In 3D Studio MAX R2 a new method of running Manager.exe and Server.exe has been implemented, eliminating the need to launch these two programs from the MS-DOS command-line windows. Now, you can double-click their icons before rendering to display modeless Windows dialogs that provide the same type of listed display, with additional options.
By double-clicking on Network Manager and Network Rendering Server icons you initialize and start the programs in Desktop mode as opposed to running them as an NT Service which is explained below. They are foreground processes on your desktop. The windows need to remain open or minimized to maintain the service.
The following options are available.
List Window: This section of the Manager and Server windows lists all different types of information regarding the current status of Manager and/or Server. Depending on the selections made in the Logging Properties dialog, messages are displayed alerting the user to such things as: Connection and registration between the Manager/Server(s), new job assignments, frames assigned/rendered, acknowledge packets sent between the Manager and Server(s), Manager/Server(s) shutting down, any rendering errors encountered, etc. These are the same types of messages that used to appear in the MS-DOS windows in R1.X, but you can now filter these messages using the Logging subdialog, as described below.
Logging Properties: The Logging buttons in both the Manager and Server windows invoke identical Logging Properties subdialogs that let you filter the types of messages that will appear in the list window, and specify whether the messages will be sent to the list window or a log file.
Log To Screen: The options in this section of the dialog determine which types of messages are displayed in the list window of each dialog. Check each type of message that you wish to be displayed. Error, Warning, and Info are checked by default. Each Log Type is explained below.
Log To File: The options in this section of the dialog determine the messages that are saved to log files. These are the same messages that appear on the screen. Check any of the following categories to save it in a log file. When any one of these categories is checked, a Manager.log file or Server.log file is created in your \network directory. As a default, none of these items is checked, and no log file is created. Each Log Type is explained below.
Error: Fatal errors that halt a server’s rendering of a job. These errors are preceded by a red “E” in the Manager or Server List Window, and include the following:
Note: You can see a more detailed explanation for server failure in the Log File panel of the Queue Manager.
Warning: Non-fatal warning information. These errors are preceded by a yellow “W” in the Manager or Server List Window, and include the following:
Info: General information about the current status of the Manager or Server. These errors are preceded by a green “I” in the Manager or Server List Window, and include the following:
Debug: Detailed information about TCP/IP packets and the current state of the Manager and Server. These messages are preceded by a blue “D” in the Manager or Server List Window, and include the following:
Buffer Limit : Specifies the maximum size of the buffer holding the messages.
Clear Log : Clears the buffer holding the messages in the List Window.
Clear Log File: Deletes the associated manager.log and/or server.log file.
Caution: Log files are only cleared when you click the Clear Log File button. When categories are enabled in either or both log files, the files will continue to grow in size every time you render.