Does Carrara 5 Pro still have a separate render node? I thought it did. I thought you could install the node on a networked machine to speed renders. But DAZ is giving me a terrible run-around. No separate download for a render node appears anywhere that I have been able to find. After three emails they have finally reset my download -- for the application itself! (Which I already have installed and registered). So...am I being an idiot, is there no such animal, or is DAZ being confused?

In the my download (ca_ap009_Car5ProWin.zip) there is a file "Carrara 5 Pro AppCD/Carrara 5 Render Node/Disk1/Setup.exe" which I assume is the render node setup (I've not tried installing it).

Now mark me confused. I did a clean install to the root of my HD. Still no render node or render node installer visible. Tried the 5.1 render node updater again, just in case. It ran! It even claimed to be installing files somewhere --- where, it wouldn't say. I still have no idea how to install the render node on a networked machine, or how to start it on a networked machine (as the Carrara manual indicates). All I know is how to network render, once the nodes are up and running. Not a big help at the moment.

The manual section is a bit short on detail.

Here's what worked for me.
Run "Carrara 5 Pro AppCDCarrara 5 ProDisk1Setup.exe"
Enter serial number
Choose directory to install to (, in my case C:EoviaCarrara5RenderNode)
Goto and run Carrara.exe

Run Carrara on main computer, and goto Render room
Select the "Batch Queue" tab, and add CAR file
On the Rendering tab, Miscellaneous section, check "Enable Network Rendering (Only available in Batch Queue)"
Click Launch button

I then see tiles marked N as mentioned in the manual.

Whoah. I don't speak Windows (Mac OS), but this sounds like what you did is installed a second copy of Carrara 5 and just named the folder it was in "RenderNode." This worked? In that case, I'll just do the same.

no....Carrara only on main computer. Nodes go on seperate pc...should be seperate install file.

That's what I thought. I do not recall if that file was available in my original Eovia download. I believe that it was. No such file has yet been available to me at DAZ. Shall I continue to pester them, then? My memory is that it was, indeed, a different installer, called something like "Carrara5RN.sit" Oddly enough, they have refreshed my downloads to the content (which was NOT available on the old Eovia server) and the MacIntel version (which of course did not exist at the time). Do you think DAZ even knows what the render node is?

Quote - Do you think DAZ even knows what the render node is?

Probably as they've got the "Grid" render node license pack thingy in the store.

Are you sure that the application SIT file doesn't have the installer you need ?
The ZIP file for Windows was effectively a CD image.
I doubt the Mac layout / install procedure is that different.

The Carrara.exe that Node installer installed is just a very cut down GUI to allow for configuration of the network settings etc.

I have downloaded the Carrara5 Pro installer three different times. In no download does anything remotely resembling a render node appear, nor does an option to install one during the regular instal process (which I have also done thrice.) OHO. Very Interesting. I also downloaded the MacIntel installer, looking forward to the time I upgrade my computer again. In this installer, the render node clearly appears as a separate item. So is this file simply missing from the Carrara5 Pro that wasn't a UB? Will the UB render node work on a pre-Intel chip?

My original OSX installer that I downloaded did include the installer for the render node, but that was an eovia download. Something might have been lost in the shuffle to DAZ. You might want to unstuff (if they are still using SIT) the files grab a screen shot, send it to DAZ and say "show me the render node installer".

The other option is the Universal Binary is, well, universal. You can install it on your Gx and it will work. The only drawback I think is that some plug-ins aren't yet available as a universal binary. I thought I actually saw some folks say when it first came out that the UB was a bit snappier than the old PPC only version, but I don't remember the specifics.

Good luck,

Good suggestion. Actually, I tried the UB. It seems to run, but my other Mac can't seem to see it. So no network render yet. And after wasting as much time as my last render on trying to get it to work... Also good to know about the plug-in situation.

Hi Nomuse, Make sure that you create unique addresses on the Network settings for the node on the node machine. (I think that there is something that says "you must change this number" on the dialog box. On my first node Mac it took me a little while to get everything working but on the others, it installed really quickly and worked easily - probably because I'd learned how to do it. I can dig around my settings and post them if that would help. Node rendering is great!

Did change the "you must change it" number. I think the problem may be the node system is too literal-minded about what constitutes a "network." My machines share files fine, they have each other's hard disks mounted, etc., but they do not show up in the "network" listing. Typical OS-X strangeness. Did a bunch of reading up and that's apparently quite common. Unfortunately, I have a suspicion that this is the only path Carrrara will check for possible render nodes. It's an odd system anyhow. You don't log in, you don't select nodes; you just start rendering and if you are luck, an "N" appears on some of the blocks being rendered. Gonna read up more about networking and Macs, and maybe when I learn more about that come back to this.

I did have to open up the Mac OS firewall if I remember right (selective amnesia). Check your settings at the computer level - open them all up first, and see if that works. After that you can start closing them down if you want.

