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RenderPal Changelog

What's new in RenderPal 2.5.0.1339

Jan 25, 2011
  • Added a renderer license management
  • Added user groups
  • The console remote controller can now query data from the server using -query
  • Net jobs now can have tags
  • The net job list can now be quickly filtered by their tags
  • Added an option to restart chunks of a client if its CPU usage drops below a certain threshold over a period of time
  • Net jobs can now be "colored"
  • The log directory can now be set to a user-defined path
  • Added an option to the net job frame checking to disable frame checking for subsequent, automatically created jobs
  • Output filters now support custom script callback functions
  • Output filters now support regular expressions
  • It's now possible to quickly reset all erroneous chunks of a net job
  • When a net job is deleted remotely, an entry is now added to the event log
  • When logging in using the graphical RC, the configuration file of the console RC is updated (if the corresponding entries are empty)
  • Added 5 and 10 minutes to the "Idle clients shutdown" menu (client pool list)
  • Dramatically improved the performance of the net job chunk list and the client list
  • It's now possible to execute net job post-events on success and on failure (of a chunk or the entire job)
  • The console RC now supports multiple presets (using -nj_preset multiple times)
  • The client now logs the output of jobs into separate log files
  • Cancelling a net job chunk will now reduce its attempts count
  • Resetting all cancelled chunks of a net job will now also reset their render attempts count
  • Cancelled net jobs no longer count as pending when sending email status reports
  • Made adding multiple user accounts easier
  • Improved the coloring in the frames list of the manual frame checker window
  • When dropping folders onto the scene list (render set tab), files will now be added recursively
  • The net job dialog now shows warnings if frame splitting/image slicing cannot be applied
  • The "filter as you type" feature in the event log now has a small delay before updating
  • The console remote controller will no longer request administrative system rights
  • When changing the sort column in the client pool list/net job chunk list, the expanded/collapsed states are now preserved
  • Improved how the internal Python path is set
  • Placeholder values in Python net job events are now escaped (\ becomes \\, for example)
  • The lists in the user management dialog now support multiple selections (for easy account/group removal)
  • Made the console remote controller help output easier to read
  • The custom idle clients shutdown time dialog now remembers the last entered value
  • Updated to SQLite 3.7.3
  • Smaller changes and fixes here and there
  • When deleting a net job, unnecessary chunk updates were sent, making deletion very slow
  • Checking whether a directory exists didn't work for UNC paths
  • If a pool or client was deleted while the net job dialog was open, a crash could occur
  • Resetting all cancalled chunks of a net job did not update the net job status properly
  • Reduced flickering when filtering an event log
  • The toolbar for the client pool list didn't reflect the current user rights
  • Fixed the "$(RenderSet.outfile_full)" net job event parameter
  • Fixed a minor commandline parsing bug in the console remote controller

New in RenderPal 2.4.6.1267 (Jul 30, 2010)

  • When editing a net job so that it needs to be restarted, the Paused flag was ignored right after editing the job
  • Some net job event parameter names (in the net job event editor) weren't correct
  • Fixed a possible crash in the Ethernet adapters info retrieval function
  • When the server automatically creates new net jobs due to frame checking, the submitter will be now set to the original submitter
  • The automatic frame checking created too many chunks in some cases
  • Fixed slash directions in Cinema 4D
  • Net jobs created due to automatic frame checking weren't always rendered

New in RenderPal 2.4.5 (Jul 30, 2010)

  • When remotely configuring clients, offline clients can now be excluded
  • Extended the minimize options further
  • When manually shutting down/rebooting a client, its timeout and reason can now be set
  • The render set autosave file (RenderPal.rset) has been moved to the Config directory
  • When closing the server, the global path map was lost
  • It is now possible to add path map entries with the same in-path if the OS type differs
  • Rewrote the "time left" estimation algorithm
  • The Renderer System API function "RenderSet.GetValueCount" now has an optional value names parameter
  • New Renderer System API function: CmdLineSwitch.VerifySwitchDependency
  • New Renderer System API function: Result.Clear
  • Added an option to renderer parameters to put quotes around each list item (instead of around the combined list)

New in RenderPal 2.4.1.1233 (Apr 1, 2010)

