Avid Interplay Engine And Archive Administration Guide 2.6 Manual Admin V2 6
User Manual: avid Interplay Engine - 2.6 - Administration Manual Free User Guide for Avid Interplay Software, Manual
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- Title Page
- Contents
- Using This Guide
- Getting Started with the Avid Interplay Administrator
- Database Settings
- Creating an Interplay Database
- Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
- Creating and Restoring Database Backups
- Performing a Consistency Check
- Viewing Database Information
- Locking and Unlocking Databases
- Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
- Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
- Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
- Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
- Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
- Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions
- Renaming a Database
- Running Database Maintenance Tools
- Server Settings
- User Management
- Understanding the Central Configuration Server
- Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server
- Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
- Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
- Understanding Default User Groups, Users, and Roles
- Adding User Groups
- Adding Users Manually
- Viewing and Setting Attributes
- Understanding Standard Roles and Default Rights
- Viewing and Changing Roles
- Viewing and Setting Authentication Providers for Individual Users
- Deleting Users and User Groups
- Removing Users from User Groups
- Managing Database Roles
- Guidelines for User Management
- Site Settings
- Defining Property Layouts
- Setting the Resolutions Available for Display
- Creating Custom Properties
- Configuring Remote Workgroups
- Configuring Categories
- Setting Server Hostnames and the Workgroup Name
- Interplay Media Services View
- Interplay Transfer Status View
- Interplay Transfer Settings View
- Workgroup Transfer Presets View
- Specifying Remote Servers for Asset Tracking
- Specifying Archive Settings
- Setting the Ownership for New Database Folders
- Setting Options for Deletion
- Viewing and Setting the Metadata Override Status
- Application Settings
- Application Database Settings View
- Setting Options in the Editing Settings Tab
- Setting Audio Mixing Defaults for Access and Assist
- Sending a Source to Playback in Interplay Assist
- Setting the Shotlist Start Timecode for Interplay Access and Interplay Assist
- Setting an Automatic Timeout for Interplay Assist and Avid Instinct
- Configuring the Frame Locators Display
- Setting Instinct/Assist User Options
- Pro Tools Plug-Ins Settings
- Application Database Settings View
- Avid Interplay Services
- Troubleshooting
- Configuring Interplay for a Split Database
- Installed Components and Services
- Interplay Engine Configuration Files
- Valid and Invalid Characters in Avid Interplay
- System Metadata Properties
- Server Error Codes
- Consistency Check Codes
- Index
Avid® Interplay® Engine and
Avid Interplay Archive Engine
Administration Guide
Version 2.6
2
Legal Notices
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3
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4
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5
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Footage
Eco Challenge Morocco — Courtesy of Discovery Communications, Inc.
News material provided by WFTV Television Inc.
Ice Island — Courtesy of Kurtis Productions, Ltd.
Avid Interplay Engine and Avid Interplay Archive Engine Administration Guide • 0130-07640-03 Rev G • June 2012
• Created 6/7/12 • This document is distributed by Avid in online (electronic) form only, and is not available for
purchase in printed form.
6
Contents
Using This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
If You Need Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Viewing Help and Documentation on the Interplay Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Interplay Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Avid Training Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Chapter 1 Getting Started with the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Opening an Interplay Administrator View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Opening Interplay Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Chapter 2 Database Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Creating an Interplay Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Creating and Restoring Database Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Types of Interplay Administrator Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Recommendations for Backup Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Scheduling Automatic Database Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Starting a Backup Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Using an Archiving Tool for Backup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Performing a Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Viewing Database Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Locking and Unlocking Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
7
Deactivating a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Activating a Deactivated Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Migrating a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . 69
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Renaming a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Running Database Maintenance Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Chapter 3 Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Changing the Database and Data Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Viewing Server Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Locking and Unlocking the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Restarting the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Managing Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Installing a Permanent License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
License Types and Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Exporting a License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Troubleshooting Licensing Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Using the License Key Info Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Chapter 4 User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Understanding the Central Configuration Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Moving the CCS to Another Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Viewing and Changing the CCS for a Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Setting Avid Unity Authentication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Setting Windows Domain Authentication and Importing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Setting LDAP Authentication and Importing Users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
LDAP Server Configuration Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Understanding Default User Groups, Users, and Roles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
8
Adding User Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Adding Users Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Viewing and Setting Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Understanding Standard Roles and Default Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Viewing and Changing Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Viewing and Setting Authentication Providers for Individual Users . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Deleting Users and User Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Removing Users from User Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Managing Database Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Viewing General Role Assignments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Setting or Changing a General Role Assignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Blocking Access by a Group or User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Managing Special Access Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Guidelines for User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Chapter 5 Site Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Defining Property Layouts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Setting the Resolutions Available for Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Creating Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Adding a Custom Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Setting Access Control for Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Working with Lists for Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Configuring Remote Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Configuring Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Adding Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Removing Categories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Setting Server Hostnames and the Workgroup Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Configuring the Interplay Streaming Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Interplay Media Services View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Interplay Transfer Status View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Interplay Transfer Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Workgroup Transfer Presets View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Specifying Remote Servers for Asset Tracking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Specifying Archive Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
9
Archiving Duplicate Versions of Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Adding AAF Metadata to an Archive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Specifying the Archive Server, Segment Size, and Restore Process . . . . . . . . . . 160
Setting the Ownership for New Database Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Setting Options for Deletion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Understanding the Deletion Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Scheduling the Deletion of Database Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Setting Options for Deleting Only OMF Media, Only MXF Media, or Both. . . . . . . 172
Setting Options for Deleting Locked Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Activating the Option to Delete Referenced Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Using the Delete Kept Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Viewing and Setting the Metadata Override Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Chapter 6 Application Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Application Database Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Setting Options in the Editing Settings Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Setting Audio Mixing Defaults for Access and Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Sending a Source to Playback in Interplay Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Setting the Shotlist Start Timecode for Interplay Access and Interplay Assist . . . . 192
Setting an Automatic Timeout for Interplay Assist and Avid Instinct . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Configuring the Frame Locators Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Setting Instinct/Assist User Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Instinct/Assist User Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Pro Tools Plug-Ins Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Installing the Pro Tools Plug-Ins for Interplay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Configuring the Pro Tools Import Plug-In. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Configuring the Pro Tools Export Plug-In. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Configuring the Pro Tools User Settings Plug-In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Chapter 7 Avid Interplay Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Chapter 8 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Troubleshooting Login Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Troubleshooting Client Connection Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Optimizing Avid Interplay Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Troubleshooting Firewalls and Avid Interplay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
10
Troubleshooting the Server Execution User Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Creating the Server Execution User Account. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Determining the Server Execution User Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Re-creating the Server Execution User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Shutting Down or Locking the Server Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Chapter 9 Configuring Interplay for a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Understanding a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Supported Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Preparing for a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Splitting a Database for New Interplay Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Splitting a Database for Existing Interplay Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Configuring the workgroup.xml File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Identifying the Root Folder of the Interplay Server Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Reuniting a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Reuniting a Split Database (AvidWG Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Reuniting a Split Database (AvidWG and _InternalData). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Appendix A Installed Components and Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Avid Interplay Engine Directory: Folders and Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Apache Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Data Folder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
Preview Server Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Server Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Required TCP/IP Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Avid Interplay Engine Servers and Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
Avid Interplay Engine Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Avid Workgroup HTTP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Avid Workgroup Server Browser Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Avid Workgroup Preview Server Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Avid Workgroup TCP/COM Bridge Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Avid Workgroup VSS Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
11
Appendix B Interplay Engine Configuration Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Configuring the Server Event Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Config.xml File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Supported Actions in Config.xml . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Supported Events in Config.xml. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Server Event Configuration Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
LogWatch.xml. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Sending E-mail Notifications from LogWatch.xml . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Configuring Client Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Setting the Filetransfer Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Appendix C Valid and Invalid Characters in Avid Interplay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Appendix D System Metadata Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
Appendix E Server Error Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Appendix F Consistency Check Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Consistency Check Critical Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Consistency Check Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
Consistency Check Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Using This Guide
Congratulations on your purchase of Avid®Interplay®, a powerful system for managing media in
a shared storage environment. This guide describes how to use Avid Interplay Administrator, an
Interplay client application that provides tools to configure the Avid Interplay Engine and to
manage the database on the server.
This guide is intended for all Avid Interplay administrators who are responsible for installing,
configuring and maintaining an Avid Interplay Engine or Avid Interplay Archive Engine
(database, server, and all related client connections and user rights) in an Interplay workgroup.
This guide includes a detailed description of each of the Avid Interplay Administrator task
groups and how you can use them to administer your server and databases. Some of the settings
that you are able to change affect the server itself, while others only affect the database stored on
the server.
The Interplay Administrator is supported on both the Microsoft® Windows® and the Mac OS®X
platforms. When necessary, the guide describes platform-specific differences.
nThe documentation describes the features and hardware of all models. Therefore, your system
might not contain certain features and hardware that are covered in the documentation.
nLimited number of client applications per user per machine: A user can run only one Interplay
Access session and one Interplay Administrator session on one machine. This software does not
support terminal/server sessions.
Symbols and Conventions
13
Symbols and Conventions
Avid documentation uses the following symbols and conventions:
Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action
nA note provides important related information, reminders,
recommendations, and strong suggestions.
cA caution means that a specific action you take could cause harm to
your computer or cause you to lose data.
wA warning describes an action that could cause you physical harm.
Follow the guidelines in this document or on the unit itself when
handling electrical equipment.
> This symbol indicates menu commands (and subcommands) in the
order you select them. For example, File > Import means to open the
File menu and then select the Import command.
This symbol indicates a single-step procedure. Multiple arrows in a list
indicate that you perform one of the actions listed.
(Windows), (Windows
only), (Macintosh), or
(Macintosh only)
This text indicates that the information applies only to the specified
operating system, either Windows or Macintosh OS X.
Bold font Bold font is primarily used in task instructions to identify user interface
items and keyboard sequences.
Italic font Italic font is used to emphasize certain words and to indicate variables.
Courier Bold font
Courier Bold font identifies text that you type.
Ctrl+key or mouse action Press and hold the first key while you press the last key or perform the
mouse action. For example, Command+Option+C or Ctrl+drag.
If You Need Help
14
If You Need Help
If you are having trouble using your Avid product:
1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task in this guide. It is
especially important to check each step of your workflow.
2. Check the latest information that might have become available after the documentation was
published:
- If the latest information for your Avid product is provided as printed release notes, they
are shipped with your application and are also available online.
- If the latest information for your Avid product is provided as a ReadMe file, it is
supplied on your Avid installation media as a PDF document (README_product.pdf)
and is also available online.
You should always check online for the most up-to-date release notes or ReadMe
because the online version is updated whenever new information becomes available. To
view these online versions, select ReadMe from the Help menu, or visit the Knowledge Base
at www.avid.com/readme.
3. Check the documentation that came with your Avid application or your hardware for
maintenance or hardware-related issues.
4. Visit the online Knowledge Base at www.avid.com/onlinesupport. Online services are
available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Search this online Knowledge Base to find
answers, to view error messages, to access troubleshooting tips, to download updates, and to
read or join online message-board discussions.
Viewing Help and Documentation on the Interplay
Portal
You can quickly access the Interplay Help, PDF versions of the Interplay guides, and useful
external links by viewing the Interplay User Information Center on the Interplay Portal. The
Interplay Portal is a web site that runs on the Interplay Engine.
You can access the Interplay User Information Center through a browser from any system in the
Interplay environment. You can also access it through the Help menu in Interplay Access and the
Interplay Administrator.
Interplay Documentation
15
The Interplay Help combines information from all Interplay guides in one Help system. It
includes a combined index and a full-featured search. From the Interplay Portal, you can run the
Help in a browser or download a compiled (.chm) version for use on other systems, such as a
laptop.
To open the Interplay User Information Center through a browser:
1. Type the following line in a web browser:
http://Interplay_Engine_name
For Interplay_Engine_name substitute the name of the computer running the Interplay
Engine software. For example, the following line opens the portal web page on a system
named docwg:
http://docwg
2. Click the “Avid Interplay Documentation” link to access the User Information Center web
page.
To open the Interplay User Information Center from Interplay Access or the Interplay
Administrator:
tSelect Help > Documentation Website on Server.
Interplay Documentation
The following documents describe how to use Avid Interplay:
•Avid Interplay Best Practices — provides an overview of the major Interplay components,
shows sample configuration diagrams, and describes several of the key features, such as
setting up a user database and using the Avid Interplay Archive Engine.
•Avid Interplay Software Installation and Configuration Guide — describes how to use the
Avid Interplay Installer DVD to install and configure software on the various systems that
make up a Interplay environment.
•Avid Interplay Engine Failover Guide — describes how to set up a cluster configuration for
the Avid Interplay Engine and the Avid Interplay Archive engine. There are two versions of
this guide: one for SR2500 systems and one for AS3000 systems.
•Avid Interplay Engine and Avid Interplay Archive Engine Administration Guide — describes
how to administer your Avid Interplay Engine or Avid Interplay Archive Engine and Avid
Interplay database.
•Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Access to browse,
search, and work with assets in the Avid Interplay database.
•Avid Interplay Assist User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Assist for logging,
archiving, and sending to Playback material in an Interplay environment.
Avid Training Services
16
•Avid Instinct User’s Guide — describes how to use the Avid Instinct application to write
iNEWS stories and put together simple audio and video sequences.
•Avid Interplay Media Services Setup and User’s Guide — Avid Interplay Media Services
lets you control and automate Transcode, Archive, and ProEncode services.
•Avid Interplay Transfer Setup and User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Transfer
to transfer media to and from another workgroup, send finished sequences to a configured
playback device, ingest media from a configured ingest device, and perform standalone
transfers between workstations.
•Avid Service Framework User’s Guide — describes how to use the logging, monitoring, and
management features of the Avid Service Framework applications.
•Avid Low Res Encode Setup and Configuration — describes how to set up and configure an
Avid Low Res Encode system. Includes information on updating the bootset, root disk
image, and configuring a Low Res Encode system to work with CaptureManager.
•Avid Interplay Capture User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Capture, a newsroom
ingest tool that enables automated recordings.
•Avid Interplay Capture Administrator’s Guide — describes administrative concepts, tasks,
and reference material for Avid Interplay Capture.
•Avid CaptureManager User’s Guide — describes how to use CaptureManager™ in a
newsroom environment to coordinate video feeds, schedule feed captures at both high and
low resolutions, and record late breaking events instantly.
•Avid CaptureManager Installation and Configuration Guide — describes how to set up and
configure CaptureManager.
All documents are available in PDF form on the Interplay Portal and also on the Avid Knowledge
Base at www.avid.com/onlinesupport.
Avid Training Services
Avid makes lifelong learning, career advancement, and personal development easy and
convenient. Avid understands that the knowledge you need to differentiate yourself is always
changing, and Avid continually updates course content and offers new training delivery methods
that accommodate your pressured and competitive work environment.
For information on courses/schedules, training centers, certifications, courseware, and books,
please visit www.avid.com/support and follow the Training links, or call Avid Sales at
800-949-AVID (800-949-2843).
1Getting Started with the Avid Interplay
Administrator
The Avid Interplay Administrator provides database administrators and maintenance engineers
with the tools required to configure the Avid Interplay Engine and to manage the database on the
server.
The following topics provide basic information for using the Interplay Administrator:
•Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
•Using the Avid Interplay Administrator
•Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
•Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
•Opening an Interplay Administrator View
•Opening Interplay Help
•Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator
For an overview of all Avid Interplay components, see the Avid Interplay Best Practices Guide.
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay
Workgroups
The Avid Interplay Engine forms the backbone of the Interplay environment. The Interplay
Engine is a server that combines an asset database with workflow management software, both of
which are integrated with Avid shared storage and Avid archive solutions. This topic provides
basic information about the functions and components of the Interplay Engine.
One Interplay Engine, One Interplay Database, One Shared Storage Network
The Interplay Engine is one component of an Interplay workgroup. At a minimum, an Interplay
workgroup is composed of one Interplay Engine, one Interplay database, one Avid
shared-storage network (Avid ISIS® or Avid Unity™ MediaNetwork), and associated software
and services.
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
18
An Interplay database consists of two parts:
• A metadata database, which holds information about the assets, or metadata.
• Source files for the assets, for example, graphics files and Avid media files. The source files
for file assets can be stored on the Interplay Engine or on an Avid shared-storage system.
The source files for Avid assets are always stored on shared storage.
The following illustration shows the metadata database and the source files for file assets stored
on the internal drive of the Interplay Engine server and the source files for Avid assets stored on
an Avid shared storage workspace.
For information about all Interplay components and detailed sample configurations, see Avid
Interplay Best Practices.
Avid Assets, File Assets, and Splitting the Database
Interplay manages two different kids of assets. Avid assets are assets that are created by Avid
applications through capture, ingest, import, or transfer. Avid assets include:
• Master clips
•Subclips
• Sequences
•Effects
• Motion effects
• Rendered effects
• Group clips
File assets are any assets that are not created by an Avid application. Any file you can create on
your workstation, through applications such as Adobe Photoshop or Microsoft Word, can be
added to the Interplay database and managed by Interplay as a file asset.
Metadata
Database
Avid
Shared Storage
File Assets
Media for
Avid Assets
Avid Interplay Engine
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
19
Media files for Avid assets are always stored on an Avid shared-storage system. Source files for
file assets can be stored on the Interplay Engine or on an Avid shared-storage workspace. The
location that holds file assets is called the file repository.
