Is it OKAY to delte render files once a project completed?

I am feeling the FCP 6th sense that I should NOT delete my render files even once I've completed a project. If I want to revisit that project and I've deleted my render files from the render files folder on my hard drive, what happens? They are taking up a lot of space (167GB!) and it's slowing down my system.
thanks for any advice!
jenna

Sure, you can delete the render files. The worst thing that will happen is that if you later want to go back and work on that project, you will need to re-render everything. Personally, I tend to archive my rendered files as well as my captured files off of my main system. That way, if I do need to go back to a project, getting ready to work doesn't take nearly as long.

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Best practice for handling original files once movie is complete?

So I'm taking movies from my Canon S5IS (and other cameras in the past) and making projects in iMovie, sharing in the Media Browser, importing into iDVD, and burning to DVD.
I can't help but wonder if I might need the original footage one day. Do most people keep their original files for future media (replacement for DVD) which I realize would require recreation of the movies that were created in 2008 with iMovie (with title screens, transitions, etc.)? Or do most people delete the originals with the feeling that DVD will be a suitable way to watch home movies for the foreseeable future?
I just can't figure out what to do. I don't want to burn dozens of DVDs of raw footage, only to have keep up with them in a safe deposit box and have to deal with the anxiety of having to recreate movies one day (which is daunting enough now...unbelievably daunting to think about the exponential growth as time progresses).
Hope this make sense. Reading that DVD movies are not suitable for editing due to the codec has made me realize I need to think through this before destroying all these originals as I'm finished with them.
Thanks in advance!
-John

If any of your cams are miniDV, then you simply need to keep the original tapes and tape is still the safest long term archiving solution, when stored properly.
Other cams that use flash memory, hard drives, even DVD cams, do not offer the security that tape does. If you are wanting to save those types of files, the best option would be to store them on one or two external hard drives, bearing in mind those drives could fail anytime. Back up to your back up in that case.
Another nice thing about miniDV cams is that you can export your finished movie back to a tape also, using iMovie HD6, and have safe copies of original and finished material.
Message was edited by: Forest Mccready

Why can't FC save the folder locations set for render files?

I wrongly assumed that when you go to system settings to select the scratch disks (root folder where all the audio and video render folders and files go, capture files, etc.) that Final Cut would save the folder locations within the FC project you are working in. Makes total sense, but for reasons I don't understand, FC does NOT save these folder locations and the result is that I have render files scattered all over the place on my hard drive and it is quite a mess! Fortunately, the project file remembers where it put the render files, so as long as you don't remove or rename any project folders, everything shows up rendered on the time line as it should. The problem is, if I'm working on several projects at once, I have to reset the scratch disks every time I reopen a project, otherwise the program will save it to the last scratch location selected and put all of the render files in another project's folder. I often forget to reset the scratch disks when I'm busy and now I have render files mixed up in various project folders.
Why can't you just set the scratch disks one time when you first set up the project and have the project always remember that location, instead of always having to reset them every time you reopen a project. I love Final Cut, but this is a product defect that should be addressed and corrected. If the project file can remember where it is putting all the render files, it should also be capable of remembering the scratch disk locations you originally selected when you first set up the project or better yet, save it to the project's root folder by default. Am I missing something here?

As MtD describes, FCP sets file locations for ALL projects at the system level. It may help to organize things this way so your files don't end up scattered across multiple locations.
Save the project files to your User folder on the boot drive.
For all the other files FCP creates, set them on a non-boot drive similar to this:
Media Drive
----->FCP Documents
---------->Autosave Vault
---------------->Acme Widgets Demo (sample project name)
---------------->Grass Valley Music Video (sample project name)
---------------->Jen's Wedding (sample project name)
---------->Audio Render Files
---------------->Acme Widgets Demo (sample project name)
---------------->Grass Valley Music Video (sample project name)
---------------->Jen's Wedding (sample project name)
---------->Capture Scratch
---------------->Acme Widgets Demo (sample project name)
---------------->Grass Valley Music Video (sample project name)
---------------->Jen's Wedding (sample project name)
----------->Render Files
---------------->Acme Widgets Demo (sample project name)
---------------->Grass Valley Music Video (sample project name)
---------------->Jen's Wedding (sample project name)
----------->Waveform Cache
Of course, you can choose to keep renders or the Autosave Vault folder on other drives ... just keep them off your boot drive. It may not be the way you're use to working, but it's worked well for me the past 14 years. When you finish with a project and ready to delete the associate files, just go to your media drive and delete folders bearing the project's name.
-DH

FCE Losing Render Files After Project is Copied

I've been having a vexing problem that's been costing me a lot of time. FCE keeps losing the render files for my projects, or more accurately, it is overwriting them or otherwise making them disappear. More background:
I have a large master project that is quite lengthy. I am also breaking that project into smaller videos (it's a concert and I want to have individual song videos as well). I render the large file and get it edited the way I like it. I do a "save as" to the project and create a working copy to clip into songs. However, once I start modifying the copy, if I reopen the original, I am told that the render files have gone offline, and even when I do a manual search i can not find them.
Shouldn't a copy of a project get its own set of renders? Or am I doing something wrong?