  • Fixed several smaller bugs here and there
  • The RenderPal environment file (RenderPal.env) now supports comments (we also added a small description to the file)
  • Editing the render set of an existing net job now correctly switches the renderer to the one set in the net job
  • When editing a net job remotely, its status (especially the "unfinished" state) was not always properly updated
  • Made sockets more error tolerant
  • General stability improvements
  • Paths are no longer automatically terminated with a slash/backslash

New in RenderPal 2.2.0 (Mar 17, 2010)

  • Many internal changes
  • Added database support for storing all RenderPal data
  • It is no longer possible to enter an IP range from 0.0.0.0 to 0.0.0.0 into the automatic pool assignment
  • The server now stores all RenderPal objects (like clients, pools, net jobs and so on) in a database
  • The autosave option for net jobs has been removed (all changes are now saved immediately to the database)
  • Textual view filter entries now support wildcards (* to match anything)
  • Email notifications can now be turned off for net jobs created via automatic frame checking
  • Order in which net jobs appear in the net job chunk list now matches order in the net job list
  • The server can now dispatch the chunks of a net job in different orders
  • Added a net job setting for its chunk dispatch order (forward, backward, evenly distributed or random)
  • Added a net job setting to render its first and last chunk first
  • Added switches to set the chunk dispatching options (-nj_dispatchorder & -nj_firstlastfirst) to the console Remote Controller
  • When the executable of a custom renderer doesn't exist, a proper error message is now shown
  • Net job chunks can now have different priorities (high, normal or low)
  • Added a new user right to grant a user the permission to change the net job chunk priority
  • Executable paths are now always converted to backslashes under Windows before launching
  • New network protocol (even more reliable)
  • Client availability can now also be changed during rendering
  • A client can now be in multiple pools
  • It's no longer possible to create path map entries where the in- and out-path are equal
  • The console Remote Controller will now download all custom renderers before listing all renderers when using -listrenderers
  • Added a new flag to the console Remote Controller to return the ID of the new net job instead of an error code (-retnjid)
  • Fixed a bug with custom renderer executable paths containing forward slashes
  • The rendering time thresholds now also have a field for seconds
  • Added new switches to specify rendering time threshold seconds to the console RC
  • Renamed the renderer "3dsMax" to "3dsMax Default (Scene settings)"
  • Made a few changes to the Maya Default renderer
  • The Python engine is now restarted before a Python event is being executed
  • Updated to Python 2.5.4
  • Immediate sending of status reports in the email notification options did not work properly
  • Increased maximum log transfer size to 512 kb
  • The console client now supports renderer priorities
  • The renderer priority can now be remotely configured for clients
  • When neither frame splitting nor image slicing were specified for a net job, a single-chunk warning will be shown

New in RenderPal 2.1.1 (Mar 16, 2010)

  • Fixed some smaller bugs here and there
  • Email notifications will now show more error details when failing
  • Pools in the console Remote Controller can now also be separated with commas
  • The output name now works correctly when using the Maya Default renderer
  • When multiple scenes are in a set, automatic output name renaming will only be applied when an output name is initially supplied
  • Jobs submitted via the console RC which use a custom renderer were restarted after editing even though nothing critical was changed
  • When cancelling the submission of a new net job based on the render set of an existing one, the old render set was not restored
  • When submitting a new net job, the render set will now be automatically opened in the render set tab
  • Path map entries will no longer automatically truncate trailing (back)slashes
  • When submitting net jobs with the console Remote Controller, the renderer was not properly set in the render set
  • Supplying enumeration settings (like the Output Format) with the console Remote Controller didn't work
  • New net jobs created by frame checking will no longer block the original job from continuing to render
  • Changes in the email notification options did only take effect after restart
  • Slashes can now be entered in the output file field

New in RenderPal 2.1.0 (Mar 16, 2010)

