FCP (7.0.3) continually losing render files

Render files are saved in Documnets / Final Cut Pro Doucuments / Auto Save Vault.

But Beware regarding "Render Files" in FCP 7 are replaced BUT NOT SAVED SEPARETELY after each save:-(

Unlike the Project files you can go back and re-open previous files via Final Cut Pro Documents/ Auto Save Vault.

But the "Rendered Files" do not offer this same option. Render files are NOT saved separately, but replaced with your last save. You have one "Rendered File" (Bad design flaw)

Case in point, I had a one hour HD project that needed to be rendered. It took approximately 10 hours to render (mostly color correction). After letting the project render over night (TEN HOURS), I immediately saved the file (thinking that everything was saved). Then I made a few minor edit changes (cuts replaced with dissolves transitions etc.) but while doing this I mistakely unpluged my hard drive, then the the bold red "Media offline" warning appeared on the playback window. I immediately saved the project (wrong decision) & closed out my project, replugged my drive & reopen it.

To my surprise while the "Project File" was saved, all of the 10 hours of rendering was gone. The Render file was replaced with the last saved "Rendered File" file WHICH ONLY SHOWED THAT DREADED RED LINE on the time line of an unrendered project. I tried opening up previous saved files but they all pointed back to the same "Rendered File".........RATS:-(

What I learned:

1. If you have a large project to render, after its finished rendering then save the render files to a separate drive offline.

2. If you mistakenly disconnect your hard drive after you have rendered your large file DO NOT SAVE IT again just close out your file, replug your drive and open up the current file, then reconnect your media & your rended files.

Ten freaken hours waisted… :-(

Render files are saved where ever you have chosen in your system preferences. They should not be saved in your autosave vault. if they are, there's something wrong.

You lost the CONNECTION to your renders, not the renders when you saved after unplugging the drive. Unfortunately fcp cannot reconnect renders (at least not in my experience). You might have been able to restore the connection by opening an autosave version of your project using the file: restore.

Copying the render files to another location will not maintain the connection to your timeline.

You could have actually opened the render files and used those in your timeline temporarily. The render files (found where ever you've told fcp to save them in fcp: system preferences, are actually quicktimes.

Michael,

I have a "Users Preferences" and a "Systems Setting" but I don't have a "System Preferences" in FCP 7.

I did notice in my " Users Preferences" there is a tab name "Render Control" but it does not give you an option

on where to store your your "Render Files".

Please let me know how to change the location of my stored "Render Files". Right now there stored in my

Documnets / Final Cut Pro Doucuments / Auto Save Vault.

Thanks.

sorry it's system settings. See where it says "video render?" the check mark under that indicates that it's going (in this case) to the mac pro. It will go into a folder with the name of your project in side a folder called "render files" at the root level of that drive. By default, fcp will put them in a folder in your documents folder, but it's always a good idea to have media stored on a different drive from the startup drive.

This has been happening to me for a while now. Are you editing on more than one machine? When I cut a scene on my laptop and then copy and paste the sequence from the laptop project to the desktop project that's one time when I'm losing the renders. Other times are way more random. I fear that FCP is outliving it's useful life for a lot of projects because of these issues.

Fred, FCP has never worked this way. The only way to work this way is to copy just the project but keep the same media drive. No reconnection should be necessary. Don't copy and paste between projects, just copy the project file.

I've beening doing this for 6 years for cutting scenes at home. Only since Lion would I say I've been losing the render files. At home on the MacBook Air, I use proxy files but at the office we are working with broadcast resolution ProRes. So a reconnection is necessary of the copy and pasted scene, otherwise I'd have to reconnect the whole project each time which is quite difficult given the complexity.

sorry I don't work this way, so I can't say what's normal behavior. Can't imagine that renders would ever reconnect when you're working with 2 different sequence settings, but perhaps I'm missing something.

Probably my fault for a bad expanation. I never can reconnect render files. When I copy and paste, I always re-render the incoming sequence. The problem that I've been having, expecially in the last month, is that when I bring in a new sequence from the laptop project, the previosly existing sequence on the desktop become unrendered. Crazy.

Try copying to a new project rather than to the existing project. If this doesn't work, post back. If you're willing to spend some time screwing around with this doing some tests, we'll probably be able to figure out a successful workflow.

Unfortunately that doesn't work unless you are saying go to a new project as an intermediate. I need all the scenes to end up in the master project on the desktop.