Configuring a Virtual Device. Imagine communications v11 ADC

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ADC Device Server v11.61.4

Installation, Configuration, and Operations Reference Configuring a Virtual Device

Configuring a Virtual Device

About the Virtual Device Driver

In ADC, the Virtual Device Driver works in conjunction with the NDCP Device driver to control an NDCP Device. A single ADC Device Server can support up to 20 NDCP Devices.

For more information on NDCP Devices and driver see About NDCP Devices .

The Virtual Device Driver is similar to the other “drivers” in ADC Device Server v11, and has similar configuration characteristics. Like other ADC device drivers, the function of the Virtual

Device Driver is to interface with the ADC Transmission List and control the behavior of the

NDCP Device. The major difference between the Virtual Device Driver and the other ADC device drivers is that the Virtual Device Driver does not use RS-422 as its connection to the device. Instead, an NDCP Device Driver is specified in place of the RS-422 port. The NDCP

Device Driver then takes the instructions from the Virtual Device Driver and sends them to the NDCP Device.

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The NDCP Device Driver handles communication with all types of NDCP Devices and all types of EBDOs.

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The Virtual Device Driver, however, is limited to the Play/Record functionality and

Storage functionality of an NDCP Device.

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Other types of Virtual Devices will handle the other EBDO types.

To Configure a Virtual Device Driver

This section describes the configuration and function of each of the parameters in the Virtual

Device Driver.

IMPORTANT: Configuring the Virtual Device requires that the NDCP Device Driver configuration

be completed.

1. Ensure that a physical connection is established between the NDCP Device and the

Device Server.

2. Right-click on the name of the Device Server. A pop-up menu is displayed.

3. From the pop-up menu select “Configured Devices”. The Configured Devices Form opens.

4. Under NDCP Devices in the Available pane (right pane), select a device (e.g. Multi-Port

Play/Rec Device) and drag-n-drop it to the Configured pane (left pane). For details on

assigning a device see: To Assign a Device to a Device Channel .

Once a device has been assigned to a device channel, it may be configured for specific options.

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5. Select the device in the left pane, right-click and from the popup menu select Properties.

The configuration dialog is displayed for this device. Use the left and right arrows at the upper right to scroll through the other tabs.

6. Drag the Multi-Port Play/Rec Device from the Available column on the left to a Channel on the Configured column to configure it. Double click on the Device Name icon (e.g. V1-

20 icon for Multi-Port Play/Rec Device), and the Virtual Device Configuration form is displayed.

The Multi-Port Play/Rec Device is a multi-steam device, meaning it may control up to a maximum of twenty Port EBDOs from the pool of available configured NDCP Devices.

7. The Device Tree, on the left side of the Virtual Device Configuration form, is where the elements of the device (Storage and Ports) are represented.

Click on the parent element in the Device Tree, the configuration window displays settings that apply to the entire Virtual Device Driver.

NOTE: Items in the Device group box apply to all of the configured streams, as well as

the storage of the Virtual Device Driver.

8. Select the General tab. Items on the General tab are global to the Virtual Device. The name and dimensions of the Virtual Device are established here.

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Configure the following parameters as required:

• Device Name: The Device Name is configurable by the user to identify the Streams and Storage of the Virtual Device in other parts of the system, such as the

Transmission List, the Device Storage window, etc. Values: String up to 16 characters.

• Number of Heads per Stream: A Stream on the Virtual Device Driver represents a media input or output on the physical device, and each of these Streams has a number of Heads associated with it. Throughout the ADC software, device capabilities are compared to that of a VTR. The VTR is represented in ADC as having one Head. Other devices, such as the Video Disk are represented as having two or more Heads. This means it has capabilities similar to two or more VTRs, in the sense that the Disk can play back-to-back with no time between media files required for cueing. The second Head cues while the first Head is playing (like a second VTR fast-forwarding to a cue point while the first VTR plays). The difference between the two VTRs and the Video Disk: the Disk port is one Stream (with internal switching to handle directing the media between the two Heads), and the two VTRs are two discrete Streams, requiring external handling of the switching.

In the Virtual Device Driver configuration, unlike other ADC device drivers, the number of Heads per Stream is configurable. The value applies to each Stream on the Virtual Device.

