Houdini 18.0 HQueue

Configuration

How to set configuration options for the HQueue server and clients.

On this page

Server configuration

The HQueue server uses a configuration file in /opt/hqueue/hqserver.ini on the server machine. You can edit this file and restart the HQueue server to change how HQueue works.

Linux

To restart the server on Linux, run:

cd /opt/hqueue
./scripts/hqserverd restart

Mac

To restart the server On macOS, run:

launchctl unload /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.sidefx.hqserver.plist
launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.sidefx.hqserver.plis

Windows

To restart the server on Windows, go to Control Panel ▸ Administrative Tools ▸ Services and restart the HQueueServer service.

Values

Tip

If you use the string %(here)s in a value, it will be replaced with the path of the directory containing the hqserver.ini file. You can use this to specify paths relative to the configuration file location.

Name

Description

debug

Set to true to output debugging information into the server logs (see Logging).

email_to

The email address that receives messages when a system error or notification occurs. smtp_server must also be set.

error_email_from

The email address that sends messages when a system error or notification occurs. smtp_server must also be set.

hqserver.activeTimeout

The number of minutes that pass before a client machine is marked as 'not responding'.

hqserver.expireJobsDays

The number of days that pass before a finished job is permanently deleted from HQueue.

hqserver.port

The port number that the HQueue server listens on. This variable must have the same value as port.

hqserver.sharedNetwork.host

The machine hosting the shared network drive.

hqserver.sharedNetwork.mount.linux

The mount point to the shared network drive on a Linux client machine.

hqserver.sharedNetwork.mount.macosx

The mount point to the shared network drive on a macOS client machine.

hqserver.sharedNetwork.mount.windows

The mount point to the shared network drive on a Windows client machine.

hqserver.sharedNetwork.path

The folder path to the shared network drive on the host machine.

hqserver.upgradePriority

The priority setting for the built-in "Upgrade" jobs.

job_logs_dir

The folder where job logs are saved to.

port

The port number that the HQueue server listens on. This variable must have the same value as hqserver.port.

smtp_server

The mail server that delivers messages when a system error or notification occurs.

sqlalchemy.default.pool_size

The maximum number of database connections available in the connection pool. If you see "QueuePool limit of size" errors in the server log, then you need to increase the value of this variable. As a general rule of thumb, set pool_size equal to roughly the number of client machines on the farm.

sqlalchemy.default.max_overflow

The maximum number of database connections to create in excess of the value defined in sqlalchemy.default.pool_size. This variable takes effect only during peak periods when the number of connections required exceeds the maximum pool size.

Management Scripts

HQueue now has management scripts in case you need a script for your setup needs. The purpose of these scripts is to easily add new objects to the DB without using the web UI. Currently only one management script exists, which is for network folders (manage_network_folders.py), but more will be added in the future.

Here is a list of the management scripts that currently exist:

Name

Description

manage_network_folders.py

Deals with adding/modifying/deleting network folders.

Linux

To use a script on Linux, run in a terminal:

cd <install_dir>
./bin/python ./scripts/<scriptname> <subcommand> (--options)

Mac

To use a script on macOS, run a Terminal app:

cd <install_dir>
./Frameworks/Python.framework/Versions/2.7/bin/python ./scripts/<scriptname> <subcommand> (--options)

Windows

To use a script on Windows, run in a command prompt:

cd <install_dir>
.\python27\python.exe .\python27\Scripts\<scriptname> <subcommand> (--options)

The scriptname is the name of the script to execute (e.g. manage_network_folders.py). To see a list of subcommands for each list, run the script with the -h flag. To get subcommand-specific options, run the script and subcommand with the -h flag.

Client configuration

The HQueue client uses a configuration file named hqnode.ini in the client installation directory. You can edit this file and restart the client to change how the client works.

Linux

To restart the client on Linux, run:

cd <install_dir>
./hqclientd restart

Mac

To restart the client On macOS, run:

launchctl unload /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.sidefx.hqclient.plist
launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.sidefx.hqclient.plist

Windows

To restart the client on Windows, go to Control Panel ▸ Administrative Tools ▸ Services and restart the HQueueClient service.

Values

Name

Description

sharedNetwork.mount

The mount point to the shared network drive on the client.

server

The HQueue server the client should connect to. If this is set, the port must also be set to the server’s port.

port

The port number that the HQueue server listens on.

name

The name for the client. This is only needed if you are planning to run multiple clients on the same machine. If you wish to run multiple clients on the same machine, ensure each client is launched from separate installation directories and configure each client’s hqnode.ini file to have a unique, non-empty name.

cpus

The number of cpus available to the client for running jobs.

auto_upgrade

Controls whether the client should automatically upgrade on start up if an upgrade is available. Set this to 0 to disable automatic upgrade, set it to 1 to enable automatic upgrade (default).

HQueue

Getting started

  • About HQueue

    HQueue is a general-purpose job management system. You can use it to distribute renders, simulations, and other work to remote clients.

  • Installation

    How to set up a basic HQueue farm.

  • Configuration

    How to set configuration options for the HQueue server and clients.

  • How to submit jobs

    How to put work on the farm.

Managing the farm

  • Managing clients

    How to use the web interface or local logins to add, remove, restart, and manage client machines.

  • Managing jobs

    How to view and manage jobs on the farm.

  • Managing client groups

    How to use the web interface or local logins to create and manage groups of client machines.

  • Notes

    Each client and job can have informational notes attached.

  • Resources

    You can specify what resources (such as licenses) are available on each client, so jobs can be scheduled on clients where they can run.

  • Network Folders

    How to use the Network Folder management page.

Next steps

  • Logging

    Hqueue stores separate logs for errors and scheduling events, and each client also generates a log.

  • Uninstalling

    How to uninstall the HQueue server or client software.

  • FAQs

    Answers to frequently asked questions.

Guru level

  • Remote API

    You can connect to the HQueue server over the network and call functions to manipulate and query jobs and other information.

  • Jobs specification details

    More detail on the internals of a job specification for users who want to submit custom jobs.

  • Switching to MySQL (Linux only)

    You can optionally configure HQueue to use MySQL instead of SQLite on Linux.