Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: DCP Disk - File System Hierarchy

This is topic DCP Disk - File System Hierarchy in forum Digital Cinema Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=16;t=002525

Posted by Anurag Chourasia (Member # 9025) on 12-16-2015, 09:46 PM:

I have a folder called MV_TRL-1_F_HI-ES_INT_51_2K_DI_20151202_2D_OV

The folder has the following.

$ ls -ltr MV_TRL-1_F_HI-ES_INT_51_2K_DI_20151202_2D_OV
total 3433802
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 1667 Dec 4 12:19 cpl_cf5b258a-07df-4773-9f77-4c2f9a8d4f44.xml
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 107212214 Dec 4 12:19 pcm_722ad9eb-7560-4610-a796-96dc26f8449a.mxf
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 1650879728 Dec 4 12:20 j2c_003dda09-9bd2-4795-bc84-3486db3020bc.mxf
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 161 Dec 4 12:20 VOLINDEX
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 1917 Dec 4 12:20 ASSETMAP
----------+ 1 Usr01 None 1559 Dec 4 12:25 pkl_d9a2b6f6-ac51-4a9a-acb2-c6caedf35bb3.xml

I need to copy these DCP Files to a Harddisk. I currently have the files on my Windows 7 Server.

I installed ubuntu (virtualbox) on my Windows host and then I formatted a Hard Disk into ext2 inside the Ubuntu guest and set the Inode 128.

Question 1 - I need to copy the DCP files to my Ubuntu mounted Hard Disk. I am using VirtualBox shared folders to copy from Windows Host to Ubuntu Guest and then copying onto the mounted disk in the ubuntu desktop. Is this ok?

Question 2 - What should I copy, the entire folder MV_TRL-1_F_HI-ES_INT_51_2K_DI_20151202_2D_OV so that the folder is on the root hierarchy? Or should the files directly be copied onto the root in the file hierarchy?

Question 3 - I have this content in Flat and Scope format. Shall i copy both folders MV_TRL-1_F_HI-ES_INT_51_2K_DI_20151202_2D_OV and MV_TRL-1_S_HI-ES_INT_51_2K_DI_20151202_2D_OV onto the root of the disk? Or only the files inside both folders onto the root of the disk?

Thanks for the guidance in advance.

Regards,
Anurag

Posted by Ian Freer (Member # 1940) on 12-17-2015, 01:16 AM:

Is this just for yourself or are you distributing to other sites?
My answers below are primarily based on this just being for you and not others...

Question 1; I'm not familiar with virtual box so cannot help... But as you're working in a Windows environment and it appears to us is just trailers, you shouldn't need to use EXT for this, just format USB stick as NTFS, I'm pretty sure almost all servers should read this ok. You are correct that EXT is the 'official' way to format your drive, but it's adding complexity that you shouldn't need to bother with if it's just for your own use

Question 2; copy the folder to the root, not just the files

Question 3; copy both the flat folder and scope folder. It actually shouldn't really matter, the server should see the individual packages and assets even if they're all jumbled together, but it is neat and tidy and makes the USB content more manageable if you keep the DCP's in their own folder. You can then add and remove folders/content any time

Posted by Dave Macaulay (Member # 813) on 12-17-2015, 04:55 AM:

Doing a list of a distribution drive, I see all the individual DCPs with their own folders. I don't know if this is required or just done to simplify distribution - but I'd do it the same way.
Hopefully you know more about Linux filesystems than I do, I tend to create drives that are "owned" by the original host and won't mount on another system.

Posted by Carsten Kurz (Member # 5396) on 12-17-2015, 03:49 PM:

ISDCF hard drive/filesystem recommendations:

http://isdcf.com/papers/ISDCF-Doc3-Disk-Drive-Recs-2015-07-21-Clean.pdf

One DCP per folder is preferred practice.

- Carsten

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 12-18-2015, 02:11 AM:

If the word "package" means a collection of discrete things that are taken as one, a DCP, digital cinema package, is a collection of files that are treated as one. Thus, the MXF, XML files and the other data files that help the projection system find and keep track of things,which are stored in a directory/folder, should be treated as one.

It might help if you put the technical details of what makes up a DCP aside for a second and think of the directory that contains the component files as its own entity, considering the components only as necessary when constructing a DCP package. (Or when debugging, etc.)

When you are transferring DCPs between drives and systems, I think it would be helpful to simplify your thinking. Just transfer the container folders and their contents but temporarily forget that there are many files involved unless it becomes necessary. I believe that, most of the time, it isn't necessary.

If you are putting several DCPs on one volume, place the "main" folders on the top level to be sure that the system can find them.

I know that this all sounds oversimplified but I believe that it is best to keep things simple unless you need to do otherwise.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-19-2015, 05:38 PM:

Copy and paste those six files in an assigned folder, then one can either copy that folder to either optical disc or thumb drive.

Do it all the time with DCP-o-Matic.

Posted by Dave Macaulay (Member # 813) on 12-20-2015, 05:45 AM:

I just had to ftp the SMPTE cpl tests into a server (USB has failed) - they are in one folder and show up as 3 clips (5.1,.7.1, 3D) after ingesting. So it really doesn't matter except to simplify disk housekeeping?

Posted by Carsten Kurz (Member # 5396) on 12-20-2015, 09:21 PM:

PKG or VFs within one DCP are a different thing. They can be together in one directory, but do not have to be.

There is no strict ruling on this, as long as the server recognizes all content as intended. They don't care if you have to go into or exit a folder in order to find the rest.

- Carsten