Avid Unity ISIS Administration Guide 1.4 AG V1 4 EN

User Manual: avid Unity ISIS - 1.4 - Administration Guide Free User Guide for Avid ISIS Software, Manual

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Title Page
Contents
Using This Guide
Installing Your Avid Unity ISIS Software
Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software
Managing the Storage Hardware
Configuring and Managing Storage
- Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box
- Managing Storage Groups
Managing Workspaces
Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges
Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status
Configuring Failover Parameters
Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel
Advanced Support Tools
Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool
- Using the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool
  - Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool
  - Configuring the System Monitor Tool
- Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool
Avid Unity ISIS E-mail Notification List
Index

make manage move | media™

Avid ®

Avid Unity ISIS™

Administration Guide

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Avid Unity ISIS Administration Guide • 0130-07874-01 • September 2007

Contents

Using This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Who Should Use This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

If You Need Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Accessing the Online Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

How to Order Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Avid Training Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Chapter 1 Installing Your Avid Unity ISIS Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Installing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Initializing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Configuring the Avid Unity ISIS Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Chapter 2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Management Tasks and General Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

System Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Using the Administration Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Before Performing Administrative Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Opening the Administration Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Logging Out of the Administration Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Accessing the Help System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Command Menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Storage Elements Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Chassis Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Storage Groups Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Workspaces Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Users Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

User Groups Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Devices Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Bandwidth Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Connection Status Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Preferences Option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Orphaned Elements Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

System Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Organizing Display Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Moving and Rearranging Columns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Showing and Hiding Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Sorting Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Filtering the Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Chapter 3 Managing the Storage Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Storage Element List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Viewing Storage Elements Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Storage Element Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Storage Element Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Adding Storage to the Media Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Adding Storage Elements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Rectifying Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Removing Storage Elements from the File System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Identifying Storage Elements Prior to Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Removing Storage Elements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Removing Orphaned Storage Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Accessing the Orphaned Elements Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Orphaned Elements List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Removing Orphaned Storage Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Upgrading Storage Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Accessing the Chassis Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Chassis List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Viewing Chassis Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Chassis Details. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Upgrading Chassis Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Upgrading Individual Chassis Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Removing Chassis from the Chassis List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Adding and Removing Storage Elements in the Chassis List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Chapter 4 Configuring and Managing Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Storage Group List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Viewing Storage Group Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Storage Group Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Managing Storage Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Storage Group Usage Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Creating Storage Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Adding Storage Elements to Storage Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Removing Storage Elements from Storage Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Adding Storage Elements from Another Storage Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Adding Storage Elements Previously Used with Another Network . . . . . . . . . . 79

Deleting Storage Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Chapter 5 Managing Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Allocating Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

The Workspaces List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Using the Graphical Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Viewing Workspace Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Workspaces Descriptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Creating New Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Duplicating Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Adjusting Workspace Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Renaming Workspaces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Protecting Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Workspace Protection Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Setting Workspace Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Redistributing Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Redistribution Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Performing a Full Redistribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Using Advanced Redistribution Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Moving Workspaces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Managing Workspace Access Privileges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Setting Workspace Access Privileges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Deleting Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Chapter 6 Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Creating Client Accounts for Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Accessing the Users Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

User Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Creating User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Duplicating Client Accounts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Creating Client Accounts for Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Accessing the Groups Dialog Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Viewing Group Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

User Group Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Creating User Group Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Creating Client Accounts for Devices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Accessing the Device Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Device List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Device Descriptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Creating Device Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Modifying Client Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Deleting Client Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Removing Clients from the Avid Unity ISIS Media Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Changing Access Privileges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Setting System Preferences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Chapter 7 Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Monitoring Client Bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Accessing the Bandwidth Monitor Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Bandwidth List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Scaling the Bandwidth List Graph Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Removing Components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Monitoring System Connection Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Accessing the Connection Status Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Connection Status Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Disconnecting Components from the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Chapter 8 Configuring Failover Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

IP Addresses for Existing and New System Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Existing System Director . . . . . . . 141

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the New System Director . . . . . . . . . . 144

Validating the Connections Between Existing and New System Directors . . . 146

Configuring the Virtual Addresses for Existing and New System Directors . . . 148

Creating a New Standby File System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Starting the Existing and New System Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Creating Failover with Two New Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

IP Addresses for First and Second System Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the First System Director . . . . . . . . . . 151

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Second System Director. . . . . . . . 153

Validating the Connections Between First and Second System Directors. . . . 155

Configuring the Virtual Addresses for First and Second System Directors . . . 157

Creating a New File System on the System Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Starting the First and Second System Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Stopping and Starting System Directors During Failover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Appendix A Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Starting the System Director Control Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

System Director Status Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Performance Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Status Indicators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Starting and Stopping the System Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Resetting the Event Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Configuration Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Starting and Stopping the System Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Configuring General Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Working with File System Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Opening the System Director Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Active Clients Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

MetaData Status Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Advanced Settings Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Appendix B Advanced Support Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

System Administration Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Changing the Administration Password. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Setting up Error Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Configuring the E-mail Error Notification Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Setting Up E-mail Error Notification Contacts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Configuring the Error Notification Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Starting and Stopping the ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service . . . . . . . . 181

Viewing the Administration Tool Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

The Avid Unity ISIS Snapshot Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Creating, Viewing, and Deleting Snapshots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Working with Snapshot Archives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Using the Profile Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

System Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

System Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Using System Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Accessing the Logging Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Viewing Event Logs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

Clearing Event Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

Using the Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

Creating Aggregate Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Viewing Aggregate Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Opening the Disk Tester Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Using the Disk Tester Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

General Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Installers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Avid Unity ISIS Agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Understanding the Agent Interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

System Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

System Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Stopping and Starting Storage Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216

Viewing System Information for Individual Chassis Switches . . . . . . . . . . 217

Setting Chassis Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Statistics Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

Using the Statistics Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Statistics Tab Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Tools Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Agent Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

Using the Log Viewer Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

Logging Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

Using Agent Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Viewing Agent Event Logs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Clearing Agent Event Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Disabling Logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Saving Logs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Viewing and Deleting Saved Logs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Advanced Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Switch Diagnostics Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Running Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Resetting an Avid ISIS Engine to Factory Defaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Appendix C Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Using the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Configuring the System Monitor Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Displaying Rack Configurations in Separate Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Understanding the System Monitor Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Using General View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Using Status Details View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Status Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Using the Status Details Legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Using Chassis Identification View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Using Blade Identification View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Using IP Addresses View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Using Temperatures View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Using Upgrades View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Modifying the System Monitor Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Appendix D Avid Unity ISIS E-mail Notification List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Using This Guide

The Avid Unity ISIS™ (Infinitely Scalable Intelligent Storage) media network provides a

high-performance distributed file system that contains high-capacity shared media storage

for workgroups of connected Avid® editing workstations.

nThis document describes the features for all Avid Unity ISIS media networks. Therefore,

your system might not contain certain features that are covered in the documentation.

Who Should Use This Guide

This administration guide is intended for system administrators responsible for the setup and

day-to-day management of an Avid Unity ISIS media network, as well as for users who need

to access workspaces on the network. You should have a basic understanding of how to use

and manage the Windows® operating system and Mac OS® X systems, and you should be

familiar with basic workgroup and network concepts.

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.

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 ship 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 CD or DVD 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.

tThis 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 XP 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.

Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action

Accessing the Online Documentation

The Avid Unity ISIS online documentation contains all the product documentation in PDF

format. You can access the documentation in the top-level AvidUnityISISDocumentation

folder on the Avid Unity ISIS installer DVD.

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.

To access the online documentation from the installer DVD-ROM:

1. Insert the Avid Unity ISIS installer DVD-ROM into the drive.

2. Navigate to the [DVD drive]:\.AvidUnityISISDocumentation folder, and double-click

the PDF file for the document you want to view.

How to Order Documentation

To order additional copies of this documentation from within the United States, call Avid

Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843). If you are placing an order from outside the United

States, contact your local Avid representative.

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.

To learn about Avid's new online learning environment, Avid Learning Excellerator(ALEX),

visit http://learn.avid.com.

For information on courses/schedules, training centers, certifications, courseware, and

books, please visit www.avid.com/training or call Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID

(800-949-2843).

1Installing Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

This section describes what you need to do to install and initialize the Avid Unity ISIS

software for the System Director file system, the software that sets up and manages the

storage groups and workspaces on your Avid Unity ISIS media network. This software is

supplied on a DVD-ROM in the Avid Unity ISIS installation kit.

For more information, see the following topics:

•Installing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director Software

•Initializing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director

•Configuring the Avid Unity ISIS Software

Installing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director

Software

You must install Avid Unity ISIS software on the System Director that manages your media

storage system. You can also install the client software on any client attached to the

Avid Unity ISIS media network.

The Avid Unity ISIS installation software is included on the Avid Unity ISIS DVD-ROM.

For specific instructions on installing the software, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide. For

any updates in the information about installation, see the Avid Unity ISIS ReadMe that

comes with your system.

Initializing the Avid Unity ISIS System Director

Before you log on to the Avid Unity ISIS System Administrator, you need to initialize your

system by creating an active partition on the System Director’s main drive. This step is

necessary in order to build an Avid Unity ISIS file system that maintains the data on

attached storage elements and system metadata.

1 Installing Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

To create an active partition:

1. Select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control

Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the Configuration tab.

3. In the Server Control Operations area, click Stop Server.

A confirmation message box opens.

4. Click OK.

The System Director stops.

5. In the Major File System Operations area, click Create New Active.

A confirmation message box opens.

6. Click OK.

An active partition is created, and the System Director starts.

7. In the Configuration area, click General Configuration.

The General Configuration Options dialog box opens.

Configuring the Avid Unity ISIS Software

8. (Optional) Type a name for the Virtual System Director. In a failover configuration, this

name should be different from the network node name for the System Director.

9. Click OK.

10. Click Close.

Configuring the Avid Unity ISIS Software

You need to configure the Avid Unity ISIS software to establish a functioning media

network. This configuration requires that you do the following:

• Add the storage elements to the media network (see “Managing the Storage Hardware”

on page 35).

• Create a storage group (see “Configuring and Managing Storage” on page 67).

• Create a workspace (see “Managing Workspaces” on page 81).

• Create user accounts (see “Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges” on page

107).

For more information about the Avid Unity ISIS software and the Avid Unity ISIS System

Administration tool, see “Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software” on page 21.

1 Installing Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

2Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS

Software

Avid Unity ISIS allows you to manage very large amounts of storage that multiple clients

can access to share video, audio, and effects media in an intuitive, collaborative

environment.

This section provides an overview of the configuration factors you need to consider, the

tasks you need to perform, and the tool you use to manage storage groups, clients, and

workspaces.

For more information, see the following topics:

•Management Tasks and General Considerations

•System Capacity

•Using the Administration Tool

•Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

Management Tasks and General Considerations

The responsibilities of an administrator include the following:

• Initial setup and configuration of the workgroup: You must configure the storage

elements, as well as one or more storage groups, workspaces, and user accounts.

• Day-to-day administration: You probably need to reconfigure your network to

accommodate new users and evolving projects.

Avid Unity ISIS also provides monitoring functionality that allows you to check total

system activity as well as that of each connected client.

• Troubleshooting: When problems occur with the storage hardware, the System Director,

or a client, you need to diagnose the problem and, if possible, fix it. Avid Unity ISIS

provides easy-to-understand error, warning, and informational messages that inform you

of problems, as well as tools that help you diagnose and fix problems.

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

How you answer the following strategic questions determines your priorities when making

configuration decisions and trade-offs (possibly affecting several aspects of your

configuration).

• What is your site type?

Broadcast and post-production editing suites, for instance, require very different

administration requirements, particularly in terms of workspace-access restrictions and

how often you need to reconfigure workspaces and users. For more information on

managing workspaces, see “Managing Workspaces” on page 81.

• Does your workgroup include uncompressed clients, multiple-stream clients, or high

definition clients?

If so, you will need to set up special hardware and storage group configurations. For

more information on managing storage groups, see “Configuring and Managing

Storage” on page 67.

• Will your client users be working on individual projects with their own media or will

they be collaborating on team projects that use the same source media?

These factors affect how you should allocate workspaces and user accounts. For more

information on managing users and user groups, see “Managing Client Accounts and

Access Privileges” on page 107.

• Which is more important at your site: the integrity and speed at which your media can

be recovered in the event of hardware failure or maximizing available storage space?

Avid recommends that you always use protection to avoid data loss. However, these

factors determine whether you will want to protect your workspaces.

• Is security more important than ease of access at your site?

Individual password user accounts combined with tightly controlled workspace access

privileges provide the most security at the cost of restricting user flexibility. For more

information on managing user accounts and access privileges, see “Managing Client

Accounts and Access Privileges” on page 107.

System Capacity

An Avid Unity ISIS media network provides up to 192 terabytes (TB) of storage, or 96 TB

of mirrored storage, distributed across storage elements — such as Avid Unity ISIS storage

blades (ISB). The Avid Unity ISIS Engine — the chassis holding the ISBs, the ISIS

Integrated Switch (ISS), the ISIS Integrated Expansion switch (IXS), power supplies, and an

internal midplane — can use either 250 GB drives or 500 GB drives.

Using the Administration Tool

The System Director handles file management for the system, which supports a

configuration including the following:

• 2,500,000 to 3,000,000 files; however, the maximum number of files depends on the

number of directories, the number of files in directories, the number of System

Directors, and the length of file names

• Up to 10,000 files in a directory and 10,000 directories, although individual client

accounts might require restrictions on files and directories based on performance issues

• Up to 1000 user accounts

• Up to 550 Windows and Macintosh clients with mounted workspaces; the total amount

of clients is controlled by your Avid Unity ISIS license and System Director application

key

Using the Administration Tool

You use the Avid Unity ISIS System Administration tool for the configuration and

day-to-day administration of workspaces, clients, and storage groups. The tool also allows

you to monitor your system’s activity.

nTo use the Administration tool, you need to have Macromedia® Flash® Player installed on

your system

You open the Administration tool from the Avid Unity ISIS Home page, which also allows

you to access the following support tools:

• System Monitor tool (see “Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool” on page 235)

• Log Aggregator tool (see “Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool” on page 196)

• Switch Manager tool (see “Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager Tool” on page 206)

• Disk Tester tool (see “Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool” on page 200)

• ISB Connection Analyzer tool (see “Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer Tool” on

page 204)

This section provides an overview of the Administration tool. For more information, see the

following topics:

•Before Performing Administrative Functions

•Opening the Administration Tool

•Logging Out of the Administration Tool

•Accessing the Help System

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

Before Performing Administrative Functions

It is critical that clients unmount workspaces when you do the following:

• Stopping and restarting the System Director (unmount all workspaces)

• Rebooting the System Director (unmount all workspaces)

• Changing users’ or user groups’ access (unmount only the affected workspaces)

cIf a client is using a workspace when it is taken offline, the connection to the workspace

is broken and data might be lost.

Opening the Administration Tool

The Administration tool runs as a Web service on the System Director. This allows you to

open the Administration tool from any system that has an Ethernet connection to the System

Director, as well as from the System Director itself.

cPerforming administrative functions on more than one Administration tool at the same

time can cause unexpected results. For example, if two administrators are deleting the

same user account at the same time, a second user account might also be accidentally

deleted.

When you start the Administration tool, the Login dialog box opens. If you have specified an

administration password (see “Modifying Client Accounts” on page 124), the

Administration tool prompts you to supply that password to log in. If you type the wrong

password, an error message appears and the Login dialog box reappears.

nWhen you first install the Avid Unity ISIS software, the login password is blank by default.

To set a password for the administrator, follow the procedure described in “Changing the

Administration Password” on page 176.

Regular users cannot log in to the Administration tool. However, they can view certain

information about the network through the Client Manager. For more information about the

Client Manager, see the Avid Unity ISIS Client Manager Help or the Avid Unity ISIS Quick

Start Card. The Avid Unity ISIS Client Manager User’s Guide is also included in the

Avid Unity ISIS Online Library as a separate document.

Using the Administration Tool

To open the Administration tool:

1. Open your Web browser.

2. In the address bar of your browser, do one of the following:

tType

https://[

System Director IP address

]:5015

— for example,

https://172.20.22.122:5015

tType

https://[

System Director network pathname

]:5015

— for example,

https://AvidSysDir01:5015.

If any Web site certification warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are

not sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your administrator.

The Login dialog box for the Administration tool opens.

3. Type your password.

For information on changing the administrative password, see “Changing the

Administration Password” on page 176.

4. Click the Login button.

The Avid Unity ISIS Home page opens.

5. Do one of the following:

tClick Administration. You can also click the Administration icon.

tClick the Quick Launch menu and select Administration.

The Administration tool opens.

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

Logging Out of the Administration Tool

You can log out of the Administration tool at any time by using the Logout button in the

Tabs area.

To log out of the Administration tool:

tClick the Logout [user] button.

Accessing the Help System

You can get comprehensive task-oriented, background, and reference information through

the Administration tool Help.

To open the Help:

tClick the Help button.

The Help displays in a separate browser window.

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

The Administration tool, which you can run on the System Director or on any

Ethernet-attached client, has a user interface where controls are grouped by function and are

displayed by clicking the appropriate buttons.

Command

Main display area Details area

System

Details

area

Toolbar

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

The Administration tool is divided into the following areas:

• The Command menu, which contains the options used for basic management functions.

You can access different Command functions by clicking the tabs at the top of the

Administration tool.

• The System Details area, which summarizes information about the status of your

Avid Unity ISIS media network.

• The Main display area, which displays information about your network and allows you

to configure its components

• The Details area, which displays information about the system and allows you to modify

its components

nYou can hide the Details area by clicking the Close button.

Buttons accessible from the toolbar change depending on the active dialog box. For more

information on the Administration tool interface, see the following topics:

•“Command Menu” on page 27

•“System Options” on page 32

•“Sorting Information” on page 33

Command Menu

The Command menu opens dialog boxes in the Main display area that allow you to

configure your network and to perform a full range of administrative tasks from the

Administration tool, including the following:

• Creating workspaces and storage groups

• Adding, deleting, and modifying client accounts

• Setting access privileges

• Setting and monitoring bandwidth usage

• Displaying information about clients and system usage

• Performing other administrative tasks, such as logging or monitoring

In addition, some Command menu selections display action markers that flash to indicate

issues that require administrative attention, such as a change in storage element

performance.

Action

marker

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

The following table summarizes the color coding used by the action markers:

At the top of the Command menu are tabs for the support functions. These tabs list menu

options that allow you to access additional information about your system and to perform

certain administrative tasks, such as monitoring and logging. For more information on the

Support tabs, see “Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel” on page 161 and

“Advanced Support Tools” on page 175.

The Command menu selections are described in the following sections.

Storage Elements Option

Selecting the Storage Elements option opens the Storage Elements dialog box. This allows

you to manage the storage elements connected to your media network. You use the Storage

Elements dialog box to perform the following functions:

• Add storage elements to the media network

• Remove storage elements from the media network

For more information on the Storage Elements dialog box, see “Managing the Storage

Hardware” on page 35.

Chassis Option

Selecting the Chassis option opens the Chassis dialog box, which allows you to view basic

information about your storage element and switch blade hardware and to perform the

following functions:

• Display a list of all chassis connected to the media network

• Display information on the storage elements and switch blades in the chassis

• Upgrade all storage elements and switch blades in the chassis

Marker Color Description

White Indicates that no storage element has been bound to the Avid Unity ISIS file

system, or that there are no storage groups or workspaces created yet

Blue Indicates that an installation or software upgrade is in progress

Orange Indicates a failed software installation or upgrade, or a hardware error

Yellow Indicates a potential problem with an Avid Unity ISIS component. It also

indicates a redistribution is in progress. For more information, see the sections on

the appropriate Administration tool functions

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

• Upgrade individual storage elements and switch blades in the chassis

• Remove inactive chassis from the Chassis list

For more information on the Chassis dialog box, see “Managing the Storage Hardware” on

page 35.

Storage Groups Option

Selecting the Storage Groups option opens the Storage Groups dialog box. This allows you

to set up and administer storage groups. You use the Storage Groups dialog box to perform

the following functions:

• Display a list of storage groups

• Create, rename, and delete storage groups

• Add storage elements to storage groups

• Remove storage elements from storage groups

For more information on the Storage Groups dialog box, see “Configuring and Managing

Storage” on page 67.

Workspaces Option

Selecting the Workspaces option opens the Workspaces dialog box, which allows you to

view information about each workspace and to perform the following functions:

• Create a workspace

• Delete a workspace

• Rename a workspace

• Set the protection state for a workspace

• Set user access for a workspace

• Move a workspace to another storage group

• Resize a workspace

For more information on the Workspaces dialog box, see “Managing Workspaces” on page

81.

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

Users Option

Selecting the Users option opens the Users dialog box, which allows you to view

information about all user accounts and to administer use of the network. User management

tasks include the following:

• Display a list of users

• Create new user accounts and user passwords

• Assign user privileges and access

• Assign user bandwidth limits

• Delete user accounts

• Modify user accounts

For more information on the Users dialog box, see “Managing Client Accounts and Access

Privileges” on page 107.

User Groups Option

Selecting the User Groups option opens the User Groups dialog box, which allows you to

view information about all user group accounts and to administer use of the network. User

group management tasks include the following:

• Display a list of user groups

• Add and delete user groups

• Modify user group accounts

For more information on the User Groups dialog box, see “Managing Client Accounts and

Access Privileges” on page 107.

Devices Option

Selecting the Devices option opens the Devices dialog box, which allows you to view

information about all device accounts and to administer use of the network. Device

management tasks include the following:

• Display a list of devices

• Add and delete device accounts

• Modify device accounts

• Assign device bandwidth limits

For more information on the Devices dialog box, see “Managing Client Accounts and

Access Privileges” on page 107.

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

Bandwidth Option

Selecting the Bandwidth option opens the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box and provides

low-level, performance-monitoring functions. The Bandwidth option allows you to view the

following information:

• A list of the individual system components connected to the media network

• A description of the current Read and Write bandwidth usage for each component

• The system bandwidth reservation for both Read and Write operations

You can also use the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box to remove individual system

components from the network by revoking bandwidth reservation.

For more information on the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box, see “Monitoring Bandwidth

Usage and System Status” on page 131.

Connection Status Option

Selecting the Connection Status option opens the Connection Status dialog box and allows

you to view basic information about the components connected to the network. You can also

use the Connection Status dialog box to disconnect components from the network.

For more information on the Connection Status dialog box, see “Monitoring System

Connection Status” on page 134.

Preferences Option

Selecting the Preferences option opens the Preferences dialog box and allows you to set

bandwidth requirements and to enable the automatic creation of device accounts when

components are added to the media network.

For more information on the Preferences dialog box, see “Setting System Preferences” on

page 129.

Orphaned Elements Option

Selecting the Orphaned Elements option opens the Orphaned Elements dialog box and

allows you to remove storage elements that are bound to the ISIS file system but no longer

connected.

For more information on the Orphaned Elements dialog box, see “Removing Orphaned

Storage Elements” on page 53.

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

System Options

The System options are two buttons located in the Tabs area that allow you to do the

following:

• Logout: Clicking this button logs out the current user and closes the Administration

tool.

• Help: Clicking this button opens the Help, which provides procedures and reference

information for all features of the Administration tool.

Organizing Display Information

You can customize the Main display area for any Command menu option by moving and

hiding columns, and by sorting and filtering information.

For detailed descriptions of these procedures, see the following topics:

•“Moving and Rearranging Columns” on page 32

•“Showing and Hiding Columns” on page 32

•“Sorting Information” on page 33

•“Filtering the Display” on page 34

Moving and Rearranging Columns

To move a column in the Main display area:

1. With one of the options in the Command menu selected, click the heading of the column

that you want to move.

2. Drag the column to the position you want, and release the mouse button.

The column appears in the new position, and columns to the right are moved to make

room.

Showing and Hiding Columns

When you open a Command menu option (for example, the Storage Elements dialog box),

the Main display area lists items in default columns. Depending on the option selected, there

might be other headings available to view. You can select individual or multiple column

headings to be displayed or hidden.

Understanding the Administration Tool Interface

To show or hide column headings:

tWith one of the options in the Command menu selected, right-click in the column

heading row and select a heading you want to show or hide.

Displayed column headings are marked by a plus sign (+). You cannot hide the first

column on the left of the Main display area (usually the Name column).

Sorting Information

The Administration tool interface allows you to sort information listed in the Main display

area, both in the default panels (for example, the Storage Elements dialog box) or in the

Details area. Sorting the information in columns arranges items in either numerical or

alphabetical order. You can also perform a multilevel sort of the displayed information.

To sort information:

tWith one of the options in the Command menu selected, click the column heading for

the category of information you want to sort.

The information is sorted in ascending order. To reverse the sort order, click the column

heading again.

To perform a multilevel sort:

1. With one of the options in the Command menu selected, click the column heading for

the first category of information you want to sort.

The items in the column are sorted in ascending order.

Column

Heading

row

2 Configuring Your Avid Unity ISIS Software

2. Click a second column.

The items in the second column are sorted in ascending order. The items in the first

column maintain their sort order, but with a lower priority than the second sort.

3. (Option) Click multiple columns to add levels to the sort. To cancel a multilevel sort,

click a column heading that has already been sorted.

Filtering the Display

You can limit the items listed in the Main display area by setting Filter parameters. Filtering

the display allows you to focus on only those items that you want to monitor. You can restore

all items to the display by clearing the Filter parameters.

nYou cannot filter the display for the Bandwidth, Connection Status, and Preferences menu

options.

To filter the display:

1. Select one of the options in the Command menu.

2. In the Filter area, click the Category menu and select a category.

The Category menu lists all of the column headings available for the selected Command

menu option.

3. (Option) Select “not” to exclude the Filter parameters from the display.

4. Click the Parameter menu and select the constraining parameter you want to use.

5. In the Filter text box, type the characters you want to use to filter the display.

6. Click Filter.

The Main display area updates to display the filtered results. The Filter area displays the

number of filtered items displayed and the total number of items available for display.

To restore all items to the display:

tClick Clear.

The Main display area updates to display all items.

Category menu Parameter menu Filter text box Filter button Clear button

Number of filtered items

3Managing the Storage Hardware

This chapter describes how to configure and manage your storage hardware. You perform all

storage management operations from the Avid Unity ISIS System Administration tool,

which allows you to add, remove, configure, and manage your storage elements.

nFor an overview of the Administration tool and information about how to start the tool, see

“Using the Administration Tool” on page 23.

The Storage Elements dialog box of the Administration tool allows you to add and remove

storage elements, upgrade the storage element software, and monitor storage element

operation.

The Storage Elements dialog box contains two sections. On the left side of the dialog box

the Storage Elements list displays all the storage elements available to the current user. On

the right side of the dialog box, the Details area displays technical information about

selected storage elements.

nThe Details area is visible only after you select a storage element in the Storage Elements

list.

Details area

Storage Elements list

Storage element

icon

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

For more information, see the following topics:

•Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box

•Adding Storage to the Media Network

•Adding Storage Elements

•Rectifying Files

•Removing Storage Elements from the File System

•Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network

•Removing Orphaned Storage Elements

•Upgrading Storage Elements

•Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box

To access the Storage Elements dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens and displays the Storage Elements list.

Storage element icon

Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box

If you do not have any storage elements bound to the Avid Unity ISIS file system, a

yellow action marker flashes next to the Storage Elements list. For more information

about the Storage element list, see “Storage Element List” on page 37 and “Viewing

Storage Elements Descriptions” on page 38.

