Pinnacle Systems Interplay Archive Engine - 3.0 Administrator’s Guide

Avid® Interplay® Engine and
Avid Interplay Archive Engine
Administration Guide
Version 3.0
Product specifications are subject to change without notice and do not represent a commitment on the part of Avid Technology, Inc.
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APPLE COMPUTER, INC. MAKES NO WARRANTIES WHATSOEVER, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THIS PRODUCT, INCLUDING WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO ITS MERCHANTABILITY OR ITS FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES IS NOT PERMITTED BY SOME STATES. THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. THIS WARRANTY PROVIDES YOU WITH SPECIFIC LEGAL RIGHTS. THERE MAY BE OTHER RIGHTS THAT YOU MAY HAVE WHICH VARY FROM STATE TO STATE.
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Copyright © 1988–1997 Sam Leffler Copyright © 1991–1997 Silicon Graphics, Inc.
Permission to use, copy, modify, distribute, and sell this software [i.e., the TIFF library] and its documentation for any purpose is hereby granted without fee, provided that (i) the above copyright notices and this permission notice appear in all copies of the software and related documentation, and (ii) the names of Sam Leffler and Silicon Graphics may not be used in any advertising or publicity relating to the software without the specific, prior written permission of Sam Leffler and Silicon Graphics.
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IN NO EVENT SHALL SAM LEFFLER OR SILICON GRAPHICS BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER OR NOT ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF DAMAGE, AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.
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This software is based in part on the work of the Independent JPEG Group.
This Software may contain components licensed under the following conditions:
Copyright (c) 1989 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Redistribution and use in source and binary forms are permitted provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are duplicated in all such forms and that any documentation, advertising materials, and other materials related to such distribution and use acknowledge that the software was developed by the University of California, Berkeley. The name of the University may not be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software without specific prior written permission. THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED ``AS IS'' AND WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Copyright (C) 1989, 1991 by Jef Poskanzer.
Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute this software and its documentation for any purpose and without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation. This software is provided "as is" without express or implied warranty.
Copyright 1995, Trinity College Computing Center. Written by David Chappell.
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Copyright 1996 Daniel Dardailler.
Permission to use, copy, modify, distribute, and sell this software for any purpose is hereby granted without fee, provided that the above copyright notice appear in all copies and that both that copyright notice and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation, and that the name of Daniel Dardailler not be used in advertising or publicity pertaining to distribution of the software without specific, written prior permission. Daniel Dardailler makes no representations about the suitability of this software for any purpose. It is provided "as is" without express or implied warranty.
Modifications Copyright 1999 Matt Koss, under the same license as above.
Copyright (c) 1991 by AT&T.
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THIS SOFTWARE IS BEING PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY. IN PARTICULAR, NEITHER THE AUTHOR NOR AT&T MAKES ANY REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND CONCERNING THE MERCHANTABILITY OF THIS SOFTWARE OR ITS FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
This product includes software developed by the University of California, Berkeley and its contributors.
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© 2010 Nexidia Inc. All rights reserved, worldwide. Nexidia and the Nexidia logo are trademarks of Nexidia Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All Nexidia materials regardless of form, including without limitation, software applications, documentation and any other information relating to Nexidia Inc., and its products and services are the exclusive property of Nexidia Inc. or its licensors. The Nexidia products and services described in these materials may be covered by Nexidia's United States patents: 7,231,351; 7,263,484; 7,313,521; 7,324,939; 7,406,415, 7,475,065; 7,487,086 and/or other patents pending and may be manufactured under license from the Georgia Tech Research Corporation USA.
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Portions of this software licensed from Paradigm Matrix.
The following disclaimer is required by Ray Sauers Associates, Inc.:
“Install-It” is licensed from Ray Sauers Associates, Inc. End-User is prohibited from taking any action to derive a source code equivalent of “Install-It,” including by reverse assembly or reverse compilation, Ray Sauers Associates, Inc. shall in no event be liable for any damages resulting from reseller’s failure to perform reseller’s obligation; or any damages arising from use or operation of reseller’s products or the software; or any other damages, including but not limited to, incidental, direct, indirect, special or consequential Damages including lost profits, or damages resulting from loss of use or inability to use reseller’s products or the software for any reason including copyright or patent infringement, or lost data, even if Ray Sauers Associates has been advised, knew or should have known of the possibility of such damages.
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“This software contains V-LAN ver. 3.0 Command Protocols which communicate with V-LAN ver. 3.0 products developed by Videomedia, Inc. and V-LAN ver. 3.0 compatible products developed by third parties under license from Videomedia, Inc. Use of this software will allow “frame accurate” editing control of applicable videotape recorder decks, videodisc recorders/players and the like.”
The following disclaimer is required by Altura Software, Inc. for the use of its Mac2Win software and Sample Source Code:
©1993–1998 Altura Software, Inc.
The following disclaimer is required by Ultimatte Corporation:
Certain real-time compositing capabilities are provided under a license of such technology from Ultimatte Corporation and are subject to copyright protection.
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Certain waveform and vector monitoring capabilities are provided under a license from 3Prong.com Inc.
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The “Interplay” name is used with the permission of Interplay Entertainment Corp., which bears no responsibility for Avid products.
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This product includes software developed by the Apache Software Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).
© DevelopMentor
This product may include the JCifs library, for which the following notice applies:
JCifs © Copyright 2004, The JCIFS Project, is licensed under LGPL (http://jcifs.samba.org/). See the LGPL.txt file in the Third Party Software directory on the installation CD.
Avid Interplay contains components licensed from LavanTech. These components may only be used as part of and in connection with Avid Interplay.
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U.S. GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED RIGHTS. This Software and its documentation are “commercial computer software” or “commercial computer software documentation.” In the event that such Software or documentation is acquired by or on behalf of a unit or agency of the U.S. Government, all rights with respect to this Software and documentation are subject to the terms of the License Agreement, pursuant to FAR §12.212(a) and/or DFARS §227.7202-1(a), as applicable.
Trademarks
003, 192 Digital I/O, 192 I/O, 96 I/O, 96i I/O, Adrenaline, AirSpeed, ALEX, Alienbrain, AME, AniMatte, Archive, Archive II, Assistant Station, AudioPages, AudioStation, AutoLoop, AutoSync, Avid, Avid Active, Avid Advanced Response, Avid DNA, Avid DNxcel, Avid DNxHD, Avid DS Assist Station, Avid Ignite, Avid Liquid, Avid Media Engine, Avid Media Processor, Avid MEDIArray, Avid Mojo, Avid Remote Response, Avid Unity, Avid Unity ISIS, Avid VideoRAID, AvidRAID, AvidShare, AVIDstripe, AVX, Beat Detective, Beauty Without The Bandwidth, Beyond Reality, BF Essentials, Bomb Factory, Bruno, C|24, CaptureManager, ChromaCurve, ChromaWheel, Cineractive Engine, Cineractive Player, Cineractive Viewer, Color Conductor, Command|24, Command|8, Control|24, Cosmonaut Voice, CountDown, d2, d3, DAE, D-Command, D-Control, Deko, DekoCast, D-Fi, D-fx, Digi 002, Digi 003, DigiBase, Digidesign, Digidesign Audio Engine, Digidesign Development Partners, Digidesign Intelligent Noise Reduction, Digidesign TDM Bus, DigiLink, DigiMeter, DigiPanner, DigiProNet, DigiRack, DigiSerial, DigiSnake, DigiSystem, Digital Choreography, Digital Nonlinear Accelerator, DigiTest, DigiTranslator, DigiWear, DINR, DNxchange, Do More, DPP-1, D-Show, DSP Manager, DS-StorageCalc, DV Toolkit, DVD Complete, D-Verb, Eleven, EM, Euphonix, EUCON, EveryPhase, Expander, ExpertRender, Fader Pack, Fairchild, FastBreak, Fast Track, Film Cutter, FilmScribe, Flexevent, FluidMotion, Frame Chase, FXDeko, HD Core, HD Process, HDpack, Home-to-Hollywood, HYBRID, HyperSPACE, HyperSPACE HDCAM, iKnowledge, Image Independence, Impact, Improv, iNEWS, iNEWS Assign, iNEWS ControlAir, InGame, Instantwrite, Instinct, Intelligent Content Management, Intelligent Digital Actor Technology, IntelliRender, Intelli-Sat, Intelli-sat Broadcasting Recording Manager, InterFX, Interplay, inTONE, Intraframe, iS Expander, iS9, iS18, iS23, iS36, ISIS, IsoSync, LaunchPad, LeaderPlus, LFX, Lightning, Link & Sync, ListSync, LKT-200, Lo-Fi, MachineControl, Magic Mask, Make Anything Hollywood, make manage move | media, Marquee, MassivePack, Massive Pack Pro, Maxim, Mbox, Media Composer, MediaFlow, MediaLog, MediaMix, Media Reader, Media Recorder, MEDIArray, MediaServer, MediaShare, MetaFuze, MetaSync, MIDI I/O, Mix Rack, Moviestar, MultiShell, NaturalMatch, NewsCutter, NewsView, NewsVision, Nitris, NL3D, NLP, NSDOS, NSWIN, OMF, OMF Interchange, OMM, OnDVD, Open Media Framework, Open Media Management, Painterly Effects, Palladium, Personal Q, PET, Podcast Factory, PowerSwap, PRE, ProControl, ProEncode, Profiler, Pro Tools, Pro Tools|HD, Pro Tools LE, Pro Tools M-Powered, Pro Transfer, QuickPunch, QuietDrive, Realtime Motion Synthesis, Recti-Fi, Reel Tape Delay, Reel Tape Flanger, Reel Tape Saturation, Reprise, Res Rocket Surfer, Reso, RetroLoop, Reverb One, ReVibe, Revolution, rS9, rS18, RTAS, Salesview, Sci-Fi, Scorch, ScriptSync, SecureProductionEnvironment, Serv|GT, Serv|LT, Shape-to-Shape, ShuttleCase, Sibelius, SimulPlay, SimulRecord, Slightly Rude Compressor, Smack!, Soft SampleCell, Soft-Clip Limiter, SoundReplacer, SPACE, SPACEShift, SpectraGraph, SpectraMatte, SteadyGlide, Streamfactory, Streamgenie, StreamRAID, SubCap, Sundance, Sundance Digital, SurroundScope, Symphony, SYNC HD, SYNC I/O, Synchronic, SynchroScope, Syntax, TDM FlexCable, TechFlix, Tel-Ray, Thunder, TimeLiner, Titansync, Titan, TL Aggro, TL AutoPan, TL Drum Rehab, TL Everyphase, TL Fauxlder, TL In Tune, TL MasterMeter, TL Metro, TL Space, TL Utilities, tools for storytellers, Transit, TransJammer, Trillium Lane Labs, TruTouch, UnityRAID, Vari-Fi, Video the Web Way, VideoRAID, VideoSPACE, VTEM, Work-N-Play, Xdeck, X-Form, Xmon and XPAND! are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
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Footage
Eco Challenge Morocco — Courtesy of Discovery Communications, Inc. News material provided by WFTV Television Inc. Ice Island — Courtesy of Kurtis Productions, Ltd.
Avid Interplay Engine and Avid Interplay Archive Engine Administration Guide • 0130-07640-03 Rev I • June 2013 • Created 6/20/13 • This document is distributed by Avid in online (electronic) form only, and is not available for purchase in printed form.
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Contents

Using This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
If You Need Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Viewing Help and Documentation on the Interplay Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Interplay Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Avid Training Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Chapter 1 Getting Started with the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Opening an Interplay Administrator View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Opening Interplay Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Chapter 2 Database Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Creating an Interplay Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Creating and Restoring Database Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Types of Interplay Administrator Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Recommendations for Backup Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Scheduling Automatic Database Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Starting a Backup Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Using an Archiving Tool for Backup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Performing a Partial Restore of an Interplay Production Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Creating a Metadata-Only Backup for Customer Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Performing a Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Viewing Database Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
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Database Information Tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Locking and Unlocking Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Deactivating a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Activating a Deactivated Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Migrating a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . 76
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Renaming a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Running Database Maintenance Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Chapter 3 Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Changing the Database and Data Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Viewing Server Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Locking and Unlocking the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Restarting the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Managing Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Installing Permanent Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Displaying the Licenses View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
License Types and Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Exporting a License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Troubleshooting Licensing Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Using the License Key Info Tool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Chapter 4 User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Understanding the Central Configuration Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Moving the CCS to Another Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Viewing and Changing the CCS for a Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Adding Users to a Central Configuration Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Setting User Authentication Providers and Importing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Setting Avid ISIS Authentication. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Setting Windows Domain Authentication and Importing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
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Setting LDAP Authentication and Importing Users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Managing Users, User Groups, and User Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Understanding Default User Groups, Users, and Roles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Adding User Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Adding Users Manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Viewing and Setting Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Understanding Standard Roles and Default Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Viewing and Changing Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Viewing and Setting Authentication Providers for Individual Users . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Deleting Users and User Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Removing Users from User Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Managing Database Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Viewing General Role Assignments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Setting or Changing a General Role Assignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Blocking Access by a Group or User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Managing Special Access Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Guidelines for User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Chapter 5 Site Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Defining Property Layouts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Setting the Resolutions Available for Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Creating Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Adding a Custom Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Setting Access Control for Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Working with Lists for Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Configuring Remote Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Configuring Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Adding Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Removing Categories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Setting Server Hostnames and the Workgroup Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Configuring the Interplay Streaming Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Interplay Media Services View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Interplay Transfer Status View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Interplay Transfer Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
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Workgroup Transfer Presets View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Specifying Remote Servers for Asset Tracking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Specifying Archive Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Archiving Duplicate Versions of Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Adding AAF Metadata to an Archive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Specifying the Archive Server, Segment Size, and Restore Process . . . . . . . . . . 178
Setting the Ownership for New Database Folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Enabling Interplay Synced Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Setting Options for Deletion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Understanding the Deletion Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Scheduling the Deletion of Database Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Setting Options for Deleting Only OMF Media, Only MXF Media, or Both. . . . . . . 192
Setting Options for Deleting Locked Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Activating the Option to Delete Referenced Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Using the Delete Kept Media Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Viewing and Setting the Metadata Override Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Chapter 6 Application Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Application Database Settings View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Setting Options in the Editing Settings Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Setting Audio Mixing Defaults for Access and Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Sending a Source to Playback in Interplay Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Setting the Shotlist Start Timecode for Interplay Access and Interplay Assist . . . . 213
Setting an Automatic Timeout for Interplay Assist and Avid Instinct . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Configuring the Frame Locators Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Configuring the Restrictions Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Setting Instinct/Assist User Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Instinct/Assist User Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Pro Tools Plug-Ins Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Chapter 7 Avid Interplay Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Chapter 8 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Troubleshooting Login Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Troubleshooting Client Connection Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Optimizing Avid Interplay Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
8
Troubleshooting Firewalls and Avid Interplay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Troubleshooting the Server Execution User Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Creating the Server Execution User Account. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Determining the Server Execution User Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Re-creating the Server Execution User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Shutting Down or Locking the Server Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Chapter 9 Configuring Interplay for a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Understanding a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Supported Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Preparing for a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Splitting a Database for New Interplay Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Splitting a Database for Existing Interplay Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Configuring the workgroup.xml File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Identifying the Root Folder of the Interplay Server Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Reuniting a Split Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Reuniting a Split Database (AvidWG Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Reuniting a Split Database (AvidWG and _InternalData). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Appendix A Installed Components and Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Avid Interplay Engine Directory: Folders and Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Apache Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Data Folder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
Preview Server Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Server Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Required TCP/IP Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Avid Interplay Engine Servers and Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Avid Interplay Engine Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Avid Workgroup HTTP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Avid Workgroup Server Browser Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Avid Workgroup Preview Server Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Avid Workgroup TCP/COM Bridge Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
Avid Workgroup VSS Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
9
Appendix B Interplay Engine Configuration Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Configuring the Server Event Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Config.xml File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Supported Actions in Config.xml . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Supported Events in Config.xml. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Server Event Configuration Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
LogWatch.xml. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Sending E-mail Notifications from LogWatch.xml . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
Configuring Client Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Setting the Filetransfer Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
Appendix C Valid and Invalid Characters in Avid Interplay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Appendix D System Metadata Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Appendix E Server Error Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Appendix F Consistency Check Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Consistency Check Critical Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Consistency Check Errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
Consistency Check Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
10

