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The RANCH RenderFarm User Guide

Part II – the RANCH for 3DS MAX

www.ranchcomputing.com

17-05-26 – May 26, 2017

This document contains information specific to the use of 3ds Max on the RANCH.

Before reading it, we highly recommend you read Part I first - the General Guide – which

includes everything not specifically related to 3ds Max.

Summary of supported render engines

- The RANCH supports 3ds Max 2010 to 2018 (x64) projects.

- Supported CPU render engines:

V-Ray

Corona

Iray

Arnold

ART

Mental Ray

Maxwell Render*

Cycles

Scanline

- Supported GPU render engines

FStorm

V-Ray RT

Iray

Redshift

Octane

Cycles

*For Maxwell Render still image projects, please see the Maxwell-specific guide and choose

Maxwell Render as the Current application in the Submit Project Form.

See more: https://www.ranchcomputing.com/en/features/supported-softwares/3dsmax

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- Major plugins supported:

• Autograss (Happy Digital)

• BerconMaps/MultiTexture (Jerry Ylilammi)

• CityTraffic (iCube R&D group)

• Clone (Itoo Software)

• ColorCorrect (Cuneyt Ozdas)

• Forest Pack Pro (Itoo Software)

• Houdini Ocean Toolkit (Guillaume Plourde)

• Ky_Trail / Ky_AdjustColor (Last Jedi Outpost)

• Laubwerk Plants Kits (Laubwerk)

• MadCar (iCube R&D group)

• MultiScatter (iCube R&D group)

• RailClone Pro (Itoo Software)

• RealFlow (Next Limit)

• RichDirt 2 (enRich Pro)

• RPC Content (ArchVision)

• Tree Storm (Onyx Computing)

• Vue xStream (e-on software)

The complete plugins list is available here:

https://www.ranchcomputing.com/en/features/supported-plugins/3dsmax

- If your project needs other specific external plugins, please contact us first to see if we can

support them (only 64-bit plugins will be compatible with the RANCH).

- Some plugins may not be supported for all versions of 3ds Max, please consult us for details.

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1) Important information about scene preparation

The most important recommendation: use RANCHecker!

RANCHecker is a 3ds Max plugin developed by the RANCH to help you prepare your project

before uploading it to the RANCH. Click here to access the RANCHecker download page.

RANCHecker does all the dirty work for you: it gathers all the textures used by your scene,

includes the GI maps if used, verify that you have correctly set up the rendering parameters,

change file paths if necessary, asks you the right questions... and finally compiles your

projects in a .VU3 archive file, ready to upload to the RANCH! With RANCHecker, sending

a project to the renderfarm is a trivial task.

RANCHecker is compatible with all versions of 3ds Max since 3ds Max 2009.

To install RANCHecker, follow these steps:

1. Download and unpack the RANCHecker_3dsmax.zip archive on your hard disk.

2. In 3ds Max, choose MAXScript->Run Script and open the .mzp file, or simply drag the

.mzp file into the viewport.

3. You can now install RANCHecker by clicking on the Install button:

We recommend you create a button in the 3ds Max toolbar as a way to launch RANCHecker

quickly. To do this you have to:

1. Go to Customize->Customize User Interface

2. Go to the Toolbar tab, Category:"RANCHecker",

3. Drag the 'RANCHecker' name to the toolbar.

With the plugin launched and a scene loaded in 3ds Max, choose your options by clicking on

the Set Options button, then click on the Check Scene button to prepare the project for the

RANCH. That's all!

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Very important

When RANCHecker has finished its job:

- do not rename the .vu3 file

- do not modify or rename the main .max file inside (it will have a 'R_' prefix), otherwise the

project will be rejected.

General recommendations

* Do not use accentuated / non-alphanumeric characters, spaces, apostrophes and dots in the

filenames of your project (scene, textures, objects, output bitmaps etc.). To avoid any possible

parsing problems on the RANCH, please use only letters and numbers. You can also use the

“_” sign (underscore) to replace spaces.

* Always specify image bitmap formats as animation output (bmp / tga / png / exr... etc.). We

do not support rendering an animation directly to a video file format (avi / mov / wmv…)

Maxwell Render users:

- if you use Maxwell Render as the render engine for your animation, you must read page 5.

V-Ray users:

- if you intend to use the V-Ray Animation (prepass) / Animation (rendering) mode, you must

read appendix C.

XRef files You can use externally referenced .max files in your projects, with one condition: the main

scene only must have the prefix 'R_' (it is automatically added by RANCHecker and used to

identify the main .max scene). If there are several .max files, or no .max file, with the 'R_'

prefix in the .vu3 archive, the project will be rejected.

