Pinnacle Systems MediaCentral - 2.1 Administrator’s Guide

Avid MediaCentral | UX

Administration Guide

Version 2.1

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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.

Adobe and Photoshop are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. Apple and Macintosh are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Windows is either a registered trademark or trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

Avid MediaCentral Administration Guide • 9329-065181-00 Rev A • December 2014 • Created 12/19/14 • This document is distributed by Avid in online (electronic) form only, and is not available for purchase in printed form.

Using This Guide. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Symbols and Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

If You Need Help. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Avid Training Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Chapter 1 Administration and System Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

The Administrator Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Signing In to MediaCentral | UX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Configuring System Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

MediaCentral System Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Configuring Image Quality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Configuring File-Based Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Configuring a Session Timeout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Configuring Message Archiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Configuring E-Mail Forwarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Configuring for Send to Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Understanding the Send-to-Playback Components and Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Creating or Editing a Send-to-Playback Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Send-to-Playback Profile Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Monitoring STP Processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Configuring Settings in the Interplay | Production Administrator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Configuring Interplay | MAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Configuring Settings in Interplay | MAM User Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Configuring Interplay | MAM in the System Settings Pane. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Configuring Central Index for Interplay | MAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Creating Interplay | MAM Users in MediaCentral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Chapter 2 User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Opening the Users Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

The Users Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Understanding Users and Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Available Layouts: Administrators and Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Working with MediaCentral Zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Configuring a Multi-Zone Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Managing Multi-Zone Environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Configuring MediaCentral Zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Managing Users and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Importing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Creating a New User or Editing User Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Creating a New Group or Editing Group Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Adding a User to a Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Removing a User from a Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Removing Groups from Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Understanding the Unassigned Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Deleting Users and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Changing Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Creating, Deleting, and Assigning Roles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Default Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

MediaCentral | UX Client Licensing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Creating and Deleting Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Assigning Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Displaying Information in the Details Pane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Viewing and Ending Active Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Chapter 3 Monitoring and Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Log Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Troubleshooting Send to Playback Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Troubleshooting Mixdown Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Appendix A User Management Utility Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

MediaCentral Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Using This Guide

This guide is intended for all Avid MediaCentral | UX administrators who are responsible for configuring and maintaining a MediaCentral UX system (formerly Interplay Central). This guide describes product features and administrative procedures, such as MediaCentral UX system settings and user management.

For initial installation and configuration, see the Avid MediaCentral Platform Services

Installation and Configuration Guide. For user information, see the Avid MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide.

Symbols and Conventions

Avid documentation uses the following symbols and conventions:

Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action

> This symbol indicates menu commands (and subcommands) in the

(Windows), (Windows only), (Macintosh), or (Macintosh only)

Italic font Italic font is used to emphasize certain words and to indicate variables.

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.

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.

Symbol or Convention Meaning or Action

If You Need Help

Monospace font

Ctrl+key or mouse action Press and hold the first key while you press the last key or perform the

| (pipe character) The pipe character is used in some Avid product names, such as

If You Need Help

If you are having trouble using your Avid product:

1. Retry the action, carefully following the instructions given for that task in this guide. It is especially important to check each step of your workflow.

2. Check the latest information that might have become available after the documentation was published. 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.

3. Check the documentation that came with your Avid application or your hardware for maintenance or hardware-related issues.

Monospace font identifies text that you view and type from the operating system command line.

mouse action. For example, Command+Option+C or Ctrl+drag.

Interplay | Production. In this document, the pipe is used in product names when they are in headings or at their first use in text.

4. Visit the online Knowledge Base at 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.

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 800-949-AVID (800-949-2843).

www.avid.com/support and follow the Training links, or call Avid Sales at

www.avid.com/support. Online services are available 24

1 Administration and System Settings

The following topics provide information about configuration of MediaCentral UX components:

The Administrator Account

•

• Signing In to MediaCentral | UX

• Configuring System Settings

• MediaCentral System Settings

• Configuring Image Quality

• Configuring File-Based Playback

• Configuring a Session Timeout

• Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages

• Configuring Message Archiving

• Configuring E-Mail Forwarding

• Configuring for Send to Playback

• Configuring Settings in the Interplay | Production Administrator

• Configuring Interplay | MAM

The Administrator Account

During MediaCentral UX installation, a user named Administrator is created. This user is a member of the Administrator group by default, and as a result has administrator privileges.

