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settting up video studio
I have a 32 student (16 stations, 2 students per) G5 video lab running FinalCutProHD…..We currently are running an ethernet server; and have had a lot of problems running FCP….I’ve read some white paper on the problems with software conflicts.
People I’ve talked to have all told me the best solution is fiber channel server with RAID in room….saving all student files to that location……..only.
In the past, the students’s home directory was copied back to ethernet server every time they logged in or out…and we’ve lost file links, sequences, and had many software inconsistencies. We share the server with about 80 other stations in the school; we have 400G drive for video storage.
Is there any way to make the scenario work without a dedicated server?….
If we can’t run FCP without files coming up missing, or corrupted, or sequences lost….is it possible to run iMovie in this scenario?….I’m wondering, as the capture/media files would be larger, without time-code control….. -
5 Replies
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[stuntgirl] “People I’ve talked to have all told me the best solution is fiber channel server with RAID in room….saving all student files to that location……..only”
They were all right. Having a server shared by other workstations doing other things is a recipe for disaster. I’m generalising here, as I don’t know much about the rest of your setup.
For consistent video playback, you need a dedicated high-speed array doing nothing but video. Hopefully someone with more experience of shared storage can wade in here? My only other comment is that many of the problems you describe MAY be due to bad project management by students, or files being deleted by other users. Using local storage or internal drives even (if you work DV/HDV etc) may be a safer solution if it fits into your workflow at all. It’s not as neat or flexible, but it works… Projects could be backed up (via Media Manager – which is better these days) to a shared drive as required.
Ben
Editec Broadcast Editing Ltd
EVS & FCP specialists for live OB operations.Producer/Director “The Supercar Run” now available for international distribution from http://www.electricsky.com
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May I suggest that you do it right and get Xsan? Expensive to set up, but once it’s up, you’ll have no problems like you have described above. So yes, you’ll need a fiber switch, 2 Xserves (or even a G4 or two) for metadata controller and backup, and Xserve RAID for storage and backup. You’ll also need PCI cards for an added ethernet connection and for the fiber connection. A few other acoutrements that your VAR can set up for you.
IMHO, all classroom setups would be well “served” by an Xsan setup. 🙂
Kevin Monahan
Take My FCP Master’s Workshop!
fcpworld.com
Pres. SF Cutters -
Could you get the students to buy and use their own Firewire drives? Assuming DV video, each kid would have his drive that they bring to class and plug in locally to the workstation.
joe
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thanks…well, other students cannot delete the files, as they don’t have permission for access…..
I don’t doubt some students have mismanaged files!…but, losing links and sequences not found happenned across the board, to “A” students doing things properly, to the dimmer bulbs…..
I’m not anxious to use the “new and improved” media manager…..plus, I have kids, kids….who are easily confused……this would really blow their mind, where ARE things?……!!
Is a 400G storage drive even adequate to handle 32 accounts from 16 machines?….they are all handling several streams of video; over ethernet……I mean, the room just stops……it’s bandwidth predominantly, right?…..
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I guess you just blew by my post. I’m telling you, you need a SAN solution like Xsan. Your current scenario just won’t work.
Kevin Monahan
Take My FCP Master’s Workshop!
fcpworld.com
Pres. SF Cutters
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