Haven’t found any info for something like a Cache Node that is being developed.
This Node could be used anywhere in the Geometry Node tree to Read or Write a Cache ( Geometry or Points with Attributes ) that can be used by other Objects Nodes or Software.
It could also help Users with lesser hardware to Cache parts or the Tree that are unchanged ( Also with higher SubDivs for eg. ) Some ideas, hope they are useful.
Mode: Auto / Manual. In Auto Mode the frames are cached as the User scrubs/ plays the Timeline. ( In Auto if the blender File has not been saved an Error is displayed in the Modifier )
Domain: Points or Geometry.
Cache Mode: Loading or Saving a Cache. Boolean Switch. ( Other Options will be greyed out / Changed as appropriate )
File Options: Options for saving or loading Cache.
File Path: Defaut’s to where the blender file is Saved.
File Type: blender’s internal Cache or Alembic USD ??
Cache Range: Range of frames to Read or Write.
Timing Options: Don’t know if this is possible.
Actions: In Save Mode, Clear/ Cache. When Cache in Load Mode, Changes to Clear / Reload.
8 Comments
Actually, it was planned in the Geometry Node design developer.blender.org/T74967
See the "Caching & Applying" section {attachment 'M77A' does not exist}
Could be planned, but there's no development on it. Some sort of Cache Node is very important and something that needs to be implemented in the early stages not later IMO. It could be something basic at first with new features added at a later point.
I think if they do cache for geometry but not for shaders, people will be angry, so maybe they choose to wait for another version of blender to implement both at the same time.
Why would you need cache for shading?
I completely agree with you! It should have been a priority since the very beginning, same for previewing attributes in the viewport.. those are fundamental when you start developing this kind of workflow
i guess it could be handy for materials that have a giant node tree but wont be changed anymore, so next time you open up a project you wouldnt have to wait so long, thats in theory, i dont know if it would work in practice
@Shimoon Cache for shading is already done. It's called baking. With more complicated node setups Cycles spends most of its time in shader lookup. To avoid this you bake all your textures and then all Cycles needs to do is read ~5 values per shading point.
A "cache hit" field or a "computation for this needed x ms" field would be nice. That way you can actually inspect, wether the cache is useful at the location you placed it or not. Because one thing I've learned is, that you should always profile before optimizing to avoid optimization trashing.