Maxon Computer Cinema 4D - 9.5.2 User Manual
NET
NET Render
NET
NET Render
Programming Team Christian Losch, Philip Losch, Richard Kurz, Tilo Kühn, Thomas Kunert,
David O’Reilly, Cathleen Poppe.
Plugin Programming Sven Behne, Wilfried Behne, Michael Breitzke, Kiril Dinev, Per-Anders Edwards,
David Farmer, Jamie Halmick, Richard Hintzenstern, Jan Eric Hoffmann,
Eduardo Olivares, Nina Ivanova, Markus Jakubietz, Eric Sommerlade,
Hendrik Steffen, Jens Uhlig, Michael Welter, Thomas Zeier.
Product Manager Marco Tillmann.
QA Manager Björn Marl.
Writers Paul Babb, Rick Barrett, Oliver Becker, Jens Bosse, Chris Broeske, Chris Debski,
Glenn Frey, Michael Giebel, Jason Goldsmith, Jörn Gollob, Sven Hauth,
Josiah Hultgren, Arndt von Königsmarck, David Link, Arno Löwecke, Aaron Matthew,
Josh Miller, Matthew ‘Mash’ O’Neill, Janine Pauke, Marcus Spranger, Luke Stacy,
Perry Stacy, Marco Tillmann, Jeff Walker, Scot Wardlaw.
SDK Docs & Support David O’Reilly, Mikael Sterner.
Layout Oliver Becker, Harald Egel, Michael Giebel, David Link, Luke Stacy, Jeff Walker.
Translation Oliver Becker, Michael Giebel, Arno Löwecke, Björn Marl, Josh Miller, Janine Pauke,
Luke Stacy, Marco Tillmann, Scot Wardlaw.
Copyright © 1989-2005 by MAXON Computer GmbH. All rights reserved.
English translation Copyright © 1989-2005 by MAXON Computer Ltd. All rights reser ved.
This manual and the accompanying software are copyright protected. No part of this document may be
translated, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of MA XON Computer.
Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of the program and this manual, MAXON Computer
assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from
the use of the program or from the information contained in this manual.
This manual, as well as the software described in it, is furnished under license and may be used or copied
only in accordance with the terms of such license. The content of this manual is furnished for informational
use only, is subject to change without notice, and should not be construed as a commitment by MAXON
Computer. MA XON Computer assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may
appear in this book.
MAXON Computer, the MAXON logo, CINEMA 4D, Hyper NURBS, and C.O.F.F.E.E. are trademarks of MAXON
Computer GmbH or MAXON Computer Inc. Acrobat, the Acrobat logo, PostScript, Acrobat Reader, Photoshop
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to X/Open Company Ltd. All other brand and product names mentioned in this manual are trademarks or
registered trademarks of their respective companies, and are hereby acknowledged.
MAXON Computer End User License Agreement
NOTICE TO USER
WITH THE INSTALLATION OF NET RENDER (THE “SOFTWARE”) A CONTRACT IS CONCLUDED BETWEEN YOU
(“YOU” OR THE “USER”) AND MAXON COMPUTER GMBH ( THE “LICENSOR”), A COMPANY UNDER GERMAN
LAW WITH RESIDENCE IN FRIEDRICHSDORF, GERMANY.
WHEREAS BY USING AND/OR INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE YOU ACCEPT ALL THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS
OF THIS AGREEMENT. IN THE CASE OF NON -ACCEPTANCE OF THIS LICENSE YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO
INSTALL THE SOFTWARE.
IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THIS LICENSE PLEASE SEND THE SOFTWARE TOGETHER WITH ACCOMPANYING
DOCUMENTATION TO MA XON COMPUTER OR TO THE SUPPLIER WHERE YOU BOUGHT THE SOF TWARE.
1. General
Under this contract the Licensor grants to you, the User, a non-exclusive license to use the Software and its
associated documentation. The Software itself, as well as the copy of the Software or any other copy you
are authorized to make under this license, remain the property of the Licensor.