Storage Element List

The following table summarizes the basic information available when you first open the

Storage Elements list. Some columns are hidden by default (see “Showing and Hiding

Columns” on page 32 and “Storage Element Details” on page 39).

nYou can organize the information in the Storage Elements list by showing additional

columns or by sorting or filtering displayed items. For more information on modifying the

display, see “Organizing Display Information” on page 32.

Heading Description

Name Displays the system-created name of each storage element connected to the system

SB Name Displays the computer name of each storage element connected to the system

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the storage element’s status

Status Displays any change in the working status logged by the System Director (for a

description of status messages, see “Storage Element Status” on page 41)

Type Displays the storage element category of each storage element (see “Storage

Element Details” on page 39):

• Available

•Spare

•Active

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) in use by each storage

element

Crate Serial Displays the identification number of the unit that holds each storage element

Slot Number Displays the slot number of each storage element

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

A color-coded icon precedes the name of each storage element, providing an indication of

the status of the component. The following table describes the color coding system used by

the Administration tool.

Viewing Storage Elements Descriptions

The Details area displays all information for the currently selected storage element. The

information displayed is the information as seen by the System Director. Some of the

information is embedded in the storage element, and other information is assigned to the

storage element by the Avid Unity ISIS software.

nYou can view more detailed information on storage elements by using the Avid Unity ISIS

Agent tool. For more information, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208.

To view information about a storage element:

1. In the Storage Elements list, select a storage element.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage element name.

Icon Color Description

White Indicates the status of the storage element is Available (the storage element is not

linked to the ISIS file system)

Green Indicates the status of the storage element is either Spare (the storage element is not

allocated to a storage group) or Active (allocated to a storage group)

Yellow Indicates one of the following:

• a problem with the storage element

• the storage element experiences degraded performance due to a reboot during an

upgrade operation

Blue Indicates that an installation or software upgrade is in progress

Orange Indicates a storage element problem, including any of the following:

• a hardware error

• a failed software installation or upgrade

• a storage element disconnected due to a reboot during an upgrade operation

Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box

The Details area displays all the information for the selected storage element. For more

information, see “Storage Element Details” on page 39.

To hide the Details area:

tClick the arrow next to the storage element Details title bar.

To close the Details area:

tClick the Close button.

Storage Element Details

The following table summarizes the information available in the Details area.

Heading Status Description

Name Displays the system-created name of the selected

storage element

ISB Name Displays the computer name of the selected storage

element

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the

storage element’s status

Status For a description of status

messages, see “Storage

Element Status” on page 41.

Displays any change in the working status logged

by the System Director.

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Temperature Displays the last logged temperature of the storage

element

Type Displays the storage element category of the

selected storage element

Available Indicates storage elements that are not

appropriately initialized for use in a storage group;

these storage elements can be used for other

purposes in your environment

Spare Indicates storage elements that have been added to

the ISIS file system but are not allocated for a

specific purpose; spare but inactive storage

elements cannot be used until allocated to a storage

group

Active Indicates active storage elements added to a file

system and allocated to a storage group

Blade Type Lists the storage element model:

• i500

• i1000

Storage Group Displays the storage group, if any, to which the

storage element is allocated

Capacity Displays the storage capacity in gigabytes (GB) of

the selected storage element

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes

(GB) that currently has data written on it in the

selected storage element

Unused Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes

(GB) available for use in the selected storage

element

Chunk Size Displays the size of segmented media files sent

over the network

Heading Status Description (Continued)

Accessing the Storage Elements Dialog Box

Storage Element Status

The Status column in the Storage Elements list reports the status of the storage element

logged by the System Director. (The Status line in the Details area reports the same

information.) If the storage element maintains a working status, the Administration tool lists

no entries in the Status field. When a problem arises, or when the status of the storage

element changes, the Administration tool updates the Storage Elements dialog box.

Version Displays the software version number of each

storage element

Serial Number Displays the identification number of each storage

element

Offline Timeout nIndicates the amount of time (in seconds) a storage

element is offline before the System Director logs

an error message

Crate Serial Displays the identification number of the unit that

holds each storage element

Slot Number Displays the slot number of each storage element

IP Addresses Displays the IP addresses of the selected storage

element in a separate area. To hide this area, click

the arrow in the IP Addresses title bar.

Heading Status Description (Continued)

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

The following table summarizes the storage element status messages.

Category Status

Disk Status • Disk in test mode

• Metadata error

General Status • Rectifying files: the storage element is cleaning up deleted files and

verifying existing files

• No connection: the System Director cannot communicate with the

storage element; this could be due to a networking infrastructure issue

or storage element failure

• Repairing mirrors: the storage element is repairing mirrored blocks

with a single point of failure

• Disk failure: the storage element is unusable for data storage and must

be replaced

• Redistributing: data is being redistributed to storage elements in the

storage group

• Disk performance degraded: the storage element’s performance is

below the threshold for input/output functions and might impact the

performance of the system

• Network degraded: the IP interfaces on the storage element has failed

or the storage element experiences at least a 10% error rate (usually

due to lost packets), indicating a network communication problem

• Memory error: the memory test that runs when the storage element

starts or restarts reports an error; this status is persistent and indicates

that the storage element has failed and should be replaced

• Metadata error: the storage element experienced an error loading

metadata from the disk or writing new metadata to the disk (if

mirrored, the data on the mirrored storage element is still available

and no actual data loss occurs); this indicates that the storage element

should be replaced

• Disk in test: the storage element is in disk test mode

• Offline: the storage element has been taken offline, usually in

preparation for removal

Temperature status • Temperature above threshold: the temperature of the storage element

exceeds 60°C (140°F)

Adding Storage to the Media Network

The Administration tool checks the metadata integrity and updates all data related to the

storage elements connected to the network. Anytime you add or remove a storage element

from your system, you can update the information in the Storage Elements dialog box.

You do not need to turn off the System Director to add or remove storage elements.

cWhen adding storage elements to the Avid Unity ISIS engine (the chassis that holds the

physical components of your Avid Unity ISIS network), be sure to insert them

carefully. Do not force them into place, as damage to the disk drives might occur if they

sustain any physical shock. For information on adding storage elements to your

network, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide and the Avid Unity ISIS ReadMe.

To physically add new storage elements to your media network:

1. Add the new storage elements, installing new units as described in the Avid Unity ISIS

Setup Guide.

2. Start the System Director if it is not already running.

3. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

Upgrade Status • Install failed

• Installing Phase 0

• Installing Phase 1

• Installing Phase 2

• Installing Phase 3

• Install Waiting

Connection Status • No Connection

Category Status (Continued)

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

4. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

If the Administration tool is open when you add the storage elements, click the Refresh

button to view the newly added storage elements in the Storage Elements dialog box.

If the storage elements are not listed, something might be wrong with their physical

connections. Do not proceed any further, and see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

5. Add the new storage elements to a server (see “Adding Storage Elements” on page 44).

6. Add the new storage elements to a storage group (see “Adding Storage Elements to

Storage Groups” on page 75).

Adding Storage Elements

The storage group defines the storage elements that the network can use to store data. In

order to finish configuring your Avid Unity ISIS media network, you must add storage

elements to the ISIS file system (sometimes called “linking” or “binding” storage elements),

and then you must create a storage group from the available storage elements.

To add a storage element to the ISIS file system:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

Adding Storage Elements

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

3. Do one of the following:

tSelect the available storage element you want to add to a server. Ctrl+click to select

multiple available storage elements.

tClick the Select All button to select all storage elements.

tClick the Select All menu, and select one of the following options:

- Select All Available

- Select All Spare

- Select All Active

- [Select all in] chassis

4. Click the Add button.

The Storage Elements list refreshes and displays the storage element type as “Spare.”

For more information about storage groups, see “Managing the Storage Hardware” on

page 35.

Select All menuSelect All buttonAdd button

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Rectifying Files

Once you have added storage elements to your network and configured them for storage, the

storage elements — Avid Unity ISIS storage blades (ISB) — periodically check the status of

stored files, cleaning up deleted files and verifying existing files. This process, called

“rectifying files,” allows the ISBs to communicate with the System Director to monitor the

state of its storage and clean up any files that the ISB no longer needs to store. Rectifying

files occurs randomly and asynchronously during normal system operation to minimize any

potential decrease in system performance. The process is indicated for each affected ISB in

the Status column in the Storage Elements list.

Storage elements also rectify files when the ISB starts or restarts. When this happens — for

example, when an ISB loses connectivity to the network — data stored on the ISB might not

be in sync with the data in the file system itself. Also, if a client, such as the asset manager,

cannot communicate with the ISB, there might appear to be more data allocated to the ISB

than the file system has allocated. To correct this, you can manually send the storage element

a command to rectify its files.

You can also use the Issue Command button to clear all Network Degraded status messages

from the Storage Elements list. Network Degraded status indicates a high number of errors

detected by the ISB (see “Storage Element Status” on page 41). Correcting the problem

might not clear the status messages, so you can use the Issue Command button to clear the

messages and reset the error count.

cYou should correct the cause of the Network Degraded status messages before you

clear them from the Administration tool.

To rectify files:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

3. Do one of the following:

tSelect a storage element. Ctrl+click to select multiple storage elements.

tClick the Select All button to select all storage elements.

tClick the Select All menu, and select one of the following options:

- Select All Available

- Select All Spare

Rectifying Files

- Select All Active

- [Select all in] chassis

4. Click the Issue Command button.

The Issue Storage Element(s) Command dialog box opens.

5. Select Initiate Block Rectify, and then click Send.

The system rectifies files on the selected storage elements and changes the status in the

Storage elements list to Rectifying Files.

To clear all Network Degraded messages in the Storage Elements list:

tSelect Clear Network Degraded, and then click Send.

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Removing Storage Elements from the File System

When you remove storage elements from the Avid Unity ISIS file system, or when you

move storage elements from one system to another, you need to unlink the storage elements

from the file system.

nYou cannot remove a storage element that is part of a storage group. You must remove the

storage element from its storage group first so the system can redistribute data before

unlinking the storage element from the file system.

Avid strongly recommends that you wait until any redistribution process completes before

removing storage elements.

To remove a storage element from the ISIS file system:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

3. Select the storage group for the storage element you want to remove, and do one of the

following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage group name.

The Details area opens.

4. In the Storage Elements list, select the storage element you want to remove. If the

storage element status shows a redistribution in progress, you should wait until the

redistribution completes before removing the storage element from the file system.

5. Click the Remove button.

The storage element type changes from Active to Spare.

6. Click the Apply button.

The Storage Elements list refreshes and displays the storage element as Spare. The

media network performs a redistribution of any data on the storage element.

7. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network

8. Do one of the following:

tSelect the storage element you want to remove. Ctrl+click to select multiple storage

elements.

tClick the Select All button to select all storage elements.

tClick the Select All menu, and select one of the following options:

- Select All Available

- Select All Spare

- Select All Active

- [Select all in] chassis

9. Click the Remove button.

If you are using storage elements with mixed blade types, a dialog box opens and warns

you that using mixed blade types might not provide optimal performance for your

Avid Unity ISIS system.

10. Click Apply.

Removing Storage Elements from the Media

Network

You can remove and replace storage elements without stopping the System Director or

turning off other components of the network. There are two principal reasons for removing

storage elements from the system:

• The element has a high number of unrecoverable errors

• The element has failed or has been removed from the system

Before you remove an Avid Unity ISIS Storage Blade (ISB) from the network, you must

redistribute the data stored on the ISB to other ISBs in the system. The redistribution occurs

before you physically remove the ISB, and the process entails moving data to the remaining

drives within the storage group. Once you redistribute the data, you add a new ISB to the

system and then perform a redistribution again to place data onto the new ISB.

cIf you physically remove an ISB from the media network before redistribution is

complete, data loss can occur.

nYou should maintain an unused block of storage equivalent to one ISB within the storage

group to allow redistribution from a failing ISB to other ISBs within the group.

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

If possible, you should redistribute data while the drive is experiencing problems but has not

yet been removed from the system. This allows the ISB having problems to participate in the

redistribution process by offering data that it has to both clients and to other ISBs.

nOften the ISB is still functional, but its performance is slightly degraded — for example, the

ISB might have an unrecoverable error on one of its disks, or it might have long I/O times.

If the ISB fails, or if it has been removed from the system, you can perform a redistribution

from the mirrored locations associated with the ISB. However, if any other mirrored location

experiences a failure while performing a redistribution, the system can lose data.

Consider the following when planning a redistribution:

• A one-to-one replacement of ISBs might leave you with less storage space in the storage

group than you require. Instead, plan for using more ISBs than you need for storage and

bandwidth for each storage group. This way, you can keep an optimal amount of

available storage space allocated to the storage group. This allows you to quickly

perform redistribution, rather than attempting a redistribution with only one spare ISB.

• In general, the removal of an ISB is quicker than an addition. This is because all of the

other ISBs in a storage group participate in redistribution by moving a copy of any block

held by the element to another location. The more ISBs in the storage group, the more

the workload is shared. A single ISB addition is slower than a removal because the ISB

receiving the data acts as a limiting factor for the redistribution.

• When you add a new ISB to the Avid Unity ISIS file system and then add it to a storage

group, the system redistributes data from the existing drives in the storage group to the

new element. This redistribution maintains all previously stored data, but the data might

not reside on the same storage elements.

nIf you do not have a replacement for a failed or failing ISB, Avid recommends that you leave

it in the system. Proper airflow can be disturbed if an ISB slot is left open.

The following steps list the actions necessary for removing a storage element:

1. Identify the storage element you want to replace.

2. Remove the storage element from the storage group.

3. View the status of the redistribution and wait for redistribution to finish.

4. Remove the storage element from the file system.

5. Physically remove and replace the storage element.

6. Add new storage element to the file system.

7. Add the new storage element to a storage group.

Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network

For more information on the process of redistributing data and how redistribution affects

system performance, see “Redistribution Guidelines” on page 96.

nRedistributing while adding an ISB takes longer than redistributing while removing an ISB.

Identifying Storage Elements Prior to Removal

To identify the storage element to be removed and replaced:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

3. Locate the failing or failed storage element. For information on storage element status,

see “Viewing Storage Elements Descriptions” on page 38 and “Storage Element Status”

on page 41.

4. Select the storage element, and do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the name of the storage element.

The Details area opens.

The Details area lists the Crate Serial number and the Slot Number of the selected

storage element. This address identifies the ISB to be physically removed.

nThe slot numbers for storage element begin at zero (0).

IP addresses

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Removing Storage Elements

After you have identified the storage element you want to remove, you need to remove the

element from the storage group and monitor the redistribution of data.

cYou must finish the redistribution before you physically remove the storage element. If

you do not wait until the redistribution finishes, media network clients might receive

multiple errors.

To physically remove a storage element from your media network:

1. Remove the storage element from its storage group. For information on removing

storage elements, see “Removing Storage Elements from Storage Groups” on page 76.

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. Select the Workspace for the appropriate storage group.

4. Monitor the status listed in the Redistribution column. Click the Refresh button until the

redistribution finishes.

The Redistribution column displays no status message when the process is complete.

cDo not remove the storage element before the redistribution has completed.

5. Remove the storage element from the ISIS file system. For information on removing

storage elements, see “Removing Storage Elements from the File System” on page 48.

Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network

6. In the Storage Element list, select the storage element you want to remove and then click

the Issue Command button.

The Issue Storage Element(s) Command dialog box opens.

7. Select Take Offline, and then click Send.

The system spins down the drives in the selected storage element and changes the status

in the Storage Elements list to Offline.

8. Disconnect the storage element from the network, as described in the Avid Unity ISIS

Setup Guide.

Removing Orphaned Storage Elements

The Storage Element list might display storage elements associated with a media network

but with which the System Director cannot communicate. This can occur when you use the

System Director Control Panel to create a new active partition on a system that already

includes bound storage elements. In this case, the storage elements are “orphaned” — the

storage elements remain bound to the network, but they cannot communicate with it. To

correct the problem, you need to first remove all storage elements previously linked to the

ISIS file system, and then add them again to the new system.

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

The System Director also might not be able to communicate with storage elements that are

bound to the ISIS file system if the System Director is offline. In this case, do not remove the

orphaned storage elements; instead, you should restart the System Director.

cRemoving storage elements causes all data stored on them to be erased. Do not remove

disconnected storage elements unless you are certain they contain no data you want to

save.

For information on removing orphaned storage elements, see the following topics:

•“Accessing the Orphaned Elements Dialog Box” on page 54

•“Removing Orphaned Storage Elements” on page 55

Accessing the Orphaned Elements Dialog Box

The Orphaned Elements dialog box of the Administration tool allows you to add and remove

storage elements, upgrade the storage element software, and monitor storage element

operation.

To open the Orphaned Elements dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Select Orphaned Elements from the list on the left.

The Orphaned Elements dialog box opens. For more information on the Orphaned

Elements dialog box, see “Orphaned Elements List” on page 55.

Orphaned Elements list

Removing Storage Elements from the Media Network

Orphaned Elements List

The following table summarizes the basic information available in the Orphaned Elements

list.

Removing Orphaned Storage Elements

To remove orphaned storage elements, you must force-remove them from the system.

cRemoving storage elements causes all data stored on them to be erased. Do not remove

disconnected storage elements unless you are certain they contain no data you want to

save.

To remove orphaned storage elements:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Select Orphaned Elements from the list on the left.

Heading Description

Name Displays the name of each storage element connected to the system

Status Displays any change in the working status logged by the System Director (for a

description of status messages, see “Storage Element Status” on page 41)

Type Displays the storage element category of each storage element:

• Available

•Spare

•Active

Capacity Displays the storage capacity in gigabytes (GB) of each storage element

Chunk size Displays the size of segmented media files sent over the network

Version Displays the software version number of each storage element

Crate Serial Displays the identification number of the unit that holds each storage element

Slot Number Displays the slot number of each storage element

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

The Orphaned Elements dialog box opens.

3. Do one of the following:

tSelect the storage element you want to remove. Ctrl+click to select multiple storage

elements.

tClick the Select All button to select all storage elements.

tClick the Select All menu, and select one of the following options:

- Select All Available

- Select All Spare

- Select All Active

- [Select all in] chassis

4. Click the Force Remove button.

A message warns you that removing storage elements erases all data on the component.

5. Click Yes.

The Force Removal Text Confirmation dialog box opens.

6. Type

Remove

in the text box, and then click Remove.

The storage element is unbound from the ISIS file system and removed from the

Orphaned Elements list.

Select All menuSelect All button

Upgrading Storage Elements

You can use the Storage Elements dialog box to upgrade the software for storage elements

installed in a chassis and connected to the media network.

nYou can also use the Chassis dialog box to upgrade storage elements. For more information,

see “Upgrading Chassis Components” on page 63.

To upgrade a storage element:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

3. Select the storage element you want to upgrade.

4. Click the Upgrade button.

The Upgrade Storage Elements dialog box opens.

Upgrade installer

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

5. Select the upgrade installer from the list in the right column.

The Command text box displays the location of the upgrade installer.

6. Click the Upgrade button.

The Administration tool installs the necessary upgrade for the selected storage element.

You can monitor the progress of the upgrade either in the Details area of the Storage

Elements dialog box or in the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool.

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

The Chassis dialog box of the Administration tool allows you to view details and to monitor

the status of all chassis connected to the media network, as well as upgrade any Avid Unity

ISIS storage blade (ISB), any Avid Unity ISIS Integrated switch (ISS), or any Avid Unity

ISIS Expansion Integrated switch (IXS).

The Chassis dialog box contains two sections. On the left side of the dialog box, the Chassis

list displays all the chassis connected to the media network. On the right side of the dialog

box, the Details area displays technical information about selected chassis, including details

on the chassis switch and storage element (ISB) components.

nThe Details area is visible only after you select a chassis in the Chassis list.

Chassis Details areaChassis area

Chassis

list

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

Accessing the Chassis Dialog Box

You can organize the information in the Chassis list by showing additional columns or by

sorting or filtering displayed items. For more information on modifying the display, see

“Organizing Display Information” on page 32.

To access the Chassis dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Chassis from the list on the left.

The Chassis dialog box opens.

Chassis List

The following table summarizes the basic information available in the Chassis list.

Heading Description

Serial Number Lists the serial number of the chassis

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the status of the chassis

Storage Blade Status Displays changes in the working status of ISB components due to upgrade

installation or failure

Switch Blade Status Displays changes in the working status of ISS and IXS modules due to

upgrade installation or failure

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Viewing Chassis Descriptions

The Details area displays all information for the currently selected chassis. The area is

divided into three sections:

• Chassis Details — displays information also available in the Chassis list

• Switches — lists basic configuration and status information of all ISS and IXS modules

connected to the media network

• Storage Elements — displays information also available in the Storage Elements list

The information displayed is the information as seen by the System Director. Some of the

information is embedded in the chassis, and other information is assigned to the chassis by

the Avid Unity ISIS software.

You can sort the information in the Switches and Storage Elements sections of the Details

area by clicking any column heading. For more information on sorting items in columns, see

“Sorting Information” on page 33.

nYou can view more detailed information on chassis components by using the Avid Unity ISIS

Agent tool. For more information, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208.

To view information about a chassis:

1. In the Chassis list, select a chassis.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the chassis name.

Available Lists the number of available storage elements in each chassis

Spare Lists the number of spare storage elements in each chassis

Active Lists the number of active storage elements in each chassis

Storage Blades Lists the number of ISB components installed in each chassis

Switch Blades Lists the number of ISS and IXS modules for each chassis

Power Blades Lists the number of power supply units for each chassis

Heading Description (Continued)

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

The Details area displays all the information for the selected chassis. For information on

the Details area, see “Chassis Details” on page 61

To hide the Details area:

tClick the arrow next to the Details title bar.

To close the Details area:

tClick the Close button.

Chassis Details

The following table summarizes the information available in the Details area.

Section Heading Description

Chassis Details

Serial Number Lists the serial number of the chassis

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the status

of the chassis

Storage Blade Status Displays changes in the working status of ISB

components due to upgrade installation or failure

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Switch Blade Status Displays changes in the working status of switches due

to upgrade installation or failure

Storage Blades Lists the number of ISB components installed in each

chassis

Available Lists the number of available storage elements in each

chassis

Spare Lists the number of spare storage elements in each

chassis

Active Lists the number of active storage elements in each

chassis

Switch Blades Lists the number of switches for each chassis

Power Blades Lists the number of power blades for each chassis

Switches

In band IP Displays the internal IP addresses assigned to the CPU

on the switch

Status Displays changes in the working status of the switch

Version Displays the software version number of each switch

Type Identifies the switch as one of the following:

• Integrated (ISS)

• Expansion (IXS)

Temp Lists the last logged temperature of the switch

Stack Master Indicates if an ISS or an IXS module is used as a master

switch in the stack

Stack Master IP Displays the IP addresses of the stack master, if

applicable

Base IP Displays the base IP addresses of the switch, which are

assigned during system configuration (for more

information on IP addresses, see the Avid Unity ISIS

Setup Guide)

Out of band IP Displays the IP addresses for the management port on the

switch

Section Heading Description (Continued)

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

Upgrading Chassis Components

You can use the Chassis dialog box to upgrade the software for all storage elements and all

switch blades installed in a chassis and connected to the media network. You can also

upgrade individual storage elements and switches.

nYou might lose network connectivity temporarily when you upgrade switch blades while the

upgrade process reboots the switches.

To upgrade all storage elements and switches in a chassis:

1. In the Chassis list, select the chassis you want to upgrade.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick the Upgrade Storage Blades button.

tClick the Upgrade Switch Blades button.

Storage Elements

Name Displays the name of each storage element connected to

the system

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the storage

element’s status

Status Displays any change in the working status logged by the

System Director (for a description of status messages,

see “Storage Element Status” on page 41)

Type Displays the storage element category of each storage

element:

• Available

•Spare

•Active

Version Displays the software version number of each storage

element

Slot Number Displays the slot number of each storage element

Section Heading Description (Continued)

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

The Upgrade Storage Blades dialog box or the Upgrade Switch Blades dialog box

opens.

3. Select the upgrade installer from the list in the right column.

The Command text box displays the location of the upgrade installer.

4. Click the Upgrade button.

The Administration tool installs the necessary upgrades for all storage elements or for

all switch blades for the selected chassis. You can monitor the progress of the upgrade

either in the Details area of the Chassis dialog box or in the Avid Unity ISIS System

Monitor tool.

Upgrading Individual Chassis Components

You can upgrade individual storage elements and switch blades in the Chassis dialog box.

You can also upgrade storage elements by using the Storage Elements dialog box. For more

information on storage element upgrades, see “Upgrading Storage Elements” on page 57.

Upgrade installer

Managing the Avid Unity ISIS Chassis

To upgrade individual storage elements and switches in a chassis:

1. In the Details area of the Chassis dialog box, do one of the following:

tSelect the switch you want to upgrade.

tSelect the storage element you want to upgrade.

2. Click Upgrade.

The Upgrade Storage Blades dialog box or the Upgrade Switches dialog box opens.

3. Select the upgrade installer from the list in the right column.

The Command text box displays the location of the upgrade installer.

4. Click the Upgrade button.

The Administration tool installs the necessary upgrade for the selected storage element

or switch blade. You can monitor the progress of the upgrade either in the Details area of

the Storage Elements dialog box or in the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool.

Upgrade installer

3 Managing the Storage Hardware

Removing Chassis from the Chassis List

If you need to replace a chassis, you can use the Administration tool to remove the

connection history of the inactive or inoperative chassis from the Chassis list in the Chassis

dialog box. Once the chassis is removed from the ISIS file system, you can physically

remove it from the network.

For information on removing chassis from the network, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

To remove a chassis from the Chassis list:

1. In the Chassis list, select the chassis you want to remove.

2. Click the Remove Status button.

The chassis is removed from the Chassis list.

nIf you remove an active chassis by mistake, the System Director restores the chassis to the

Chassis list the next time it polls the media network (usually within 20 seconds).

Adding and Removing Storage Elements in the Chassis List

You can add and remove (bind and unbind) available or spare storage elements from the ISIS

file system by using Chassis list in the Chassis dialog box. Adding and removing storage

elements in the Chassis list functions the same way as selecting the “Select All Available”

and “Select All Spare” options when adding or removing storage elements in the Storage

Element list. For more information on adding and removing storage elements, see “Adding

Storage Elements” on page 44 and “Removing Storage Elements from the File System” on

page 48.

For information on removing chassis from the network, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

To add or remove storage elements by using the Chassis list:

1. In the Chassis list, select the chassis with the storage elements you want to add or

remove. You can only add or remove storage elements listed in the Available or Spare

columns in the Chassis list.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick the Add button to bind storage elements to the file system.

tClick the Remove button to unbind storage elements from the file system

4Configuring and Managing Storage

This chapter describes the Storage Groups dialog box of the Administration tool and the

basic administrative operations you can perform from the dialog box.

nFor detailed descriptions of how to use the Administration tool to manage your drive

hardware, see “Managing the Storage Hardware” on page 35.

You use the Storage Groups dialog box of the Administration tool to add and delete storage

groups, to rename storage groups, and to configure and manage storage groups.