During installation, the default Administrator password signs in with the user name Administrator, the user must supply this password. Note that this password is context-sensitive. For security, the user must then change the password. For more information, see

on page 106

After the first sign-in, the administrator must configure system settings such as information about the Avid iNEWS, Interplay Production, and Interplay MAM systems. For more information, see

Settings” on page 12

“Changing Passwords” on page 83 and “User Management Utility Tools”

“Signing In to MediaCentral | UX” on page 11 and “Configuring System

Avid123

is set. The first time a user

Additional Administrator Accounts

An administrator can add other users to the Administrators group. All members of the Administrators group have the same administrator privileges. For more information, see

“Creating a New Group or Editing Group Details” on page 77.

Layouts Available Only to an Administrator

Administrator tasks are performed in MediaCentral UX layouts. The following layouts are available only to a MediaCentral UX administrator:

• System Settings

•Users

Signing In to MediaCentral | UX

Use a supported browser to connect to and sign in to your MediaCentral UX server. See the Avid MediaCentral ReadMe for a list of supported browsers.

MediaCentral UX lets you use a single user name and password to access all Avid systems for which your account is configured. A journalist might have access to both an Avid iNEWS database and an Interplay Production database, while a logger might have access only to an Interplay Production database. MediaCentral UX credentials (user name and password) are created by a MediaCentral UX administrator in the Users layout. Access is determined by the user’s role. For more information, see

“Default Roles” on page 85.

Signing In to MediaCentral | UX

• Interplay MAM users must sign in with MediaCentral UX credentials that match credentials set in the Interplay MAM system.

• iNEWS and Interplay Production users have the option of using MediaCentral UX credentials that are different from their iNEWS and Interplay Production credentials.

The first time you sign in to MediaCentral UX, you must use MediaCentral UX credentials. You are then given the option of using your MediaCentral UX credentials to sign in to iNEWS and Interplay Production or to use different credentials. The credentials you use depend on the user name and password that you can use to sign in directly to iNEWS or Interplay Production. Supplying these credentials enable you to use only the MediaCentral UX user name and password at future sign-ins.

Your iNEWS and Interplay Production credentials are set in the iNEWS or Interplay Production sections of the User Settings dialog box, which you access from the Home menu. You can change these credentials at any time.

Configuring System Settings

To sign in to MediaCentral UX:

1. Open a supported browser and type the URL of your MediaCentral Services server.

The URL is the computer name of the server.

2. At the sign-in screen, type your user name and password.

3. Click Sign In, or press Enter (Windows) or Return (Macintosh).

After a few moments, the MediaCentral UX application opens and displays the last layout that you used.

When you sign in to MediaCentral UX, you are automatically signed in to your iNEWS

newsroom computer system, your Interplay MAM system, your Interplay Production system, or all three. If, however, the security settings for one of these integrated systems is inaccurate, you might see a warning message that states that the application is unable to authorize the sign-in name or password. If you receive this message, click the link provided and verify your security settings.

4. (Optional) If the layout you want is not displayed, select the one you want from the Layout selector.

Left: Sign Out button. Right: Layout selector.

To sign out:

t Click Sign Out in the menu bar.

Configuring System Settings

The MediaCentral UX administrator needs to specify configuration information before users can use MediaCentral UX. You specify these settings in the System Settings layout, which is only available to administrators. The System Settings layout includes a Settings pane, in which you select the group of settings, and the Details pane, in which you specify the settings.

For information about these settings, see

To configure MediaCentral UX system settings:

1. Sign in to MediaCentral UX as an administrator.

2. Select System Settings from the Layout selector.

The System Settings layout opens.

“MediaCentral System Settings” on page 13.

3. In the Settings pane select a settings group, for example, General.

The Details pane displays the settings in that group.

