Command Line Installs

You can also install RenderMan Studio without bringing up the installer GUI. As an example, you can install the software locally and stop the automatic reboot from occurring using the following command line (assuming the .msi file is downloaded to the default location):

C:\> msiexec /qn /i C:\Users\you\Desktop\RenderManStudio-Maya<version>-<rmsVersion>-windows7.x86_64.msi /norestart

Omitting /norestart will cause the machine to reboot immediately after the installation is finished.

Optional Installations

Depending on your needs, you may also be using RenderMan Pro Server and/or one of Pixar's queueing products - Tractor or its predecessor, Alfred. Each of these products has a separate installer that you will need to run, and each has different implications for your RenderMan Studio setup.

Node-locked Licenses

As part of the installation process, a licensing application will be invoked. It will ask you for an Entitlement Serial Number, and your Forum login and password. Enter the information in the appropriate fields (if you use a proxy server, your proxy information should be added as host:port, e.g. foo.mydomain.com:8080) and click on the Get License button. The application will contact Pixar's servers and download your license to the etc subdirectory of your RenderMan for Maya installation. Once it is done, quit the licensing application and the installer will run to completion.

Please note, your initial license will be timed to expire in approximately 30 days. At that time you can run the LicenseApp program again to get your permanent license.

Floating Licenses - Standard Installation

Floating licenses are keyed to a specific machine designated as your license server. If you have purchased floating licenses, you must download the License Server software from the Downloads section of the RenderMan support forum and install it before installing RenderMan Studio. Note, this is a download separate from the RenderMan Studio download. The License Server download package for Windows is PixarLicense-LA-<version>-windows<version>.msi.

• Note

  The Pixar License Server software only needs to be installed on the machine that you have designated as your license server. Additionally, while the seemingly mundane task of serving licenses often falls to older hardware, all of Pixar's RenderMan products, including the license server, require processors that are SSE2 compliant. Also, the license server host and its clients should all be on the same side (inside!) of your site firewall.

After installing the license server on your artists' machines, follow the same steps as for a regular installation, including entering the Entitlement Serial Number and your Forum login and password when LicenseApp asks for them. A "stub" (or "redirector") license file is downloaded that will point to the machine where you installed the license server, automatically, and placed in the appropriate location (%RMSTREE%\..\pixar.license, by default).

A stub license should look like this:

<?xml version='1.0' encoding='ISO-8859-1'?>
<!DOCTYPE PixarLicense SYSTEM "http://renderman.pixar.com/schema/PixarLicense.dtd">
<PixarLicense>
  <LicenseInfo>
    <SerialNumber>123-4567-89098-7654-321012</SerialNumber>
    <Created>01-jan-2011 11:11:11</Created>
    <Licensing>PixarLicense-17.0</Licensing>
    <CustomerInfo>
      <CustomerName>Star Command</CustomerName>
      <ContactName>Buzz Lightyear</ContactName>
      <Phone></Phone>
      <Fax></Fax>
      <Email>blightyear@foo.bar</Email>
    </CustomerInfo>
    <LicensedHost>
    <HostIdentifier>001gg23456f7</HostIdentifier>
      <LicenseAccess type="floating">9010@zurgsbane</LicenseAccess>
    </LicensedHost>
  </LicenseInfo>
</PixarLicense>

Once that is done, quit the licensing application and the installer will run to completion. Note that, if you are installing on multiple machines, you can copy this stub file into the appropriate location on any workstation, as necessary.

Floating Licenses - Customized Installation

Floating licenses are keyed to a specific machine designated as your license server. If you have purchased floating licenses, you must download the License Server software from the Downloads section of the RenderMan support forum and install it before installing RenderMan Studio. Note, this is a download separate from the RenderMan Studio download. The License Server download package for Windows is PixarLicense-LA-<version>-windows<version>.msi.

• Note

  The Pixar License Server software only needs to be installed on the machine that you have designated as your license server. Additionally, while the seemingly mundane task of serving licenses often falls to older hardware, all of Pixar's RenderMan products, including the license server, require processors that are SSE2 compliant. Also, the license server host and its clients should all be on the same side (inside!) of your site firewall.

After installing the license server, run the installer for RenderMan Studio. As part of the installation process a licensing application will be invoked. This would install a stub/redirector in the appropriate location. At most sites this is sufficient. At larger sites it may be easier to maintain a single license file, rather than installing locally on every machine. In that case, there are two approaches that may be more appropriate. First, quit LicenseApp and allow the installer to run to completion. Then, choose one of the following methods:

1. Recommended - Use the environment variable PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE to point to a pixar.license that is globally accessible.

2. Alternatively, in a site-wide, custom configuration file, add an appropriate license server entry. Note, this is not suggested because each software package requires this entry in a different .ini or .config file, with different syntax:

   RenderMan Studio looks in RAT.ini for:

   SetPref LicenseServer    9010@yourlicenseserverhostname
   

   RenderMan Pro Server looks in rendermn.ini for:

   /licenseserver    9010@yourlicenseserverhostname
   

   The Tractor Engine looks in the tractor.config file for:

   "LicenseLocation": "9010@yourlicenseserverhostname"
   

   So, seriously, use Option 1 if you're not using the standard licensing configuration. Please.

Updating a License

Obtaining a new or updated license is simply a matter of running LicenseApp by double-clicking on it in the bin subdirectory of your RenderMan Studio installation. By default, this location is:

C:\Program Files\Pixar\RenderManStudio-<version>-maya<version>\bin

The program will contact Pixar and download your license to the correct location.

The process is the same for a floating license, except you need to run the LicenseApp that is included with the PixarLicense software, located by default in:

C:\Program Files\Pixar\PixarLicense-LA-<version>``

Stub/redirector files will continue to work without needing any change.