The Storage Groups dialog box contains three sections. On the left side of the dialog box,

the Storage Groups list displays all the storage groups available to the current user. On the

right side of the dialog box, the Details area displays technical information about selected

storage groups, and the Storage Elements area displays all storage elements available to the

current user.

nThe Details area and the Storage Elements area are visible only after you select a storage

group in the Storage Groups list.

Details area

Storage

Elements

area

Storage Groups list

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

When you add storage groups, a separate window opens in the Storage Group dialog box.

For information on adding storage groups, see “Creating Storage Groups” on page 73.

For more information on using the Storage Groups dialog box, see the following topic:

•Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box

•Storage Group List

•Storage Group Details

Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box

To access the Storage Groups dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

If you have not yet created any storage groups, a white action marker flashes next to the

Storage Groups list.

Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box

Storage Group List

The following table summarizes the information available in the Storage Groups list.

You can sort the information in the Storage Groups dialog box by clicking any column

heading. For more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on

page 33.

Viewing Storage Group Details

The Details area and the Storage Elements area display all information for the currently

selected storage group and all information for the available storage elements. The

information displayed is the information as seen by the System Director. Some of the

information is embedded in the storage element, and other information is assigned to the

storage element by the Avid Unity ISIS software.

nYou can sort the information in the Storage Elements area by clicking any column heading.

For more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

Heading Description

Name Displays the name of the currently selected storage group

Capacity Displays the storage capacity in gigabytes (GB) of the selected storage group

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has data

written on it in the selected storage group

Allocated Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) reserved for use by

workspaces in the selected storage group

Unallocated Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) available on the storage

elements and not currently reserved for the selected storage group

Files Displays the number of files in the selected storage group

Directories Displays the number of directories in the selected storage group

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

To view information about a storage group:

tIn the Storage Groups list, select a storage group.

The Storage Groups dialog box displays all the information for the selected storage

group. If the Details area is not visible, click the Details button.

To hide the Details area or the Storage Elements area:

tClick the arrow next to the Details title bar or the Storage Elements title bar.

To close the Details area:

tClick the Close button.

Storage Group Details

The following table summarizes the information available in the details panels for storage

groups and storage elements.

Heading Description

Name Displays the name of the currently selected storage group

Blade Type Lists the storage element model for the storage group:

•i500

• i1000

• [blank if mixed blade type]

Capacity Displays the storage capacity in gigabytes (GB) of the selected storage group

Accessing the Storage Groups Dialog Box

The Storage Elements area lists the storage elements allocated to the currently selected

storage group, as well as the storage elements available for allocation to the storage group.

The following table summarizes the information available in the Storage Elements area.

Some columns are hidden by default (see “Showing and Hiding Columns” on page 32).

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has data

written on it in the selected storage group

Unused Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has no data

written on it in the selected storage group

Allocated Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) reserved for use by

workspaces in the selected storage group

Unallocated Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) available on the storage

elements and not currently reserved fo2r the selected storage group

Files Displays the number of files in the selected storage group

Directories Displays the number of directories in the selected storage group

Heading Description (Continued)

Heading Status Description

Name Displays the name of the selected storage element

Status Time Lists the last time the System Director logged the storage element’s

status

Status Displays the working status logged by the System Director

Type Displays the storage element category of the selected storage element

Available Indicates storage elements that are not appropriately initialized for use

in a storage group; these storage elements can be used for other

purposes in your environment

Spare Indicates storage elements that have been added to the Avid Unity

ISIS file system but are not allocated for a specific purpose; spare but

inactive storage elements cannot be used until allocated to a storage

group

Active Indicates active storage elements added to a server and allocated to a

storage group

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

Managing Storage Groups

Storage groups are partitions, each containing multiple assigned storage elements. This

section describes how to create and manage storage groups in your network.

For more information on managing storage groups, see the following topics:

•“Storage Group Usage Guidelines” on page 72

•“Creating Storage Groups” on page 73

•“Adding Storage Elements to Storage Groups” on page 75

•“Removing Storage Elements from Storage Groups” on page 76

•“Adding Storage Elements from Another Storage Group” on page 78

•“Adding Storage Elements Previously Used with Another Network” on page 79

•“Deleting Storage Groups” on page 80

Storage Group Usage Guidelines

You can assign all of your storage elements to one large storage group, or you can divide

your storage elements among multiple storage groups. (Storage elements can be assigned to

only one storage group.) To optimize performance, you can use storage groups to configure

your Avid Unity ISIS file system.

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently

has data written on it in the selected storage element

Crate Serial Displays the identification number of the unit that holds each storage

element

Slot Number Displays the slot number of each storage element

Heading Status Description (Continued)

Managing Storage Groups

Avid recommends that you use all storage elements in an Avid ISIS Engine when creating a

storage group, and you size larger storage groups in increments of whole ISIS engines.

While storage groups can be created with a partial ISIS engine, performance and sizing

scalability cannot be guaranteed.

nYou can divide very large storage groups (over 60 storage elements) into several storage

groups to minimize the risk of two storage elements used in a protected workspace failing at

the same time. When you assign storage elements to different storage groups, however, you

must be careful how you allocate bandwidth reservations for the different groups as the

available bandwidth allocations for individual storage groups might differ from the total

system bandwidth, depending on the number of storage elements assigned to each group.

If your environment supports clients with very high bandwidth requirements, you need to set

up specific hardware and storage group configurations to support them. For more

information, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

In such an environment, you can use storage groups to isolate clients that need very high

bandwidth and thus eliminate the competition from other clients trying to access the same

storage elements. For example, when high-definition (HD) media is in its own storage group

and a single client is using the HD media, that client is serviced independently from any

other clients in the workgroup. This logic can also be applied to separating audio and video

media.

In other situations, storage groups are more flexible, allowing you to assign storage elements

in your file system configuration to storage groups with few limitations.

nYou must use a minimum of one storage element per storage group.

Creating Storage Groups

A storage group is a set of physical storage elements that store a subset of the complete set

of media files accessible within a shared storage environment and which can accommodate

different storage element types, as well as clients with different privileges and media

requirements (for instance, clients that use low-resolution media and ones that use

high-resolution media).

nIf you have bound storage elements to the ISIS file system but you have not created any

storage groups, the Create Storage Groups dialog box opens by default when you select the

Storage Groups list.

To create a new storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

3. Click the New button.

The Create Storage Group dialog box opens.

4. In the Name text box, type a name for the storage group (a maximum of 32 characters).

The following characters are illegal in storage group names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |.

If there is already a storage group with the name entered in the Name text box, an error

message tells you to type a new name.

5. In the Storage Elements area, select the storage element you want to assign to the new

storage group. Ctrl+click to select multiple storage elements.

6. Click the Add button.

The storage elements are allocated to the storage group. You can use the Remove button

to remove storage elements from the storage group.

7. (Option) Before you create your storage group, you can use the Revert button to undo

any modifications made to the storage group information.

Storage Elements area

Apply button Revert button

Managing Storage Groups

8. Click the Apply button to create a new storage group containing all the selected storage

elements.

The new storage group appears in the Storage Groups list, and the Create Storage Group

dialog box refreshes to show the storage elements still available for additional storage

groups.

9. (Option) Repeat steps 5 through 9 to create new storage groups.

10. Click the Close button to close the Create Storage Group dialog box and to return to the

Storage Groups dialog box.

Adding Storage Elements to Storage Groups

You can add unassigned storage elements to a storage group at any time to increase its

storage capacity.

To add storage elements to a storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

3. In the Storage Groups list, select the storage group where you want to add storage

elements, and then do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage group name.

The Details area displays all the information on the selected storage group.

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

4. In the Storage Elements area, select all the spare storage elements you want to add to the

storage group.

5. Click the Add button to add the selected spare storage elements to the storage group.

The Storage Elements area refreshes to display the selected storage elements added to

the storage group.

6. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the storage group information.

7. Click the Apply button.

The storage elements are added to the storage group, and the media network performs a

redistribution of any data on the storage elements. The amount of time required for the

redistribution depends on the amount of data in the storage group.

Removing Storage Elements from Storage Groups

You can remove storage elements from your storage group, as long as the following

conditions are met after you have done so:

• The storage group contains at least four storage elements.

• The storage group contains enough storage elements to support the space allocated to

your workspaces.

nThis is the total amount of storage allocated to the workspaces, not the actual amount of

data stored on the workspaces.

• The storage group contains at least the number of storage elements currently required to

store the file system’s data.

Storage elements removed from the storage group are returned to the system’s pool of spare

storage elements.

To remove storage elements from a storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

3. In the Storage Groups list, select the storage group from which you want to remove

storage elements, and then do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage group name.

Managing Storage Groups

The Details area displays all the information on the selected storage group.

4. In the Storage Elements area, select all the grouped storage elements you want to

remove from the storage group.

5. Click the Remove button.

The Storage Elements area refreshes and displays the selected storage elements as

Spare. If you try to remove too many storage elements so that the capacity of the storage

group falls below either the used space or the allocated space, a dialog box opens asking

you to confirm the action.

6. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the storage group information.

7. Click the Apply button.

The selected storage elements are removed from the storage group, and the media

network performs a redistribution of any data on the storage elements. The amount of

time required for the redistribution depends on the amount of data in the storage group.

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

Adding Storage Elements from Another Storage Group

If you want to reassign storage elements from one storage group to another, you must

remove the storage elements before adding them to a new storage group.

To add storage elements previously used in another storage group to your current

storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

3. In the Storage Groups list, select the storage group which contains the storage elements

you want to reassign, and then do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage group name.

The Details area displays all the information on the selected storage group.

4. In the Storage Elements area, select all the storage elements you want to move to

another storage group.

5. Click the Remove button.

The Storage Elements area refreshes to display the selected storage elements as Spare.

6. Click the Apply button.

The selected storage elements are removed from the storage group, and the media

network performs a redistribution of any data on the storage elements.

Managing Storage Groups

7. In the Storage Groups list, click the storage group to which you want to add the storage

elements.

The Details area displays all the information on the selected storage group.

8. In the Storage Elements area, select all the spare storage elements you want to add to the

new storage group.

9. Click the Add button to add the selected storage elements to the storage group.

The Storage Elements area refreshes to display the selected storage elements added to

the new storage group.

10. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the storage group information.

11. Click the Apply button.

The selected storage elements are added to the storage group, and the media network

performs a redistribution of any data on the storage elements. The amount of time

required for the redistribution depends on the amount of data in the storage group.

Adding Storage Elements Previously Used with Another Network

If the storage elements you want to add to your storage group were used previously in

another environment, you must first connect them to your Avid Unity ISIS media network,

and then you must add them to the ISIS file system. For information on adding storage

elements to the network, see “Adding Storage to the Media Network” on page 43.

To add the storage elements to your current storage group:

1. Make sure the new storage elements are connected to the network. For information on

connecting storage elements, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

2. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

3. Select Storage Elements from the list on the left.

The Storage Elements dialog box opens.

If the Administration tool is open when you add the storage elements, click the Refresh

button to view the newly added storage elements in the Storage Elements dialog box.

If the storage elements are not listed, something might be wrong with their physical

connections. Do not proceed any further, and see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

4. Add the new storage elements to the ISIS file system (see “Adding Storage Elements”

on page 44).

5. Add the new storage elements to your storage group (see “Adding Storage Elements to

Storage Groups” on page 75).

4 Configuring and Managing Storage

6. Click the Apply button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm the action.

7. Click Yes.

The selected storage elements are added to the storage group.

Deleting Storage Groups

You can delete any storage group that does not have any workspaces on it. As a result, all

storage elements previously assigned to the storage group return to the system’s pool of

spare storage elements.

To delete a storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. If any workspaces exist on the storage group you want to delete, first delete the

workspace (see “Deleting Workspaces” on page 106).

3. Select Storage Groups from the list on the left.

The Storage Groups dialog box opens.

4. In the Storage Groups list, select the storage group you want to delete.

5. Click the Delete button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm the action.

6. Click Yes.

The storage group is deleted.

After the storage group is deleted, all of the storage elements previously in your storage

group will appear in the Storage Elements area as Spare.

5Managing Workspaces

Workspaces are virtual volumes that exist on storage groups and can be resized dynamically.

Workspaces allow you to segment your storage elements easily to accommodate projects and

users.

This section describes how to create, rename, and delete workspaces. It also tells you how to

manipulate the amount of storage allocated to each workspace, how to move a workspace

and its contents to another storage group, and how to protect a workspace against drive

failure.

For more information, see the following topics:

•Allocating Workspaces

•Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box

•Creating New Workspaces

•Duplicating Workspaces

•Adjusting Workspace Size

•Renaming Workspaces

•Protecting Workspaces

•Redistributing Data

•Moving Workspaces

•Managing Workspace Access Privileges

•Deleting Workspaces

Allocating Workspaces

Before you create workspaces, you should consider how you want to allocate them. For

example, do you want to allocate them to accommodate projects, groups, individual clients,

streaming bit rates, media types, media distributors, or a combination of these?

Once you create a plan to allocate workspaces, you’ll need to determine how much storage

each workspace requires and allocate space accordingly. This might be a function of project

size or the number of clients, or it might be a function of media duration or media resolution.

5 Managing Workspaces

For instance, if you plan to capture high-definition (HD) media to a workspace, you need to

create a workspace with more than two storage elements. (Assigning a full chassis of storage

elements to an HD workspace would perform better in this example.)

When sizing workspaces in a multiple workspace configuration, you should consider

reserving some space rather than assigning all of it immediately. Once space is allocated, it

tends to be filled quickly and you might need space later to accommodate a new project or

client or to extend or protect an existing workspace. In these situations, it is easier to use

space held in reserve than to take it away from an existing workspace.

When allocating and sizing workspaces, you should also consider whether access

restrictions are required and whether protection for data integrity is necessary for each

workspace.

Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box

You perform workspace functions in the Workspaces dialog box of the Administration tool,

which allows you to do the following:

• Create, delete, and rename workspaces

• Manipulate the amount of storage allocated to each workspace

• Protect a workspace against drive failure by duplicating files on more than one drive (a

form of mirroring)

• Monitor how much free space exists on each workspace, and how much unallocated

space exists in each storage group

• Move a workspace and its contents to another storage group

To open the Workspaces dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box

The Workspaces dialog box opens. If you have not yet created any workspaces, a white

action marker flashes next to the Workspaces list.

For more information on the Workspaces list, see the following topics:

-The Workspaces List

-Using the Graphical Display

-Workspaces Descriptions

The Workspaces List

The Workspaces list displays all workspaces, the storage groups on which they reside, and

details about each workspace. Workspace names are preceded by an icon identifying

protected and unprotected workspaces.

Workspace

list

Icon Description

Protected workspace

Unprotected workspace

5 Managing Workspaces

The following table describes the information in the Workspaces list.

nYou can sort the information in the Workspaces list by clicking any column heading. For

more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

Heading Description

Name Lists the names of all workspaces in the selected storage groups

Capacity Lists the total storage capacity of each workspace in gigabytes (GB)

Workspace Size

graph

Displays a graphical representation of the used and available space for each

workspace (for information on using the Workspace Size graph, see “Using the

Graphical Display” on page 85)

Maximum Lists the maximum amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) available for the

workspace on the network

Used Lists the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has data

written on it in each workspace

Unused Lists the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has no data

written on it in each workspace

Protected Lists the amount of storage space assigned to each workspace for mirrored files

Redistribution Displays the status of any current redistribution:

• In Progress

• Stalled

• Pending

• Requires Full Redistribution

Config Changes Displays the number of changes to a storage group that involve moving data —

for example, the number of times an ISB has been added or removed

Storage Group For each workspace, lists the storage group on which it is located

Files Lists the total number of files stored on the network for each workspace

Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box

Using the Graphical Display

The Workspaces Size graph provides a quick way to view how much storage capacity is

currently allocated to each workspace and how much of that storage space currently has data

written on it. The graph represents the following:

• Used space: total drive space in the storage group allocated to each workspace

• Unused space: total drive space in the storage group still available for allocation to each

workspace

You can resize the graph to expand or reduce the size of the graph.

To resize the Workspaces Size graph, do one of the following:

tClick the Decrease Size button to reduce the size of the graph.

tClick the Increase Size button to expand the size of the graph.

You can also use the Workspaces Size graph to adjust the size of the workspaces by

dragging the resize handles. For information on resizing workspaces, see ‘“Adjusting

Workspace Size” on page 91.

Used space Unused space

Workspace Size graph

5 Managing Workspaces

Viewing Workspace Details

The Workspaces dialog box displays all the information for the selected workspace.

To view information about a workspace:

tIn the Workspaces list, select a workspace.

The Workspaces dialog box displays all the information for the selected workspace. If

the Details area is not visible, click the Details button.

Workspaces Descriptions

The Details area and the User Access panels display all information for the currently

selected workspace. The following table summarizes the information available in the Details

area.

Heading Description

Name Displays the name of the currently selected workspace

Storage Group Lists the storage group on which the selected workspace was created

Capacity Displays the storage capacity in gigabytes (GB) of the selected

workspace; the minimum and maximum limits for workspace size is

listed next to the Size text box

Used Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has

data written on it in the selected workspace

Accessing the Workspaces Dialog Box

The User Access area lists all users and user groups and their access privileges. (For

information on access privileges, see “Managing Workspace Access Privileges” on page

103.) The following table summarizes the information available in the User Access area.

nYou can sort the information in the User Access area by clicking any column heading. For

more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

Unused Displays the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that currently has

no data written on it and is available to the selected workspace

Protected Lists the amount of storage space in gigabytes (GB) that is protected for

the selected workspace

Files Displays the number of files used by the selected workspace

Directories Displays the number of directories used by the selected workspace

Redistribution Displays the status of any current redistribution:

• In Progress

• Stalled

• Pending

• Requires Full Redistribution

Config Changes Displays the number of changes to a storage group that involve moving

data — for example, the number of times an ISB has been added or

removed

Protection Indicates if protection for the workspace is enabled (selected) or disabled

(not selected)

Heading Description (Continued)

Heading Description

Name Lists the names of the users and user groups on the network

Type Displays the client category (user or user group) for each client in the Name list

Access Lists the access privileges for each client in the Name list

Effective Lists the effective access privileges for each client in the Name list

Reason Lists the reason for any difference between the access privileges assigned to a user and

the effective access assigned to a user as a member of a user group

5 Managing Workspaces

Creating New Workspaces

Workspaces are locations to store and segregate data. You can allow users to access some or

all of the workspaces, and you can assign permissions for how each user can access the data

in a workspace.

nIf you have created storage groups but you have not created any workspaces, the Create

Workspace dialog box opens by default when you select the Workspaces list.

To create a new workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

3. Click the New button.

The Create Workspace dialog box opens.

4. In the Name text box, type a name for the workspace (a maximum of 31 characters). The

following characters are illegal in workspace names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |. Also,

you cannot use a period (.) as either the first or the last character in a workspace name.

Creating New Workspaces

If there is already a workspace with the name entered in the Name text box, an error

message tells you to type a new name.

5. Click the Storage Group menu, and select the storage group on which you want to create

the workspace.

The storage group name appears in the Storage Group text box.

6. Click the Sub Group menu, and select the substorage group on which you want to create

the workspace.

The substorage group name appears in the Sub Group text box.

7. Type a size for the workspace in the Capacity text box. The minimum size and the

maximum size allowed are listed next to the Capacity text box.

If all storage in the storage group is allocated to existing workspaces, you can make an

existing workspace smaller. For information on resizing workspaces, see “Adjusting

Workspace Size” on page 91.

8. (Option) Select Protection: enabled to protect the workspace. (For more information on

workspace protection, see “Protecting Workspaces” on page 94.)

9. In the User Access area, set the User and User Group access privileges. (For information

on setting access privileges, see “Changing Access Privileges” on page 128.)

10. Click the Apply button to create a new workspace containing the selected storage group

and users.

The new workspace appears in the Workspace dialog box, and the Create Workspace

dialog box refreshes to allow you to create a new workspace.

11. (Option) Repeat steps 5 through 10 to create new workspaces.

12. Click the Close button to close the Create Workspace dialog box and to return to the

Workspaces dialog box.

The new workspace appears in the Workspaces list.

n(Macintosh only) If you access the Administration tool from a Macintosh system and create

a workspace, the Macintosh operating system creates hidden files in the

/volume/[workspace name] directory of your system. If you want to delete the workspace,

you must first manually delete these files.

5 Managing Workspaces

Duplicating Workspaces

When you duplicate workspaces, they inherit the attributes (storage group, capacity, and

protection status) of the workspace from which they were created.

nThe contents of the original workspace are not duplicated.

To duplicate a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

3. In the Workspace list, select the workspace you want to duplicate.

4. Click the Duplicate button.

The Duplicate Workspace dialog box opens.

Adjusting Workspace Size

5. (Option) Modify any of the attributes of the new workspace. For information on

modifying workspaces, see the following topics:

-“Adjusting Workspace Size” on page 91

-“Renaming Workspaces” on page 92

-“Protecting Workspaces” on page 94

-“Managing Workspace Access Privileges” on page 103

6. Click the Apply button to create a new workspace containing the attributes of the

selected workspace.

The duplicate workspace appears in the Workspace dialog box, and the Duplicate

Workspace dialog box refreshes to allow you to duplicate a new workspace. The new

workspace has a default name — workspace n, where n is an integer that is incremented

each time you click the Apply button to create another duplicate workspace.

If there is no room for a workspace of the same size as the original, the operation fails

and displays a “Not enough unallocated space on the partition” error message.

7. Click the Close button to close the Duplicate Workspace dialog box and to return to the

Workspaces dialog box.

Adjusting Workspace Size

There are occasions when you must change the size of workspaces. For example, you might

need to make a workspace larger to create room for a capture procedure planned for later in

the day or for some new media files. Alternatively, you might need to make a workspace

smaller to create space for other workspaces or to reserve storage for another day.

nDo not adjust workspaces while clients are writing files to them.

To adjust the size of a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

5 Managing Workspaces

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, select a workspace.

4. Do one of the following:

tClick the handle of the Workspaces Size graph, and drag it to resize the graphical

display. The workspace size listed in the Capacity text box updates as you drag the

handle.

tClick the Details button, and type a new value for the workspace size in the

Capacity text box in the Workspace Details area.

5. Click the Apply button.

nYou cannot reduce workspace size below the storage space listed next to the Capacity text

box as the minimum size, which indicates the amount already allocated to files. (For empty

workspaces, the minimum workspace size is 1 GB.) You also cannot increase workspace size

above the storage space listed as the maximum size.

Renaming Workspaces

You can rename a workspace at any time, even when it is being used by client workstations

and mapped to a local drive or by letterless mapping (to a Universal Naming Convention

path) on the client system. The only effect on users is that the workspace name will be

different the next time they need to access it.

Details areaWorkspaces list

Workspaces

Size graph

handle

Renaming Workspaces

To rename a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, click the workspace name you want to change.

4. If the Details area is not visible, do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the workspace name.

The Workspaces Details area displays all the information on the selected workspace.

5. Type a new name in the Name text box. The following characters are illegal in

workgroup names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |. Also, you cannot use a period (.) as either

the first or the last character in a workspace name.

6. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the workspace information.

7. Click the Apply button.

5 Managing Workspaces

Protecting Workspaces

The Protection option offers high levels of data integrity by ensuring that two copies of

media data are written onto different physical drives to avoid data loss in the event of drive

failure. This allows workspaces that are protected to be repaired very quickly with no data

loss upon drive failure.

The disadvantage is that protected workspaces use twice as much space as unprotected

workspaces. However, because of the data protection and recovery speed that protection

offers, Avid recommends that you always protect your workspaces.

Workspace Protection Recommendations

Because of the potential impact of a drive failure, Avid recommends protecting all your

workspaces whenever possible. If you want to ensure protection of your files at all times,

always enable the Protection option when creating new workspaces (before any files are

stored on the workspace).

If you are not sure that all files on a given workspace are protected, select the workspace and

enable the Protection option for the workspace. This protects all new files added to the

workspace, and adds protection to any existing files in the workspace that are not already

protected.

Avid Unity ISIS allows clients to access protected workspaces that have more than one

storage element missing from the workspace’s storage group. However, protected storage

groups with more than one storage element missing are unstable. Some or all of the files the

storage groups contain might not be available for use. The administrator should repair these

workspaces at the earliest opportunity.

When you are deciding to use protection, Avid recommends you consider the following:

• Storage groups with an even number of storage elements provide the best performance

and the best data distribution for all video resolutions.

• Storage groups with an odd number of storage elements might not provide adequate

performance for some video resolutions, such as 1:1 or 2:1.

• If you are not going to protect a workspace, the storage group can contain any number

of storage elements.

Protecting Workspaces

Setting Workspace Protection

You can use the Workspaces dialog box to enable or disable workspace protection.

To enable protection for a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, click the workspace you want to protect.

4. If the Details area is not visible, do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the workspace name.

The Workspaces Details area displays all the information on the selected workspace.

5. Select Protection: enabled to protect the workspace.

Protection is enabled for the workspace, and the icon next to the workspace name

changes from Unprotected to Protected.

6. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the workspace information.

7. Click the Apply button.

5 Managing Workspaces

To disable protection for a workspace:

1. In the Workspaces list, click the workspace from which you want to remove protection.

2. In the Details area, deselect Protection: enabled to remove protection from the

workspace.

Protection is disabled for the workspace, and the icon next to the workspace name

changes from Protected to Unprotected.

3. Click the Apply button.

Redistributing Data

Redistribution is an operation that ensures all files on a workspace are balanced evenly

across the storage elements in the storage group to provide optimal file system performance.

Data chunks are distributed across multiple storage elements to ensure redundancy and

protect against data loss. Redistribution occurs automatically in the following

circumstances:

• Adding a storage element to a storage group

• Removing a storage element from a storage group

• Moving a workspace from one storage group to another

• Removing protection from a protected workspace

• Protecting an unprotected workspace

You can also initiate a manual redistribution of data.

Redistribution Guidelines

You can start a redistribution when a workspace is in a load or a no load condition:

• A load condition occurs when the workspace has active clients (clients reading and

writing to the workspace).

• A no load condition occurs when a workspace has inactive clients (clients that have the

workspace mounted but are not performing reads or writes).

Whenever you perform a redistribution, you should observe the following guidelines:

• When redistributing under load, allow the redistribution to complete before initiating a

second redistribution.

Redistributing Data

• System performance can degrade up to 20% during redistribution in a workspace with

maximum client count. Reducing the number of clients by 20% allows the active clients

using the workspace to function normally, with successful playback and captures.

Reducing the overall load by 20% of the maximum capacity might be needed in the

event of client performance degradation.

• The amount of time a redistribution takes varies depending on whether the workspace is

in a load or a no load condition, whether you add or remove an ISB, and how much data

in the storage group must be redistributed. For more information on redistribution times,

see the Avid Unity ISIS ReadMe.

• Do not physically remove an storage element until it has been removed from the storage

group, the redistribution is complete, and it has been removed from the file system.

cIf you physically remove an storage element from the media network before

redistribution is complete, or if you physically remove more that one storage element

from a storage group before performing a redistribution, data loss can occur.

Limitations on expected client performance during redistribution include the following:

• Reducing audio tracks from 8 to 4 during playback might be required during

redistribution. (Normal operation supports 2 streams of video 8 tracks of audio.)

