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BradSimonTravelVideos
Inspiring
July 11, 2019
Question

Running Script File without UI from command prompt

  • July 11, 2019
  • 5 replies
  • 7091 views

Without getting into too much unnecessary details, I have a script I wrote that opens some files, changes a few things, and saves it as a new file.  That is the basics of what it does.  Nothing too fancy, and I don't need the UI to run it.  More importantly, I don't WANT the UI to open at all when this runs, it is completely pointless to have it open for this script.

I would LOVE to be able to call this from other apps, but a command prompt will work great.

I have seen posts about afterfx.exe and afterfx.com, neither of them work.  I used them with the -noui flags (no clue what they mean), and it did nothing.  no errors, no sign of it running at all.

If anyone know what flags I need to use to make this happen, please let me know.  If anyone knows of a way I can call this script from anything that can be automated, please let me know.

Thanks in advance!

Brad

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5 replies

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BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
Inspiring
July 14, 2019

I am no longer even worrying about it.  I am now trying to figure out how to mass render AE Projects into H.264.  Without using AME watch folders.  I need to be able to render multiple videos simultaneously.  I need H.264 because the file size needs to be small from the beginning.

Gotta say, not happy (like many many others) about the H.264 going away from AE. 

Thanks again for all of the guidance.

FullyLloyded
FullyLloyded
Participating Frequently
May 11, 2020

Hey Brad, just found this thread but if you're still looking for a solve then try Dataclays Templater plugin for AE, seriously powerful!

B
BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
Inspiring
July 12, 2019

Also, justintaylor, I just looked at your vimeo vid.  Very nice.

    Justin Taylor-Hyper Brew
    Community Expert
    Justin Taylor-Hyper BrewCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 12, 2019

    Thank you!

    Were you trying to inline JS or read a file? The -s flag is for inlined JavaScript, the -r flag is for JavaScript files.

    B
    BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 12, 2019

    This is the first time I have seen the "-s" switch in the command.  I run it this way now, and I get "Unable to execute script at line 1.  Syntax Error.

    Well, the script runs fine in the ExtendScript app.  Too much hassle for a simple thing.

    B
    BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 12, 2019

    afterfx.com - No error messages.  just stops.  I let it sit for several hours, a few times. nothing
    afterfx.exe - it doesn't even do anything.

    Like you said, there are other ways to make this work, and that is probably what I will do.  I didn't realize that this would be such an ordeal to get to work.  No big deal to me, at least I learned about scripting AE .

    Justin Taylor-Hyper Brew
    Community Expert
    Justin Taylor-Hyper BrewCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 12, 2019

    Just triple checking that you're executing the processes correctly:

    1. Your Command Prompt directory is:  C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects CC 2019\Support Files

    2. You've tried running: AfterFX.com -noui -s "alert('test')"

    (should look like this)

    If it's still not working, you may consider re-installing After Effects.

    B
    BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 12, 2019

    I am sure I am running it in the right folder.  If I was not, there would be an error.

    M
    Motion Mammoth
    Inspiring
    July 11, 2019

    In order to execute a script from command prompt you need to use this:

    afterfx.exe -r "c:\myDocuments\Scripts\Script Name with Spaces.jsx"

    Note that this should be ran inside the after effects install folder in the command prompt. If you want to use it from any other place, the full command would be:

    "C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects CC 2019\Support Files\afterfx.exe" -r "c:\myDocuments\Scripts\Script Name with Spaces.jsx"

    Also, sometimes this command line need the quotes from the script path removed, so it could be:

    "C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe After Effects CC 2019\Support Files\afterfx.exe" -r c:\myDocuments\Scripts\Script Name with Spaces.jsx

    If, however, your script has an UI, this will open it. If you want to run it without a UI you must not create that UI in the first place.

    Some elements of the paths i used in the commands may vary for your pc.

    B
    BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 11, 2019

    So, it must think I want to open the UI because I am opening a file.  I will see if I can make some changes.

    B
    BradSimonTravelVideosAuthor
    Inspiring
    July 11, 2019

    I think I will have to use another type of scripting language to do what I want to do.  It appears that me opening or dealing with AEPX files makes the script think I want to use them in AE.  It makes sense, but it is not what I am trying to do.

    Thanks

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