Distributed Processing Setup Guide

You can change any of these settings at a later time in the Apple Qmaster pane of System
Preferences. For more information, see Apple Qmaster Pane of System Preferences and
Administering Clusters.
Important: Although the Final Cut Studio installer requires a separate serial number for
each computer, you can use the Apple Qmaster Node Installer (available in the Extras
folder) to install the necessary Apple Qmaster software to make any computer on your
network into an Apple Qmaster service node.
Stage 2: Submitting Compressor Batches for Processing
When you submit a Compressor batch for processing, a dialog appears that allows you
to name the batch and select the computers to process the batch. At this point, you can
harness the processing power of all the computers you set up as service nodes in stage
1 to complete the batch.
To process the batch using AutoCluster
1 Leave the Cluster pop-up menu set to the default selection (This Computer).
2 Select the “Include unmanaged services on other computers” checkbox.
Compressor and Apple Qmaster coordinate the distribution of the processing tasks
between the available computers and deposit the resulting output files at the location(s)
you designated in Compressor.
Other Possible Components of a Distributed Processing Network
There are many ways to expand the capacity of a distributed processing network. You
could include any of the following.
• High-speed switch and cables: A 100Base-T or Gigabit Ethernet switch and compatible
cables to allow your data to move over the LAN at maximum speed.
• Multiple clients: Multiple client computers can use the services of the same cluster. And,
you can have multiple client applications on the same client computer, using the same
cluster.
24 Chapter 3 Preparing a Network for Distributed Processing