Frame output name

Make sure that the frame output name contains some letters and not only numbers, otherwise

the server will not be able to count the frames properly when they are numbered.

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* If you use Maxwell Render as the render engine

for your 3ds Max animation project, please verify

that the values for 'Time(min)' and 'Sampling

Level' are correct, as you will not be able to

change them in the 3ds Max Submit project form.

The Time(min) value entered here is the maximum

render time in minutes for each frame of the

animation, not for the entire animation. This

render time does not include the preparation /

voxelization time. We recommend that you always

use a Sampling Level to stop the render for each

frame, instead of a time limit (to do so, enter a

very high value in Time(min) so that the SL will

always be reached before the time limit). This is

the best way to ensure that each frame of the

animation will have exactly the same image quality.

* If you use e-on software Vue xStream

in your 3ds Max projects, you must

embed the Vue scene in the 3ds Max

scene before sending your project to the

RANCH. To do so, please verify that you

have checked the 'Incorporate Vue scene

in 3DSMax scene file' square in the Vue

xStream options, before saving your

scene in .max format.

* How to render a specific camera?

By default, the .max scene is always rendered using the active camera (that is, the currently

selected view). After you have successfully RANCHecked your project, all you have to do is

include in your .vu3 archive (it's a really a .zip file) a text file named camera.txt, which must

contain a single line: the name of the camera to render.

Note that the camera name can contain spaces, and that it is not case-sensitive (in our

example, "camera 002" and "Camera 002" would represent the same camera).

If the camera does not exist in the scene, the project will be rejected during the validation

process. With this function, you can easily prepare a scene with several cameras only once

with RANCHecker, and then change only the camera.txt file to create several projects, one for

each camera.

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* Referenced projects, or how to save upload time

If you have several scenes which use the same assets/textures, you can use our Local Assets

function (see appendix D of this guide) to upload these assets once and for all. But what can

you do if you have to render the exact same scene several times but with different parameters?

It can happen if:

- you want to render the scene first in low definition for a test, and then at full resolution

- you want to split a lengthy animation into several smaller sequences

- you want to render the same scene but with a different camera

To do this without having to re-upload the entire scene, you can reference a project previously

sent to the RANCH. All you have to do is create a text file named referenced_project.txt, wich

must contain two lines: the ID number of the referenced project, and its name.

In the example below, let's say that you have previously sent an animation project named

'R_Train.vu3' with the ID 12345, and now you want to send a new project named

'R_NewTrain.vu3' using the exact same scene and assets, but with different settings. First,

create the referenced_project.txt file:

Then, compress it in Zip format (do not use another compression technique) and rename the

newly created archive as a .vu3 file - here we choose the name 'R_NewTrain.vu3' (note that

the 'R_' prefix is mandatory for the RANCH to accept the project). As you can see, this fake

project file contains only the necessary information to gather the referenced project

('R_Train.vu3') on the RANCH and use its data to render R_NewTrain.vu3 (below).

If you just want to render the new project with a new resolution or a different frame sequence,

the new settings will be entered as usual in the RANCH Submit Project form. But if you want

to render a different camera than the one used in the referenced project, you will also have to

add a camera.txt file containing the name of the camera to render in the .vu3 archive (as

indicated on page 6).

You can now upload this "fake" .vu3 project (which only weights a few KB) to the RANCH.

Obviously, the referenced project must already exist on the RANCH, either because it has

already been rendered, or because it is in the waiting list and has already been validated. If the

referenced project cannot be found or has not been validated, the new project will be rejected.

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Appendix A: still image rendering

Important: you need to set the Time Output to ‘Single’, in order to let RANCHecker detects

you want to render still image(s).

There are 2 ways to render still images on the RANCH:

- MultiBand system

- MultiCam option

Depending on your needs, one may be better than the other. See below to get further

information.

A-1) MultiBand system (strips renderings)

By default, RANCHecker always checks a still image project with this mode.

The MultiBand system is built to render very high resolution still image very quickly!

It splits your image up into horizontal strips (~60-120) which are rendered independently on

different nodes, simultaneously. Once all the strips have been rendered, they are stitched

together to produce the final image.

