SSD Workflow

[LEWLEWLEW]

Hey everyone,

I have a question for the workflow with a SSD.
Sometimes I need to render on my 16GB RAM macbook and often get the warning message (if not crashing) "virtualized RAM means physical RAM + swap file on HDD/SSD".
In researching on several forums I found many different ways of using the SSD.

Does it already help to save the projects, assets and textures on the SSD?
Should the entire corona material library be saved on the SSD?

Thanks a lot. looking forward to hear how your work flow is.

[maru]

Can you explain what exactly you mean by "SSD workflow" or "using the SSD"? An SSD is essentially a storage device. SSDs are much faster than traditional HDDs but also much slower than RAM in terms of data transfers. That's pretty much it. :)

[LEWLEWLEW]

Since corona suggests "swap file on HDD/SSD" I was wondering if it's enough to save...

-just the file on a SSD,
-the file + all assests and textures,
-the entire asset library that is usually used (incl. corona material library),
-even the entire operating system as some people propose?

Or generally: if and how it's nice to organize?

[romullus]

In this context swap is not verb, but a technical term "swap file", or "page file" https://www.techtarget.com/searchwindowsserver/definition/swap-file-swap-space-or-pagefile

Saving your assets may help to reduce scene load times and maybe make working in your DCC a little bit snappier, but it probably won't make any measurable difference in rendering with Corona and certainly won't affect low memory warning in any way.

Unless your scene starts rendering at excessively slow pace, you can safely ignore that warning, but be aware that you most likely don't have much headroom to make your scene larger, or render it at higher resolution before your system for real runs out of all available memory and its rendering performance will drop like a stone. When and if that happens, you will have take measurements, like optimize your scene to improve its memory footprint, close non-vital background programs, or in extreme case install more memory to your computer.

[romullus]

-even the entire operating system as some people propose?

Having OS on SSD is arguably the best thing you can do to improve your experience of working with computer. Nowadays there's very little excuse to still have OS on HDD.

[LEWLEWLEW]

Hey romullus,

thanks for your answer and making clear what a swap file is, I didn't know.
I usually take care of the other measurements like optimizing the scene etc.
What I read for Apple is that it's apparently not so common / not recommended to change the location of swap files or save the OS externally.

I can guess in that regard a SSD is only slightly helpful to store projects with assets on it for a bit faster scene reading?

[maru]

Are you choosing between an SSD and an HDD? Or in other words: do you have an SSD and an HDD in your machine, or only an SSD?