Using This Guide

Congratulations on your purchase of Avid®Interplay®, a powerful system for managing media in a shared storage environment. This guide describes how to use Avid Interplay Administrator, an Interplay client application that provides tools to configure the Avid Interplay Engine and to manage the database on the server.
This guide is intended for all Avid Interplay administrators who are responsible for installing, configuring and maintaining an Avid Interplay Engine or Avid Interplay Archive Engine (database, server, and all related client connections and user rights) in an Interplay workgroup. This guide includes a detailed description of each of the Avid Interplay Administrator task groups and how you can use them to administer your server and databases. Some of the settings that you are able to change affect the server itself, while others only affect the database stored on the server.
®
The Interplay Administrator is supported on both the Microsoft platforms. When necessary, the guide describes platform-specific differences.
The documentation describes the features and hardware of all models. Therefore, your system
n
might not contain certain features and hardware that are covered in the documentation.
Limited number of client applications per user per machine: A user can run only one Interplay
n
Access session and one Interplay Administrator session on one machine. This software does not support terminal/server sessions.
Windows® and the Mac OS®X

Symbols and Conventions

Avid documentation uses the following symbols and conventions:
Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action
n
c
A note provides important related information, reminders, recommendations, and strong suggestions.
A caution means that a specific action you take could cause harm to your computer or cause you to lose data.
Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action

If You Need Help

w
> This symbol indicates menu commands (and subcommands) in the
(Windows), (Windows only), (Macintosh), or (Macintosh only)
Bold font Bold font is primarily used in task instructions to identify user interface
Italic font Italic font is used to emphasize certain words and to indicate variables.
Courier Bold font
Ctrl+key or mouse action Press and hold the first key while you press the last key or perform the
If You Need Help
A 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.
order you select them. For example, File > Import means to open the File menu and then select the Import command.
This symbol indicates a single-step procedure. Multiple arrows in a list indicate that you perform one of the actions listed.
This text indicates that the information applies only to the specified operating system, either Windows or Macintosh OS X.
items and keyboard sequences.
Courier Bold font identifies text that you type.
mouse action. For example, Command+Option+C or Ctrl+drag.
If you are having trouble using your Avid product:
1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task in this guide. It is especially important to check each step of your workflow.
2. Check the latest information that might have become available after the documentation was published:
- If the latest information for your Avid product is provided as printed release notes, they
are shipped with your application and are also available online.
- If the latest information for your Avid product is provided as a ReadMe file, it is
supplied on your Avid installation media as a PDF document (README_product.pdf) and is also available online.
You should always check online for the most up-to-date release notes or ReadMe because the online version is updated whenever new information becomes available. To
view these online versions, select ReadMe from the Help menu, or visit the Knowledge Base at www.avid.com/support.
12

Viewing Help and Documentation on the Interplay Portal

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/support. Online services are available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Search this online Knowledge Base to find answers, to view error messages, to access troubleshooting tips, to download updates, and to read or join online message-board discussions.
Viewing Help and Documentation on the Interplay Portal
You can quickly access the Interplay Help, PDF versions of the Interplay guides, and useful external links by viewing the Interplay User Information Center on the Interplay Portal. The Interplay Portal is a web site that runs on the Interplay Engine.
You can access the Interplay User Information Center through a browser from any system in the Interplay environment. You can also access it through the Help menu in Interplay Access and the Interplay Administrator.
The Interplay Help combines information from all Interplay guides in one Help system. It includes a combined index and a full-featured search. From the Interplay Portal, you can run the Help in a browser or download a compiled (.chm) version for use on other systems, such as a laptop.
To open the Interplay User Information Center through a browser:
1. Type the following line in a web browser:
http://Interplay_Engine_name
For Interplay_Engine_name substitute the name of the computer running the Interplay Engine software. For example, the following line opens the portal web page on a system named docwg:
http://docwg
2. Click the “Avid Interplay Documentation” link to access the User Information Center web page.
To open the Interplay User Information Center from Interplay Access or the Interplay Administrator:
t Select Help > Documentation Website on Server.
13

Interplay Documentation

The following documents describe how to use Avid Interplay:
Avid Interplay Best Practices — provides an overview of the major Interplay components, shows sample configuration diagrams, and describes several of the key features, such as setting up a user database and using the Avid Interplay Archive Engine.
Avid Interplay Software Installation and Configuration Guide — describes how to use the Avid Interplay installation programs to install and configure software on the various systems that make up a Interplay environment.
Avid Interplay Engine Failover Guide — describes how to set up a cluster configuration for the Avid Interplay Engine and the Avid Interplay Archive engine. There are two versions of this guide: one for SR2500 systems and one for AS3000 systems.
Avid Interplay Engine and Avid Interplay Archive Engine Administration Guide — describes how to administer your Avid Interplay Engine or Avid Interplay Archive Engine and Avid Interplay database.
Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Access to browse, search, and work with assets in the Avid Interplay database.
Avid Interplay Assist User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Assist for logging, archiving, and sending to Playback material in an Interplay environment.
Interplay Documentation
Avid Instinct User’s Guide — describes how to use the Avid Instinct application to write iNEWS stories and put together simple audio and video sequences.
Avid Interplay Media Services Setup and User’s Guide — Avid Interplay Media Services lets you control and automate Transcode, Archive, and other Interplay Media Services.
Avid Interplay Transfer Setup and User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Transfer to transfer media to and from another workgroup, send finished sequences to a configured playback device, ingest media from a configured ingest device, and perform standalone transfers between workstations.
Avid Service Framework User’s Guide — describes how to use the logging, monitoring, and management features of the Avid Service Framework applications.
Avid Interplay Capture User’s Guide — describes how to use Interplay Capture, a newsroom ingest tool that enables automated recordings.
Avid Interplay Capture Administrator’s Guide — describes administrative concepts, tasks, and reference material for Avid Interplay Capture.
All documents are available in PDF form on the Avid Knowledge Base at
www.avid.com/onlinesupport.
14

Avid Training Services

Avid makes lifelong learning, career advancement, and personal development easy and convenient. Avid understands that the knowledge you need to differentiate yourself is always changing, and Avid continually updates course content and offers new training delivery methods that accommodate your pressured and competitive work environment.
For information on courses/schedules, training centers, certifications, courseware, and books, please visit www.avid.com/support and follow the Training links, or call Avid Sales at 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843).
Avid Training Services
15
1 Getting Started with the Avid Interplay
Administrator
The Avid Interplay Administrator provides database administrators and maintenance engineers with the tools required to configure the Avid Interplay Engine and to manage the database on the server.
The following topics provide basic information for using the Interplay Administrator:
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
Opening an Interplay Administrator View
Opening Interplay Help
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator
For an overview of all Avid Interplay components, see the Avid Interplay Best Practices Guide.

Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups

The Avid Interplay Engine forms the backbone of the Interplay environment. The Interplay Engine is a server that combines an asset database with workflow management software, both of which are integrated with Avid shared storage and Avid archive solutions. This topic provides basic information about the functions and components of the Interplay Engine.
One Interplay Engine, One Interplay Database, One Shared Storage Network
The Interplay Engine is one component of an Interplay workgroup. At a minimum, an Interplay workgroup is composed of one Interplay Engine, one Interplay database, one Avid ISIS shared-storage network, and associated software and services.
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
Metadata Database
Avid Shared Storage
File Assets
Media for Avid Assets
Avid Interplay Engine
An Interplay database consists of two parts:
A metadata database, which holds information about the assets, or metadata.
Source files for the assets, for example, graphics files and Avid media files. The source files for file assets can be stored on the Interplay Engine or on an Avid shared-storage system. The source files for Avid assets are always stored on shared storage.
The following illustration shows the metadata database and the source files for file assets stored on the internal drive of the Interplay Engine server and the source files for Avid assets stored on an Avid shared storage workspace.
For information about all Interplay components and detailed sample configurations, see Avid Interplay Best Practices.
Avid Assets, File Assets, and Splitting the Database
Interplay manages two different kids of assets. Avid assets are assets that are created by Avid applications through capture, ingest, import, or transfer. Avid assets include:
Master clips
•Subclips
Sequences
•Effects
Motion effects
Rendered effects
Group clips
File assets are any assets that are not created by an Avid application. Any file you can create on your workstation, through applications such as Adobe Photoshop or Microsoft Word, can be added to the Interplay database and managed by Interplay as a file asset.
17
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
Metadata Database
Avid Shared Storage
File Assets
Media for Avid Assets
Avid Interplay Engine
Streamed Properties
Media files for Avid assets are always stored on an Avid shared-storage system. Source files for file assets can be stored on the Interplay Engine or on an Avid shared-storage workspace. The location that holds file assets is called the file repository.
When you first install Interplay Engine software, the installation program requires you to set one root folder for the database on a local drive. By default, this root folder holds both the metadata database and files for file assets. If the Interplay Engine server does not have adequate local storage for your Interplay database (for example, if your facility stores a large number of file assets in the Interplay database), you can configure the Interplay Engine to store only the metadata database on the Interplay Engine. All other database files and folders can be stored on an Avid shared-storage workspace. This configuration is called a split database. The following illustration shows a split database.
In a split database, source files for file assets and streamed properties for Avid assets (head
n
frames and AAF information) are stored on a shared storage workspace. Media files for Avid assets, such as .mxf files, are always stored on a shared storage workspace.
For more information, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 235.
Multiple Workgroups
A large production facility can have more than one Interplay workgroup. Each workgroup must have its own Interplay Engine, database, and shared storage network. Users on Interplay Access can view and access assets from more than one workgroup and can transfer them from one to another using a file copy procedure for file assets and Avid Interplay Transfer for Avid assets. You can also use the Interplay Delivery service to transfer Avid assets.
18
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
Interplay online database
Interplay Archive Engine database
Interplay Archive Engine
A facility might also include an Interplay Archive Engine. An Interplay Archive Engine is configured similarly to an Interplay Engine. An Archive Engine is integrated with a third-party archive system. An Interplay Archive database is always named AvidAM. An Interplay database is always named AvidWG.
An Interplay Archive database and an Interplay database use different icons, as shown in the following illustration from Interplay Access. The archive database is represented by a safe, and archive folders are represented by boxes.
For more information about the Interplay Archive Engine, see Avid Interplay Best Practices.
19
Understanding the Interplay Engine and Interplay Workgroups
In this guide, references to the Interplay Engine also refer to the Archive Engine, unless
n
otherwise noted.
Central Configuration Server
If a production facility includes more than one Interplay workgroup, you can specify one Interplay Engine as the Central Configuration Server (CCS). The CCS is an Interplay Engine module that stores information that is common to all other Interplay Engines. The CCS provides a means to manage user accounts across multiple workgroups. For more information, see
“Understanding the Central Configuration Server” on page 107.
Server Execution User
The Server Execution User is a Windows operating system user that runs the Interplay Engine processes. You specify the user name and password for the Server Execution User when you install the Interplay Engine on the server. The Server Execution User needs local administrator rights on the operating system for the Interplay Engine server and read/write access to the Avid shared-storage file system.
For more information, see “Troubleshooting the Server Execution User Account” on page 230.
Avid Interplay as a Client-Server Application
Avid Interplay is designed as a client-server application. The Interplay Engine is configured to run on a central machine that is accessible to all users through a network. An Avid Interplay application that runs on a client machine is a client of the Avid Interplay Engine server. Avid Interplay client applications, such as Interplay Access, Interplay Assist, Avid Instinct Avid editing applications that use the Interplay Window can access and browse multiple databases. The Interplay Administrator is also a client application.
Avid Interplay uses TCP/IP and related protocols for its network communication. Therefore, TCP/IP must be installed on all machines. Since TCP/IP is used to access the Internet, most users already have this component installed. See “Required TCP/IP Ports” on page 267 for more information.
20
®
, and

Using the Avid Interplay Administrator

Using the Avid Interplay Administrator
The Avid Interplay Administrator is a client application that you use to manage either the Interplay Engine or the Interplay Archive Engine. The Interplay Administrator is installed at the same time that you install Interplay Access. You can install the Interplay Administrator as a client on any computer in your network and then use it to manage any Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine that is available on the network. For information on installing Interplay Access and the Interplay Administrator, see the Avid Interplay Software Installation and Configuration Guide.
The Interplay Administrator provides you with the tools you need for the following major tasks:
Setting up a new database. See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 27.
Backing up the database. Backing up the database regularly protects your data, allowing you to restore the database to a saved state in the event of failure. See “Creating and Restoring
Database Backups” on page 32.
Maintenance tasks, such as locking, unlocking, and restarting the server. See “Server
Settings” on page 89.
Creating, editing, and deleting user accounts and managing user authorization. See “User
Management” on page 107.
Configuring client applications and the workgroup. See “Site Settings” on page 147.
Configuring the Interplay Archive Engine. See “Specifying Archive Settings” on page 176. For more information on archiving, see Avid Interplay Best Practices and the Avid Interplay Media Services Setup and User’s Guide..
Configuring Application Settings and Avid Interplay Services. See “Application Settings”
on page 199 and “Avid Interplay Services” on page 225.

Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator

To start the Avid Interplay Administrator:
1. Do one of the following:
t Click the Start button and then select All Programs > Avid >
Avid Interplay Access Utilities > Avid Interplay Administrator.
t From Interplay Access, select Tools > Open Interplay Administrator.
The Avid Interplay Administrator Server Login screen appears.
21
Starting the Avid Interplay Administrator
The first time you open the Interplay Administrator, the Server text box is empty. If you have already logged into a server, the text box shows the last server you logged in to.
2. Select the server you want to work with by doing one of the following:
t Accept the server that is displayed.
t Type the name of the server that you want to log in to. You can also use an IP address.
t Click the arrow for the Server list and select the server name from the list.
The first part of the list shows recent servers, the second part of the list shows servers that were added manually (not on a local area network), and the third part shows servers available on your local area network.
t Click the arrow for the server list and select Add Server. Type a new server name.
22

Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window

3. Type a user name and password for an account with administration rights.
On the first start after installing the Avid Interplay Engine, only the user Administrator exists. Type “Administrator” in the dialog box. The password is empty by default. Change the password of the Administrator as soon as possible (see “Viewing and Setting Attributes”
on page 130).
The Interplay Administrator account is different from the Server Execution User account. The
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Interplay Administrator account is used to manage users and the database. The Server Execution User account is used to run the Interplay Engine processes.
4. Click Connect.
The Interplay Administrator window opens.
If you have any problems logging in, see “Troubleshooting Login Problems” on page 227.
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
The Avid Interplay Administrator window is divided into six groups: Database, Server, User Management, Site Settings, Application Settings, and Avid Interplay Services. The name of the Interplay Engine server you are connected to is displayed in the upper right of the window.
23
Using the Avid Interplay Administrator Window
Each group contains views for managing components of the Avid Interplay Engine. Each group is described in a separate section of this guide:
“Database Settings” on page 27
“Server Settings” on page 89
“User Management” on page 107
“Site Settings” on page 147
“Application Settings” on page 199
“Avid Interplay Services” on page 225
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Opening an Interplay Administrator View

Opening an Interplay Administrator View
To open an Interplay Administrator view:
t In the Interplay Administrator window, click an icon.
The view you select replaces the Interplay Administrator window. Each view includes a path that shows the relative location of that view. The following illustration shows part of the Create Database view. In this example, the path shows that the Create Database view is included in the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window (In the path, the Interplay Administrator window is represented as the Interplay Server).
To return to the Interplay Administrator window:
t Click the Menu button in the upper left of the view.

Opening Interplay Help

The Interplay Help system is installed when you install the Interplay Engine. The Interplay Help system provides all user and administrator information that is contained in the Interplay manuals. The Interplay Administrator Help menu provides five entry points: one for the Welcome screen and four that correspond to four Interplay applications:
Interplay Administration Help
Interplay Media Services Help
Interplay Transfer Help
Interplay Installation Help
You can access the entire Help system, including the Search and Index tabs, from any of those entry points.
25

Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator

To access Interplay Help:
t Select Help, and then select the desired application.
t Select Documentation Website on Server.
The Avid Interplay User Information Center page opens. You can open the Help, PDF versions of the Interplay user guides, and other useful links. See “Viewing Help and
Documentation on the Interplay Portal” on page 13
Exiting the Avid Interplay Administrator
When you are finished using the Avid Interplay Administrator, you should log out or close the application. Logging out can be convenient if you want to log in to a different database.
To log out:
t Click the Log out button in the upper right of the Interplay Administrator window.
The application remains open, with the login screen displayed.
To close the Interplay Administrator, do one of the following:
t Select File > Exit.
t Click the close button in the upper right of the window.
The Interplay Administrator window closes.
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2 Database Settings

The Database settings allow you to create, configure, and manage the Interpla y database. The following topics describe how to use these settings:
Creating an Interplay Database
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Performing a Consistency Check
Viewing Database Information
Locking and Unlocking Databases
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions
Renaming a Database
Running Database Maintenance Tools

Creating an Interplay Database

The Create Database view lets you name and create a new Interplay database. You need to create an Interplay database after you install the Interplay Engine and Interplay Access software.
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Avid supports only one database for each Interplay Engine. The database must be named AvidWG, or for an Archive Engine database, AvidAM.
The root folder for a new database is set during the installation of the Interplay Engine software. By default, the installation program creates one shared folder for both the metadata database and the source files for file assets (the file repository). The default location is the D:\Workgroup_Databases folder (or S:\Workgroup_Databases on a cluster system). This folder is represented by the administrative share name WG_Database$. The $ indicates a hidden share.
Creating an Interplay Database
To identify the actual folder, open a Command Prompt window and type
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If the Interplay Engine server does not have adequate local storage for your Interplay database (for example, if your facility stores a large number of file assets in the Interplay database), you can configure the Interplay Engine to store only the metadata database on the Interplay Engine. The file repository and all other database files and folders can be stored on an Avid shared-storage workspace. This configuration is called a split database.
If you are going to use a split database configuration, the most efficient approach is to specify how to divide the database before you create it. You specify the locations in the Server Settings view (see “Changing the Database and Data Locations” on page 89) and then create the database in the Create Database view.
The following illustration shows the Create Database view with two locations specified:
The metadata database will be installed in \\DOCWG\WG_Database$, which represents a folder on the Interplay Engine (by default, D:\Workgroup_Databases).
The file repository will be installed in \\AAC-ISIS\File_Assets\, which is a shared storage workspace that you need to set in the Server Settings view.
net share
.
For complete information on configuring a split database, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split
Database” on page 235.
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Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files

To create an Interplay database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Create Database icon.
The Create Database view opens.
2. In the New Database Information area, leave the default “AvidWG” in the Database Name text box. For an archive database, leave the default “AvidAM.” These are the only two supported database names.
3. Type a description for the database in the Description text box, such as “Main Production Server.”
4. Select “Create default Avid Interplay structure.”
After the database is created, a set of default folders within the database are visible in Interplay Access and other Interplay clients. For more information about these folders, see the Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide.
5. Keep the root folder for the New Database Location (Meta Data).
The metadata database must reside on the Interplay Engine server.
6. Keep the root folder for the New Data Location (Assets).
If you are creating a split database, this entry should show the Avid shared-storage workspace that you set in the Server Settings view (see “Changing the Database and Data
Locations” on page 89).
7. Click Create to create directories and files for the database.
The Interplay database is created. For information about the folders and files that compose the database, see “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files” on page 29.
Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
When the Interplay Engine creates a database, it creates a set of directories and files in the locations you specified in the Create Database view (see “Creating an Interplay Database” on
page 27).
The Interplay Engine also creates a user database, which is located on the server that you designated as the Central Configuration Server during the installation (see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 107).
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Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
Database File Structure
The database file structure is based on the administrative share that was set during the Interplay Engine installation. By default, this administrative share is named WG_Database$ and is associated with the folder D:\Workgroup_Databases (S:\Workgroup_Databases for cluster systems). The “$” indicates a hidden share. To identify the actual folder, open a Command Prompt window and type
net share
.
This folder contains either the AvidWG or the AvidAM folder. If the server is functioning as the Central Configuration server, the folder also includes the _InternalData folder. The following table describes these folders:
Database Description
_Internal Data User database: Contains Central Configuration Server information such as
users and roles.
AvidWG Interplay Engine database: Contains metadata for Avid assets and file
assets, and source files for file assets.
AvidAM Interplay Archive Engine database: Contains archived metadata for Avid
assets and file assets, and source files for file assets.
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Split Database
If you configured your system to create a split database (either when creating a database or after installation), an AvidWG folder exists on both the Interplay Engine server and the shared storage workspace. Only the _Database folder is located on the Interplay Engine server. The other folders are located on the shared storage workspace. For more information about working with a split database, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 235.
Database Folders and Files
The following table lists the folders that are included in the AvidWG or AvidAM folders. During normal work, users or administrators do not need to work directly with these folders and files. All access for normal work is through Avid Interplay products. You need to work with these files when splitting a database or possibly when troubleshooting a problem.
You should exclude the _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database from any kind of virus checking because virus checking tools might try to lock the database files).
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Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files
Database Directories and Files
Directory or File Directory or File Description
_Database The main database directory, which contains database files and the
database journal. These files contain the database structure and all metadata. All files within this folder contain binary information and cannot be viewed or edited with a text editor.
If you are working with a split database, this directory is located on the Interplay Engine server and other directories are located on a shared storage workspace.
_Master The main data directory, which contains the source files for file assets that
are managed by the database (the file repository). This directory contains source files for all versions of the file assets.
Source files for Avid assets are always stored in Avid media folders
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on shared storage. If you are working with a split database, this directory is located on a shared storage workspace.
Handover Directories: _Import, _CheckIn, _PropertyHandover, _Handover
_PropertyStore The database directory that contains files holding the contents of streamed
_Backup The data folder that contains backup versions of the database that are
AvidWG.pro, AvidAM.pro A cookie file representing the database. It contains no vital information,
Folderlocations.xml A file that informs the server about the location of the _Database directory.
_Buckets Not currently used.
Whenever a file is copied from the client to the server, the file is first copied into one of these directories, depending on what operation (check in, import, and so on) was performed. The server then moves the file from these handover directories into the _Master directory.
properties. Streamed properties include metadata about Avid assets, such as head frames and AAF information.
created through the automated backup process (see “Scheduling
Automatic Database Backups” on page 38).
but it is needed to activate a deactivated database (see “Activating a
Deactivated Database” on page 69).
If you set a new location for the file assets, you might need to edit this file. See “Splitting a Database for Existing Interplay Installations” on
page 241.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups

Creating and Restoring Database Backups
There are two basic approaches to backing up an Interplay database:
Using a combination of backups scheduled through the Interplay Administrator (automatic backups) and manual backups of other parts of the database. This approach should be used as part of a regular backup strategy.
Using a professional backup tool to do a complete backup to offline media. This backup should include both the Interplay backup and the folders that Interplay backup process does not include.
Creating a complete copy of the complete database using Robocopy or 7-Zip is useful before doing a major system upgrade. These tools can be used in place of a professional backup tool. However, keep in mind that performance and stability might suffer.
The following topics provide information about creating and restoring database backups:
“Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 33
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 33
“Scheduling Automatic Database Backups” on page 38
“Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep” on page 37
“Starting a Backup Manually” on page 42
“Using an Archiving Tool for Backup” on page 43
“Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database” on page 45
“Performing a Partial Restore of an Interplay Production Database” on page 57
“Creating a Metadata-Only Backup for Customer Support” on page 61
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups

Types of Interplay Administrator Backups

The Interplay Administrator lets you run create two different kinds of metadata backups: a Complete metadata backup and a Fast metadata backup. You can schedule backups to run automatically or you can run a backup manually. The following table describes the different types of backups.
Backup Type Description
Complete (Full) backup Creates copies of database files in the _Database folder and streamed
properties files in the _PropertyStore folder. Streamed properties include metadata about Avid assets, such as head frames and AAF information. This is the preferred backup.
Fast backups:
- Incremental Creates copies of database files and streamed properties files that were added to the database since the last Complete Backup, the last Incremental Backup, or the last Differential Backup.
- Differential Creates copies of database files and streamed properties files that were added to the database since the last Complete Backup. In most cases, this backup takes longer to perform than an Incremental backup.
- Metadata Only (Manual backup only) Creates copies of database files in the _Database folder, but not streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore folder. This type of Fast backup is less useful than an Incremental or Differential backup. See “Starting a Backup Manually” on page 42.
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The _PropertyStore folder is critical if you need to completely restore Av i d asse t s . Avid recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week and a Fast backup (either Incremental or Differential) daily.
For information on how to restore a database, see “Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast
Backup” on page 47.