4. In the Details pane, specify one or more settings, as described in the table at the end of this procedure.

5. Click Apply to save your new settings or click Revert to replace changed information with the previously saved settings.

MediaCentral System Settings

This topic describes settings in the System Settings layout. For information about how to access and save these settings, see

Load Balancer

Provides a view of server nodes and connections. See “Monitoring Load Balancing” in the Avid MediaCentral Platform Services Installation and Configuration Guide.

Playback Service

Settings and user credentials for the MediaCentral Playback Service. This is the service responsible for the compression and playback of media. See “Configuring MCPS for Interplay” in the Avid MediaCentral Platform Services Installation and Configuration Guide.

“Configuring System Settings” on page 12.

MediaCentral System Settings

Player

Setting Description

Server The computer name of the MediaCentral Platform server. The

MediaCentral Player uses this setting to communicate with the MediaCentral Platform server.

Media Composer | Cloud User The credentials that Media Composer Cloud uses to

communicate with the Media Central player. This user is automatically assigned a special Media Composer Cloud user role named “Playback-Only Client.” The user and role are listed in the Users layout.

You need to configure Media Composer Cloud to use this user name and password. For more information, see the Media

Composer | Cloud Installation and Configuration Guide.

MediaCentral System Settings

Setting Description

Variable Speed Playback Control the speed of the L key (forward) and J key (backward)

for variable speed playback (J-K-L). The default settings are:

• Press 2 times: 2x normal speed

• Press 3 times: 3x normal speed

• Press 4 times: 4x normal speed

To change a value, type a number directly in a field. You can also use the Up Arrow and Down Arrow keys on the keyboard, or the up and down arrows next to the field, to increase or decrease the value by .10.You can include values with a decimal point. If you type more than two decimal places, the application rounds the value to two decimal places. The maximum value allowed is

9.99.

To save the new settings, click Apply. These settings apply to all users.

Image Quality Settings Define the image quality, which you set for a user group. For

more information, see

“Configuring Image Quality” on page 18.

Media | Index

An administrator uses these settings to configure Media Index. For more information, see the Avid MediaCentral Platform Services Installation and Configuration Guide.

General

Setting Description

System ID The identification number for your MediaCentral system, which

is required by Avid support. An administrator needs to enter this number, which is supplied as part of the MediaCentral installation. After the System ID is entered, it is displayed in the Home > About box.

Search Pane: Maximum Number The maximum number of items listed in a pane. To view more

items, click the Show More Results button. The range is 5 to 1000 items.

Session Timeout If you select Enabled, the number of minutes of inactivity before

a user’s session is disconnected. Session Timeout is enabled by default, and the default value is 30 minutes. You can set a time between 10 minutes and 1440 minutes (24 hours). For more information, see

“Configuring a Session Timeout” on page 21.

MediaCentral System Settings

iNEWS

Setting Description

iNEWS Server: System ID The system ID for an iNEWS cluster, which is set in the iNEWS

/site/system file. Using this ID ensures load balancing and failover if necessary. Do not include a suffix such as -a or -b. Ensure that all MediaCentral servers can resolve the IP addresses of systemID-a, systemID-b, and if present, systemID-c. Address resolution can be through DNS or hosts file.

Pagination: Maximum Number The maximum number of items listed in the Queue/Story pane or

the Project/Story pane. To view more items beyond the number displayed, click the Show More Results button. The range is 5 to 255 items.

Interplay MAM

Setting Description

Interplay MAM System The version stack of the Interplay MAM system enabled in

MediaCentral UX. For more information about this and other settings, see

Settings Pane” on page 52

“Configuring Interplay | MAM in the System

Registry Servers Specifies the following:

• The computer name of the server where the Interplay MAM Configuration Service WS is running

• The URL of Configuration Service WS

• Information about the version of Configuration Service WS

• Information about the run-time status of Configuration Service WS

Credentials The user name and password to connect to the Interplay MAM

server. The user name must match the ID of the MediaCentral system user that is created in Interplay MAM User Management. For additional information, see

Interplay | MAM User Manager” on page 50

“Configuring Settings in

MediaCentral System Settings

Setting Description

Search Specifies the search behavior. If you check Auto-Append

Wildcards, each search term is appended with an asterisk before submission. This allows a search behavior more similar to Interplay Production and iNEWS. Auto-Append Wildcards is unselected by default.