2. Use of the Software
You are authorized to copy the Software as far as the copy is necessary to use the Software. Necessary
copies are the installation of the program from the original disk to the mass storage medium of your
hardware as well as the loading of the program into R AM.
(2) Furthermore the User is entitled to make a backup copy. However only one backup copy may be made
and kept in store. This backup copy must be identied as a backup copy of the licensed Software.
(3) Further copies are not permitted; this also includes the making of a hard copy of the program code on a
printer as well as copies, in any form, of the documentation.
3. Multiple use and network operation
(1) You may use the Software on any single hardware platform, Macintosh or Windows, and must decide
on the platform (Macintosh or Windows operating system) at the time of installation of the Software. If
you change the hardware you are obliged to delete the Software from the mass storage medium of the
hardware used up to then. A simultaneous installation or use on more than one hardware system is not
permitted.
(2) The use of the licensed Software for network operation or other client server systems is prohibited if this
opens the possibility of simultaneous multiple use of the Software. In the case that you intend to use the
Software within a network or other client server system you should ensure that multiple use is not possible
by employing the necessary access security. Otherwise you will be required to pay to the Licensor a special
network license fee, the amount of which is determined by the number of Users admitted to the network.
(3) The license fee for network operation of the Software will be communicated to you by the Licensor
immediately after you have indicated the number of admitted users in writing. The correct address of the
Licensor is given in the manual and also at the end of this contract. The network use may start only after
the relevant license fee is completely paid.
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4. Transfer
(1) You may not rent, lease, sublicense or lend the Software or documentation. You may, however, transfer
all your rights to use the Software to another person or legal entity provided that you transfer this
agreement, the Software, including all copies, updates or prior versions as well as all documentation to
such person or entity and that you retain no copies, including copies stored on a computer and that the
other person agrees that the terms of this agreement remain valid and that his acceptance is communicated
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(2) You are obliged to carefully store the terms of the agreement. Prior to the transfer of the Software you
should inform the new user of these terms. In the case that the new user does not have the terms at hand
at the time of the transfer of the Software, he is obliged to request a second copy from the Licensor, the
cost of which is born by the new licensee.
(3) After transfer of this license to another user you no longer have a license to use the Software.
5. Updates
If the Software is an update to a previous version of the Software, you must possess a valid licence to such
previous version in order to use the update. You may continue to use the previous version of the Software
only to help the transition to and the installation of the update. After 90 days from the receipt of the
update your licence for the previous version of the Software expires and you are no longer permitted to use
the previous version of the Software, except as necessary to install the update.
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(1) The recompilation of the provided program code into other code forms as well as all other types
of reverse engineering of the different phases of Software production including any alterations of the
Software are strictly not allowed.
(2) The removal of the security against copy or similar safety system is only permitted if a faultless
performance of the Software is impaired or hindered by such security. The burden of proof for the fact that
the performance of the program is impaired or hindered by the security device rests with the User.
(3) Copyright notices, serial numbers or other identications of the Software may not be removed or
changed. The Software is owned by the Licensor and its structure, organization and code are the valuable
trade secrets of the Licensor. It is also protected by United States Copyright and International Treaty
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7. Limited warranty
(1) The parties to this agreement hereby agree that at present it is not possible to develop and produce
software in such a way that it is t for any conditions of use without problems. The Licensor warrants that
the Software will perform substantially in accordance with the documentation. The Licensor does not
warrant that the Software and the documentation comply with certain requirements and purposes of the
User or works together with other software used by the licensee. You are obliged to check the Sof tware
and the documentation carefully immediately upon receipt and inform the Licensor in writing of apparent
defects 14 days after receipt. Latent defects have to be communicated in the same manner immediately
after their discovery. Otherwise the Software and documentation are considered to be faultless. The
defects, in particular the symptoms that occurred, are to be described in detail in as much as you are able
to do so. The warranty is granted for a period of 6 months from delivery of the Software (for the date of
which the date of the purchase according to the invoice is decisive). The Licensor is free to cure the defects
by free repair or provision of a faultless update.