  • Plenty of internal changes & improvements
  • It is now possible to specify the output file and directory for Blender jobs
  • Fixed a possible crash when editing the render set of a net job
  • When starting/stopping a pool, the pool status will now be immediately refreshed
  • Removed "Dump command-lines" from the render set sourcefile list
  • It is no longer possible to enter invalid characters into the output file field
  • When selecting multiple net job chunks with the right mouse button, the correct context menu will now be shown
  • F5 now refreshes the client management dialog (fetches all data from the server)
  • If RenderPal crashes, the function in which the error occurred should now be reported in most cases
  • Fixed some odd window switching/focus strangeness bugs
  • Improved the unhandled exception dialog
  • When dropping jobs from a client, the corresponding chunk was shown as erroneous, not as cancelled
  • Urgent net jobs will now use all possible clients, cancelling any renderings if necessary
  • Most recently used entries for files and directories weren't saved
  • Autosaving of net jobs is now crash-safer
  • In screensaver only mode, the user is now asked whether to cancel the current job when the screensaver stops running
  • In screensaver only mode, clients were added to the server even if they were already in the known clients list
  • Improved the renderer selection in the net job editor (merged built-in and custom renderers)
  • The render set file is no longer shown in the net job editor
  • Completely new custom renderer management
  • Added a new user right to allow uploading of custom renderers to the server
  • It is now possible to download/upload the custom renderers from/to the server
  • The remote controller will now automatically download the custom renderers from the server
  • The server didn't accept heartbeats from clients with a wrong protocol number (RenderPal 2004 relict)
  • Increased the trial net job limit to 10 concurrent net jobs
  • Fixed the Aspect ratio switch for Maya (was -ar, should be -ard)
  • The automatic client pool assignment now supports multiple IP ranges
  • The verbosity render setting is no longer available for Maya (since Maya never supported it)
  • A warning is now shown when installing updates that are older than or equal to the currently installed version
  • It is now possible to specify the name of the defaults section (RpRcDefaults.conf) to use in the console Remote Controller
  • Render settings from a saved render set can now be merged with the current render set
  • Added an event filter to all event tabs
  • Chunks will no longer be set to cancelled in cases where it should only be reset to pending
  • Multiple net job dependencies are now supported
  • When frame checking results in new net jobs, the original net job will be set to be dependent on the newly created jobs
  • Added a simple "Check for updates" function (Help menu)
  • Renamed the "Maya Default" renderer to "Maya Default (Scene/Layer settings)" to avoid confusion
  • Added new built-in renderer: V-Ray for Maya
  • Viewing large output logs took extremely long loading times
  • The log list dialog now contains a column for the log file size
  • Added 5 new custom renderers: 3Delight, SiTex Air, Combustion, Digital Fusion & Houdini
  • Turned off client machines can now be woken up via Wake-on-LAN (if the computer supports it)
  • Jobs with only finished and cancelled chunks are now shown as "Unfinished" instead of "Idle"
  • Implemented a timeout mechanism so that crashed remote controllers won't lock certain areas for an indefinite time anymore
  • When using the free 3 nodes license, the server closed after running for about one hour
  • The server could send jobs to clients even if there was an update pending
  • When using non-integral "By frame" values, rounding errors could occur when calculating the start extension for each chunk
  • Email notifications about remotely submitted net jobs were not sent
  • Event sounds have been dropped
  • The output window will never be shown automatically (the corresponding option has also been removed)
  • The client got a new multi-core enabled rendering engine
  • Fixed a bug with passing multiple layers to the Maya Software renderer
  • XSI render passes are now supported
  • Frame checking can now be specified when submitting net jobs via the console remote controller (-nj_framechecking)
  • The console remote controller can now list all available client pools via -listpools
  • Added an option to the client settings to enable automatic Wake-on-LAN (to wake up clients that should be used for rendering)
  • Added a setting to specify the number of parallel renderings per client to the net jobs
  • Added a switch (-nj_rendercores) to the console remote controller to set the number of parallel renderings per client
  • Improved the net jobs loading time
  • Fixed a bug when retrieving the output log from a client that would cause the operation to fail with a privilege violation
  • Net job IDs are now formatted to 4 digits
  • Parallel renderings on a single client are now supported
  • Added -compact to the console RC (can be used together with -listrenderers and -listpools to only get the "bare" lists)
  • Added an option to configure the start delay between parallel renderings
  • When installing updates which contain update notes, it is now possible to install or cancel the update
  • Fixed some command-line parsing bugs in the console Remote Controller
  • Removed several message boxes that could pop up in the server when certain errors occurred
  • Sorting time columns in list controls didn't work properly
  • Removed automatic refreshing, as this only causes unnecessary data traffic (the server updates all RCs when needed)
  • The console client now checks the return codes of renderers on all systems

