Messages

76

[Max] I need help! / Re: Proxies making file take forever to save

« on: 2024-05-11, 15:12:29 »

I did - no difference.

Good Luck

77

[Max] I need help! / Re: Proxies making file take forever to save

« on: 2024-05-11, 11:38:17 »

Hi,

this looks like another of various issues with my 'beloved' CoronaBitmap. Original scene save:

Code: [Select]

INF: [18684] [50788] File save duration. Excluding pre/post save callbacks: 20 seconds. Including callbacks: 20 seconds.
After converting all CoronaBitmaps to standard Bitmap:

Code: [Select]

[18684] [50788] File save duration. Excluding pre/post save callbacks: 1 seconds. Including callbacks: 1 seconds.

Good Luck

78

[Max] I need help! / Re: License Server HELL

« on: 2024-05-09, 14:19:11 »

Hi,

glad it seems to work now for you, just to round it up:

Nothing at all regarding license server or unified login is needed on workstations. I'd remove everything. The only important file is vrlclient.xml. The directory and that file are created the first time a node wants to get a license and you need to edit it. Either manually or by "Configure license server address" in the render setup -> "System" tab when Corona is the active renderer (it just calls setvrlservice.exe in the "utils" directory of Corona program files). And that's only needed because Chaos has not implemented a broadcast detection (as the old Corona license system had).


Good Luck

79

[Max] I need help! / Re: License Server HELL

« on: 2024-05-08, 10:04:41 »

Hi,

yes, he's right - installing a license server on every node is overkill and does not fit your scenario at all. If you have a 24/7 server, use that one as license server. I would do it quite similar:

• Install 5.5.5 on a/the dedicated 24/7 server. That unified login stuff is weird and I hate the bloat it does to my system, so yes, 5.5.5. Then you have a single executable (vrol.exe) running as system service - proper and simple. It is not a step back using 5.5.5 imho, the newer versions are the issue for me and I do not let them touch my server or any system currently
• Adjust firewall settings on the server to allow all connections for %ProgramFiles%\ChaosGroup\VRLService\OLS\vrol.exe (you may restrict this later if everything works)
• Log in the license server on the server using any browser, make sure it connects and shows the licenses properly. If not, check logfiles at %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\ChaosGroup\logs\user.log
• Get a copy of %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\ChaosGroup\vrlclient.xml from any node
• Put the server ip (if fixed) or its name (if you have a working name resolving) into the first <Host> line
• Copy over that file to one node to %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\ChaosGroup
• Test that node. If it works, uninstall the local license server on that node, test again, repeat for all others

To track down any further issues, more information about your network topology is needed anyway, especially whether you have a reliable local domain name server or not. However, never rely on zombie netbios name resolving. If you are not sure, then use a fixed ip at (5) as told. And maybe just the firewall settings were missing in the end :)


Good Luck

80

[Max] I need help! / Re: Render multiples camera matching

« on: 2024-04-24, 12:43:36 »

That can be a good idea to have "Active camera overrides" checkbox for shadowcatcher, then it should work fine

Yes it would in this case, but there are others. If you think the above is technically possible, then a way to implement it more generally would be a (new) CameraEnvOverride map node where you just can pipe in conveniently any map into all four Corona environment slots. You would reference the corresponding camera into that node (like e.g. CoronaDistanceTexmap does) or activate a checkbox "Select camera automatically" to use the render camera - whichever it is. In this case (automatically) we would need outputs for all slots as well, one of them (presumably direct visibility override) could go to the standard max environment to drive the viewport background (option "Use Environment Background").

Sounds appealing to me at first. But I bet the obvious and straight way has been already taken: referenced maps in the Camera node. So it will work the other way round.

Even then, a generally usable CameraEnvOverride map node (now simpler), where you can get access to the active overrides is imho better than having some checkbox in a single, special material (here:CoronaShadowCatcherMtl). The output could still be used for other maps/materials (not only shadow catcher) or setting the viewport background. The hypothetical CameraEnvOverride node would need to update itself permanently to follow the overrides of the active Camera, or fallback to (Corona) scene settings if the Camera has no overrides or the view is no CoronaCamera view.
 
All in all it still does not solve some standard situations you usually have. For example, in case of Sun+Sky: how should it be handled if you have to set different time/intensity settings? You'd have to fallback to animation or 3dsMax states again.

Just a few thoughts about that idea, let's see :)


Good Luck

81

[Max] I need help! / Re: Render multiples camera matching

« on: 2024-04-23, 17:19:28 »

CoronaCamera environment overrides are in progress and this should be easy to do in future :)

This alone will not. In almost every camera matching scene, you additionally need at least one shadow catcher material using the current background image for matte objects. This cannot be covered by a camera environment override. Additionally, think of camera matched/tracked animation.

In the meantime, there may be different workarounds with 3ds Max Scene and State sets.