Consult the device-specific user notes to determine the necessary settings for

Number of Heads per Stream. The value entered in Number of Heads per Stream will depend on the device capabilities, available ADC resources, desired minimum length of the shortest media file, etc. A typical setting for this is the value of (MaxCuePlay +

1). Values: Integer from 1 to 20

NOTE: There is a limit of no more than 20 total Heads per Virtual Device Driver, and the Heads are allocated evenly to the Streams. Thus, be careful not to violate the following formula: (Number of heads per Stream) x (Number of Ports on this device)

<= 20

• Number of Ports on this device: The Virtual Device Driver, unlike most ADC device drivers, is capable of controlling multiple Streams (inputs or outputs) with a single driver. The number of Streams is configurable per Virtual Device. Typically, it is configured to represent the number of Streams that the device itself has, but sometimes there are more Streams on the device than the Virtual Device Driver can control. In this case, additional Virtual Device Drivers may be configured to control the remainder of the Streams.

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Installation, Configuration, and Operations Reference Configuring a Virtual Device

Likewise, it is not necessary to configure the number of Streams to the full capacity of the Virtual Device Driver; it is best to use only the required number of Streams.

Consult the device-specific user notes to determine the necessary settings for

Number of Ports on this device. The value entered in Number of Ports on this device will depend on the device capabilities, available ADC resources, etc. Values: Integer from 1 to 20

<= 20

9. Select the Events tab.

The parameters in this section define which types of ADC events the Virtual Device will handle, and which fields of those events provide significant information regarding the availability of the media the event represents.

Primarily, these configurations determine if the driver will assume ownership of an ADC event. For the purposes of this document, “ownership” is defined as registering the media. This is best represented when the event turns from red to blue on the transmission list.

The proper configuration of these settings is specific to the type of device that is being controlled by the Virtual Device Driver. When in doubt, consult the device-specific user notes for the proper configuration of these settings.

• Primary tab

Each type of event that the Virtual Device Driver supports is represented by a tab inside the Events Supported group box. The Primary Tab is the first of such tabs.

Configurations inside this tab apply to all of the ADC’s Primary type events that the

Virtual Device Driver can play or record.

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Enabled: The Enabled configuration determines if the Virtual Device will attempt to play this type of event.

Enabled: The driver will attempt to take ownership of an event for playout or recording when the ADC list asks it to, provided it passes the remaining requirements.

Disabled: The driver will ignore all requests to take ownership of an event of this type.

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Enable Match Name in ID field: This configuration controls how the Virtual

Device Driver determines which events it should own, and which field of the event represents the media’s identification. (NDCP: aMId).

Enabled: Only events that contain the Virtual Device’s Match Name in the event’s Material ID field will be considered for play or record (the match name is configurable for each port of the Virtual Device Driver. Match Name is discussed in Section 0 below). The ID that is used to identify the media itself is found in the

Title field of the event.

Disabled: The ID that is used to identify the media is found in the Material ID field of the event. Provided that the ID in the Material ID field passes the Storage

Check (does the device have this ID?), the Virtual Device will take ownership of the event.

NOTE: This configuration has no effect if “Enable” is unchecked – no events are owned in this case.

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Omit Storage Check: It is possible for a Virtual Device to take ownership of an event without checking to see if the device has the media in its storage. Some devices do not maintain storage, and therefore are not capable of reporting the contents of the device. An example of this is a character generator.

Enabled: Rather than checking to see if the device has the requested media, the

Virtual Device will assume that it can play or record it, and take ownership of the event if the other requirements are met. This parameter is best used in conjunction with “Enable Match Name in ID Field” above. This way, there is some filtering on which events are owned (the Match Name). If Omit Storage Check is enabled and Match Name is not, the Virtual Device will take ownership of every event that is presented to it.

Disabled: The virtual device will check to see if the device has the media ID before it will take ownership of the event. The field that is checked against the storage depends on the setting of “Enable Match Name in ID Field.” If Match

Name is enabled, the content of the Title field is checked against the storage.

Otherwise, it is the content of the Material ID field that is checked.

NOTE: This configuration has no effect if “Enable” is unchecked – no events are owned in this case.

• Sec AV tab: The configurations inside the Sec AV Tab define how the Virtual Device

Driver will process ADC events of the Secondary Audio/Video type. The configurations are the same as in Sections 0 through 0 above.

• Sec Bt AV tab: The configurations inside the Sec BT AV Tab define how the Virtual

Device Driver will process ADC events of the Secondary Back-Timed Audio/Video type. The configurations are the same as in Sections 0 through 0 above.

