Hello,
I started testing CrowdRender recently and I have some questions. Here's my specific setup if needed :
Blender v2.91.2 + CrowdRender v0.2.10 + 1 to 3 friends PCs connected via a network.
1- Can the Node PCs "join / connect" to the project if the rendering has already started ?
And can the Node quit the project during the rendering without any error or so ?
I'd like a feature similar to SheepIt that allow to finish the current Frame, then close Blender.
(In case a friend of mine need his computer but the render isn't finished yet, etc..).
2- On every Node PCs, once Blender is closed, there is the Blender CMD windows that remain opened.
We have to end the task via the Windows Control Panel in that case. Is this a bug ?
3- It is possible to free up memory on the Node PCs ?
It looks like opening and rendering multiple scene build up RAM usage, and I can free up this memory by restarting Blender locally, but is there a way to do the same on the Node PCs in case my friends aren't available to do it themself ?
4- I'd like an option or some way to show a "preview" of the rendered frame on the Node PC.
My friends are just curious to see my work, and this reminds me the preview that SheepIt does too :)
Sorry for all these questions, and thank you for this addon !
-Vincent
@James Crowther Please excuse me for being so tedious, but in 1 you answered only half the questions. :D What about leaving the rendering group?
Hello, thank you for your answer ! Yeah, I was a bit vague with my questions, sorry for that.
1- Ah, that's good to know !
2- OK, I will do the same, that's not a big issue.
3- I have to double check this one, didn't have a chance to try again since last time. I will update this later.
4- By a preview, I meant some way to show to the client/node PC, the rendered frame.
That's just my friends that are curious to see the image that their PC is rendering.
I linked a screenshot with what SheepIt does as an example. (It's not a problem of course, just a feature request or curiosity).
Well, thanks again for the answers. Didn't have much time to test this with my friends lately, so that's good to know !
Hi Vincent, happy to answer your questions :)
Nodes can join in after a render has already started, they will start rendering on the next frame :)
Not sure if this is a bug per se, Blender, for some reason, doesn't close its console window (speaking specifically about windows) if you've used crowdrender to render with that node. I solve this one by hovering my mouse over the blender icon in the task bar, and then select "close all windows" which usually clears it.
Ok, this I haven't seen before, any chance you can screenshot this? ITs hard to tell without being able to see what is happening on your system.
What do you mean by a 'preview'? Any chance you can elaborate or screenshot this?
Thanks for posting :) looking forward to hearing back from you :)
James