Installing RenderMan Pro Server on

WINDOWS

Introduction

This document describes how to install RenderMan Pro Server on Windows, including installation of PhotoRealistic RenderMan License Server components.

Installation Process

RenderMan Pro Server for Windows are installed using the Microsoft Software Installer (MSI). Proper installation requires that the Windows Installer service be already loaded on your machine; if you are running Windows, you may need to ensure that this service has been installed (Windows 2000 and later should already have this installed by default).

Pixar's RenderMan software has been divided into separate MSI files. These are:

The easiest installation method is to run each .msi individually. The installer will take you through the process step by step. Depending on how you answer the questions posed by the installer, it will automatically install the necessary components as needed.

Destination Folder
During the installation process, you will first be given a chance to select a root directory. By default, this directory is C:\Program Files\Pixar\. This will become the root directory for all of the various components listed above.

Installation Profiles
The Installer will give you two choices of profiles, which makes it easier to decide which components are installed on each machine. These profiles are:

A) Rendering Workstation: This profile is available when running Pixar_RenderManProServer_version_Win32.vc8-SSE2.msi. This is the default and recommended install for a machine that will be used to provide rendering services.

B) Custom: The Custom profile allows you to choose individual components for installation.

Licensing
After choosing a profile, you will be required to supply information about licensing. Pixar's software will run only with a valid license. Licenses are obtained from Pixar, and are keyed to a special machine designated as your license server. Pixar's software must be told which machine has been designated as the license server; you will be prompted for the Server Location and port number, you should enter the name of this machine and the port number here.

If you change the license server after the install, you will need to change the license configuration manually - see: License Configuration.

If you have not installed a license server, and are currently running the installer on the machine which you intend to be the license server, you should install Pixar_License-la_5.0.1_Win32.vc8-SSE2.msi before attemping to use RenderMan Pro Server.

Network Rendering Options
Alfserver is now bundled as part of RenderMan Pro Server. The executable is now located in $RMANTREE/bin and is installed as part of the RenderMan Pro Server installers, rather than being installed separately in its own directory. Alfserver can still be configured to multiplex between several prman distributions. For more information see The Alfserver Manual.

License Server (Pixar_License-la_5.0.1_Win32.vc8-SSE2.msi)
If you have decided to install the license server locally, you will need a valid license file. Licenses are obtained from Pixar, and are keyed to a special machine designated as your license server. Please see: Licensing for mor information on obtaining this license file.

Rebooting After installation you will be asked to reboot. This is necessary. During the installation process, services will be created, and registry and environment variable entries will be set up. The reboot is necessary for these services to properly come on line.

Environment Variables

The RenderMan Installation Wizard will add several environment variables during an install. These environment settings are required for the RenderMan Artist Tool applications to function correctly, specifying versions and locations of the various components of the toolset. You'll find that this simple mechanism allows you to quickly switch between versions of RenderMan. These variables will be set up automatically by the installer, but they're an important and crucial element of the installation process.

RenderMan Environment Variables
The RenderMan Installation Wizard will add or modify these environment variables:

RMANTREE
 establishes the location of your prman distribution

The following environement variable is not set by the installer, however it is highly suggested that you set this manually. Please refer to Setting Environment Variables Manually below. 
PATH
 established the searchpath for the execution of programs. "%RMANTREE%\bin" should be in your path.

Configuring "it" for Image Display 
You may also set an environment variable to enable the image tool 'it' as your framebuffer when displaying renders from RenderMan. Note: 'it' is installed as part of the RenderMan Studio product, an is not part of the RenderMan Pro Server installation. 

RMANFB
 set to it in order to use the image tool "it" as your framebuffer for image display 

If you prefer not to set this environment variable, an alternate way of doing this is to edit the rendermn.ini configuration file, and change the setting of /displaytype/framebuffer to it.

Setting Environment Variables Manually
 In certain cases you may need to enter these variables manually, if you've bypassed the RenderMan Installation Wizard, for instance, or if you want to edit variables to switch between software versions. The environment variables are easily edited through the System Properties control panel:

 

Important Notes

License Configuration
In order to run, Pixar software applications need to know which machine on the network has been designated as the license server. This is configured via the file %RMANTREE%\etc\rendermn.ini. By default, the installers for Pixar licensed software will prompt you for the name of the license server and automatically edit this file for you by changing the appropriate /licenseserver entry, which looks something like this: 

/licenseserver 9010@licenseserver

If you subsequently change license servers, you will need to either reinstall the software, or manually edit rendermn.ini yourself and update the /licenseserver entry.

Documentation
All of the documentation for the RenderMan Artist Tools is online in HTML format. This documentation can be viewed in any HTML browser such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Explorer. Open the main page: index.html

What if I need more help?

Check out the RenderMan Support Forum.

If that fails, try customer service:
Email: rmancusp@pixar.com
Phone: (800) 937-3179 (U.S. only); (510) 922-3028 (direct)

 

Pixar Animation Studios
(510) 922-3000 (voice)   (510) 922-3151 (fax)
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RenderMan® is a registered trademark of Pixar.