Recommendations for Backup Configuration

Automatic backups, as scheduled through the Interplay Administrator, do not back up the entire database, so they are only one component of a complete backup strategy.
The following table lists the different types of backups needed to completely back up the Interplay database. For an Interplay archive, substitute AvidAM for AvidWG.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Type of Backup Folders or Files Backed Up
Fast Metadata Only backup AvidWG\_Database
Complete (Full) backup Fast Incremental backup Fast Differential backup
Automatic Full Backup WG_Database$\_InternalData
Manual backup AvidWG\_Master
AvidWG\_Database AvidWG\_PropertyStore
This folder is automatically backed up once a week at 1 a.m. on Sunday.
AvidWG\AvidWG.pro AvidWG\FolderLocations.xml
See “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files”
on page 29 for descriptions of these folders and
files. It is not necessary to back up AvidWG\_Backup unless you want to make a backup of automated backups. Other folders in AvidWG do not need to be backed up because they are temporary folders that are automatically recreated.
This type of manual backup might involve tape backup or another kind of backup process.
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The _Master folder, which holds source files for file assets, is not included in the automatic backup, which includes only metadata. It must be backed up by another backup method regularly. Also be aware that the automatic backup process does not back up Avid media files on shared storage workspaces.
It is extremely important to use the automatic backup process available through the Interplay Administrator instead of just a tape backup for backing up the _Database and _PropertyStore folders. Tape backups can be:
Inconsistent: A tape backup of the _Database folder while the server is running can lead to inconsistent backup files because the server might not have applied all the transactions to the database yet.
Inconvenient: Because it is not safe to make tape backups of the _Database folder while the server is running, the server must be completely shut down during tape backup, causing inconvenience.
Unpredictable and dangerous: The backup might lock the database files. This prevents the server from reading and writing those files. The database could become damaged.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Automatic backup ensures database consistency.
Recommended Backup Configuration
Avid recommends the following backup configuration:
Enable a daily Avid Interplay database backup. The backup should be set to run once daily at night, when the server is not being used or usage is lowest. See “Scheduling
Automatic Database Backups” on page 38.
Decide whether to schedule the daily backup as a Complete backup or Fast backup. If you have a very large database, you can save time by scheduling a Fast backup daily and a Complete backup every few days. However, keep in mind that a Complete backup is needed to restore Avid assets. Because Complete backups can affect system performance, schedule Complete backups when the server is not being used or when usage is lowest. See “Types of
Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 33.
Check the “number of backups to keep” setting. The Avid Interplay Engine always keeps the last Complete backup and any later Fast backups. If you want to keep more than one Complete backup, change the “number of Backups to keep” setting to be larger than the number of scheduled Fast backups. For more information, see “Setting the Number of
Database Backups to Keep” on page 37.
Determine where to store the automatic backups. By default, the _Backup folder is located in the Workgroup_Databases folder. Depending on the size of the database, you might need to change the location to store backups. If you select a custom location, you can rename the folder from _Backup to another name.
Non-cluster systems: The default path is
- D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
If you are working with a split database, by default the _Backup folder is located with the file repository on the shared-storage workspace, for example:
-\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\_Backup
Storing backups on shared storage is an acceptable configuration, either as part of a split database or as a custom location.
Prior to Interplay Engine v1.2.4, storing backups on shared storage was not recommended
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because of the large number of small files included in the backup. However, the backup mechanism included with Interplay Engine v1.2.4 or later significantly reduces the number of files created in the _PropertyStore folder, which reduces the amount of storage required.
Alternatively, you can store the backups on an external file server. You need to use a UNC path when you specify the location. Make sure the Server Execution User has read/write access to this external file server and the backup folder. See “Troubleshooting the Server
Execution User Account” on page 230.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Cluster systems: The default path is
- S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
On cluster systems, Avid recommends that you specify \\?\d:\backup as the path for Interplay backups. (This syntax, with a question mark, is known as a Long UNC or UNCW path, and allows for more characters than the 260-character limitation of the short UNC path.) This path will create backups on the local drive of the active node, rather than the Infortrend, thus avoiding a single point of failure.
SR2400 systems were shipped with 73 GB drives, which are too small for regular backups. These
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systems should be upgraded to include larger drives.
Ensure that the backups are working and actually creating backups. To test the backup, check that the backup subfolders databasename_date_time are being created at the specified times (according to the backup configuration) and that these subfolders are not empty. Every backup should create its own subfolder.
For example, on a non-cluster system, your backup folders might be created in the following location:
- D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
A backup subfolder might be named AvidWG_2007-05-22_03-00.
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Enable a different backup mechanism, such as tape backup, for all folders except the _Database and _PropertyStore folders (see the table at the beginning of this topic). The
_Master folder of each database is the most important for the tape backup. Do not include the _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database in the tape backup.
After a Complete backup, copy the backup folder to offline media to prevent data loss. You can do this as a separate step or as part of a backup of the complete database to offline media (see the next bullet). Use a backup tool (such as Robocopy or 7-Zip) that can handle long path names and does not use excessive bandwidth, to avoid slowing down activity on the Interplay Engine. (See “Using an Archiving Tool for Backup” on page 43).
Perform a backup of the complete database to offline media. Avid recommends a complete backup to offline media using a professional backup tool. Archive tools such as Robocopy or 7-Zip are useful before doing a major system upgrade. They can be used in place of a professional backup tool. However, performance and stability might suffer.
If you schedule a regular restart of the engine, set it after the regular backup is created. If you restart the Interplay Engine, you cannot create a backup until at least one client connects to the engine. This could be a problem if you schedule a restart and backup at a time when there is little or not activity, such as the middle of the night.
The _Database and _PropertyStore folders of each database should be excluded from any kind of virus checking (virus checking tools might try to lock the database files).
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Sun Mon Wed
Tue Thu
Fri Sat Sun
12345678
CCFF FFFF
Sun Mon Wed
Tue Thu
Fri Sat Sun
12345678
CCFF FFFF
Mon Wed
Tue Thu
Fri Sat Sun
9 101112131415
CFF FFFF

Setting the Number of Database Backups to Keep

The Avid Interplay Engine always keeps the last Complete backup and any later Fast backups. If you want to keep more than one Complete backup, change the “number of Backups to keep” setting to be larger than the number of scheduled Fast backups. The default setting is 10.
The number of backups to keep includes Complete and Fast backups. After the Interplay Engine finishes a Complete backup, it checks the number of backups in the _Backup folder. If the number of backups to keep is exceeded, the Interplay Engine deletes the extra backups regardless of backup type (Complete or Fast), starting with the oldest. In this way, there is always at least one Complete Backup available.
Keeping More Than One Complete Backup
If you want to keep more than one complete backup, you must carefully calculate the number of backups to keep. For example, if you schedule Complete backups once a week and schedule Fast backups on the other 6 days, the number of backups to keep must be at least 8 (2 Complete backups and 6 Fast backups). If the number of backups to keep is less than 8, on the day of the Complete backup the Interplay Engine will delete the second-to-last Complete backup.
The following illustration shows Complete backups on Sundays and Fast backups on the other days of the week. On Sunday the 8th, after finishing a Complete backup, the Interplay Engine checks the number of backups. Because the number of backups to keep is 8, it keeps the Complete backup performed on Sunday the 1st, the 6 Fast backups, and the last Complete backup.
In the same example, the Interplay Engine does not check the number of backups again until it performs a Complete backup on Sunday the 15th. On that day, it deletes the 7 oldest backups, leaving 8. The following illustration shows the 7 oldest backups deleted.
If you check the _Backup folder before the Interplay Engine finishes a Complete backup, it is
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possible for the _Backup folder to contain more than the specified number of backups to keep.
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Scheduling Automatic Database Backups

The Schedule Backups view in the Interplay Administrator lets you schedule the type and frequency of your automatic backups. You can schedule two kinds of backups: Complete and Fast. You can schedule one of two different Fast backups: Incremental or Differential. For a description of the different types of backups, see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on
page 33.
The Interplay Engine performs an automatic backup without locking or shutting down the server, and users can continue to work with the database. During a backup operation, all actions on the engine are cached to ensure a fully consistent backup. As a result, the performance of the Interplay Engine is slower. You should not schedule large-scale deletions during a backup operation.
When a backup is in progress, status messages are displayed at the top of the view.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
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The Backup History section displays incremental and differential backups up to the last successful complete backup. Administrators can use this as a troubleshooting tool to see if the last backup was successful and if not, which backups have failed. It also can be used to view which incremental and differential backups are required for the most recent full restore. This display does not necessarily match the backups stored in the _Backup folder.
Automatic backups create copies of metadata files, but do not create copies of the assets. You need to use a different process, such as tape backup, to back up your assets, as described in
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 33.
Only _Database and _PropertyStore are backed up through the Interplay Administrator backup process. Other directories, such as _Master, need to be backed up through a different process.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
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The _PropertyStore folder is critical if you need to completely restore Av i d asse t s . Avid recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week and a Fast backup (either Incremental or Differential) daily.
By default, backups are stored in the following folder:
\\InterplayEngine\workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
You can specify another location, including shared storage. Make sure the Server Execution User has read/write access this location. For more information, see “Recommendations for Backup
Configuration” on page 33.
For information on restoring a database, see “Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup”
on page 47.
To schedule database backups:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Schedule Backups icon.
The Schedule Backups view opens.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
2. In the list on the left side of the view, select the database for which you want to view or specify automatic backup settings. The current settings are displayed.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
3. (Option) In the Backup Information area, change your preferences if necessary.
“Backup only if modified” is selected by default to save space and avoid duplicate identical copies. The default number of versions to keep is 10. The Avid Interplay Engine always keeps the last Complete backup and later Fast backups. For more information, see
“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 33.
4. (Option) In the Backup Location preference, change the path if desired.
a. Select Custom.
b. Click Browse, and navigate to the location you want. For a shared storage location, you
might need to type the path.
The custom location must be specified as a UNC path. You can also change the name of the folder from _Backup to another name. See “Recommendations for Backup Configuration”
on page 33.
5. (Option) In the Fast Metadata Backup area, select “Fast Metadata Backup Enabled” (disabled by default).
6. (Option) If Fast Metadata Backup is enabled, you can change the Fast backup frequency. The default is set to Daily. You can select any number of days on which you would like to perform Fast backups or you can set a Fast backup for one day a month.
7. (Option) If Fast Metadata Backup is enabled, you can change the Fast backup time by doing one of the following:
- Select Once at and change the hour and minutes (within 10 minute intervals) on which it
occurs using the up and down arrows.
- Select Every and set the backup to occur at regular intervals starting at midnight. Use
the down arrow to select the interval.
- Select Custom and specify custom backup times. Use the up and down arrows to select
the time, and then select Add. Repeat to add more times to perform the backup. Select a time and then Remove to cancel a backup.
The Backup time is the Interplay Engine server's local time.
8. In the Complete Metadata Backup area, make sure the option “Complete Metadata Backup Enabled” is selected (default).
Avid recommends that you schedule a Complete backup once a week.
9. (Option) Change the Complete backup frequency. Because Complete backups can take a long time and affect system performance, Avid recommends that you perform Complete backups when the server is not being used or when usage is lowest. The default is set to Sunday. You can select any number of days you would like to perform Complete backups.
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10. (Option) Change the Backup time by selecting one of the following:
t Select Once at and change the hour and minutes (within 10 minute intervals) on which it
occurs using the up and down arrows.
t Select Every and set the backup to occur at regular intervals starting at midnight. Use
the down arrow to select the interval.
t Select Custom and specify custom backup times. Use the up and down arrows to select
the time, and then click Add. Repeat to add more times to perform the backup. Select a time and click Remove to cancel a backup.
11. Click the Apply Changes button.

Starting a Backup Manually

You can start an Interplay Administrator Backup manually, rather than waiting for a scheduled automatic backup or changing the existing backup schedules.
To start a backup manually:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Schedule Backups icon.
The Schedule Backups view opens.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
2. In the list on the left side of the view, select the database for which you want to view or specify automatic backup settings. The current settings are displayed.
3. At the bottom of the view, click the “Start Backup Now...” button.
4. Select the kind of backup you want to create. For a description of the different types of backups, see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 33.
5. Click OK
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The backup is created in the location you specified. If you navigate to the location, and the backup is still being created, the folder name includes the words “backup in progress.”

Using an Archiving Tool for Backup

In some circumstances, such as performing a system upgrade, you might want to use an archive tool to create a backup copy of the complete database folder (AvidWG or AvidAM) and the user database folder (_InternalData). For information on the location and contents of the databases, see “Avid Interplay Databases, Folders, and Files” on page 29.
If you create a backup archive, keep in mind that a complete backup can take several hours, during which the Interplay database is locked and deactivated. Also, you need to use a backup tool that can handle long path names (longer than 256 characters). For example, use Robocopy (contained in rktools.exe, available on Microsoft.com) or 7-Zip (an open source utility) to create the archive. You can save backup time by removing old backups from the _Backup folder.
To make a backup copy of the database on a non-cluster system:
1. Open the Interplay Administration tool.
2. Use the following steps to lock the database:
a. Click Lock/Unlock Databases.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
b. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
c. Click Lock Database.
3. Click Menu and click Manage Databases.
4. Select the AvidWG database and click Deactivate. Select AvidAM for an Archive Engine.
5. Click Menu and click the Restart Server view.
6. Click Restart Server and close the Interplay Administration tool.
7. Use a backup tool to make a copy of the following folders and record their location. The following tables show the default locations.
Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (Interplay Engine database)
AvidAM (Archive Engine database)
_InternalData (user database if engine is a Central Configuration Server)
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidAM
D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Interplay Engine (Split Database)
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (_Database folder only) D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
AvidWG (all other database folders) \\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG
_InternalData (user database if engine is a Central Configuration Server)
To make a backup copy of the database on a cluster system:
1. Open the Interplay Administration tool.
2. Use the following steps to lock the database:
a. Click Lock/Unlock Databases.
b. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
c. Click Lock Database.
3. Click Menu and click Manage Databases.
4. Select the AvidWG database and click Deactivate. Select AvidAM for an Archive Engine.
5. Close the Interplay Administration tool.
6. Click Start and select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
7. Open the Groups folder.
8. Select the Avid Workgroup Server group.
9. Select the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor resource and take it offline.
10. If you performed the previous step correctly, drive S: should still be accessible within the Windows environment. If it is not available, use the Cluster Administration tool to put drive S: online by clicking on the disk resource within the “Avid Workgroup Server Group” and selecting online.
D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
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11. Use a backup tool to make a copy of the following folders and record their location.
Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine
Folder Name Default Location
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
AvidWG (Interplay Engine database)
AvidAM (Archive Engine database)
_InternalData (user database if engine is a Central Configuration Server)
Interplay Engine (Split Database)
Folder Name Default Location
AvidWG (_Database folder only) S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
AvidWG (all other database folders) \\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG
_InternalData (user database if engine is a Central Configuration Server)
On cluster systems, Avid recommends that you specify \\?\d:\backup as the path for Interplay
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backups.See “Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 33.
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidAM
S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData
S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData

Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database

Restoring a backup version of the _Database and _PropertyStore folders returns a database to the state it was in when the backup was created. Before restoring a database, make sure that it is really necessary, because changes since the backup will be lost.
To restore a backup, you need to run the InterplayRestore tool in a Command Prompt window. The InterplayRestore tool is installed in the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
The tool includes in-line help that describes all options for using the tool.
The following topics provide instructions for restoring an earlier version of a database:
“Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup” on page 47
“Using the InterplayRestore Tool on the Interplay Engine Server” on page 50
45
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
“Database Restore Session Example” on page 53
“Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 54
“Restoring Archived Log Files” on page 57
You cannot restore parts of a backup, for example, a specific sequence or folder. You can restore only a Complete backup or a Fast backup.
How the Restore Tool Works with Streamed Properties Files
Beginning with Interplay Engine v1.2.4, the Interplay backup mechanism consolidates the streamed properties files (all files in the _PropertyStore folder) into large “archive” files. These files are written into the _PropertyStore folder of the corresponding backup folder. The archive files are named streamed_propx.bar, where x is replaced with an increasing number starting with
1. The files are about 1 GB each, except for the last one (with the highest suffix number), which
can be smaller. The exact file size varies depending on the size of the individual streamed property files, because a single streamed property file is never split up between two .bar files. The backup mechanism also writes a file named streamed_prop.bin in the same folder. This file contains a directory of all streamed property files contained in the backup and is used only by the BackupArchive tool (see “Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 54). The .bin file is not required by the InterplayRestore tool.
The InterplayRestore tool is able to work with both the consolidated streamed property files as well as a backup created by an earlier version of the Interplay Engine. The tool looks for the streamed_prop1.bar file in the _PropertyStore folder of the backup. If this file does not exist, it assumes that the backup was created by an earlier version of the engine and resumes with the restore procedure in the same way as earlier versions of the restore tool. Otherwise, it restores the streamed properties from the consolidated .bar files.
How the Restore Tool Renames Folders
When the tool begins the restore, it locks the database and then renames the existing folder _Database to _Database.1. If you are performing a restore from a Complete backup, the tool also renames _PropertyStore to _PropertyStore.1.
If a folder _Database.1 already exists, the tool creates _Database.2, and so on up to _Database.9. The tool uses the first free number between 1 and 9 when it renames the _Database and _PropertyStore folders. If no number is free, you need to delete some of the previously renamed folders so that the tool can run.
If the backup restore is not completed (if you kill the process, if the system crashes, if you get an error message, and so on), you can restore the system to its previous state by deleting the _Database folder (and possibly the _PropertyStore folder) that the tool created and renaming _Database.1 to _Database (and _PropertyStore.1 to _PropertyStore).
46
After you verify that the backup ran successfully and your database is working correctly, you can save storage space by deleting the numbered backup folders ( _Database.x and _PropertyStore.x) created during the restore process.
Restoring a Complete Backup or a Fast Backup
To restore a database, you need to restore a Complete backup, a Fast backup, or both, depending on the type of backups available. (see “Types of Interplay Administrator Backups” on page 33 for a description of each type of backup).
A Complete backup contains a _Database folder and a _PropertyStore folder. A Complete backup is needed if the complete database needs to be restored, for example, if a hard disk crashes.
A Fast Incremental Backup and a Fast Differential Backup also contain a _Database folder and a _PropertyStore folder. If you restore a Differential or Incremental backup, all backups it depends on must be in the same backup location.
The following backups must be in the same folder:
- For a Differential backup, the last Complete backup before the backup you are restoring.
- For an Incremental backup, the last Complete backup and the necessary Incremental or
Differential backups between the last Complete backup and the backup you are restoring.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
You do not need all backups between the last Complete backup and the backup you are restoring. You need the most recent Complete backup, the most recent Differential backup (if any), and any Incremental backups since the last Complete or Differential backup.
For example, if a sequence of backups looks like this: c(complete)1 -> i(incremental)1
-> i2 -> d(differential)1 -> i3 -> i4 -> d2 -> i5 -> i6, to restore i6 the backups you need in the same folder are c1, d2, i5, and i6. You need these files because i6 contains the changes since i5, which contains the changes since d2, which contains the changes since c1.
A Fast Metadata Only backup contains only a _Database folder, and can only be run manually. A Fast Metadata Only backup is limited in its usefulness. You can use it to restore the database structure if it becomes corrupted, but it does not restore the contents of the _PropertyStore folder. To restore the contents of the _PropertyStore folder, you need to restore the most recent Complete backup, Incremental backup, or Differential backup, as described above.
The InterplayRestore tool automatically identifies the type of backup that you select.
47
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Fast Metadata Only backup folder
Complete, Fast Incremental, or Fast Differential backup folder
Earlier versions of the Interplay Engine did not delete streamed properties from the
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_PropertyStore folder until the next Complete backup was performed. Starting with Interplay Engine v3.0, streamed properties are deleted immediately on deletion request unless there is an active backup. In this case, the deletion takes place after the next Complete backup.
Distinguishing Between Types of Backups
To distinguish between a Fast Metadata Only backup and the other types of backups, open the backup folder and check if a _PropertyStore folder exists. A Fast Metadata Only backup does not contain a _PropertyStore folder.
To distinguish between Complete, Fast Incremental, and Fast Differential backups, open the backup folder and then open the inventory.xml file in Notepad or another text editor. The type of backup is listed, along with other information.
48
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Fast Incremental backup type
Example of a Complete Restore Process
Imagine that you have a backup schedule of a Complete backup on Saturday and a Fast Differential backup every other day of the week. If there is a failure on Friday in which the _Database folder, the _PropertyStore folder, and other Interplay folders are lost or corrupted, you need to perform the following steps:
1. Use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the latest Fast Differential backup (from Thursday).
2. To add metadata missing from the _PropertyStore folder, check in bins created for projects since the Thursday backup.
3. Use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the _InternalData folder.
4. Restore the _Master folder and other folders through whatever mechanism you use for backup.
5. Resynchronize media files with shared storage workspaces. In Interplay Access, right-click the database name and select Resync. For more information, see “Resyncing Media Files with Avid Shared-Storage Workspaces” in the Avid Interplay Access User’s Guide or the Interplay Access Help.
49
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Using the InterplayRestore Tool on the Interplay Engine Server
To restore a backup, you need to run the InterplayRestore tool in a Command Prompt window. There are two ways to run the tool:
Without parameters, in which case the tool prompts you for the necessary entries (interactive mode).
With parameters, in which case the tool runs without prompting, depending on the number of parameters included. You can use these parameters to create a batch file that partially automates the restore process.
You can use the InterplayRestore tool to restore the AvidAM or the _InternalData folder. In the
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following procedure, substitute AvidAM or _InternalData for AvidWG.
To restore an earlier version of a database from a backup using interactive mode:
1. On the Interplay Engine server, click Programs and select Accessories > Command Prompt.
2. At the command line, navigate to the folder that contains InterplayRestore. For example, type:
cd C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
and press Enter.
3. Type:
InterplayRestore
and press Enter.
4. InterplayRestore prompts you for the database root directory. Type the path and press Enter.
You can use a local path or a UNC path. For example:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG \\IEServer\WG_Database$\AvidWG
You can use the administrative share name WG_Database$ only in a UNC path.
5. The next prompt asks if you are restoring a split database configuration.
If you answer yes, the next prompt asks you to enter the Interplay database asset path, which is the path to the AvidWG folder on shared storage. Enter a UNC path, for example:
\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\
6. At the next prompt, type the backup home directory and press Enter. For example:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
If you are working with a split database, this location is probably on the shared storage server. For example:
\\SharedStorageServer\WorkspaceName\AvidWG\_Backup
50
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
7. At the next prompt, select the correct backup from the numbered list of available backups. Complete backups are labeled “full” and Fast backups are labeled “increment” “difference,” or “metadataonly.” After you select the backup, press Enter.
The restore process begins. For an example of the process, see “Database Restore Session
Example” on page 53. At the end of the process, a message informs you that you need to
restore the _Master directory manually.
8. Restore your _Master folder through whatever mechanism you use for backup.
The _Master database is not backed up by the automated backup feature of Interplay. See
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“Recommendations for Backup Configuration” on page 33.
9. Unlock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view in the Interplay Administrator.
10. Check to make sure you can access the restored database from Interplay Access, and that you can preview clip headframes.
11. Delete the _Database.1 and _PropertyStore.1 directories, or whatever numbered backup directories were created through the restore process. See “Restoring an Earlier Version of a
Database” on page 45.
To restore an earlier version of a database from a backup by passing parameters to the tool, do one of the following:
t For a non-split database, navigate to the folder that holds InterplayRestore, type the
following, and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir> /backupdir <database backup dir>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG /backupdir d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup
InterplayRestore prompts you to choose from a numbered list of available backups and then restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
The parameter
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the complete syntax for the tool by entering
Because the paths for the
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can create a batch file that includes these values, as in the previous example. To restore the database, run the batch file and select the number of the backup you want to restore.
/m
is a short version of the parameter
InterplayRestore /help
/metadata
and
/backupdir
51
/metadata
parameters are unlikely to change, you
. You can view information on
.
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
t For a split database, navigate to the folder that holds InterplayRestore, type the following,
and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir> /assets <split database asset directory> /backupdir <database backup dir>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG /assets \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG /backupdir \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG\_Backup
InterplayRestore prompts you to choose from a numbered list of available backups and then restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
Because the paths for the
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change, you can create a batch file that includes these values, as in the previous example. To
/metadata ,/assets
, and
/backupdir
parameters are unlikely to
restore the database, run the batch file and select the number of the backup you want to restore.
t If you know the specific backup you want to restore, navigate to the folder that holds
InterplayRestore, type the following, and press Enter:
InterplayRestore /m <database metadata root dir> /backupdir <database backup dir> /backuptorestore <backup folder for restore>
For example:
InterplayRestore /m d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG /backupdir d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup /backuptorestore d:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2007-08-20_01-00
InterplayRestore restores the earlier version. Continue with steps 8 through 11 above.
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Database Restore Session Example
The following is an example of an interactive session, which begins with the command for starting the InterplayRestore tool.
C:\>”C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server\InterplayRestore”
********************************************************************
InterplayRestore - Restore Interplay databases from backup
A non interactive mode is also available. Run "InterplayRestore.exe /?" for help
Enter the Interplay database root or metadata directory:
D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG
Is this a split database configuration? <y/n> y
Enter the Interplay database asset path: \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG
Enter the backup root directory: \\isis\workspace1\AvidWG\_Backup
Choose a backup to restore from:
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
[1] Tuesday, June 10, 2010 3:05:00 AM full
[2] Thursday, June 12, 2010 3:04:00 AM increment
[3] Friday, June 13, 2010 3:05:00 AM full
[4] Saturday, June 14, 2010 3:00:00 AM full
Choose an entry ( 1 - 4 ):
53
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Assume you choose 1. The tool locks the project so that no one can access the database and then copies the files:
Beginning restore from \\isis\workspace1\avidwg\_Backup\AvidWG_2010-06-10_03-05\
This is a Full backup
Restoring split database. Metadata restored to d:\Workgroup_Databases\avidwg\. PropertyStore Assets restored to \\isis\workspace1\avidwg
Locked project AvidWG
Copying files into d:\Workgroup_Databases\avidwg\_Database
Copying file AvidWG.dor
...
It leaves the database locked and gives you the following message:
Database AvidWG is still locked because you need to restore _Master manually, or through your existing tape backup mechanism.
When you are done restoring _Master, use the Lock/Unlock Database view in Interplay Administrator to unlock the AvidWG database. This will complete your restore operation.
Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files
The BackupArchive tool is a command-line program that lets you work with files contained in the _PropertyStore folder contained in a database backup. The _PropertyStore folder holds streamed properties, which are files that include metadata about Avid assets, such as headframes and AAF information. The streamed property files are backed up (as an archive) in one or more .bar files in the _PropertyStore backup folder. For more information about .bar files, see
“Restoring an Earlier Version of a Database” on page 45.
You can use the BackupArchive tool to display a list of all streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore backup folder. You can also use it in an emergency situation in which the online database is missing and the backup file is corrupt. In this case, you would use the tool to extract as many files as possible from the corrupt backup. It is not a replacement for the InterplayRestore tool.
For example, the following illustration shows the contents of the 0-1999 subfolder in the active _PropertyStore folder on the Interplay Engine:
54
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
The following illustration shows the corresponding files as they appear in the archive file \AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertyStore\streamed_prop1.bar:
The .bar file is a file that you can only open by using the BackupArchive tool.
In previous versions of Interplay, you could use Windows Explorer to view and work with the
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streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore backup folder. Because the current backup mechanism uses archive files, you need this tool to view and work with files in the _PropertyStore backup folder.
The following procedures describe how to view a list of streamed properties, how to unpack an archive, and how to extract specific files. If you need to restore the streamed properties to a database in an emergency situation, contact Avid support.
The complete syntax for using the BackupArchive tool is provided in the in-line help, which you can display by typing
To list all streamed properties files in an archive file:
1. On the Interplay Engine, click Programs and select Accessories > Command Prompt.
2. At the command line, navigate to the folder that contains the BackupArchive tool.
BackupArchive
in a Command Prompt window.
55
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
For example, type the following and press Enter:
cd C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
3. Type the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /L <archive>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. For example,
backuparchive /L \\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt ore\streamed_prop
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
To direct the output of this command to a text file for easier review, add
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end of the command.
To unpack all streamed properties files:
t Type the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /U <archive> <destination folder>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. For example, the following command unpacks all property store files into a temporary folder on the Interplay Engine:
backuparchive /U \\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt ore\streamed_prop D:\Workgroup_Databases\TempPropertyStore
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
To extract and restore specific streamed properties files:
t Type the following and press Enter:
backuparchive /E /P:<pattern> <archive> <destination folder>
Do not use the file extension when typing the name of the archive file. To define a pattern, you can use the standard Windows syntax. For example, the following command extracts all files whose names include Scr (screenshots) into a temporary folder on the Interplay Engine:
backuparchive /E /P:*Scr* \\docisis\workspace3\AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2008-05-04_01-00\_PropertySt ore\streamed_prop D:\Workgroup_Databases\TempPropertyStoreScreenshots
> textfile.txt
to the
Make sure to type the command on a single line.
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Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Restoring Archived Log Files
In Interplay version 1.6 and later, the Interplay Engine compresses and archives log files older than 7 days. The log compression process runs during project backup. (This process runs at most once per day, even if multiple backups are scheduled on the same day.) Archive files (with the extensions .bar and .bin) are stored in the same directory as the log files for 30 days and then are automatically deleted. You can extract the compressed log files from an archive by using the BackupArchive tool described in “Using the BackupArchive Tool to Restore Files” on page 54.

