Support for Sapphire v2 on After Effects and compatible products

What host products and versions are supported?

Sapphire Plug-ins version 2 should work on the following AE plug-in compatible host products and versions. They may also work with others but we have not tested them yet. If you try them on other products or versions, please let us know how it goes!

Vendor	Product	Versions	OS
Adobe	After Effects	5.0 to 9.0/CS4	Windows and Mac OS X, including Mac Intel
Adobe	Premiere Pro	1.0 to 3.0/CS3	Windows and Mac Intel
Apple	Final Cut Pro	3 to 7 *	Mac OS X, including Mac Intel
Apple	Motion	1 and 2.01 *	Mac OS X, but not Mac Intel
Autodesk	Combustion	2, 3, and 4	Windows and Mac OS X, including Mac Intel
Eyeon	Digital Fusion	4.03b	Windows
Eyeon	Fusion (32bits)	5 **	Windows
Media 100	844/x	3.0	Windows
Quantel/VDS	Synapse	***	Windows
Sony	XPRI	7.01b †	Windows
Artel	Boris Red	3.0	Windows
VDS	Liberty Paint	8.3	Windows
Lightworks	Touch	2.0 †	Windows

* Support for Apple Final Cut Pro and Motion is improved with the FxPlug version of Sapphire. We recommend using that instead.

** Support for Eyeon Fusion is improved with the OFX version of Sapphire, including Fusion64 support. If you have Fusion64, please use that instead.

*** Sales and support for Quantel products are provided by VDS.

† Please see info below regarding XPRI and Lightworks support issues.

My RLM floating license is not working. A watermark appears.

• Check the status of your licenses using the RLM server's web interface. From the server machine go to http://localhost:9000 or from another machine use http://servername:9000 replacing servername as appropriate. See if any useful information is shown there. To reread the license file: on the left side of the main page select Reread/Restart Servers, and then on that page click on Reread Licenses.
• Make sure the Ethernet ID in your license correctly matches that of your license server machine. Run the following command on your license server machine to find the Ethernet ID that RLM is expecting:
  On Windows: "\Program Files\GenArts\rlm\rlmutil.exe" rlmhostid ether
  On Mac: "/Library/Application Support/genarts/rlm/rlmutil" rlmhostid ether
  On Linux: /usr/genarts/rlm/rlmutil rlmhostid ether
  Then make sure the Ethernet ID in your server license file is equal to that. The Ethernet ID is just after the hostname in the HOST line of the license. If they differ, please let us know the correct Ethernet ID so we can regenerate your license.
• Make sure the hostname in your license files correctly matches that of your license server machine. Run the following command on your license server machine to find the hostname that RLM is expecting:
  On Windows: "\Program Files\GenArts\rlm\rlmutil.exe" rlmhostid host
  On Mac: "/Library/Application Support/genarts/rlm/rlmutil" rlmhostid host
  On Linux: /usr/genarts/rlm/rlmutil rlmhostid host
  Then make sure the hostname in your client and server license files are equal to that. If they differ, either correct the name in the license files, or use the license server IP address instead.
• Make sure you can "ping" the server from the client using the hostname specified in the license file. This ensures that the client can get the server's IP address from its hostname, and that there is a working connection between them. If this doesn't work, you can try replacing the hostname with the IP address of the license server in the license files.
• Check that the date on your computer is correct for both server and client.
• Make sure the port numbers used in your server and client license files are the same. The port number is shown after the hostname and Ethernet ID in the HOST line of the license. You can change the port numbers without invalidating the license, but you will need to restart the license server after they are modified. Also make sure this port number doesn't conflict with other applications that might use the same port.

Does Sapphire work with Adobe CS4?

Yes, Sapphire v2 has been tested and works well with After Effects CS4 on both Windows and Mac. Make sure you are using 2.041 or greater.

However, Premiere Pro CS4 has some known problems with AE plug-in support. We are working with Adobe to resolve these issues, but for now, if you need to use Sapphire with Premiere Pro we suggest not upgrading to CS4.

Will projects saved with Sapphire v1 continue to work with Sapphire v2?

