  We study vortex pinning in layered type-II superconductors in the presence of
uncorrelated disorder for decoupled layers. Introducing the new concept of
variable-range thermal smoothing, we describe the interplay between strong
pinning and thermal fluctuations. We discuss the appearance and analyze the
evolution in temperature of two distinct non-linear features in the
current-voltage characteristics. We show how the combination of layering and
electromagnetic interactions leads to a sharp jump in the critical current for
the onset of glassy response as a function of temperature.