Either I have/had crashes (yes, with CoronaCamera parameter block queries in the call stack of the crashing thread) or had them stop working midst project doing weird stuff. Additionally rendering out multiple shots in one go is not possible without making things complicated. So I humbly returned to the workflow described above after each try :)


Good Luck

82

[Max] I need help! / Re: Render multiples camera matching

« on: 2024-04-19, 14:02:30 »

Hi,

I'm trying to insert a different background image for each camera to do different photomatching in the same scene, but I don't understand how

you cannot set a different background for each camera, except when using any "xyz manager" out there, but you can do this (and much more) for different frames of the timeline:

Name your background images "bg_00.jpg", "bg_01.jpg" and so on, then create an IFL ("Image File List") sequence by selecting "Load as sequence" when choosing the file "bg_00.jpg" as bitmap for a standard max bitmap (Corona bitmap is not able to create or use IFL sequences).

This creates a file named Edit: "bg_01.ifl" "bg_00.ifl" which is a simple text file containing the names of all background bitmaps and is used as movie file by the bitmap node with one image per frame in the timeline. At frame 0 you will get bg_00.jpg, at frame 1 you'd have bg_01.jpg and so on by default.

Then animate your camera (and its settings) to match in every frame. You can use your already created cameras to align the animated one to them at every frame, having the Auto Key button activated. Or just choose the correct camera for the current background image to render if you do not want to animate it. I'm doing this since decades with the exception that I usually take 5 frames for one background/shot to have enough space for motion blur if required.

Alternatively you could use a corona select map instead of an IFL sequence and animate/change the selected map. You will not be able to feed the viewport background with it unless you use it as environment map though.

Attaching an (low version, Max2021, Corona v9 since I do not know what versions you are on) example scene. Start IR and scrub to frames 0 to 6 to see what's happening. Background images are piped through CoronaTonemapControl, the viewport uses the IFL sequence directly with "Animate Background" enabled.


Good Luck

83

[Max] Feature Requests / Re: Render time and noise level to be shown in saved CXR render file

« on: 2024-04-18, 09:16:01 »

Corona has always been a bit stingy with stats data (and logging) and a convenient option to access it would be nice (at least in CIE), yes. Additionally all stats should be included in EXR metadata as well at best.

But Corona already stores the most important info in CRXs. Use exiftool to extract it like:

Code: [Select]

exiftool -CoronaStats* -CoronaRenderStamp* yourfile.cxr
And note that the renderstamp is always saved into the CRX, even when not activated in the render settings. So you can use it to store various data additionally. if you write a batch with something like above, you can even integrate it into windows explorer context menu of CXR files (image).


Good Luck

84

[Max] Feature Requests / Re: Noise level based on inclu/exclude list

« on: 2024-04-16, 08:43:29 »

Hi,

yes, this:

You can as well reduce the adaptivity recalculation to less passes than the default 5 - this will calculate the noise level more frequently, if it helps.

Do this everywhere and in every scene, especially doing animation. But even for stills it's better to use 1 here (it is a dinosaur default setting from old Corona times, it does more bad than good).

Additionally, activate the CInfo_SamplingFocus render element FYI to see adaptivity in action.


Good Luck

85

[Max] I need help! / Re: How do I know if vfb is on or off?

« on: 2024-04-15, 15:07:40 »

Hi,

yes, hotkeys to call a macro script seem to be blocked when Corona is rendering unfortunately (invoking from the scripting listener works though). I don't know why, sorry.


Good Luck

86

[Max] I need help! / Re: How do I know if vfb is on or off?

« on: 2024-04-12, 15:02:10 »

Hi,

what do you mean by "invalid"? Just checked, works as expected here (v9 to 11). Which Corona version are you using?

Is this what you mean by "what is vfb state"?

It is about being visible, maximized, minimized or even about getting position and size (and the currently displayed channel at best). In one of the first macros I created for Corona (10 years old) I have found a note, that it is "unfortunately not possible" to get the state of the VFB, and as a result, the macro button cannot react to the current VFB state (isChecked).


Good Luck

87

[Max] I need help! / Re: script help and where to find documentation?

« on: 2024-04-12, 12:30:02 »

Hi,

thanks for sharing your experience, I remember requesting exactly this:

a custom map node that loads colour libraries from csv files

as an additional feature for the Corona Color Picker as soon as it was introduced, but withdrawed it because standard Max material libraries appeared to be good enough and are generally usable. Still something interesting though :)


Good Luck

88

[Max] I need help! / Re: Switching VFB Script?

« on: 2024-04-12, 11:39:27 »

Hi, try

Code: [Select]

if classof renderers.current == Corona do renderers.current.vfb_type=2

0: none
1: 3ds Max VFB
2: Corona VFB


Good Luck

89

[Max] I need help! / Re: Tone Mapping Problems

« on: 2024-04-09, 13:11:23 »

so weird how its only started happening now

I remember stumbling across this for the first time after quite a few years using Corona - in a scene not even relying much on GI apparently

I am losing my mind

... and I felt similar :)


Good Luck

90

[Max] I need help! / Re: Tone Mapping Problems

« on: 2024-04-09, 12:10:08 »

Hi,

you are most probably a victim of MSI:

Forum examples:
https://forum.corona-renderer.com/index.php?topic=37715.0
https://forum.corona-renderer.com/index.php?topic=36147.0

Help article:
https://support.chaos.com/hc/en-us/articles/4528530828689-Exposure-changes-when-I-start-rendering


Good Luck