New in RenderPal 2.0.1 (Mar 16, 2010)

  • Removed all WKS code (since the WKS version doesn't exist anymore)
  • Fixed a possible crash in the client pool list
  • RenderPal V2 is now compatible with Wine
  • The net job list now shows the submission date for net jobs
  • Cancelled net jobs can now be paused
  • The "Start as paused" flag has been replaced by a more generic "Paused" flag in the net job dialog
  • When skipping net job chunks so that the job will be finished, the paused state will be reset
  • It is now possible to specify for every renderer (built-in and custom) whether to use forward slashes in paths and filenames
  • Fixed a possible problem with Cinema 4D
  • Fixed some compatibility bugs with RenderMan for Maya
  • When editing the render set of a net job, the corresponding renderer will be automatically selected

New in RenderPal 2.0.0 (Mar 16, 2010)

  • Loads of improvements, smaller changes and fixes everywhere
  • The client priority slider in the client settings dialog didn't work
  • New clients will now use all available CPUs by default
  • The net job list now shows the job's renderer
  • The chunk error count wasn't always reset properly
  • When switching to the Remote server tab, an automatic refresh is now performed
  • Added tool tips to the client pool and net job lists
  • Added tool tips to the net job list
  • Added different tray icons for the various RenderPal versions
  • The command-line job submission support has been removed from the GUI Remote Controller (use the commandline version instead)
  • The console client can now be terminated with Ctrl+C
  • New icons in the user management dialog symbolizing their password and locked states (and removed the Pwd column)
  • The user management dialog now shows the logged in computers for each account
  • Remote Controllers now can also have a name/alias
  • The submitter column now also shows the name/alias and computer name/IP of the submitter
  • The dispatcher will now randomize its client selection (while still taking the client priority into account, of course)
  • "Cancel job" and "Restart job" have been added to the net job toolbars
  • Limited the number of net jobs the automatic frame checking can create to a depth of 3
  • Set the maximum name length for a net job to 256 characters
  • The default net job name format (for new net jobs) can now be specified
  • Non-existing UNC files in a render set could slow down the render set page
  • Updated the CPU usage function on Windows (the client will no longer hang on startup)
  • Fixed a small bug where slash directions could be messed up in paths
  • Updated the Maya software renderer to use render.exe instead of mayabatch.exe (no need to change any settings, though)
  • Pings are now always sent to the clients, even if their pool is stopped
  • It is now possible to configure the client to disconnect from the server if no ping was received within a given time
  • The registration/invalid license dialog has been slightly improved
  • The Remote Controller got a client/pool list just like in the server
  • Fixed a crash when deleting pools
  • It is now possible to edit the user access for pools even if the account is currently in use
  • Added a new, multi-paged options dialog
  • Dropped the "Performance and memory optimized" client settings (and adjusted some defaults instead)
  • The external resources Dll (RpExtRes.dll) has been dropped
  • Updated the text viewer and event log viewer dialogs
  • Merged the date and time columns in the event log lists
  • It is now possible to retrieve the output and event log from a client
  • Frame checking can now also be performed on cancelled jobs
  • Several unnecessary "Out of sync" errors were fixed
  • Removed the "Show colored menus" option (menus will now always have the "classic" look)
  • Removing finished net jobs will no longer send email notifications
  • Added an entry to remove all finished net jobs to the net job list context menu
  • A client pool can now be excluded from all jobs via context menu
  • The net job status is now shown in different colors
  • The job history entry status is now also shown in different colors
  • Added a simple main menu to the output window
  • Slightly redesigned the net job dialog
  • It is now possible to select specific clients for a net job, not just entire pools
  • A client can now be excluded from its current job and all net jobs via context menu
  • Also added context menu entries to assign a pool/client to all net jobs
  • It is now possible to retrieve the event log from the server
  • The job queue (and support for RenderPal job queues) has been dropped from the server
  • The navigation bar was moved from the right to the top
  • Plenty of visual improvements
  • Connecting to unavailable computers using their NetBIOS name could lead to an endless number of connection retries
  • New icons everywhere
  • RenderPal filetypes (for RenderSet files etc.) are now only registered for the Workstation version
  • Added context menu entries to the pools to connect to/disconnect from all clients
  • The colored (nifty) chunk bar has been removed
  • RenderPal will now register a system environment variable containing its path (can be used for batch update scripts etc.)
  • Fixed a bug with UNC paths containing spaces when using the Maya software renderer
  • Dropped the rendered images window (RIW)
  • The chunk column (now called progress) in the net job list now shows a progress bar
  • New renderer options dialog (again)
  • Some rather unnecessary options were removed
  • Svr/Cl] The event logs got a separate tab
  • Added an event log to the Remote Controller