(2) The Licensor and its suppliers do not and cannot warrant the performance and the results you may
obtain by using the Software or documentation. The foregoing states the sole and exclusive remedies for
the Licensor’s or its suppliers’ breach of warranty, except for the foregoing limited warranty. The Licensor
and its suppliers make no warranties, express or implied, as to noninfringement of third party rights,
merchantability, or tness for any particular purpose. In no event will the Licensor or its suppliers be liable
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third party.
(3) Some states or jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental, consequential or
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the licensor if shipment was procured by him.
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You are obliged to immediately inform the transpor t agent in writing of any eventual damages in transit
and you should provide the Licensor with a copy of said correspondence, since all transportation is insured
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You are obliged to take careful measures to protect the Software and its documentation, in par ticular the
serial number, from access by third parties. You are not permitted to duplicate or pass on the Software or
documentation. These obligations apply equally to your employees or other persons engaged by you to
operate the programs. You must pass on these obligations to such persons. You are liable for damages in all
instances where these obligations have not been met. These obligations apply equally to your employees or
other persons he entrusts to use the Software. The User will pass on these obligations to such persons. You
are liable to pay the Licensor all damages arising from failure to abide by these terms.
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10. Information
In case of transfer of the Software you are obliged to inform the Licensor of the name and full address of
the transferee in writing. The address of the Licensor is stated in the manual and at the end of this contract.
11. Data Protection
For the purpose of customer registration and control of proper use of the programs the Licensor will store
personal data of the Users in accordance with the German law on Data Protection (Bundesdatenschutzg
esetz). This data may only be used for the above-mentioned purposes and will not be accessible to third
parties. Upon request of the User the Licensor will at any time inform the User of the data stored with
regard to him.
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12. Other
(1) This contract includes all rights and obligations of the parties. There are no other agreements. Any
changes or alterations of this agreement have to be performed in writing with reference to this agreement
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balance of the agreement which shall remain valid and enforceable according to its terms.
13. Termination
This agreement shall automatically terminate upon failure by you to comply with its terms despite being
given an additional period to do so. In case of termination due to the aforementioned reason, you are
obliged to return the program and all documentation to the Licensor. Furthermore, upon request of
Licensor you must submit written declaration that you are not in possession of any copy of the Software on
data storage devices or on the computer itself.
14. Information and Notices
Should you have any questions concerning this agreement or if you desire to contact MA XON Computer for
any reason and for all notications to be performed under this agreement, please write to:
MAXON Computer GmbH
Max- Planck-Str. 20
D- 61381, Friedrichsdorf
Germany
or for North and South America to:
MAXON Computer, Inc.
2640 Lavery Court Suite A
Newbury Park, CA 91320
USA
or for the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland to:
MAXON Computer Ltd
The Old School, Greeneld
Bedford MK45 5DE
United Kingdom
We will also be pleased to provide you with the address of your nearest supplier.
