Enable Rendering Layers for Lights in URP

To enable Rendering Layers for Lights in your project:

1. In the URP Asset, in the Lighting section, open the More (⋮) menu and select Advanced Properties.

2. In the URP Asset, in the Lighting section, select Use Rendering Layers.

How to edit Rendering Layer names

To edit the names of Rendering Layers:

1. Go to Project Settings > Tags and Layers.

2. Edit the Rendering Layer names in the Rendering Layers section.

How to use Rendering Layers with Lights

This section describes how to configure the following application example:

• The sceneA Scene contains the environments and menus of your game. Think of each unique Scene file as a unique level. In each Scene, you place your environments, obstacles, and decorations, essentially designing and building your game in pieces. More info
  See in Glossary contains two Point Lights (marked A and B in the illustration) and two Sphere GameObjectsThe fundamental object in Unity scenes, which can represent characters, props, scenery, cameras, waypoints, and more. A GameObject’s functionality is defined by the Components attached to it. More info
  See in Glossary (C and D in the illustration).

• Light A affects Sphere D, but not Sphere C. Light B affects Sphere C, but not Sphere D.

The following illustration shows the example:

Light A affects Sphere D, but not Sphere C. Light B affects Sphere C, but not Sphere D.

To implement the example:

1. Enable Rendering Layers in your project.

2. Create two Point Lights (call them A, and B) and two Spheres (call them C, and D). Position the objects so that both Spheres are within the emission range of Lights.

3. Go to Project Settings > Tags and Layers. Rename Rendering Layer 1 to Red, and Layer 2 to Green.

4. Select Light A, change its color to green. Select Light B, change its color to red. With this setup, both Lights affect both Spheres.

   

5. Make the following settings on Lights and Spheres:

   Light A: in the property Light > Rendering > Rendering Layers, clear all options, and select Green.

   Light B: in the property Light > Rendering > Rendering Layers, clear all options, and select Red.

   Sphere C: in the property Mesh Renderer > Additional Settings > Rendering Layer Mask, select all options, clear Green.

   Sphere D: in the property Mesh Renderer > Additional Settings > Rendering Layer Mask, select all options, clear Red.

   Now Point Light A affects Sphere D, but not Sphere C. Point Light B affects Sphere C, but not Sphere D.

   

How to use Custom Shadow Layers

In the illustration above, Light A does not affect Sphere C, and the Sphere does not cast shadow from Light A.

The Custom Shadow Layers property lets you configure the scene so that Sphere C casts the shadow from Light A.

1. Select Light A.

2. In Light > Shadows, select the Custom Shadow Layers property. Unity shows the Layer property.

3. In the Layer property, select the Rendering Layer that Sphere C belongs to.

Now Light A does not affect Sphere C, but Sphere C casts shadow from Light A.

The following illustrations show the scene with the Custom Shadow Layers property off and on.