Performing a Partial Restore of an Interplay Production Database

Interplay Administrator v3.0 introduces a new option to the InterplayRestore tool that lets you select an incremental backup to use for the restore process, without restoring the complete database. Restoring from one or more incremental backups is referred to as a partial restore.
Prior to this release, the InterplayRestore tool always restored the complete database, even if you selected to restore from an incremental backup. Performing a partial restore can save a significant amount of time, depending on the size of the database.
See the Avid Interplay Engine and Avid Interplay Archive Engine Administration Guide for
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complete information about backing up and restoring.
c
When to Perform a Partial Restore
One example of an effective use of a partial restore is if a facility is replacing its Interplay Engine with a new server. This is often a gradual process that takes several days. For example, you might create a database on a new server by performing a complete restore of the existing database on Monday. You test the system on Tuesday. If all goes well, you perform a partial restore on Wednesday to add changes that took place in the database since the last complete backup, and then bring the new server on line.
Make sure you have performed a full restore of the last complete backup before you perform a partial restore. A partial restore only restores incremental changes since the last complete backup.
57
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Selecting from the Backup Chain
When you run the InterplayRestore tool in interactive mode (without command line options), and select a backup to restore, a backup chain of files is displayed. The backup chain is determined by the backup you selected to restore. In the following example, you select incremental backup entry 3. The backup chain lists the last full backup and any subsequent incremental backups.
[1] 04 February 2013 16:39:00 full [2] 04 February 2013 16:42:00 incremental [3] 04 February 2013 16:44:00 incremental [4] 24 February 2013 01:00:00 full Choose an entry ( 1 - 4 ): 3 Backup restore chain
0. Test_2013-02-04_16-39 full
1. Test_2013-02-04_16-42 incremental
2. Test_2013-02-04_16-44 incremental
The InterplayRestore tool gives you an option of selecting a partial restore. If you type “y,” you are asked to select which file in the restore chain from which to start the restore. In the example, backup file 1 (Test_2013-02-04_16-42) is selected.
Is this a partial restore (y/n): y Choose an entry in the restore chain to start from ( 1 - 2 ): 1
You are then asked to select how many entries forward you want to restore:
Choose how many entries to restore ( 1 - 2 ): 2
In the example, starting with file 1 and selecting two entries mean that the partial restore will be run from the following files:
1. Test_2013-02-04_16-42 incremental
2. Test_2013-02-04_16-44 incremental
58
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Results of a Partial Restore
If you perform a full backup, the Interplay Engine renames the original _Database and _PropertyStore folders before the restore procedure, and creates new folders for restored files during the restore procedure. The resulting files are similar to the following:
_Database _Database.1 … _PropertyStore _PropertyStore.1
where _Database_and PropertyStore are newly restored from backup files, and _Database.1 and _PropertyStore.1 are renamed original files.
If you perform a partial restore, the Interplay Engine does not rename the original folders. Instead, it overwrites database files in the _Database folder with latest versions from the restore chain and merges streamed property files to the existing _PropertyStore folder.
Displaying a Restore Chain
You have the option of displaying the restore chain for a selected backup without performing the restore. To display the restore chain, use the /printchain option in a interactive or non-interactive command line, as shown in the following examples:
Non-interactive mode:
InterplayRestore /metadata F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test /backupdir F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup /printchain
Interactive mode:
InterplayRestore /printchain
In either case, you are asked to choose a backup starting point.
Choose a backup to restore from:
[1] 04 February 2013 16:39:00 full [2] 04 February 2013 16:42:00 incremental [3] 04 February 2013 16:44:00 incremental [4] 24 February 2013 01:00:00 full
Choose an entry ( 1 - 4 ): 3 Backup restore chain
0. Test_2013-02-04_16-39 full
1. Test_2013-02-04_16-42 incremental
2. Test_2013-02-04_16-44 incremental
59
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Example of Partial Restore
The following is an example of an interactive session, which begins with the command for starting the InterplayRestore tool.
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server>InterplayRestore **************************************************************************
InterplayRestore - Restore Interplay databases from backup
Entering interactive mode. A non-interactive mode is also available. Run "InterplayRestore.exe /help" for help
Enter the Interplay database root or metadata directory:
F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test
Is this a split database configuration (y/n): n Enter the backup root directory: F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup Choose a backup to restore from: [1] 04 February 2013 16:39:00 full [2] 04 February 2013 16:42:00 incremental [3] 04 February 2013 16:44:00 incremental [4] 24 February 2013 01:00:00 full Choose an entry ( 1 - 4 ): 3 Backup restore chain
0. Test_2013-02-04_16-39 full
1. Test_2013-02-04_16-42 incremental
2. Test_2013-02-04_16-44 incremental
Is this a partial restore (y/n): y Choose an entry in the restore chain to start from ( 1 - 2 ): 1 Choose how many entries to restore ( 1 - 2 ): 2
Project Test already locked Restoring to F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\ Beginning restore from F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup\Test_2013-02-04_16-42\ This is a incremental backup Copying streamed properties... Opening archive file F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup\Test_2013-02-04_16-42\_PropertyStore\s treamed_prop1.bar Extracting file F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_PropertyStore\2013-35\1373_StreamedProperty_A AFBinary1073743196-1.prp Verifying that we have all streamed property BAR files... Beginning restore from F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup\Test_2013-02-04_16-44\ This is a incremental backup
60
Creating and Restoring Database Backups
Copying streamed properties... Opening archive file F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Backup\Test_2013-02-04_16-44\_PropertyStore\s treamed_prop1.bar Extracting file F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_PropertyStore\2013-35\1428_StreamedProperty_A AFBinary1073743252-0.prp Extracting file F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_PropertyStore\2013-35\1436_StreamedProperty_A AFBinary1073743260-0.prp Verifying that we have all streamed property BAR files...
Copying files into F:\Workgroup_Databases\Test\_Database Copying file Test.jdf ... Restore operation successful Project Test is still locked for your restore of _Master.
The database is still locked because you need to restore the _Master directory manually, or through your existing tape backup mechanism. When you are done restoring _Master, use the Lock/Unlock Database view in Interplay Administrator to unlock the database. This will complete your restore operation.

Creating a Metadata-Only Backup for Customer Support

In some support situations, Avid customer support might request a metadata-only backup of your Interplay Production database. A metadata-only backup creates copies of database files in the _Database folder, but not streamed properties files in the _PropertyStore folder.
To create a metadata-only backup file:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Schedule Backups icon.
The Schedule Backups view opens.
2. In the list on the left side of the view, select the database for which you want to create the backup. The database is named either AvidWG (Interplay Engine) or AvidAM (Interplay Archive Engine).
61

Performing a Consistency Check

3. At the bottom of the view, click the “Start Backup Now...” button.
4. In the Start Backup dialog box, select Metadata only and click OK.
The backup file is created in specified backup location, for example:
AvidWG\_Backup\AvidWG_2013-02-12_01-00
To distinguish between a metadata-only backup and the other types of backups, open the backup folder and check if a _PropertyStore folder exists. A metadata-only backup does not contain a _PropertyStore folder.
5. Use an archive program like 7-Zip to create a compressed file to send to customer support.
Performing a Consistency Check
The database Consistency Check compares the version of the database or databases on the master directory with the current database file. The Perform Consistency Check view provides a useful tool for checking if all references are correct, seeing if all necessary files are on the disk, and checking other aspects of the database.
62

Viewing Database Information

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The Consistency Check is for support purposes. You should perform this check only if requested by Avid Technical Support.
Viewing Database Information
Use the Database Information view to display information about an Interplay database. This information includes various statistics and the connected users.
To view the information about a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Database Information icon.
The Database Information view opens. This might take a minute or two, depending on how long the engine has been running.
63
A summary of information about the database is displayed:
- Engine Start Time: The date and time that the Interplay Engine began running.
- Name and description: Either AvidWG (Interplay Engine) or AvidAM (Interplay
Archive Engine) with a description supplied when the database was first created.
- Root folder for database (Meta Data): See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 27.
- Root folder for data (Assets): See “Creating an Interplay Database” on page 27.
2. Click one of the following tabs:
- Database Statistics
- Deletion Statistics
- Command Statistics
- Object Statistics
- Connected User Information
For information about these tabs, see “Database Information Tabs” on page 64.

Database Information Tabs

Viewing Database Information
The following sections describe the individual tabs in the Database Information view.
Database Statistics
Statistics in this tab provide information about the number of pages in the database, cache usage, and how they relate to each other. These statistics are useful in determining database scalability. For more information, see “Determining Interplay Database Scalability” in the Avid Interplay Best Practices Guide.
Deletion Statistics
Statistics in this tab provide information about deletion activity.
The time at the top of the tab is the last time information was received from the Interplay Engine and is automatically updated every minute.
Statistics are divided into two categories:
Scheduled Deletion Statistics. If the Engine is currently performing a scheduled deletion, the Current Deletion Slot column shows statistics from the deletion in progress. If the Engine is not currently performing a scheduled deletion, the column is not displayed.
The third column shows statistics about the last completed scheduled deletion. If there has not been a scheduled deletion since the last time the Interplay Engine was started, the column is not displayed.
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Viewing Database Information
Statistics in this tab refer to assets that were sent to the Orphan Clips folder as a result of a scheduled deletion. Statistics are shown for the following parameters:
- Processed Assets: The number of assets in the Orphan Clips folder that the Interplay
Engine processed during the deletion. This process includes examining whether the assets should be deleted or moved to another folder. This number is usually higher than other similar statistics. For example, if the deletion is delayed (a setting in the Scheduled Deletion section of the Delete Behavior view), the Engine examines the assets before a deletion takes place.
- Deleted Assets: The number of assets in the Orphan Clips folder that were deleted.
- Assets moved to Kept Media: The number of objects moved as a result of the scheduled
deletion.
- Assets moved to Failed to Delete: The number of objects that failed to delete as a result
of the scheduled delete.
- Successfully deleted media files: The number of media files deleted from
shared-storage. Only media files deleted by a scheduled deletion from Orphan Clips are counted, not media files deleted by the interactive part of a deletion.
- Size of successfully deleted media files. The cumulative size of the successful deletions
in KB, based on information in the Interplay Engine database. This information is not necessarily the most recent information from the Media Indexer.
Deletion Statistics Since Last Engine Start: These parameters list cumulative totals since the last time the Interplay Engine was started. The statistics in this section include deletions outside of the scheduled deletion slots. for example, media files deleted directly in Interplay Access. Statistics are shown for the following parameters:
- Failed media files deletions
- Successful media files deletions
- Failed metadata deletions
- Successful metadata deletions
Command Statistics (Engine Search Requests)
The statistics in this tab provide information about commands executed by the Interplay Engine. Currently the only command included is Search, which is listed as Engine Search Requests. These commands are search requests made in Access or other clients that are processed by the Interplay Engine.
Because searches are a common way that users notice a slowdown in Interplay Engine performance, these statistics can be useful in troubleshooting performance problems.
The time at the top of the tab is the last time information was received from the client and is automatically updated every minute.
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Viewing Database Information
Statistics are shown for the following parameters:
Period: The ten most recent measurement periods are listed in the Period column. Periods are a maximum of one minute and are created only if there are search commands executed. You cannot check statistics for earlier periods.
Duration: The length of the measurement period, from the finish of the first search until the finish of the last search in this period. Note that the summary for the Duration column displays the time from the oldest to the latest measurement period, not a summary of the Duration periods.
Other parameters are described in the tab.
Object Statistics
Statistics on this tab show totals for objects in the database. This information is not updated until you open the view again.
Total number of database objects: A sum of the objects listed below.
Database objects per database page: This statistic is calculated as
total number of database objects / total number of database pages
masterclip, sequence, subclip, group, motioneffect, effect, renderedeffect: the number of these object types.
filemob: the number of file locations that are known to the Engine, regardless of online or offline status. Matches the files listed in the File Locations tab in Interplay Access.
avid asset (in browse tree): the number of links or representations visible in the database tree.
folder: the number of folders in the database, both those visible in the database tree and those not visible in the database tree.
user: the number of users in the database.
other objects: additional versions of sequences, internal database management objects, and file assets
Connected User Information
Statistics on this tab show information about each user currently connected to the Interplay Engine. This information is not updated until you open the view again. This information is also displayed in the Server Information view. For more information, see “Viewing Server
Information” on page 91.
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Locking and Unlocking Databases

Use the Lock/Unlock Databases view to prevent users from connecting to the database. You might need to lock the database if you are upgrading the database or using a archive tool to create a backup of the database. By default, the database is unlocked.
To lock a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock/Unlock Database icon.
The Lock/Unlock database view opens.
Locking and Unlocking Databases
2. Select the database in the Unlocked Databases list.
3. (Option) Type a Lock comment explaining why you are locking the database. This information appears in the Locked Database Information area for the database.
4. Click Lock Database.
Your user ID and the time at which you locked the database are filled in, and the database is displayed in Locked Databases.
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Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating

To unlock a database:
1. Select the database in the Locked Databases list.
2. Click Unlock Database.
The database is displayed in Unlocked Databases.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
Use the Managing Databases view to remove a database from the list of active databases (deactivate) or to restore it to the list (activate). This view also lets you migrate a database to a new Central Configuration Server (CCS) when necessary.
The following topics provide more information about activating, deactivating, and migrating databases:
Deactivating a Database
Activating a Deactivated Database
Migrating a Database

Deactivating a Database

You might want to prevent users from connecting to a database if the database has been “retired” and the files have been moved elsewhere. In other cases, such as when you are backing up or moving databases, you might need to ensure that no connections can be made to the database to avoid interference. Deactivating the database removes it from the list of active databases.
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Deactivating a database does not delete the database files. It makes the database inactive so that users cannot connect to it until it is activated again. The database data is kept at the location that was specified when the database was created.
To deactivate a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
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Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
2. Select the database name in the Databases list.
3. Click Deactivate.
The database name is removed from the Databases list.

Activating a Deactivated Database

If a specific database is not listed in the Databases view, it means that it is unknown to the Interplay Engine and users cannot connect to it. If the database exists but is not listed, it is probably deactivated. You activate a database by navigating to the database .pro file (AvidWG.pro or AvidAM.pro). This file is located in one of two folders:
For a standard database, the .pro file is located in the Workgroup_Databases folder, represented by the administrative share name WG_Database$ (see “Creating an Interplay
Database” on page 27).
For a split database, the .pro file is located in the Avid_WG folder on the shared storage workspace (see “Preparing for a Split Database” on page 238).
To add an existing but inactive database to the list of active databases:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
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Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
2. Do one of the following:
t In the “Database (.pro) file to activate” text box, type the full UNC path to the .pro file.
For example:
\\IEServer\WG_Database$\AvidWG\AvidWG.pro
t Click the Browse button, log in if prompted, navigate to the .pro file using a network,
select the file, and click Open.
The following illustration shows the path to AvidWG.pro, using the Microsoft Windows smb network and the administrative share WG_Database$.
Avid recommends keeping the default share name WG_Database$. If you decide on a different
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share name, consider that if the name is longer than 12 characters, you cannot browse to it graphically. If a share name is longer than 12 characters, you need to type the complete path in the “Database (pro) file to activate” text box.
Make sure to navigate through a network to select the file (for example, do not navigate through a mapped network drive). You must use a UNC path.
Navigating through a network is also required if you are working with a split database. In this case, the .pro file is located on the shared storage server. The following illustration shows the path to AvidWG.pro, using an Avid ISIS network and the workspace where the AvidWG folder is stored.
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Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
The .pro file is displayed in the Activate Database dialog box.
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3. Make sure the option “Load Database on Activation” is selected. Deselect this option only if directed by Avid support.
4. Click Activate.
The database is activated and loaded. The database name is displayed in the Databases list and users can connect to the database. If the option “Load Database on Activation” is selected, the database is automatically unlocked.