• Sec Data tab: The configurations inside the Sec Data Tab define how the Virtual

Device Driver will process ADC events of the Secondary Data type. The configurations are the same as in Sections 0 through 0 above.

10. Init Device button

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The Init Device button is a diagnostic tool that should only be used when there is a serious problem with the device. When clicked and confirmed, the Init Device button will reset the Virtual Device Driver (configurations are preserved). The user will also be asked if the NDCP Driver and the device itself should also be reset. This additional function is the same as clicking the Init Device button on the NDCP Driver, described in Section 0 above.

CAUTION: All play and record streams WILL BE STOPPED when the Init Device button

is used!

11. When finished click Apply, then click OK.

12. From the Configured Devices window select File> Save Devices. The current configuration is written to the Device Server’s configuration files in the “C:\Server” folder on the Device Server.

Configure Storage EDBOs

The Storage EBDO is where the Virtual Device Driver keeps track of what media the NDCP device has available.

1. To access the properties for the Storage EBDO, click on its representation in the Device

Tree.

2. Configure the following parameters as required:

• NDCP Device Binding Group Box: The Virtual Device Driver must be associated with an NDCP Storage EBDO in order to be used, and the configurations in the

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NDCP Device Binding box are where the associations are made. The NDCP Storage

EBDO must be configured first (Sections 0, 0, and 0).

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NDCP Device #: This list contains all of the configured NDCP Device Drivers on this Device Server. Select the name of the NDCP device that this Virtual Device

Driver will control.

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Storage: If the NDCP Device that is selected above has any Storage EBDOs, they will appear in this list. Select the one that the Virtual Device Driver should use to validate its media inquiries against.

NOTE: An NDCP device may have more than one Storage EBDO, but the Virtual

Device Driver only supports one. If a second one is required, an additional Virtual

Device Driver can be used. The Storage of an NDCP Device may be shared among multiple Virtual Devices. Also, it is valid for a Virtual Device Driver to not use the Storage EBDO, but the storage check must be disabled.

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Display Storage: Display Storage controls the visibility of the device’s list of media at the automation Client applications.

Enabled: The contents of the Storage EBDO are forwarded over the network to the Client Applications. The client applications can build a “Device Storage

Window” to display the list of media.

Disabled: No list of media is forwarded to the Client Applications. There is no

Device Storage Window associated with this Virtual Device Driver. This is useful if the list of media is very large (10,000 +). Disabling this parameter will save system resources and improve performance.

• Directories Group Box: Within a Storage EBDO, the NDCP provides additional means to subdivide the list of media through the use of directories. When configured, the Virtual Device Driver can specify a directory to use when searching for or recording media.

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Use Directories: Use Directories controls the Driver’s ability to add a file path name to the Media ID when searching for or recording media.

Enabled: The Virtual Device Driver will prefix the Media ID with the file path specified in the Default Directory edit box.

Disabled: The Virtual Device Driver uses the Media ID only, with no file path name specified. The NDCP Driver will add its own default directory of Root (/) in this case.

Version 1 Implementation NOTE: Directories are not supported in the first release.

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Default Directory: When Use Directories in enabled, the file path specified here will be used when searching for or recording media.

Version 1 Implementation NOTE: Directories are not supported in the first release.

3. When finished click Apply, then click OK.

4. From the Configured Devices window select File> Save Devices. The current configuration is written to the Device Server’s configuration files in the “C:\Server” folder on the Device Server.

Configure Port EDBOs

The Port EBDO is the actual stream of media that will be assigned to the ADC transmission list for playout or recording

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1. To access the properties for the Port EBDO, click on its representation in the Device

Tree.

2. Select the General tab. Configurations in the General tab pertain to the selected Port

EBDO.

Configure the following parameters as required:

• NDCP Device Binding Group Box: The Virtual Device Driver must be associated with an NDCP Port EBDO in order to be used, and the configurations in the NDCP

Device Binding box are where the associations are made. The NDCP Port EBDO must be configured first.

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NDCP Device #: This list contains all of the configured NDCP Device Drivers on this Device Server. Select the name of the NDCP device that this Virtual Device

Driver will control.

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Port: If the NDCP Device that is selected above has any Port EBDOs, they will appear in this list. Select the one that should be represented by the selected Port on the Virtual Device.

