reconnect files problem-editor to producer

[Michael Gissing]

Is your drive a clone with the same disk name or just a copy of the folders and files? When you first opened the project did you have to reconnect files?

It was foolish of the producer to change to FCP7 mid project. Although she can read your projects, she can’t easily make any adjustments and send you a project to open without using XML. Nothing wrong with the project files being renamed as a ‘save as’ function. Is that what you are doing?

Of course render files at your end won’t be on the producers drive so they will alwyas have to be redone. Are the files that want to be reconnected clips that you have applied a render to? In other words can you see a pattern in the files that need reconnecting?

[Connie Bottinelli]

Thanks for the quick response, Michael.

–My external drive is NOT a clone – files were copied from producer’s ext. drive.
–Yes, my project files have always been “save as”. She has asked me to save without changing the name of the project file each day (with that day’s date). I’m reluctant to do that, fearing I’ll create something cumbersome for finding previous cuts. From what I understand, renaming the newest cut is not an issue? Suggestion?
–Early on in the project, I don’t remember her needing to reconnect. Don’t know if the timing coincides with her upgrade to FCP7 or not. But now, it’s every time I send a project file.
–Almost no rendered files in the cut yet.
— I’ll need to ask the producer if she sees a pattern. An assistant keeps reconnecting for her.

[Michael Gissing]

FCP saves the file path to a specific drive. Because the drives are not clones, this means that it is normal to have to reconnect when the project is opened and needs to reference files on a different named drive.

It should mean all files always need reconnecting and have nothing to do with changing the name when you save as or changing to FCP7. It is important to rename with the date as a good way of telling projects apart. Keeping the same name runs the risk of one overwriting the other.

I think you will always have reconnect issues. It is a nuisance but should be fairly simple. Unless the two drives are absolutely identical (one is a clone of the other) that will always be the case.

[Connie Bottinelli]

There you go! That’s the answer. Thank you so much, Michael. I love this place.

[Mark Raudonis]

In order to make this workflow as seamless as possible you MUST create and maintain the EXACT same naming and file structure on BOTH your and her drive.

For example: Original drive is called: “Producers Hard Drive” and the files live in “Media” folder.

Your drive also should be called “Producers Hard Drive”, and the files that you’ve copied over must also live in a folder called “Media”. Any internal folders or additional organizing folders have to be the exact same. If you follow this advice, the reconnect process can be as quick as a couple of clicks. NOTE: your render files are NOT moving, so they must be redone. Depending on the complexity of the program or the resolution, this can either be quick or take all night.

Plenty of people use this workflow everyday. It can work quite well.

Good luck.

Mark

[Connie Bottinelli]

Thanks, Mark. As far as I know our drives are the same structure. To make sure, I sent her pictures of my file structure to see if anything was off. I haven’t touched mine and everything reconnects perfectly for me.

[Michael Gissing]

The problem is that the disk names are different