Migrating a Database

You usually need to perform a database migration under the following circumstances:
When you want to remove all users and group-related data from a database. This allows you to start with new users and groups and maintain the metadata and the data inside the database.
When you are troubleshooting a problem with customer support. For example, customer support might ask you to provide a copy of your database.
If you changed the Central Configuration Server (CCS) for a database without first moving the _InternalData folder. If a database needs to be migrated, the State reads “Database Requires Migration.”
Do not use a database that requires migration; always migrate a database to a CCS. You cannot administer an unmigrated database.
Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
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If a database needs migration, the database icon shows a red box with an X and a yellow arrow. The database icon appears in several views in the Interplay Administrator, including the Manage Database Roles view.
(Red box with X and yellow arrow) Database needs migration.
When you migrate a database, the system deletes all the information inside the database that was stored from the old CCS, including users, user settings and local administration settings.
If you plan to migrate an Interplay Engine or Interplay Archive Engine database, turn off the database backup process before you perform the migration. If you do not turn off the backup process and it coincides with the migration, your backup will write out an inconsistent state of the database (half current and half migrated).
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Managing Databases: Deactivating, Activating, and Migrating
To migrate a database to a new CCS:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
2. In the Manage Databases view, click the name of the database that needs migration. The State reads “Database Requires Migration.”
A warning explains the consequences of a database migration.
3. Click Migrate Database.
After the migration, the State reads “OK.” The database now has the CCS users and administration properties of the new CCS you have set.
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Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)

Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are not configured as failover clusters. For clustered systems, see “Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)”
on page 78.
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Avid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case complications arise.
If you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 72). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a CCS, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on
page 76.
To move a database to another server (non-clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 235).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 67).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database”
on page 68).
4. Make sure the database is unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and clicking Restart.
5. Locate the database folder on the source server.
The default path is \\server_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to D:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 246.
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Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
6. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for \\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
7. Copy the zipped file or files to a network server, removable media, laptop, or directly to the target server.
8. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database (AvidWG or AvidAM) if one is active, using the Manage Databases View.
9. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to AvidWG _o ld.
10. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations. Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 241.
11. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 69).
12. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database name and then clicking Remove Databases.
13. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future access.
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Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)

Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database and users to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are not configured as failover clusters. For cluster systems, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered
Systems)” on page 80.
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Avid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case complications arise.
If you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 72). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a CCS, use this procedure. For more information about a CCS, see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 107.
To move a database and users to another server (non-clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 235).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 67).
3. Deactivate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database”
on page 68).
4. Make sure the database is unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and clicking Restart.
5. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 92).
6. Locate the database folder on the source server.
The default path is \\server_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to D:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 246.
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Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)
7. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for D:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for \\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
8. Locate the user folder _InternalData on the source server.
The default path is D:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData.
9. Copy the zipped file or files and the _InternalData folder to a network server, removable media, laptop, or directly to the target server.
10. Open the Interplay Administrator, log in to the target server, and deactivate the database (AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
11. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to AvidWG _o ld.
12. Make sure all databases are unloaded from the server by opening the Restart Server view and clicking Restart.
13. Lock the server by using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 92).
14. Rename the existing _InternalData folder to _InternalData_old.
15. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Copy the _InternalData folder to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations. Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 241. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder.
16. Unlock the server using the Lock Server view.
17. Verify that all users are on the system by opening the User Management view and viewing the lists of user groups.
18. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 69).
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Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)

19. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database name and then clicking Remove Databases.
20. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future access.
Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are configured as failover clusters. For non-clustered systems, see “Moving a Database to Another Server (Non-Clustered
Systems)” on page 74.
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Avid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case complications arise.
If you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 72). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a CCS, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)” on
page 80.
To move a database to another server (clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 235).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 67).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database” on
page 68).
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Moving a Database to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
4. Make sure the database is unloaded by using the Cluster Administrator on one of the cluster nodes:
a. Select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
b. Open the Avid Workgroup Server resource group.
c. In the list of resources, select Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor and change the state to
“Offline.”
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Make sure that you change the state to offline for the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor resource only, not the entire Avid Workgroup Server group.
d. Close the Cluster Administrator.
5. Locate the database folder on the active node of the source server.
The default path is \\virtual_cluster_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to S:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 246.
If the S drive is not available on the machine, either this is the offline node or the entire Avid Workgroup Server group was taken offline instead of only the resource.
6. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most recent Fast backup are sufficient.
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for \\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
7. Copy the zipped file or files to a network server, removable media, a laptop, or directly to the target server.
8. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database (AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
9. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to AvidWG _o ld.
10. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on the source server.
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Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)

If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations. Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 241.
11. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 69).
12. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database name and then clicking Remove Databases.
13. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future access.
Use the Cluster Administrator to bring the source server back online. Right-click the Avid Workgroup Server group (not the resource) and select Bring Online.
Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
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Under special circumstances, you might need to move a database and users to a different server.
The following procedure refers to Interplay Engine servers that are configured as failover clusters. For non-clustered systems, see “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server
(Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 76.
Avid recommends that you have telephone support from Avid during the process in case complications arise.
If you move a database to a server that points to a different CCS, all the old CCS information that was stored, including users, user settings, and local administration settings for the database, will be lost because you will have to migrate the database (see
“Migrating a Database” on page 72). If you move a database to another server and also
move the CCS, however, this information is preserved. To move both a database and a CCS, use this procedure. For more information about a CCS, see “Understanding the
Central Configuration Server” on page 107.
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Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
To move a database and users to another server (clustered systems):
1. Install the Interplay Engine on a new server (the target server).
Make sure the configuration is the same on both systems. For example, if you are moving an AvidWG database, create an AvidWG database on the new server. If the original system uses a split database, the new system should also use a split database (see “Configuring Interplay
for a Split Database” on page 235).
2. On the source server, lock the database by using the Lock/Unlock Database view (see
“Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 67).
All clients are disconnected from the source server.
3. Deactivate the database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a Database” on
page 68).
4. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 92).
5. Make sure the database is unloaded by using the Cluster Administrator on one of the cluster nodes:
a. Select Programs > Administrative Tools > Cluster Administrator.
b. Open the Avid Workgroup Server resource group.
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c. In the list of resources, select Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor and change the state to
“Offline.”
Make sure that you change the state to offline for the Avid Workgroup Engine Monitor resource only, not the entire Avid Workgroup Server group.
d. Close the Cluster Administrator.
6. Locate the database folder on the source server.
The default path is \\virtual_cluster_name\WG_Database$\AvidWG (or AvidAM for an Archive Manager). By default, the administrative share WG_Database$ refers to S:\Workgroup_Databases. For more information, see “Identifying the Root Folder of the
Interplay Server Database” on page 246.
If the S drive is not available on the machine, either this is the offline node or the entire Avid Workgroup Server group was taken offline instead of only the resource.
7. Pack the database folder into a zip file or use Robocopy from the Microsoft Windows Resource Kit for path names longer than 256 characters.
To save time and storage, you do not need to copy all the backups in the S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG\_Backup folder. One complete backup and the most recent Fast backup are sufficient.
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Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Clustered Systems)
If you are moving a split database, create two zip files, one for S:\Workgroup_Databases\AvidWG and the other for \\server_name\\workspace_name\\AvidWG.
8. Locate the user folder _InternalData on the source server.
The default path is S:\Workgroup_Databases\_InternalData.
9. Copy the zipped file and the _InternalData folder to a network server, removable media, laptop, or directly to the target server.
10. On the target server, rename the existing database folder, for example, rename AvidWG to AvidWG _o ld.
11. Open the Interplay Administrator, log on to the target server, and deactivate the database (AvidWG or AvidAM) using the Manage Databases View.
12. Lock the server using the Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on
page 92).
13. Rename the existing _InternalData folder to _InternalData_old.
14. If you are copying a non-split database, copy the zipped file to the target server and unzip the file to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Copy the _InternalData folder to the Workgroup_Databases folder. Make sure the path on the target server matches the path on the source server.
If you are copying a split database, copy and unzip both zipped files to the correct locations. Then edit the FolderLocations.xml file to show the correct paths. See “Splitting a Database
for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 241. Copy the _InternalData folder to the
Workgroup_Databases folder.
15. Unlock the server using the Lock Server view.
16. Verify that all users are on the system by opening the User Management view and viewing the lists of user groups.
17. Activate the database by using the Manage Databases view (see “Activating a Deactivated
Database” on page 69).
18. On an Interplay Access client, log in to the new server and verify that all data is available.
If all data is available, the new database is ready for use.
If necessary, remove the old database from Interplay Access by right-clicking the database name and then clicking Remove Databases.
19. (Option) On the source server, rename the original database folder to avoid unwanted future access.
Use the Cluster Administrator to bring the source server back online. Right-click the Avid Workgroup Server group (not the resource) and select Bring Online.
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Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions

Moving a Database Under Low Disk Space Conditions
If disk space on the server is critically low, the Interplay Engine refuses client connections and displays an error message. In this situation, the administrator cannot log in and shut down the server, and move a database by normal means (as described in “Moving a Database to Another
Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 74 and “Moving a Database and Users to Another Server (Non-Clustered Systems)” on page 76). In the Server installation directory (by default,
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server), there are tools provided to solve such problems:
NxNServerLock.exe
NxNServerUnlock.exe
NxNServerShutdown.exe
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Before beginning this procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See “Creating
and Restoring Database Backups” on page 32 for information on running a backup.
Temporarily change the Backup time field to “Once at” and enter or select from the list the time in the future closest to the current time.
To move a database under low disk space conditions:
1. Lock the server using NxNServerLock.exe.
2. Shut down the server using NxNServerShutdown.exe, if necessary.
3. Move the database folder (AvidWG or AvidAM) to another drive or free up some disk space.
4. Unlock the server by doing one of the following:
t Use the Interplay Administrator’s Lock Server view (see “Locking and Unlocking the
Server” on page 92).
t Use NxNServerUnlock.exe.
5. Deactivate the moved database using the Manage Databases view (see “Deactivating a
Database” on page 68).
6. Activate the moved database in the correct location using the Manage Databases view (see
“Activating a Deactivated Database” on page 69).
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Renaming a Database

Under some circumstances you might need to rename a database For example, if you need to create a new database with the same name, you can rename the original database. You can keep the original database as an archive for searching.
Renaming a Database
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Before beginning this procedure, be sure to make a backup of the database. See “Creating
and Restoring Database Backups” on page 32 for information on running a backup.
Temporarily change the Backup time field to “Once at” and enter or select from the list the time in the future closest to the current time.
To rename a database:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Manage Databases icon.
The Manage Databases view opens.
2. Select the database and click the Deactivate Database button to ensure that the database is not in use.
3. On the server or at the database location, use the Windows desktop to rename the database folder, .pro file, and .nif directory, and all files within the _Database folder, that is, replace the old <DatabaseName> with the new name for all files fitting the following mask:
<DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>.pro <DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>.nif <DatabaseName>\<DatabaseName>\_*.pro.jrn <DatabaseName>\_Database\<DatabaseName>.* <DatabaseName>\_Database\<DatabaseName>_*.jrn
Do not forget to rename the .jrn files correctly: make sure there are no typos in the database name, and that they are followed by the underscore and the numeric ID.
4. In the Interplay Administrator, click the Manage Databases icon and activate the database (see “Activating a Deactivated Database” on page 69).
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Running Database Maintenance Tools

Running Database Maintenance Tools
The Maintenance view in the Database section of the Interplay Administrator provides the following tools that you can use to fix database problems. You can use these tools with Interplay Engine databases v2.4.0.1 or later, except for Validate User Tree, which you can use only with Interplay Engine v2.6. The tools are not displayed when connected to earlier versions of the Interplay Engine.
Verify Link Consistency: Use this tool to detect and remove broken links and link inconsistencies.
Broken links are objects visible in a database folder that do not refer to an existing asset. They are displayed with a special X icon and are named with a mob ID (media object ID). They should be removed because they can cause exceptions during browsing.
Link inconsistencies are not visible. They are obsolete or invalid entries in internal database tables. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain operations.
Cleanup Invalid Dependencies: Use this tool to detect and remove dependency inconsistencies.
Dependency inconsistencies are not visible. They are obsolete or invalid entries in internal database tables. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain operations.
Remove Duplicated Locators: Use this tool to detect and remove duplicated locators.
Duplicated locators are locators that have the same comment, timestamp, and color as another locator on the same asset. A high number might cause slowdowns for certain operations. They were created because of a bug in certain Avid editing products.
Recover Lost Master Mobs: Use this tool to detect and recover assets without a visible representation in a folder and display them in the Orphan Clips folder.
Lost master mobs are assets (such as sequences, master clips, and subclips) that are stored in the database but have no visible representation in a folder.
Delete Lost File Mobs: Use this tool to detect and remove media file information objects containing information about a specific media file, like the resolution, site or location, which are not associated to an asset.
Lost file mobs are media file information objects that are stored in the database but are not associated to a master clip or rendered effect.
Validate User Tree (Interplay Engine v2.6 or later): Use this tool to detect and fix inconsistencies in the user structure.
The AvidWG or AvidAM database contains a copy of the CCS user database. If the internal structure of this copy contains inconsistencies, then the synchronization of users between the CCS and the database might fail.
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Running Database Maintenance Tools
When to run these tools: You can run any of these tools as part of a troubleshooting procedure, as recommended by an Avid representative. You can also run them for maintenance during regular maintenance windows. However, they are not designed to be run on a daily basis, because they require Exclusive Access to the database (see below).
One approach to using the tools for maintenance is to run them in the first convenient maintenance window. Note how long it takes to run the tools, and if any problems are reported. If there are no problems after running the tools a second time, you probably do not need to run them during every maintenance window. If as a result of running these tools you find an issue that regularly causes inconsistencies, you must consult with your Avid representative to address the root cause of the issue.
These tools can take up to an hour to run on large databases, but usually run much quicker, and you can safely cancel the execution at any time. Each tool includes a window that displays logging information and options for saving the information.
Exclusive Access: Keep in mind that each tool requires Exclusive Access. Exclusive Access locks the database to prevent access by a host system other than the one used to acquire Exclusive Access and the Engine itself. A dialog box asks if you want to acquire Exclusive Access before running the selected tool. You must click Yes to run the tool. Exclusive Access is automatically released at the end of the process. Consider sending out a notice to users before running any of these tools, informing them that the database will be locked. Logged-on clients will be automatically logged off after the database is locked.
Exclusive Access can be acquired and released in the Lock Server view, independently of the Maintenance tools (see “Locking and Unlocking the Server” on page 92). In an emergency, such as the Exclusive Access host crashed and there is no Interplay Administrator installed on the Engine, you can run a command-line program to release Exclusive Access. The file name of the
NxNServerExclusiveAccessRelease.exe
tool is Engine in the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
For more maintenance information, see “Interplay Maintenance Recommendations” in the Avi d
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Interplay Best Practices Guide.
To run a database maintenance tool:
1. In the Database section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Maintenance icon.
The Maintenance view opens.
2. In the left column of the view, select the database on which you want to run the tool.
3. Double-click the icon for the tool you want to use.
4. Select options for the tool as described in the following table:
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and it is installed by default on the Interplay
Running Database Maintenance Tools
Tool Options
Verify Link Consistency Fix broken links. Select this option to delete any broken links. If
you do not select this option, the tool reports broken links and removes link inconsistencies. but does not take action to fix the broken links.
Verbose Output. Select this option to display the location of the broken links.
Cleanup Invalid Dependencies Cleanup Invalid Dependencies. Select this option to remove the
invalid dependencies. If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems without taking action to fix them.
Remove Duplicated Locators Remove duplicate locators. Select this option to remove the
duplicated locators. If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems but does not take action to fix them.
Verbose Output. Select this option to display the names of the assets with duplicated locators.
Recover Lost Master Mobs Recover into ‘Orphan Clips’ folder. Select this option to create
links for lost master mobs in to the Orphan Clips folder for deletion. If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems but does not take action to fix them.
Verbose Output. Select this option to display the names of the lost master mobs.
Delete Lost File Mobs Delete File Mobs. Select this option to delete lost media
information objects.
Delete Media. Select this option to delete media associated with the lost media information objects.
If you do not select these options, the tool reports problems but does not take action to fix them.
Verbose Output. Select this option to display the media path.
Validate User Tree (Interplay Engine v2.6 or later)
Fix Invalid Users. Select this option to repair certain inconsistencies in the user structure.
If you do not select this option, the tool reports problems but does not take action to fix them.
Verbose Output. Select this option to display user names.
5. Click Run.
A dialog box asks if you want to set Exclusive Access to the database.
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Running Database Maintenance Tools
6. Click Yes.
The tool runs with the options you selected. While the tool is running, information about the progress and found issues is displayed. When the tool is finished the following options are displayed:
- Open Log in editor: Opens the displayed information in Notepad or another default text editor. This version of the runtime information includes specific date and time information.
- Copy Log to Clipboard: Copies the information you see displayed to the clipboard.
- Save Log: Saves a version of the displayed information with additional specific date and time information, like the first option. It uses the following format: tool_name-dd-mm-yyyy-hh-mm-ss.log
7. Click Close.
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3 Server Settings