• Reducing the number of video streams from 2 to 1 might be required during

redistribution. (Normal operation supports 2 streams of video.)

Performing a Full Redistribution

In addition to automatic redistribution operations (see “Redistributing Data” on page 96),

redistribution can also be invoked manually. The most common situation where you need to

perform a full redistribution is when the Config Changes count exceeds 10. (For information

about Config Changes, see “Workspaces Descriptions” on page 86.)

nWhen the Config Changes count reaches 10, a message warns you to perform a

redistribution.

When redistributing files manually, you should apply the redistribution to all workspaces.

Avid does not recommend performing a full redistribution on some workspaces and not on

others.

To redistribute workspaces manually:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

5 Managing Workspaces

3. Select the workspaces whose files you want to redistribute. When undertaking a full

redistribution, select all workspaces.

4. Click the Full Redistribution button.

A confirmation message box opens.

5. Click OK.

Files are redistributed, and the count in the Config Changes column is reset to zero. The

amount of time required for the redistribution depends on the amount of data in the

workspace.

6. If storage elements have rebooted following the completion of a full redistribution, do

the following:

a. Click the Advanced Commands button.

The Advanced Workspace Commands dialog box opens.

b. Select Verify Redistribution, and then click Send.

Redistributing Data

Using Advanced Redistribution Commands

Under some conditions, you might have to suspend or resume an in-progress redistribution.

You can do this with the Advanced Commands options available on the toolbar in the

Workspaces dialog box.

cUse of the Resume Redistribution and the Suspend Redistribution options can result in

degraded system performance. Suspending redistributions can have serious

consequences for the file system if not monitored closely. These two Advanced

Commands options should be used by Avid Customer Support personnel or under Avid

Customer Support direction.

You can also use the Advanced Commands to verify a redistribution. Verification checks that

all bad blocks on the appropriate storage element have been deleted and that the

redistribution has completed successfully. You should use the Verify Redistribution

command whenever storage elements are rebooted following a redistribution — for

example, after you upgrade your system. In this case, storage elements might report a

“Repairing Mirrors” status on reboot; verifying the redistribution replays the redistribution

operation using the current configuration and restores the status to normal.

nVerification causes minimal impact on performance and completes quickly.

To suspend a redistribution:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. Select the workspace whose files are currently being redistributed.

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4. Click the Advanced Commands button.

The Advanced Workspace Commands dialog box opens.

5. Select Suspend Redistribution.

6. Click Send.

cWhen you manually suspend a redistribution, you must also manually resume it.

Suspending redistributions should be considered temporary — workspaces should not

be left in the suspended state for extended periods of time.

To resume a redistribution:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. Select the workspace whose redistribution status is Stalled.

4. Click the Advanced Commands button.

The Advanced Workspace Commands dialog box opens.

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5. Select Resume Redistribution.

6. Click Send.

To verify a redistribution:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. Select the workspace where the redistribution has completed.

4. Click the Advanced Commands button.

The Advanced Workspace Commands dialog box opens.

5. Select Verify Redistribution.

6. Click Send.

Moving Workspaces

To move a workspace and all of its contents to another storage group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, select the workspace you want to move.

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4. If the Details area is not visible, do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the workspace name.

The Workspaces Details area displays all the information on the selected workspace.

5. Click the Storage Group menu, and select the storage group to which you want to move

the workspace.

6. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the workspace information.

7. Click the Apply button.

The workspace is moved, and the Details area updates to show the new storage group

assignment. Existing files are moved, and new files written to the workspace are written

to the destination storage group.

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103

Managing Workspace Access Privileges

You can set privileges for user and user group access to workspaces in the Workspaces

dialog box. There are three levels of access available to clients of the network. The following

table describes the kinds of access privileges available to users and user groups.

By default, new client accounts do not have access privileges until an administrator assigns

them (see “Creating User Accounts” on page 112). You can customize access for each client

to every workspace, if necessary.

For example, you might need to increase the access privileges for a user who does not have

write access to the appropriate workspace, or for a workspace that does not provide the

appropriate access to one or more users. To do so, you can either modify an individual

client’s access privileges in the Users dialog box (see “Modifying Client Accounts” on page

124), or you can use the Workspace dialog box (see “Setting Workspace Access Privileges”

on page 104).

It is also possible to assign users access privileges different from those originally assigned to

the group. If a user group is given a more permissive level of access than some members of

the group, the group members then can have an effective access different from their assigned

access. This can be useful for projects that require users with a variety of permissions to be

able to write to certain workspaces. You can also have users who have more permissive

access than a user group in which they are members. Using the Workspaces dialog box, the

administrator can assign the necessary privileges.

Consider the following for access privileges:

• As access privileges are increased, the newly accessible workspaces are immediately

available.

• If a client has Read privileges to a workspace and is granted Read/Write privileges, the

new privileges apply immediately, without modifying the workspace.

• If a client is already at the workspace selection stage when the access privileges are

removed, then newly inaccessible workspaces remain in the display. However,

attempting to actually access the workspaces will be unsuccessful.

Access Level Description

Read/Write Workspace can be read and written to.

Read Workspace can be read but not written to.

None Workspace cannot be read, written to, or mounted.

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• If a client has Read/Write privileges to a workspace and access privileges are reduced to

read, the new privileges apply immediately, without modifying the workspace. If a file is

open for writing, the client retains write privilege to that file until it is closed.

• If a client has privileges to a workspace and those privileges are reduced to None, then

the workspace is unavailable the next time that workspace is accessed.

For more information on access privileges, see “Changing Access Privileges” on page 128.

Setting Workspace Access Privileges

You can set access privileges for users and user groups when the client accounts are first

created (see “Creating User Accounts” on page 112 and “Creating Client Accounts for

Groups” on page 115). You can also change access in the Users dialog box (see “Modifying

Client Accounts” on page 124). The Workspaces dialog box, however, allows you to set,

modify, and monitor access privileges to workspaces without having to modify individual

client accounts.

To set user or user group access to a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, select a workspace.

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4. If the Details area is not visible, do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the workspace name.

The Workspaces Details area displays all the information on the selected workspace.

5. In the User Access area, select a user or a user group. Ctrl+click to select multiple users

and user groups. You can select all users and user groups by using the Select All button.

6. Do one of the following:

tClick the Read/Write button to set both read and write workspace access for the

client.

tClick the Read button to set read-only workspace access for the client.

tClick the None button to remove workspace access privileges for the client.

7. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the user access information.

8. Click the Apply button.

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Deleting Workspaces

You can delete workspaces that are not currently accessed by any clients and that have no

media files stored on them. You can delete multiple empty workspaces at one time.

If you need to delete a workspace, make sure that its media is no longer needed, is moved, or

is backed up. You then can safely delete the files in the workspace. After the workspace is

empty, you can remove it.

If you delete a workspace has been mapped to a local drive by a client, the client cannot

access that workspace. Clients should unmap the deleted workspace by using the

Avid Unity ISIS Client Manager. For information on using the Client Manager, see the

Avid Unity ISIS Client Manager User’s Guide or the Client Manager Help.

nTo see if a workspace can be deleted, check the Details area. If the Used entry is zero, no

files are stored in the workspace and you can delete it.

If you mount a workspace from a Macintosh system, the Macintosh operating system creates

hidden files in the /volume/[workspace name] directory of your system. If you want to delete

the workspace, you must first manually delete these files.

To delete a workspace:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Workspaces from the list on the left.

The Workspaces dialog box opens.

3. In the Workspaces list, select the workspace you want to delete.

4. Click the Delete button.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you really want to delete the

workspace.

5. Click Yes.

The workspace is deleted.

6Managing Client Accounts and Access

Privileges

Client accounts limit access to the file system. This section describes how to assign client

accounts with associated passwords and access privileges for users, groups, and devices.

You must create a client account for any client that needs to access the Avid Unity ISIS

media network: users, groups, and devices. When you create client accounts, you set basic

client information, such as names and passwords.

Each user and user group account has an associated privilege level that determines what

access the user logging in to that account has when working with files stored in the network.

The Administration tool allows the administrator to create client accounts for each client

connected to the system, and it maintains a record of all attached clients. The client accounts

are listed in dialog boxes for each client type: users, groups, and devices.

The Avid Unity ISIS system supports a maximum of 300 clients, consisting of up to 150

active clients and 150 disconnected or inactive clients. (Disconnected clients are those that

have not mounted any workspaces; inactive clients are those that have mounted workspaces

but are not performing read/write operations on the Avid Unity ISIS file system.) The

system also supports a maximum of 1000 user accounts (including the default Administrator

and Guest user accounts).

nSome clients might not be able to connect to the media network if the combined bandwidth

requirement of connected components equals the system limit for bandwidth use. For

information on monitoring bandwidth use, see “Monitoring Client Bandwidth” on page 131.

For more information, see the following topics:

•Creating Client Accounts for Users

•Creating Client Accounts for Groups

•Creating Client Accounts for Devices

•Modifying Client Accounts

•Changing Access Privileges

•Setting System Preferences

6 Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges

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Creating Client Accounts for Users

The Users dialog box of the Administration tool allows you to perform the following

actions:

• Create, modify, and delete user accounts

• Assign users to specific groups

• Manage access privileges for all users

The Users dialog box contains two sections. On the left side of the dialog box, the Users list

displays all the current user accounts. On the right side of the dialog box, the Details area

displays information about selected users, including user group membership and workspace

access.

nThe Details area is visible only after you select a client in the Users list.

When you add user accounts, a separate window opens in the Users dialog box. For

information on adding users, see “Creating User Accounts” on page 112.

Details area

Users list

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Accessing the Users Dialog Box

To open the Users dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Users from the list on the left.

The Users dialog box opens and displays the Users list. The Users list displays the name

and basic information for each user connected to the network.

Several panels display all information for the currently selected user.

To view information about a user:

1. In the Users list, select a user.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the user name.

Users list

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The Details area displays all the information for the selected user.

User Descriptions

The following table summarizes the information available in the Users list.

nYou can sort the information in the Users dialog box by clicking any column heading. For

more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

Heading Description

Name Lists the client name

Privs Indicates the status of client privileges

Bandwidth Lists the client’s bandwidth allocation

Setting a bandwidth limit on editing clients, such as an Avid

NewsCutter Adrenaline client, can adversely affect playback performance

when the Avid Unity ISIS system is under load.

Creating Client Accounts for Users

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The following table summarizes the information available in panels in the Details area.

Panel Heading Description

Details

Name Lists the user name

Password Allows modification of the password used to log in

to the system

Verify Provides verification for the new password

Bandwidth Allows modification of maximum bandwidth

requirements

Setting a bandwidth limit on editing clients, such

as an Avid NewsCutter Adrenaline client, can

adversely affect playback performance when the

Avid Unity ISIS system is under load.

Privilege

can resize Enables or disables user privilege for resizing

workspaces

can modify

protection

Enables or disables user privilege for changing

protection status of workspaces

Group Membership

Name Lists the names of available groups

Type Lists the user’s membership status for each group

(member or nonmember)

Workspace Access

Name Lists the names of available workspaces

Access Lists the access privileges for the selected user

Effective Lists the effective access privileges for the selected

user

Reason Lists the reason for any difference between the

access privileges and the effective access assigned

the selected user

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Creating User Accounts

A user is anyone who accesses files stored on the network. User accounts include

administrative privilege levels, group membership types, and workspace access. there can be

more user accounts than connected clients, with a maximum of 1000 user accounts

(including the default Administrator and Guest accounts).

nUsers must have access to at least one workspace before they can use the media network.

To create a user account:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Users from the list on the left.

3. Click the New button.

The Create User dialog box opens.

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4. Type a user name in the Name text box. The following characters are illegal in user

names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |.

If there is already a user with the name entered in the Name text box, an error message

tells you to type a new name.

5. Type a password in the Password text box (a maximum of 15 characters).

6. For confirmation, type the password again in the Verify text box.

7. Type a value in the Bandwidth text box to set the amount of read/write bandwidth (in

MB/s) you want to allocate to the user.

8. (Option) Select User Flag options to set user account privileges and status:

- Can resize [workspaces]

- Can modify protection

9. (Option) In the Group Membership list, select a group, and click the Member button to

make the user a member in the group. Users can belong to no more than three groups.

By default, new users are listed as “Nonmember” in the Type category for each group.

As a result, the Nonmember button is inactive until membership is set.

The Group Membership list updates to show the user as a member of the group.

10. (Option) In the Workspace Access list, select a workspace or click the Select All button

to select all workspaces, and do one of the following:

tClick the Read button to set read-only workspace access for the user.

By default, access privileges for new users are listed as “None” in the Access

category for each workspace. As a result, the None button is inactive until access is

set. (For information on permissions for workspace access in the network, see

“Managing Workspace Access Privileges” on page 103.)

tClick the Read/Write button to set both read and write workspace access for the

user.

The Workspace Access list updates to show the user access privileges for the

selected workspace.

11. Click the Apply button.

12. (Option) Repeat steps 5 through 13 to create new users.

13. Click the Close button to close the Create User dialog box and to return to the Users

dialog box.

The new user appears in the Users list.

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Duplicating Client Accounts

When you duplicate user accounts, they inherit the bandwidth allocation and access

privileges of the accounts from which they were created.

To duplicate a user account:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Users from the list on the left.

3. In the Users list, select the user account you want to duplicate.

4. Click the Duplicate button.

The Duplicate User dialog box opens.

5. (Option) Modify any of the attributes of the new user. For information on modifying

user accounts, see “Modifying Client Accounts” on page 124.

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115

6. Click the Apply button to create a new user containing the attributes of the selected user.

The duplicate user appears in the Users dialog box, and the Duplicate User dialog box

refreshes to allow you to duplicate a new user.

The new user account has a default name — user n, where n is an integer that is

incremented each time you click the Apply button to create another duplicate user

account.

7. Click the Close button to close the Duplicate User dialog box and to return to the Users

dialog box.

Creating Client Accounts for Groups

Client accounts also allow groups of users to access media stored on your network. These

accounts allow users to mount or map workspaces on their Avid workstations.

Accessing the Groups Dialog Box

To open the Groups dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Groups from the list on the left.

The Groups dialog box opens. The Group list displays the name of each group

connected to the network.

Group

list

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For information on the functions you can perform in the Groups dialog box, see the

following topics:

•Creating User Group Accounts

•Modifying Client Accounts

•Deleting Client Accounts

Viewing Group Descriptions

The Details panels display all information for the currently selected group. You can sort the

information in the User Membership and Workspace Access areas by clicking any column

heading. For more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on

page 33.

To view information about a group:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Groups from the list on the left.

3. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the group name.

The Details area displays all the information for the selected user group.

Creating Client Accounts for Groups

117

User Group Descriptions

The following table summarizes the information available in the Details area.

Creating User Group Accounts

To create a group account:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Groups from the list on the left.

Area Heading Description

Group Details

Name Lists the user group name

User Membership

Name Lists the names of all users

Type Lists the user’s membership status for each user group

(member or nonmember)

Membership Count Lists the number of groups in which each user holds

membership (users can belong to no more than three

groups)

Workspace Access

Name Lists the names of available workspaces

Access Lists the access privileges for the selected user group

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3. Click the New button.

The Create Group dialog box opens.

4. Type a group name in the Name text box. The following characters are illegal in group

names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |.

If there is already a group with the name entered in the Name text box, an error message

tells you to type a new name.

5. (Option) In the User Membership list, select a user and click the Member button to make

the user a member in the group. Users can belong to no more than three groups.

By default, new users are listed as “Nonmember” in the Type category for each group.

As a result, the Nonmember button is inactive until membership is set.

Creating Client Accounts for Devices

119

6. (Option) In the Workspace Access list, select a workspace or click the Select All button

to select all workspaces, and do one of the following:

tClick the Read button to set read-only workspace access for the group.

tClick the Read/Write button to set both read and write workspace access for the

group.

By default, access privileges for new groups are listed as “None” in the Access category

for each workspace. As a result, the None button is inactive until access is set. (For

information on permissions for workspace access in the network, see “Changing Access

Privileges” on page 128.)

7. Click the Apply button.

8. (Option) Repeat steps 5 through 8 to create new groups.

9. Click the Close button to close the Create Group dialog box and to return to the Groups

dialog box.

The new group appears in the Groups list.

Creating Client Accounts for Devices

Devices, such as Avid AirSpeed™ recorders, can be assigned their own client accounts.

Users of the devices can then access workspaces on the network.

nIf you deselect the Force Manual Device Creation option in the Preferences dialog box, a

client account is automatically created for each new device when it is first connected to the

media network. For information on preferences, see “Setting System Preferences” on page

129.

Accessing the Device Dialog Box

You can sort the information in the Devices dialog box by clicking any column heading. For

more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

To open the Device dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Devices from the list on the left.

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The Devices dialog box opens. The Device list displays basic information about each

device connected to the network.

To view information about a device:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Devices from the list on the left.

3. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the device name.

Device

list

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The Details area displays all information for the currently selected device.

For information on the functions you can perform in the Devices dialog box, see the

following topics:

Device List

The following table summarizes the information available in the Device list.

Heading Description

Name Lists the client name

Bandwidth Lists the client’s bandwidth allocation

.You might need to set a bandwidth limit for a device such as an

Avid AirSpeed in the event the device is consuming more bandwidth than

expected.

Bandwidth Mode Lists the mode used to allocate bandwidth

Description Displays the user-supplied device description, if any

6 Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges

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Device Descriptions

The following table summarizes the information available in the Details area.

Creating Device Accounts

To create a device account:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Devices from the list on the left.

Heading Description

Name Lists the device name

Bandwidth Allows modification of bandwidth requirements

nYou might need to set a bandwidth limit for a device such as an

Avid AirSpeed in the event the device is consuming more bandwidth than

expected.

Bandwidth Mode Lists the mode used to allocate bandwidth

Description Displays the user-supplied device description, if any

Creating Client Accounts for Devices

123

3. Click the New button.

The Create Device dialog box opens.

4. Type the system name of the device you want to add in the Name text box. The

following characters are illegal in device names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |.

If there is already a device with the name entered in the Name text box, an error message

tells you to type a new name.

5. Type a value in the Bandwidth text box to set the amount of read/write bandwidth (in

MB/s) you want to allocate to the device.

6. Click the Bandwidth Mode menu and select a mode for bandwidth allocation, if

available.

7. (Option) Type a description of the device in the Description text box.

8. Click the Apply button.

9. (Option) Repeat steps 5 through 9 to create new devices.

10. Click the Close button to close the Create Device dialog box and to return to the Users

dialog box.

The new device appears in the Users list.

6 Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges

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Modifying Client Accounts

You can rename an account, change the password, change the allocated bandwidth, edit

privileges, and change user membership in groups with the client dialog boxes. For example,

you can change user passwords to accommodate a new user, reestablish access for an

existing user who has forgotten the password, or disable access to an account.

You can modify a client account at any time, even when it is being actively used in your

work environment.

To modify a client account:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. From the list on the left, select one of the following client types:

-Users

- Groups

- Devices

3. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the client name.

The Details area displays information about the selected client.

Details area

Users list

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125

4. Click the client account that you want to change.

The client name is highlighted, and the Details area displays the information for the

client.

5. (Option) In the Name text box, type a new client name. The following characters are

illegal in user names: \, /, :, *, ?, ", +, <, >, and |.

If there is already a client with the name entered in the Name text box, an error message

tells you to type a new name.

6. (Option — user accounts only) In the Password text box, type a new password (a

maximum of 15 characters), and then type it again in the Verify text box.

If the password is a duplicate of an existing password, an error message tells you to type

a new password.

7. (Option — user and device accounts only) Type a new value in the Bandwidth text box

to set the amount of read/write bandwidth (in MB/s) you want to allocate to the user.

(System bandwidth limits are listed in the System Details area.)

8. (Option — user accounts only) Select or deselect User Flag options to set user account

privileges and status:

- Can resize [workspaces]

- Can modify protection

9. (Option — device accounts only) In the Description area, edit the description for the

device.

10. (Option — user accounts only) In the Group Membership panel, select a group and do

one of the following (users can belong to no more than three groups):

tClick the Member button to make the user a member in the user group.

tClick the Nonmember button to remove the user from the user group.

11. (Option — user and group accounts only) In the Workspace Access panel, select a

workspace or click the Select All button to select all workspaces, and do one of the

following:

tClick the None button to remove workspace access privileges for the client.

tClick the Read button to set read-only workspace access for the client.

tClick the Read/Write button to set both read and write workspace access for the

client.

For information on permissions for workspace access in the network, see “Managing

Workspace Access Privileges” on page 103 and “Changing Access Privileges” on page

128.

12. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the client information.

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13. Click the Apply button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm the action.

Deleting Client Accounts

You can use the Administration tool to delete any client account. If you want to remove the

client from the media network but still maintain the client account, see “Removing Clients

from the Avid Unity ISIS Media Network” on page 127.

cIf you delete the client account, its connection to the System Director is broken

immediately and any mounted workspaces are unmounted as soon as they are

accessed.

To delete a client account:

1. Ensure that the client account to be deleted is not currently active.

2. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

3. From the list on the left, select one of the following client types:

-Users

- Groups

- Devices

The client dialog box opens.

4. Select the client account you want to delete.

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127

5. Click the Delete button.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you really want to delete the client.

6. Click OK.

The client dialog box updates to show the client account deleted from the client list.

Removing Clients from the Avid Unity ISIS Media Network

You can remove users and devices temporarily from the network by revoking their

bandwidth allocation. Removing clients does not delete them from the list of clients in the

Users dialog box or the Devices dialog box. This preserves the client accounts and allows

you to return the clients to the system by reallocating bandwidth at a later time.

To remove a client by revoking the assigned bandwidth:

1. Ensure that the client account to be removed is not currently active.

2. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

3. From the list on the left, select one of the following client types:

-Users

-Devices

The client dialog box opens.

4. Select the client account you want to remove from the system.

5. Do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the client name.

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The Details area displays information about the selected client.

6. Set a new value of zero (0) in the Bandwidth text box.

7. (Option) Before you apply your changes, you can use the Revert button to undo any

modifications made to the client information.

8. Click the Apply button.

Changing Access Privileges

You can change access privileges for more than one client at a time. You can also set access

privileges for a group at a more permissive level than originally assigned to an individual

user who is a member of the group. This creates an effective access that differs from the

user’s assigned access. For example, if a user has read access but is a member of a user

group whose access is changed to read/write, the user’s effective access is listed as

read/write.

nMake sure that no client account whose access privileges you intend to downgrade is being

used by a client who currently has workspaces mounted.

You use the Workspaces dialog box to change the workspaces privileges for multiple users

or groups. For information on changing user access in the Workspace dialog box, see

“Setting Workspace Access Privileges” on page 104.

Bandwidth

text box

Setting System Preferences

129

Setting System Preferences

The Preferences dialog box allows you to set basic parameters that apply to components

added to the media network. You can also set the total system bandwidth. For more

information on bandwidth functions, see “Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges”

on page 107.

When you add a component to the media network, you must create an account and set the

bandwidth for the component prior to using it in the network. You can use the Preferences

option to create a device account automatically for all new clients, and you can set the

default bandwidth allocated to the new devices. This provides a quick way to connect new

clients and components to the media network.

To set preferences for new components in the media network:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. From the list on the left, select Preferences

The Preferences dialog box opens.

3. (Option) Type a number in the Total System Bandwidth text box.

4. (Option) Type a number in the Default Device Bandwidth text box.

5. (Option) Select Enabled to create device options manually for each new device.

6. (Option) Type a number (in milliseconds) in the Default LCT (Long Command Times)

Threshold text box.

7. (Option) Type a number in the Default Hard Disk Error Threshold text box.

8. (Option) Select Enabled to allow failover to a second System Director if the failover

server has more active Network Interface Cards (NICs) than the active System Director.

9. Click the Save Preferences button.

6 Managing Client Accounts and Access Privileges

130

7Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and

System Status

This section describes how to use the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box to monitor bandwidth

usage in the Avid Unity ISIS media network. You can also use the Bandwidth Monitor

dialog box to remove individual components from the network.

For more information, see the following topics:

•Monitoring Client Bandwidth

•Removing Components

•Monitoring System Connection Status

Monitoring Client Bandwidth

The Bandwidth Monitor dialog box allows you to monitor system usage, including total

system bandwidth use and bandwidth consumption of each connected system.

Bandwidth

Monitor list

7 Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status

132

The System Read Bandwidth and System Write Bandwidth rows in the Bandwidth Monitor

dialog box show total system read bandwidth (green bar) and total system write bandwidth

(red bar) in megabytes per second (MB/s).

Below the System Read Bandwidth and System Write Bandwidth rows is a list of all active

system components showing their current activity, their system identification, and the total

bandwidth reserved for all components.

Accessing the Bandwidth Monitor Dialog Box

To access the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Bandwidth from the list on the left.

The Bandwidth Monitor dialog box opens.

Bandwidth List

The following table describes the information displayed in the Bandwidth Monitor dialog

box.

Heading Description

System Read Bandwidth The value of the total system bandwidth currently in use

for reading files (in MB/s)

System Write Bandwidth The value of the total system bandwidth currently in use

for writing to files (in MB/s)

System Name The name of the system specified during the System

Director configuration

Read BW For the listed system components, the value of the

bandwidth currently in use for reading files (in MB/s)

Write BW For the listed system components, the value of the

bandwidth currently in use for writing to files (in MB/s)

Removing Components

133

nYou can sort the information in the Bandwidth Monitor list by clicking any column heading.

For more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on page 33.

Scaling the Bandwidth List Graph Display

The Bandwidth Monitor list represents bandwidth consumption for the network and for

individual system components in the form of horizontal bars in a graph display. Numeric

divisions are displayed in megabytes/second (MB/s). You can adjust the scale of the graph to

make it easier to monitor bandwidth information.

To decrease or increase the size of the graph view:

tClick the Decrease Size or Increase Size button.

Removing Components

You can use the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box to remove system components from the

network by revoking their bandwidth reservations. Removing components moves them from

active status to inactive status in the list of components in the Connection Status dialog box,

but it does not disconnect them from the network and they remain in the list of components

in the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box. Before the clients of the removed component can

access the network, you must reserve bandwidth for them (see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup

Guide).

To remove a component from the active system list in the media network:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Bandwidth from the list on the left.

Bandwidth For the listed system components, graphical display of

bandwidth usage:

• Read (green bar)

• Write (red bar)

Reservation For the listed system components, the value of the total

bandwidth reserved for read/write operations (in MB/s)

Heading Description (Continued)

7 Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status

134

The Bandwidth Monitor dialog box opens.

3. Select a component from the Bandwidth Monitor list.

4. Click the Revoke Reservation button.

A confirmation message box opens.

5. Click OK.

The Bandwidth Monitor dialog box updates to show the component removed from the

network.

Monitoring System Connection Status

The Connection Status dialog box allows you to view the status of all components connected

to the network. You can also use the Connection Status dialog box to disconnect components

from the system.

nSome clients might not be able to connect to the media network if the combined bandwidth

requirement of connected components equals the system limit for bandwidth use. For

information on monitoring bandwidth use, see “Monitoring Client Bandwidth” on page 131.