If you set Limit Result Set, Interplay MAM never returns more than this number of hits in a search. The number must be greater than zero; the default value is 1000. This is a technical limit for the result to avoid that the MediaCentral server runs out of memory if a user searches the archive for “*”.

Interplay Production

Setting Description

Interplay Production Server: Hostname The computer name or the IP address of the server that hosts the

Interplay Production database.

MediaCentral Distribution Service: Service URL

A secure URL for the server that hosts the MediaCentral Distribution Service (MCDS), which is used for send-to-playback operations. Provide the URL in the following format, including the port number: https://hostname:port. For example, https://localhost:8443. You can use an IP address instead of a hostname.

If your Interplay Production workgroup is configured for multiple MCDS servers, specify the multiple URLs separated by a comma and a space. The first server listed is the active MCDS server. Multiple MCDS servers provide a failover capability. See

“Failover for Multiple MCDS Servers” on page 31.

Location for Script Sequences: Path A path for a folder in the Interplay Production database to store

the sequences created as part of an iNEWS script. Select whether you want sub-folders created by Queue name, Date, or Story name.

Assets Pane: Maximum Number The maximum number of items listed in a pane. To view more

items, click the Show More Results button. The range is 5 to 1000 items.

MediaCentral System Settings

Messages & Sharing

Setting Description

Message Archiving The interval (in days) before messages are moved to an

archive location, the most recent archive date, and the number of messages archived. The default interval is 7 days.

“Configuring Message Archiving” on page 23.

See

Email Forwarding Enables and configures e-mail forwarding. You can

configure MediaCentral UX to forward messages to e-mail accounts so users can receive messages when they are not logged on to MediaCentral UX. See

Forwarding” on page 25

“Configuring E-Mail

Also see “Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages” on page 22.

Modules

Modules used in MediaCentral UX showing name, version, location, state, fragment. For reference only.

Send to Playback

See “Creating or Editing a Send-to-Playback Profile” on page 33.

Zones

An administrator uses these settings to configure two or more single-zone systems into a multi-zone environment. For more information, see

page 63

and the Avid MediaCentral Platform Services Installation and Configuration Guide.

“Working with MediaCentral Zones” on

Configuring Image Quality

The Player system settings include options to improve the image quality that is displayed in the Media viewer:

• Maximum size of the proxy video. You can select the pixel dimensions of the image displayed by selecting the pixel width. This is especially useful if a user wants to work with a large Media viewer. The default pixel width is 480. As you enlarge the Media viewer, the pixel size of the image enlarges up to the maximum size.

• Option to display high-resolution video (for a multi-resolution asset). You can enable a button in the Media pane that lets the user view the highest resolution video that is available for an asset. If video is available only in one resolution, the video is displayed in that resolution.

This button also allows the user to view the asset in the STP Target Resolution. If the asset is not available in the target resolution (as specified in the selected STP profile), a Media Offline screen is displayed.

This option is available for both frame-based playback and file-based playback of Interplay Production assets. It is not available for Interplay MAM assets. See

Playback” on page 20

Configuring Image Quality

“Configuring File-Based

You set these options for a user group that is defined in the Users layout.

Configuring Image Quality

Note the following:

• If a user is a member of more than one group, and different pixel sizes are associated with the groups, the user is assigned the largest pixel size.

• This setting does not apply to remote assets.

If workstations in a facility will regularly use enlarged images for proxy video or high-resolution video, Avid recommends changes to the MediaCentral infrastructure. For more information, see How to Buy Hardware for MediaCentral Services.

You can also set the compression of the proxy video. Select Playback Quality in the Media pane menu. For more information, see “Selecting the Playback Quality” in the Avi d MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide.