When you first install Interplay Engine software, the installation program requires you to set one
root folder for the database on a local drive. By default, this root folder holds both the metadata
database and files for file assets. If the Interplay Engine server does not have adequate local
storage for your Interplay database (for example, if your facility stores a large number of file
assets in the Interplay database), you can configure the Interplay Engine to store only the
metadata database on the Interplay Engine. All other database files and folders can be stored on
an Avid shared-storage workspace. This configuration is called a split database. The following
illustration shows a split database.
nIn a split database, source files for file assets and streamed properties for Avid assets (head
frames and AAF information) are stored on a shared storage workspace. Media files for Avid
assets, such as .mxf files, are always stored on a shared storage workspace.
For more information, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 216.
Multiple Workgroups
A large production facility can have more than one Interplay workgroup. Each workgroup must
have its own Interplay Engine, database, and shared storage network. Users on Interplay Access
can view and access assets from more than one workgroup and can transfer them from one to
another using a file copy procedure for file assets and Avid Interplay Transfer for Avid assets.
You can also use the Interplay Delivery service to transfer Avid assets.
Metadata
Database
Avid
Shared Storage
File Assets
Media for
Avid Assets
Avid Interplay Engine
Streamed
Properties
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
20
Interplay Archive Engine
A facility might also include an Interplay Archive Engine. An Interplay Archive Engine is
configured similarly to an Interplay Engine. An Archive Engine is integrated with a third-party
archive system. An Interplay Archive database is always named AvidAM. An Interplay database
is always named AvidWG.
An Interplay Archive database and an Interplay database use different icons, as shown in the
following illustration from Interplay Access. The archive database is represented by a safe, and
archive folders are represented by boxes.
For more information about the Interplay Archive Engine, see Avid Interplay Best Practices.
Interplay online
database
Interplay
Archive Engine
database
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator
21
nIn this guide, references to the Interplay Engine also refer to the Archive Engine, unless
otherwise noted.
Central Configuration Server
If a production facility includes more than one Interplay workgroup, you can specify one
Interplay Engine as the Central Configuration Server (CCS). The CCS is an Interplay Engine
module that stores information that is common to all other Interplay Engines. The CCS provides
a means to manage user accounts across multiple workgroups. For more information, see
“Understanding the Central Configuration Server” on page 95.
Server Execution User
The Server Execution User is a Windows operating system user that runs the Interplay Engine
processes. You specify the user name and password for the Server Execution User when you
install the Interplay Engine on the server. The Server Execution User needs local administrator
rights on the operating system for the Interplay Engine server and read/write access to the Avid
shared-storage file system.
For more information, see “Troubleshooting the Server Execution User Account” on page 211.
Avid Interplay as a Client-Server Application
Avid Interplay is designed as a client-server application. The Interplay Engine is configured to
run on a central machine that is accessible to all users through a network. An Avid Interplay
application that runs on a client machine is a client of the Avid Interplay Engine server.
Avid Interplay client applications, such as Interplay Access, Interplay Assist, Avid Instinct®, and
Avid editing applications that use the Interplay Window can access and browse multiple
databases. The Interplay Administrator is also a client application.
Avid Interplay uses TCP/IP and related protocols for its network communication. Therefore,
TCP/IP must be installed on all machines. Since TCP/IP is used to access the Internet, most users
already have this component installed. See “Required TCP/IP Ports” on page 248 for more
information.
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator
The Avid Interplay Administrator is a client application that you use to manage either the
Interplay Engine or the Interplay Archive Engine. The Interplay Administrator is installed at the
same time that you install Interplay Access. You can install the Interplay Administrator as a
client on any computer in your network and then use it to manage any Interplay Engine or
Interplay Archive Engine that is available on the network. For information on installing Interplay
Access and the Interplay Administrator, see the Avid Interplay Software Installation and
Configuration Guide.
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
22
The Interplay Administrator provides you with the tools you need for the following major tasks:
• Setting up a new database. See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 28.
• Backing up the database. Backing up the database regularly protects your data, allowing you
to restore the database to a saved state in the event of failure. See “Creating and Restoring
Database Backups” on page 33.
• Maintenance tasks, such as locking, unlocking, and restarting the server. See “Server
Settings” on page 82.
• Creating, editing, and deleting user accounts and managing user authorization. See “User
Management” on page 95.
• Configuring client applications and the workgroup. See “Site Settings” on page 131.
• Configuring the Interplay Archive Engine. See “Specifying Archive Settings” on page 158.
For more information on archiving, see Avid Interplay Best Practices and the Avid Interplay
Media Services Setup and User’s Guide..
• Configuring Application Settings and Avid Interplay Services. See “Application Settings”
on page 179 and “Avid Interplay Services” on page 206.
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
To start the Avid Interplay Administrator:
1. Do one of the following:
tClick the Start button and then select All Programs > Avid >
Avid Interplay Access Utilities > Avid Interplay Administrator.
tFrom Interplay Access, select Tools > Open Interplay Administrator.
The Avid Interplay Administrator Server Login screen appears.
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
23
The first time you open the Interplay Administrator, the Server text box is empty. If you have
already logged into a server, the text box shows the last server you logged in to.
2. Select the server you want to work with by doing one of the following:
tAccept the server that is displayed.
tType the name of the server that you want to log in to. You can also use an IP address.
tClick the arrow for the Server list and select the server name from the list.
The first part of the list shows recent servers, the second part of the list shows servers
that were added manually (not on a local area network), and the third part shows servers
available on your local area network.
tClick the arrow for the server list and select Add Server. Type a new server name.
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
24
3. Type a user name and password for an account with administration rights.
On the first start after installing the Avid Interplay Engine, only the user Administrator
exists. Type “Administrator” in the dialog box. The password is empty by default. Change
the password of the Administrator as soon as possible (see “Viewing and Setting Attributes”
on page 114).
nThe Interplay Administrator account is different from the Server Execution User account. The
Interplay Administrator account is used to manage users and the database. The Server Execution
User account is used to run the Interplay Engine processes.
4. Click Connect.
The Interplay Administrator window opens.
If you have any problems logging in, see “Troubleshooting Login Problems” on page 208.
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
The Avid Interplay Administrator window is divided into six groups: Database, Server, User
Management, Site Settings, Application Settings, and Avid Interplay Services. The name of the
Interplay Engine server you are connected to is displayed in the upper right of the window.
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
25
Each group contains views for managing components of the Avid Interplay Engine. Each group
is described in a separate section of this guide:
•“Database Settings” on page 28
•“Server Settings” on page 82
•“User Management” on page 95
•“Site Settings” on page 131
•“Application Settings” on page 179
•“Avid Interplay Services” on page 206
Opening an Interplay Administrator View
26
Opening an Interplay Administrator View
To open an Interplay Administrator view:
tIn the Interplay Administrator window, click an icon.
The view you select replaces the Interplay Administrator window. Each view includes a path
that shows the relative location of that view. The following illustration shows part of the
Create Database view. In this example, the path shows that the Create Database view is
included in the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window (In the path, the
Interplay Administrator window is represented as the Interplay Server).
To return to the Interplay Administrator window:
tClick the Menu button in the upper left of the view.
Opening Interplay Help
The Interplay Help system is installed when you install the Interplay Engine. The Interplay Help
system provides all user and administrator information that is contained in the Interplay manuals.
The Interplay Administrator Help menu provides five entry points: one for the Welcome screen
and four that correspond to four Interplay applications:
• Interplay Administration Help
• Interplay Media Services Help
• Interplay Transfer Help
• Interplay Installation Help
You can access the entire Help system, including the Search and Index tabs, from any of those
entry points.
To access Interplay Help:
tSelect Help, and then select the desired application.
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator
27
tSelect Documentation Website on Server.
The Avid Interplay User Information Center page opens. You can open the Help, PDF
versions of the Interplay user guides, and other useful links. See “Viewing Help and
Documentation on the Interplay Portal” on page 14
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator
When you are finished using the Avid Interplay Administrator, you should log out or close the
application. Logging out can be convenient if you want to log in to a different database.
To log out:
tClick the Log out button in the upper right of the Interplay Administrator window.
The application remains open, with the login screen displayed.
To close the Interplay Administrator, do one of the following:
tSelect File > Exit.
tClick the close button in the upper right of the window.
The Interplay Administrator window closes.
2Database Settings
The Database settings allow you to create, configure, and manage the Interpla y database. The
following topics describe how to use these settings:
•Creating an Interplay Database
•Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
•Creating and Restoring Database Backups
•Performing a Consistency Check
•Viewing Database Information
•Locking and Unlocking Databases
•Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
•Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
•Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
•Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
•Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
•Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions
•Renaming a Database
•Running Database Maintenance Tools
Creating an Interplay Database
The Create Database view lets you name and create a new Interplay database. You need to create
an Interplay database after you install the Interplay Engine and Interplay Access software.
cAvid supports only one database for each Interplay Engine. The database must be named
AvidWG, or for an Archive Engine database, AvidAM.
The root folder for a new database is set during the installation of the Interplay Engine software.
By default, the installation program creates one shared folder for both the metadata database and
the source files for file assets (the file repository). The default location is the
D:\Workgroup_Databases folder (or S:\Workgroup_Databases on a cluster system). This folder
is represented by the administrative share name WG_Database$. The $ indicates a hidden share.
Creating an Interplay Database
29
nTo identify the actual folder, open a Command Prompt window and type
net share
.
If the Interplay Engine server does not have adequate local storage for your Interplay database
(for example, if your facility stores a large number of file assets in the Interplay database), you
can configure the Interplay Engine to store only the metadata database on the Interplay Engine.
The file repository and all other database files and folders can be stored on an Avid
shared-storage workspace. This configuration is called a split database.
If you are going to use a split database configuration, the most efficient approach is to specify
how to divide the database before you create it. You specify the locations in the Server Settings
view (see “Changing the Database and Data Locations” on page 82) and then create the database
in the Create Database view.
The following illustration shows the Create Database view with two locations specified:
• The metadata database will be installed in \\DOCWG\WG_Database$, which represents a
folder on the Interplay Engine (by default, D:\Workgroup_Databases).
• The file repository will be installed in \\AAC-ISIS\File_Assets\, which is a shared storage
workspace that you need to set in the Server Settings view.
For complete information on configuring a split database, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split
Database” on page 216.
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
30
To create an Interplay database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Create Database
icon.
The Create Database view opens.
2. In the New Database Information area, leave the default “AvidWG” in the Database Name
text box. For an archive database, leave the default “AvidAM.” These are the only two
supported database names.
3. Type a description for the database in the Description text box, such as “Main Production
Server.”
4. Select “Create default Avid Interplay structure.”
After the database is created, a set of default folders within the database are visible in
Interplay Access and other Interplay clients. For more information about these folders, see
the Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide.
5. Keep the root folder for the New Database Location (Meta Data).
The metadata database must reside on the Interplay Engine server.
6. Keep the root folder for the New Data Location (Assets).
If you are creating a split database, this entry should show the Avid shared-storage
workspace that you set in the Server Settings view (see “Changing the Database and Data
Locations” on page 82).
7. Click Create to create directories and files for the database.
The Interplay database is created. For information about the folders and files that compose
the database, see “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files” on page 30.
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
When the Interplay Engine creates a database, it creates a set of directories and files in the
locations you specified in the Create Database view (see “Creating an Interplay Database” on
page 28).
The Interplay Engine also creates a user database, which is located on the server that you
designated as the Central Configuration Server during the installation (see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 95).
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
31
Database File Structure
The database file structure is based on the administrative share that was set during the Interplay
Engine installation. By default, this administrative share is named WG_Database$ and is
associated with the folder D:\Workgroup_Databases (S:\Workgroup_Databases for cluster
systems). The “$” indicates a hidden share. To identify the actual folder, open a Command
Prompt window and type
net share
.
This folder contains either the AvidWG or the AvidAM folder. If the server is functioning as the
Central Configuration server, the folder also includes the _InternalData folder. The following
table describes these folders:
Split Database
If you configured your system to create a split database (either when creating a database or after
installation), an AvidWG folder exists on both the Interplay Engine server and the shared storage
workspace. Only the _Database folder is located on the Interplay Engine server. The other
folders are located on the shared storage workspace. For more information about working with a
split database, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 216.
Database Folders and Files
The following table lists the folders that are included in the AvidWG or AvidAM folders. During
normal work, users or administrators do not need to work directly with these folders and files.
All access for normal work is through Avid Interplay products. You need to work with these files
when splitting a database or possibly when troubleshooting a problem.
cYou should exclude the _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database from any
kind of virus checking because virus checking tools might try to lock the database files).
Database Description
_Internal Data User database: Contains Central Configuration Server information such as
users and roles.
AvidWG Interplay Engine database: Contains metadata for Avid assets and file
assets, and source files for file assets.
AvidAM Interplay Archive Engine database: Contains archived metadata for Avid
assets and file assets, and source files for file assets.
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
32
Database Directories and Files
Directory or File Directory or File Description
_Database The main database directory, which contains database files and the
database journal. These files contain the database structure and all
metadata. All files within this folder contain binary information and
cannot be viewed or edited with a text editor.
If you are working with a split database, this directory is located on the
Interplay Engine server and other directories are located on a shared
storage workspace.
_Master The main data directory, which contains the source files for file assets that
are managed by the database (the file repository). This directory contains
source files for all versions of the file assets.
nSource files for Avid assets are always stored in Avid media folders
on shared storage. If you are working with a split database, this
directory is located on a shared storage workspace.
Handover Directories:
_Import, _CheckIn,
_PropertyHandover,
_Handover
Whenever a file is copied from the client to the server, the file is first
copied into one of these directories, depending on what operation (check
in, import, and so on) was performed. The server then moves the file from
these handover directories into the _Master directory.
_PropertyStore The database directory that contains files holding the contents of streamed
properties. Streamed properties include metadata about Avid assets, such
as head frames and AAF information.
_Backup The data folder that contains backup versions of the database that are
created through the automated backup process (see “Scheduling
Automatic Database Backups” on page 39).
AvidWG.pro, AvidAM.pro A cookie file representing the database. It contains no vital information,
but it is needed to activate a deactivated database (see “Activating a
Deactivated Database” on page 62).
Folderlocations.xml A file that informs the server about the location of the _Database directory.
If you set a new location for the file assets, you might need to edit this file.
See “Splitting a Database for Existing Interplay Installations” on
page 222.
_Buckets Not currently used.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
33
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
There are two basic approaches to backing up an Interplay database:
• Using a combination of backups scheduled through the Interplay Administrator (automatic
backups) and manual backups of other parts of the database. This approach should be used
as part of a regular backup strategy.
• Using a professional backup tool to do a complete backup to offline media. This backup
should include both the Interplay backup and the folders that Interplay backup process does
not include.
Creating a complete copy of the complete database using Robocopy or 7-Zip is useful before
doing a major system upgrade. These tools can be used in place of a professional backup
tool. However, keep in mind that performance and stability might suffer.
The following topics provide information about creating and restoring database backups:
•“Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 34
•“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 34
•“Scheduling Automatic Database Backups” on page 39
•“Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep” on page 38
•“Starting a Backup Manually” on page 43
•“Using an Archiving Tool for Backup” on page 44
•“Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database” on page 46
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
34
Types of Interplay Administrator Backups
The Interplay Administrator lets you run create two different kinds of metadata backups: a
Complete metadata backup and a Fast metadata backup. You can schedule backups to run
automatically or you can run a backup manually. The following table describes the different
types of backups.
cThe _PropertyStore folder is critical if you need to completely restore Av i d as set s. Av id
recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week and a Fast backup (either
Incremental or Differential) daily.
For information on how to restore a database, see “Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast
Backup” on page 48.
Recommendations for Backup Configuration
Automatic backups, as scheduled through the Interplay Administrator, do not back up the entire
database, so they are only one component of a complete backup strategy.
The following table lists the different types of backups needed to completely back up the
Interplay database. For an Interplay archive, substitute AvidAM for AvidWG.
Backup Type Description
Complete (Full) backup Creates copies of database files in the _Database folder and streamed
properties files in the _PropertyStore folder. Streamed properties include
metadata about Avid assets, such as head frames and AAF information.
This is the preferred backup.
Fast backups:
- Incremental Creates copies of database files and streamed properties files that were
added to the database since the last Complete Backup, the last Incremental
Backup, or the last Differential Backup.
- Differential Creates copies of database files and streamed properties files that were
added to the database since the last Complete Backup. In most cases, this
backup takes longer to perform than an Incremental backup.
- Metadata Only (Manual backup only) Creates copies of database files in the _Database
folder, but not streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore folder. This
type of Fast backup is less useful than an Incremental or Differential
backup. See “Starting a Backup Manually” on page 43.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
35
This type of manual backup might involve tape backup or another kind of backup process.
cThe _Master folder, which holds source files for file assets, is not included in the automatic
backup, which includes only metadata. It must be backed up by another backup method
regularly. Also be aware that the automatic backup process does not back up Avid media
files on shared storage workspaces.
