A fix for render cache "media offline" issue

Hi,

I had within the last few weeks an issue with the rendering cache playback: it simply showed a big "Media Offline" message. I checked everything that were posted in this forum and other places - and I couldn't find a solution.

After few days of testing, I found the issue: some custom preset causes the rendering cache engine to create some unplayable video files, which causes the "Media Offline".

I wrote a short post on my blog about this issue and how to fix it.

Link: https://dorinx.me/6mbs4

To save you a click:

An issue has been observed in recent versions of DaVinci Resolve (19 and the latest 20 beta) concerning the rendering cache. Specifically, when the rendering cache is set to “Smart,” playback ceases with a “Media Offline” message immediately after the render bar becomes blue. While disabling the cache resolves the playback issue, this negates the performance benefits for projects with significant effects and color grading.

Investigation indicates that certain user-defined project presets may be the cause, leading to the generation of invalid cache files. The following steps provide a potential solution:

Open the project exhibiting the problem.
Navigate to the project settings (located in the lower right corner).
Load the default project preset.
Configure the desired settings (resolution, frame rate, etc.) and save the changes.
Evaluate the rendering cache functionality. If playback is now successful, create a new custom preset based on these settings using the three-dot menu in the upper right corner.
For any other affected projects, open them and apply this newly created preset.

To save you a click:

An issue has been observed in recent versions of DaVinci Resolve (19 and the latest 20 beta) concerning the rendering cache. Specifically, when the rendering cache is set to “Smart,” playback ceases with a “Media Offline” message immediately after the render bar becomes blue. While disabling the cache resolves the playback issue, this negates the performance benefits for projects with significant effects and color grading.

Investigation indicates that certain user-defined project presets may be the cause, leading to the generation of invalid cache files. The following steps provide a potential solution:

Open the project exhibiting the problem.
Navigate to the project settings (located in the lower right corner).
Load the default project preset.
Configure the desired settings (resolution, frame rate, etc.) and save the changes.
Evaluate the rendering cache functionality. If playback is now successful, create a new custom preset based on these settings using the three-dot menu in the upper right corner.
For any other affected projects, open them and apply this newly created preset.

Hi. It didn't work for me. I can see the files in the media pool, can play them back in the viewer, but the timeline shows they are offline. Tried your workaround and nothing changes. The most peculiar thing is that there are literally onlive and offline instances of the same clip on the timeline. Naturally I looked through their settings, effects, transitions and nothing is any different. My timiline just turned red after the 18 minute mark though all the Text+ layers still work, as fo the sounds and the music

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