Contents
1. Introduction....................................................................................................................................... 1
Terminology...................................................................................................................................... 2
Requirements.................................................................................................................................... 3
About Networks and C4DN .............................................................................................................. 3
2. Installation and Conguration .......................................................................................................... 7
Installing and Conguring the C4DN Ser ver..................................................................................... 7
Installing and Conguring the C4DN Clients.................................................................................... 8
User Account Basics .......................................................................................................................... 8
Personalization .................................................................................................................................8
Starting the Client Server System ..................................................................................................... 9
Quitting the Client Server System..................................................................................................... 9
Preparing Your Work ........................................................................................................................ 9
Creating projects ......................................................................................................................... 9
Using unlike (heterogeneous) networks ......................................................................................... 11
3. How To............................................................................................................................................. 15
How to Render a Scene Across the NSetwork ................................................................................ 15
How to Render a Still Image Across the Network........................................................................... 16
How to Monitor the Render Job ..................................................................................................... 18
How to Locate the Results of the Render Job ................................................................................. 18
How to Locate the Rendered Animation ........................................................................................ 19
How to Clean Things Up ................................................................................................................. 20
How to Troubleshoot When There Are No Results ......................................................................... 20
How to Update Projects.................................................................................................................. 20
How to Work with Job Priorities ..................................................................................................... 22
How to Abort Jobs .......................................................................................................................... 23
How to Work Dynamically with Clients .......................................................................................... 24
How to Troubleshoot Worst-Case Scenarios .................................................................................. 24
A C4DN client is no longer present............................................................................................ 25
The C4DN clients are running locally on computers in the network. ........................................ 25
The C4DN server is no longer present. ...................................................................................... 25
How to Administer Clients.............................................................................................................. 26
How to Administer Users ................................................................................................................ 26
How to Modif y the Web Pages ....................................................................................................... 26
General Issues ................................................................................................................................. 31
Welcome Page ................................................................................................................................ 32
Jobs Page ........................................................................................................................................ 33
Render Queue ............................................................................................................................ 33
Inactive Jobs .............................................................................................................................. 34
Create New Job.......................................................................................................................... 35
Reset Clients .............................................................................................................................. 35
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Reset Server ............................................................................................................................... 35
Details Page ....................................................................................................................................36
Result Files ................................................................................................................................. 37
Upload Page ................................................................................................................................... 38
Download Page .............................................................................................................................. 39
Clients Page ....................................................................................................................................40
Control Column ......................................................................................................................... 41
Users Page ...................................................................................................................................... 41
Console Window............................................................................................................................. 42
5. Appendices ...................................................................................................................................... 47
The Conguration Files ................................................................................................................... 47
General Rules .................................................................................................................................. 48
Sections and Variables of the client.ini File .................................................................................... 49
[settings] (Client network settings) Section ..............................................................................49
Sections and Variables of the server.ini File.................................................................................... 50
[settings] (Server network settings) Section ............................................................................. 50
[admin] Section .............................................................................................................................. 51
[user] Section .................................................................................................................................. 52
Using Plugins and Modules ............................................................................................................ 52
Installing and Conguring for Large Networks .............................................................................. 52
Security Issues ................................................................................................................................ 52
IP Addressing .................................................................................................................................. 53
TCP Port Numbers ........................................................................................................................... 54
Installing and Conguring a TCP/IP Network ................................................................................. 55
Hardware Considerations ............................................................................................................... 55
Conguring TCP/IP under Windows ............................................................................................... 56
Windows 2000/XP ..................................................................................................................... 56
Conguring TCP/IP under Mac OS ..................................................................................................56
Mac OS X ................................................................................................................................... 56
Support........................................................................................................................................... 57
Glossary .......................................................................................................................................... 59
6. Troubleshooting............................................................................................................................... 67
No Connection to the Server .......................................................................................................... 67
Port 8080 Already in Use ................................................................................................................ 67
Modules are Missing on the Server and Clients.............................................................................. 68
Only Three Clients are Rendering ................................................................................................... 68
Firewall Issues / Access Denied Messages....................................................................................... 68
Troubles Caused by ISDN Cards and Internet Software.................................................................. 70
Dynamic TCP/IP Address ................................................................................................................. 71
Inaccurate Calculations................................................................................................................... 73
Interaction With Radiosity/Caustics................................................................................................ 73
Animations are not Rendered......................................................................................................... 74
Scenes are not Rendered ................................................................................................................ 74
The Computer Freezes .................................................................................................................... 75
Switch on vir tual memory on all computers running C4DN, the more the better. ................... 75
Miscellaneous Notes ....................................................................................................................... 75
Limitations ...................................................................................................................................... 76
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INTRODUCTION • 1
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Networks … the nal frontier … processing power at your ngertips to take your breath away!
CINEMA 4D NET Render answers the needs of today’s professional media production industry by
providing tools that enable the highest quality computer-generated 3D graphics and animation for
creation on demand and on-time delivery.