It is extremely important to use the automatic backup process available through the
Interplay Administrator instead of just a tape backup for backing up the _Database and
_PropertyStore folders. Tape backups can be:
• Inconsistent: A tape backup of the _Database folder while the server is running can lead to
inconsistent backup files because the server might not have applied all the transactions to the
database yet.
• Inconvenient: Because it is not safe to make tape backups of the _Database folder while the
server is running, the server must be completely shut down during tape backup, causing
inconvenience.
• Unpredictable and dangerous: The backup might lock the database files. This prevents the
server from reading and writing those files. The database could become damaged.
Type of Backup Folders or Files Backed Up
Fast Metadata Only backup AvidWG\_Database
Complete (Full) backup
Fast Incremental backup
Fast Differential backup
AvidWG\_Database
AvidWG\_PropertyStore
Automatic Full Backup WG_Database$\_InternalData
This folder is automatically backed up once a week
at 1 a.m. on Sunday.
Manual backup AvidWG\_Master
AvidWG\AvidWG.pro
AvidWG\FolderLocations.xml
See “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files”
on page 30 for descriptions of these folders and
files. It is not necessary to back up
AvidWG\_Backup unless you want to make a
backup of automated backups. Other folders in
AvidWG do not need to be backed up because they
are temporary folders that are automatically
recreated.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
36
Automatic backup ensures database consistency.
Recommended Backup Configuration
Avid recommends the following backup configuration:
•Enable a daily Avid Interplay database backup. The backup should be set to run once
daily at night, when the server is not being used or usage is lowest. See “Scheduling
Automatic Database Backups” on page 39.
•Decide whether to schedule the daily backup as a Complete backup or Fast backup. If
you have a very large database, you can save time by scheduling a Fast backup daily and a
Complete backup every few days. However, keep in mind that a Complete backup is needed
to restore Avid assets. Because Complete backups can affect system performance, schedule
Complete backups when the server is not being used or when usage is lowest. See “Types of
Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 34.
•Check the “number of backups to keep” setting. The Avid Interplay Engine always keeps
the last Complete backup and any later Fast backups. If you want to keep more than one
Complete backup, change the “number of Backups to keep” setting to be larger than the
number of scheduled Fast backups. For more information, see “Setting the Number of
Database Backups to Keep” on page 38.
•Determine where to store the automatic backups. By default, the _Backup folder is
located in the Workgroup_Databases folder. Depending on the size of the database, you
might need to change the location to store backups. If you select a custom location, you can
rename the folder from _Backup to another name.
Non-cluster systems: The default path is
- D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
If you are working with a split database, by default the _Backup folder is located with the
file repository on the shared-storage workspace, for example:
-\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\_Backup
Storing backups on shared storage is an acceptable configuration, either as part of a split
database or as a custom location.
nPrior to Interplay Engine v1.2.4, storing backups on shared storage was not recommended
because of the large number of small files included in the backup. However, the backup
mechanism included with Interplay Engine v1.2.4 or later significantly reduces the number of
files created in the _PropertyStore folder, which reduces the amount of storage required.
Alternatively, you can store the backups on an external file server. You need to use a UNC
path when you specify the location. Make sure the Server Execution User has read/write
access to this external file server and the backup folder. See “Troubleshooting the Server
Execution User Account” on page 211.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
37
Cluster systems: The default path is
- S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
On cluster systems, Avid recommends that you specify \\?\d:\backup as the path for
Interplay backups. (This syntax, with a question mark, is known as a Long UNC or UNCW
path, and allows for more characters than the 260-character limitation of the short UNC
path.) This path will create backups on the local drive of the active node, rather than the
Infortrend, thus avoiding a single point of failure.
nSR2400 systems were shipped with 73 GB drives, which are too small for regular backups. These
systems should be upgraded to include larger drives.
•Ensure that the backups are working and actually creating backups. To test the backup,
check that the backup subfolders databasename_date_time are being created at the specified
times (according to the backup configuration) and that these subfolders are not empty. Every
backup should create its own subfolder.
For example, on a non-cluster system, your backup folders might be created in the following
location:
- D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
A backup subfolder might be named AvidWG_2007-05-22_03-00.
•Enable a different backup mechanism, such as tape backup, for all folders except the
_Database and _PropertyStore folders (see the table at the beginning of this topic). The
_Master folder of each database is the most important for the tape backup. Do not include
the _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database in the tape backup.
•After a Complete backup, copy the backup folder to offline media to prevent data loss.
You can do this as a separate step or as part of a backup of the complete database to offline
media (see the next bullet). Use a backup tool (such as Robocopy or 7-Zip) that can handle
long path names and does not use excessive bandwidth, to avoid slowing down activity on
the Interplay Engine. (See “Using an Archiving Tool for Backup” on page 44).
•Perform a backup of the complete database to offline media. Avid recommends a
complete backup to offline media using a professional backup tool. Archive tools such as
Robocopy or 7-Zip are useful before doing a major system upgrade. They can be used in
place of a professional backup tool. However, performance and stability might suffer.
•If you schedule a regular restart of the engine, set it after the regular backup is created.
If you restart the Interplay Engine, you cannot create a backup until at least one client
connects to the engine. This could be a problem if you schedule a restart and backup at a
time when there is little or not activity, such as the middle of the night.
cThe _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database should be excluded from any
kind of virus checking (virus checking tools might try to lock the database files).
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
38
Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep
The Avid Interplay Engine always keeps the last Complete backup and any later Fast backups. If
you want to keep more than one Complete backup, change the “number of Backups to keep”
setting to be larger than the number of scheduled Fast backups. The default setting is 10.
The number of backups to keep includes Complete and Fast backups. After the Interplay Engine
finishes a Complete backup, it checks the number of backups in the _Backup folder. If the
number of backups to keep is exceeded, the Interplay Engine deletes the extra backups regardless
of backup type (Complete or Fast), starting with the oldest. In this way, there is always at least
one Complete Backup available.
Keeping More Than One Complete Backup
If you want to keep more than one complete backup, you must carefully calculate the number of
backups to keep. For example, if you schedule Complete backups once a week and schedule Fast
backups on the other 6 days, the number of backups to keep must be at least 8 (2 Complete
backups and 6 Fast backups). If the number of backups to keep is less than 8, on the day of the
Complete backup the Interplay Engine will delete the second-to-last Complete backup.
The following illustration shows Complete backups on Sundays and Fast backups on the other
days of the week. On Sunday the 8th, after finishing a Complete backup, the Interplay Engine
checks the number of backups. Because the number of backups to keep is 8, it keeps the
Complete backup performed on Sunday the 1st, the 6 Fast backups, and the last Complete
backup.
In the same example, the Interplay Engine does not check the number of backups again until it
performs a Complete backup on Sunday the 15th. On that day, it deletes the 7 oldest backups,
leaving 8. The following illustration shows the 7 oldest backups deleted.
nIf you check the _Backup folder before the Interplay Engine finishes a Complete backup, it is
possible for the _Backup folder to contain more than the specified number of backups to keep.
Sun Mon Wed
Tue Thu Fri Sat Sun
12345678
CCFF FFFF
Sun Mon Wed
Tue Thu Fri Sat Sun
12345678
CCFF FFFF
Mon Wed
Tue Thu Fri Sat Sun
9 101112131415
CFF FFFF
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
39
Scheduling Automatic Database Backups
The Schedule Backups view in the Interplay Administrator lets you schedule the type and
frequency of your automatic backups. You can schedule two kinds of backups: Complete and
Fast. You can schedule one of two different Fast backups: Incremental or Differential. For a
description of the different types of backups, see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on
page 34.
The Interplay Engine performs an automatic backup without locking or shutting down the server,
and users can continue to work with the database. During a backup operation, all actions on the
engine are cached to ensure a fully consistent backup. As a result, the performance of the
Interplay Engine is slower. You should not schedule large-scale deletions during a backup
operation.
When a backup is in progress, status messages are displayed at the top of the view.
A Backup History section displays information about the most recent backups.
Automatic backups create copies of metadata files, but do not create copies of the assets. You
need to use a different process, such as tape backup, to back up your assets, as described in
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 34.
cOnly _Database and _PropertyStore are backed up through the Interplay Administrator
backup process. Other directories, such as _Master, need to be backed up through a
different process.
cThe _PropertyStore folder is critical if you need to completely restore Av i d as set s. Av id
recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week and a Fast backup (either
Incremental or Differential) daily.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
40
By default, backups are stored in the following folder:
\\InterplayEngine\workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
You can specify another location, including shared storage. Make sure the Server Execution User
has read/write access this location. For more information, see “Recommendations for Backup
Configuration” on page 34.
For information on restoring a database, see “Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup”
on page 48.
To schedule database backups:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Schedule Backups
icon.
The Schedule Backups view opens.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
41
2. In the list on the left side of the view, select the database for which you want to view or
specify automatic backup settings. The current settings are displayed.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
42
3. (Option) In the Backup Information area, change your preferences if necessary.
“Backup only if modified” is selected by default to save space and avoid duplicate identical
copies. The default number of versions to keep is 10. The Avid Interplay Engine always
keeps the last Complete backup and later Fast backups. For more information, see
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 34.
4. (Option) In the Backup Location preference, change the path if desired.
a. Select Custom.
b. Click Browse, and navigate to the location you want. For a shared storage location, you
might need to type the path.
The custom location must be specified as a UNC path. You can also change the name of the
folder from _Backup to another name. See “Recommendations for Backup Configuration”
on page 34.
5. (Option) In the Fast Metadata Backup area, select “Fast Metadata Backup Enabled”
(disabled by default).
6. (Option) If Fast Metadata Backup is enabled, you can change the Fast backup frequency.
The default is set to Daily. You can select any number of days on which you would like to
perform Fast backups or you can set a Fast backup for one day a month.
7. (Option) If Fast Metadata Backup is enabled, you can change the Fast backup time by doing
one of the following:
- Select Once at and change the hour and minutes (within 10 minute intervals) on which it
occurs using the up and down arrows.
- Select Every and set the backup to occur at regular intervals starting at midnight. Use
the down arrow to select the interval.
- Select Custom and specify custom backup times. Use the up and down arrows to select
the time, and then select Add. Repeat to add more times to perform the backup. Select a
time and then Remove to cancel a backup.
The Backup time is the Interplay Engine server's local time.
8. In the Complete Metadata Backup area, make sure the option “Complete Metadata Backup
Enabled” is selected (default).
Avid recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week.
9. (Option) Change the Complete backup frequency. Because Complete backups can take a
long time and affect system performance, Avid recommends that you perform Complete
backups when the server is not being used or when usage is lowest. The default is set to
Sunday. You can select any number of days you would like to perform Complete backups.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
43
10. (Option) Change the Backup time by selecting one of the following:
tSelect Once at and change the hour and minutes (within 10 minute intervals) on which it
occurs using the up and down arrows.
tSelect Every and set the backup to occur at regular intervals starting at midnight. Use
the down arrow to select the interval.
tSelect Custom and specify custom backup times. Use the up and down arrows to select
the time, and then click Add. Repeat to add more times to perform the backup. Select a
time and click Remove to cancel a backup.
11. Click the Apply Changes button.
Starting a Backup Manually
You can start an Interplay Administrator Backup manually, rather than waiting for a scheduled
automatic backup or changing the existing backup schedules.
To start a backup manually:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Schedule Backups
icon.
The Schedule Backups view opens.
2. In the list on the left side of the view, select the database for which you want to view or
specify automatic backup settings. The current settings are displayed.
3. At the bottom of the view, click the “Start Backup Now...” button.
4. Select the kind of backup you want to create. For a description of the different types of
backups, see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 34.
5. Click OK
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
44
The backup is created in the location you specified. If you navigate to the location, and the
backup is still being created, the folder name includes the words “backup in progress.”
Using an Archiving Tool for Backup
In some circumstances, such as performing a system upgrade, you might want to use an archive
tool to create a backup copy of the complete database folder (AvidWG or AvidAM) and the user
database folder (_InternalData). For information on the location and contents of the databases,
see “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files” on page 30.
If you create a backup archive, keep in mind that a complete backup can take several hours,
during which the Interplay database is locked and deactivated. Also, you need to use a backup
tool that can handle long path names (longer than 256 characters). For example, use Robocopy
(contained in rktools.exe, available on Microsoft.com) or 7-Zip (an open source utility) to create
the archive. You can save backup time by removing old backups from the _Backup folder.
To make a backup copy of the database on a non-cluster system:
1. Open the Interplay Administration tool.
2. Use the following steps to lock the database:
a. Click Lock/Unlock Databases.
b. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
c. Click Lock Database.
3. Click Menu and click Manage Databases.
4. Select the AvidWG database and click Deactivate. Select AvidAM for an Archive Engine.
5. Click Menu and click the Restart Server view.
6. Click Restart Server and close the Interplay Administration tool.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
45
7. Use a backup tool to make a copy of the following folders and record their location. The
following tables show the default locations.
To make a backup copy of the database on a cluster system:
1. Open the Interplay Administration tool.
2. Use the following steps to lock the database:
a. Click Lock/Unlock Databases.
b. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
c. Click Lock Database.
3. Click Menu and click Manage Databases.
4. Select the AvidWG database and click Deactivate. Select AvidAM for an Archive Engine.
5. Close the Interplay Administration tool.
6. Click Start and select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
7. Open the Groups folder.
8. Select the Avid Workgroup Server group.
9. Select the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor resource and take it offline.
Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (Interplay Engine database)
AvidAM (Archive Engine database)
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidAM
_InternalData (user database if engine is a
Central Configuration Server)
D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
Interplay Engine (Split Database)
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (_Database folder only) D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
AvidWG (all other database folders) \\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG
_InternalData (user database if engine is a
Central Configuration Server)
D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
46
10. If you performed the previous step correctly, drive S: should still be accessible within the
Windows environment. If it is not available, use the Cluster Administration tool to put drive
S: online by clicking on the disk resource within the “Avid Workgroup Server Group” and
selecting online.
11. Use a backup tool to make a copy of the following folders and record their location.
nOn cluster systems, Avid recommends that you specify \\?\d:\backup as the path for Interplay
backups.See “Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 34.
Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database
Restoring a backup version of the _Database and _PropertyStore folders returns a database to the
state it was in when the backup was created. Before restoring a database, make sure that it is
really necessary, because changes since the backup will be lost.
To restore a backup, you need to run the InterplayRestore tool in a Command Prompt window.
The InterplayRestore tool is installed in the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
The tool includes in-line help that describes all options for using the tool.
Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (Interplay Engine database)
AvidAM (Archive Engine database)
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidAM
_InternalData (user database if engine is a
Central Configuration Server)
S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
Interplay Engine (Split Database)
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (_Database folder only) S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
AvidWG (all other database folders) \\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG
_InternalData (user database if engine is a
Central Configuration Server)
S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
47
The following topics provide instructions for restoring an earlier version of a database:
•“Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup” on page 48
•“Using the InterplayRestore Tool on the Interplay Engine Server” on page 51
•“Database Restore Session Example” on page 54
•“Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 55
•“Restoring Archived Log Files” on page 58
You cannot restore parts of a backup, for example, a specific sequence or folder. You can restore
only a Complete backup or a Fast backup.
How the Restore Tool Works with Streamed Properties Files
Beginning with Interplay Engine v1.2.4, the Interplay backup mechanism consolidates the
streamed properties files (all files in the _PropertyStore folder) into large “archive” files. These
files are written into the _PropertyStore folder of the corresponding backup folder. The archive
files are named streamed_propx.bar, where x is replaced with an increasing number starting with
1. The files are about 1 GB each, except for the last one (with the highest suffix number), which
can be smaller. The exact file size varies depending on the size of the individual streamed
property files, because a single streamed property file is never split up between two .bar files.
The backup mechanism also writes a file named streamed_prop.bin in the same folder. This file
contains a directory of all streamed property files contained in the backup and is used only by the
BackupArchive tool (see “Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 55). The .bin
file is not required by the InterplayRestore tool.
The InterplayRestore tool is able to work with both the consolidated streamed property files as
well as a backup created by an earlier version of the Interplay Engine. The tool looks for the
streamed_prop1.bar file in the _PropertyStore folder of the backup. If this file does not exist, it
assumes that the backup was created by an earlier version of the engine and resumes with the
restore procedure in the same way as earlier versions of the restore tool. Otherwise, it restores the
streamed properties from the consolidated .bar files.
How the Restore Tool Renames Folders
When the tool begins the restore, it locks the database and then renames the existing folder
_Database to _Database.1. If you are performing a restore from a Complete backup, the tool also
renames _PropertyStore to _PropertyStore.1.
If a folder _Database.1 already exists, the tool creates _Database.2, and so on up to _Database.9.
The tool uses the first free number between 1 and 9 when it renames the _Database and
_PropertyStore folders. If no number is free, you need to delete some of the previously renamed
folders so that the tool can run.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
48
If the backup restore is not completed (if you kill the process, if the system crashes, if you get an
error message, and so on), you can restore the system to its previous state by deleting the
_Database folder (and possibly the _PropertyStore folder) that the tool created and renaming
_Database.1 to _Database (and _PropertyStore.1 to _PropertyStore).