There are some limitations (due to the stitching part):

- Only 7 output file formats supported: PNG/TIF/TGA/BMP/JPG/EXR and HDR

- Multi-layered EXR or TIF with layers may only produce the main pass

- Stereoscopic image with both view (left and right) is not working due to the command

line renderer

- Two dimensional filters/post effects like [Lens Effects] will not work properly because

any filter will be applied on the strip and not on the whole image

- Any prepass map (from GI, caustic or SSS materials) must be calculated beforehand

on your computer in order to avoid lighting discontinuities between stitched strips.

While rendering, you can

observe, in near real time, the

progress of your render by

clicking on the Preview

button. The preview image is

updated every minute or so.

On the left: preview of a still image

rendered at 56%.

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A-2) MultiCam option

It’s integrated in RANCHecker as an option.

It’s normally used when you have several cameras

from one scene to render in one project. Each camera

will be rendered on 1 server (n cameras = n servers),

but it also works for only one still image.

After you press ‘Check Scene’, you will get the

MultiCam window allowing you to select your

camera.

A-3) MultiBand versus MultiCam

Aspects MultiBand (default mode used) MultiCam (RANCHecker option)

Technology Strips rendering Several still cameras with 1 node per camera

Number of nodes working per project

~60-120 As much as the number of cameras to render (ex: 3 cameras = 3 nodes)

Speed if only one still image per scene to render

Always fast Can be very slow to render (~2-30 hours)

Cost effective For a high-resolution image that would take many hours to render on a decent computer

Always cost effective

Limitations Some mentioned above None (no need to precalculate anything on your machine)

Tip 1 You can speed up the calculation of the prepass files by reducing the output size using the RANCHecker option ‘Reduce prepasses size’ with Mental Ray or V-Ray

Tip 2 You can use the brute force method to avoid calculating GI map files (.vrmap, .vrlmap, etc.) with V-Ray

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Appendix B: frame preview for animations

The RANCH offers you a very handy feature for checking visually your animation project

when it is being rendered. It displays 256-pixel wide thumbnails of a large sample of rendered

frames on a web page specific to your inprogress project. To access this page, you just have to

click on the Preview button which appears when your project is being rendered (and of course

if there is something to preview: if each frame of your animation takes 30 minutes to render,

obviously, there will be nothing to see during the first 30 minutes :)

Below is an example of what you will be able to see when you click on Preview (the preview

image is always around 1900 pixels wide, its height depends on the number of thumbnails).

Notes:

- This function works with all supported renderers.

- At the end of the render, the preview image is also copied in your project's directory.

- The preview function may not work with some graphics formats; in that case it will display

black frames or nothing at all. That does _not_ mean that your project has a problem of

course. You can still check its progress in % in the queue.

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Appendix C: Animation (prepass) / (rendering) with V-Ray

If you want to use V-Ray Animation (prepass) / Animation (rendering) mode, you must select

the « Mode Animation Prepass / Rendering » option in RANCHecker.

We recommend you use this mode for all your animations as a way to eliminate flickering and

improve fluidity.

That kind of animation project can be done in one or two steps, that is one or two RANCH

projects. Each method has its own advantages.

C-1) Method 1 (standard): Prepass and Rendering in one project.

This method is the simplest. When you choose it, RANCHecker will create the two scenes

(one for the prepass and one for the rendering) and includes them in the .vu3 project. The two

scenes will have the same number of frames and will be rendered at the same definition.

When the project is processed on the Ranch, the prepass will be computed first and then the

rendering phase will use the previously computed .vrmap files. At the end, the project ftp

directory will contain both the .vrmap files and the final images.

To select this method, just choose the “Mode Animation Prepass / Rendering / Auto

(recommended)” option in RANCHecker Vray Options.

This Auto mode contains 2 sub-options:

- ‘Override Interp. Frames’ allows you to easily change the ‘Interp.frames’ value which

will be used for the Rendering phase.

- ‘Lower Interp. Samples for final render’ allows you to reduce the ‘Interp samples’

value for the Rendering phase. Larger values tend to blur the detail in GI although the

result will be smoother. Smaller values produce results with more detail and reduce

the render time, but may produce blotchiness if low Subdivs are used (see picture

below). More info can be found here.

To set this value during your rendering tests, we advise you to start using a low value,

increasing it step by step until you reach the expected result. If for some reason you

cannot undergo some tests, you can use the ‘Apply Ranch formula’ button, which

automatically calculates and applies the minimum recommended value.

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During the render on the RANCH, the first 50% of progress displayed in the RANCH Waiting

List will correspond to the Prepass phase, and 51 to 100 % will correspond to the Rendering

phase.