Time and cost are major considerations in the professional marketplace. Even though productions
are becoming more ambitious and demanding, the time given to create these masterpieces is being
constantly reduced.
One way to gain the upper hand to reduced production times is to use multiprocessor systems.
Another approach is to work with computer net works. CINEMA 4D NET Render couples these
technologies in a unique way.
Multiprocessor programs and network farms have been available for some time now but for many
companies, let alone individuals, their cost has been prohibitivly high. CINEMA 4D NET Render is
THE alternative to expensive conventional solutions. The price of the program itself is attractive and
additional costs are minimal. Perhaps you will use an existing network. Even if you build a network
from scratch you can use conventional computers that even small businesses can afford.
Developed in cooperation with the European Union, CINEMA 4D NET Render can react quickly and
dynamically to meet the latest market requirements, due to the parallel nature of its individual work
processes. CINEMA 4D NET Render also has unique features such as dynamic load balancing, safe
recovery and hot plugin.
CINEMA 4D NET Render consists of two t ypes of applications: the server program and the client
program. Usually you will have just one computer (the server) running the ser ver program and more
than one computer (the clients) running the client program. The stages involved in network rendering
are simple: rst you send your render jobs (i.e. the CINEMA 4D scenes that you wish to have rendered)
to the server. In turn, the server passes these scenes on to the clients for rendering. Once the clients
have rendered the results (animation les), they send them to the server. You in turn collect the
animation les from the server.
Depending on the number of licenses you have purchased with CINEMA 4D NET Render, you are
allowed to use that number of clients simultaneously with your CINEMA 4D NET Render server.
The clients are — in contrast to the server application — free. This means you can distribute and install
as many clients as you want. For example, you can give clients to customers or friends so you can use
their computer for rendering as well.
1. Introduction
2 • INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION • 3
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! In contrast to the clients, the server application is not free and distribution
thereof is illegal (see the End User License Agreement).
When the time comes you will nd updates and additional clients for other operating systems on
our web site (www.maxon.net) in the future. We suggest you check this site on a regular basis for
updates.
The intelligent server program distributes the render jobs equally accross all clients and updates the
allocation at regular intervals so that the clients share the work according to their individual progress.
This avoids the problem of the slowest computer forming a bottleneck in a mixed network. The
intelligence of the server goes a step further: individual clients can be added to or removed from the
network at any time, even while a render job is in progress. If, for example, a client is added during a
render job, the server redistributes the work to include the new client.
The intelligent server provides an efcient and dynamic network. At the same time, the net trafc (i.e.
the load on the network) is kept to an absolute minimum.
The clients act intelligently as well. For example, if multiprocessor systems are in use, the client
program shares the task of rendering each frame among its processors and updates the allocation
at regular intervals in a manner similar to the server. One very strong feature of the CINEMA 4D NET
Render license is that a multiprocessor machine counts as just one seat. The license agreement refers
solely to the number of computers in your network, not the number of processors.
A TCP/IP network ser ves as the basis of communication between the server program and the clients.
Why have we opted for this solution? TCP/IP is manufacturer-independent, it has become more or
less the standard for local and national networks and it is available on most platforms, often with
direct integration in the operating system. Using CINEMA 4D NET Render over the Internet is also
made very easy.
Terminology
Let’s dene some important terminology used throughout this manual:
C4DN : CINEMA 4D NET Render
C4DN server: CINEMA 4D NET Render program congured as server
C4DN client : CINEMA 4D NET Render program congured as client
server: computer from which the C4DN server was launched (not to be confused
with the le server for the network — see below)
client : computer from which a C4DN client was started
le server: server for the network (this computer’s folders and directories are
accessible from both a PC and Macintosh)
job: a CINEMA 4D scene that is to be rendered across the network
INTRODUCTION • 3
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The terminology does not consider detailed network structure. This information is not necessary for
the operation of CINEMA 4D NET Render.