To enable settings for image quality:

1. Sign in to MediaCentral UX as an administrator.

2. Select System Settings from the Layout selector.

The System Settings layout opens.

3. In the Settings pane, select Player.

4. In the Image Quality Settings section of the Details pane, do one of the following:

t To add a new group, click the plus button, then select the user group from the User

Group menu.

t To edit settings for an existing group, click the user group name.

5. To set the image size, select the width in pixels from the Maximum Size menu.

6. To enable a button for viewing high-resolution video, select MultiRez.

After applying this setting, a user who is a member of the selected group can select STP Target Resolution or Highest Resolution from the MultiRez button, which is displayed in Asset mode and in Output mode in the Media pane.

7. Click Apply.

Configuring File-Based Playback

Earlier versions of MediaCentral UX used only frame-based playback. Starting with v2.1, MediaCentral UX includes an option to use file-based playback. If you select file-based playback, the media is downloaded to your workstation and played back from the downloaded media. File-based playback provides good quality in low-bandwidth situations.

A user can select file-based playback for assets loaded in Asset mode or for basic sequences loaded in Output mode. For more information, see the Video Media chapter of the Avid

MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide.

File-based playback is the default mode for Interplay MAM assets. The user’s ability to select

frame-based playback depends on Interplay MAM rules. The credentials used to sign in to the Interplay MAM database determine if the user is allowed to use frame-based playback.

A MediaCentral administrator has the option of configuring the bit rate for file-based playback. There are two profiles available:

• Low-bandwidth: The default setting for file-based playback. This option is available for file-based playback of both Interplay Production and Interplay MAM assets. The default settings are 512 Kb/sec for video and 96 Kb/sec for audio.

Configuring File-Based Playback

• High-bandwidth: This setting applies to the MultiRez option for playback of high-quality media. This option is available only for playback of Interplay Production assets. See

“Configuring Image Quality” on page 18. The default settings are 5 Mb/sec for video and

128 Kb/sec for audio.

To change the default bit rate for these profiles, you must edit a configuration file on the MediaCentral Platform server.

To configure the bit rate for file-based playback:

1. Log in as the root user on the MediaCentral Platform server.

2. Use the vi text editor to open the following file for editing:

/usr/maxt/maxedit/etc/fl_xmd.cfg

3. Locate the following lines:

<render_profile_low>video_bitrate=512000,audio_bitrate=96000,max_width= 480</render_profile_low>

<render_profile_high>video_bitrate=5000000,audio_bitrate=128000,max_wid th=960</render_profile_high>

The above examples use the default bit rates, written as bits per second.

4. Edit the video bit rate and the audio bit rate as desired, then save and close the file.

Configuring a Session Timeout

The following are valid values. Enter the full bit rate.

Video Bit Rate Value for File Audio Bit Rate Value for File

256 Kb 256000 64 Kb 64000

512 Kb (low profile default) 512000 96 Kb (low profile default) 96000

1 Mb 1000000 128 Kb (high profile default) 128000

3 Mb 3000000 156 Kb 156000

5 Mb (high profile default) 5000000 512 Kb 512000

10 Mb 10000000

Use the following table to estimate the amount of media that can be transferred at different bit rates. This information was based on media transferred with the following specifications:

DNxHD 36 HD_1920x1080@25p@16:9, transferred with a maximum width of 960 pixels.

Video Bit Rate/ Audio Bit Rate

256 Kb/128 Kb 2.72 MB

512 Kb/128 Kb 5.6 MB

1 Mb/128 Kb 8.8 MB

3 Mb/128 Kb 22.8 MB

5 Mb/128 Kb 32 MB

10 Mb/128 Kb 32.4 MB

Approximate Media Transfer Per Minute

Configuring a Session Timeout

By default, MediaCentral UX is configured for a session timeout. After 30 minutes of inactivity, a user’s session is disconnected. An administrator can change the time or disable the option.

This setting applies to all users. If you change and apply the setting, the new setting takes effect the next time a user loads a layout.

Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages

Timeout is a good way of ensuring that a system license is released when a user leaves for the day without signing out of MediaCentral UX. With the implementation of auto-save for stories and sequences, any unsaved changes are saved in a recovery file. For more information, see the Avid MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide.

To configure a session timeout:

1. Sign in to MediaCentral UX as an administrator.

2. Select System Settings from the Layout selector.

The System Settings layout opens.

3. In the Settings pane, select General.

4. In the Session Timeout section of the Details pane, make sure Enable is selected and specify the number of minutes of inactivity before a user’s session is disconnected.

You can set a time between 10 minutes and 1440 minutes (24 hours).

Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages

Before you can send messages from MediaCentral UX to Media Composer or NewsCutter, you need to configure your Interplay Production database so it uses the correct MediaCentral UX server for the messaging service.

To configure Interplay Production for sharing messages with Avid editing applications:

1. Start the Interplay | Administrator application and log in to the server for the appropriate Interplay Production workgroup.

2. In the Application Settings section of the Interplay Administrator window, click the Application Database Settings icon.

3. Click the Editing Settings tab.

4. In the database tree on the left, select the server used for your Interplay Production database (in most cases, the top-level database AvidWG).

5. In the MCS Settings section, type the URL for the server that hosts your MediaCentral Messaging Pane:

6. Click Apply.

https://[MediaCentral server hostname]

Configuring Message Archiving

You can archive MediaCentral UX messages sent using the Messages pane. Messages are archived and stored on a server, and you can view archived messages using the Messenger Archive tool.

You can specify the interval for MediaCentral UX message archiving using the following increments: 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, or 30 days. After this time, MediaCentral UX deletes messages from the users’ view.

Message archiving applies only to messages sent using the Messages pane.

You can use the Messenger Archive tool to retrieve the following information about the message archive:

• Number of messages in the archive

• Size of the archive

• The oldest message in the archive, including the date of the message

• The most recent message in the archive, including the date of the message

You can also use the Messenger Archive tool to export the archive to a comma-separated values (CSV) file, with the options of compressing the file and of deleting the exported message archive from your server.

Configuring Message Archiving

The Messenger Archive tool is located in the following folder:

root

the archive utility program as Linux nodes in your cluster setup.

To configure message archiving:

1. Sign in to MediaCentral UX as an administrator.

2. Select System Settings from the Layout selector.

The System Settings layout opens.

from a command line. You can run the tool on any of the

/opt/avid/bin

. You must run

3. In the Settings pane select Messages & Sharing.

The Details pane displays the settings in that group.

4. Type a number in the Archiving Interval (days) text box.

Configuring Message Archiving

The default period for archiving messages is 7 days. Any message older than the interval specified are moved from the Message list to the archive location.

5. Click Apply.

To use the Message Archive tool:

1. On one of the nodes in your cluster setup, use the standard Linux command to navigate to the directory containing the Messenger Archive tool:

cd opt/avid/bin

Configuring E-Mail Forwarding

2. Type

acs-messenger-archive-tool

from the following table:

Option Description

-c

-o

-p

Adds a command. You can use the following values:

•

info

and last messages)

export

•

Specifies the output folder for the exported CSV file. The default folder is

/opt/avid/share/message_archives

Specifies a time period for the exported messages. You can use the following values:

•day

•week

• month

• half_year

•year

•all

The default value is

to run the utility, selecting the appropriate options

(lists the number of messages and the size of the archive, as well as the first

(creates a CSV file with all messages in the archive)

all

-z

-d

If you do not specify any options, the command displays the help text for the Messenger Archive

tool.

Creates a compressed file (.zip) for the CSV output file.

Deletes the exported data from the message archive.

Configuring E-Mail Forwarding

You can configure MediaCentral UX to forward messages to e-mail accounts so users can receive messages when they are not logged on to MediaCentral UX. You can also specify the protocols used to encrypt e-mails, using a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and by using or ignoring a Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol.