NOTE: It is not necessary to associate all of the Virtual Device’s Port EBDOs with an NDCP Device. Additionally, all of the NDCP Device’s Port EBDOs need not be associated with a single Virtual Device. If there are more Port EBDOs on a single NDCP device than the Virtual Device can support, additional Virtual

Devices can be configured to control the remaining Port EBDOs. The same

NDCP Device Port EBDO cannot be shared by two Virtual Device Drivers.

• ID Match Name: The ID Match Name is the identifier that is used by the Virtual

Device when the ADC Transmission List asks it to play media from this stream.

Depending on the configuration of the Events Supported parameters (Section 0), the

Virtual Device may take ownership of an event that contains the ID Match Name in its

ID Field. Values are: String, no spaces, up to 16 characters.

NOTE: The ID Match Name has no effect unless the “Enable Match Name in ID

Field” is enabled.

• Play/Record Mode: The Play/Record capabilities of the Port are defined here. This should be set according to the abilities of the hardware.

Values are:

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Play Only, no Record: The Virtual Device will attempt to take ownership of

Primary Play, Secondary A/V, Secondary Backtimed A/V, and Secondary Data

Events only.

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Record Only, no Playout: The Virtual Device will attempt to take ownership of

Primary Record and Secondary Record Events only.

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Play and Record: The Virtual Device will attempt to take ownership of Primary

Play, Primary Record, Secondary A/V, Secondary Backtimed A/V, Secondary

Data, and Secondary Record Events.

NOTE: Switching modes between Play and Record is handled automatically by the

Virtual Device, but only one type of event (Play or Record) can be cued at a given time. Thus, a Play event cannot be played back-to-back with a Record event, and

vice-versa.

3. Select the Play tab. Configurations on the Play tab affect how the Virtual Device will handle ADC Play type Events that it owns.

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Configure the following parameters as required:

• Enable Segment Play within ID: This configuration affects the Virtual Device’s use of Offset Cueing.

Enabled: When a media file is cued (prepped), an offset is provided in the form of a

Timecode value. This value is extracted from the SOM field of the ADC Event, allowing a single file to be played from any point within itself.

Disabled: No offset is provided when a media file is cued, and by default, the file is cued at the beginning in all cases.

• Update Event Duration from device: This should only be used in the event that there is no automation Database available to get the duration information from.

Durations provided by the device pertain to the entire file, and are generally slightly larger than the intended play time.

Enabled: The Virtual Device Driver will extract the Duration of each instance of media from the device and publish it in the Device Storage.

Disabled: The Virtual Device will not update any durations.

• Alternate Port for Playout: In certain cases, it is necessary to use two streams of a device on a single Transmission List to achieve Mix Effects through a master control switcher.

By configuring an Alternate Port for Playout, the Virtual Device Driver will share ownership of the ADC Events it can play with the Alternate Port, assuring that backto-back Events always originate from different physical sources.

NOTE: Both ports to be used must be assigned to the Transmission List. Of the two

Port EBDOs used, only one of them should have an Alternate Port configured, and it must be the one with the lowest number in the Device Tree. The second port (pointed to by the first) should have No Port configured. The Alternate Port must be a Port

EBDO from the same Virtual Device.

4. Select the Record tab. Configurations on the Record tab affect how the Virtual Device will handle ADC Play type Events that it owns.

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Configure the following parameters as required:

• Enable Back to Back Record: This configuration determines the behavior of the

Virtual Device when two Record Events appear consecutively on the ADC

Transmission List. This parameter should be set based on the capabilities of the device being controlled.

Enabled: The Virtual Device will attempt to record a Record Event immediately upon the completion of the previous Record Event, provided that there is an available head to cue the Event ('ToCue' is not 0).

Disabled: The Virtual Device will withhold cueing and recording a Record Event until the previous Record Event has completed. This requires that there be sufficient time between Record Events for the device to cue.

• Segments Group Box: Configurations in the Segments box apply to events that contain an entry in the Segment field of the ADC Event.

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Record Segments: Record Segments is a qualifier for Record Events that have a Segment Number.

Enabled: The Virtual Device will attempt to take ownership of Record Events that contain an entry in the Segment field of the Event.

Disabled: The Virtual Device will not take ownership of a Segmented Record

Event.

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Modify Ids for events with Segments: Modify Ids is a method for managing segmented media by means of concatenating an ID and a Segment number. The new value (Material ID + Segment Number) becomes the Media ID and will be the file name of the media. This is used when media is to be segmented into multiple files on the device, instead of a single file using offset cueing.