Requirements
functional TCP/IP network
computer with a static TCP/IP address to host the C4DN server
Internet browser (e.g. Opera, Microsoft Internet Explorer)
operating system:
– Mac OS X 10.3.4 or higher
– Windows 2000 SP 1 or Windows XP
CINEMA 4D is not required but recommended (if CINEMA 4D is not
installed, CINEMA 4D les can only be rendered).
About Networks and C4DN
Both the C4DN server and the C4DN client can be launched from the same
computer. However, when there are ten or more computers in the network it
is more efcient to designate one of the computers as a dedicated server.
Any modem or ISDN adapter connected to your computer will attempt to
dial out to the Internet each time the C4DN server is started. This occurs with
all similar network programs that access TCP/IP. If, and only if, the modem
computer also hosts the C4DN server, allocate two IP addresses to the computer
— an internal address and an external address. Alternatively, install the C4DN
server on a different computer — one without a modem.
The server and clients will default to por t 8080 or 1800. If another server
already uses this port, conicts will occur. You can either quit the server that
is currently running or allocate an alternative port address to CINEMA 4D NET
Render. Please see the Appendices for more information regarding IP addressing
and TCP port numbers. Also refer to the Troubleshooting chapter.
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2 Installation
INSTALL ATION • 7
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INSTALL ATION • 7
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Installing and Conguring the C4DN Server
1. Decide which computer will act as the CINEMA 4D NET Render server — it
does not have to be the fastest machine available. Determine the (internal) IP
address for this computer and make a note of it.
This computer must have a static TCP/IP address. Some computers, especially
those that access the Internet through a modem, use dynamic TCP /IP
allocation; in this case we recommend that you install the C4DN server on a
different computer.
Dynamic IP addressing running Windows. Static IP addressing running Windows.
2. Place the appropriate CD into the CD drive of the computer that will act as
the C4DN server.
3. Start the installer from the CD. Choose ‘NET Render Server’ and follow the
on-screen instructions.
4. All done. Yes … all done!
If you plan to give multiple users access to CINEMA 4D NET Render you should
read the Security Issues section — look up ‘security issues’ in the index.
2. Installation and Conguration
8 • INSTALL ATION
INSTALL ATION • 9
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Installing and Conguring the C4DN Clients
1. Place the appropriate CD into the CD drive of a computer that will act as a
client.
2. Start the installer from the CD. Choose ‘NET Render Client’ and follow the
on-screen instructions.
3. Start the C4DN client and select Network Settings... from the File menu.
4. Enter the TCP/IP address (see note above) of the server (the computer
which hosts the C4DN ser ver) alongside Server address, for example Server
address=192.168.0.227
5. Save the le and quit the editor.
6. All done. Yes, again … all done!
The Appendices include instructions for simplifying the installation and
conguration of NET Render on large networks. System administrators should
read these notes carefully.
User Account Basics
Before we really start, some words about managing multiple users.
After installation only one user, with the name Administrator, is installed by default. This user has
full access to all les and conguration data. As long as only one person is using CINEMA 4D this is
sufcient. If there are multiple users using CINEMA 4D NET Render at the same time you will want to
add individual user accounts. Every person gets a user ID and password from the administrator. This
protects the users from mixing their scenes with other users and also allows you to build an Internet
render service. More details can be found in ‘How to administer clients’.
In the server folder you will nd the CINEMA 4D NET Render program, its conguration le, server.ini,
and also a folder called ‘user’. In this folder there will be a sub -folder for every installed user. These
folders are for storing scenes and rendered pictures for each corresponding user.
By default you will nd only a single administrator folder. This is the normal folder you will use for
rendering if you are a single user (and therefore the administrator). Otherwise, you must use your
user folder.
Personalization
You need to personalize the program when starting the C4DN server for the rst time.
Please complete all entry boxes correctly, then click on OK. The serial number supplied with your
package is valid for three months only; we will send you a nal serial number when you register your
purchase. If you do not enter your nal serial number before the period expires, the server will cease
to function.
INSTALL ATION • 9
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Please register promptly with MA XON Computer. Only by registering will you
be sent your nal serial number. Registration also entitles you to updates,
support and information on future developments.