E-mail forwarding requires a MediaCentral UX administrator to enable e-mail forwarding and to assign a valid SMTP server. When your administrator enables e-mail forwarding in the System Settings, MediaCentral UX users can then use the User settings to enable e-mail forwarding for their accounts and specify the e-mail address to which they want their messages sent when not logged in to MediaCentral UX.

To enable and configure e-mail forwarding:

1. Sign in to MediaCentral UX as an administrator.

2. Select System Settings from the Layout selector.

The System Settings layout opens.

3. In the Settings pane select Messages & Sharing.

The Details pane displays the settings in that group.

Configuring E-Mail Forwarding

4. Select Email forwarding.

5. Type a valid SMTP server name for the hosting e-mail application, and then type the appropriate port number.

6. (Option) If you want to use Secure Sockets Layer protocol, select Use SSL, and then type a user name and password for your administrator e-mail account.

7. (Option) If you do not want to use Transport Layer Security, select Ignore TLS.

8. In the Recipient’s e-mail field, type a a valid e-mail address to send a test -email message.

9. Select Validate to ensure that your SMTP configuration is correct.

A test e-mail is sent to the address specified in the settings.

An error message informs you if the validation process fails. If you receive an error message, try entering your configuration information again.

10. Click Apply.

Configuring for Send to Playback

You can transfer a sequence to a playback device or playout server for viewing or broadcast. This process is called send to playback, or STP. Users can also send to playback a sequence stored in an Interplay Production database.

The following topics describe administrator tasks for sending a sequence to a playback device:

“Understanding the Send-to-Playback Components and Process” on page 27

•

• “Creating or Editing a Send-to-Playback Profile” on page 33

• “Send-to-Playback Profile Examples” on page 38

• “Monitoring STP Processes” on page 45

The following topic provides troubleshooting information:

“Troubleshooting Send to Playback Problems” on page 99

•

For information about how users send to playback, see the “Sending to Playback” chapter in the Avid MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide.

Understanding the Send-to-Playback Components and Process

A MediaCentral UX system and an Interplay Production system are required for the send-to-playback process.

Required Components

Make sure the following components are correctly installed and configured:

•MediaCentral

- MediaCentral Middleware Service

- MediaCentral Common Playback Service

- MediaCentral Distribution Service. The Distribution Service coordinates and monitors

send-to-playback and mixdown operations. It determines if there is any preprocessing required. If it determines an audio mixdown is required, it submits a Transcode Mixdown request. If Long GOP media is required, it submits an STP Encode request. You can configure your workgroup for more than one MCDS.

The MediaCentral Distribution Service communicates with other Interplay Production Services,

but it is not an Interplay Production Service itself.

For information about installing and configuring these components, see the MediaCentral Services Installation and Configuration Guide.

Configuring for Send to Playback

• Interplay | Production

- Interplay | Production Services Engine. This component serves as a broker for all

Production Services. The Interplay | Transcode service and the Interplay | STP Encode service are used for MediaCentral UX send-to-playback operations.

For installation and configuration information for the Production Services Engine and Production Services, see the Interplay | Production Services Setup and User’s Guide.

- Interplay | Transcode service. This service mixes down audio for script sequences and

checks the sequence in to the Interplay | Engine. No video mixdown is required when sending a script sequence to a playback device.

- Interplay | STP Encode service. This service exports and encodes Long GOP media,

then passes the media to the Transfer Engine for a send-to-playback operation. The STP Encode service supports various XDCAM media formats.

- Interplay | Engine. This component manages the Interplay Production database.

Sequences that are sent to playback are checked into the Send to Playback folder in the Interplay Production database.

- Media Indexer. This component is used to store information of all available resolutions

for an Interplay Production asset. It enables relinking of a clip to a particular resolution (Dynamic Relink).

- Avid System Framework (ASF). This component is used for various Interplay

Production interactions. For send-to-playback, it identifies the high-availability group (HAG) that includes the Media Indexer used for relinking.