The Server settings enable you to configure and change server settings and shutdown and restart the server. The following topics describe how to use these settings:
Changing the Database and Data Locations
Viewing Server Information
Locking and Unlocking the Server
Restarting the Server
Managing Licenses

Changing the Database and Data Locations

The Server Settings view lets you change the default locations for a new database.
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Do not change the location for the metadata database. The metadata database must be stored directly on the local Interplay Engine server because permanent access to these files is required. This is the only supported setup. You have the option of storing the source files for file assets on an Avid shared-storage workspace. This configuration is known as a split database.
Changing the root folder for file assets is part of the process of creating a split database. For more information and instructions, see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 235.
The root folder for a new database is set during the installation of the Interplay Engine software. By default, the installation program creates a shared folder that functions as the root folder for both the metadata database and the source files for file assets (the file repository). The default location is the D:\Workgroup_Databases folder, which is represented by the administrative share name WG_Database$. The $ indicates a hidden share.
To identify the actual folder, open a Command Prompt window and type
If you need to create a new database, changing these settings does not affect any existing databases.
net share
.
Changing the Database and Data Locations
To change the root folders for a new database:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Server Settings icon.
The Server Settings view opens.
2. For the root folder of the database (metadata), keep the folder that was set during the installation of the server (the default is \\IEServer\WG_Database$\).
3. For the root folder of the data (file assets), change the folder to a workspace on Avid shared storage (see “Configuring Interplay for a Split Database” on page 235). Type a UNC path or browse through the Avid Unity Network or Avid ISIS Network to the workspace.
You might need to provide proper credentials to browse and access the shared storage workspaces.
4. Click Apply Changes to change the setting for new databases.
5. If you changed the root folder for the file assets, complete the tasks described in “Splitting a
Database for New Interplay Installations” on page 238 or “Splitting a Database for Existing Interplay Installations” on page 241.
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Viewing Server Information

The Server Information view has two areas:
The Server Information area displays information about the following:
- The version of the Avid Interplay Engine software
- The number of connected clients (through Interplay Access and other client
applications)
- The number of databases on the server
The Connected User Information area displays information about the following:
- Which database users are connected to
- Which user is connected to which database
- Which machine the user is connected from
- What time a user has been connected since
- The license class used
The license class is different from the license type. The license class is an internal key that is used by the Interplay Engine. The license type is the key displayed in the Licenses view. For example, if a user is logged into Interplay from NewsCutter, Access, and Interplay Administrator at the same time, the license classes listed in the Server Information view are KEY-EE for the editor, KEY-E for Access, and KEY-A for the Interplay Administrator, However, only one license type, KEY-XE, is listed as used in the Licenses view.
Viewing Server Information
You should use the Licenses view to manage license use. For more information, see
“License Types and Usage” on page 100.
To view information about the Interplay Engine server:
t In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Server Information
icon.
The Server Information view opens.
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Locking and Unlocking the Server

Locking and Unlocking the Server
The Lock Server view allows the administrator to lock the Interplay Engine server for a specific period of time. Locking the server is useful when carrying out tasks such as:
Server maintenance or upgrading the server software.
Maintaining or rebooting the Avid shared-storage server.
Whenever a database or data location is unavailable, you should lock the database or the server.
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Locking and Unlocking the Server
The Lock Server view provides two different means of locking the Interplay Engine server: Lock Server and Exclusive Access.
If Lock Server is activated, the Interplay Engine server is locked and all the clients that are connected to it are disconnected.
If Exclusive Access is activated, the server process continues to run and the database can be used. Access is limited to the following host systems:
- The host system used to acquire Exclusive Access, that is, the host system running the
Interplay Administrator you used to set Exclusive Access
- The Interplay Engine host, for example, through an Interplay Administrator or Interplay
Access client on the Interplay Engine host system
Exclusive Access is required when running maintenance tools. See “Running Database
Maintenance Tools” on page 85.
In addition to the Interplay Administrator client, any Interplay client running on one of these hosts (for example, Interplay Access, a Media Services provider, or an Avid editing system) is allowed to connect to the Interplay Engine and the database. This access allows you to execute a variety of maintenance tasks from this host while ensuring that no other host can access the Engine and database.
If the database becomes corrupt, the server might be locked automatically.
The following table summarizes the differences between a server lock, a database lock, and Exclusive Access:
Feature Description
Server lock (Lock Server view)
Database lock (Lock/Unlock Database view)
Exclusive Access (Lock Server view)
Saves and unloads all databases (including _InternalData). Also prevents access by the Interplay Administrator. Should be used for maintenance operations that require access to all database files (in the share WG_Database$). Usually shutting down the Interplay Engine is a better approach than a server lock.
Saves and unloads the database and thus allow maintenance operations on the database files themselves. Working with the database is not possible. Good for database file-level maintenance and restoring backups. Still allows access by the Interplay Administrator for settings such as user management and licensing. See “Locking and Unlocking Databases” on page 67.
Does not unload any database files and therefore allows the owner of the Exclusive Access to work with the database. Good for executing maintenance operations in the database itself. Cannot be used for any database file maintenance operations.
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Locking and Unlocking the Server
To lock the server and prevent any user access:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock Server icon.
The Lock Server view opens.
2. In the Lock Server section, select one of the following for the locking duration:
- Indefinitely: An indefinite shutdown. This is a good choice when shutting down the
server to carry out any vital maintenance, for example replacing hard drives, or making the first backup of a new database. The server needs to be manually unlocked after maintenance work.
- Minutes: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (short time frame). It is
useful when you are making routine backups and you know how much time you need. Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
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Locking and Unlocking the Server
- Lock until: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (longer time frame).
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
3. In the “Lock comment” text box, type a comment as to why you are locking the server. This comment is displayed when an Interplay Administrator tries to log into the Interplay Engine.
4. Click Lock Server.
The Lock Server view changes to display lock information. You cannot return to the Interplay Administrator window by clicking the Menu button. You can log out of the Interplay Administrator tool and then log in again.
To manually unlock the server after activating Lock Server, do one of the following:
t Log in to the Interplay Administrator, click the Lock Server icon, click Unlock Server and
log in to the Interplay Administrator.
t In emergency situations, run the command-line program
NxNServerUnlock.exe.
It is
installed by default on the Interplay Engine in the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
To lock the server and allow access to the host that acquires the lock:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Lock Server icon.
The Lock Server view opens.
2. In the Exclusive Access section, select one of the following for the locking duration:
- Indefinitely: An indefinite shutdown. This is a good choice when shutting down the
server to carry out any vital maintenance, for example replacing hard drives, or making the first backup of a new database. The server needs to be manually unlocked after maintenance work.
- Minutes: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (short time frame). It is
useful when you are making routine backups and you know how much time you need. Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
- Lock until: Allows you to stipulate when to restart the server (longer time frame).
Specify the time period by clicking the Up and Down arrows.
3. In the “Lock comment” text box, type a comment as to why you are locking the server. This comment is displayed when an Interplay Administrator tries to log into the Interplay Engine.
4. Click Exclusive Access.
Exclusive Access Information is displayed. The “Accessible for” field lists the hostnames of the host that acquired the lock and the Interplay Engine host.
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Restarting the Server

You can return to the Interplay Administrator window by clicking the Menu button, log out of the Interplay Administrator tool and then log in again, and perform other database tasks.
To manually unlock the server after activating Exclusive Access, do one of the following:
t Log in to the Interplay Administrator from the host where you acquired Exclusive Access or
on the Engine host itself, click the Lock Server icon, then click Release Exclusive Access.
t In emergency situations, run the command-line program
NxNServerExclusiveAccessRelease.exe.
Engine in the following folder:
It is installed by default on the Interplay
C:\Program Files\Avid\Avid Interplay Engine\Server
Restarting the Server
Restarting the server disconnects any clients and shuts down the database before the server process is restarted. You rarely need to restart the server. Typically, you restart the server if you want to disconnect all clients and want to make sure no one is connected to the server so that you can perform maintenance. For example, you might restart the server and then lock the database as part of the process of moving the database.
Restarting only restarts the server process and not the server machine itself.
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Depending on the size of the database, this process can take several minutes. Do not attempt to reboot the server under any circumstances before this process is completed.
To restart the server process:
1. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Restart Server icon.
The Restart Server view opens.
2. Click Restart.
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Managing Licenses

Avid Interplay needs valid licenses in order to function. Licenses are delivered to the customer in a license file, which the administrator imports through the Licenses view.
The following topics provide more information about installing and managing licenses:
“Installing Permanent Licenses” on page 98
“Displaying the Licenses View” on page 99
“License Types and Usage” on page 100
Managing Licenses
“Exporting a License” on page 105
“Troubleshooting Licensing Problems” on page 106
“Using the License Key Info Tool” on page 106
The following terms are used in these topics:
License: The legal right to use an application. On the Interplay Engine, licenses are represented by license types.
License type: A license that applies to a particular application or group of applications. License types are shown in the Licenses view as KEY-G, KEY-J, and so on.
License file: A file with the extension .nxn that contains the license types that were purchased by the customer.
Registry key: An organizational unit in the Windows registry. After you import the license file into the Interplay Engine, the information is stored in a registry key. Sometimes this registry key is referred to as a “license key.”
Dongle: A physical device that is attached to a system. Interplay licenses are associated with the dongle that is attached to the Interplay Engine.
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Installing Permanent Licenses

If you are installing the Interplay Engine on a new system, temporary licenses are activated automatically so that you can administer and install the system. There is no time limit for these licenses. If you are performing an upgrade, the currently installed licenses are used.
A set of permanent licenses is provided by Avid in the form of a file (with the extension .nxn) on a USB flash drive or another delivery mechanism. These permanent licenses must match the Hardware ID of the Interplay Engine and the attached dongle. After installation, the license information is stored in a Windows registry key.
Licenses for an Interplay Engine failover cluster are associated with two Hardware IDs. The
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licenses are installed on the Engine cluster through the Interplay Administrator.
If a customer purchases additional licenses, the licenses are delivered in an additional license file. After installation, new licenses are added to the existing licenses and are stored in an additional registry key.
To install a permanent license:
1. Start and log in to the Interplay Administrator.
2. Make a folder for the license file on the root directory (C:\) of the Interplay Engine server or another server. For example:
Managing Licenses
C:\Interplay_Licenses
3. If the licenses were delivered on a USB flash drive, insert the drive into any USB port.
You can access the license file from the USB flash drive. The advantage of copying the license
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file to a server is that you have easy access to installer files if you should ever need them in the future.
If the USB flash drive does not automatically display:
a. Double-click the computer icon on the desktop.
b. Double-click the USB flash drive icon to open it.
4. Copy the license file (*.nxn) into the new folder you created.
5. In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Licenses icon.
6. Click the Import license button.
7. Browse for the *.nxn file.
8. Select the file and click Open.
You see information about the permanent license in the License Types area. The license information is stored in a registry key. (See “Troubleshooting Licensing Problems” on
page 106.)
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Displaying the Licenses View

To view information about your licenses:
t In the Server section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Licenses icon.
The Licenses view opens.
Managing Licenses
The Licenses view has four sections:
- The License Types section displays information about the following:
- Your current license types (see “License Types and Usage” on page 100).
- Number of license types available.
- Number of license types used.
- Time Limit (days): The total days included in the license. Interplay licenses are usually not time limited, so in most cases the value for a license type is “Unlimited.” Only one time limit is stored for each license type.
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- Days Remaining: The number of days until expiration of a time-limited license. Interplay licenses are usually not time limited, so in most cases the value for a license type is “0.” Only one value for the days remaining is stored for each license type.
- The Server Information section displays information about the following:
- Customer ID. The customer name or ID number.
- Hardware ID, which matches the physical application key (dongle). The Hardware ID is required to obtain technical support.
The items Number of Databases, License Mode, and Lock Timeout are not applicable to current
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licensing.
- Import License File section: For information about importing a license file, see
“Installing Permanent Licenses” on page 98.
- Export License File section: For information about exporting a license file, see
“Exporting a License” on page 105.

License Types and Usage

Starting with Interplay version 2.7, customers can buy two types of client licenses:
Managing Licenses
Interplay Central Base license
Interplay Central Advance license
The names of these licenses include Interplay Central, but the licenses themselves are used for all Interplay client applications. For example, a user on one workstation can work with all of the following applications concurrently and use only one Interplay Central Base license:
Digidesign
Interplay Access
Interplay Assist
Interplay Central (access to iNEWS only or Interplay Production only)
Interplay Sphere
Media Composer or NewsCutter
Prior to version 2.7, customers purchased licenses for individual applications. These legacy licenses are still supported, as described later in this topic.
Interplay Engine patch release 2.7.0.2 added support for the Central Base license (KEY-J) and
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Central Advance license (KEY-G) to be used as universal license types. This change allows these licenses to be used for both legacy and Interplay Central client connections.
Pro Tools®Integration
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