Bandwidth

Monitor list

Monitoring System Connection Status

135

Accessing the Connection Status Dialog Box

To access the Connection Status dialog box:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Connection Status from the list on the left.

The Connection Status dialog box opens.

Connection Status Information

The Connection Status dialog box lists information about all components — both active and

inactive — that comprise the media network. The following table describes the information

displayed in the dialog box.

Component

list

Heading Description

Name Lists the name of the component

ID Lists an internal numeric identifier used by the System Director to represent the

component; these identifiers are assigned when a component first contacts the System

Director

OS Lists the operating system of the component

Type Lists the category or principal function of the component

License Displays the number of licenses allotted to the component

7 Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status

136

nYou can sort the information in the Connection Status dialog box by clicking any column

heading. For more information on sorting items in columns, see “Sorting Information” on

page 33.

Disconnecting Components from the System

You can use the Connection Status dialog box to disconnect components from the network.

Disconnecting components moves them from active to inactive status in the list of active

components in the Connection Status dialog box. Inactive components display the time of

the last logged contact between the System Director and the components.

nBefore disconnecting a component from the network, you should determine the status of

active clients (for example, you should know if any clients currently have workspaces

mounted on the component you want to disconnect). For information on using the Monitor

tool to determine the status of active clients, see “Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control

Panel” on page 161.

To remove a component from the media network:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Select Connection Status from the list on the left.

Last Seen For inactive components, lists the date and time when the component last sent its status

to the System Director; for active components, displays a zero (0) as the default value

The System Director removes information about components that have not been seen

for a week, unless the component’s bandwidth limit is configured to custom values or

the Default Device Bandwidth option in the Preferences dialog box is selected.

Heading Description (Continued)

Monitoring System Connection Status

137

The Connection Status dialog box opens.

3. Select a component from the Component list.

4. Click the Disconnect button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm the action.

5. Click Yes.

The Connection Status dialog box updates to show the component disconnected from

the network.

Component

list

7 Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status

138

8Configuring Failover Parameters

If properly configured with a redundant System Director, Avid Unity ISIS supports

automatic failover to a standby System Director when the active System Director fails.

Because there is polling over the Ethernet, any lack of response from the active System

Director indicates that it is offline and is not due to a failed connection between the two

System Directors.

nIn a failover configuration, one System Director is assigned to an active role and the other is

assigned to a standby role.

For information on connecting a second System Director to your media network, see the

Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

You can create a failover configuration for the following conditions:

• When you add a System Director to an existing system — see “Adding a System

Director to an Existing File System” on page 139.

• When you set up two new System Directors — see “Creating Failover with Two New

Systems” on page 150.

Adding a System Director to an Existing File

System

Configuring System Director failover when you add a second System Director to your media

network requires the steps outlined in the following sections:

•IP Addresses for Existing and New System Directors

•Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Existing System Director

•Setting Up the Failover Connection on the New System Director

•Validating the Connections Between Existing and New System Directors

•Configuring the Virtual Addresses for Existing and New System Directors

•Creating a New Standby File System

•Starting the Existing and New System Directors

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

140

IP Addresses for Existing and New System Directors

Avid recommends the System Director IP addresses for failover configurations that are listed

in the table below. If you use different addresses, be sure to note them and have them

available before proceeding. You set the IP addresses in the Network Connections dialog

box, which you access from the Windows Control Panel. For information on setting

Windows IP addresses, see the documentation that came with your operating system.

Recommended Failover IP Addresses

Connector Port IP Address Subnet Mask

Existing System Director

Ethernet Connector 1

Onboard Ethernet Port 1 (ETH1) 192.168.1.1 255.255.255.0

Existing System Director

Ethernet Connector 2

Onboard Ethernet Port 2 (ETH2) 192.168.2.1 255.255.255.0

New System Director

Ethernet Connector 1

Onboard Ethernet Port 1 (ETH1) 192.168.1.2 255.255.255.0

New System Director

Ethernet Connector 2

Onboard Ethernet Port 2 (ETH2) 192.168.2.2 255.255.255.0

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System

141

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Existing System Director

Once you set the IP addresses, you need to configure the failover settings in the

Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel.

To set up the failover connection on the existing System Director:

1. Select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control

Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the System Director Status tab.

3. Click Stop System Director.

The System Director stops.

Stop System Director button

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

142

4. Click the Configuration tab.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

5. In the Configuration area, click Failover Configuration.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

6. Select “Enable redundant operation.”

7. Type a virtual server name in the Virtual System Director Name text box. This name

must be the same for both the existing and the new System Directors.

If you have an Avid Unity MediaManager system attached to the media network and

you add a new System Director to create a failover system, it is important that you

maintain the same server name and virtual name as used previously to maintain database

integrity. For example, if, prior to installation of a new System Director as a failover

server, you set the actual and virtual server name of the existing System Director to

SD2, you should set the virtual server name for the new System Director to SD2 as well.

However, you should use a unique machine name for the new System Director — for

example, SD2SERVER.

Enable

redundant

operations

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System

143

8. In the Local Machine area, leave the Monitor port set to 5000. If you have another

application that uses port 5000, change the Monitor port to an available port number.

This port number must be the same on both the new and the existing System Directors.

9. In the Failover routing parameters area, type IP addresses as described in the following

table:

10. Leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director Failover

Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in “Setting Up

the Failover Connection on the New System Director” on page 144.

Path IP Address

Local Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.1

Local Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.1

Remote Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.2

Remote Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.2

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

144

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the New System Director

To set up the failover connection on the new System Director:

1. Select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control

Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the System Director Status tab.

3. Click Stop System Director.

The System Director stops.

4. Click the Configuration tab.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

Stop System Director button

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System

145

5. In the Configuration area, click Failover Configuration.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

6. Select “Enable redundant operation.”

7. Type a virtual server name in the Virtual System Director Name text box. This name

must be the same for both the new and the existing System Directors.

8. In the Local Machine area leave the Monitor port set to 5000. If you have another

application that uses port 5000, change the Monitor port to an available port number.

This port number must be the same on both the existing and the new System Directors.

9. In the Failover routing parameters area, type IP addresses as described in the following

table:

10. Leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director Failover

Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in “Validating

the Connections Between Existing and New System Directors” on page 146.

Enable

redundant

operations

Path IP Address

Local Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.2

Local Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.2

Remote Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.1

Remote Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.1

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

146

Validating the Connections Between Existing and New System

Directors

To validate the connections for System Director failover:

1. In the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box on the existing System

Director, click Validate Send.

The Validate failover connection(s) dialog box opens. The indicator boxes turn green for

each connection.

Indicator

boxes

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System

147

2. In the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box on the new System Director,

click Validate Receive.

The Validate failover connection(s) dialog box opens. The numbers in the Packets

Received boxes indicate the number of packets received from the existing System

Director.

If you are receiving packets on only one of the failover network paths, you probably

have a network configuration problem. Recheck your configuration.

3. On each system, click Exit.

4. On each system, leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director

Failover Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in

“Configuring the Virtual Addresses for Existing and New System Directors” on page

148.

Packets

received

boxes

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

148

Configuring the Virtual Addresses for Existing and New System

Directors

You need to configure virtual addresses for both System Directors.

To configure virtual addresses:

1. On both System Directors, click Configure Virtual Addresses.

The Virtual Server Address Configuration dialog box opens.

2. Choose an unused static IP address on the subnets for both systems to be used as the

virtual IP addresses for both System Directors.

3. Map the virtual IP address to the corresponding real IP address on each subnet for each

of the System Directors.

The example below uses the virtual IP addresses of 192.168.10.253 and 192.

168.20.253, and the mapped IP addresses of 192.168.10.100 and 192.168.20.100.

4. Click OK to close the Virtual Server Address Configuration dialog box.

5. Click OK to close the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box.

6. On each system, leave the System Director Control Panel open, and continue to the

procedure described in “Creating a New Standby File System” on page 149.

Adding a System Director to an Existing File System

149

Creating a New Standby File System

Before you start the new System Director, you need to initialize the system by creating a

standby partition on the new System Director’s main drive. This step is necessary in order to

build an Avid Unity ISIS file system that maintains the data on attached storage elements

and system metadata.

To create a standby file system:

tOn the new System Director, click Create New Standby.

A standby partition is created.

Starting the Existing and New System Directors

For more information on stopping and starting System Directors in a failover configuration,

see “Stopping and Starting System Directors During Failover” on page 159.

To start the existing and new System Directors:

1. On the existing System Director, click the Configuration tab.

2. Click Start Server.

3. On the new System Director, click the Configuration tab.

4. Click Start Server.

5. On both systems, click Close to close the System Director Control Panel.

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

150

Creating Failover with Two New Systems

Configuring System Director failover for two new System Directors requires the steps

outlined by the following sections:

•IP Addresses for First and Second System Directors

•Setting Up the Failover Connection on the First System Director

•Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Second System Director

•Validating the Connections Between First and Second System Directors

•Configuring the Virtual Addresses for First and Second System Directors

•Creating a New File System on the System Directors

•Starting the First and Second System Directors

IP Addresses for First and Second System Directors

Avid recommends the System Director IP addresses for failover configurations that are listed

in the table below. If you use different addresses, be sure to note them and have them

available before proceeding. You set the IP addresses in the Network Connections dialog

box, which you access from the Windows Control Panel. For information on setting

Windows IP addresses, see the documentation that came with your operating system.

Recommended Failover IP Addresses

Connector Port IP Address Subnet Mask

First System Director Ethernet

Connector 1

Onboard Ethernet Port 1 (ETH1) 192.168.1.1 255.255.255.0

First System Director Ethernet

Connector 2

Onboard Ethernet Port 2 (ETH2) 192.168.2.1 255.255.255.0

Second System Director

Ethernet Connector 1

Onboard Ethernet Port 1 (ETH1) 192.168.1.2 255.255.255.0

Second System Director

Ethernet Connector 2

Onboard Ethernet Port 2 (ETH2) 192.168.2.2 255.255.255.0

Creating Failover with Two New Systems

151

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the First System Director

Once you set the IP addresses, you need to configure the failover settings in the

Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel.

To set up the failover connection on the existing System Director:

1. Select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control

Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the Configuration tab.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

Stop System Director button

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

152

3. In the Configuration area, click Failover Configuration.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Select “Enable redundant operation.”

5. Type a virtual server name in the Virtual System Director Name text box. This name

must be the same for both the existing and the new System Directors.

6. In the Local Machine area, leave the Monitor port set to 5000. If you have another

application that uses port 5000, change the Monitor port to an available port number.

This port number must be the same on both the first and the second System Directors.

7. In the Failover routing parameters area, type IP addresses as described in the following

table:

8. Leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director Failover

Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in “Setting Up

the Failover Connection on the New System Director” on page 144.

Enable

redundant

operations

Path IP Address

Local Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.1

Local Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.1

Remote Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.2

Remote Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.2

Creating Failover with Two New Systems

153

Setting Up the Failover Connection on the Second System Director

To set up the failover connection on the second System Director:

1. Select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control

Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the Configuration tab.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

Stop System Director button

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

154

3. In the Configuration area, click Failover Configuration.

The System Director Failover Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Select “Enable redundant operation.”

5. Type a virtual server name in the Virtual System Director Name text box. This name

must be the same for both the first and the second System Directors.

6. In the Local Machine area leave the Monitor port set to 5000. If you have another

application that uses port 5000, change the Monitor port to an available port number.

This port number must be the same on both the first and the second System Directors.

7. In the Failover routing parameters area, type IP addresses as described in the following

table:

8. Leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director Failover

Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in “Validating

the Connections Between Existing and New System Directors” on page 146.

Enable

redundant

operations

Path IP Address

Local Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.2

Local Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.2

Remote Machine — First path IP address 192.168.1.1

Remote Machine — Second path IP address 192.168.2.1

Creating Failover with Two New Systems

155

Validating the Connections Between First and Second System

Directors

To validate the connections for System Director failover:

1. In the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box on the first System Director,

click Validate Send.

The Validate failover connection(s) dialog box opens. The indicator boxes turn green for

each connection.

Indicator

boxes

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

156

2. In the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box on the second System

Director, click Validate Receive.

The Validate failover connection(s) dialog box opens. The numbers in the Packets

Received boxes indicate the number of packets received from the first System Director

If you are receiving packets on only one of the failover network paths, you probably

have a network configuration problem. Recheck your configuration.

3. On each system, click Exit.

4. On each system, leave the System Director Control Panel and the System Director

Failover Configuration dialog box open, and continue to the procedure described in

“Configuring the Virtual Addresses for Existing and New System Directors” on page

148.

Packets

received

boxes

Creating Failover with Two New Systems

157

Configuring the Virtual Addresses for First and Second System

Directors

You need to configure virtual addresses for both System Directors.

To configure virtual addresses:

1. On both System Directors, click Configure Virtual Addresses.

The Virtual Server Address Configuration dialog box opens.

2. Choose an unused static IP address on the subnets for both systems to be used as the

virtual IP addresses for both System Directors.

3. Map the virtual IP address to the corresponding real IP address on each subnet for each

of the System Directors.

The example below uses the virtual IP addresses of 192.168.10.253 and 192.168.20.253,

and the mapped IP addresses of 192.168.10.100 and 192.168.20.100.

4. Click OK to close the Virtual Server Address Configuration dialog box.

5. Click OK to close the System Director Failover Configuration dialog box.

6. On each system, leave the System Director Control Panel open, and continue to the

procedure described in “Creating a New Standby File System” on page 149.

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

158

Creating a New File System on the System Directors

Before you start the System Directors, you need to initialize both systems by creating an

active partition on the first System Director’s main drive and a standby partition on the

second System Director. This step is necessary in order to build an Avid Unity ISIS file

system that maintains the data on attached storage elements and system metadata.

To create an active file system:

tOn the first System Director, click Create New Active.

An active partition is created.

To create a standby file system:

tOn the second System Director, click Create New Standby.

A standby partition is created.

Starting the First and Second System Directors

For more information on stopping and starting System Directors in a failover configuration,

see “Stopping and Starting System Directors During Failover” on page 159.

To start the first and second System Directors:

1. On the first System Director, click the Configuration tab.

2. Click Start Server.

3. On the second System Director, click the Configuration tab.

4. Click Start Server.

5. On both systems, click Close to close the System Director Control Panel.

Stopping and Starting System Directors During Failover

159

Stopping and Starting System Directors During

Failover

You might need to stop and start the System Directors during failover at various times. Avid

recommends you stop the standby System Director before stopping the active System

Director.

To determine the active and the standby System Directors:

1. On each system, select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System

Director Control Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the System Director Status Tab.

In the status box, the second line indicates either the Active mode or the Standby mode.

Status

box

Stop System Director button

8 Configuring Failover Parameters

160

To stop the System Directors:

1. On the standby System Director, select Start > Programs >

Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the System Director Status Tab.

3. Click Stop System Director.

4. On the active System Director, select Start > Programs >

Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

5. Click the System Director Status Tab.

6. Click Stop System Director.

To start the System Directors:

1. On the active System Director, select Start > Programs >

Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

2. Click the System Director Status Tab.

3. Click Start System Director.

4. On the standby System Director, select Start > Programs >

Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Control Panel.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel opens.

5. Click the System Director Status Tab.

6. Click Start System Director.

AAvid Unity ISIS System Director Control

Panel

The Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel is used to start, stop, and monitor the

Avid Unity ISIS System Director, the application running on the System Director server that

manages the overall operation of the network. The Control Panel’s tabs, buttons, and

displays provide information that help debug the media network.

For information on the System Director Control Panel, see the following topics:

•Starting the System Director Control Panel

•System Director Status Tab

•Configuration Tab

•Active Clients Tab

•MetaData Status Tab

•Advanced Settings Tab

Starting the System Director Control Panel

The System Director Control Panel provides low-level, performance-monitoring functions.

Using the Control Panel, you can view the following:

• The current status of connected clients, including name, type, ID number, and active or

inactive status

• The status of communications between the System Director and the clients

• Information on the metadata maintained by the System Director

You can also use the Control Panel to start and stop the System Director service, to configure

general or failover parameters, and to set some administrative options.

You can access the Control Panel only from the System Director.

162

To start the Control Panel:

tFrom the System Director desktop, select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System

Director > System Director Control Panel.

The System Director Control Panel opens.

The Control Panel displays information about the System Director and about the network,

organized by the following tabs:

•System Director Status Tab

•Configuration Tab

•Active Clients Tab

•MetaData Status Tab

•Advanced Settings Tab

System Director Status Tab

163

System Director Status Tab

The System Director Status tab provides status displays that provide a summary of your

network and controls that allow you to start and stop the System Director, reset the event log,

and change the bandwidth display scale.

Performance Indicators

The System Director Status tab provides several indicators of system activity and

performance. These include:

• Requests per second — current and recent System Director file system activity is

indicated by a small bar-style meter and a larger graph display, respectively.

• Megabytes/Megabits per second — current and recent System Director file system

throughput is indicated by a small bar-style meter and a larger graph display,

respectively.

• Channels in use — currently open files on the System Director file system are indicated

by a small bar-style meter.

Display

MBits/Sec

button

164

To switch the throughput indicators between Mbytes/Sec and Mbits/Sec:

tClick the Display M[Bits][Bytes]/Sec button.

Status Indicators

When no problems are detected in the media network, a green indicator is displayed with the

following messages:

• System Director is running

•Active Mode

• Both paths are up

nIf your network does not use a failover configuration, a blue indicator is displayed next to

the message, “Redundant operation is not enabled.”

• No warning events logged

• Replicated

If the indicator is yellow or red, the message changes. Use the following information to

correct the problem:

• System Director is not running — start the System Director by clicking the Start System

Director button.

• Warning events — logged significant events related to the System Director are also

logged in the Logging tab of the Administration tool. For information on how to extract

data in the system logs, see “System Logging” on page 192.

• The following error messages indicate metadata replication status:

- Replication failed — Indicates that there was an error replicating the metadata to or

from a standby System Director.

- Replication unknown — Indicates that the current replication status has not been

determined.

- Replication status not available — Indicates that the status is unknown. Most likely,

the System Director is not running.

Starting and Stopping the System Director

Make sure that clients unmount all workspaces before you stop the System Director.

Otherwise, when the clients attempt to access the workspaces, they will receive errors.

nBefore the System Director stops, multiple copies of the metadata memory are written to

various locations.

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The Start the System Director:

tPress the Start System Director button.

To Stop the System Director:

tPress the Stop System Director button.

Resetting the Event Log

If the event log was set because of a protection error, the Reset Event button will reset the

event log only after the protected files have been repaired by the System Director.

To reset the event log and the status displays after errors are received from the client:

tPress the Reset Event button.

Configuration Tab

You use the Configuration tab of the System Director Control Panel to start and stop the

System Director, to set general and failover parameters, and to open the System Director

Viewer.

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For more information, see the following topics:

•“Starting and Stopping the System Director” on page 164

•“Configuring General Settings” on page 167

•“Working with File System Operations” on page 168

•“Opening the System Director Viewer” on page 169

For information on configuring your media network for failover, see “Configuring Failover

Parameters” on page 139.

Starting and Stopping the System Director

The System Director software runs as a Windows service that starts automatically whenever

the System Director is online. However, various maintenance and administration functions

require that you shut down the System Director and then restart it.

Maintaining metadata integrity is very important to ensure you do not lose any data files.

Avid recommends you use the following shutdown procedure to avoid problems with

metadata integrity.

cIn a failover configuration, you must shut down the standby System Director before

shutting down the active System Director whenever you perform operations that

require you to shut down the System Director. Otherwise, the active System Director

fails over to the standby System Director as the active System Director shuts down.

To shut down the System Director:

1. Click the Stop Server button.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you really want to stop the System

Director.

2. Click OK.

The System Director Shutdown dialog box opens stating that it is saving multiple copies

of the metadata.

Wait for the process to finish and for the dialog box to close. When the System Director

has shut down, the System Director Status tab lists the System Director status as “Not

running.”

3. Close the System Director Control Panel.

4. Make sure the System Director software has successfully written a local copy of the

metadata file:

- Open the partition where Avid Unity ISIS System Director is installed (typically,

C:\Program Files\ Avid Technology\AvidUnityISISSystemDirector\).

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-Find the PartitionDump.bin file with a modification date from when you stopped

the System Director (if upgrading or modifying the system in any way, copy the

PartitionDump.bin to another partition before you continue).

5. If the PartitionDump.bin file exists with the correct time and date, continue to the next

step.

6. Select Start > Shut Down.

The Shut Down Windows dialog box opens.

7. Select “Shut down.”

8. Click Yes.

9. When the computer has shut down, turn off the power to the System Director.

To restart the System Director after it has been manually shut down or has failed for

any reason:

tClick the Start Server button.

Configuring General Settings

General configuration settings allow you to change the name of the virtual System Director.

cInappropriate configuration of the settings described in this section could result in

degraded system performance. Contact Avid Customer Support before attempting to

change General Configuration Options.

To change the virtual System Director name:

1. Click the General Configuration button.

The General Configuration Options dialog box opens.

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2. Type a name for the System Director in the Virtual System Director Name text box.

Give the System Director a name that is different from the Computer Name defined in

the system’s network properties.

In a failover configuration, you must specify the same virtual System Director name for

both System Directors.

3. Click OK.

Working with File System Operations

The Major File System Operations area of the Control Panel allows you to create active and

standby partitions, as well as to reconfigure existing file systems. You can also use the

Control Panel to delete file systems.

cDeleting the file system erases all data stored on the System Director.

For information on creating an active partition, see “Initializing the Avid Unity ISIS System

Director” on page 17. For information on creating a standby partition, see “Creating a New

Standby File System” on page 149.

You can reconfigure the internal memory configuration of the System Director — for

example, if you want to adjust the memory usage to take advantage of expanded memory

capabilities. Reconfiguring the file system entails the following:

• Validating the export file

• Creating new metadata

• Importing the metadata

To reconfigure the file system:

1. Click the Stop Server button.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you want to stop the System

Director.

2. Click OK.

The System Director Shutdown dialog box opens stating that it is saving multiple copies

of the metadata.

3. Click the Reconfigure File System button.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you want to reconfigure the existing

file system.

4. Click OK.

The system reconfigures its metadata and restarts the System Director.

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Opening the System Director Viewer

Installed on the System Director, the System Director Viewer is a valuable tool that allows

you to view the System Director log as it is buffered in memory. This log provides detailed

status information that is especially useful to Avid Customer Support personnel for

monitoring system status during prolonged operations.

nYou can also open the System Director Viewer by clicking

Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS System Director > System Director Viewer.

To open the System Director Viewer:

tIn the Tools area of the Configuration tab, click Launch Viewer.

Active Clients Tab

The Active Clients tab is used to display the identity of the Avid Unity ISIS clients known to

the System Director. The information listed in this tab can be used to determine if obsolete

numeric identifiers exist in the System Director.

The Active Clients tab displays all active storage elements as well as connected client

accounts. You can use the Bandwidth dialog box in the Administration tool to view only the

active client accounts (see “Monitoring Bandwidth Usage and System Status” on page 131.

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The System Director reports the current client status as described in the following table.

The box below the active clients list provides the following information:

•n clients are known or active — indicates the number of clients currently active or seen

by the System Director

•n licensed clients are allowed by dongle— indicates the number of clients licensed by

the application key (dongle)

•n licenses are in use — indicates the number of licenses are being used by the clients

currently connected to the media network

If a client fails without unmounting all workspaces, the System Director maintains the

numeric identifiers. Typically, this is not a problem because the same identifier is reused

when that client mounts a workspace the next time. However, it is possible for a client to

leave a workspace mounted, shut down the client system, and never be seen by the System

Director again. If that client system is then physically removed or renamed, the numeric

identifiers would not be removed from the identification table. If enough obsolete entries

were to accumulate, new clients might not be able to obtain numeric identifiers.

To check the license status of an active or an inactive client:

tSelect the client in the active client list, and press the Refresh License button.

To disconnect an active or an inactive client:

tSelect the client in the active client list, and press the Disconnect Client button.

Heading Description

Name Lists the name of the client.

ID Lists an internal numeric identifier used by the System Director to represent each client

that has a workspace mounted. These identifiers are assigned when a client first contacts

the System Director and remain valid until the client unmounts all workspaces.

Type Lists the client type (Macintosh or Windows).

OS Lists the operating system on the client.

License Lists the number of licenses registered to the client.

Last seen Lists the date and time when each client last sent its status to the System Director. The

System Director removes the entry when all workspaces are unmounted from the client

desktop.

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MetaData Status Tab

The MetaData Status tab displays information about the System Director’s internal

description of the file system. This metadata memory is used to record descriptions of

workspaces, folders, and files.

The metadata information includes:

• Total amount of memory in use

• Total amount of memory available

MetaData is saved to different drives in the storage element every 20 seconds. If the

metadata ever needs to be recovered, the last saved version is retrieved automatically by the

System Director. If that is the storage element that has failed, then the previous saved version

is retrieved from another storage element.

The Metadata Status box shows when the metadata was last verified, saved, and replicated.

A green indicator means no problem has been detected. A yellow indicator means the status

is uncertain. A red indicator means that a problem exists.

nMetadata memory is also saved automatically when you stop the System Director.

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The following tables lists the status messages displayed in the Metadata Status box.

Advanced Settings Tab

The Advanced Settings tab allows you to reset the System Director administrator's password

in the event that the administrator’s password is forgotten. This feature does not affect the

Windows operating system password. Windows administrator’s privileges are required to

reset the password.

You can also use the Advanced Settings tab to write all metadata information to a text file.

Status Category Messages

Verify

When the System Director is in standby mode, the Verify indicator is

disabled.

Not Active

Verified

Verify Failed

State Unknown

Save Saving

Saved

Unknown State

Not Active

Save Failed

Replicate

When the System Director is not in a failover configuration, the Replicate

indicator is disabled.

Sending

Receiving

Unknown State

Not Active

Replication Failed

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cWhen you write metadata to a file, the resulting file is extremely large and the time

required to create the file is significant. Do not use this option unless instructed to do so

by Avid Customer Support.

nYou can change the administrator’s password in the Administration tool. For information on

setting a new password, see “Modifying Client Accounts” on page 124.

To reset the administrator’s password:

1. Click Reset Administrator Password.

A dialog box warns you that this action removes the administrator’s password from the

System Director’s account.

2. Click OK.

To write the contents of metadata to a text file in the System Director directory:

tClick Dump Metadata. This should be used only as a diagnostic aid. The resulting file is

extremely large, and the time required to create the file is significant.

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BAdvanced Support Tools

This appendix lists the advanced support tools available for troubleshooting your network.

cDo not use these tools unless instructed to do so by Avid Customer Support. Improper

use could result in system downtime or data loss.

For more information about the Administration support tools, see the following topics:

•System Administration Tools

•System Statistics

•System Logging

•Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool

•Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool

•Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer Tool

•Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager Tool

•General Tools

•Installers

•Avid Unity ISIS Agents

System Administration Tools

The System tab in the Administration tool opens the System window, which allows you to

set some administrative defaults and view event information for your network. You can

perform the following functions in the System window:

• Change the administration password

• Set up e-mail notification of system events

• Start or stop the Interplay Health Monitoring service

• View the log of the Administration tool

• Use The ISIS Snapshot tool to collect information currently displayed by the

Administration tool and the Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel

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• Create and view profiles of the local system and any client attached to the System

Director

To access the system administration functions:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens, displaying general information on the status of the System

Director.