First, welcome to the Final Cut Express forum!
Questions
What exactly do you mean by +large master project+ and +quite lengthy?+
What do you mean by +manual search?+ In the reconnect dialog? in the Finder? Somewhere else?
What kind of video are you working with - DV, HDV, AVCHD, something else?
Did your source media clips (video) come directly from your camcorder or some other source? If a camcorder, what make & model?
What are your sequence settings?
_Possible explanation_
Render files are associated with a project name, and no two projects use the same render files. What I suspect is going on is that when you do your +Save As+ and give the project a +new name,+ FCE is carrying the render files forward +associated with the name of the new project.+ That would explain why they are no longer available to the first project.
Suggestion
If you are basically using the same source media clips for your complete concert plus individual songs, imho it would be much better to confine your work to _one FCE project._
In that single project, create your _master sequence_ (the whole concert, as you have already done) and then just create a new sequence for each individual song video that you want to create. This is a much more efficient workflow than creating +separate projects+ to accomplish what you appear to be doing.

How do I get FInal Cut Pro to save the render files?

Final cut used to work really great, but lately it has stopped saving any render files, so ever time I try to edit something new it starts re-rendering all of my other files and slows it down to the point of crashing a lot. Is ther any way to fix this or get it to NOT render things that I am currently not editing?

Can you see the render files in your project folders? FCP X does not stop rendering by its own choice, check your preferences, as Tom suggested, and restart FCPX to see your settings taking effect.

How to view FCPX Render Files?

To start with a simple question: In what format does FCPX store render files? I used to be able to view them in Quicktime with older versions of FCP. How can I view these files in FCPX? These are the sort of large files that show up in your "High Quality Media" folder with names like "Frame 28672 - 29695"
I had a catastrophic hard drive crash. The footage was lost but some fairly recent render files from the project were on a separate drive and remain intact. I also have the project file. Isn't there SOME way to fool FCP into showing these render files in the sequence and letting me at least view them (in sequence) in FCPX and then perhaps somehow, even if it's just real-time recording from a screen-capture program or by outputting through the display port, retrieve some of the lost footage? I don't need the audio, FYI.
I would extremely, extremely grateful for any help.
Thanks,
PBW

If you select an event instead of a project, the command reads "Delete Event Render Files...".
You can select more than one event and delete the render files for all the selected events.

Is this a good idea for house keeping? (re: render files)

I have half a dozen or so projects that I am all finished with, and want to make some disc space.
I am thinking a good way to make some is to delete all render files for a project, then open i and just re-render all so only actual files used in the timeline take up space.
Is there any reason why this isn't a good idea?
cheers
hugh

Not that I can think of.
Shane

Delete render files in FCP X 10.1.1

Hello, I desparately need to delete render files for old projects, but it seems this has changed in FCP 10.1.1.
There is no longer an option to Delete Project Render Files - there is only Delete Event Render Files - but the event library/browser on top left has changed, it now includes projects and don't really see events. I choose my project but the Delete Event Render Files is disabled.... how can I delete the render files?
thanks
dan

Yes there is. Select the project in the event and it will appear.

Recover lost footage from render files

Can I use the render files from my project to recreate my video as the footage was lost?
If so, how can I go about doing this?
Rohan

Or to start with a simpler question: In what format does FCPX store render files? I used to be able to view them in Quicktime with older versions of FCP. How can I view these files?

FCP render files become unusable

We have 5 FCP sets connected to a XSAN environment. All sets are running FCP 5.1.1/OSX 10.4.7/XSAN 1.4. There are two Metadata servers running OSX server 10.4.7. The backup metadata server is also running as directory master.
Every set has it's own directory user (for example SET1). No local users exist. The set's users are joined in a directory group (SAN_users).
The XSAN environment consists of folders which belong to a certain project (for example COMMERCIAL_1000). The XSAN volume uses ACL to control access rights. The directory group (SAN_users) has the rights to do everything on the volume.
When a project is started on SET1, render files generated by SET1 become unusable if the project was openend on SET2. It's not that the same project is open on both sets at the same time. If you work with your project on SET1 on monday, and on thursday you have to work on it in SET3, the render files of the project are useless.
Does anyone have any suggestion how render files can be preserved?
Macbook Mac OS X (10.4.8) 2GHz/2Gb/120Gb

So when you open the project(s) in question, do you get the reconnect prompt?...and does it show the render files in the dialog box?
I've seen FCP 'lose' render files in the past, but have never determined exactly why, and it's not been an issue to simply re-render. I'm sure it is an issue for you.
I don't know the decklink processes, so don't know if that is part of the problem. Hopefully others will.
Are you certain you've told FCP to send render files to the drive you expect them to be on?
Have you run standard maintenance procedures?...Trash prefs w/FCP Rescue, Run Disk Utility/Repair permissions...etc?
K

Audio render files

Every now and then I run into this issue where FCP does not play the proper audio from the timeline. It think it has to do with the render files which are reminiscent from past renders. I don't want to delete all my render files for this project so what is the best way to fix this?