Yes, on After Effects, Premiere Pro, Combustion, and Fusion, you can load projects saved with Sapphire 1 effects and they should automatically convert to use Sapphire v2.

One exception to this is ZDepthCueBlur, because it has been changed and renamed to ZBlur. If you require loading v1 projects that include ZDepthCueBlur, and can't easily replace them with ZBlur, please contact us for a custom solution to this.

Please note that projects saved with Sapphire v2 will not necessarily load properly with the older Sapphire v1, due to the new effects and new parameters that have been added in Sapphire v2.

Can Sapphire v1 and v2 be installed at the same time?

No, the Sapphire v2 installer will replace Sapphire v1. This prevents confusion from multiple copies of the same effects, and allows your saved projects to automatically use the new version.

How do I return to Sapphire v1 after a v2 trial?

First uninstall Sapphire v2:
On Windows: go to Start->Control Panel->Add or Remove Programs. Find 'GenArts Sapphire Plug-ins' in the list, and press the Change/Remove button.
On Mac: go to the /Applications/GenArtsSapphireAE folder and double click on Uninstall Sapphire.

Then reinstall Sapphire v1 using the 1.10 Windows installer or the 1.10 Mac installer, and re-enter your serial number.

How do I access the online documentation?

Online documentation for Sapphire Plug-ins is normally installed on your machine along with the software and is available in HTML and PDF formats. It includes some general information about how to load and use plug-ins, and also includes a page for each effect with an example image, description of what each parameter does, and links to related effects.

You can access this documentation directly from your workstation even if it is not connected to the internet. On Windows go to Start -> All Programs -> GenArts Sapphire AE -> Online Help (HTML) or (PDF). On Mac go to the Applications/GenArtsSapphireAE folder and double click on Online Help.html or .pdf.

An "About" box is also available directly from the plug-in, which provides information about the plug-in, your license status, and links that bring up online documentation in your HTML browser.

Why do my plug-ins only output black with a "Sapphire Plug-ins" watermark?

This usually indicates your free trial period has ended, or the expiration date of your serial number has been reached. Go to the "About" dialog while using any plug-in, and it should tell you when it expired. If you acquire and enter a new valid serial number, the results should return to normal. Otherwise, please review the following list.

• Make sure you have run the Sapphire installer on your machine, rather than cloning, ghosting, or copying files from another workstation. If you installed by copying, just re-run the installer. You can download and install the current version for Windows or Mac.
• Make sure the date on your computer is correct.
• If the Ethernet (MAC) address of your computer has changed since you ran the installer, you may get this watermark. One solution for this is to re-install Sapphire Plug-ins and re-enter your serial number. On Windows, this watermark can also occur if you change the enable/disable state of your Local Area Connection, which can be changed back by going to Start -> Control Panel -> Network Connections, and right click on Local Area Connection.
• If your serial number is only for a single box, make sure the plug-ins you are using are included in that box.

Why do my network renders show a "Sapphire Plug-ins" watermark?

• Make sure you have run the Sapphire installer on each remote machine, rather than just ghosting the drive or copying files from another workstation. You can download the current version for Windows or Mac.
• Make sure Sapphire Plug-ins are working properly without a watermark on the machine you are initiating the network renders from.
• On After Effects, make sure you are running the AE Render Engine (6.0 or greater) on the remote machine rather than the full version of AE Pro. The full AE version requires a Sapphire serial number to render, but the Render Engine version should work even without the serial number.
• On Digital Fusion, make sure you are running DF Render Node version 4.03b or greater on the remote machine rather than the full version of Digital Fusion. The full version or any version prior to 4.03b, requires a Sapphire serial number to render, but Render Node version 4.03b should work even without the serial number.
• On Combustion, make sure you are using Combustion version 3 or greater.
• On Sony XPRI, make sure you are using XPRI version 7.63 or greater.

On Windows, my license stops working when I'm disconnected from the network.

If you disable your Ethernet connection in the Network Connections control panel, Sapphire may become unlicensed and render only black with a watermark because it is unable to find the Machine ID of your workstation. To re-enable, go to Start -> Control Panel -> Network Connections, right click on your disabled connection, and select Enable. If you want to work without a network connection for security reasons, you can just unplug the network cable but still leave the network adapter enabled.

