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NVIDIA GPU AI Denoiser Errors

Updated

Version-specific Requirements

  • Starting from Corona 10:
    • NVIDIA Optix libraries version 7.5.0 are being used. 
    • NVIDIA driver version 515 or later is required.
    • NVIDIA graphics card with Maxwell architecture or newer is required. 

  • In Corona 9 and older: 
    • As of the release of Corona 5, version 6 of the NVIDIA Optix libraries is being used.
    • NVIDIA has decided to drop support for GPUs of generations earlier than Maxwell starting with this version of the libraries. This means that GPUs of the Kepler and earlier families (GTX 7xxx series and earlier, Quadro K-series and earlier, where "K" means "Keppler" architecture) are no longer supported for NVIDIA AI denoising.

 

First Steps

The first thing to be done in case of any issues with the NVIDIA GPU AI Denoiser is graphics card driver re-installation:

  1. Go to https://www.nvidia.com/, find the latest driver for your graphics card, and download it
  2. Install the newest driver 
  3. Restart your computer
  4. Check if the issue persists

You can also use the NVIDIA GeForce Experience application to automatically detect outdated drivers and manage driver updates. 

 

If the above solution does not help, please try the ones listed below, depending on the specific denoiser error you are getting:

 

Error Messages

  • Failed to initialize NVIDIA Optix Denoiser library. Most likely causes are unsupported GPU or outdated drivers.

This error appears in Corona 10 and newer when attempting to use the Optix denoiser with an unsupported GPU or outdated drivers. The solution is to make sure that you are using a supported GPU (Maxwell architecture or newer) and drivers (NVIDIA driver version 515 or newer). 

 

  • "Failed to initialize OptiX denoiser"

This error appears if the NVIDIA GPU AI Denoiser library cannot be found or is missing. It can be caused by one of the following:

  1. The libraries required for the OptiX denoiser were not installed. 
    Solution: Run the installer again and select the "Custom" install type. On the next screen, make sure the checkbox next to "NVIDIA AI Denoiser" is checked.
    Alternatively, you can download the AI denoiser package manually and then install it along with Corona. See: How to install the NVIDIA GPU AI Denoiser in offline mode?

  2. You do not have a supported NVIDIA GPU installed in the system.
    Please note that the NVIDIA GPU AI Denoiser requires a supported GPU (Maxwell architecture and newer). 

 

  • "Failed to initialize NVIDIA AI denoiser: Runtime version is different from expected. Found X, expected Y"

Corona uses the newest version of the OptiX libraries from NVIDIA. It is automatically downloaded when installing Corona. 

However, the library files have the same names as the older version 5.1.0 which is distributed with some other renderers and the older libraries can happen to be loaded with those plugins.

The most common cause for this error is the presence of Autodesk’s Arnold renderer which can be installed together with 3ds max 2019 by the 3ds Max installer, and which uses an older version of the OptiX libraries.

 

This error can be corrected by preventing Arnold’s version of the libraries from loading:

  1. Go to C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\ApplicationPlugins\MAXtoA (you can copy and paste the path into Explorer)
  2. Find and delete or move out of that folder the following files:
    • Optix.51.dll
    • Optix_denoiser.51.dll

Note: that the removal of these files from the folder will make OptiX denoising unavailable in Arnold. You should always keep backups!

If you do not have Arnold installed and you are seeing the runtime version error, you will need to uninstall any other renderers that use OptiX and if that does not help or you have no such renderers installed, please contact us.

 

  • "Failed to initialize NVIDIA AI denoiser: Unable to load required DLLs" Error

If you're getting a 'cudart64_110.dll' missing error after moving to Corona 11, here's a quick way to sort it out:

This error can be fixed as follows:

  1.  First, verify if the 'cudart64_110.dll' file exists on your system. Its default location should be 'C:\Program Files\Corona\optix\cudart64_110.dll'.
  2. If there's an extra 'optix' folder, like 'C:\Program Files\Corona\optix\optix', the DLL file might be in the wrong folder.
  3. To resolve this, move the 'cudart64_110.dll' file to the main optix folder ('C:\Program Files\Corona\optix') and remove any extra 'optix' folder you find.
  4. Then restart Corona to see if that fixes the error.

This error usually pops up if the DLL file isn't where it should be. Putting the file back in the right place should get rid of the error message.

 

Other possible solutions

If the above solutions do not seem to help, please try the following:

  • Right-click on your 3ds Max shortcut icon, select Properties, go to the Compatibility tab and make sure that the "Run this program in compatibility mode" option is disabled. 
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