Highlight your clips in question and then press CONTROL-B...this turns the clip "off" on the timeline. Now hit CONTROL-B again to turn it back on. FCP will ask you to re-render, if a render is needed.
Shane

Where are my render files saved?

I have 4 Hard drives in my mac pro. All but the fourth is pretty full and one is my OS and apps. I started a new project on the 4th hard drive. My render files will also be saved on this 4th hard drive. Is that correct? If not where do I change the render file destination? For some reason I was working on this new project on the 4th hard drive and I got a message indicating that I was running out of room on my 3rd hard drive. I was a bit confused by this since this new project was started on the 4th hard drive. Another question is can I delete my old render files from a project but the project still remains entact? It would just have to be rerendered, correct? Thanks for any help you can give. you guys always seem to enlighten my amateur knowlege.
Scott

The 3rd dive will get down to mb's left. I deleted some render files from old projects on the 3rd hard drive so I am back up to 10 gb's. I am not trying to use the 3rd hard drive any more unless I have to access an old aperture library. When I go to the render files of a project, there are 3 files (high quality media, Peaks Data and thumbnail media). Can I delete all these render files without deleting the project or the contents of the project? Thanks again. You have always been a big help.

Final Cut Express Render Files

Hello all.
Just wondering what files are okay to delete in User > Documents > Final Cut Express Documents
I already have deleted most of the files inside of the folders, such as the render files, because I've already exported them as quicktime movies. But just before, after deleting various things, (such as audio renders, auto-saves, renders,) when I next opened up final cut express, it asked for my licensing details.
Did I do something wrong, and delete something I wasn't supposed to????
Thanks in advanced.

You can delete anything you want from the FCE Documents folder, but if you delete Capture Scratch files then any projects with those in them will be useless. Nothing in the FCE Documents folder would make it reset your licensing details.
However, if you accidentally deleted this file, FCE would again prompt you for your serial number and such:
*Macintosh HD > Library > Application Support > ProApps > Final Cut Express System ID*
Message was edited by: skalicki`

FCP Deleting Render Files

I'm currently running the latest version of FCP (7.0.1). However, it appears that whenever I close/quit FCP, it deletes all my recent render files. Is there some type of setting or known bug that would cause FCP to delete render files?
Thanks!
lance

Hi Tom,
I've returned to this project, and I'm still having similar problems - once I've tried to export a sequence, many (but definitely not all) of the renders are lost on export, or if the export was cancelled.
I've been careful to ensure that every option is enabled for the "Render All", and we've reloaded the FCS 3 software, but we're still editing from the same original projects (one project per artist for a batch of artists that we're making DVDs for).
I'd love to hear any more ideas or suggestions.
Cheers
Andrew

Ok to Delete the Contents of the Render Files Folder?

Hello Hello
I remember from using various PC Video Editing programs that each program established for itself a 'Render Folder', or sometimes called an 'Auxiliary Folder'.
This folder contained the contents of the previously rendered files as they related to a particular DVD burned project. Once rendered, the files were there to sort of help reduce the process time, (render time), required to burn another DVD disc.
In FCE HD, there is also a folder called 'Render Files', and also another folder called 'Audio Render Files'. Naturally the contents of these folders could easily amount to 2 gigs or more depending upon the project size.
Well - (aside from increasing Re-Rendering Time in regard to a new DVD burn), is it safe to delete the contents of the 'Render Folder' in an effort to free up hard drive space?
Thanx
Mike

Hi Mike,
You may have a couple of things mixed up.
In FCE the Render Files and Audio Render Files folders hold the render files produced by FCE. FCE uses those render files when you play the timeline, print to video or export a movie. You can delete them at any time because you can always re-render in FCE. However, you do need to be careful at the point when you export a movie from FCE (for example, to use in iDVD)
If you export to a QT Self-Contained movie, all the media for the movie you export (including rendered video & audio) is incorporated into the resulting QT movie file. Assuming a successful export, you no longer need the FCE render files.
However, if you export to a QT Reference movie, you need to keep the FCE render files available when you import your project into iDVD and build your DVD structure. When iDVD encodes & multiplexes to burn your DVD, it will use the QT Reference movie, which in turn uses the FCE render files (and your original media).
In iDVD, after you burn your DVD, you have the option of keeping the 'rendered assets'; these are iDVD render files and are inside your iDVD project file; they are not the FCE render files.
If you really want to save time burning subsequent DVDs, in iDVD you should Save As Disk Image (instead of Burn DVD), which gives you a completely finished, fully encoded & formatted DVD disk image. You can then use the Finder, Disk Utility or Toast to burn additional DVDs for only the burn time, you won't have to go through iDVD's menus & re-rendering just to burn an additional DVD.

Is it OKAY to delte render files once a project completed?

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