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DaVinci Resolve: Optimizations and Workflows

Configure DaVinci Resolve for maximum performance, discover practical ways to improve playback for certain Clips, and weigh out your collaboration options with Suite.

Updated over 3 weeks ago

Tuning DaVinci Resolve for optimal performance with Suite is quick and straightforward.

Follow these steps to modify DaVinci Resolve's Preferences, define your Project Settings, and learn how Render Cache and Render in Place can play a part in speeding up playback with color- or effects-heavy Clips.

Finally, you'll learn how pre-caching larger and longer media files on Suite can help DaVinci Resolve quickly generate thumbnails and waveforms for your Timelines.

Optimizations

Preferences

ℹ You’ll find DaVinci Resolve's Preferences here:

DaVinci Resolve > Preferences

Once you save DaVinci Resolve’s Preferences on your computer, those changes are saved between uses.

User

Configure these settings under User > Project Save and Load > Save Settings:

  • Live save: ☑️

  • Project backups: ☑️

  • Timeline backups: ☑️

    • Adjust the backup timing intervals, as desired.

  • Backup location: choose a location on a local SSD.

System

Configure these settings under System:

Memory and GPU > Memory Configuration > Limit Resolve memory usage to: set to the maximum amount of system memory you wish Resolve to use.

Media Storage > Media Storage Locations:

  • Mount:

    • Make sure the first path in the list is a local SSD, not a Suite volume.

    • After that, Add your team’s Suite drives to the list.

  • Direct I/O : ☑️ (Enabled for each path)

Pre-Caching from Suite for Thumbnails and Waveforms

If you're using media with:

  • Longer run times

  • Larger frame sizes

  • Larger bit rates

  • Resource-intensive codecs

Pre-Cache those files and folders in Suite.

Once Suite pre-caches those files, DaVinci Resolve can quickly generate these items in your Timeline (Page: Edit > (Your Timeline) > Timeline View Options):

  • Display Audio Waveforms

  • Thumbnail View

Project Settings

ℹ You’ll find Project Settings in DaVinci Resolve here:

File > Project Settings
​
​Project Settings must be defined at least once for each Project.

Working Folders

Define these paths under Master Settings > Working Folders:

  • Proxy generation location: a folder where DaVinci Resolve will transcode proxy media.

  • Cache files location: a folder on a local SSD.

  • Gallery stills location: a folder on a local SSD.

The Connection Between Media Storage Locations and Working Folders

DaVinci Resolve will use the first path listed in System > Media Storage > Media Storage Locations plus the names of two specific folders to create the expected Working Folders path.

The names of those two folders are:

  1. CacheClip - for the Cache files lcoation

  2. .gallery - for the Gallery stills location

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For example, if this is the first path in Media Storage Locations:

/Volumes/My SSD/For DaVinci Resolve/

Then:

Cache files location - if you type in CacheClip then click Save, the resulting path will be:

  • /Volumes/My SSD/For DaVinci Resolve/CacheClip

Gallery stills location - if you type in .gallery then click Save, the resulting path will be:

  • /Volumes/My SSD/For DaVinci Resolve/.gallery

(Optional) Path Mapping

Using DaVinci Resolve across multiple operating systems? Traditionally, that means team members would have to relink media in their Project each time they open it.

But with Path Mapping, you can tell DaVinci Resolve:

Transform this macOS path into another path when someone opens this Project from Windows (or Linux).

Since Suite mounts differently based on which operating system you're using, that means Path Mapping can significantly reduce the amount of media relinking your team will do over the course of working together on a Project.

📚 For more details on Path Mapping, see this chapter in the DaVinci Resolve Reference Manual:

  • Project Settings

Render Cache

Use Render Cache to improve playback performance for resource-intensive Clips in a Timeline, with or without Effects applied.

Render Cache uses the codec in Project Settings > Master Settings to cache Clip data on your local computer:

  • Optimized Media and Render Cache > Render cache format: choose the desired codec.

  • Working Folders > Cache files location: choose a folder on a local SSD.

What’s the difference between the Smart and User modes for Render Cache?

Smart - executes a Render Cache in a specific order of operations.

User - executes a Render Cache based on the options you enable for each Clip in a Timeline.

  • You can enable these options on individual Clips or for a group of Clips in a Timeline.

Learn more about Render Cache from these Blackmagic Design Master Trainers:

Render in Place

Render in Place renders, exports, and reinserts shots into a Timeline with effects and color applied.

The difference between Render in Place and Render Cache? Render in Place creates an actual media file (not cached data) you can share with the rest of your team on shared storage, such as Suite.

Also, Render in Place lets you revert to the original media, make any changes to that Clip, then render a new piece of shared media with those changes. Select a Clip in your Timeline (Page: Edit > Timeline), choose Decompose to Original, make any changes, then Render in Place again.

📚 For more details on Render Cache and Render in Place, see these chapters in the DaVinci Resolve Reference Manual:

  • Improving Performance, Proxies, and the Render Cache

  • Editing, Adding, and Copying Effects and Filters

Workflows

DaVinci Resolve stores your work in a Project. Projects are stored in a collection called a Project Library.

Your collaboration workflow options are largely defined by where you store your Project Library.

Cloud Project Libraries

Cloud Project Libraries are hosted in Blackmagic Cloud, Blackmagic Design's dedicated service for enabling global collaboration in DaVinci Resolve. Once you upload a Project Library to Blackmagic Cloud, DaVinci Resolve’s collaboration features are enabled by default and orchestrated by this service.

Using a Cloud Project Library, you can import and link to media stored on Suite, adding high-performance file streaming instead of waiting for full file syncs to complete.

Local Project Libraries

Since Suite behaves like a local volume, you can upload Local Project Libraries to Suite and work with your team in a handoff-style workflow.

However, there's no native locking mechanism for a Local Project Library.

If you choose to work with Local Project Libraries among a team on Suite:

  1. Stay communicative with your team: who has this Project Library open?

  2. Once you’ve finished your work, close your Project Library and wait until Suite finishes UPLOADING.

  3. Once UPLOADING to Suite completes, that Project Library is now available to another team member to work on.

If something goes awry with your Local Project Library on Suite, here are some restoration options:

PostLab by Hedge

While DaVinci Resolve doesn't have a native locking mechanism for Local Project Libraries, PostLab provides Project Library Locking along with other workflow options, like Project Linking.

PostLab is also officially qualified to use with Suite.

Click here to learn more

Network Project Libraries

A Network Project Library is like a Cloud Project Library, except the Project Server and Libraries live on your local network.

Using Network Project Libraries with media stored on Suite may be useful if:

  • You're already using Network Project Libraries, but plan on migrating to Cloud Project Libraries.

  • You're using Suite with its shared, on-site cache feature to boost performance for on-prem Suite users.

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