Starting the Client Server System
1. Start the C4DN server. A console window appears.
2. Start the C4DN client on all the computers you wish to use. Again, a console
window appears.
This process can be carried out automatically when the computer is started.
For Mac OS, place an alias to the C4DN client in System Folder / Startup Items.
For Windows, place a shortcut to the C4DN client in your local Start Menu /
Programs / Startup folder.
3. All done … again!
Quitting the Client Server System
To quit the clients and the server, select Close or Quit from the console window of each program.
Preparing Your Work
Creating projects
Network rendering is a largely unsupervised affair. This puts the responsibility on your shoulders to
ensure that each C4DN client has access to all the data it requires.
You should always save your CINEMA 4D scenes using the menu item File > Save Project. Prior to
saving, carefully check the settings in the Render Settings dialog (see the CINEMA 4D reference
manual). Also, we recommend that you render the scene in the viewport — just the rst few lines will
do. This will help you conrm that CINEMA 4D really can nd all the les.
When working on a CINEMA 4D scene, it is not necessary to enter a save path
for the results (see below for where to nd your rendered pictures). If you
have entered a le name (not a complete path) under Render Settings / Save,
the results will be named in accordance with that name and not the job name.
If you enter a complete path, CINEMA 4D NET Render will name the frames in
accordance with the project’s name.
The Render As Editor render mode of a CINEMA 4D scene (Render Settings /
General) should not be used.
If you have disabled the Cancel If Texture Error render option (Render Settings
/ Options), the job will be rendered to the end, even if some textures are
missing.
10 • INSTALLATION
INSTALL ATION • 11
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In the dialog window, enter the project name under Filename (Windows) or Save as (Macintosh). A
folder of the same name will be created in the location selected (see below). This is the location where
CINEMA 4D saves all les relating to the project (scenes, textures, shaders, lms, etc.). The project
name is used later for identifying your render job. Hence you should choose a clear, meaningful
name.
There is a lename length limit of a maximum of 32 characters when saving a
project for CINEMA 4D NET Render. Also, you should only use the characters
A–Z, a–z, 0–9 and the underscore (underline) character. A blank space or
special characters are not allowed.
You have four choices:
1. You can immediately set the save path in the dialog window to your user
folder on the C4DN server — the project will be sent to this folder.
2. You can save your project locally to your hard disk, then copy the project
folder to your user folder on the C4DN server (e.g. via FTP or a le server).
3. You can create a new empty job on the Jobs page. CINEMA 4D NET Render
then creates an empty folder named after the job in your user folder on the
ser ver. Now copy manually all project les (scene and textures) into this
folder.
4. You can create a new empty job on the Jobs page. Now switch to the Details
page of the job by simply clicking on its name. Use the Upload function for
uploading all necessary project les (scene and textures).
Method 1 is the quickest option but method 2 has the advantage that you
always have an original copy of your work on your computer. Method 4 is
the only possible method when using the Internet for accessing the C4DN
server.
Once all the necessary les are in a central location, you can start the render process. How this works
is explained below.
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First, though, a few important words on using unlike (heterogeneous) networks.
Using unlike (heterogeneous) networks
A so-called heterogeneous network is made up of computers that do not all use the same operating
system. For example, MA XON Computer’s network includes computers running Windows, Macintosh
and so on. Quite a mixture!
Exactly how all these computers manage to communicate with each other is not of interest to us. What
does concern us is that there is a computer, known as a le server, where all the other computers can
store their data.
Different operating systems use different conventions. It is important that you are aware of this issue
so that you use compatible lenames, paths, picture formats and so on.
What should (or rather must!) you be aware of when creating scenes that, for example, are going to
be rendered on both Windows and Mac C4DN clients?
Do not use special characters in lenames, e.g. \ , /, #, :, @.
Avoid foreign characters such as the German umlaut in lenames. The
same applies to textures — check the names for all the textures used by your
materials.
Do not use blank spaces in lenames. You can replace these with the
underscore (underline) character.