Changing the Administration Password

The System window allows you to change the password used by the administrator to access

the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24). The

administrator password allows you to log in to the Administration tool and Avid Unity ISIS

Agents for bound storage elements. You use a chassis stack password to access Avid Unity

ISIS Agents for unbound storage elements and chassis switches. For information on the

Agents, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208.

cTo protect your configuration, Avid recommends that you specify a password the first

time you use the Administration tool. If you do not set a password, anyone can access

the tool from your system.

To change the administration password:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select System Director > Change Password.

The Change Administration Password dialog box opens.

4. In the Current Password text box, type the old password.

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5. In the New Password text box, type the new password (a maximum of 15 characters),

and then type it again in the Verify Password text box.

6. Click Change to save the new password.

Setting up Error Notification

You can configure the System Director software to notify you when problems occur. An

error notification service regularly polls the client log file and, if any errors are logged, sends

a concise summary of those errors to one or more e-mail accounts.

The Notification Service Control Panel displays the current status of the notification service,

and allows you to start and stop the service. You can also test the e-mail notification service

(see “Setting Up E-mail Error Notification Contacts” on page 179).

For a full list of error messages, see “Avid Unity ISIS E-mail Notification List” on page 251.

To stop or start the notification service:

tClick the Stop or the Start button.

The Status line indicates the service is either stopped or running.

For more information on e-mail error notification, see the following topics:

•Configuring the E-mail Error Notification Service

•Setting Up E-mail Error Notification Contacts

Configuring the E-mail Error Notification Service

The configuration information for the notification service (SMTP information, contacts, and

filters) is currently stored in the registry on the System Director. This information is not

currently replicated to the failover server, so you need to enter configuration information for

notification service on both System Directors.

To configure the e-mail error notification service:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

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3. Select System Director > Notification Service.

The Notification Service Control Panel opens.

4. In the Notification Service General Configuration area, configure the parameters as

follows:

- Poll Frequency (seconds) — Specify the frequency (by setting an interval in

seconds) with which the error notification service checks for problems.

- SMTP Server — Specify the IP address or host name of your SMTP server. If you

are unsure of this address, contact your network administrator.

- SMTP Port — Specify the port number of your SMTP server. If you are unsure of

the port number, contact your network administrator. The default value (25) is

appropriate in most instances.

- Return Address — Type the e-mail address of your Avid Unity ISIS administrator

or other primary contact for the error notification service.

5. Click Update.

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Setting Up E-mail Error Notification Contacts

You can add to, edit, and delete your Administration tool e-mail notification list.

To add an e-mail account to the Contact list:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select System Director > Notification Service.

The Notification Service Control Panel opens.

4. In the Notification Service Contact Configuration area, click Add New Contact.

The Add Contact dialog box opens.

5. In the Name text box, type a name for the contact account.

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6. In the E-mail text box, type the e-mail address (in the standard person@domain.com

format) to which the message should be sent. You can use the Reset button to clear the

text fields and return to the Notification Service Control Panel.

7. Click the Submit button.

The Add Contact dialog box closes and the contact information is added to the Contacts

list.

8. (Option) Repeat steps 4 to 7 to add more contacts.

To edit an existing contact:

1. Click any of the fields in the Contact list for the contact you want to edit.

The Edit Contact dialog box opens.

2. Change the Name and E-mail address information.

3. Click Submit.

The changes are applied.

To test the contact configuration:

1. Click the Test button.

The Test Notification Service Configuration text box opens.

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2. Select the following options, as needed:

- Generate test e-mail

- Generate test error message

- Generate test warning message

- Generate test informational message

3. Click Submit.

The SMTP Session Transcript window opens and displays the results of the test.

To remove a contact:

1. Click Delete next to the contact you want to remove from the Contact list.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you really want to delete the contact.

2. Click OK.

The contact is removed from the list.

Configuring the Error Notification Parameters

The Events area of the Event Notification Configuration dialog box allows you to specify the

type of error message that triggers an e-mail notification and to set parameters for each type

of error message — Error, Information, and Warning messages.

You can set the Filter category to one of the following:

•Always — always filters messages, so contacts listed in the Contacts area are not

notified when the Event Notification Service logs an error

•Threshold — notifies the contacts listed in the Contacts area when errors exceed the

threshold limits set in the Count and Time columns

•Never — never filters messages, so contacts listed in the Contacts area are notified when

the Event Notification Service logs any Error, Information, or Warning message

Starting and Stopping the ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service

The ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service allows you to view the health of the Avid

workgroup network at a glance using the Avid Interplay Health Monitor.

The Avid Interplay workgroup environment uses asset management applications to access

and organize media assets stored in the Avid Unity ISIS system. Interplay utilizes the media

assets within the Avid Unity ISIS media network.

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The Health Monitor displays a variety of information provided by each of the registered

Avid components on your media network and notifies you with a warning or critical

indication if a component goes beyond its normal operating range. Different Avid services

can supply custom health information to the monitor tailored to their specific functionality.

If your media network has a failover configuration, you must enable the Health Monitoring

Service on both the active System Director and the standby System Director.

For more information on the Avid Interplay Health Monitor, see the Avid Interplay

Framework User’s Guide.

To start or to stop the Health Monitoring Service:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select System Director > Interplay Health Monitoring.

The Interplay Health Monitoring Status dialog box opens.

4. Select or deselect Enable the ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service.

5. Type the name of the workgroup your system is configured to monitor in the Interplay

Workgroup Name text box.

6. Click Submit.

The service starts or stops, depending on the current status.

To start the Health Monitoring Service in a failover configuration:

1. On the active System Director, open the Administration tool, and click the System tab.

The System window opens.

2. Select System Director > Interplay Health Monitoring.

The Interplay Health Monitoring Status dialog box opens.

3. Select Enable the ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service.

4. Type the name of the workgroup your system is configured to monitor in the Interplay

Workgroup Name text box.

5. Click Submit.

The service starts on the active System Director.

6. From the active System Director desktop, select Start > Programs > Avid Unity ISIS

System Director > System Director Control Panel.

The System Director Control Panel opens.

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7. Click the System Director Status tab, and press the Stop System Director button.

The active System Director stops, and the standby System Director becomes active.

8. On the newly-active System Director desktop, repeat steps 1 through 5.

9. (Option) If you want to return the failover configuration to its original state, repeat steps

6 and 7 to return the System Directors to their original status.

Viewing the Administration Tool Log

You can view the log of the Administration tool from the System tab of the tool. The log lists

the actions reported by the Administration tool, including informational messages (such as

when upgrades occur), errors, and warnings. You can sort the log entries by column or

filtered. The log lists the following data for each event:

•Type — The categories are the following: Info, Error, Warning

•Time — The time of the logged event

•IP — The IP address of the System Director

•User — The ISIS user who initiated the event

•Message — Detailed information about the event

To view the Administration tool log:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

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3. Select System Director > View Administration Log.

The Administration Tool log dialog box opens.

4. (Option) To filter the log entries, do the following:

a. Click the Filter menu and select the category you want to filter — Type, Time, IP,

User, or Message.

b. In the Filter text box, type the appropriate keyword(s).

c. Click Filter. To view all log entries, click Show All.

5. (Option) If you want to view a smaller or larger number of log entries, type a number in

the View text box and click Enter. The default number of log entries displayed is 500.

6. If the log contains more entries than it displays, use the Navigation controls to move

through the log.

The Avid Unity ISIS Snapshot Tool

The ISIS Snapshot tool collects information currently displayed by the Administration tool

and the Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel and allows you to view and archive

the information. This snapshot of your ISIS system at a single point in time, coupled with

the system logs collected by the Log Aggregator tool (see “Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator

Tool” on page 196), can be used by Avid Customer Support personnel to diagnose and

troubleshoot problems.

Filter menu Filter text box

View

text

box

Navigation controls

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The Snapshot tool collects information from the following pages, dialog boxes, and tabs of

the Administration tool and the Control Panel:

Creating, Viewing, and Deleting Snapshots

You use the Avid Unity ISIS Snapshot tool to create a detailed view of your system at a

particular time. The snapshot is saved as a series of CSV files, one for each component in the

system, and a summary file in HTML format. Snapshot files are saved in folder named by

the timestamp of the snapshot and the System Director name — for example,

07-17-07 101321 SD1 — at the following location within the application directory:

AvidUnityISIS\webroot\mm-dd-yy hhmmss SystemDirectorName

You can also download the snapshot in compressed form as a ZIP file by clicking the

Download link.

Category Description

General Info Includes the System Director computer name and virtual name, the

snapshot run date, and a link to the compressed snapshot file

ISIS Components Lists the ISIS components from the Command menu of the

Administration tool, any warnings or errors logged, and a link to a

comma separated value (CSV) file for each component containing the

information displayed in the Details area of each component page; you

can open the CSV file with an appropriate text editing application

Warnings and Errors Lists all warnings and errors currently logged for all components in the

ISIS system (warnings and errors are indicated by action markers in the

Administration tool (for more information, see “Command Menu” on

page 27)

System Director Status Summarizes the information on the System Director Status tab of the

System Director Control Panel (for more information, see “System

Director Status Tab” on page 163)

System Director Metadata Summarizes the information on the Metadata Status tab of the System

Director Control Panel (for more information, see “MetaData Status

Tab” on page 171)

Failover Settings Summarizes the information on the System Director Failover

Configuration dialog box of the System Director Control Panel (for

more information, see “Configuring Failover Parameters” on page 139)

Preferences Summarizes the information on the Preferences dialog box, accessed

from the Administration tool (for more information, see “Setting

System Preferences” on page 129)

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To create a snapshot of the ISIS system:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select ISIS Snapshot > Create new snapshot.

The Snapshot tool creates a snapshot and displays the information in the System

window.

To view a list of all current and archived snapshots, do the following:

tSelect ISIS Snapshot > View All. There must be at least one current snapshot for this

option to display in the Command menu.

The Snapshot tool displays a list of all of the saved and archived snapshots.

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To delete the current snapshot:

1. Do one of the following:

tIf the snapshot you want to delete is displayed in the System window, select ISIS

Snapshot >Delete this.

tIf the snapshot you want to delete is not displayed, select ISIS Snapshot > View all,

locate the snapshot you want to delete, and then click Delete.

2. Click OK to confirm the deletion.

The Snapshot tool deletes the selected snapshot.

To delete all snapshots:

1. Select ISIS Snapshot > Delete all snapshots.

2. Click OK to confirm the deletion.

The Snapshot tool deletes all snapshots listed in the System window.

Working with Snapshot Archives

When the Snapshot tool creates a snapshot, it creates a folder which includes a compressed

file containing all information collected by the tool. You can combine snapshots into an

archive to keep track of the system status — for example, you could archive snapshots

weekly or monthly. The Snapshot tool compresses archives in a ZIP file (archivename.zip).

Archives are stored in folders named by the timestamp of the snapshot and the System

Director name — for example, 07-17-07 101321 SD1. The compressed archive uses the

same file name format as the snapshot folder and is saved to the following location within

the application directory:

AvidUnityISIS\webroot\mm-dd-yy hhmmss SystemDirectorName

You can also download the archive in compressed form as a ZIP file by clicking the

Download link.

To create a snapshot archive:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select ISIS Snapshot > Create new archive.

4. Click OK to confirm building a new archive from all current snapshots.

The Snapshot tool creates an archive and lists it in the System window.

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To delete a snapshot archive:

1. Select ISIS Snapshot > View all.

2. Locate the archive you want to delete, and then click Delete.

3. Click OK to confirm the deletion.

The Snapshot tool deletes the selected archive.

To delete all archive:

1. Select ISIS Snapshot > Delete all archives.

2. Click OK to confirm the deletion.

The Snapshot tool deletes all archives listed in the System window.

Using the Profile Tool

The Profile tool detects the current versions of required software, drivers, and hardware

components that are installed on a System Director. You can view, save, or delete profiles,

but you cannot use the Profile tool to edit or modify the information.

Profiles are typically used by Avid Customer Support to help determine problems with

installed versions of the operating system, drivers, adapter boards, or firmware.

To view profiles of the local system:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select Profile > View all.

The Profiles dialog box opens.

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4. Click Open in the row containing the profile you want to view.

The profile displays in the Profiles window.

To create a new profile:

1. Open the Administration tool. (For information on opening the Administration tool, see

“Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24.)

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

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3. Select Profile > Create new.

The new profile displays in the Profiles window.

To delete a profile from the Profile window:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the System tab.

The System window opens.

3. Select Profile > View all.

The Profiles dialog box opens.

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4. Click Delete in the row containing the profile you want to view. You can also delete the

current profile displayed in the Profile window by selecting Delete All from the Profile

list on the left.

A dialog box opens, prompting you to confirm that you really want to delete the profile.

5. Click OK.

System Statistics

You can use the Statistics window to view basic information about your system and your

network. You cannot edit the information displayed in the Statistics window.

The following table describes the information available in the Statistics window:

Type Heading Description

General System Information Lists the basic properties of the system running the System

Director software.

Memory Information Lists statistics about system memory.

Running Processes Lists the processes currently running on the local system.

Network Lists detailed information about network communication.

Agent Agent Environment Lists information about the connection between the agent and

the System Director.

Agent Statistics Lists information about the communication between the

agent and the System Director.

Agent Configuration Lists the parameter values for agent/server communication.

Browser Details Lists details about the connected browser

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To access statistical information about your system:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the Statistics tab.

The Statistics window opens.

3. Select one of the following from the Local System menu:

- General

-Network

- Agent

System Logging

The Logging tab provides a complete view of the logs of a network, including active storage

elements, System Directors, and clients. You can filter the log reports to display messages

about the network, the Avid Unity ISIS file system, or security information. This provides

you with system snapshot that you can use to view error and status messages. The logs

provide detailed status information that is especially useful to Avid Customer Support

personnel for monitoring system status during prolonged operations.

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For more information on the Logging tab, see the following topics:

•“Using System Logging” on page 193

•“Accessing the Logging Window” on page 194

•“Viewing Event Logs” on page 194

•“Clearing Event Logs” on page 195

Using System Logging

The Logging window contains two sections:

• System area — the left area allows you to select specific logging options to display.

• Logs area — the right area displays different types of events and information from the

Avid Unity ISIS components.

System logging allows you to select the events to view by restricting the logs to the

following categories:

•System — Displays events associated with system configuration

•Application — Displays events associated with the functioning of the System Director

software

•Security — Displays events related to security in the network

Logs area

System area

194

Accessing the Logging Window

You can use the Logging window to view event logs and to clear existing logs.

To access System Logging functions:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

Viewing Event Logs

To view event logs:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

3. In the Entries to view text box, type the number of events to display. The default is 100.

If you want to view all events, type “0” (zero) in the Entries to view text box.

System Logging

195

4. Click the Log to view menu, and select one of the following:

-System

- Application

-Security

5. Click View.

The event log displays in the Logs area.

Clearing Event Logs

You can clear the logs in any of the logging categories. This empties the log of all event

entries and resets the logging process.

To clear logs:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

196

3. Click the Log to clear menu, and select one of the following:

-System

- Application

-Security

4. Click the Clear button.

5. Click OK.

The event log for the selected category is cleared, and logging is reset to start recording

new events.

Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool

The Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator tool allows you to collect a full set of the event logs

and system statistics of a network, including active storage elements, Avid Unity ISIS switch

blades, and the System Director. You can select which information — from the network, the

System Director software, storage elements, and switches — you want to collect in the log

reports. This provides you with a system record that you can use to view error and status

messages. The logs provide detailed status information that is especially useful to Avid

Customer Support personnel for monitoring system status during prolonged operations.

cDo not use the Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator unless instructed to do so by Avid

Customer Support. Improper use could result in system downtime or degraded

performance.

For more information on the Log Aggregator, see the following topics:

•“Using the Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool” on page 196

•“Creating Aggregate Logs” on page 198

•“Viewing Aggregate Logs” on page 200

Using the Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool

The Log Aggregator lists all components of the media network in a tree view. You can select

events to log in two ways:

• You can view events for all components in the media network by selecting all active

Avid Unity ISIS systems in the Selection area (the highest level in the tree view).

• You can view events for any subset of components by selecting one or more entries in

the Selection area (at a level lower than the Avid Unity ISIS Systems in the tree view).

Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool

197

nYou must run the Log Aggregator from a system with network access to the entire media

network. Otherwise, the tool cannot collect logs for all systems connected to the network.

To open the Log Aggregator tool:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

The Avid Unity ISIS Home page opens.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick Log Aggregation.

tClick the Quick Launch menu, and select Log Aggregation.

If any Web site security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not

sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your system

administrator.

The Login dialog box opens.

3. In the text box, type your Avid Unity ISIS password, and click OK.

The Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator dialog box opens. You can click the Refresh

button to update the tree view at any time.

Selection

area

Progress

bar

Configure

button

Collect button

Close button

Refresh

button

Target directory

for compressed

logs

198

To close the Log Aggregator:

1. Click the Close button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm that you want to quit the Log Aggregator.

2. Click Yes.

Creating Aggregate Logs

To use the Log Aggregator, you must have administration privileges and be logged into a

system with access to the media network.

To create logs with the Log Aggregator tool:

1. Open the Log Aggregator tool. (For information on opening the Log Aggregator, see

“Using the Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool” on page 196.)

2. In the Selection area, do one of the following:

tSelect all active Avid Unity ISIS systems to view events from all components in the

media network.

tSelect one or more components to view events from specific System Directors,

storage elements, and clients attached to the network.

Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator Tool

199

3. Click the Configure button.

The Aggregation Options dialog box opens.

4. Do the following to customize the data collected in the event logs:

- In the Common Aggregation Options area, select the types of logs or information

you want to collect.

- In the Storage Element Aggregation Options area, select the types of statistics or

logs you want to collect.

- In the Switch Blade Aggregation Options area, select the types of information you

want to collect.

- In the Archive Options area, select the option if you want to create a compressed

file (aggregation_results.zip). The Target Directory box in the Log Aggregator lists

the directory where the log is saved.

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- In the Resource use area, adjust the slider to maximize the use of resources in your

system when collecting logs. The default number of threads is 10. A lower number

uses fewer system resources but requires more time to complete log aggregation; a

higher number uses more resources but completes the operation faster.

5. Click OK to close the Aggregator Options dialog box and return to the Log Aggregator.

6. (Option) In the Target Directory area, click Browse to navigate to a directory for the

saved logs.

7. Click the Collect button.

The progress bar indicates the status of the log aggregation. The Log Aggregator

displays a Success icon (green) or a Fail icon (red) for each system and component

logged. (You can cancel the log aggregation process by clicking the Abort button.)

Viewing Aggregate Logs

The Log Aggregator saves individual logs in a log directory called

UnityISISLogs__date-time at the location indicated in the Target Directory area in the Log

Aggregator. Subdirectories include separate logs for each component in the network for

which you created logs. The Log Aggregator also creates a compressed file containing all

logs in the top-level folder (aggregator_results.zip). You can forward this compressed file to

your Avid representative if requested by Avid Customer Support.

To view saved logs:

1. Navigate to the directory where the Log Aggregator saved the collected logs.

2. Double-click the file name of the log you want to view.

Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool

The Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester runs basic disk performance tests on your storage elements.

The tests include the following, which you can run in either Sequential or in Random access

mode:

• Read test

• Write test

• Read/Write test

• Erase test

You can also use the Disk Tester to collect statistics on the status of storage elements,

network use, and redistribution actions, including statistics generated by Self-Monitoring,

Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.) and by local storage element

processes — for example, statistics on Long Command Times (LCT).

Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool

201

You can run the Disk Tester on more than one storage element at a time; however, running

the tests might degrade performance on the media network. You should not run the Disk

Tester unless instructed to do so by Avid Customer Support.

For information on running performance tests with the Disk Tester, see the following topics:

•“Opening the Disk Tester Tool” on page 201

•“Using the Disk Tester Tool” on page 202

Opening the Disk Tester Tool

To open the Disk Tester:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

The Avid Unity ISIS Home page opens.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick ISB Disk Verification.

tClick the Quick Launch menu, and select ISB Disk Verification.

If any Web site security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not

sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your system

administrator.

The Login dialog box opens.

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3. In the text box, type your Avid Unity ISIS password, and click OK.

The Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester dialog box opens. You can click the Refresh button to

update the tree view at any time.

Using the Disk Tester Tool

To run a test on the Disk Tester:

1. Open the Disk Tester.

2. Click the Disk Tester menu and select one of the following:

- Execute disk tests

- Collect disk statistics

- Collect network statistics

- Collect redistribution statistics

3. In the Selection area, do one of the following:

tSelect all active Avid Unity ISIS systems to test all storage elements in the media

network.

tSelect one or more storage elements to test specific components in the network.

Selection

area

Refresh button Run button

Results

area

Disk Tester menu

Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester Tool

203

4. Click the Run button.

If you selected Execute disk tests, the Disk Test Options dialog box opens.

5. (Option) Select the appropriate options for the test you want to run.

6. Click OK to close the Disk Test Options dialog box and return to the Disk Tester.

Results of the test display in the Results area.

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Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer Tool

The Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer provides a quick look at the connection status of

all storage elements in the media network. The Connection Analyzer displays connection

status in a grid, using the following color coding to denote the status of each storage

element:

To open the Connection Analyzer and test the connection status of storage elements:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

The Avid Unity ISIS Home page opens.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick ISB Connection Analysis.

tClick the Quick Launch menu, and select ISB Connection Analysis.

If any Web site security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not

sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your system

administrator.

The Login dialog box opens.

Color Status

Green Has Session — Connected.

Red No Session — Not connected.

White Session Not Needed — An ISB returning a “not needed” status for another ISB. In

day-to-day operation, it is unlikely to see this state; however, it might appear as a transient

state during the ISB initialization phase following a restart.

Gray Communication failure — Unable to determine status — for example, the agent is not

running or there is a network problem between the Connection Analyzer tool and the ISB

Yellow Microserver failure — Failure in the request from the agent to the ISB for session

information — for example, a failed resulting from the ISB not running or the ISB not

servicing the request before it timed out. Do not replace the ISB without additional

analysis.

Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer Tool

205

3. In the text box, type your Avid Unity ISIS password, and click OK.

The Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer dialog box opens and checks the connection

status of all storage elements in the network. The tool displays results in a color-coded

grid.

If you place your pointer over a block in the grid, a tooltip indicates to which storage

elements the status applies. This is useful when you have a more storage elements than

can be displayed in the dialog box and you need to use the scroll bars to view a specific

connection.

4. (Option) Click the Analyze button to update the status of ISBs without reloading the

entire storage element list from the System Director.

5. (Option) Click the Refresh button to reload the storage element list from the System

Director prior to updating the status of ISBs.

Analyze

button

Refresh

button

Tooltip

206

Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager Tool

The Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager tool allows you to reset the error count for any chassis

switch (ISS or IXS).

To reset the switch error count:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

The Avid Unity ISIS Home page opens.

2. Do one of the following:

tClick Switch Management.

tClick the Quick Launch menu, and select Switch Management.

If any Web site security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not

sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your system

administrator.

Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager Tool

207

The Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager dialog box opens. You can click the Refresh

button to update the tree view at any time.

3. In the Switches area, do one of the following:

tSelect Avid Unity ISIS Systems to reset error counts from all active switches in the

media network.

tSelect one or more switches to reset error counts from specific switches attached to

the network.

4. Click the Run button.

The Status area displays the results of the reset operation.

To close the Switch Manager:

1. Click the Close button.

A dialog box opens asking you to confirm that you want to quit the Switch Manager.

2. Click Yes.

Selection

area

Status

area

Reset button

Refresh button

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General Tools

The Tools tab in the System Administration tool also provides you with the following

standard utility tests:

•Ping — allows you to test the connection between a system in the media network and

the System Director

• Traceroute — allows you to verify the path between a system in the media network and

the System Director

nYou must have Administrator privileges to run either of these utility tests.

Installers

The Installers tab of the Administration tool lists which installers have been downloaded to

the System Director, including the version number and the qualified operating system. You

can use these installers to update the Avid Unity ISIS software on clients and hardware

within the network.

You can also install client software and third-party software from the Installers tab.

nIf you encounter problems with the Administration tool display, you might have an outdated

version of Macromedia Flash Player installed on your system, or you might have multiple

versions installed. To uninstall any previous versions of Flash Player before installing the

current version, select the uninstall_flash_player.exe option.

For more information on installing upgrades, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

You can view detailed information about all storage elements and all chassis switches

connected to the media network by using the Avid Unity ISIS Agents. The Agents run as a

Web service on the storage elements — Avid Unity ISIS Storage Blades (ISB) — and on the

chassis switches — Avid Unity ISIS Integrated Switch Blades (ISS) and Avid Unity ISIS

Expansion Switch Blades (IXS). You can access the Agents during installation and

configuration procedures by attaching a laptop to the Management port on the ISS or IXS, or

you can access them during normal system operations from the Administration tool.

You can also access the Agents from the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool. For more

information, see “Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool” on page 239.

nYou must have Administrator privileges to access the Agents.

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

209

To open an Avid Unity ISIS Agent:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Select one of the following from the list on the left:

- Storage Elements

- Chassis

The Storage Elements dialog box or the Chassis dialog box opens.

3. Select a storage element or a chassis, and do one of the following:

tClick the Details button.

tDouble-click the storage element name or the chassis name.

The Details area opens.

4. Select a storage element or a chassis switch, and do one of the following:

tClick the Info button.

tDouble-click the storage element name or the chassis switch name.

If any Web site certification warnings open, accept the certificate. If you are not sure

about the security requirements of your media network, see your system administrator.

The Login dialog box opens in a separate browser.

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5. Type your password in the Administrator password text box, and click the Login button.

If you log in to a a storage blade agent for an unbound storage element or to a switch

blade agent, you must use the chassis stack password and not the Avid Unity ISIS

system password.

The Agent opens, with the System tab selected by default. (The following figure

illustrates the Avid ISIS Switch Blade Agent.)

For more information on the Avid Unity ISIS agent, see the following topics:

•Understanding the Agent Interface

•Using the Log Viewer Tool

•System Tab

•Statistics Tab

•Logging Tab

•Advanced Tab

Understanding the Agent Interface

The Avid Unity ISIS Agent, which you can run on the System Director or any

Ethernet-attached client, has a user interface where controls are grouped by function and are

displayed by clicking the appropriate buttons.

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

211

The following figure illustrates the Avid ISIS Switch Blade Agent with the System tab

selected.

The Agent is divided into the following areas:

• The Command menu, which contains the options used for basic management functions.

You can access different Command functions by clicking the tabs at the top of the Agent

tool. The System tab is selected by default.

• The Main display area, which displays information about your network and allows you

to configure components.

Main display areaCommand menu

Tabs

212

When you access switch blade agents and submit a request for an action — for example,

when you change the level of detail for chassis logs — a message tells you that the request

was successfully or unsuccessfully submitted, and the progress of the request is reported to

the Main display area.

For more information on the Agent interface, see the following topics:

•System Tab

•Statistics Tab

•Tools Tab

•Logging Tab

•Advanced Tab

Request pending message

Request completed message

Progress

bar

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

213

System Tab

The System tab allows you to view configuration information for storage elements and

chassis switches. The System tab lists general information about component status, version,

and usage. You can also start and stop storage elements and add or remove chassis. For

information on adding and removing network components, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup

Guide.

