The Cache Manager

 
 
 

The Cache Manager is your one-stop shopping center for all your caching needs. Using this tool, you can save animated deformations and simulations into cache files, as well as load cache files into the animation mixer.

A point cache file contains the point position data of an object that is simulated or has animated deformations. The object's point position is stored in local space by default, but you can also choose to store it in global space. A point cache file stores only the XYZ positions of an object's points (vertices) in space, not the object's transform data (translation, rotation, or scale) in its Kinematics node.

In addition to regular cache files, you can also create Caches List (.cacheslist) files that help you manage how you load multiple objects and multiple cache files.

NoteThe Particles Simulation Save Cache on Simulation and Load Cache on Selection commands on the ICE toolbar are designed to be used mostly with the Lagoa ICE simulator. See Applying Cached Post Sim Effects for more information on using them.

Cache files are useful for:

TipThe cache file that is created for any of these types of data is the same as the one created when writing ICE simulations to a cache file using the Cache on File node in the ICE tree — see Caching ICE Simulations in the ICE Tree.

What Can You Cache?

You can cache these types of simulations and animation into cache files:

Opening the Cache Manager

You can open the cache manager in any of these ways:

Click the tabs at the top of the Cache Manager window to display the appropriate property editor for each caching task:

After You Cache

Once you have created a cache file, you can:

Where Do Cache File Sources Live?

When you create a cache file, it is saved to the folder that you have specified in the Path text box in the Cache Manager. When you load this cache file into the animation mixer, a cache file source and clip is automatically created for it.

You can find the cache file sources in the explorer: select the Sources/Clips filter, then open the Sources FileCache folder.

A copy of each of the sources (displayed in italics) is also available in the appropriate model's Mixer Sources FileCache folder.

You can also inspect a file cache source by right-clicking on a file cache clip in the animation mixer and choosing Source. This opens the File Cache Source Property Editor.

Copying Cache Files

You can copy cache files to move them between folders and drives, such as from local drives to network drives. This is handy for working and generating cache files locally, which is usually faster, and then copying them to the network for sharing with others or for using on a render farm.

You can copy cache files via scripting using the CopyCacheFiles2 command. For example:

CopyCacheFiles2 [ObjectsToCache], SourcePathString, SourcePathString, [Overwrite], [ShowProgressbar], [Version]