Limit the length of all lenames and texture names to a maximum of 31
characters.
Use picture sequences instead of movies for animated textures. A Mac OS
client that copes with QuickTime textures may not be able to cope at all with
AVI textures.
Do not use PICT les for textures. Instead, we recommend TIFF or TARGA
les.
If there is no le server in your network, you can use your Internet browser to
upload and download scenes and rendered pictures (see Upload page). This
can be especially interesting in heterogeneous networks and when accessing
CINEMA 4D NET Render from outside over the Internet.
3 How To...
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3. How To...
How to Render a Scene Across the NSetwork
You’ve prepared the job, you’ve started the C4DN server and the C4DN clients and now you’re ready
to render across the network. When the C4DN server and a C4DN client are started, they have a chat.
The client learns where to leave its results and the server knows who it can allocate work to.
1.Start the Internet browser for your operating system.
2.Connect to the C4DN server by typing in the IP address and port number for
the C4DN server (http://192.168.0.239:8080, for example) in the Location box
(where you would normally enter a URL).
Once the connection has been established, the C INEMA 4D NE T Render
Welcome page appears.
If a connection is not established, please refer to the Troubleshooting chapter
for possible causes.
3. Click on ENTER to enter the Jobs page. If there are multiple users congured you
will see a dialog asking for your user name and password. You must type them
in before you can see the Jobs page. If there is one single user (administrator)
you will not see this dialog and you can enter the page directly.
16 • HOW TO...
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A table appears which lists all your projects in the user folder on the C4DN
server. Within the individual columns of the table you will nd information
about the job name and its current status (State). Your previously uploaded
job (see Creating projects) should appear in the Inactive Jobs list.
4. Click on Start (under Command) in the appropriate line of your job. The job
moves to the Render Queue list. The C4DN server will then automatically start
the rendering.
How to Render a Still Image Across the Network
Net Render allows you to render not only animations over the network but also still images.
The still image will be broken up into a number of tiles — either 9 or 25 depending on which option
you choose (more about this later). You might nd it helpful to think of each tile as being one jigsaw
piece that makes up part of the picture.
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The tiles will be distributed over the network and rendered. Once the rendering is complete you will
have 9 or 25 les that can be pieced together in an image editor such as Adobe Photoshop to form
the still image.
However, before you network render the still image scene, you need to do a little set-up work in
CINEMA 4D.
First you set up a special camera called a tiled camera. More about this later.
Next, you set up an animation. Yes, you read correctly: an animation! This is because each tile will be
rendered as a frame in an animation. To render an image as 9 tiles you need to set up the scene to
animate 9 frames (i.e. to render from frame 0 to frame 8). To render an image as 25 tiles you need to
set up the animation to render from frame 0 to frame 24.
So how does CINEMA 4D know which part of the picture to render for each frame?
This is where the tiled camera comes in. It will automatically display the correct part of the picture (i.e.
the correct tile) for each frame. At frame 0, it will display the rst tile; at frame 1, the second tile and
so on.
To net render a still image:
Load the scene into CINEMA 4D.
From the Objects > Object Library menu, choose either 25 Tile Camera or 9
Tile Camera depending on whether you want the image to be rendered as 25
tiles or as nine tiles.
In the Object manager, select the tiled camera if it isn’t already selected.
From the 3D view’s Cameras > Scene Cameras menu, choose the camera’s
name to link the 3D view to the camera (‘camera9tile’ or ‘camera25tile’,
depending on which object you chose).
Move and rotate the camera so it shows the view that you want rendered.
In the Object manager, select the camera’s XPresso Expression tag. In the
Attribute manager, enable the tag’s Use Tiling option.
In the render settings, set the scene to animate from frames 0-8 (if you chose
a 9-tile camera) or frames 0-24 (if you chose a 25-tile camera).
Save the scene and pass it to NET Render (see the previous section: ‘How to
render a scene across the network’.)
Once NET Render has nished rendering the tiles, load the tiles into an image
editor and piece them together to form the picture.
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