
Per-group tools
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| Open in Node Editor | Jumps a node editor to this group. The Pin toggle keeps it pinned. |
| Rename | Dialog rename; the inline pencil renames straight from the row. |
| Duplicate | Copies the group (Fake User on the copy). |
| Batch Replace | Replaces all references to this group with another, file-wide. |
| Select Users | Selects every object using the group. |
| Assign to N Obj | Adds the group as a Geometry Nodes modifier on all selected objects. |
| Validate | Scans for broken links and missing GROUP references. |
| Find Unused Sockets | Lists Group Input/Output sockets with no internal connection. |
| Mark / Clear Asset | Adds or removes Asset Browser marking. |
| Toggle Fake User | Protects the group from being purged. |
| Remove / Remove+Nested | Deletes the group; the nested variant also removes groups used only inside it (with a preview). |