Video creation modes: device, cloud, hybrid

Video Unique Booster creates videos in three ways. "Local" - on the processor of your device. No credits are spent. "Cloud" - in the VUB Cloud. It puts no load on your device, but spends credits. "Hybrid" - both ways at once. The choice is made in the "Export" section. The setting is called "Video creation mode".

How do "Local", "Cloud" and "Hybrid" differ?

Mode	Who processes the video	Credits	Daily video limit	Load on the device
"Local"	the processor of your device	not spent	spent	yes
"Cloud"	VUB Cloud	spent	spent	no
"Hybrid"	local and cloud threads	spent for the cloud part	spent	yes, from the local part

All three modes spend the daily video limit. The limit is set by the plan, not by the balance. There may be enough credits on the balance. But if the limit is used up, video creation fails with an error.

An internet connection is needed in all three modes. In "Local" mode your processor does the computing, but without a network video creation will not start.

What "Hybrid" does

Local and cloud threads share one queue. Local threads take the work first. A cloud thread does not take a file right away. A cloud thread takes a file after all local threads are busy or paused because of the load. So it is not known in advance how many files the cloud will create.

The list of imported videos is consumed from both ends. The device creates videos in row order. The cloud takes files from the end of the list.

If the queue is shorter than the number of local threads, the cloud does not take part at all. The app shows a message about this: "With this queue the cloud is not needed - the local threads will take everything in one wave".

How do I choose the video creation mode?

Follow four steps:

1. Open the project and go to the "Export" section.
2. In the "Video creation mode" setting, pick "Local", "Cloud" or "Hybrid".
3. Set the number of threads: "Number of local threads", "Number of cloud threads", or both fields in "Hybrid" mode.
4. Press "Start". The "Check before start" sheet opens. It shows the cost of the cloud part. It also shows how much of the daily limit will be spent.

Picking a mode changes the set of settings: "Hybrid" has two thread counters.

A new project has the "Local" mode selected. There are zero cloud threads.

In "Hybrid" mode the cost on this sheet is shown as a ceiling. It is calculated for the case when the cloud creates all files of the queue. In practice the cloud takes a file only when all local threads are busy. So the same amount or less will be charged, but not more.

How many threads to set?

"Number of local threads" sets the number of parallel videos on your processor. For a new project, the app sets half of the device's logical cores. It does not set more than five. The pre-start check sheet calculates a safe number of threads. It counts from the available device resources - memory and number of cores. Part of the resources stays in reserve for the operating system. If there are too many threads, the sheet warns you: "More local threads than recommended" or "The system may fail: too many local threads".

"Number of cloud threads" sets the number of videos created in the cloud in parallel. The limit is set by your license. When the counter reaches the limit, a hint appears: "You have reached the maximum number of cloud threads. To raise the cloud thread limit, contact support."

In "Hybrid" mode both fields must be above zero. Otherwise the run will not start. The app will ask you to set at least one thread. The other way out is to change the video creation mode.

What are credits charged for?

Credits are the currency of the VUB Cloud service. There is one cost formula:

video creation cost in credits = video volume in gigapixels (GP) × project complexity

• GP is the amount of information in the source file, not money. It depends on resolution, frame rate and duration. Exactly one project setting affects GP - the frame rate you set. The price changes together with FPS. The other project settings do not affect GP. They go into the project complexity. GP in the counter under the video list is always shown for the source files.
• Project complexity is the sum of the complexity of all enabled settings. It is shown by a counter like "×1.00" in the project window. The more complex the project, the more cloud resources have to be spent. And the higher the cost.

The total volume of imported videos in GP is shown in the counter under the video list. This is the line "Total: N · X GP". It is to the right of the "Import more videos" and "Clear" buttons. Press "Start" - the app will show the calculation in credits.

Creating videos on the device costs no credits.

Where to see the remaining credits and daily limit?

The videos left for today and the credit balance are shown at the top of the main window. Click them. The balance panel opens with the hint "Balance and daily limit".

In the panel:

• "CREDITS" - the balance and an explanation of roughly how many videos it will last for;
• "LIMIT LEFT" - how many videos can still be created today and when the limit resets;
• a balance refresh button with the hint "Refresh the balance";
• the "All transaction history →" link;
• the "Top up" and "Change plan" buttons.

The "∞" symbol in the video counter means there is no daily video limit.

A preview in the project window also spends the daily limit. This is true both for the normal mode and for "Express" mode.

Links that open the same pages in the browser:

• balance top-up - https://videouniquebooster.com/topup-credits
• plan change - https://videouniquebooster.com/change-tariff

What happens when credits or the limit run out?

The app does not stop working without a message about the reason. It pauses the work and shows the reason.

Reason	What the run bar shows	What lifts the pause
Credits ran out	"Paused, credits have run out - waiting for a top-up"	topping up the balance
The daily video limit is used up	"Paused, the daily video limit is used up - waiting for the reset"	the limit reset or a plan change

The work continues on its own as soon as the limit is lifted. Next to the message there is a "Retry now" button. It contacts the server right away, without waiting for the timer.

If the project has local threads, a zero balance turns off only the cloud threads until the end of this run. The local threads keep working. From then on, videos are created on the device only. After the balance is topped up, the cloud does not join right away. In a one-time run you will need to stop video creation and start it again. In a periodic run the cloud joins at the next source check. If there are no local threads, video creation stops entirely.

Topping up the balance will not help when the daily limit is used up. The limit is set by the plan. That is why the app offers "Change plan" there, not "Top up".

Which videos will the cloud not accept?

The cloud rejects a file larger than 1 GB and a file with a resolution above 4K. The rule applies both to source videos and to additional media. These are the template video, additional audio and the watermark.

In "Hybrid" mode such a source video is not lost. The cloud does not take it. The local threads create the file. It is slower, but the video will still be created. In "Cloud" mode there is no substitute. The app will skip such files.

Another limit is hardware codecs (NVENC, Quick Sync, AMF). They work only on the graphics card of your device. The cloud does not have them. When such a codec is selected, the cloud thread counter is reset to zero. It becomes inactive.

More about output settings is on the Export settings page. The app compares the created video with the original. This is covered on the Similarity check page.

FAQ

Does creating videos on the device spend the daily limit?

Yes. All three modes spend the daily video limit. "Local" mode too. In local mode only credits are not spent. A preview in the project window also spends the daily limit.

Why did the "Number of cloud threads" field become inactive?

Most likely the project has a hardware codec selected (NVENC, Quick Sync or AMF). The cloud does not have such codecs. So the app resets the cloud threads to zero and makes the counter inactive. Keep only software codecs. The field will become active again.

Why is the cost in "Hybrid" mode shown as "up to N credits"?

There is no exact cost in this mode. How many files the cloud will create becomes known only during the work. The app reserves the worst case. That is when the local threads pause because of the load. Then the cloud creates the whole queue. Usually less is charged.

What happens if there are not enough credits for the whole run?

A one-time run will not start then. The check sheet will show the line "N credits short of what the start needs". Next to it, it will name the reserved amount and the current balance. Top up the balance or shorten the queue.

Can the cloud thread limit be raised?

Yes. The limit is set by your license. The app's hint says to contact support.

Where are videos created in the cloud saved?

The app automatically downloads the created video to your device. It saves the file in the save folder. The original is deleted from the cloud.