  • Expand all/Collapse all added to the pools context menu
  • Made moving around the server directory easier (source files are now saved with relative paths)
  • Optimized the network traffic and logic between the Server and the Remote Controller
  • The Remote Controller should now be less prone to corrupt user data packages
  • Fixed a bug where unnecessary (and useless) data packets were sent to the Remote Controllers
  • The server will now send updates to the Remote Controllers when adding, editing or deleting net jobs
  • It's now possible to select which columns to display for each list control (via header context menu)
  • Made loading of the NCC configuration more error tolerant
  • Enclosing whitespaces are now removed from filenames and paths
  • Exporting a render set/job queue to a batch will no longer switch renderers
  • The "Find render setting" dialog now remembers its settings
  • The render set tab got a major overhaul
  • Added a new render settings control
  • It is now possible to select a renderer directly in the render set (also acts as a filter)
  • The entire render set dialog is now dynamic, showing only settings available for the selected renderer
  • The global renderer has been dropped
  • Added an option to choose whether new net jobs should use the renderer specified in the render set
  • Renamed the "Maya (Layer rendering)" renderer to "Maya default" (as this renderer will mainly use the scene settings for rendering)
  • Removed all unnecessary and never used commandline switches from the GUI versions
  • It's no longer possible to edit a net job which is currently being edited by another user
  • It is now possible to start/stop the RenderPal service within the autostart dialog
  • Added a "Shutdown" entry to the main and tray menus; this will exit the server/client and stop the autostart service as well
  • Added commandline switches to install, uninstall, start and stop the autostart service
  • When shutting down the computer, net jobs will now be saved
  • The autostart service can now be run under the LocalSystem account
  • Custom renderer switches are now added via a handy list instead of a simple text field
  • Due to the new custom renderer format, switches have become more flexible
  • Fixed some parsing bugs in custom renderers
  • Added an option to also include custom renderers in the renderer filter list in the render set tab
  • Added a commandline switch (/nofirststart) to prevent the configuration dialogs from showing up on first start
  • While rendering, the client will now set its process priority to high (to be more responsive)
  • "Load/Save net jobs" and "Clear all" have been removed from the navigation bar (load and save are still present in the main menu)
  • Added the ability to create path maps to the server (path maps can be defined globally, per pool and per client)
  • Path maps can also be edited via the Remote Controller
  • Added a new user right to allow users to modify the path maps
  • Net job chunk events now include the client name
  • rep and -amt had wrong types
  • The net job dialog is now resizable
  • Added a toolbar for the client pool list
  • Rewrote the frame checker image sequencing code (now uses regular expressions)
  • It's now possible to set the file pattern in the frame checker window
  • Added an option to only find "exact matches" to the frame checker
  • An exit confirmation is now shown for all RenderPal apps
  • Double-clicking on a client in the client list will now connect to the client
  • The "chunk details" column in the client list has been splitted into 3 separate columns (scene, frames, slice)
  • Disconnects initiated by the server were ignored
  • Added a net job chunk list
  • Net job chunks can now be skipped (set to "done"), restarted and cancelled manually
  • It is now possible to take a look at the "history" of every chunk
  • Context menus in the client and net job list are now always shown, even when logged off
  • When installing the autostart service, a check can now be set to start the service after installation
  • The client status is now also shown in different colors
  • The free memory column in the client list now shows the amount of used memory instead
  • The CPU and used memory columns in the client list now show a meter bar
  • A default format for the submitter name column can now be specified
  • Grouped the user rights and added a simple context menu to grant/revoke all rights
  • The user account list now shows the rights granted to an account
  • NetJob IDs are now persistent
  • Splitter positions weren't restored when the main window was maximized
  • The "Try to automatically select the renderer for new net jobs" option has been removed
  • Added an option to automatically select the renderer in a render set based on the added scenes
  • A better error-description is now shown when an invalid (or no) executable was specified for a renderer
  • Network messages that were too large to be sent could lead to a crash
  • When a remote connection is closed, any pending message waits will be immediately cancelled
  • Added net job events (pre/post-execution actions for chunks and net jobs)
  • Added Python scripting support to net job events
  • Fixed some small bugs in the commandline Remote Controller
  • It's now possible to set the client limit and time thresholds in the commandline Remote Controller
  • Net job render sets can now also be edited in the Remote Controller
  • Net job chunk recreation warnings are now only shown when necessary (i.e. when chunks will be recreated)
  • Made several improvements in the general workflow (mainly regarding render sets and net jobs)