Heh. My finest hour of the whole networking scramble was finally getting inside my router. Reaching an old Linksys from a Mac is not a simple task. But I finally found this odd method that seems to involve temporarily assigning a new hard IP to the computer, disconnecting the DSL completely, manually entering the router's IP in the network prefs...and then you can finally navigate to the router. Unfortunately my skills ran out there, as I stared at multiple pages of router configuration with almost no idea what I was looking at. Sigh. I don't care what Apple says in the ads. Last time I linked into a PC network, I opened the list and there they were...every other computer on the network. It may be just me, but I'd feel a lot more comfortable with the render node system if I had some little GUI, some cute little graphic, where I could "see" each of the nodes I was connected to before I hit "render."

Hmmm, are you using your Router for the hub? I've got a router plugged into an Ethernet hub and the Macs plugged into E-hub. Personally, I don't want to go and start messing around with a router. But that's because I'm paranoid about severing my BB connection to the world! Neworking with E-hubs is brainless which is perfect for me. The macs do see each other that way without a problem. If you go Mac to Mac directly, you'll need an cross-over Ethernet cable. Then the main comuter can plug into the Router. Otherwise, Ethernet hubs are pretty cheap and work with standard cables so you don't have to get a specialty cross-over cable.

That sounds like a possible solution. I'm using an old Linksys BEFSR41 router/switch, and the WAN line on that goes to the DSL modem supplied by my ISP. Brainless for getting the Mac's online...I plug them in and they log in to my ISP. But not as transparent as I'd hoped for networking the Macs to each other; I have to turn on file sharing, then navigate from one to the other using the afp:// address. Which is a little scary leaving open like that! (At least I did manage to turn off the default password on my router, making it a little less of a gaping security hole). I'll look into an ethernet hub instead. Been reading up and I am hearing they have generally supplanted the older solutions for this. Oh...check out my new post on this thread for some replicator fun!

I am using OSX and downloaded Carrara from the Eovia site. The download included "Carrara 5 RenderNode Installer" and later I went back to the site and downladed the updater - "Carrara51RNOsxUpdate". I have them set up on 3 other macs here at work and have used it twice. Overall, it works pretty well for a single frame render that is hi-rez or complex and would probably work well with a complex animation where each frame will take a while to complete. when rendering something simple that renders fast, the nodes don't really keep up that well and since I have a dual processor system, the nodes barely have a chance to get started. Overall, the setup is easy and it works pretty well. Anyway, not sure about the legality, but I have the installers, which require the Cararras S/N, so I think it would be ok if I gave you a copy. Let me know. dbuchter@mac.com http:www.dbuchter.com

Oh, one other thing about the render nodes... not sure if this is just an OSX thing, but as I said earlier, I have three nodes other than my computer. They are all G5 Dual Processor systems, but it seems that only a single processor is used on the nodes, where you can see the dual processors on the host (my) computer rendering their own segments. Maybe there's a reason for this, but I was expecting to see 8 segments rendering across my image not just 5. dpb http://www.dbuchter.com

Hmmmm, that's interesting. I see a render square for every processor on the dual systems here. In fact, a little while ago, a member posted a screen image of a 16 proccessor (I think) rendernode operation - 16 little square all plugging away.

Well that's lame - I'll have to go fiddle around with my setup again... but not on a Friday - I'm outta here. dpb http://www.dbuchter.com

Well...good to know I wasn't imagining things. I didn't DL the node when I saw it at Eovia (didn't think I was going to use it). Ended up having two G4's connected via ethernet so decided to grab it from DAZ...who didn't have it. But it was bundled with the new UB. Ah, well. For what I've got, my entire "render farm" would be blown out of the water by a single Mac Mini.

As far as the nodes not being scene.  Here are a couple of general suggestions from a network admin.  Note that* * I am not going to be too specific about setting up the Macs since I haven't touched one in a few years, and honestly do not remember much of there setup system.

1.  Set each machine up with a static (Hard, fixed etc.) IP address.  Your router's lan side should be using something like 192.168.0.1 .  You will first need to get the hardware address for the internet adapters on each machine.  In the router, on most routers, you can assign a specific IP address perminently to a certain hardware address (sometimes called a MAC address(no relation to the type of computer)).  You merely set up each machiens address in the router to assign to one IP from the same block as the router.  any address between 192.168.0.2 and 192.168.0.254 can be used.  Also make sure that each MAC has the appropriate address set up in the TCP/IP properties in advanced mode.  You also want the Router's address set up as the gateway.  The router will pass DNS around so you don't really need to put in a static reference for a DNS server unless you want to ask your ISP for the addresses for their DNS servers. 

Another issue may be your firewall.  I would set up an exception for C5 and the render node software.  You may also need to open up the appropriate port in the router.

I hope some of this helps.  Remember when in doubt call applecare. :)

Rich