C-2) Method 2 (advanced): Prepass and Rendering in two projects

Although a bit less simple than the first method, this one may be useful in some cases. For

instance, you can render all the .vrmap of a long sequence in one project, and then reuse them

for several following projects without having to recompute the GI each time. And if you have

to render the same animation several times with modifications to the scene that do not affect

the GI (color changes for some objects for instance), you will save time by reusing the

previously computed .vrmap.

- The first project is used to compute all the .vrmap files (one for each frame).

- The second project does the actual rendering. Each rendered frame uses as its Irradiance

map an interpolation between the previously rendered .vrmap files.

C-2a) First project: Irradiance maps generation (Animation Prepass)

You have to:

1. check the 'Mode Animation Prepass / Rendering / Manual' option

2. check the 'Render vrmaps (step 1)' option

When RANCHecker prepares the scene, it automatically changes the name of the Irradiance

map files to be the same as the output bitmap files (which won't be generated by this first

project anyway) e.g. if the output bitmap is 'MyProject.png', the vrmaps will be named

'MyProject.vrmap'. Do not change this name when RANCHecker has finished its work.

For the prepass phase, RANCHecker will redirect the .vrmap output path to the standard

RANCH output path which is C:\3dsmax\Output.

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C-2b) Second project: images generation (Animation Rendering)

Important: make sure you didn't change the output bitmap and/or the Irradiance map names

between the first project (prepass) and the second one (rendering). The names must be

identical for the second project to find the .vrmap files created by the first project.

You have to:

1. check the 'Mode Animation Prepass / Rendering / Manual' option

2. check the ‘Final Render using vrmaps (step 2)' option

3. check the 'Project ID' square and enter the vrmaps project ID

With this ID number (for instance '65432'), the RANCH will find the .vrmap files of the first

project and use them for the rendering pass: it saves you the hassle to download first the

.vrmap files and then reupload them in the second project. It also means that you must send

the second project at most 5 days after the first one, that is before the ftp directory of the first

project is automatically deleted (see the RANCH Main User Guide p.4).

For the Animation (rendering) mode, do not forget to configure the Interpolation frames

value. The default value set to 2 works for most of the animation. Nonetheless, we advise you

to start testing with a value set to 1 which could be enough and lower the render time. Also,

you might need to increase the value to 3 (rarely more) for complex scenes.

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Appendix D: temporary storage of assets

If you have a slow internet connection and need to render several scenes which all use the

same assets (textures, etc.), you may want to use the possibility of uploading the assets only

once, and then include in your .vu3 projects only the elements which change (for instance the

.max scene).

Phase 1: creation of your master ftp directory

Your master ftp directory is created by us. To benefit from this feature, contact us and tell us

you would like to use this feature. The information to access this ftp directory will be sent to

you by email.

Phase 2: project preparation

You must prepare your project with RANCHecker, choosing the option ‘separate assets from

archive’, and then entering the name of the assets directory that will be used for this project.

In the following example, let's call this assets directory ProjectAssets1 (which will therefore

be a subdirectory of your master ftp directory). You may of course choose another name.

By choosing this option (see picture above):

- RANCHecker will create a ProjectAssets1 directory including the project assets on

your computer.

To get access to it, you must click on the button ‘Get Archive’ that will open at the

same time the folder including the archive and the assets folder (which includes

ProjectAssets1 and more generally all the assets folders generated by RANCHecker).

- RANCHecker will add a UseLocalAssets.txt text file in the .vu3 project. This text

file contains the name of the assets ftp directory to use, in our example

ProjectAssets1.

When the RANCH checks this project archive and detects the UseLocalAssets.txt file,

it automatically adds the content of the ProjectAssets1 ftp directory to the content of

the .vu3 archive to create the complete project.

You have two choices to upload the folder ProjectAssets1 (including the assets) to your

master ftp directory:

- by using an ftp client (for example Filezilla)

- by using the sub-option « Ftp Upload » in RANCHecker (see picture below)

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Regarding the « Ftp upload » option:

▪ ProjectAssets1 (including the assets) will be uploaded automatically at the end

of the RANCHecking (RANCHecker must remain open until the « Get

Archive » button becomes available otherwise the upload will be incomplete).

▪ RANCHecker uploads only the necessary files (that are not being transferred in

your ftp account).

If you have a large number of assets, we advise you to upload the assets via an ftp client to get

better performance.

Things to keep in mind

- In your master ftp directory, you can create several assets subdirectories, each one

with different content.

- This feature is not intended to be used as a permanent online storage facility. When

the content of the assets directory(ies) is no longer needed, you must erase it.