You can also create, modify, and delete link aggregation configurations. Link aggregation,

sometimes called trunking, allows you to combine physical network links into a single

logical link for increased bandwidth. Link aggregation can increase the capacity and

availability of the communication channel between devices (both switches and clients) using

existing Ethernet technologies in such a way that two or more Ethernet connections can be

combined to increase the bandwidth capability and to create resilient and redundant links.

Link aggregation also provides load-balancing where the processing and communications

activity is distributed across several links so that no single link is overwhelmed.

Your Avid Unity ISIS system supports two kinds of link aggregation:

• 10-Gb Link Aggregation — combines two or more 10-Gb Ethernet connections

• Hi-Gig Link Aggregation — combines two integrated switches (IXS)

cLink aggregation is configured during setup and installation of your Avid Unity ISIS

media network. Changing the configuration can disrupt all link aggregation for your

network and degrade system performance. Do not modify configuration values unless

instructed to do so by Avid Customer Support.

Configuration values are set during installation and are displayed in the System tab. By

default, the System tab displays general status information about the storage element and

allows you to stop or to start the storage element with the Storage Element Control Panel

(see “Stopping and Starting Storage Elements” on page 216).

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The Show Version Information option Displays current software version of the component.

The System tab for chassis switches allows you to view configuration, link aggregation, and

versioning information. You can use the System tab to access information on any chassis

switch (see “Viewing System Information for Individual Chassis Switches” on page 217).

System Information

The following table summarizes the information available in the System tab for chassis

switches.

Menu Option Description

System Overview Displays a snapshot view of the status of switches and

information about the stacking state of the network chassis.

Configuration Basic Displays basic setup and configuration information about a

chassis switch.

Changing configuration IP addresses can affect network

connectivity.

The Basic option also allows you to set the date and time on a

chassis switch. This resets the date and time for all storage

elements in the chassis as well. For more information, see

“Setting Chassis Time” on page 217.

Set stack password Allows you to change the password for a chassis stack

(maximum of 8 characters). Changing the stack password

affects all connected storage elements and chassis in the stack.

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215

Add/Remove

chassis

Allows you to add a chassis to or remove a chassis from the

network. For more information on adding and removing

chassis, see the Avid Unity ISIS Setup Guide.

Reboot chassis Allows you to reboot all storage elements and switches in a

chassis at one time.

Flush chassis

manager logs

Allows you to dump all current chassis logs to the \var\log

directory on the storage blades.

Set chassis manager

log level

Allows you to set the level of detail collected in chassis logs:

• Normal

• More Verbose

• Extra Verbose

The Chassis Manager — the application running on the

switch — maintains logs and periodically collects them in a

compressed file.

Normal is selected by default.

10 Gb Link Aggregation View current

settings

Displays the current configuration used for link aggregation,

including the link type and the chassis port map

Create new group Allows you to define a new link aggregation group.

Link aggregation is configured during setup and installation of

your Avid Unity ISIS media network. Changing the

configuration can disrupt all link aggregation for your network

and degrade system performance. Do not modify configuration

values unless instructed to do so by Avid Customer Support.

Enable/disable Lists the network link aggregation configurations for the

chassis and allows you to enable or disable them.

Enabling or disabling link aggregation affects all

configurations in the network.

Restart Lists the network link aggregation configurations for the

chassis and allows you to restart them.

Restarting link aggregation stops all configurations in the

network and restarts them.

Delete configuration Allows you to delete all of the current link aggregation

configurations for your network.

Configure Failover

Policy

Allows you to enable or disable failover for all current link

aggregation configurations for your network.

Menu Option Description (Continued)

216

Stopping and Starting Storage Elements

You can use the Storage Element Control Panel to start and stop storage blade processes.

This can be useful if you need to restart a storage element for the purposes of

troubleshooting a problem.

cStopping a storage element while a client is writing to it can disrupt network

performance.

To stop or to start a storage element:

1. Open the Storage Blade Agent (see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208).

2. Click the System tab if it is not already selected.

The System window opens.

3. In the Storage Element Control Panel, click the Stop or the Start button.

Hi-Gig Link Aggregation Enable/Disable Allows you to enable or disable Hi-Gig link aggregation.

Enabling Hi-Gig link aggregation stops all switches in the

chassis and restarts them.

Versioning Show Version

Information

Displays current software version of the component.

Menu Option Description (Continued)

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

217

Viewing System Information for Individual Chassis Switches

When you log in to a selected ISS or IXS, you can use the System tab of the Switch Blade

Agent to access information about any switch, not just the selected one.

To view system information for a chassis switch:

1. Open the Switch Blade Agent (see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208).

2. Click the System tab if it is not already selected.

The System window opens.

3. In the Management Domain area, click a switch listed in the Serial Number column.

The agent displays information for the switch in the Main display area.

Setting Chassis Time

You can set the time for all storage elements connected to your chassis switch by using the

Switch Blade Agent. You can also use a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server to establish

the time for your system. Setting chassis time synchronizes the time for all storage elements

and, in systems with multiple chassis, on all switches.

To set the time for a chassis:

1. Open the Switch Blade Agent (see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208).

2. Click the System tab if it is not already selected.

The System window opens.

218

3. Select Configuration > Basic.

The Chassis Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Do one of the following:

tTo configure your system to use NTP to synchronize storage elements with a

network reference, select Enable network time protocol, and then type the

IP address of a primary NTP server. You can also type the IP address of a secondary

NTP server.

tTo set the time for a chassis manually, type the date and time in the Date and Time

text boxes, and then select a time zone from the Time Zone menu.

5. (Option) Select “Automatically reset blades after heartbeat timeout.”

6. Click the Submit button.

Statistics Tab

You can use the Statistics tab to view basic information about your network or network

components. The Statistics tab provides you with statistics for the local system and for the

storage element or switch.

For information on using the Statistics tab, see the following topics:

•Using the Statistics Window

•Statistics Tab Information

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

219

Using the Statistics Window

To access statistical information about the local component:

1. Open the Agent (see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208).

2. Click the Statistics tab.

The Statistics window opens.

3. Select an option from the Command menu.

Statistics Tab Information

The following table describes the information available in the Statistics tab for the local

system:

Type Heading Description

General System Information Lists the basic properties of the system running the

System Director software

Memory Information Lists statistics about system memory

Running Processes Lists the processes currently running on the local system

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The following table describes the information available in the Statistics tab for storage

elements:

Network Lists detailed information about network

communication

Agent Agent Environment Lists settings specific to the agent service

Agent Statistics Lists start time and statistics applicable to agent

connections

Agent Configuration Lists agent service configuration parameter values

Browser Details Lists details about the connected browser

Agent <-> Chassis Manager

Interface (switch blade

agent only)

Lists basic version information about the

agent-to-chassis interface

Type Heading Description (Continued)

Type Description

General Displays the basic properties of the storage element

Disk Displays detailed information about disk properties and disk use

Disk S.M.A.R.T. Retrieves S.M.A.R.T. statistics for the storage element

S.M.A.R.T. is an industry-standard reporting method.

Redistribution Displays information about the storage element’s status during current

redistribution pass

Performance Displays information about the storage element’s performance

Network Displays information about the current network status and connectivity between

the storage element and the System Director

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

221

The following table describes the information available in the Statistics tab for switches:

Tools Tab

The Tools tab provides you with network tools and component utilities that generate basic

information on network functioning and low-level information on storage elements and

switches. These tools are used primarily by Avid Customer Support to diagnose problems

with components of the media network.

The Tools tab for storage elements provides access to the Console Viewer. For information

on the Console Viewer, see “Using the Log Viewer Tool” on page 222.

For more information, see the following topics:

•“Agent Tools” on page 222

•“Using the Log Viewer Tool” on page 222

Type Description

Port Status:

• View by chip

• View by function

Displays information about port status grouped either by chip (matching

the physical location of the port on the switch) or by function (for

example, stacking ports or external client ports)

Port Errors:

• View by chip

• View by function

• Reset all error counts

Lists port errors grouped either by chip (matching the physical location of

the port on the switch) or by function (for example, stacking ports or

external client ports); also allows you to clear all error counts

Chassis:

• Status

Displays detailed information about the chassis, including its components,

the status of each part of the switch, and stacking information

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Agent Tools

The following table describes the tools available on the Tools tab for both storage elements

and switches:

Using the Log Viewer Tool

This tab allows you to access the storage blade Log Viewer tool. The Log Viewer tool

displays event information about storage elements. You cannot save the information

displayed in the Log Viewer tool, but you can copy it to a word processing application, such

as Notepad. You can also save event logs displayed in the Logging tab (see “Saving Logs”

on page 226). The information is used primarily by Avid Customer Support personnel to

help analyze problems with storage elements.

nThe Log Viewer tool is available on the storage element Agent only.

To monitor event information about storage elements:

1. Open the Avid Unity ISIS Storage Blade Agent (see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page

208).

2. Click the Tools tab, and then select Storage Element Tools > Console viewer.

If any Web site security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not

sure about the security requirements of your media network, see your system

administrator.

Tool Description

General Tools:

•ping

• traceroute

•df

Allow you to test the connections between components in the

media network, to verify the path between components, and to run

the Linux df command

Blade Tools

•i2cio

•istate

•ivers

• route show

Allow you to run low-level tests to generate data to identify

problems with components in the media network

Storage Element Tools

• Console viewer

From the storage element Agent, allows you to access the Log

Viewer tool (for information on the Log Viewer tool, see “Using the

Log Viewer Tool” on page 222)

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

223

The Log Viewer tool opens.

3. Select an option as described in the following table:

Logging Tab

The Logging tab provides a complete view of the logs of active storage elements and

switches. The logs provide you with a system snapshot that you can use to view error and

status messages. The logs provide detailed status information that is especially useful to

Avid Customer Support personnel for monitoring system status during prolonged

operations.

Option Description

Continue Resumes monitoring storage element events

Pause Stops monitoring storage element events

Clear Clears all event data from the Console View tool

Resync Restores previously-cleared event data to the Console View tool

Autoscroll Scrolls the display to the bottom of the page

Refresh Rate (sec) Sets the rate at which the Console View tool refreshes event data

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For more information on the Logging tab, see the following topics:

•Using Agent Logging

•Viewing Agent Event Logs

•Clearing Agent Event Logs

Using Agent Logging

You can use the Logging tab to view event logs and to clear existing logs.The Logging tab

contains two sections:

• Options area: the left area allows you to select specific logging options to display and to

perform administrative tasks relating to the agent logs.

nThe Kernel Ring Buffer displays logs maintained by the Linux kernel. These logs are used by

Avid Customer Support.

• Logs area: the right area displays different types of events and information from the

network component.

To access Agent Logging functions:

1. Open the Agent. (For information on opening the Agent, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents”

on page 208.)

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

Logs panel

Options

panel

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

225

Viewing Agent Event Logs

To view event logs:

1. Open the Agent. (For information on opening the Agent, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents”

on page 208.)

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

3. In the Entries to view text box, type the number of events to display. The default is 100.

If you want to view all events, type “0” (zero) in the Entries to view text box.

4. Click View.

The event log displays in the Logs area.

Clearing Agent Event Logs

You can clear the logs in any of the logging categories. This empties the log of all event

entries and resets the logging process.

To clear logs:

1. Open the Agent. (For information on opening the Agent, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents”

on page 208.)

2. Click the Logging tab.

The Logging window opens.

3. Click the Clear button.

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4. Click OK.

The event log is cleared, and logging is reset to start recording new events.

Disabling Logging

You can use the Logging window to start and stop the logging function of any storage

element. Disabling logging for a storage element does not affect system logging functions.

To stop the logging function:

tSelect Storage Element > Disable logging.

To start the logging function:

tSelect Storage Element > Enable logging.

Saving Logs

To save the log displayed in the Logs area, do one of the following:

tSelect Storage Element > Dump current log.

tSelect Storage Element > Dump all peer logs.

The current log or all peer logs are saved, and the Logging window displays a list of

saved logs.

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Viewing and Deleting Saved Logs

To view a saved log:

1. Select Storage Element > View available logs.

The Logs area displays a list of all available logs.

2. Locate the log you want to view, and click Download.

The Agent tool downloads the log to the root directory on your local system.

3. Open the log file in a text editor (for example, in Notepad).

To delete a saved log:

1. Select Storage Element > View available logs.

The Logs area displays a list of all available logs.

2. Locate the log you want to delete, and click Delete.

The log is deleted from the agent system.

Advanced Tab

The Advanced tab contains configuration utilities, installation logs, and diagnostic tools

used by Avid Customer Support personnel used to troubleshoot problems with the media

network. You can also use the Advanced tab to set the integrated switches back to the factory

defaults. This might be necessary to reset the IP addresses of system components if your

Avid Unity ISIS system experiences network communication problems.

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cUse of the tools in the Advanced tab can result in degraded system performance or loss

of data. The tools should be used by Avid Customer Support personnel or under Avid

Customer Support direction.

For more information on using some of the tools in the Advanced tab, see the following

topics:

•“Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics” on page 228

•“Resetting an Avid ISIS Engine to Factory Defaults” on page 232

Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics

Avid Unity ISIS supports system level diagnostics for every Avid Unity ISIS switch from

one location. The diagnostics organize results and provides a report of problems with the

switch.

The Switch Diagnostics test does not fix diagnosed problems; instead, it looks for problems

and provides clues as to the root cause. There are circumstances where the diagnostics can

point to what the problem might be, where the problem is located, or how to address the

problem. There are also error cases where the diagnostics cannot determine the cause of the

problem, and the test only reports relevant data for further analysis.

The diagnostic tests are organized into separate groupings. Each group investigates the

switch in different ways to look for possible problems. If you are unsure if you have a

problem or where a problem is, select all the test groups to get a more complete picture of

the system's health. Each test exists in only one group. The following list describes how the

tests are arranged within the groups.

Test Group Tests Description

Stacking • Stack MAC Addresses

• State Machine

• Stack Serial Numbers

• Module Assignment

• Collision

The Stacking test group looks for symptoms that might

indicate a problem with switch stack health. Run this

group of tests if you think a switch is not properly

stacked, or if you are having trouble with traffic flow on

a particular switch.

Performance • Link Aggregation

Configuration

• Link Aggregation Load

Balancing

This group of tests verifies that link aggregation is

configured and operating correctly. Performance on

ISIS may suffer if link aggregation is not behaving as

expected.

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Switch Diagnostics Results

You should keep in mind the following when using the Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics:

• Once the diagnostics have run on the selected tests, you can use the Switch Diagnostic

Help link located in the upper right corner of the Reported Result window to read what

each test performs and what possible solutions might be appropriate to any failed tests

(see “Running Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics” on page 230).

• Brief instructions are displayed at the bottom of each display. Other statistic information

is usually listed in table format after the results are available.

• After selecting the type of test to perform, you can then select a column in the display to

select a particular test on a group of components or select a row to run all tests on just

one component.

Counters • Counters and Registers The Counters test group checks various statistical

counters and register information on the switch. You

can find statistical information here for issues such as

dropped, discarded, blocked or corrupted packets. Also,

registers can indicate various types of error status.

Connectivity • Default Gateway

• Ping ISBs

• Ping Stack

The Connectivity test group performs tests to pinpoint

any vital nodes that might be unreachable.

Hardware • Intermittent Link

• Link Status

• Port Speeds

• Port Link Information

The Hardware test group looks for symptoms of

hardware problems on ISIS switch links such as

incorrect port speed, intermittent link, and link status.

Advanced • Unicast Bitmaps These tests provide supplemental information for

review by Avid personnel.

Environment • Installation Errors

•Processes

This group of tests check that the switch has all the

necessary processes running, and that the previous

install completed successfully

Test Group Tests Description (Continued)

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• The results are displayed in these colors:

Running Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics

The diagnostics should not be used during a critical time in your production. Some tests

burden system bandwidth and resources.

To access Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics:

1. In the Avid ISIS Switch Blade Agent, click the Advanced tab, and then select Switch

Infrastructure Diagnostics from the Command menu.

The Run Switch Diagnostics dialog box opens.

Green Passed

Yellow Warning. There is not enough information to confirm that the switch is in

an error state; however, the test diagnostics has flagged a situation that

might need attention. Double-click the warning text to display a list of

possible reasons for the warning.

For example, if a storage blade is pulled out, the ping test provides a

warning result to inform you that the ping test failed. But the storage

blade might have been intentionally pulled out, so it is an unknown

condition and not a failure condition.

Red Failed. Double-click the failed text to display a list of possible reasons for

the failure.

Black (Not Run) This test was not selected to be performed.

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2. Select the tests you want to perform.

3. In the Select network section, select the VLAN subnet(s) you want to test:

-Left

-Right

-Both

4. Click the Select chassis menu, and do one of the following:

tSelect a chassis on which to run the diagnostics.

tSelect All to run the diagnostics on all chassis.

5. Click Run diagnostics.

A progress bar appears as the diagnostics run. When the results are available, they are

displayed in results window in table format. Each component is displayed in a separate

row.

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6. Click Switch Diagnostics Results Summary Page.

The Switch Diagnostics Results Summary window opens.

7. When the Results Summary page is displayed, do one or more of the following:

- Click a column header to display detailed results for the selected group on all

switches.

- Click a switch to display detailed results for all groups on the selected switch.

- Return to the Reported Results/System Overview Page.

- View the Raw diagnostic output.

- Download the result files to the local system.

Detailed results provide other display options. Each window includes instructions

on how to view your results. For additional information, see the Switch Diagnostic

Help link in the upper right corner of the window.

Resetting an Avid ISIS Engine to Factory Defaults

You can set the integrated switches back to the factory defaults. Resetting your

configuration, including resetting the IP addresses of system components if your Avid Unity

ISIS system, can help correct some network communication problems.

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cResetting switch configuration can lead to failed connectivity in your ISIS system and

degrade performance. You should only reset your system if directed to by Avid

Customer Support personnel or under Avid Customer Support direction.

To reset an Avid Unity ISIS engine to its factory defaults:

1. Open the Switch Blade Agent for the engine you want to reset. (For information on

opening the Agent, see “Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208.)

The Avid ISIS Integrated Ethernet Switch Blade Agent opens.

2. Click the Advanced tab.

The Advanced window opens.

3. Select Switch Blade > Reset to factory defaults.

A confirmation dialog box opens.

4. Type the Administrator password for your Avid Unity ISIS system, and click Confirm

reset.

The chassis switch configuration is reset to its factory defaults.

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CAvid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool

This appendix describes the data available in the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool. For

detailed information about the tool, see the following topics:

•Using the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool

•Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

Using the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool

The Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool provides detailed monitoring of all hardware

components in the Avid Unity ISIS media network. The System Monitor tool displays

overview information about the network hardware as a graphical representation of the

current configuration, so you can view the components remotely to assess their functional

status.

The System Monitor tool provides various views of the components in the media network

and polls the System Director at timed intervals to update network data. On the left is the

Navigation panel, which provides a tree view of the media network. On the right is the

System panel, which presents system hardware components in a graphical display. You can

view the network hardware at several levels: system, racks, chassis, or blades. At each level,

the tool displays indicators of the health of the component, usually as a graphical

representation of the actual LED state viewed on the component.

The System Monitor tool also provides information about the physical location of each

component. For example, the tool shows the chassis ID of each blade so that it can indicate

the location of a malfunctioning blade within a chassis. The System Monitor tool does not

track how racks or chassis are actually organized, but you can input site-specific data so that

the tool can represent groupings of components in a way that makes sense in relation to how

a specific media network is organized.

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Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool

To open the System Monitor tool:

1. Open the Administration tool (see “Opening the Administration Tool” on page 24).

2. Do one of the following:

tClick Monitoring.

tClick the Quick Launch menu, and select Monitoring.

3. If any security warnings open, click Yes to accept the certificate. If you are not sure

about the security requirements of your media network, see your system administrator.

The Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor tool opens.

Using the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool

237

Configuring the System Monitor Tool

You can set up the System Monitor tool to reflect the configuration of your media network.

You can add information on racks, chassis, servers, or any other components in your

network.

To configure the System Monitor tool:

1. Open the System Monitor tool. (For information on opening the System Monitor tool,

see “Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor Tool” on page 236.)

2. Click the Unlock Editing button.

The Unlock Editing button changes to the Lock Editing button to indicate the

configuration is unlocked and can be edited.

3. Click the Configure button.

The Configuration dialog box opens.

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4. Click the Create New Rack button.

The New Rack dialog box opens.

5. Type a rack name, and click OK.

The new rack is added to your configuration and displays in the Racks list in the

Configuration dialog box.

6. Click the Add Chassis button.

The Available Chassis dialog box opens.

7. Click the chassis you want to add to the rack. Ctrl+click to select multiple chassis.

8. Click OK.

The chassis is added to your configuration and displays in the Chassis list in the

Configuration dialog box.

9. (Option) Repeat steps 3 through 8 to add additional racks.

10. Click the Close button in the title bar to return to the System Monitor.

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

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Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

Once you have configured the System Monitor tool for your media network, you can use the

tool’s graphical interface to view the status of your hardware components and retrieve

information about its operation.

You can access the Avid Unity ISIS Agents and view more information about storage

elements and chassis switches by right-clicking the component in the System Monitor tool

and selecting the appropriate IP address. For information on the Avid Unity ISIS Agents, see

“Avid Unity ISIS Agents” on page 208.

To view information about the components of your media network:

1. Open the System Monitor tool (see “Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor

Tool” on page 236).

2. Do one of the following to select the rack whose components you want to monitor:

tIn the Virtual Monitors tab, click either Front or Back in the appropriate Rack

element.

tClick the appropriate Rack tab.

The System Monitor tool displays a graphical representation of the rack.

Virtual Monitors tab Available tab Rack tab

Chassis

Storage

element

Rotate Rack View button

Zoom In/Out button

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3. (Option) To view the other panel of the rack (either front or back), do one of the

following:

tClick the Rotate Rack View button to view the back panel of the rack.

tRight-click a component, and select Rotate Rack View.

The System Monitor tool displays the other panel of the selected rack. You can use the

Rotate Rack View button to switch between back and front views.

4. Move the mouse pointer over a component to view information about its status and

performance.

A status box opens.

Chassis

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

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5. (Option) Click the Zoom Out or Zoom In button to adjust your view of all components

in the rack.

For more information on the System Monitor, see the following topics:

•Understanding the System Monitor Display

•Modifying the System Monitor Configuration

Displaying Rack Configurations in Separate Windows

You can detach any rack tab so you can view it in a separate window. This allows you to

keep a specific rack configuration visible while you configure other racks. You can also set

the detached display to keep it on top of any active window on your desktop.

To detach a rack tab:

tClick the Maximize button on the rack tab you want to display in a separate window.

To keep the detached rack tab on top of any active window:

tIn the detached rack display, click the Always On Top button.

nThe Always On Top button appears only on detached rack displays.

Understanding the System Monitor Display

The System Monitor tool allows you to select different views to see specific information

about the network or about an individual component. For information on System Monitor

views, see the following topics:

•Using General View

•Using Status Details View

•Using Blade Identification View

•Using Status Details View

•Using IP Addresses View

•Using Temperatures View

•Using Upgrades View

Maximize button

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Using General View

General View displays each of the storage elements, chassis switches, and power supplies in

your configuration. Elements flash gray if there is no communication between the System

Director and a rack — for instance, if an Avid Unity ISIS storage blade (ISB) is rebooting.

Elements currently experiencing a failure appear grayed out. The System Monitor tool

displays a Component Missing icon for any empty storage element, chassis switch, or power

supply slot that is empty.

In addition, the System Monitor displays the following symbols to indicate problems with

the storage elements.

To see the System view:

1. Open the System Monitor tool (see “Accessing the Avid Unity ISIS System Monitor

Tool” on page 236).

2. Click the View Mode button, and select System.

Component Missing icon

Symbol Name Description

Upgrade Indicates the element is currently undergoing a software

upgrade. For more information on upgrade status, see

“Using Upgrades View” on page 246.

Warning Indicates the element has returned a warning message —

for example, the storage element might be rectifying or

redistributing files.

Error Indicates the element has experienced a failure — for

example, a disk failure.

Info Indicates one or more information messages are available

for the element.

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

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Using Status Details View

In Status Details view, you can view comprehensive status details of each component in your

configuration. Status indicators appear if status information is currently associated with a

component. For a description of status indicators, see “Status Indicators” on page 244.

If no status information is associated with a component, the component appears green in

Status Details view.

To see the Status Details view:

tClick the View Mode button, and select Status Details.

Status

indicators

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Status Indicators

The Status Details view displays the following status information. You can toggle between

front and back views to see the status of storage elements, switches, and power supplies.

nNot all status indicators are available for each component.

Status Details Information

Icon Description (storage elements) Description (switch) Description (power supply)

Connection error

Version mismatch Version mismatch

Installing in progress Installing in progress

Redistributing in progress

Rectifying files

Repairing mirrors

Disk failure Stack error

Diagnostic mode

Network degraded Trunking error

Disk degraded Chassis error

Memory error No power

Redistribution information available

Element offline

Link warning

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

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Using the Status Details Legend

You can access a summary of the status indicators displayed in Status Details view by using

the Legend button. The Status Details legend lists all status indicators currently associated

with the components in your system. If no status information is available, the Legend button

is not active.

To access the Status Details legend, do the following:

tClick the Legend button.

The Status Details legend displays a summary of the status indicators associated with

your system.

Using Chassis Identification View

In Chassis Identification view, you can view the names of each chassis in your configuration.

To see the Chassis Identification view:

tClick the View Mode button, and select Chassis Identification.

Using Blade Identification View

In Blade Identification view, you can view the names of each storage element in your

configuration.

To see the Blade Identification view:

tClick the View Mode button, and select Blade Identification.

Using IP Addresses View

In IP Addresses view, you can view the IP addresses of each storage element in your

configuration.

To see the IP Addresses view:

tClick the View Mode button, and select IP Addresses.

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Using Temperatures View

In Temperatures view, you can view the temperature status of each storage element in your

configuration. Temperatures view lists the temperature of each storage element, as well as a

color-coded marker to indicate its status:

• Green (Normal): the temperature of the storage element is under 60°C (140°F).

• Yellow (Warning): the temperature of the storage element is between 60° – 70°C

(140° – 158°F).

• Red (Critical): the temperature of the storage element exceeds 70°C (158°F).

To see Temperatures view:

tClick the View Mode button, and select Temperatures.

Using Upgrades View

In Upgrades view, you can view the upgrade status of each element in your configuration.

Upgrades view lists each storage element with a color-coded marker to indicate whether or

not it is being upgraded:

• Green: no upgrade is being installed.

• Blue: an upgrade is in progress.

• Orange: the upgrade installation failed.

• Yellow: the upgrade is waiting for components to complete installation before restarting

Upgrades view also highlights any mismatch between the version number of a component

and the rest of the components in the chassis. If a component was not upgraded when the rest

of the components in the chassis were upgraded, Upgrades view marks the component with

a yellow Version Mismatch indicator with red text.

To see Upgrades view:

tClick the View Mode button.

