The problem with distributing particle systems is that all of the
processors need to have access to the same data during the simulation...
which usually confines these simulations to a single machine.
I hear there is a new machine out there with 8 dual-core AMD processors
in it... that would probably speed up your sim... it's only like $25K.
:-)
-Eric
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kris Rivel" <kris(at)krisrivel.com>
To: <XSI(at)Softimage.COM>
Sent: Tuesday, April 25, 2006 2:24 PM
Subject: Re: network distributed particle simulations?
An hour per frame....wow, you don't mess around do you :-) I didn't
think distributing particles was possible. I know that the Next Limit
guys are working on this I think but the obvious problem is that you
need the previous frame to simulate the next frame, etc.
Kris
Mathieu Leclaire wrote:
OK, I'm still working on my particle simulations here... A particle
cloud
with a scripted event that calls a custom command on every frame to
calculate a special collision event, where it passes information from
one
cloud to another through a UserDataBlob when certain particles
collide.
Anyway, the thing is, for the number of particles that I need, and
even
though I believe I've optimized the simulation as best I can, it
takes
roughly an hour a frame to calculate my simulations. At 200 frames,
well, it
takes more then a week of simulation using one machine. We have a
pretty big
render farm here so if I could find a way to use it to split the
simulations
over multiple machines, then we can make the simulations in a more
reasonable time frame. So my question is this: how can I distribute
my
simulations over a network? What would be the best way to approach
the
issue? I need to have xsi evaluate the cloud normally, make the
particles
move depending on forces and once the particles are positioned
correctly, my
scripted event is called that calls the custom command. How can I
separate
the process of that custom command over multiple machines so that one
machine calculates lets say the first 100 particles, and the next one
calculates another group of 100 particles and so on, until all the
particles
have been evaluated and all the resulting data can be passed to the
UserDataBlob... I just want to make sure you guys understand that
what needs
to be distributed is the evaluation in my custom command that happens
between each frames and that, depending on that result, the particles
will
change and affect the following frame. So before the next frame can
be
evaluated, the current network process must be done before the next
frame
can start. Any suggestions on how to do something like that? Anyone
had to
deal with something similar? Any help or suggestions would be greatly
appreciated.
Mathieu Leclaire
R&D Programmer
Hybride Technologies
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