After you verify that the backup ran successfully and your database is working correctly, you can
save storage space by deleting the numbered backup folders ( _Database.x and _PropertyStore.x)
created during the restore process.
Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup
To restore a database, you need to restore a Complete backup, a Fast backup, or both, depending
on the type of backups available. (see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 34
for a description of each type of backup).
• A Complete backup contains a _Database folder and a _PropertyStore folder. A Complete
backup is needed if the complete database needs to be restored, for example, if a hard disk
crashes.
• A Fast Incremental Backup and a Fast Differential Backup also contain a _Database folder
and a _PropertyStore folder. If you restore a Differential or Incremental backup, all backups
it depends on must be in the same backup location.
The following backups must be in the same folder:
- For a Differential backup, the last Complete backup before the backup you are restoring.
- For an Incremental backup, the last Complete backup and the necessary Incremental or
Differential backups between the last Complete backup and the backup you are
restoring.
You do not need all backups between the last Complete backup and the backup you are
restoring. You need the most recent Complete backup, the most recent Differential
backup (if any), and any Incremental backups since the last Complete or Differential
backup.
For example, if a sequence of backups looks like this: c(complete)1 -> i(incremental)1
-> i2 -> d(differential)1 -> i3 -> i4 -> d2 -> i5 -> i6, to restore i6 the backups you need
in the same folder are c1, d2, i5, and i6. You need these files because i6 contains the
changes since i5, which contains the changes since d2, which contains the changes since
c1.
Deleted streamed properties remain in the _PropertyStore folder until the next Complete
backup.
• A Fast Metadata Only backup contains only a _Database folder, and can only be run
manually. A Fast Metadata Only backup is limited in its usefulness. You can use it to restore
the database structure if it becomes corrupted, but it does not restore the contents of the
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
49
_PropertyStore folder. To restore the contents of the _PropertyStore folder, you need to
restore the most recent Complete backup, Incremental backup, or Differential backup, as
described above.
The InterplayRestore tool automatically identifies the type of backup that you select.
Distinguishing Between Types of Backups
To distinguish between a Fast Metadata Only backup and the other types of backups, open the
backup folder and check if a _PropertyStore folder exists. A Fast Metadata Only backup does not
contain a _PropertyStore folder.
To distinguish between Complete, Fast Incremental, and Fast Differential backups, open the
backup folder and then open the inventory.xml file in Notepad or another text editor. The type of
backup is listed, along with other information.
Fast Metadata Only
backup folder
Complete,
Fast Incremental, or
Fast Differential
backup folder
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
50
Example of a Complete Restore Process
Imagine that you have a backup schedule of a Complete backup on Saturday and a Fast
Differential backup every other day of the week. If there is a failure on Friday in which the
_Database folder, the _PropertyStore folder, and other Interplay folders are lost or corrupted, you
need to perform the following steps:
1. Use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the latest Fast Differential backup (from Thursday).
2. To add metadata missing from the _PropertyStore folder, check in bins created for projects
since the Thursday backup.
3. Use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the _InternalData folder.
4. Restore the _Master folder and other folders through whatever mechanism you use for
backup.
5. Resynchronize media files with shared storage workspaces. In Interplay Access, right-click
the database name and select Resync. For more information, see “Resyncing Media Files
with Avid Shared-Storage Workspaces” in the Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide or the
Interplay Access Help.
Fast Incremental
backup type
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
51
Using the InterplayRestore Tool on the Interplay Engine Server
To restore a backup, you need to run the InterplayRestore tool in a Command Prompt window.
There are two ways to run the tool:
• Without parameters, in which case the tool prompts you for the necessary entries (interactive
mode).
• With parameters, in which case the tool runs without prompting, depending on the number
of parameters included. You can use these parameters to create a batch file that partially
automates the restore process.
nYou can use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the AvidAM or the _InternalData folder. In the
following procedure, substitute AvidAM or _InternalData for AvidWG.
To restore an earlier version of a database from a backup using interactive mode:
1. On the Interplay Engine server, click Programs and select Accessories > Command Prompt.
2. At the command line, navigate to the folder that contains InterplayRestore. For example,
type:
cd C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
and press Enter.
3. Type:
InterplayRestore
and press Enter.
4. InterplayRestore prompts you for the database root directory. Type the path and press Enter.
You can use a local path or a UNC path. For example:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
\\IEServer\WG_Database$\AvidWG
You can use the administrative share name WG_Database$ only in a UNC path.
5. The next prompt asks if you are restoring a split database configuration.
If you answer yes, the next prompt asks you to enter the Interplay database asset path, which
is the path to the AvidWG folder on shared storage. Enter a UNC path, for example:
\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\
6. At the next prompt, type the backup home directory and press Enter. For example:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
If you are working with a split database, this location is probably on the shared storage
server. For example:
\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\_Backup
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
52
7. At the next prompt, select the correct backup from the numbered list of available backups.
Complete backups are labeled “full” and Fast backups are labeled “increment” “difference,”
or “metadataonly.” After you select the backup, press Enter.
The restore process begins. For an example of the process, see “Database Restore Session
Example” on page 54. At the end of the process, a message informs you that you need to
restore the _Master directory manually.
8. Restore your _Master folder through whatever mechanism you use for backup.
nThe _Master database is not backed up by the automated backup feature of Interplay. See
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 34.
9. Unlock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view in the Interplay
Administrator.
10. Check to make sure you can access the restored database from Interplay Access, and that
you can preview clip headframes.
11. Delete the _Database.1 and _PropertyStore.1 directories, or whatever numbered backup
directories were created through the restore process. See “Restoring an Earlier Version of a
Database” on page 46.
To restore an earlier version of a database from a backup by passing parameters to the
tool, do one of the following:
tFor a non-split database, navigate to the folder that holds InterplayRestore, type the
following, and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir> /backupdir <database
backup dir>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
/backupdir d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
InterplayRestore prompts you to choose from a numbered list of available backups and then
restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
nThe parameter
/m
is a short version of the parameter
/metadata
. You can view information on
the complete syntax for the tool by entering
InterplayRestore /help
.
nBecause the paths for the
/metadata
and
/backupdir
parameters are unlikely to change, you
can create a batch file that includes these values, as in the previous example. To restore the
database, run the batch file and select the number of the backup you want to restore.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
53
tFor a split database, navigate to the folder that holds InterplayRestore, type the following,
and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir>
/assets <split database asset directory>
/backupdir <database backup dir>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
/assets \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG
/backupdir \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG\_Backup
InterplayRestore prompts you to choose from a numbered list of available backups and then
restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
nBecause the paths for the
/metadata
,
/assets
, and
/backupdir
parameters are unlikely to
change, you can create a batch file that includes these values, as in the previous example. To
restore the database, run the batch file and select the number of the backup you want to restore.
tIf you know the specific backup you want to restore, navigate to the folder that holds
InterplayRestore, type the following, and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir> /backupdir <database
backup dir> /backuptorestore <backup folder for restore>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
/backupdir d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup /backuptorestore
d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2007-08-20_01-00
InterplayRestore restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
54
Database Restore Session Example
The following is an example of an interactive session, which begins with the command for
starting the InterplayRestore tool.
C:\>”C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server\InterplayRestore”
********************************************************************
InterplayRestore - Restore Interplay databases from backup
A non interactive mode is also available.
Run "InterplayRestore.exe /?" for help
Enter the Interplay database root or metadata directory:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
Is this a split database configuration? <y/n> y
Enter the Interplay database asset path: \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG
Enter the backup root directory: \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG\_Backup
Choose a backup to restore from:
[1] Tuesday, June 10, 2010 3:05:00 AM full
[2] Thursday, June 12, 2010 3:04:00 AM increment
[3] Friday, June 13, 2010 3:05:00 AM full
[4] Saturday, June 14, 2010 3:00:00 AM full
Choose an entry ( 1 - 4 ):
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
55
Assume you choose 1. The tool locks the project so that no one can access the database and then
copies the files:
Beginning restore from
\\isis\workspace1\avidwg\_Backup\AvidWG_2010-06-10_03-05\
This is a Full backup
Restoring split database. Metadata restored to
d:\Workgroup_Databases\avidwg\. PropertyStore Assets restored to
\\isis\workspace1\avidwg
Locked project AvidWG
Copying files into d:\Workgroup_Databases\avidwg\_Database
Copying file AvidWG.dor
...
It leaves the database locked and gives you the following message:
Database AvidWG is still locked because you need to restore _Master
manually, or through your existing tape backup mechanism.
When you are done restoring _Master, use the Lock/Unlock Database view in
Interplay Administrator to unlock the AvidWG database. This will complete
your restore operation.
Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files
The BackupArchive tool is a command-line program that lets you work with files contained in
the _PropertyStore folder contained in a database backup. The _PropertyStore folder holds
streamed properties, which are files that include metadata about Avid assets, such as headframes
and AAF information. The streamed property files are backed up (as an archive) in one or more
.bar files in the _PropertyStore backup folder. For more information about .bar files, see
“Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database” on page 46.
You can use the BackupArchive tool to display a list of all streamed properties files in the
_PropertyStore backup folder. You can also use it in an emergency situation in which the online
database is missing and the backup file is corrupt. In this case, you would use the tool to extract
as many files as possible from the corrupt backup. It is not a replacement for the
InterplayRestore tool.
For example, the following illustration shows the contents of the 0-1999 subfolder in the active
_PropertyStore folder on the Interplay Engine:
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
56
The following illustration shows the corresponding files as they appear in the archive file
\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertyStore\streamed_prop1.bar:
The .bar file is a file that you can only open by using the BackupArchive tool.
nIn previous versions of Interplay, you could use Windows Explorer to view and work with the
streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore backup folder. Because the current backup
mechanism uses archive files, you need this tool to view and work with files in the _PropertyStore
backup folder.
The following procedures describe how to view a list of streamed properties, how to unpack an
archive, and how to extract specific files. If you need to restore the streamed properties to a
database in an emergency situation, contact Avid support.
The complete syntax for using the BackupArchive tool is provided in the in-line help, which you
can display by typing
BackupArchive
in a Command Prompt window.
To list all streamed properties files in an archive file:
1. On the Interplay Engine, click Programs and select Accessories > Command Prompt.
2. At the command line, navigate to the folder that contains the BackupArchive tool.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
57
For example, type the following and press Enter:
cd C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
3. Type the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /L <archive>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. For example,
backuparchive /L
\\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt
ore\streamed_prop
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
nTo direct the output of this command to a text file for easier review, add
>textfile.txt
to the
end of the command.
To unpack all streamed properties files:
tType the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /U <archive> <destination folder>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. For example, the
following command unpacks all property store files into a temporary folder on the Interplay
Engine:
backuparchive /U
\\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt
ore\streamed_prop D:\Workgroup_Databases\TempPropertyStore
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
To extract and restore specific streamed properties files:
tType the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /E /P:<pattern> <archive> <destination folder>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. To define a pattern,
you can use the standard Windows syntax. For example, the following command extracts all
files whose names include Scr (screenshots) into a temporary folder on the Interplay Engine:
backuparchive /E /P:*Scr*
\\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt
ore\streamed_prop D:\Workgroup_Databases\TempPropertyStoreScreenshots
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
Performing a Consistency Check
58
Restoring Archived Log Files
In Interplay version 1.6 and later, the Interplay Engine compresses and archives log files older
than 7 days. The log compression process runs during project backup. (This process runs at most
once per day, even if multiple backups are scheduled on the same day.) Archive files (with the
extensions .bar and .bin) are stored in the same directory as the log files for 30 days and then are
automatically deleted. You can extract the compressed log files from an archive by using the
BackupArchive tool described in “Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 55.
Performing a Consistency Check
The database Consistency Check compares the version of the database or databases on the
master directory with the current database file. The Perform Consistency Check view provides a
useful tool for checking if all references are correct, seeing if all necessary files are on the disk,
and checking other aspects of the database.
cThe Consistency Check is for support purposes. You should perform this check only if
requested by Avid Technical Support.
Viewing Database Information
Use the Database Information view to display information about an Interplay database. This
information includes various statistics and the connected users.
To view the information about a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Database
Information icon.
The Database Information view opens.
Viewing Database Information
59
2. Select the database name from the list.
A summary of information about the database is displayed:
- Engine Start Time: The date and time that the Interplay Engine began running.
- Name and description: Either AvidWG (Interplay Engine) or AvidAM (Interplay
Archive Engine) with a description supplied when the database was first created.
- Root folder for database (Meta Data): See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 28.
- Root folder for data (Assets): See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 28.
3. Click one of the following tabs:
- Database Statistics
- Deletion Statistics
- Command Statistics
- Object Statistics: Total objects for the entire Interplay database, as well as totals for the
most common object types.
Locking and Unlocking Databases
60
- Connected User Information: Users currently connected to the Interplay Engine. The
License Class column lists the license keys that are used internally by the Interplay
Engine. For information about user licenses, see “Managing Licenses” on page 90.
nSee the Interplay ReadMe for more specific information about these statistics.
Locking and Unlocking Databases
Use the Lock/Unlock Databases view to prevent users from connecting to the database. You
might need to lock the database if you are upgrading the database or using a archive tool to create
a backup of the database. By default, the database is unlocked.
To lock a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock/Unlock
Database icon.
The Lock/Unlock database view opens.
2. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
61
3. (Option) Type a Lock comment explaining why you are locking the database. This
information appears in the Locked Database Information area for the database.
4. Click Lock Database.
Your user ID and the time at which you locked the database are filled in, and the database is
displayed in Locked Databases.
To unlock a database:
1. Select the database in the Locked Databases list.
2. Click Unlock Database.
The database is displayed in Unlocked Databases.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and
Migrating
Use the Managing Databases view to remove a database from the list of active databases
(deactivate) or to restore it to the list (activate). This view also lets you migrate a database to a
new Central Configuration Server (CCS) when necessary.
The following topics provide more information about activating, deactivating, and migrating
databases:
•Deactivating a Database
•Activating a Deactivated Database
•Migrating a Database
Deactivating a Database
You might want to prevent users from connecting to a database if the database has been “retired”
and the files have been moved elsewhere. In other cases, such as when you are backing up or
moving databases, you might need to ensure that no connections can be made to the database to
avoid interference. Deactivating the database removes it from the list of active databases.
cDeactivating a database does not delete the database files. It makes the database inactive so
that users cannot connect to it until it is activated again. The database data is kept at the
location that was specified when the database was created.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
62
To deactivate a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases
icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
2. Select the database name in the Databases list.
3. Click Deactivate.
The database name is removed from the Databases list.
Activating a Deactivated Database
If a specific database is not listed in the Databases view, it means that it is unknown to the
Interplay Engine and users cannot connect to it. If the database exists but is not listed, it is
probably deactivated. You activate a database by navigating to the database .pro file
(AvidWG.pro or AvidAM.pro). This file is located in one of two folders:
• For a standard database, the .pro file is located in the Workgroup_Databases folder,
represented by the administrative share name WG_Database$ (see “Creating an Interplay
Database” on page 28).
• For a split database, the .pro file is located in the Avid_WG folder on the shared storage
workspace (see “Preparing for a Split Database” on page 219).
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
63
To add an existing but inactive database to the list of active databases:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases
icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
2. Do one of the following:
tIn the “Database (.pro) file to activate” text box, type the full UNC path to the .pro file.
For example:
\\IEServer\WG_Database$\AvidWG\AvidWG.pro
tClick the Browse button, log in if prompted, navigate to the .pro file using a network,
select the file, and click Open.
The following illustration shows the path to AvidWG.pro, using the Microsoft Windows smb
network and the administrative share WG_Database$.
nAvid recommends keeping the default share name WG_Database$. If you decide on a different
share name, consider that if the name is longer than 12 characters, you cannot browse to it
graphically. If a share name is longer than 12 characters, you need to type the complete path in
the “Database (pro) file to activate” text box.
Make sure to navigate through a network to select the file (for example, do not navigate
through a mapped network drive). You must use a UNC path.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
64
Navigating through a network is also required if you are working with a split database. In
this case, the .pro file is located on the shared storage server. The following illustration
shows the path to AvidWG.pro, using an Avid ISIS network and the workspace where the
AvidWG folder is stored. In an Avid Unity MediaNetwork, the network name is “Avid Unity
Network.”
The .pro file is displayed in the Activate Database dialog box.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
65
3. Make sure the option “Load Database on Activation” is selected. Deselect this option only if
directed by Avid support.
4. Click Activate.
The database is activated and loaded. The database name is displayed in the Databases list
and users can connect to the database. If the option “Load Database on Activation” is
selected, the database is automatically unlocked.
Migrating a Database
You usually need to perform a database migration under the following circumstances:
• When you want to remove all users and group-related data from a database. This allows you
to start with new users and groups and maintain the metadata and the data inside the
database.
• When you are troubleshooting a problem with customer support. For example, customer
support might ask you to provide a copy of your database.
• If you changed the Central Configuration Server (CCS) for a database without first moving
the _InternalData folder. If a database needs to be migrated, the State reads “Database
Requires Migration.”