- Interplay | Transfer Engine. This component sends the sequence to the playout device. If

you are sending to an Avid AirSpeed, Avid AirSpeed Multi Stream, or Avid AirSpeed 5000 server, you do not need a separate Transfer Engine, because it is included as a component of the AirSpeed Multi Stream server. For installation and configuration information, see the Interplay | Transfer Setup and User’s Guide.

• Playback Servers

- AirSpeed 5000, AirSpeed Multi Stream. A playback server that can handle different

formats, including HD media. It includes a Transfer Manager as an installable component.

- AirSpeed (Classic). A playback server that can handle different formats but only one at

a time.

- Third-party playback servers

For more information, see the following topics:

• “Send-To-Playback Workflow: I-Frame Sequences” on page 29

• “Send-To-Playback Workflow: Long GOP Sequences” on page 30

• “Sending a Mixed-Resolution Long GOP Sequence to a Playback Device” on page 31

MediaCentral Client (Browser)

qq ee

ISIS Shared Storage

Media Indexer

MediaCentral Middleware Service

Production Services Engine

Playback Server

Interplay Transcode

MediaCentral Distribution Service

wru

Interplay Transfer

• “Failover for Multiple MCDS Servers” on page 31

Send-To-Playback Workflow: I-Frame Sequences

The following illustration shows a typical send-to-playback workflow for I-frame (non-Long GOP) sequences.

1. The user starts an STP process in MediaCentral UX.

Configuring for Send to Playback

2. The MediaCentral Middleware Service checks media status through Media Indexer.

3. The MediaCentral Middleware Service creates an STP job and sends it to the MediaCentral Distribution Service (MCDS). MCDS performs an analysis of the sequence to determine if it needs an audio mixdown, a video mixdown, or both.

4. The MCDS uses MI to dynamically relink the sequence to media in the target resolution.

5. The MCDS sends a request for any required mixdowns to the Production Services Engine, which then sends the jobs to the Interplay | Transcode provider.

6. Interplay | Transcode performs the mixdowns and saves the media on the Avid ISIS system.

7. MCDS initiates a transfer to the playback server, through Interplay | Transfer.

8. Interplay | Transfer transfers the sequence to the playback server.

Send-To-Playback Workflow: Long GOP Sequences

MediaCentral Client (Browser)

qq ee

ISIS Shared Storage

Media Indexer

Production Services Engine

Playback Server

Interplay Transcode

MediaCentral Distribution Service

Interplay Transfer

STP Encode

MediaCentral Middleware Service

The following illustration shows a typical send-to-playback workflow for a Long GOP sequence.

1. The user starts an STP process in MediaCentral UX.

2. The MediaCentral Middleware Service checks media status with through Media Indexer.

Configuring for Send to Playback

- If an audio mixdown or video mixdown is needed, the MCDS will send a Transcode

mixdown job to the Production Services Engine, which sends the job to the Interplay | Transcode provider.

- If no transcoding is required, the MCDS will send an STP Encode job to the Production

Services Engine, which sends the job to the STP Encode provider.

4. The MCDS uses ASF and MI to dynamically relink the sequence to media in the target resolution.

5. The MCDS sends a request for any required mixdowns to the Production Services Engine, which then sends the jobs to the Interplay | Transcode provider.

After sending the Transcode jobs, the MCDS periodically checks the Production Services Engine to determine when to send the encoding job to the STP Encode provider.

6. Interplay | Transcode performs the required jobs and saves the media on the Avid ISIS system.

7. When the transcode jobs are complete, MCDS sends an encoding job to the STP Encode provider.

+ 96 hidden pages

Pinnacle Systems MediaCentral - 2.1 Administrator’s Guide

Contents

Using This Guide

Symbols and Conventions

If You Need Help

Avid Training Services

1 Administration and System Settings

The Administrator Account

Signing In to MediaCentral | UX

Configuring System Settings

MediaCentral System Settings

Configuring Image Quality

Configuring File-Based Playback

Configuring a Session Timeout

Configuring Interplay | Production for Sharing Messages

Configuring Message Archiving

Configuring E-Mail Forwarding

Configuring for Send to Playback

Understanding the Send-to-Playback Components and Process