Version Mismatch Indicator

Viewing Information in the System Monitor Tool

247

Modifying the System Monitor Configuration

You can change the information displayed in the System Monitor by modifying or

rearranging the storage elements.

To rearrange the placement of a chassis displayed in the Rack tab:

1. Click to select the chassis you want to move.

A yellow frame highlights the active chassis.

2. Drag and drop the chassis to a new location in the System Monitor window. A red

insertion line appears when the chassis is moved to an appropriate position.

Active chassis

Red insertion

line

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To add a chassis to a rack:

1. Click the Configure button.

The Configuration dialog box opens.

2. In the Racks column, select the rack you want to modify.

3. Click the Add Chassis button.

The Available Chassis dialog box opens.

4. Select a chassis, and click OK.

5. Click the Close button in the title bar.

To remove a chassis from a rack:

1. Click the Configure button.

The Configuration dialog box opens.

2. In the Racks column, select the rack you want to modify.

3. In the Chassis column, select the chassis you want to remove.

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249

4. Click the Remove Chassis button.

The chassis is removed from the Chassis list.

5. Click the Close button in the title bar.

To delete a rack:

1. Click the Configure button.

The Configuration dialog box opens.

2. In the Racks column, click the rack you want to delete.

3. Click the Delete button.

The rack is deleted from the Racks list.

4. Click the Close button in the title bar.

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DAvid Unity ISIS E-mail Notification List

The following table lists the events logged by the System Director Service and related

components. A brief description of what the error means is also provided. This list does not

include the administrator server service.

Message Meaning Severity

uServera number, unit <location, location>,

SNb number, chassis number, slot location:

Disks operational

The disk on this ISB is operational. Informational

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Disks failed

The disk on this ISB has failed. Error

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Disks under test

The disk on this ISB is under test. Warning

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Metadata errors

This ISB is reporting metadata errors. Error

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Disk performance degraded

The disk on this ISB has degraded performance. Error

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Unknown status

The disk on this ISB has an unknown status. Warning

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Temp normal

The disk on this ISB is operating a normal

temperature.

Informational

uServer number, unit <location, location>,

SN number, chassis number, slot location:

Over temp

The disk on this ISB is hotter than the normal

temperature.

Error

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Removing failed microserver number, unit

< location, location >, chassis number, slot

location

Removing the failed ISB disk from the specified

location.

Error

Microserver remove did not complete,

status location

The ISB did not completely get removed from

the specified location.

Error

Administrator password reset was

requested by administrative command

An administrative command was sent to reset

the administrator password.

Informational

Avid Unity ISIS dongle was not found. No

clients are allowed to connect.

The Avid Unity ISIS dongle was not found.

Clients are not allowed to connect.

Informational

Avid Unity ISIS dongle version is incorrect.

No clients are allowed to connect.

The Avid Unity ISIS dongle version is incorrect.

No clients are allowed to connect.

Informational

System Director shutdown because of

missing dongle

System Director is shutting down because of a

missing dongle.

Warning

Unable to validate PartitionDump.bin that

was just created

Unable to validate PartitionDump.bin that was

just created.

Error

Import pass 2: could not reconstruct from

the import file

The second attempt to import a file failed and

could not be reconstructed.

Error

THE IMPORT FAILED PLEASE CALL

AVID SERVICE BEFORE DOING

ANYTHING ELSE

The attempt to import a file has failed. Contact

Avid customer support.

Error

Can not locate valid metadata to load The System Director could not find a valid

metadata file to load.

Informational

Metadata converter failed to generate

export file

The metadata converter could not generate an

export file.

Error

Metadata converter generated new export

file

The metadata converter generated a new export

file.

Informational

Memory size changed. File system can be

reconfigured

The amount of memory has changed in the file

system. You can reconfigure the file system to

match the change.

Informational

Metadata import failed - file mgr exiting -

call AVID support

The attempt to import metadata has failed and

the file manager shutting down. Contact Avid

customer support.

Error

Partition does not fit into server configured

memory. There is not enough available

memory.

The drive partition is larger than the available

memory configured in the server.

Informational

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

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Dismount failed. Partition did not validate The workspace dismount failed. The system

could not validate the partition.

Error

Export started The system started the export. Informational

Export complete The system completed the export. Informational

Unmount Partition The system unmounted partition successfully. Informational

Export did not complete The system could not complete the export. Informational

Failed to create a unique id The system could not create a unique ID. Error

Local drive does not contain enough free

space for meta data files

The local drive in the System Director does not

contain enough free space for metadata files.

Error

System Director shutting down because

standby server may have better connectivity

A failover was triggered by a connectivity

change on the primary System Director.

Error

Synchronization metadata did not verify The system could not verify that the metadata is

synchronized.

Error

Meta data is corrupted The system has detected that the metadata is

corrupt.

Error

Reconfiguring because of install file system

request

The file system is reconfiguring because of an

install request.

Informational

Local drive does not contain enough free

space for meta data file

The local drive on the System Director does not

contain enough free space for metadata file.

Error

Unable to open a local metadata file The system was unable to open a metadata file

on the local drive.

Error

Avid Unity ISIS System Director service

stopped.

The service on the System Director has stopped. Informational

validateFS(): warning, fix made to allocated

byte counts

A fix was made to validate the byte counts that

were allocated to the file system.

Informational

validateFS(): warning, fix made to byte

counts

A fix was made to validate the byte counts on

the file system.

Informational

Sever disk errors, must shut down now Disk errors on the System Director are forcing

the server to shut down.

Error

System Director was requested to force

clients to log out

A process was initiated that requests the System

Director to log out the clients.

Informational

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

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Offline Canceled The condition taking the system offline was

corrected.

Informational

Interactive Start of System Director And Interactive Start of System Director has

been initiated.

Informational

Server will not start with an incorrect time

setting.

The System Director requires a valid time

setting.

Error

Server shutdown An event has occurred causing the System

Director to shut down.

Error

MetaUpgrade: Validated PartitionDump.bin

file

The metadata has been updated and a

PartitionDump.bin file has been created.

Informational

System Director shutting down because

standby server might have better

connectivity

One System Director is shutting down because

the failover System Director has better network

performance.

Error

Start metadata load failed The load failed when the System Director

attempted to load the metadata.

Warning

Metadata load failed The System Director was not able to completely

load the metadata.

Warning

Metadata is being deleted by user

instruction

The metadata is being deleted by the user. Warning

Remote access is enabled for the

management communication channel

Remote access in the communication channel

has been enabled.

Informational

FSrespond failed. Status is: location The File System at the specified location has

failed to respond.

Error

Client number is being forced to disconnect

by an administrative command

The specified client is being logged out by an

administrative command.

Warning

Failed to allocate memory error = location The System Director could not allocate memory

at the specified location.

Error

Loading metadata from number Metadata is being loaded from the specified

location.

Informational

Unable to save metadata to number

sequence number INT64_FORMAT

The System Director is unable to save the

metadata for the specified sequence and format.

Error

Going to fail Install File System, Memory

Needed location, Avail location

The File System install has failed because of

insufficient memory at the specified location.

Error

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

255

Failed to create root microserver set The System Director could not create a root

microserver set.

Error

*******THE INSTALL FILESYSTEM

FAILED ******* fs error location

The File System has an error at the specified

location.

Error

Install File System Successful, Meta Data is

size MB

The File System has successful installed and

loaded the metadata. The size of the metadata

file is specified.

Informational

checkForMetaDataSave() sending to

standby server is taking too long to

complete

It is taking too long to check the metadata on the

standby File System.

Error

checkForMetaDataSave() saving to a file is

taking too long complete

It is taking too long to save the metadata on the

File System.

Error

Failed to setup a MetaData save operation

for number

The Files System could not set up a metadata

save operation on the specified File System.

Warning

Failed to update metadata on number Failed to update metadata on the specified File

System.

Error

CSMetaDataSendDone - the checksum

engine may be stuck

The engine metadata could not create a

checksum.

Error

sendMetaSyncToStandby() An async

request is taking too long to complete

It is taking too long to return an async request to

the File System.

Error

sendMetaSyncToStandby() replication is

taking too long to complete

It is taking too long to replicate an async to the

File System.

Error

Failed to allocate memory error = location The Files System could not allocate memory in

the specified location.

Error

Unable to clear previous tiebreaker IP

address: fstatus location

Unable to clear the IP address previously

assigned to the ISB.

Warning

Unable to update tiebreaker IP address:

fstatus location

Unable to update the IP address previously

assigned to the ISB.

Warning

System Director service can not be started

(err = location)

The specified System Director service cannot be

started.

Error

The low priority scheduler seems hung.

Shutting down.

There is no response from the low priority

scheduler and the System Director is shutting

down.

Error

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

256

There is a problem saving metadata.

Shutting down.

There is a problem saving metadata to the

System Director and the System Director is

shutting down.

Error

Assert Error from number line location,

number

Assert error detected on line number in the

specified location.

Error

MetaUpgrade: Metadata converter

(number) was not present

When attempting to update the metadata, the

system Director could not locate the converter.

Error

MetaUpgrade: Error starting for metadata

converter - err location

When attempting to update the metadata, the

System Director detected an error in the

specified location.

Error

MetaUpgrade: Error waiting for metadata

converter - err location

When attempting to update the metadata, the

System Director detected an error while waiting

for a response from the specified location.

Error

MetaUpgrade: Error obtaining metadata

converter exit status - err location

When updating the metadata, the System

Director detected an error in the specified

location when finishing the update.

Error

Avid System Director (Version number) has

successfully started

The System Director (Version number) has

successfully started.

Informational

Updated tiebreaker IP address (number):

number

The System Director has updated the tiebreaker

IP address on the ISB to: number.

Informational

This server became the primary System

Director due to a failover event.

This server became the primary System Director

due to a failover event.

Informational

This server is ready to become the primary

System Director because it was the last

active server.

This server is ready to become the primary

System Director because it was the last active

server.

Informational

MetaUpgrade: Starting number metadata

converter

The System Director has started updating the

metadata on the specified converter.

Informational

Remote System Director is already active -

enabling synchronization

The synchronization on the remote System

Director is already active.

Informational

This server became the primary System

Director because other system is new

standby.

This server became the primary System Director

and the other server is the new standby.

Informational

This server became the primary System

Director because it was the most recent

metadata.

This server became the primary System Director

because it has the most recent metadata.

Informational

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

257

This server became the active System

Director because it had the same version as

the other server.

This server became the active System Director

and has the same version as the other server.

Informational

The other server has more recent metadata -

enabling synchronization

The other server has more recent metadata and

this server is starting a metadata

synchronization.

Informational

System director start server failed, status =

location,

System Director service failed to start with the

specified error.

Warning

System director startup wait failed, status =

location, server state = location

System Director startup failed in a wait state at

the specified error.

Warning

Start metadata create failed status =

location

A failed status was reported when starting to

create the metadata at the specified location.

Warning

Metadata create wait failed, status =

location, state = location

A failed wait state was reported when creating

the metadata at the specified location.

Warning

Metadata load wait failed, status = location,

state = location

A load wait state was reported when creating the

metadata at the specified location.

Warning

Metadata create failed The System Director could not create the

metadata.

Warning

The metadata server is not in agreement -

disregarding

The metadata on the System Director is not in

agreement and is being removed.

Informational

Server start is scheduled in non-redundant

configuration

During the System Director start-up, it was

detected that the System Director is in a

non-redundant configuration.

Informational

This server now the active System Director This server now the active System Director. Informational

Started IP address number on interface

number

The ISB with the specified IP address is started

on the specified interface.

Informational

Could not find an interface with IP address

number

The System Director could not find an interface

with the specified IP address.

Informational

Unable to start failover IP address number Unable to start failover IP address number. Informational

Unable to start IP address number Unable to start the device at the specified

IP address.

Informational

Failover IP address number is not

configured or enabled

The failover device at the specified IP address is

not configured or enabled.

Informational

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

258

MetaUpgrade: Metadata conversion

completed by number

The System Director completed the metadata

upgrade for the specified location.

Informational

MetaUpgrade: Metadata conversion was

not completed by number

The System Director could not complete the

metadata upgrade for the specified location.

Informational

a. uServer means the ISIS Storage Blade (ISB) microserver.

b. SN means serial number.

Message (Continued) Meaning Severity

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Numerics

10-Gb Link Aggregation 213

Access privileges

changing 128

effective access 103, 128

managing 103, 107

setting 104

user accounts 107, 111, 113, 128

user group accounts 117, 119

Accounts

devices 119, 129

user groups 115

user, duplicating 114

users 112

Active Clients tab (System Director Control Panel)

169

Active mode

determining on System Director 159

Active partition 17

Active, storage element type 40

Adding

device accounts 122

group accounts 117

storage elements 44, 50, 66

storage elements to storage groups 75

storage groups 73

storage to the media network 43

user accounts 112

workspaces 88

Administration password

changing 176

Administration tool

Avid Unity ISIS Agents 208

described 23

Home page 24

Installers tab 208

logging 196

Logging tab 192

logs 183

Monitoring tab 236

opening 24

sorting information 33

Statistics tab 191

System tab 175

user interface overview 26

Administrator tasks 21

Advanced Settings tab (System Director Control

Panel) 172

Advanced support tools 175, 235

Advanced test group (Switch Infrastructure

Diagnostics) 229

Advanced Workspaces Commands 99

Agent logging 225, 227

Agent Logging window

described 224

opening 224

Aggregate bandwidth 132

Aggregate logs 196

Aggregator Options dialog box 199

Available, storage element type 40

Avid ISIS Interplay Health Monitoring Service 181

Avid Unity ISB Connection Analyzer tool 204

Avid Unity ISIS Agents

clearing logs 225

configuration values 213

Console View tool 222

deleting saved logs 227

described 208

Index

Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

260

diagnostic tools 228

disabling logging 226

enabling logging 226

link aggregation 213

Logging tab 223, 224

opening 208

saving logs 226

Statistics tab 218, 219, 220, 221

System tab 213, 214

Tools tab 221, 222

user interface overview 210

viewing logs 225

viewing saved logs 227

Avid Unity ISIS Disk Tester tool 200

Avid Unity ISIS Engine

defined 22

resetting to factory defaults 227, 232

Avid Unity ISIS Home page 24

Avid Unity ISIS Integrated Expansion Switch (IXS)

See Switch blades

Avid Unity ISIS Integrated Switch (ISS)

See Switch blades

Avid Unity ISIS Log Aggregator

See Log Aggregator tool

Avid Unity ISIS storage blade (ISB)

See Storage elements

Avid Unity ISIS Switch Manager

See Switch Manager tool

Avid Unity ISIS System Administration tool See

Administration tool

Avid Unity ISIS System Director Control Panel

See System Director Control Panel

Bandwidth

aggregate 132

monitoring 131

removing components 133

revoking 133

setting system bandwidth 129

system 132

Bandwidth list

scaling the graph display 133

Bandwidth Monitor dialog box

described 131, 132

opening 132

Bandwidth option 31

Binding storage elements 44, 66

Blade Identification view (System Monitor tool) 245

Bound storage elements 44, 66

Characters

illegal, in storage group names 74

illegal, in user names 113

illegal, in workspace names 88

Chassis

descriptions 60

Details area 58, 60

Chassis dialog box

described 58

opening 59

Chassis Identification view (System Monitor tool)

245

Chassis list 58

Chassis option 28

Client accounts

See also User accounts, User group accounts,

Device accounts

deleting 126

described 107

device 121

group 116

modifying 124

removing 127

Client Manager

documentation 15

Columns

hiding 32

moving 32

performing multilevel sorts 33

sorting 33

Command menu 27

Components

disconnecting 136

removing 133

revoking bandwidth 133

Configuration

Avid Unity ISIS Agents 213

Configuration considerations

data protection 22

security 22

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Index

261

site type 22

uncompressed clients 22

Configuration tab (System Director Control Panel)

165

Configure button (System Monitor tool) 237

Configuring

e-mail error notification service 177

error notification parameters 181

general settings 167

System Director failover 139

Connection Analyzer tool

checking connection status 204

described 204

Connection Status dialog box

disconnecting components 136

opening 135

Connection Status option 31

Connectivity (Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics) 229

Console View tool 222

Control Panel

See System Director Control Panel

Counters (Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics) 229

Create Device dialog box 123

Create Group dialog box 118

Create Storage Group dialog box 74

Create User dialog box 112

Create Workspace dialog box 88

Creating

device accounts 122

group accounts 117

storage groups 73

user accounts 112

workspaces 88

Date, changing on chassis switch 214

Deleting

storage groups 80

user accounts 126

workspaces 106

Details

chassis 58, 60

storage elements 38

Details area

devices 122

groups 117

storage elements 35

storage groups 67, 69

users 108, 111

workspace 86

Device accounts

adding 122

creating 122

deleting 126

described 121

modifying 124

setting automatically 129

Device list 121

Devices dialog box

Details area 122

opening 119

Devices option 30

Diagnostic tests

Advanced group 229

Connectivity group 229

Counters group 229

Environment group 229

Hardware group 229

Performance group 228

results 229

running Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics 230

Stacking group 228

test groups 228

Diagnostic tools

Avid Unity ISIS Agents 227

Connection Analyzer tool 204

Disk Tester tool 200

Switch Manager tool 206

Dialog boxes

Bandwidth Monitor 131, 132

Chassis 58

Create Device 123

Create Group 118

Create Storage Group 74

Create User 112

Create Workspace 88

Duplicate User 114

Duplicate Workspace 90

Orphaned Elements 54

Preferences 129

Storage Elements 35

Storage Groups 67, 68

Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

262

Users 108

Workspaces 82

Disabling protection

for workspaces 95

Disconnecting

components 136

Disk Test Options dialog box 203

Disk Tester tool

described 200

options 203

Documentation

client software 15

Drive sets

See Storage elements

Drives

See Storage elements

Duplicate User dialog box 114

Duplicate Workspace dialog box 90

Duplicating

user accounts 114

users 114

workspaces 90

Effective access 103, 128

E-mail notification 177, 177, 181, 251

Enable Protection option 95

Enabling protection

for workspaces 95

Environment test group (Switch Infrastructure

Diagnostics) 229

Error messages 251

Error notification 177, 181

Event Viewer

select events 193

Factory defaults, resetting 227, 232

Failover

configuring the System Director 139

starting and stopping System Director 159

File limit 23

File Systems Operations 168

General Configuration Options dialog box 167

General settings

configuring 167

General view (System Monitor tool) 242

Group accounts

adding 117

creating 117

deleting 126

described 116

modifying 124

Group Details area 117

Groups dialog box

opening 115

Guidelines

storage group usage 72

Hardware

storage, managing 35

Hardware group tests (Switch Infrastructure

Diagnostics) 229

Help

Administration tool 32

Help button 32

Hiding columns 32

Hi-Gig Link Aggregation 213

Home page

opening the Administration tool 24

Quick Launch menu 25

Identifying storage elements 51

Illegal characters

in storage group names 74

in user names 113

in workspace names 88

Initializing

active partition 17

standby partition 149, 158

System Director 17, 149, 158

Installers tab 208

Installing updates 208

IP Addresses view (System Monitor tool) 245

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Index

263

ISB (Avid Unity ISIS storage blade)

See Storage elements

ISIS Interplay Health Provider 181

ISIS Snapshot 184

ISS (Avid Unity ISIS Integrated Switch)

See Switch blades

ISS modules

upgrading 63, 64

IXS (Avid Unity ISIS Integrated Expansion Switch)

See Switch blades

IXS modules

upgrading 63, 64

Limits, files 23

Link aggregation

10-Gb Link Aggregation 213

described 213

Hi-Gig Link Aggregation 213

Log Aggregator tool

Archive Options 199

closing 196, 206

creating logs 198

described 196

event logs 196

opening 196

options 199

resource use 200

storage elements 199

switch blades 199

viewing logs 200

Logging tab 192, 223

Logout button 32

Logs

Administration tool 183

Agent logging 223

aggregate logs 196

archiving 199

clearing Agent logs 225

creating 198

deleting saved Agent logs 227

event log 165

filters 199

options 199

saving Agent logs 226

storage elements 199

switch blades 199

System Director Viewer 169

System Logging 192, 196

viewing 200

viewing Agent logs 225

viewing saved Agent logs 227

Management tasks 21

Managing

access privileges 107

drive hardware 35, 54, 67

storage groups 72

user accounts 107

workspaces 82

Media network

viewing components 239

Messages

System Director is not running 164

warning events 164

MetaData Status tab (System Director Control Panel)

171

Modifying

user accounts 124

Monitoring system usage 131

Monitoring tab 236

Moving

workspaces 101

Moving columns 32

Multilevel sorting 33

Network Time Protocol (NTP) 217

Notifications

configuring 177, 181

e-mail 177, 251

errors 251

NTP (Network Time Protocol) 217

Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

264

Online Help

See Help

Options (Command menu)

Bandwidth 31

Chassis 28

Connection Status 31

Devices 30

Orphaned Elements 31

Preferences 31

Storage Elements 28

Storage Groups 29

User Groups 30

Users 30

Workspaces 29

Orphaned elements

removing 55

Orphaned Elements dialog box

described 54

Orphaned Elements option (Command menu) 31

Orphaned storage elements

described 53

removing 53

Partitions

creating active 17

creating standby 149

Passwords

administration 176

administrator 24

changing 124, 176

client 107

user 111, 113

Performance (Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics) 228

Preferences

option (Command menu) 31

setting 129

Privileges

access levels 103

changing user access privilege 128

setting user access privilege 104

user access privilege 103, 107, 111, 113

user group access privilege 117, 119

Profile tool 188

Protection

disabling, for workspaces 95

enabling, for workspaces 95

recommendations 94

Quick Launch menu 25

Racks

viewing back panels 240

viewing in System Monitor tool 239

Reconfiguring the file system 168

Rectifying files 42, 46

Redistribution

described 49, 96

guidelines 96

manual 96, 97

monitoring 52

removing storage elements 49

replacing storage elements 50

resuming 99

suspending 99

verifying 99

Redundancy for System Director 141, 151

Removing

orphaned storage elements 55

storage elements 48, 49, 52, 66

storage elements from storage groups 76

Renaming

workspaces 92

Reset Event button 165

Resetting switch error count 206

Resetting to factory defaults 227, 232

Resizing workspaces 91

Rotate Rack View button (System Monitor tool) 240

Security considerations 22

Sorting information 33

Spare, storage element type 40

Stacking (Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics) 228

Standby mode

determining on System Director 159

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Index

265

Standby partition 149, 158

Start System Director button 164

Starting

System Director 166

System Director Control Panel 161

Statistics

Avid Unity ISIS Agents 218

storage element 218

Statistics tab 191, 219

Statistics window

opening 191, 219

Status Details view (System Monitor tool) 243

Status messages

storage elements 41, 46

Stop System Director button 164

Stopping

shutting down the System Director 166

Storage

adding, to the media network 43

capacity 22

Storage blade

statistics 220

Storage elements

active 40

adding 43, 44, 50, 66

adding to storage groups 75

available 40

binding or adding 44, 66

changing date and time 217

Console View tool 222

descriptions 38

Details area 35, 38

disconnected 53, 55

identifying prior to removal 51

orphaned 53

rectifying files 42, 46

removing 48, 49, 52, 66

removing from storage groups 76

spare 40

starting 216

statistics 218, 220

status 41, 46

stopping 216

upgrading 57, 63, 64

Storage Elements area 69

Storage Elements dialog box

described 35

opening 36

Storage Elements list 35

Storage Elements option 28

Storage groups

adding 73

adding storage elements 75

deleting 80

described 67, 72

Details area 67, 69

managing 72

removing storage elements 76

usage guidelines 72

Storage Groups dialog box

described 67

opening 68

Storage Groups list 67

Storage Groups option 29

Storage hardware

managing 35

Support tools 161, 175, 235

Suspending redistribution 99

Switch blades

changing date and time 214, 217

resetting to factory defaults 227, 232

statistics 221

upgrading 63, 64

Switch error count 206

Switch Infrastructure Diagnostics 228, 229, 230

Switch Manager tool

described 206

opening 206

Switches

statistics 221

System administration functions 175

System Director

chassis information 60

determining active or standby mode 159

initializing 17

initializing failover system 149, 158

shutting down 166

starting 164, 166

starting and stopping during failover 159

stopping 164

storage elements information 38

storage group information 69

Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

266

System Director Control Panel

Active Client tab 169

Advanced Settings tab 172

Configuration tab 165

creating active partition 18

described 161

initializing System Director 18

MetaData Status tab 171

reconfiguring the file system 168

starting 161

System Director Status tab 163

System Director failover

configuring the first System Director 141, 151

configuring the second System Director 144, 153

configuring virtual addresses 148, 157

setting IP addresses 140, 150

validating connections 146, 155

System Director is not running message 164

System Director Status tab (System Director Control

Panel) 163

System Director Viewer 169

System logging 192

System Logging window

described 192

opening 194

System Monitor tool

Blade Identification view 245

changing information 247

Chassis Identification view 245

Configure button 237

configuring 237

described 235

display 241

General view 242

IP Addresses view 245

modifying information 247

opening 236

Rotate Rack View button 240

Status Details view 243

Temperatures view 246

Upgrades view 246

viewing racks 239

viewing system information 239

Zoom button 241

System Preferences

setting 129

System Read Bandwidth 132

System tab 175

System usage

monitoring 131

System Write Bandwidth 132

Systems buttons 32

Temperatures view (System Monitor tool) 246

Time, changing on chassis switch 214, 217

Tools

Administration, overview 23

advanced support 175

Avid Unity ISIS System Administration tool 23

Connection Analyzer tool 204

Disk Tester tool 200

ISIS Snapshot 184

Log Aggregator tool 196

Profile tool 188

storage element Agent 221

Switch Manager tool 206

System Director Control Panel 161

System Monitor tool 235

Tools tab 221

Trunking 213

Unbound storage elements 44, 66

Updating software 208

Upgrades view (System Monitor tool) 246

Upgrading

ISS modules 63, 64

IXS modules 63, 64

storage elements 57, 63, 64

switch blades 63, 64

User Access area 86, 87

User accounts

access privilege 103, 107, 111, 113

adding 112

changing access privilege 128

changing privileges 128

creating 112

deleting 126

described 109

duplicating 114

levels of access privilege 103

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Index

267

managing 107

modifying 124

passwords 124

privileges 103, 107, 111, 113

setting access privilege 104

User Details area 111

User group accounts

access privilege 117, 119

privileges 117, 119

User Groups option 30

User interface

Administration tool 26

Avid Unity ISIS Agents 210

Users

duplicating 114

Users dialog box

described 108

Details area 108

opening 109

Users list 108, 110

Users option 30

Verifying redistribution 99

Warning events messages 164

Workspace Details area 86, 86

Workspaces

access privileges 103

adding 88

allocating 81

creating 88

deleting 106

deleting from a Macintosh system 106

described 86

duplicating 90

graphical display 85

managing 81

moving 101

protecting 94

redistribution of data 96, 97

renaming 92

resizing 91

Workspaces dialog box

described 82

opening 82

Workspaces list 83

Workspaces option 29

Workspaces Size graph 85

Zoom button (System Monitor tool) 241

Index  A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
268

Avid Unity ISIS Administration Guide 1.4 AG V1 4 EN

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