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
66
Do not use a database that requires migration; always migrate a database to a CCS. You
cannot administer an unmigrated database.
If a database needs migration, the database icon shows a red box with an X and a yellow
arrow. The database icon appears in several views in the Interplay Administrator, including
the Manage Database Roles view.
cWhen you migrate a database, the system deletes all the information inside the database
that was stored from the old CCS, including users, user settings and local administration
settings.
cIf you plan to migrate an Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine database, turn off
the database backup process before you perform the migration. If you do not turn off the
backup process and it coincides with the migration, your backup will write out an
inconsistent state of the database (half current and half migrated).
To migrate a database to a new CCS:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases
icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
(Red box with X and yellow arrow) Database needs migration.
Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
67
2. In the Manage Databases view, click the name of the database that needs migration. The
State reads “Database Requires Migration.”
A warning explains the consequences of a database migration.
3. Click Migrate Database.
After the migration, the State reads “OK.” The database now has the CCS users and
administration properties of the new CCS you have set.
Moving a Database to Another Server
(Non-Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are not configured as failover
clusters. For clustered systems, see “Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)”
on page 71.
cAvid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case
complications arise.
Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
68
cIf you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS
information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration
settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 65). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a
CCS, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on
page 69.
To move a database to another server (non-clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an
AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses
a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 216).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 60).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database”
on page 61).
4. Make sure the database is unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and
clicking Restart.
5. Locate the database folder on the source server.
The default path is \\server_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive
Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to
D:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 227.
6. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows
Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most
recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for
\\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
7. Copy the zipped file or files to a network server, removable media, laptop, or directly to the
target server.
8. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database
(AvidWG or AvidAM) if one is active, using the Manage Databases View.
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69
9. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to
AvidWG_old.
10. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the
file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the
path on the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations.
Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 222.
11. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 62).
12. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database
name and then clicking Remove Databases.
13. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future
access.
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server
(Non-Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database and users to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are not configured as failover
clusters. For cluster systems, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered
Systems)” on page 73.
cAvid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case
complications arise.
cIf you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS
information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration
settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 65). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a
CCS, use this procedure. For more information about a CCS, see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 95.
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
70
To move a database and users to another server (non-clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an
AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses
a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 216).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 60).
3. Deactivate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database”
on page 61).
4. Make sure the database is unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and
clicking Restart.
5. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 85).
6. Locate the database folder on the source server.
The default path is \\server_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive
Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to
D:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 227.
7. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows
Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most
recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for
\\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
8. Locate the user folder _InternalData on the source server.
The default path is D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData.
9. Copy the zipped file or files and the _InternalData folder to a network server, removable
media, laptop, or directly to the target server.
10. Open the Interplay Administrator, log in to the target server, and deactivate the database
(AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
11. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to
AvidWG_old.
12. Make sure all databases are unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and
clicking Restart.
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71
13. Lock the server by using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 85).
14. Rename the existing _InternalData folder to _InternalData_old.
15. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the
file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on
the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations.
Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 222. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder.
16. Unlock the server using the Lock Server view.
17. Verify that all users are on the system by opening the User Management view and viewing
the lists of user groups.
18. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 62).
19. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database
name and then clicking Remove Databases.
20. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future
access.
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered
Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are configured as failover
clusters. For non-clustered systems, see “Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered
Systems)” on page 67.
cAvid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case
complications arise.
cIf you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS
information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration
settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
72
“Migrating a Database” on page 65). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a
CCS, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)” on
page 73.
To move a database to another server (clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an
AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses
a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 216).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 60).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database” on
page 61).
4. Make sure the database is unloaded by using the Cluster Administrator on one of the cluster
nodes:
a. Select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
b. Open the Avid Workgroup Server resource group.
c. In the list of resources, select Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor and change the state to
“Offline.”
cMake sure that you change the state to offline for the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor
resource only, not the entire Avid Workgroup Server group.
d. Close the Cluster Administrator.
5. Locate the database folder on the active node of the source server.
The default path is \\virtual_cluster_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an
Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to
S:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 227.
n If the S drive is not available on the machine, either this is the offline node or the entire Avid
Workgroup Server group was taken offline instead of only the resource.
6. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows
Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
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73
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most
recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for
\\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
7. Copy the zipped file or files to a network server, removable media, a laptop, or directly to the
target server.
8. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database
(AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
9. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to
AvidWG_old.
10. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the
file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the
path on the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations.
Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 222.
11. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 62).
12. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database
name and then clicking Remove Databases.
13. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future
access.
Use the Cluster Administrator to bring the source server back online. Right-click the Avid
Workgroup Server group (not the resource) and select Bring Online.
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server
(Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database and users to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are configured as failover
clusters. For non-clustered systems, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server
(Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 69.
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
74
cAvid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case
complications arise.
cIf you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS
information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration
settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 65). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a
CCS, use this procedure. For more information about a CCS, see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 95.
To move a database and users to another server (clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an
AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses
a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 216).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 60).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database” on
page 61).
4. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 85).
5. Make sure the database is unloaded by using the Cluster Administrator on one of the cluster
nodes:
a. Select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
b. Open the Avid Workgroup Server resource group.
c. In the list of resources, select Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor and change the state to
“Offline.”
cMake sure that you change the state to offline for the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor
resource only, not the entire Avid Workgroup Server group.
d. Close the Cluster Administrator.
6. Locate the database folder on the source server.
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75
The default path is \\virtual_cluster_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an
Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to
S:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 227.
n If the S drive is not available on the machine, either this is the offline node or the entire Avid
Workgroup Server group was taken offline instead of only the resource.
7. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows
Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most
recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for
\\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
8. Locate the user folder _InternalData on the source server.
The default path is S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData.
9. Copy the zipped file and the _InternalData folder to a network server, removable media,
laptop, or directly to the target server.
10. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to
AvidWG_old.
11. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database
(AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
12. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 85).
13. Rename the existing _InternalData folder to _InternalData_old.
14. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the
file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on
the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations.
Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 222. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder.
15. Unlock the server using the Lock Server view.
16. Verify that all users are on the system by opening the User Management view and viewing
the lists of user groups.
Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions
76
17. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 62).
18. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database
name and then clicking Remove Databases.
19. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future
access.
Use the Cluster Administrator to bring the source server back online. Right-click the Avid
Workgroup Server group (not the resource) and select Bring Online.
Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space
Conditions
If disk space on the server is critically low, the Interplay Engine refuses client connections and
displays an error message. In this situation, the administrator cannot log in and shut down the
server, and move a database by normal means (as described in “Moving a Database to Another
Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 67 and “Moving a Database and Users to Another
Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 69). In the Server installation directory (by default,
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server), there are tools provided to solve such
problems:
• NxNServerLock.exe
• NxNServerUnlock.exe
• NxNServerShutdown.exe
cBefore beginning this procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See “Creating
and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33 for information on running a backup.
Temporarily change the Backup time field to “Once at” and enter or select from the list the
time in the future closest to the current time.
To move a database under low disk space conditions:
1. Lock the server using NxNServerLock.exe.
2. Shut down the server using NxNServerShutdown.exe, if necessary.
3. Move the database folder (AvidWG or AvidAM) to another drive or free up some disk space.
Renaming a Database
77
4. Unlock the server by doing one of the following:
tUse the Interplay Administrator’s Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the
Server” on page 85).
tUse NxNServerUnlock.exe.
5. Deactivate the moved database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a
Database” on page 61).
6. Activate the moved database in the correct location using the Manage Databases view (see
“Activating a Deactivated Database” on page 62).
Renaming a Database
Under some circumstances you might need to rename a database For example, if you need to
create a new database with the same name, you can rename the original database. You can keep
the original database as an archive for searching.
cBefore beginning this procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See “Creating
and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33 for information on running a backup.
Temporarily change the Backup time field to “Once at” and enter or select from the list the
time in the future closest to the current time.
To rename a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases
icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
2. Select the database and click the Deactivate Database button to ensure that the database is
not in use.
3. On the server or at the database location, use the Windows desktop to rename the database
folder, .pro file, and .nif directory, and all files within the _Database folder, that is, replace
the old <DatabaseName> with the new name for all files fitting the following mask:
<DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>.pro
<DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>.nif
<DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>\_*.pro.jrn
<DatabaseName>\_Database\<DatabaseName>.*
<DatabaseName>\_Database\<DatabaseName>_*.jrn
Do not forget to rename the .jrn files correctly: make sure there are no typos in the database
name, and that they are followed by the underscore and the numeric ID.
Running Database Maintenance Tools
78
4. In the Interplay Administrator, click the Manage Databases icon and activate the database
(see “Activating a Deactivated Database” on page 62).
Running Database Maintenance Tools
The Maintenance view in the Database section of the Interplay Administrator provides the
following tools that you can use to fix database problems. You can use these tools with Interplay
Engine databases v2.4.0.1 or later, except for Validate User Tree, which you can use only with
Interplay Engine v2.6. The tools are not displayed when connected to earlier versions of the
Interplay Engine.
• Verify Link Consistency: Use this tool to detect and remove broken links and link
inconsistencies.
Broken links are objects visible in a database folder that do not refer to an existing asset.
They are displayed with a special X icon and are named with a mob ID (media object ID).
They should be removed because they can cause exceptions during browsing.
Link inconsistencies are not visible. They are obsolete or invalid entries in internal database
tables. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain operations.
• Cleanup Invalid Dependencies: Use this tool to detect and remove dependency
inconsistencies.
Dependency inconsistencies are not visible. They are obsolete or invalid entries in internal
database tables. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain operations.
• Remove Duplicated Locators: Use this tool to detect and remove duplicated locators.
Duplicated locators are locators that have the same comment, timestamp, and color as
another locator on the same asset. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain
operations. They were created because of a bug in certain Avid editing products.
• Recover Lost Master Mobs: Use this tool to detect and recover assets without a visible
representation in a folder and display them in the Orphan Clips folder.
Lost master mobs are assets (such as sequences, master clips, and subclips) that are stored in
the database but have no visible representation in a folder.
• Delete Lost File Mobs: Use this tool to detect and remove media file information objects
containing information about a specific media file, like the resolution, site or location, which
are not associated to an asset.
Lost file mobs are media file information objects that are stored in the database but are not
associated to a master clip or rendered effect.
Running Database Maintenance Tools
79
• Validate User Tree (Interplay Engine v2.6 or later): Use this tool to detect and fix
inconsistencies in the user structure.
The AvidWG or AvidAM database contains a copy of the CCS user database. If the internal
structure of this copy contains inconsistencies, then the synchronization of users between the
CCS and the database might fail.
When to run these tools: You can run any of these tools as part of a troubleshooting procedure,
as recommended by an Avid representative. You can also run them for maintenance during
regular maintenance windows. However, they are not designed to be run on a daily basis, because
they require Exclusive Access to the database (see below).
One approach to using the tools for maintenance is to run them in the first convenient
maintenance window. Note how long it takes to run the tools, and if any problems are reported. If
there are no problems after running the tools a second time, you probably do not need to run
them during every maintenance window. If as a result of running these tools you find an issue
that regularly causes inconsistencies, you must consult with your Avid representative to address
the root cause of the issue.
These tools can take up to an hour to run on large databases, but usually run much quicker, and
you can safely cancel the execution at any time. Each tool includes a window that displays
logging information and options for saving the information.
Exclusive Access: Keep in mind that each tool requires Exclusive Access. Exclusive Access
locks the database to prevent access by a host system other than the one used to acquire
Exclusive Access and the Engine itself. A dialog box asks if you want to acquire Exclusive
Access before running the selected tool. You must click Yes to run the tool. Exclusive Access is
automatically released at the end of the process. Consider sending out a notice to users before
running any of these tools, informing them that the database will be locked. Logged-on clients
will be automatically logged off after the database is locked.
Exclusive Access can be acquired and released in the Lock Server view, independently of the
Maintenance tools (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on page 85). In an emergency, such
as the Exclusive Access host crashed and there is no Interplay Administrator installed on the
Engine, you can run a command-line program to release Exclusive Access. The file name of the
tool is
NxNServerExclusiveAccessRelease.exe
and it is installed by default on the Interplay
Engine in one of the following folders:
• 32-bit OS: C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
• 64-bit OS: C:\Program Files (x86)\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
To run a database maintenance tool:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Maintenance icon.
The Maintenance view opens.
Running Database Maintenance Tools
80
2. In the left column of the view, select the database on which you want to run the tool.
3. Double-click the icon for the tool you want to use.
4. Select options for the tool as described in the following table:
Tool Options
Verify Link Consistency • Fix broken links. Select this option to delete any broken links. If
you do not select this option, the tool reports broken links and
removes link inconsistencies. but does not take action to fix the
broken links.
• Verbose Output. Select this option to display the location of the
broken links.
Cleanup Invalid Dependencies • Cleanup Invalid Dependencies. Select this option to remove the
invalid dependencies. If you do not select this option, the tool
reports problems without taking action to fix them.
Remove Duplicated Locators • Remove duplicate locators. Select this option to remove the
duplicated locators. If you do not select this option, the tool
reports problems but does not take action to fix them.
• Verbose Output. Select this option to display the names of the
assets with duplicated locators.
Recover Lost Master Mobs • Recover into ‘Orphan Clips’ folder. Select this option to create
links for lost master mobs in to the Orphan Clips folder for
deletion. If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems
but does not take action to fix them.
• Verbose Output. Select this option to display the names of the lost
master mobs.
Delete Lost File Mobs • Delete File Mobs. Select this option to delete lost media
information objects.
• Delete Media. Select this option to delete media associated with
the lost media information objects.
If you do not select these options, the tool reports problems but
does not take action to fix them.
• Verbose Output. Select this option to display the media path.
Validate User Tree (Interplay
Engine v2.6 or later)
• Fix Invalid Users. Select this option to repair certain
inconsistencies in the user structure.
If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems but does
not take action to fix them.
• Verbose Output. Select this option to display user names.
Running Database Maintenance Tools
81
5. Click Run.
A dialog box asks if you want to set Exclusive Access to the database.
6. Click Yes.
The tool runs with the options you selected. While the tool is running, information about the
progress and found issues is displayed. When the tool is finished the following options are
displayed:
- Open Log in editor: Opens the displayed information in Notepad or another default text
editor. This version of the runtime information includes specific date and time
information.
- Copy Log to Clipboard: Copies the information you see displayed to the clipboard.
- Save Log: Saves a version of the displayed information with additional specific date and
time information, like the first option. It uses the following format:
tool_name-dd-mm-yyyy-hh-mm-ss.log
7. Click Close.
3Server Settings
The Server settings enable you to configure and change server settings and shutdown and restart
the server. The following topics describe how to use these settings:
•Changing the Database and Data Locations
•Viewing Server Information
•Locking and Unlocking the Server
•Restarting the Server
•Managing Licenses
Changing the Database and Data Locations
The Server Settings view lets you change the default locations for a new database.
cDo not change the location for the metadata database. The metadata database must be
stored directly on the local Interplay Engine server because permanent access to these files
is required. This is the only supported setup. You have the option of storing the source files
for file assets on an Avid shared-storage workspace. This configuration is known as a split
database.
Changing the root folder for file assets is part of the process of creating a split database. For
more information and instructions, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 216.
The root folder for a new database is set during the installation of the Interplay Engine software.
By default, the installation program creates a shared folder that functions as the root folder for
both the metadata database and the source files for file assets (the file repository). The default
location is the D:\Workgroup_Databases folder, which is represented by the administrative share
name WG_Database$. The $ indicates a hidden share.
nTo identify the actual folder, open a Command Prompt window and type
net share
.
If you need to create a new database, changing these settings does not affect any existing
databases.
Viewing Server Information
83
To change the root folders for a new database:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Server Settings icon.
The Server Settings view opens.
2. For the root folder of the database (metadata), keep the folder that was set during the
installation of the server (the default is \\IEServer\WG_Database$\).
3. For the root folder of the data (file assets), change the folder to a workspace on Avid shared
storage (see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 216). Type a UNC path or
browse through the Avid Unity Network or Avid ISIS Network to the workspace.
You might need to provide proper credentials to browse and access the shared storage
workspaces.
4. Click Apply Changes to change the setting for new databases.
5. If you changed the root folder for the file assets, complete the tasks described in “Splitting a
Database for New Interplay Installations” on page 220 or “Splitting a Database for Existing
Interplay Installations” on page 222.
Viewing Server Information
The Server Information view has two areas:
• The Server Information area displays information about the following:
- The version of the Avid Interplay Engine software
- The number of connected clients (through Interplay Access and other client
applications)
- The number of databases on the server
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84
• The Connected User Information area displays information about the following:
- Which database users are connected to
- Which user is connected to which database
- Which machine the user is connected from
- What time a user has been connected since
• The type of licenses in use (see “License Types and Usage” on page 92)
To view information about the Interplay Engine server:
tIn the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Server Information
icon.
The Server Information view opens.
Locking and Unlocking the Server
85
Locking and Unlocking the Server
The Lock Server view allows the administrator to lock the Interplay Engine server for a specific
period of time. Locking the server is useful when carrying out tasks such as:
• Server maintenance or upgrading the server software.