  • Finished chunks were automatically resubmitted in some cases
  • Added the ability to retrieve the (most recent) output for a specific chunk
  • The processor override setting has been moved directly into the clients
  • "Edit render set" added to the net job toolbar
  • Additional search paths can now also be defined in the commandline client
  • Added a new user right to allow users to configure the clients
  • Time left estimates are now shown immediately after the first chunk has been rendered
  • Clients can now be remotely (batch) configured
  • It's now possible to specify a minimum client priority in a net job (only clients with at least this priority will render the job)
  • Logging in the commandline client now works just like in the GUI client
  • Logging options were added to the commandline client configuration
  • Improved Windows Vista compatibility
  • The first 10 external tools can now be launched via Ctrl+1 - Ctrl+0
  • The status bar now shows the number of total and finished net jobs
  • The "Tools->Advanced" menu has been removed; a new options page has been added instead (General->Miscellaneous)
  • Integrated the zlib (RpZlib.dll) into the main executables; updated to zlib 1.2.3
  • Added automated update installation: Updates can now be installed from within the server; clients and RCs will be updated automatically
  • Update management added to the server
  • Removed the "Disconnect" menu entry from the client
  • Fixed a rare crash when applying renderer options
  • Disconnecting idle clients now works as expected (the timeout value was calculated incorrectly)
  • Pools can now automatically shutdown clients after a definable idle time
  • Added a new user right which allows the modification of the idle clients shutdown time
  • The shortcut to show/hide the framechecker window is now Ctrl+Shift+F
  • Most lists can now be searched (either using the context menu or Ctrl+F/F3)
  • When a rendering fails, an event log entry will now be added
  • New event log entries are now shown at the top
  • Added context menu entries to immediately reboot and shutdown single clients and all clients within a pool
  • The server will now automatically send "live data" to the Remote Controllers (can be turned off in the advanced options)
  • Added view filters for the client and net job list; it's now possible to ony show entries which match certain criteria
  • The registration dialog is now shown if no license file could be found
  • Added new user rights to access the Client and User Management
  • The user management is now also present in the Remote Controller
  • Fixed a memory leak in the network messaging code
  • No more connection test is performed when adding or editing a client
  • The client management is now also present in the Remote Controller
  • Dropped the custom scene file filter support via SceneFilter.cfg
  • Added a new user right to allow users to create new net jobs
  • The connection dialog now shows a dropdown list of all recently used logins
  • The output logging now uses a separate buffer for each rendered job
  • The maximum number of stored output buffers can be specified to limit the amount of consumed memory
  • A drop down showing all output buffers has been added to the output window (also present in the Server and RC, but without much use)
  • Event log lists now have a selection (makes it possible to only copy a certain portion of the events to the clipboard)
  • Updated several renderers
  • RenderPal can now map network paths when running the server/client as a service (i.e., mappings now work under XP and above)
  • Net jobs which only consist of finished and cancelled chunks are now shown as "Idle" (since they aren't done, but won't be rendered)
  • Manual entries can now be added to the scene file list (typing filenames instead of just selecting the files)
  • The scene file list now shows the file size and modified date of the scenes
  • When stopping or uninstalling the service, the main application was terminated if it was previously launched by the service
  • The known client list (client management) now shows the version number (build) of all clients
  • "Remove finished jobs" is enabled when there are finished jobs from the logged in user and the user has full control over his own jobs
  • Added a switch to the commandline Remote Controller to set the net job dependency
  • Heartbeats now also work under MacOSX
  • The Start/Stop pool button is now hidden if the necessary user right is missing
  • A ".\" is only added in front of the service logon user name if the account belongs to the built-in domain
  • If an instance of the server is already running, starting the server again will now bring up the running instance
  • Viewing output logs won't start notepad anymore; instead, the internal text viewer is used
  • Added pool priorities (defines the order in which pools will be processed)
  • Added a new commandline switch "/heartbeat" to set the heartbeat address
  • V-Ray for 3dsMax was not always visible
  • Dropped the option to disconnect a client after a certain number of chunk errors
  • Added an option to automatically exclude a client from a net job when a certain amount of chunk errors has occurred
  • The render set setting "Processors used" will now override the client's setting
  • When saving a render set of a finished or cancelled net job, a confirmation is now shown whether to restart the job
  • Added a "Date" column to the job history
  • Added an option to all built-in renderers whether to check their return codes or not
  • Server startup time has been drastically improved
  • The idle time of clients is now shown in the "Elapsed time" column

