Important information for this release:
Important Notes
Hardware and Drivers
Smoke 2012 SAP 2 is compatible with AJA driver version 10.1, only, for all devices. Smoke 2012 SAP2 also supports AJA ioXT Thunderbolt devices on MacBook Pro & iMac platforms.
Note: You may download either the DD or NDD flavor of the AJA driver. Smoke does not use the "Desktop Display" feature and works equally well with either version of the driver.
Driver links:
NoteThere may be a Firmware upgrade/downgrade to perform after mandatory reboot, depending on your hardware. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete.
If you have Smoke 2012 SAP1 SP1 on your workstation, you must either downgrade the AJA driver to 10.0.1 to use Kona cards with 2012 SAP1 SP1 or keep the 10.1 drivers installed and run the SAP1 SP1 build without the AJA hardware (by disabling Video & Audio device in Smoke Setup Application).
To upgrade/downgrade your AJA driver:
- Download the driver from AJA.
- Run the AJA uninstaller application from /Applications/AJA Utilities/.
- Run the installers of the driver you want to install and follow the on-screen instructions.
Hardware Limitations
CPU Burn Limitations
Keep in mind the following limitations when working with non-GPU Burn render nodes.
Action CPU Burn Limitations:
- Action setups cannot be rendered if the output format is set to 16-bit fp.
- Action setups cannot be rendered if one or more layers are 16- bit fp.
- Action setups cannot be rendered if Clamp Colours is disabled.
- Action - Lights profile with range outside of 0,1 are not supported.
- Action Old Blending modes (Subtract, Multiply, Exclusion, Spotlight) when they are used with Surface blending curves or lens Distort are not supported.
- Action Point or Spot lights are not supported.
- Action New Lights are not supported
- Action New Blending Modes are not supported.
- Action Shadows are not supported.
- Action Ambient Occlusion is not supported.
- Action IBL is not supported.
- Action Lens Flares are not supported.
- Action Blooming is not supported.
- Action Rays are not supported.
- Action Hardware Displacement is not supported
- EWA filters in Action cannot be applied.
- Anisotropic filters in Action cannot be applied.
- Action Substance and Substance Materialize cannot be rendered.
Batch CPU Burn Limitations:
- Batch Exposure node cannot be rendered.
- Batch Matte Edge node - Noise functionality cannot be rendered.
- Batch - Substance- 16 bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch - Substance Noise node cannot be rendered.
- Batch - Substance Splatter node cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - RGB Blur Directional and Radial modes 16- bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop | SoftFX - Text 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Auto-Stabilize 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Burn-In 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Glow Node Directional Blur 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Distort 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Color Frame Gradient cannot be rendered.
- Batch | Desktop - Gradient node 16-bit fp output resolution cannot be rendered.
Soft Effects CPU Burn Limitations:
- SoftFX - Axis 16-bit fp output resolution not supported.
- SoftFX - CC 16-bit fp output resolution not supported.
- SoftFX - Wipe 16-bit fp output resolution not supported.
Flame Effects CPU Burn Limitations:
- FX Tools -Damage cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Pixel Spread cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Bump Displace cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -2D Transform cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Deform cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Denoise cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Glow in 16 bit fp in directional mode cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Match Box cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Depth-Of-Field and Blur additive blooming mode cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Motion Blur cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Depth-Of-Field and Blur additive blooming mode cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Recursive Ops cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Strokes cannot be rendered.
- FX Tools -Motif cannot be rendered.
Other CPU Burn Limitations:
- Hardware Anti-aliasing is not supported.
- 3D Blur cannot be rendered.
Limitations with Old Graphics Cards
- Action - Only projected Shadows are available on x500 series and before due to hardware limitation that result in lower quality shadow.
- Action - Only one IBL map per object on x500 series and before as opposed to 2 on more recent cards.
- Action - Seamless cube map (part of the IBL feature) are currently not working on x600 Series and before. For end user, this means results will be smoother on 5800s. There is no loss of functionality on older platforms.
- Action - Hardware Displacement is disabled on x500 series and prior cards. If you import a setup containing hardware displacement, it will be switched to software displacement. In a case where a substance map is loaded, its displacement map will not be visible on the schematic because it is hardware only.
- Action - No ambient occlusion available on x500 series and prior cards.
- Action – UV maps are not supported on FX5500 graphics cards.
- Flame FX Tools - Pixel Spread Stretch and Motion modes may present artefacts due to the lower precision on x500 Series and before. We had to use 16f instead of 32f because of limitations on these cards.
- Flame FX Tools - 2D transform- Artefacts may show up if motion blur or anti-aliasing are activated on x500 Series and before. We had to use 16f instead of 32f because of limitations on these cards.
- Flame FX Tools - Motion blur - Interactive performance and rendering problems on x500 Series and prior cards.
Compatibility with Previous Versions
Keep in mind the following information on software compatibility and limitations before upgrading to the latest version.
Projects and clip libraries created in previous versions of the software are read-only in the current version. Previous releases cannot read clip libraries from the current version.
To access media in projects created in previous versions, you must first create new projects in the current version. Then, you must transfer the media from your old projects to the new ones using the Network panel in the Clip Library.
Autodesk recommends archiving your media and project data before you upgrade.
Consult the following table for information on resource compatibility when upgrading to the current version.
| Previous Version | Current Version |
| Projects and clip Libraries | Are read-only. Framestores from previous versions are identified as incompatible in the network library. Note: You can only delete projects and clip libraries with the application version that created them. |
| Archives | Are read-only. |
| Users | Are incompatible. Create a user in the latest version. See the application help for instructions. |
| Settings | Are compatible (including most Sparks® setups). |
Compatibility between Smoke SAP 2 and Flame Premium 2013
Smoke 2012 SAP 2 is compatible with Flame Premium 2013.
Archive Compatibility
Archives from the current version cannot be restored in earlier versions.
Archives created using previous versions are read-only when restored to the current version. That is, you can restore an archive from a previous version in the current version, but you cannot append material to the archive (you must create a new archive).
There are some differences in how your software restores archives. The following table summarizes these differences.
| Archive Type | Behaviour when restoring |
| Selection (Part of a project) | Archives can only be restored to the clip library. |
| Whole Project | The EditDesk is restored as a reel in a new library. |