• Maintaining or rebooting the Avid shared-storage server.
nWhenever a database or data location is unavailable, you should lock the database or the server.
The Lock Server view provides two different means of locking the Interplay Engine server: Lock
Server and Exclusive Access.
• If Lock Server is activated, the Interplay Engine server is locked, all the clients that are
connected to it are disconnected, and the database is saved.
• If Exclusive Access is activated, the server process continues to run and the database can be
used. Access is limited to the following host systems:
- The host system used to acquire Exclusive Access, that is, the host system running the
Interplay Administrator you used to set Exclusive Access
- The Interplay Engine host, for example, through an Interplay Administrator or Interplay
Access client on the Interplay Engine host system
Exclusive Access is required when running maintenance tools. See “Running Database
Maintenance Tools” on page 78.
In addition to the Interplay Administrator client, any Interplay client running on one of these
hosts (for example, Interplay Access, a Media Services provider, or an Avid editing system)
is allowed to connect to the Interplay Engine and the database. This access allows you to
execute a variety of maintenance tasks from this host while ensuring that no other host can
access the Engine and database.
If the database becomes corrupt, the server might be locked automatically.
The following table summarizes the differences between a server lock, a database lock, and
Exclusive Access:
Feature Description
Server lock
(Lock Server view)
Saves and unloads all databases (including _InternalData). Also prevents access
by the Interplay Administrator. Should be used for maintenance operations that
require access to all database files (in the share WG_Database$). Usually
shutting down the Interplay Engine is a better approach than a server lock.
Locking and Unlocking the Server
86
To lock the server and prevent any user access:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock Server icon.
The Lock Server view opens.
Database lock
(Lock/Unlock
Database view)
Saves and unloads the database and thus allow maintenance operations on the
database files themselves. Working with the database is not possible. Good for
database file-level maintenance and restoring backups. Still allows access by
the Interplay Administrator for settings such as user management and licensing.
See “Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 60.
Exclusive Access
(Lock Server view)
Does not unload any database files and therefore allows the owner of the
Exclusive Access to work with the database. Good for executing maintenance
operations in the database itself. Cannot be used for any database file
maintenance operations.
Feature Description
Locking and Unlocking the Server
87
2. In the Lock Server section, select one of the following for the locking duration:
- Indefinitely: An indefinite shutdown. This is a good choice when shutting down the
server to carry out any vital maintenance, for example replacing hard drives, or making
the first backup of a new database. The server needs to be manually unlocked after
maintenance work.
- Minutes: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (short time frame). It is
useful when you are making routine backups and you know how much time you need.
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
- Lock until: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (longer time frame).
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
Locking and Unlocking the Server
88
3. In the “Lock comment” text box, type a comment as to why you are locking the server. This
comment is displayed when an Interplay Administrator tries to log into the Interplay Engine.
4. Click Lock Server.
The Lock Server view changes to display lock information. You cannot return to the
Interplay Administrator window by clicking the Menu button. You can log out of the
Interplay Administrator tool and then log in again.
To manually unlock the server after activating Lock Server, do one of the following:
tLog in to the Interplay Administrator, click the Lock Server icon, click Unlock Server and
log in to the Interplay Administrator.
tIn emergency situations, run the command-line program
NxNServerUnlock.exe.
It is
installed by default on the Interplay Engine in one of the following folders:
- 32-bit OS: C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
- 64-bit OS: C:\Program Files (x86)\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
To lock the server and allow access to the host that acquires the lock:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock Server icon.
The Lock Server view opens.
2. In the Exclusive Access section, select one of the following for the locking duration:
- Indefinitely: An indefinite shutdown. This is a good choice when shutting down the
server to carry out any vital maintenance, for example replacing hard drives, or making
the first backup of a new database. The server needs to be manually unlocked after
maintenance work.
- Minutes: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (short time frame). It is
useful when you are making routine backups and you know how much time you need.
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
- Lock until: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (longer time frame).
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
3. In the “Lock comment” text box, type a comment as to why you are locking the server. This
comment is displayed when an Interplay Administrator tries to log into the Interplay Engine.
4. Click Exclusive Access.
Exclusive Access Information is displayed. The “Accessible for” field lists the hostnames of
the host that acquired the lock and the Interplay Engine host.
Restarting the Server
89
You can return to the Interplay Administrator window by clicking the Menu button, log out
of the Interplay Administrator tool and then log in again, and perform other database tasks.
To manually unlock the server after activating Exclusive Access, do one of the following:
tLog in to the Interplay Administrator from the host where you acquired Exclusive Access or
on the Engine host itself, click the Lock Server icon, then click Release Exclusive Access.
tIn emergency situations, run the command-line program
NxNServerExclusiveAccessRelease.exe.
It is installed by default on the Interplay
Engine in one of the following folders:
- 32-bit OS: C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
- 64-bit OS: C:\Program Files (x86)\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
Restarting the Server
Restarting the server disconnects any clients and shuts down the database before the server
process is restarted. You rarely need to restart the server. Typically, you restart the server if you
want to disconnect all clients and want to make sure no one is connected to the server so that you
can perform maintenance. For example, you might restart the server and then lock the database
as part of the process of moving the database.
Restarting only restarts the server process and not the server machine itself.
cDepending on the size of the database, this process can take several minutes. Do not
attempt to reboot the server under any circumstances before this process is completed.
To restart the server process:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Restart Server icon.
The Restart Server view opens.
2. Click Restart.
Managing Licenses
90
Managing Licenses
Avid Interplay needs valid licenses in order to function. A license consists of a hardware ID and
a license key. The hardware ID is sometimes associated with the physical application key, or
dongle. The license key is created by a license file and includes information about the license
types for individual applications.
The Licenses view has two areas:
• The License Types area displays information about the following:
- Your current license types (see “License Types and Usage” on page 92).
- Number of license types available.
- License types used.
- Time limit (days): the total days included in the license. If you have more than one
license loaded that includes the same license type, only one time limit is stored for each
type.
- Days remaining: the number of days until expiration. If you have more than one license
loaded that includes the same license type, only one value for the days remaining is
stored for each type.
• The Server Information area displays information about the following:
- Customer ID. The customer name or ID number.
- The permitted number of databases.
- Hardware ID, obtained from the physical application key (dongle). The Hardware ID is
required to obtain technical support.
- License mode: All Interplay licenses are nodelocked.
- Lock timeout: The lock timeout is the time the server freezes a license on the server
before it is freed for use by another user or machine. All Interplay licenses use a setting
of 0 hours, 0 minutes, and 0 seconds.
Managing Licenses
91
To view information about your licenses:
tIn the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Licenses icon.
The Licenses view opens.
For information about importing a license file, see “Installing a Permanent License” on
page 91. For information about exporting a license file, see “Exporting a License” on
page 93.
Installing a Permanent License
During Interplay Engine installation a temporary license for one user is activated automatically
so that you can administer and install the system. There is no time limit for this license. A
permanent license is provided by Avid in the form of a file (*.nxn) on a USB flash drive.
If you purchase additional licenses, the licenses are additive. For example, one license key with 2
Access and 2 Assist users and an additional license key with 2 Access and 3 Assist users yields a
total of 4 Access and 5 Assist clients.
Managing Licenses
92
A license for an Interplay Engine failover cluster includes two hardware IDs. You only need to
install the license on one node of the cluster.
To install a permanent license:
1. Start and log in to the Interplay Administrator.
2. Make a folder for the license file on the root directory (C:\) of the Interplay Engine server or
another server. For example:
C:\Interplay_Licenses
3. Insert the USB flash drive into any USB port.
nYou can access the license file from the USB flash drive. The advantage of copying the license
file to a server is that you have easy access to installer files if you should ever need them in the
future.
If the USB flash drive does not automatically display:
a. Double-click the computer icon on the desktop.
b. Double-click the USB flash drive icon to open it.
4. Copy the license file (*.nxn) into the new folder you created.
5. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Licenses icon.
6. Click the Import license button.
7. Browse for the *.nxn file.
8. Select the file and click Open.
You see information about the permanent license in the License Types area.
License Types and Usage
The following table describes the license types displayed in the Licenses view. Each license type
is associated with a particular license key.
License Types Used for Avid Applications
Key Product
KEY_AM Interplay Archive Engine
KEY_C Interplay Streaming Server
KEY_G Interplay Central full client license
KEY_J Interplay Central browse client license
Managing Licenses
93
One Interplay Streaming Server license (KEY_C) is required for each streaming server in an
Interplay workgroup.
If you have an editing application running, then no additional license is needed to run Access at
the same time. For example, if an Avid editing application has been started, KEY-XE also covers
Interplay Access on the same machine. If the editing application is started after Interplay Access
is started, KEY-X is released and KEY-XE is used instead. The same behavior applies to licenses
for Interplay Assist, Avid Instinct, and Digidesign Pro Tools Integration.
When you close an application, its license is released and can be used by another client.
Exporting a License
You might need to export your license information for support purposes.
nExport functionality is intended for Avid support purposes. You might not be able to reimport an
exported license.
To export your license to a file:
1. Click the Export license button in the Licenses view.
2. Type or browse to a .nxn file name.
3. Select Save.
Troubleshooting Licensing Problems
If you previously attached one application key (dongle) and loaded the registration file for that
dongle, and then attach a different dongle and try to load a new registration file, the registration
file will not load. You need to delete the Windows registry key for the dongle.
KEY_X Interplay Access
KEY_XL Interplay Assist
KEY_XE Avid Editing Applications
KEY_XI Avid Instinct
KEY_XP Digidesign™ Pro Tools®Integration
License Types Used for Avid Applications (Continued)
Key Product
Managing Licenses
94
To delete the registry key for a dongle:
1. Click Start, then click Run.
2. In the Open text box, type
regedit
and click OK.
The Registry Editor view opens.
3. Locate the registry key for the original dongle, found here:
- (32-bit OS) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Avid
Technology\Workgroup\Avid Workgroup Server\FeatureKeys\Permanent
- (64-bit OS) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Avid
Technology\Workgroup\Avid Workgroup Server\FeatureKeys\Permanent
4. Delete the Permanent folder.
5. Close the Registry Editor window.
6. Reload the new registration file as described in “Installing a Permanent License” on page 91.
Using the License Key Info Tool
You can use the LicenseKeyInfo tool to display and print out the license information for an
Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine. This tool is primarily a support tool. It is useful
when you have only a license file available (and not a server), or you want to know the enabled
features of a license without installing it.
To examine the license key information for an Interplay Engine:
1. Navigate to the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
2. Double-click LicenseKeyInfo.exe
The Interplay License Info dialog box opens.
3. Click Get License Info.
4. Select the License file and click OK.
The system displays the license info.
5. (Option) Click Save License Info or Print License Info and follow the on-screen instructions.
4User Management
An administrator controls access to Avid Interplay through user accounts and user roles. The
following topics provide information about how to manage user accounts and access to the
database:
•Understanding the Central Configuration Server
•Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server
•Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
•Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
•Managing Database Roles
•Guidelines for User Management
For specific examples of how to manage user roles, see “Setting Up a Folder Structure and a
User Database” in the Avid Interplay Best Practices.
Understanding the Central Configuration Server
The Central Configuration Server (CCS) is an Interplay Engine with a special module that is
useful if you are working in an environment that includes more than one Interplay Engine
(including an Interplay Archive Engine). The CCS uses this module to store information that is
common to all other Interplay Engines. Cross-database management of administrative tasks is
possible because all of the Interplay Engines under the CCS inherit its settings by default. A
Central Configuration Server is especially useful for user management tasks.
You set a CCS whenever you install an Interplay Engine. At that time, you can set the CCS as the
server on which you are installing, or you can specify a previously installed Interplay Engine,
including an Interplay Archive Engine. The Interplay Engine acts as the CCS as soon as it is
started after the installation. Each Interplay Engine must be associated with a CCS. An Interplay
Engine can be its own CCS.
Understanding the Central Configuration Server
96
Depending on the number of Interplay Engines that are installed, several CCS configurations are
possible:
• One Interplay Engine: Configure this server as the CCS.
• Several Interplay Engines: Usually you configure only one Interplay Engine as the CCS. The
use of more than one CCS in a company might be useful if there are several independent
domains, departments, or sites where there is no need to share users or other settings in Avid
Interplay. In the case where several sites are located in different locations, having one CCS
for each site could be practical.
If necessary, you can use the Central Configuration Server view to change the CCS that you set
during the Interplay Engine installation.
cDo not reset the CCS unless there is real need to do so, such as a space issue. All the
information that was stored on the old CCS, including users and local administration
settings, is lost when the CCS is changed to another server unless you first move the
_InternalData folder to the server that will be used as the new CCS. If you do not or cannot
move the _InternalData folder to the new CCS, and you set the new CCS for the database,
you must migrate the database through the Manage Databases view. In this case, all
previous CCS-related information will be lost.
The following procedures describe how to change the CCS:
•“Moving the CCS to Another Server” on page 96
•“Viewing and Changing the CCS for a Server” on page 97.
Specifying an incorrect CCS can prevent login. See “Troubleshooting Login Problems” on
page 208.
Moving the CCS to Another Server
cBefore beginning the following procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See
“Creating and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33 for information on running a
backup. You can use the Start Backup Now feature to start a backup immediately.
The following procedure is based on these assumptions:
• Server A is the CCS.
• You want to keep the CCS settings and user information that exist on server A, but move
them to server B.
• You do not want to keep the original CCS information that exists server B.
Understanding the Central Configuration Server
97
cServer B should be created by a clean installation and should serve as its own CCS. No
other database should point to Server B as a CCS, because any existing user data on Server
B will be lost.
To move a CCS to another server:
1. Back up the database. See “Creating and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33.
2. Make sure that the Interplay Engine on both servers is the same version. See “Viewing
Server Information” on page 83.
3. Start Interplay Administrator and log in to server A (which is the current CCS).
4. Lock server A. See “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on page 85.
5. In Interplay Administrator, log out of server A.
6. Log in to server B.
7. Lock server B.
8. Log out of server B.
9. Use Windows Explorer to delete the _InternalData folder on server B.
The folder is located by default in \\IEServer\WG_Database$ (usually
D:\Workgroup_Databases\). See “Identifying the Root Folder of the Interplay Server
Database” on page 227.
10. Copy the _InternalData folder from server A to the default database location of server B.
11. In Interplay Administrator, log in to server A, unlock the server, and log out.
12. Log in to server B and unlock the server.
13. Make sure the CCS for server B is set as server B itself. If necessary, complete “Viewing and
Changing the CCS for a Server” on page 97.
14. Log out of server B.
15. On server A, change the CCS for server A to server B using “Viewing and Changing the
CCS for a Server” on page 97.
Viewing and Changing the CCS for a Server
cBefore beginning the following procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See
“Creating and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33 for information on running a
backup. You can use the Start Backup Now feature to start a backup immediately.
Understanding the Central Configuration Server
98
The following procedure is based on these assumptions:
• Server A is the CCS.
• You want server B to be the CCS for server A. You want to use the settings and user
information that exists on server B.
• You do not want to keep the CCS information that exists on server A.
To change the CCS for a server:
1. Back up the database. See “Creating and Restoring Database Backups” on page 33.
2. Make sure that server A and server B are the same version, otherwise the CCS does not
reset. See “Viewing Server Information” on page 83.
3. Start the Interplay Administrator on server A, and log in to Server A.
4. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Central
Configuration Server icon.
The Central Configuration Server view opens.
5. Use the arrow in the Central Configuration Server list to select server B to use as the CCS.
A warning appears explaining the consequences if you have not followed the procedure
“Moving the CCS to Another Server” on page 96 and moved the _InternalData folder to
server B.
Moving the _InternalData folder is usually recommended. If you do not, all users and local
administration settings are lost.
Understanding the Central Configuration Server
99
6. Do one of the following:
tTo keep the original CCS, click Cancel.
tTo change to a new CCS, click Change CCS.
7. If you have not moved the original CCS server (see “Moving the CCS to Another Server” on
page 96), you need to migrate the database to the new CCS and all of your CCS-related data
(such as users and local administration) are lost. Unmigrated databases should not be used;
databases should always be migrated to a CCS. Unmigrated databases cannot be
administered. For more information, see “Migrating a Database” on page 65.
Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server
100
Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server
There are several ways to add users to a Central Configuration Server:
• Automatically adding Avid Unity (shared-storage) users. These users are added to the CCS
the first time they log in. They log in using their Avid Unity username and password. For
more information, see “Setting Avid Unity Authentication” on page 102.
• Importing users from a Windows domain or LDAP directory. You need to use the User
Authentication Providers view to import these users. They log in using their Windows or
LDAP username and password. For more information, see “Setting Windows Domain
Authentication and Importing Users” on page 103 and “Setting LDAP Authentication and
Importing Users” on page 105.
• Individually creating users. You need to use the User Management view to create individual
users. They log in using the username and password that you set. For more information, see
“Adding Users Manually” on page 113.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing
Users
The User Authentication Providers view lets you set the type of authentication users need to
provide when logging in to Avid Interplay. You can select one or more of the following
authentication providers:
• Avid Unity
• Windows Domain
•LDAP
Selecting these providers lets users log in without requiring them to use an additional username
and password for Avid Interplay. You still have the option of creating individual users
specifically for Avid Interplay (see “Adding Users Manually” on page 113).