Can I use the same serial number with different host applications?

Yes. Sapphire Plug-ins for AE are licensed per machine, so one serial number allows you to use them on multiple AE compatible host applications on the same computer. For example if you have AE, Premiere Pro, and Combustion installed on the same machine, all of those products should be able to access Sapphire Plug-ins. However a separate license is required to run Sapphire Plug-ins on other host products that do not accept AE style plug-ins, such as Avid or Shake, even if they are on the same machine.

If you install a new host application on your machine, you will probably need to re-install Sapphire Plug-ins afterwards, so the new application can locate the plug-ins.

Can I transfer my serial number to a new machine?

It is possible to transfer your serial number to a new machine. To do this, first uninstall Sapphire Plug-ins from your old machine. During the uninstall, select the option to register that uninstall via the web. As long as the uninstall is successfully registered, you should then be able to install your serial number on the new machine. The license is cross-platform so you can transfer a serial number between Windows and Mac systems in this way.

Can I use the same serial number on multiple machines?

Unless your serial number includes a "-r" value, it can be used on only one machine at a time. You can transfer a serial number to a new machine by uninstalling the software on the old machine, selecting the option to register that uninstall, and then reinstalling on the new machine.

The results of Sapphire Glow, Glint, Glare, or Convolve seem different.

In version 2.07, a problem with thresholds in Glow, Glint, Glare and Convolve was fixed. This gives improved but slightly different results from 2.06, and it makes the results compatible with Sapphire v1.

If you noticed a change in the results between Sapphire v1 and v2, please install 2.07 or greater for Windows or Mac to resolve this.

If you have projects saved with versions 2.0 to 2.06 that you still need to render with the same results, you can continue using 2.06.

On Mac, I get "Failed writing reg file" when entering a serial number.

This usually indicates you don't have the necessary permissions when a file is being saved. Please log in as administrator and try again.

On AE, masking or reducing the opacity of an adjustment layer with a Sapphire Plug-in doesn't work properly.

In After Effects 7 or CS3 with Sapphire 2.0 or 2.01, if you apply a plug-in on an adjustment layer and then apply a mask or reduce the opacity, it can make your entire comp transparent instead of fading the effect back to the original as expected.

This is a known problem in Adobe's implementation of Smart Fx, which has been worked-around in Sapphire 2.02. If you install the most recent version for Windows or Mac and still see this problem, please let us know.

Does Sapphire work with Mac OS 10.5 Leopard?

Yes, Sapphire v2 has been tested and works well with Mac OS 10.5 Leopard.

Sapphire v1 has some installation issues on Leopard. If you are still using v1 please consider upgrading to Sapphire v2.

On FCP, I have issues when using the AE plug-ins.

Please use the FxPlug version of Sapphire for use with FCP. Your existing Sapphire v2 serial number should also work with that.

After Effect plug-in support on FCP is being discontinued by Apple.

Do Sapphire Plug-ins work with Sony XPRI?

Sony XPRI version 7.01b includes initial support for AE plug-ins, and Sapphire Plug-ins can be used with this.

Note that the plug-in adapter in XPRI only accommodates a single image input to a plug-in, and the alternate Layer inputs are not displayed in the UI. This makes plug-ins that expect more than one input less useful. Plug-ins in this category include Distort, Emboss, EdgeFlash, Layer, FlickerMatch, and various Transition effects. However, since a Sapphire license also works with After Effects on the XPRI machine, it should be easy to jump over to AE and process there if you need an effect with multiple input clips.

Do Sapphire Plug-ins work with Lightworks Touch?

Lightworks Touch 2.0 includes support for AE plug-ins, and Lightworks Q/A has tested Sapphire Plug-ins with this version. However, the AE plug-in adapter in Touch may not support all of our effects and features, so we recommend that you first test using the free trial of the plug-ins before purchasing for this host application.

How can I uninstall Sapphire Plug-ins?

On Windows: go to Start->Control Panel->Add or Remove Programs. Find 'GenArts Sapphire Plug-ins' in the list, and press the Change/Remove button.

On Mac: go to the /Applications/GenArtsSapphireAE folder and double click on Uninstall Sapphire.