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Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2019 3:05 am
by tpolson01
I am rendering scene with a large ocean from the shelf. I am pretty sure all my paths are correct using the $HIP variable and using a specific project directory. When I render mantra to disk, it renders fine. When I render afanasy, ocean has no geometry. Just the grid.
It was render correctly at one point, but I don't understand if afanasy needs additional info to make sure everything point to the carrect project folder.
This submitting from inside Houdini 18.
Thanks. Sorry if this was asked before.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2019 9:55 am
by timurhai
Hi.

Afanasy does not needs any additional info.
It event does not care about Houdini, oceans and any cache.
Afanasy just run commands.

First of all, you should read task process output, may there is some warning message like "can't get cache file from path".

There can be lots of reasons, when the result, rendered from GUI, and the result, rendered by command, are differ.
Such cases better to debug running command, that afrender runs, manually.
You can get(copy) task command and run(paste) it in terminal.

Be sure, that you are running terminal by the same user that afrender runs by.
Different users can have differ permissions and environment.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2019 6:03 am
by tpolson01
I think I narrowed it down to the $HIPNAME variable in the cache path. I noticed Afanasy adds the file extension to the folder name I am rendering to. If my scene is "scenename.hip", my output folder should be "scenename" in my render folder. Afanasy makes it "scenename.hip". Maybe that is confusing the file path to cache. If i replace $HIPNAME with actual folder name the cache files are in, it works.
Is there a way I can eliminate the extension?

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2019 9:29 am
by timurhai
Hi.
When you press "Submit" button on the Afanasy ROP, it saves scene to some temporary name to render.
This allows artist to continue working (changing) current scene, while render farm will render some other file that should not be changed during render.
For this behavior stands "Render Temporary HIP File" check box, that is turned on by default.
You can turn it off, change the default value.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2019 7:08 pm
by tpolson01
I had render temp file off. if i turn it on, i get, .1227-103741-315.hip for render name and .1227-103741-315.hip.mantra1.xxxx.exr for the files because I am using the $HIPNAME variable. I think what is happening is afanasy is changing what Houdini expects to see as the $HIPNAME so the paths are incorrect when trying to render.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Sun Dec 29, 2019 9:34 am
by timurhai
You can try to print somewhere $HIPNAME on different stages.
Also, to catch that bug is definitely with $HIPNAME, you can try to use it.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2020 4:07 am
by corella
tpolson01 wrote: Fri Dec 27, 2019 7:08 pm I had render temp file off. if i turn it on, i get, .1227-103741-315.hip for render name and .1227-103741-315.hip.mantra1.xxxx.exr for the files because I am using the $HIPNAME variable. I think what is happening is afanasy is changing what Houdini expects to see as the $HIPNAME so the paths are incorrect when trying to render.
I can confirm this. Caches are not loaded when there is a HIPNAME Variable in the path.

Example:
Scene name is "Testrender", cache output path is set to: $HIP/$HIPNAME/$HIPNAME.$OS.$F4.bgeo.
The resolved path would be: Project/Testrender/Testrender.ROP.0024.bgeo
Afanasy expects: Project/Testrender.hiplc/Testrender.ROP.0024.bgeo, which it can not find.

The workaround is to load the cache with a filenode using the actual path and name without variables.
The actual solution would be to make afanasy ignore the file extention when interpreting the $HIPNAME variable.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2020 8:41 am
by timurhai
Hi!

So, $HIPNAME variable should be "baked" somehow on a job submission?
And then, when scene file name will be changed to temporary, it should stay the same?
May be pass it in a render command line?

This should be done and tested by users who uses it.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2020 10:11 am
by corella
I don't know what Afanasy does with the variable. I only know it interprets it differently than Houdini. If it would interpret it exactly like Houdini, it would not create directories with a file extension in the name.
So baking the solved path would be one option, but I think the logical solution would be to strip the extension.

Re: Houdini ocean geo cache render issues

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2020 10:22 am
by timurhai
Afanasy does nothing with $HIPNAME variable.
But it saves scene to some temporary name to render (you can turn this option off).
So, scene with other file name has other $HIPNAME.
In this case Afanasy should do something with this variable.
Better to store it somehow.
If we just cut extension, there can be a mess with some other dot in a hip file name.