Values are:

0: ID modification is disabled. There is no segment number attached to the material ID. Example: ID = XYZ, Segment Number = 1. The filename is XYZ.

1: The ID is modified by adding a one-character segment number to the Material

ID. Example: ID = XYZ, Segment Number = 2. The filename is XZY2. There is a limit of 10 segments using this method.

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2: The ID is modified by adding a two-character segment number to the Material

ID. Example: ID = XYZ, Segment Number = 3. The filename is XZY03. There is a limit of 100 segments using this method.

• Recording Qualifiers Group Box: Recording Qualifiers are filters that are applied to an ADC event. If the event passes the additional specifications in the Qualifiers, then the Virtual Device will take ownership of the Event.

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Duration less than: Specify a duration in minutes that an Event cannot exceed.

If the event meets or exceeds this duration, the Virtual Device Driver will not take ownership of the Event.

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Duration greater than: Specify a duration in minutes that an Event must meet. If the event does not meet or is less than this duration, the Virtual Device Driver will not take ownership of the Event.

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Record ID’s whose first character is greater than: Specify a character that an

Event’s first character cannot be less than. If the Event’s first character is less than the one specified, the Virtual Device Driver will not take ownership of the

Event.

NOTE: The characters are assigned a value based on their position in the ASCII table. The order, from least to greatest, is: 0...9, A...Z, a…z.

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Record ID’s whose first character is less than: Specify a character that an

Event’s first character cannot be greater than. If the Event’s first character is greater than the one specified, the Virtual Device Driver will not take ownership of the Event.

5. Select the Config tab. The Config tab regulates miscellaneous functionality applicable to this Port.

Configure the following parameters as required:

• Stop Play/Record on Init: This parameter controls the behavior of the Virtual Device

Driver when a connection is first established with the device through the NDCP

Device Driver.

Enabled: When the connection is established between ADC and the device, the

Virtual Device Driver will stop any playing or recording media on this Port, and reset it completely.

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Disabled: When the connection is established between ADC and the device, no action is taken to initialize the device and playout or recording will continue if it was in progress. The user should, however, manually reinitialize the port as soon as possible or the system may not operate properly.

• Send Early Group Box: It is possible to manually adjust the timing of the play and record commands sent to the device, relative to the time reference that is used on

ADC. When adjusted, the Virtual Device Driver will offset the absolute time that the commands are executed by Play Frames or Record Frames. Normally it is not necessary to do this, as both ADC and the device have a stable Timecode reference.

It is useful, however, if there are external delays on the media input or output that delay the media by a known number of frames (such as MPEG noise reduction).

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Play Frames: Play Frames adjusts the absolute time that a Play command is sent to the device with respect to the ADC Timecode reference. Values are: -300 to

300 frames.

Example: Play Frames is set to 5. System Type is NTSC DF. Device Preroll is set to 40 frames. An event is scheduled to play at 14:28:30:00. The Play command will be sent to the device no later than when the ADC Timecode reference indicates 14:28:28:15, and the Timestamp on the command will instruct the device to Play at 14:28:29:25, plus any fixed difference between the

ADC Timecode Reference and the device’s Timecode Reference.

NOTE: While the maximum value may be set to 300 frames (10 seconds NTSC and 12 seconds PAL), be careful not to violate this formula: ListPreroll >

((ExpectedNetworkLatency) + (DevicePreroll) + (SendEarly) + (4 frames))

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Record Frames: Record Frames adjusts the absolute time that a Record command is sent to the device with respect to the ADC Timecode reference.

Values are: -300 to 300 frames.

NOTE: While the maximum value may be set to 300 frames (10 seconds NTSC and 12 seconds PAL), be careful not to violate this formula: ListPreroll >

((ExpectedNetworkLatency) + (DevicePreroll) + (SendEarly) + (4 frames))

6. Re-Init Port button

Functionality of the Re-Init Port Button is similar to the Re-Init Device button, except that only the selected Port EBDO is reset.

CAUTION: The selected play or record stream WILL BE STOPPED when the Re-Init Port

button is used!

7. When finished click Apply, then click OK.

8. From the Configured Devices window select File> Save Devices. The current configuration is written to the Device Server’s configuration files in the “C:\Server” folder on the Device Server.