New in RenderPal 1.90 build 0707 (May 8, 2007)

  • Several renderers were updated (usually due to compatibility reasons)
  • The client management now shows the number of known clients beside the client limit
  • When trying to modify the pool access of an user account which is currently in use, a warning is now shown
  • New net jobs will carry the scene name in their name
  • Net job names can now be 64 characters long
  • The default client alias now uses the placeholder %COMPUTERNAME%
  • By default, output and output logging will be turned on (even in performance optimized settings)
  • Fixed a bug where the known clients couldn't be loaded anymore (damaged NCC.cfg)
  • When using the service autostart option under Windows XP or later, a warning is shown regarding network drive accessibility
  • Added Png to the image formats
  • Fixed importing settings from Maya scenes
  • Missing "Config" directories are now automatically created
  • A list of broadcast address proposals has been added to the client options
  • The Job Submitter now performs an automatic refresh after certain important actions
  • Added an option so that RenderPal will automatically select the renderer for new net jobs (based on scene endings)
  • User accounts can now have an email address; email notifications about their net jobs will be sent to this address
  • Specifying global recipients for email notifications is no longer required
  • Fixed a bug where the pools assigned in a net jobs weren't saved correctly
  • Added an option to search subdirectories to the frame checker
  • Client heartbeats could cause a "reassignment" when using NetBIOS names
  • User accounts can now have a rendering schedule (jobs submitted by the user will only be rendered during the scheduled times)
  • Added automatic chunk resubmission to net jobs; chunks can now be resubmitted if their rendering time is below/above certain thresholds

New in RenderPal 1.86 Build 0681 (Dec 12, 2006)

  • RenderPal now stores all data when Windows is shut down
  • [! Global] MentalRay for Maya output format has been fixed for Maya 8
  • [ Global] Added new renderer: Cinema 4D
  • [ Global] Added new renderer: Final Render for Maya
  • [! Server] Fixed a crash when editing the pool schedule of a newly created pool

New in RenderPal 1.70.0604 (Mar 9, 2006)

  • [ Global] Added new renderer: Maxwell
  • [ Global] Added new renderer: RenderMan for Maya
  • [ Global] Added new renderer: Blender
  • [ Server] Added an IP Cache to the Client management (maps NetBIOS names to their real IPs)
  • [# Server] Prepared everything for a "local client only" version of RenderPal 2004 Server
  • [# Server] The Local Client server will launch the client automatically when started
  • [ Global] Added new renderer: V-Ray for 3dsMax
  • [! Svr/Js] Closing the net job dialog could sometimes lead to a crash
  • [! Svr/Js] The net job priority slider (net job dialog) wasn't working correctly
  • [# Global] A bunch of smaller changes and improvements
  • [# Global] Main event log got some simple icons
  • [ Global] It is now possible to search for a specific setting in the render settings list
  • [ Global] Added a handy "Render to Print" calculator
  • [ Global] It is now possible to add external tools to the "Tools" menu
  • [ Server] Added the ability to quickly duplicate user accounts
  • [# Wks/Cl] Error-codes returned by the renderers are now shown in the output window
  • [# Global] Paths are now always enclodes with quotes
  • [# Server] Further improvements to the license file checks