RNDR Genesis Mainnet FAQ

GENERAL

How can I join the Network if I was not in the Genesis / Beta?

We are gradually adding users to the network in the coming weeks. If you have spare NVIDIA GPU power that you want to try using on the network or have ORBX scenes that are ready for rendering, please reach out to beta@rendertoken.com and a team member will contact you. 

If you are interested in joining the network as an artist or miner, please fill out the RNDR Interest Form.

For general questions, also please see our Website FAQ, where you can find information like recommended Hardware Minimum requirements, communication channels, and common uses. 

 

How Much Compute Work Does 1 RNDR Token Buy and How is it Calculated?

1 RNDR = 256 Octane Bench x 256 seconds for the first phase of the Genesis Mainnet Launch. However, RNDR will be updated shortly to provide more Octane Bench work for one token to reflect the increased rendering efficiency of OctaneRender 2018 (where we see up to 25-30% Octane Bench speed boosts in Turing/Volta, and 10-15% increases in Pascal). Additionally, the RNDR Network is also built on a Region system that enables the network to match users based on their rendering preferences for speed priority, security, concurrent OctaneBench, and cost. As a result, the network is built to provide multiple tiers of rendering preferences, with different amounts of OctaneBench compute work provided for 1 RNDR Token based on their preferences for speed priority, security, concurrent OctaneBench power, and cost. Similar to how public GPU cloud providers like AWS offer Spot prices that are up to 90% cheaper than Reserved or On-Demand instances, users with relaxed preferences for speed, security or concurrent OctaneBench power, will be able to get more work done for 1 RNDR Token depending on their preferences.

Please see this blog post to learn more about RNDR Multi-Tier Pricing (MTP), which will be based on a number of factors including decentralized supply and demand equilibrium data.

 

What Version of Octane is supported?

The Genesis Mainnet is released with the most current stable version of Octane- OctaneRender 2018.1.3. After the Genesis period, the network will support all current versions of Octane.

 

How is my Reputation Score Calculated?

The network collects data about job performance and job history and uses this to generate a reputation score. More details about how reputation scores are generated will be released after the testing period, and optimization will be done based on decentralized peer-to-peer rendering from this Genesis period.

 

How do I Migrate my Tokens?

You can read instructions for migrating your tokens here. When using the network, the RNDR User Interface also notifies users that have not migrated their tokens to do so.

When Will RNDR List on Trading Platforms?

We do not currently have any information to share regarding trading platforms. The network is built to provide a stable utility, so any trading markets will need to be accessible to artists who need RNDR to pay for jobs on the network and allow those receiving RNDR tokens to sell their tokens in order to pay operational costs, like electricity, hardware, and GPU maintenance costs. If independently contacted by a trading platform to assist in establishing a market for RNDR tokens, we will evaluate whether to provide such assistance accordingly.

 

Can I Buy RNDR with Paypal or Stripe?

We have created infrastructure to allow Render Credits to be purchased using Paypal or Stripe on an as needed basis. These Credits will be non-exchangeable and only usable on the network. More information will be released on these purchasing options shortly.

 

I am a Current ORC User, what will happen to ORC?

ORC will continue to be supported on orc.otoy.com

 

USING THE SYSTEM

How do I See How Many Tokens I Have Earned?

You can check how many Render Tokens you have earned by going to etherscan link and adding your walletID to the “Filter by” bar.

Note: "OUT" is when an artist is paying for jobs (a miner should not have any of these) and "IN" is when there is a refund on excess tokens (this will be receiving payment for work in a miner's case).

 

How Do I Know How Many Render Tokens a Job Will Cost?

Estimating rendering costs in advance of processing a job is often difficult due to disparities in lighting, camera positioning, scene complexity, and a host of other factors. In the Artist Portal there is a Job Estimator that provides a rough approximation of rendering costs and times. It is important to note that this is only an approximation. In order to use the estimator. Run OctaneBench on your local machine to find your OctaneBench score. Render 1 frame and calculate the time it took to render that frame. The estimator will then run an approximation based on this data.  

A recommended approach is to render the most complex frame in a sequence to base your estimate off, or a number of complex frames (where you can do a weighted average). This will give you an approximation of the upper bound of credits needed to render a job. Again, it is important to emphasize that these are only estimates, and closely tracking job progress through your Artist Portal can help you effectively manage your use of Render Tokes.

 

How Do I Upload Scenes to the Network for Rendering?

Scenes need to be uploaded to the Render Network as ORBX files. You can create ORBX files using OctaneRender Standalone or any of the 20+ OctaneRender DCC plugins. Please see this guide for more information about creating ORBX files:

https://help.otoy.com/hc/en-us/articles/360029516612-Using-the-RNDR-Network-as-an-Artist

 

Should I Optimize My Scenes Before Rendering?

