Network Rendering- 2nd Master Question

[DMerz III]

Hey guys,

Hope this is an okay spot for this question. Weird question that I'm wondering if anyone might have an answer to.

We currently have about 5 workstations that my team uses to setup files, and render from. We also have 3 dedicated Boxx RenderPROs all connected with a Network license which we use to queue and render things we don't want to tie up our workstations with.

It's working well for us! However, we're always trying to find ways to improve. When we queue up renders to the network, it's essentially creating a line. The cores churn through these renders one at a time, and of course, in order of their place in the queue. We're wondering, if there's a way to start a 2nd line? I'm sure this would mean purchasing another Network Rendering license and setting up a new master and etc, which is totally possible, however, is there a way to determine which line or queue you're sending your render to? If we had 2 masters on the same network, would there then be an option to send to Master A vs Master B?

I know it's a weird question, but we're highly considering buying a new set of machines just to "open up another line". You could say, oh...well just dedicate those cores to the 1 master you already have, but if you think about a grocery store queue, two registers open is always better than 1 fast line, you get more flexibility. Just my theory.

Thanks! Any insights would be greatly appreciated

[DriesV]

Hey dmerziii,

Great feedback on and request for network rendering! In fact, more sophisticated control over managing render jobs is something we are looking into for KeyShot 7.
In the meantime it is perfectly possible to run two masters on the same network (LAN). All you have to do is make sure that the slaves and Queue are pointing to the correct master. You can enter the master's hostname or IP address in the Slave and Queue connection settings. You don't have to change the port numbers. With multiple masters, I would advise to set manual IPs for the master machines.
See attached images:

• Slave connection: Network Configurator > Slave > Master hostname
• Queue connection: Network Queue > File > Connection Settings > Master hostname

When submitting a job from KeyShot, it will be sent to the master that the Queue is connected to.

[DMerz III]

Ahh that's amazing news, thank you Dries for providing some helpful visuals and well written walkthrough!

[DMerz III]

Dries, quick question since you helped me answer the initial challenge; I am right to assume we'll need to purchase a separate Network Rendering license in order to get this 2nd master? We figured as much, but if it's not necessary, please let us know. We currently have a license for 96 cores, but we're only use 72 at the moment. Our plans are to buy another RenderPro and make it a master to open up this 2nd queue. This would put us at 96 cores total, but again, if we have to buy a separate license.. Hope that makes sense. Let me know if you have any insight in regards.

Thanks!

[guest84672]

We can split them up if needed. You will need 2 separate serial codes.

[DMerz III]

Ok good to know, will pass this info on to my IT team when we're ready to pull the trigger!

[DMerz III]

Just FYI in case anyone in the future is thinking about trying this out. We just got 3 new RenderPROs in this morning, we're going to give this a shot and see how it works for us.

[guest84672]

Nice - make sure they are in an enclosed room because they are super-loud. :-)

[DMerz III]

Haha, and also apparently get super hot! The A/C compressor unit in our server room has gone out.. 

(We've got 6 RenderPROs now) in addition to the rest of the hardware for the rest of the company in the same room.

[guest84672]

Ouch!

[DMerz III]

Just wanted to report back. We've been using the Double-Master approach for several months now and it has been wonderful. Having this 2nd "line" open has upped our teams ability to get renders through with much higher flexibility.

Need a patch, but don't want to tie up your local machine? Just send it to the 2nd line.
Our 'Alpha' line is reserved for top priority and lengthy renders, and we try to keep the 'Bravo' line open for quick get it through quick renders.
Of course, at the end of the day, when we're going home for the evening, we then use the Bravo line to help offset the queue from Alpha since they'll both be running into the evening. By the time we get back in during the morning, both lines have finished their queues.

The one thing that could dramatically improve this would be the ability for my computer to "stay connected" to both masters so I can view the status of both at the same time. Currently, we have to connect to one master line or the other in order to send stuff and view the progress. If I have stuff going on Alpha and 3 other renders on the Bravo line, I'll need to drop connection to the Alpha line, and reconnect to Bravo to access those renders.

This isn't a big deal, but I'm hoping future Network Rendering capabilities allows for this workflow improvement.

If anyone has other questions about how we did this, please feel free to ask.

[guest84672]

Great -thanks for the update.