The User Authentication Providers view lets you import users from a Windows domain or LDAP
server. You do not need to explicitly import Avid Unity users; they are imported at the time they
log in.
Information from this view is saved in the CCS (see “Understanding the Central Configuration
Server” on page 95).
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
101
nAll special characters are allowed in user names except for \ (backslash), / (forward slash),
| (vertical bar), and quotes (" and '). When LDAP and Windows Domain users are imported,
these characters are replaced with “_”. If two users have different user names that are mapped
to the same converted name (for example, dann/o and dann\o become dann_o), only one
converted user name is imported. These users currently cannot be authorized through LDAP or
Windows Domain; they can only be imported.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
102
The users are added to the Imported Users folder in the User Management page, under the
respective subfolder for LDAP, Microsoft, or Avid Unity. Users are also added to the Everyone
folder. The following illustration shows these subfolders with the LDAP folder selected.
These types of user authentication and how users are imported are described in the following
topics:
•“Setting Avid Unity Authentication” on page 102
•“Setting Windows Domain Authentication and Importing Users” on page 103
•“Setting LDAP Authentication and Importing Users” on page 105
•“LDAP Server Configuration Settings” on page 107
Setting Avid Unity Authentication
If you select the Avid ISIS Authentication option, a user can log in to the Avid Interplay database
using a valid Avid Unity (Avid MediaNetwork or Avid ISIS password). The authentication
mechanism always checks this User Authentication Provider first.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
103
This method of authorization is implicit. In other words, there is no active import of users at the
time the Avid ISIS Authentication is enabled. Instead, the first time that an Avid Unity user logs
in to Avid Interplay, the user is added to the UNITY user group subfolder. By default, this user
group has Read rights.
If your workgroup includes multiple ISIS systems, you need to specify each additional ISIS
server name. Users can then use their Avid ISIS credentials to log in to the Interplay database
and access any additional ISIS servers to which they have access. For more information, see the
Avid Interplay Software Installation and Configuration Guide.
To enable Avid Unity authentication:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the User
Authentication Providers icon.
The User Authentication Providers view opens.
2. Click Avid ISIS Configuration Settings.
3. Type the Avid Unity server name with which the CCS should cross-check for authentication.
In an Avid ISIS environment, type the name of the System Director. In an Avid Unity
MediaNetwork environment, type the name of the File Manager.
In a multiple ISIS workgroup, type the name of the local System Director.
4. In a multiple ISIS workgroup, click the Add Avid ISIS button and type the System Director
hostname for the additional Avid ISIS systems.
5. Click Apply.
The first time an Avid Unity user logs into Interplay, the user is added to the CCS as part of
the UNITY user group under Imported Users, with Read rights by default.
To reassign an Avid Unity user’s Interplay rights:
tMove the user to a different user group later if you want to give the user a different role.
For more information, see “Managing Database Roles” on page 120.
Setting Windows Domain Authentication and Importing Users
If you activate Windows Domain authentication, a user is able to log in to an Avid Interplay
database with a Windows domain user name and password. Any time a user tries to access an
Avid Interplay database, the CCS (Central Configuration Server) can use the Windows login
information to authenticate the user and in turn to check which databases the user can access.
To use this feature, the Interplay Engine Server Execution User must be a member of the domain
from which you import users and against which you want to authenticate users. If the user is
logged in to a supported Windows machine, and logged into the same domain as the Interplay
Engine, the user can log in using the domain user name and password.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
104
An administrator needs to assign suitable roles to the imported users before they can access the
database. By default, imported users do not have access rights to the database, which will cause a
login to fail even if a user is properly authenticated by the domain. In this case, the following
error message is displayed:
Note also that for Interplay to import users from an Active Directory, these users must be placed
in groups. Interplay does not support importing of single users. To facilitate administration, Avid
recommends that you align the Interplay group structure with the Active Directory group
structure.
nSome large organizations might use a hierarchical domain structure called a “forest root
domain.” For example, an organization with a domain named “company.com” might choose to
place its Interplay production system in a sub-domain named “avid.company.com.” In Windows,
users from different parts of this organization can be managed in groups (for example, a
“Universal Group”) and can be authenticated across the entire forest. Interplay domain
authentication does not support this structure. If you select a domain for authentication, users
from other forest domains will be stripped from the group during the import process.
To enable Windows domain authentication:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the User
Authentication Providers icon.
The User Authentication Providers view opens.
2. Select the Windows Domain Authentication option.
3. Click Import Windows Domain Users.
The Import User Groups dialog box opens.
4. Do one of the following:
tSelect the user groups you want to import into the Avid Interplay system.
tClick Select All to import all the user groups into the Avid Interplay system.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
105
5. Click OK.
nDepending on the size and complexity of the import, the import operation might prevent users
from logging on, browsing, checking in, or doing on work on the server
Upon import, Interplay creates a new user group and subfolder called MICROSOFT under
Imported Users in the User Management view. It imports all the users authenticated on the
Windows domain that are not currently in the Avid Interplay user database. These users are
imported to the MICROSOFT group and have the default role of No Access. Users can then
be moved to different groups to gain a new user role. See “Managing Database Roles” on
page 120.
Users that are already in the Avid Interplay user database during a Windows Domain User
import are added to the MICROSOFT group again but retain the group placement and role
they already had.
nNew users added to the Windows domain are not continually imported to the CCS. You need to
add them manually. See “Adding Users Manually” on page 113.
Setting LDAP Authentication and Importing Users
If you select the LDAP Authentication option, a user can log in to Avid Interplay databases with
an LDAP user name and password. Avid Interplay supports LDAP Version 2 and LDAP Version
3.
To properly configure LDAP authentication, you must know the schema of the LDAP database.
Two common schemas are
• Microsoft Active Directory LDAP implementation
• A freely available LDAP service such as OpenLDAP
The configuration you specify depends on the LDAP schema against which you are
authenticating. The following illustration shows some differences between Active Directory and
OpenLDAP.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
106
nDetails on the LDAP schema objects can be found in RFC1274, “The Cosine and Internet X.500
Schema.”
To import LDAP users and enable LDAP authentication:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the User
Authentication Providers icon.
The User Authentication Providers view opens.
2. Select the LDAP Authentication option.
3. Type the information in the edit fields that specifies the individual LDAP settings of your
LDAP server.
The settings are described in “LDAP Server Configuration Settings” on page 107.
4. Click Apply.
5. Click Import LDAP Users to add all the LDAP users to the user group “LDAP Users” for the
Interplay CCS.
The Import LDAP Users dialog box opens.
Active Directory LDAP OpenLDAP
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
107
6. Select the users that you want to import.
7. Click OK.
Interplay creates a new user group and subfolder called LDAP under Imported Users and
imports all the users from the LDAP server that match the filter criteria in the LDAP
configuration, and are not currently available in the Avid Interplay user database. These
users are imported to the LDAP group and have the default role of No Access. Users can
then be moved to different groups to gain a new user role. See “Managing Database Roles”
on page 120.
Users that are already in the Avid Interplay user database during an LDAP User import are
added to the LDAP group again but retain the additional group placement and role they
already have.
nNew users added to the LDAP server are not continually imported to the CCS. You need to add
them manually. See “Adding Users Manually” on page 113.
LDAP Server Configuration Settings
The following table describes the LDAP server settings that are needed for authentication and
import.
Setting Description
LDAP Server IP address of the LDAP server.
LDAP Port Port for the LDAP service. For Standard LDAP, accept the default port
389. For Active Directory Global Catalog LDAP, specify port 3268. For
LDAP enabled over SSL (LDAPS), specify port 636
Use SSL Select this option if the LDAP uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
technology.
nSecured LDAP requires an X.509 certificate infrastructure. For
more information, see the Microsoft article “How to enable LDAP
over SSL with a third-party certification authority.”
User DN for Searches User DN for a user who has the right to query the directory. This DN will
be used for logging on to the LDAP directory and performing a search for
importable objects after you click the Import LDAP Users button.
Password for Searches Password for a user who has the right to query the directory. This
password will be used for logging on to the LDAP directory after you
click the Import LDAP Users button.
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
108
Search Root DN DN root for searches in the LDAP database. This DN specifies the search
root that will be used after you click the Import LDAP Users button. This
DN typically points to the branch of the LDAP tree where the user objects
are located. Typical examples are
“CN=queryuser,CN=Users,DC=company,DC=com” for Windows Active
Directory LDAP, or “CN=queryuser,DC=company,DC=com” for
OpenLDAP.
User Object Class Object class attribute of a User. This value will be used as a search filter
after you click the Import LDAP Users button. Interplay will perform an
ldap_search request on the directory, and all returned objects that match
User Object Class will be imported. A typical setting for Microsoft AD
LDAP would be organizationalPerson. For OpenLDAP, a typical object
class would be simpleSecurityObject.
User Name Attribute Attribute that stores the user name to use for LDAP-authenticated logins.
The content of this attribute becomes the imported user name in Interplay
and defines the user name for LDAP-authenticated login attempts. This
attribute might vary according to the LDAP schema, and there might be
multiple attributes storing different varieties of the user name. For
Microsoft Active Directory LDAP and OpenLDAP, the most standard
attribute is “cn,” the common name as defined in RFC 4519. Other
attributes such as displayName or mailNickname (in an Exchange-enabled
environment) might also exist.
User DN Suffix Suffix that must be appended to the user name to form a valid
Distinguished User Name (DN). The resulting DN will be used whenever
a user tries to authenticate through LDAP: Interplay will issue a simple
ldap_bind request to the directory service, using a DN constructed
according to the rule given above, and the clear text password as given by
the user.
For example, if the user name specified during login is “journalist” and
the User DN Suffix is “CN=Users,DC=company,DC=com,” Interplay will
try to bind to the LDAP service using a DN of
“CN=journalist,CN=Users,DC=company,DC=com.” Access will be
granted if the bind request is allowed by the LDAP service. Depending on
the LDAP service implementation, there might be other possible ways of
constructing a DN valid for binding to the LDAP service. In Active
Directory LDAP, for example, a DN suffix of “@company.com,” resulting
in a DN of “journalist@company.com” might also work.
Setting Description
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users
109
The following illustration shows an example of settings for an Active Directory LDAP
implementation.
The following illustration shows an example of settings for an OpenLDAP implementation.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
110
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
The User Management view lets you create, modify, manage and delete users and user groups. It
also lets you define user roles and authentication protocols. If you are working in an environment
that includes more than one Interplay Engine, you should manage users through a CCS (see
“Understanding the Central Configuration Server” on page 95). Managing users through a CCS
lets you manage users across multiple workgroups.
If you work at a relatively small site where all editors and assistants have access to all the current
projects, then you can set all user roles by user groups. If you work at a site where you need to
limit access to some projects, you can set roles for users on specific folders. See “Managing
Database Roles” on page 120.
For more information about managing user roles, with specific examples, see “Setting Up a
Folder Structure and a User Database” in the Avid Interplay Best Practices Guide.
The following illustration shows the User Management view with the Administrators group
selected. In this example, there are three custom user groups: Assistants, Editors, and Graphic
Artists.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
111
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
112
Understanding Default User Groups, Users, and Roles
The User Management view displays all user groups and users. The user groups created during
the server installation are as follows:
• Administrators, with the user Administrator: Users with administrator rights. When you first
log in after the first installation, if you have not yet imported Windows Domain or LDAP
server users, the only user displayed is the user “Administrator” with administrator rights.
This user cannot be deleted, nor can the user rights be restricted in any way.
• Everyone: All users. This group contains the master user for every user in all the other
groups. The master user in the Everyone group is the original user object. Instances of a user
in other groups are linked to the master user. By default, the group role is set to No Access.
The following illustration shows the master user for Administrator in the Everyone group
and a link to the master user in the Administrators group. The icon for the linked user
includes a link symbol.
• Imported Users: Users imported from Avid Unity, Windows Domain or LDAP (see “Setting
User Authentication Providers and Importing Users” on page 100). By default, the group
roles are set as follows:
- LDAP: No Access.
- MICROSOFT: No Access.
- UNITY: Read Access.
• Migrated Users: The group for users migrated from an Avid Unity MediaManager
environment to an Avid Interplay environment. By default, the group role is set to No
Access. For more information on migrating users from an Avid Unity MediaManager
environment to an Interplay environment, see your Avid representative.
Adding User Groups
Interplay creates default user groups during the server installation. You can create additional
groups so that you can more easily manage access to the database. For example, you might have
a group of editors that should always have Read/Write/Delete privileges on all files. You might
Link to Administrator master u
Administrator master user
(in the Everyone group)
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
113
also have a group of assistants that should have Read/Write privileges. In this case you can set up
two user groups that have different sets of privileges: one named Editors, and one named
Assistants.
To create a user group:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the User
Management icon.
The User Management view opens.
2. In the Users pane, select the group into which you want to add a the new user group. To
create a group at the top level, select Users.
3. Do one of the following:
tPress Ctrl+G for a new user group.
tClick the Create User Group button.
4. Add a name and a description for the new group.
By default, the description is inherited from the group in which you created the group.
All special characters are allowed in user and group names except “\”, “/”, “|” and quotes ("
and '). For more information, see “Viewing and Setting Attributes” on page 114.
5. (Option) Select a role for the new group.
Roles are inherited from the group in which you create the group. For more information, see
“Viewing and Changing Roles” on page 116.
6. Click Apply.
Adding Users Manually
You need to add users manually if you do not automatically add them through Unity
(shared-storage) authentication. Even if you import Windows Domain or LDAP users, you need
to add users manually if they are added to the Windows domain or LDAP server.
To add a user manually:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the User
Management icon.
The User Management view opens.
2. In the Users pane, select the group into which you want to add a user.
3. Do one of the following:
tPress Ctrl+U for a new user.
tClick the Create User button.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
114
4. Add attributes for the new user: name, description (inherited from the user group by default),
password, password confirmation, and email.
All special characters are allowed in user and group names except “\”, “/”, “|” and quotes ("
and '). For more information, see “Viewing and Setting Attributes” on page 114.
5. (Option) Select a role for the new user.
Roles are inherited from the group in which you create the user. For more information, see
“Viewing and Changing Roles” on page 116.
6. Select an authentication provider.
For more information, see “Viewing and Setting Authentication Providers for Individual
Users” on page 118.
7. Click Apply.
Viewing and Setting Attributes
To view attributes for a user group or a user:
tIn the Users list of the User Management view, select the user group or user.
Attributes for the selected group or user are displayed in the Attributes pane.
If you select a group, the name and description are displayed. For an existing group, you can
add or edit a description.
If you select a user, the name is displayed, plus a description (inherited from the user group
by default), password, password confirmation, and email address, if you have entered them.
By default, the password field in the Attributes text box shows asterisks. If you choose to
allow the user to log in to the server with Internal Authentication, then you need to set the
password in the Attributes text box. For users that log in through other providers, you do not
need to specify the password. For more information, see “Viewing and Setting
Authentication Providers for Individual Users” on page 118.
nThe password should only include characters from the ASCII the character set. Multibyte
passwords might cause login problems, and the administrator then has to reset the password.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
115
To set the internal password:
1. In the Users list, select a user.
2. Type the password and the confirmation in the text box.
3. Click Apply.
The user can change his or her password anytime in the login dialog box.
cIf you select the Internal Authentication option and do not set a password, anyone can log
in with that user name and no password.
Understanding Standard Roles and Default Rights
After you have created the user groups and individual users, you can review and if necessary
change their roles. The role determines the rights or permissions that the user groups and
individual users have. If you assign a role to a user group, all the users in that group inherit the
group rights. If you add a user to a user group, the user inherits the group rights.
A user might have different roles, depending on the group in which the user belongs. The overall
accumulated inherited role for a user is the highest role (the role with the most rights) that the
user has in any one user group. This is the role that is displayed in the User Management view.
See “Guidelines for User Management” on page 129 for an example of an accumulated inherited
role.
The five standard roles and their default rights are as follows:
• Administrator: An Administrator has Read/Write/Delete rights plus the right to carry out
administrative tasks such as logging on to the Interplay Administrator, adding users,
managing groups, and so on. Only Administrators can see all items in the Deleted Items
folder in Interplay Access.
• Read/Write/Delete: Users are allowed to view, import, edit, delete, rename, and move any
item in the database. They can view items they have deleted themselves in the Deleted Items
folder in Interplay Access.
• Read/Write: This role allows users to view, import, and edit items in the database.
• Read: These users can copy files to their local disk, but cannot delete, edit or import any
item into the database. Read-only users cannot change properties.
• No Access: This role takes away all user rights, but the user is not removed. This is useful if
you want to control access on a folder basis, for example, if you do not want a particular set
of users to be able to view selected folders in the database. This is the default role for users
in the Everyone, Imported Users, and Migrated Users folders.
You can assign rights for specific users on specific folders in the Manage Database Roles view
(see “Managing Database Roles” on page 120).