Yes! GPU Cloud rendering can significantly augment local rendering power. However, there are limitations like uploading and downloading scene data on distributed render nodes that make it important to optimize scenes as much as possible prior to rendering. Scenes that are not optimized - with elements like unnecessarily complex geometry and poorly configured lighting - will dramatically slow down render times and increase rendering costs. These may even lead to terminal render failures. For example, if you cannot render a scene on a local workstation running Octane, it is unlikely you will be able to process the scene effectively in the cloud without further optimizations. 

 

How Do I View My Renders?

As frames are rendered, you will be able to see a small preview of your Job in the interface. Each column represents a single frame that you can inspect by double clicking on the frame. This will open up a larger watermarked preview for you to view and approve when the frame is completed. In the preview, you can also see a frame resolve as more samples are rendered.

 

 

How Does Job Approval Work?

As Frames are rendered and a job is completed you can individually approve or reject each frame. You can also approve frames in batch sequences. For example, at frame 1000, you can approve all previous frames from 0-1000 in one click by checking the box “Apply to Previous Frames” and clicking Approve.

Once a frames are approved and a job is confirmed, you can download the frames in your Artist Portal. After approval, Tokens are also released to the Miner who has successfully rendered the work.

Please note that if no approval or rejection of frames or frame sequences is given within 72 hours of Job completion, all frames will be automatically approved.

 

What Happens When I Elect to Re-Render a Frame?

If there is a failed render, select the Individual Frame or Sequence of Frames and click Re-Render. Once a you select Re-Render, the frame(s) will automatically be sent to another node on the network to be re-rendered. You will not be charged for the failed frames but you will have to pay the final rendering costs for the re-render. Additionally, it is important to note that you will also not be allowed to modify the frame or sequence in any way. As a result, jobs should only be re-rendered if there was an error processing the frame - like black frames, partially rendered frames, or broken frames. They should not be re-rendered if there was an error in the scene configuration, or for artistic adjustments - like changing samples, color, lighting, resolution, camera position etc. as there is no ability to modify the scene once a job has been submitted to the network for rendering. If you need to make artistic adjustments, cancel the job, make the appropriate changes, and resubmit the job to to the network (see the FAQ below).

After a number of failed re-renders, a job will be terminated and a support ticket will be automatically created. A support team member will review the failure and follow up. For support inquiries please contact support@rendertoken.com

 

When Should I Cancel a Job Rather than Re-Render a Frame?

Frames should only be sent for re-rendering if there was an error processing the frame - for example if there is a blank screen or abnormally processed frames compared to other frames in your job. Because frames should only be re-rendered for a frame failure excessive failures and rejections will lead to review.

If, for example, you want to modify the Sample rate or change elements in a scene like the camera, lighting, colors etc., please cancel the Job, make the changes and Submit a new Job to be processed. For this reason, is critical to check a Job prior to rendering to ensure that you are getting desired results. 

To cancel a job, click the icon on the top right corner of the inspector window and a pop-up will appear to confirm you want to cancel the job. Jobs can be cancelled at any point. However, in progress frames will be completed and miners will be compensated for this rendering work, with RNDR released from an Artist's wallet for the completed frames. These frames will then be available for download.

 

Why Do I Need to Add Tokens During a Rendering Job?

It is not possible to estimate Job costs with 100% accuracy prior to actually doing the rendering work. Often times there is significant variance in the rendering work required between frames as things like the camera positioning, lighting, and a host of other factors change from one frame to another. For this reason the Tokens or Credits in deposit are only a base estimation, and the actual rendering work will occasionally exceed the initial estimation.

When a job exceeds tokens or credits in deposit of the smart contract, it will automatically be paused and a notification will pop up asking you to add tokens or credits to your account. However, all the frames that are currently in progress will be rendered. Once approved, completed frames can be downloaded. In order to continue a job, you will need to add tokens or credits to your account and resume the render.

 

How Do I Download and Share a Render?

You can download and share your Job, using the 2 highlighted icons on the right side of the Job page.

When either function is selected, it will redirect you to another page where you will be able to select the range of frames and output format(s) that you want to download/share. If you need to approve renders, you will be directed to page to approve your renders prior to downloading. 

 

PARTNERSHIPS

How is RNDR Using Algorand?

Many users have asked about a recently announced collaboration with Algorand. Blockchain technologies that allow the network to provide increased transaction throughput and reduced transaction latency increase network efficiency as more users join a peer-to-peer system. The Genesis Mainnet will be released on Ethereum, but we are exploring technologies that can augment the network’s existing Ethereum infrastructure in order to enable transparent peer-to-peer usage.

 

How Do I Contact the RNDR Team?

Please follow us on our public Medium, Twitter, RocketChat and Telegram Channels. For Business, Press, or Partnership inquiries, please contact info@rendertoken.com