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
116
Viewing and Changing Roles
By default, all users in a group inherit the role assigned to the group. You cannot assign rights to
specific users in the User Management view. If you want to change a user’s rights, you can move
the user to a different group.
For more information about setting up roles correctly, see “Managing Database Roles” on
page 120.
For information about the right to modify properties in Access (displayed in the Additional Roles
pane), see “Setting Access Control for Custom Properties” on page 140.
To view the role of a group or user:
tIn the Users list of the User Management view, select the group or user.
The role is displayed in the Roles pane. If a user has more than one role, the User
Management view displays the accumulated inherited role, the highest role (the role with the
most rights) that the user has in any one user group.
The groups to which a user or group belongs are shown in the Part of Group(s) pane. These
entries also display the role inherited from each group.
The following illustration shows information about the user Composer1. This user has
Read/Write/Delete access that is inherited from the Editors group.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
117
To navigate to the Users tree from the Part of Group(s) pane:
1. Select the user group in the Part of Group(s) pane.
2. For any user group other than the Users group, right-click and select one of the following:
tSelect “Go To” to switch the focus of the Users tree to the group you selected.
tSelect “Go to user in this group” to switch the focus of the Users tree to the selected user
in the selected user group. The Part of Group(s) dialog box focus does not update.
To change the role for a user group:
1. In the Users list of the User Management view, select the user group for which you want to
change the role.
2. In the Roles area, select the appropriate role.
3. Click Apply.
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights
118
To change the role for a user, do one of the following:
tRight-click the user and select Cut, select the group, right-click the group and select Paste.
This action moves the user from one group to another. You can also drag the user from one
group to another.
tRight-click the user and select Copy, select the group, right-click the group and select Paste.
This action removes the user from one group and adds it to another. You can also hold down
the Ctrl key and drag the user from one group to another.
Viewing and Setting Authentication Providers for Individual Users
You set an authentication method in the User Authentication Providers view and these settings
carry over to all users by default. See “Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing
Users” on page 100 for details.
You can change the methods by which individual users can be authenticated. The method must
be enabled in the User Authentication Providers view (a global authentication method) before it
is available for the individual user. If you set an authentication method for an individual user, and
later change the global authentication method, the individual user does not inherit the global
settings.
You can select more than one authentication provider. The list of providers is checked on logon
and if one provider authenticates the user, the user can log on.
The following table provides information about the authentication providers you can select:
cIf you do not select an authentication method for a user, the user cannot log in.
Type of Authentication Description
Avid ISIS Authentication The user can log in to the Interplay database using a valid Avid
Unity password.
Internal Authentication The user can log in to the Interplay database using the password
you set in the User Management view. By default, the password
field in the Attributes pane is empty. The user can change this
password anytime in the Interplay login dialog box.
LDAP Authentication The user can log in to the Interplay database using an LDAP user
name and password.
Windows Domain Authentication The user can log in to the Interplay database using a Windows
domain user name and password.
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119
To change or add an authentication provider:
1. In the Users list of the User Management view, select the user.
2. In the Authentication Providers pane of the User Management view, select the appropriate
options.
3. Click Apply to make the change, or Revert to discard your changes.
Deleting Users and User Groups
You can delete any user except Administrator and you can delete any user group except
Administrators, Migrated Users, and Everyone.
Avid recommends that a user check in all files and log off before you delete the user.
cDeleting a user or user group deletes it from all groups in the Users list and from the
Central Configuration Server.
To delete a user group or a user:
1. Select the user group or user in the Users pane.
2. Click the Delete User/Group button.
A user remains in all other user groups it is in, if any.
Removing Users from User Groups
You can remove any user except Administrator from any user group except the Everyone group.
Removing a user does not delete the user from other groups.
Managing Database Roles
120
To remove a user from a user group:
1. Select the user in the group from which you want it removed.
2. Do one of the following:
tPress the Delete key.
tClick the Remove User button.
Managing Database Roles
You set and manage global roles for users in the User Management view (see “Managing Users,
User Groups, and User Rights” on page 110). You have the option of limiting or granting rights
for specific users on specific folders. Use the Manage Database Roles view to manage rights on
specific folders.
For example, you might have editors and graphic artists that are working on different projects. To
avoid confusion, you might want to prevent editors on one project from having write and delete
rights on projects that they are not working on. For information about the five standard roles, see
“Understanding Standard Roles and Default Rights” on page 115.
There are two different ways to assign roles to folders:
• General role assignments (see “Viewing General Role Assignments” on page 120 and
“Setting or Changing a General Role Assignment” on page 123)
• Special access folders (see “Managing Special Access Folders” on page 126)
For more examples of setting up rights on folders, see “Setting Up a Folder Structure and a User
Database” in the Avid Interplay Best Practices Guide.
Viewing General Role Assignments
To view assigned roles for users of the database or a folder:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage
Database Roles icon.
The Manage Database Roles view opens.
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2. Select the General Role Assignment option.
3. In the Database pane, select the database or a folder for which you want to view roles.
General Role Assignment option
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122
If the database icon has a red X, you are not connected. Click the database icon to connect.
The database icon shows a green check mark when you are connected. The following table
describes three different states of the database icon.
4. In the User/Group pane, select the user or group.
tTo view roles for all users of the selected folder, select All Users and Groups.
tTo view roles for a particular user or user group of the selected folder, select that user or
user group.
5. In the Roles pane, select the role you want to view:
tTo view all roles for the selected users of the selected folder, select “All roles.”
tTo view particular roles for the selected users of the selected folder, select a role.
The path in the middle of the view displays a formula for what is displayed in the lower
panel.
The Node (item in the database), User, and corresponding role are displayed in the lower
panel. Roles that are inherited from a group are grayed out. Roles that have been assigned
directly are black.
The following illustration shows the Projects folder, the Editors group, and All roles
selected. All roles are listed in the lower panel.
Icon Meaning
(Green circle with check mark) Database you are connected to.
(Red box with X) Database you are not connected to.
(Red box with X and yellow arrow) Database needs migration.
See “Migrating a Database” on page 65.
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123
Setting or Changing a General Role Assignment
Use the Manage Database Roles view to set or change rights to a particular folder. Note the
following:
• To delete items, the user must have deletion rights for the folder, even if the user is the owner
of the item to be deleted.
• To move items, the user must have write rights on the object, the folder the object is being
moved out of, and the target folder.
• All users are automatically assigned the Read role for the folder Unchecked-in Avid Assets
(but not the contents), and the Read/Write/Delete role for their private folder within the
Unchecked-in Avid Assets folder. All users are automatically assigned the No Access role
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for Orphan Clips. Administrators have full access to all folders. For more information about
the Unchecked-in Avid Assets folder and the Orphan Clips folder, see the Avid Interplay
Access User’s Guide.
To set or change a role for users of the database or a folder:
1. In the User Management section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage
Database Roles icon.
The Manage Database Roles view opens.
2. Select the General Role Assignment option.
3. In the Database pane, select the database or a folder for which you want to set a role.
4. In the User/Group column, select the user or user group.
5. In the Roles column, select the role you want to set.
The formula in the middle of the view shows your selection. For example, in the following
illustration, you are going to give Editors the Read role (read-only access) for the Antarctica
folder.
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6. Click Set Role.
The role appears in the lower panel.
To change a role:
tSelect the entry in the lower pane, right-click, and select Set Role > role name.
To remove a role for users of the database or a folder:
1. Select the database or a folder in the Database column.
2. Select an entry in the list in the lower pane.
3. Do one of the following:
tClick the Remove Role button.
tRight-click and select Remove Role.
The role for the users on that item is inherited from the parent user group again.
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Blocking Access by a Group or User
When you are trying to block access by a whole group, it is not sufficient to change the user
rights for the user group to NoAccess; individual users who have rights assigned to them
specifically or through memberships in other user groups could still log in.
To block members of an entire group:
1. In the Manage Database Roles view, in the Database pane, select the project from which you
want to block users.
2. In the User/Group pane, expand the group.
3. Select each user, and in the Roles pane select No Access.
4. Click Set Role.
To prevent a user from accessing all databases:
tIn the User Management view, deselect all authentication providers available to a user.
Managing Special Access Folders
If necessary, you can allow a user to access a specific folder that they otherwise would not have
access to. For example, if a new user is assigned the No Access role for the Projects folder, you
can allow access to a particular project within the folder.
To allow access to a Special Access folder:
1. In the Manage Database Roles view, set the No Access role for the specific user on the
top-level folder that you want to be hidden (see “Setting or Changing a General Role
Assignment” on page 123).
2. On the item for which the user needs access, set the role to Read (or higher).
The “Folder is not visible” dialog box opens, telling you how applying the role to the
selected location will affect the user’s rights on other folders.
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3. Click the Apply button for the option “Mark as Special Access Folder: Grant path access and
allow to view path.”
This option allows users to log in to the database and navigate to the specified location. The
tree structure above the folder will be visible, but not the contents of the other folders in the
structure. The first option makes the contents of the tree structure accessible as well (not
recommended).
After you set the special access, when users connect to the database, they see the structure of
the database above the special access folder, but not the contents of the individual folders.
Only the contents of the folder for which they have Read or higher rights are available.
To view who has been assigned access to Special Access folders:
1. Select the Special Access Folders option.
2. In the Database pane, select the entire database or the folder for which you want to check for
Special Access folder rights.
3. In the User/Group pane, select All Users to see all users who have special access to the
folders you selected, or select a specific user.
4. The bottom panel displays the users who have special access according to your selections.
Special Access
Folders option
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The following illustration shows that the user jeditor has special access to the folder /Outside
Productions/Graphics. To view what specific role jeditor has, select the folder in the
Database pane.
To remove a role assigned for Special Access folders:
1. Click the Special Access Folders option.
2. Select the appropriate folder.
3. Select the user in the list in the lower pane.
4. Do one of the following:
tClick Remove Role.
tRight-click the user and select Remove Role.
The role for the user on that item is inherited from the parent user groups again.
User who
can access
Special
Access
Folders
Special
Access
Folder
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Guidelines for User Management
This topic provides information and suggestions that can help you manage users and access. For
more information about managing user roles, with specific examples, see “Setting Up a Folder
Structure and a User Database” in Avid Interplay Best Practices.
• The fundamental rule of user management is that explicit rights override inherited rights,
and database rights (set in the Database Management view) override CCS rights (set in the
User Management view and stored in the CCS). The exception to this rule is the user who is
a global Administrator set through the User Management view. This Administrator always
has Administrative rights on all folders, even if rights are set otherwise in the Manage
Database Roles view.
• By default, the root group Users is assigned the NoAccess role. That means that all user
subgroups (Everyone, Imported Users, Migrated Users and any other groups you add)
except for the Administrators and UNITY (under the Imported Users) have the role
NoAccess through inheritance. NoAccess means that a user cannot even log in to the server.
(The Administrators group is assigned the Administrator role and the UNITY group is
assigned the Read role.)
To override the NoAccess role, create another user group with a different role and copy the
user into that group.
cChanging the role for the Users group or the Everyone group (from No Access to Read, for
example) makes it impossible to take away this role from individual users. Avid
recommends that you do not change the role of the Users group or the Everyone group.
• You can assign a user to more than one user group (see “Setting or Changing a General Role
Assignment” on page 123) and each group can have a different role. As a result, the user
inherits different roles, which can be useful if a user contributes to different projects in
different ways.
• In the User Management view, you can set only group roles. You can set roles for individual
users in the Manage Database Roles view. See “Managing Database Roles” on page 120.
How the Interplay Engine Determines Access
The following steps describe how the Interplay Engine server determines access to an object
(usually a folder). This process can help you understand how to assign roles and access:
1. The server checks on the object in question to see if explicit rights are set. If a user is
assigned a role on the object, the evaluation stops and the server grants the user only the role
allowed and the accompanying rights, if any.
2. If no explicit permissions were found on the object, the server checks the inherited rights on
the object in question.
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3. If there are no inherited permissions, the server checks the global user rights. In this case, the
server determines what role the user has from the CCS settings.
4. In case of a conflict where the evaluation sees a user with multiple roles, for example:
- the user has the read role through one group
- the user has the read/write role through another group
then the highest ranking role wins. In this case, the user gets the read/write role.
This is an example of an accumulated inherited role. The user’s overall role for the database is
the highest role he or she is assigned to in any group, unless otherwise specified in the Manage
Database Roles view. For example: If User A is in Group 1 (which is assigned a Read role) and
User A is also in Group 2 (which is assigned a No Access role), then User A has the accumulated
inherited role Read. When you select User A in the User Management view, this role is displayed
in the Roles pane.
5Site Settings
Site settings include configuration options for various Interplay components. The following
topics provide information about site settings:
•Defining Property Layouts
•Setting the Resolutions Available for Display
•Creating Custom Properties
•Configuring Remote Workgroups
•Configuring Categories
•Setting Server Hostnames and the Workgroup Name
•Interplay Media Services View
•Interplay Transfer Status View
•Interplay Transfer Settings View
•Workgroup Transfer Presets View
•Specifying Archive Settings
•Setting the Ownership for New Database Folders
•Setting Options for Deletion
•Viewing and Setting the Metadata Override Status
Defining Property Layouts
Administrators can use the System Properties tab in the Property Layout view to specify which
properties are available for display in the following client applications:
• Interplay Access
• Interplay Assist
• Avid Instinct
• Avid editing systems (Interplay Window)
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These properties are sometimes referred to as system metadata. However, it is only part of the
metadata included in an Avid Interplay database. For a description of available properties, see
“System Metadata Properties” on page 273.
For Interplay Access, administrators select which properties are displayed by default in the
Content tab and Object Inspector Property tabs. Users can then add other available properties to
these tabs. They can also use available properties in an extended search. For the other client
applications, the default properties are preset, and users can add other available properties as
columns in the Research panel.
By default, a set of properties categorized as Broadcast is selected and displayed. You can
customize this set or you can display an alternative set of properties, either Post or Film, and then
customize this set.
The following illustration is an example of properties displayed in the Properties tab of the
Interplay Access Object Inspector.
The administrator can also use the Property Layout view to do the following:
• Create custom columns. See “Creating Custom Properties” on page 136.
• Control the resolutions that are available for display. See “Setting the Resolutions Available
for Display” on page 134
To set the properties displayed in Interplay Access:
1. In the Site Settings section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Property Layout
icon.
The Property Layout view opens.
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2. Select the database for which you want to set properties.
3. Click the System Properties tab.
4. From the Active Layout options, select one of the following layouts:
- Broadcast
-Post
-Film
This option determines which set of properties is displayed in the client applications.
5. Select and deselect properties as follows:
t(Option) To make a property available for users to add into displays on their own, and to
use in an Extended Search in Interplay Access, select the property in the Available
column. To make a property unavailable, deselect it.
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t(Option) To include a property in the Interplay Access Content tab, select the property in
the Content Default Column. To remove a property from the Content tab, deselect it.
t(Option) To include a property in the Interplay Access Object Inspector’s Properties tab,
select properties in the Inspector Default column. To remove a property from the Object
Inspector’s Properties tab, deselect it.
nYou must select a property in the Available column if you want to display the property in the
Object Inspector or the Content tab.
6. (Option) Click Revert to reset properties to the defaults.
7. Click Apply to save the changes.
The changes appear the next time you log in to Interplay Access.
Setting the Resolutions Available for Display
Administrators can use the Resolutions tab in the Property Layout view to specify which
resolutions are available for display in the following client applications:
• Interplay Access
• Interplay Assist
• Avid Instinct
• Avid editing systems (Interplay Window)
Lists of available resolutions appear in various places in these clients. For example, Interplay
Access includes a Resolutions dialog box that lets you select which resolutions to display as
columns in the Content view (available when you click the Presets button). Interplay Assist and
Avid Instinct include a dialog box that lets you select the columns you want to display in the
Research panel.
The Resolutions tab in the Property Layout view displays a list of all current Avid resolutions.
By default, the available resolutions that are currently used in the database are selected and are
displayed in bold.
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In some circumstances you might want to make additional resolutions available for display. For
example, if you are using Interplay Access to view the status of assets on remote workgroups,
and the database for the local workgroup does not include resolutions used on the remote
workgroup, you can select those resolutions for display in the local version of Interplay Access.
By default, the option “Enable used resolutions automatically” is selected. If you add an asset
associated with a previously unused resolution to the Interplay database, this option
automatically adds it to the default list. It also prevents you from deselecting currently used
resolutions (check boxes are grayed out). If you want to remove a currently used resolution from
the list for display, deselect this option.
To set the resolutions that are available for display:
1. In the Site Settings section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Property Layout
icon.
The Property Layout view opens.
2. Select the database for which you want to set resolutions.
3. Click the Resolutions tab.
Resolutions that are used in the database are selected by default.
4. To add a resolution, select its check box in the Available column.
The check box for the selected resolution is colored green. The name of the resolution is not
in bold face.
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5. To remove a resolution, deselect its check box in the Available column.
If you want to remove a default resolution, deselect “Enable used resolutions automatically”
and then deselect the resolution’s checkbox. Keep in mind that any new resolutions added to
the database will not be automatically selected as av