Avid MediaCentral MediaCentral 2.2 Configuration Guide

MediaCentral

®

Platform Services

Version 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

MCS Version: 2.2

Document Version: 1.1.1

Important Information

This document provides instructions to install and configure Avid MediaCentral Platform

Services (MCS) V2.2 for use with MediaCentral | UX 2.2. For a complete list of qualified

products, see the Avid MediaCentral V2.2 ReadMe.

For the latest information on the MediaCentral Platform Services, see the documentation

available from the MediaCentral Services page of the Avid Knowledge Base. Updates are

occasionally issued after initial release.

http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/readme/Avid-MediaCentral-Version-2-2-x-

Documentation

Important: Search the Avid Knowledge Base MCS 2.2 web page for the most up-to-date

Avid MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide, which contains the latest

information that might have become available after this document was published.

Note: For information on upgrading to MCS 2.2 from an earlier release, see the Avid MCS

2.2 Upgrading Guide, available from the Avid Knowledge Base

MCS 2.2 web page.

Note: For information on configuring Media | Index, see the Avid Media | Index

Configuration Guide, which is currently available internally only.

Revision History

Date Revised

Version

Changes Made

March 26, 2015

1.0

First publication

April 16, 2015 1.1

Added support for HP ProLiant DL360 Gen9 server:

- “Obtaining the Storage Controller Driver ISO for the HP

ProLiant Gen9 Server” on page 52.

- “Preparing the HP ProLiant Gen9 Server Installation USB

Key” on page 55.

- “Changing BIOS Settings and Creating RAIDs on the HP

ProLiant Gen9” on page 62.

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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Date Revised

Version

Changes Made

-

Updated “Installing RHEL and the MCS Software” on page 76

to include Gen9 driver installation.

Corrected PostgreSQL port number.

April 16, 2015 1.1.1

Updated “Setting Up the RAID Level 1 Mirrored System Drives

(Gen9)” on page 66.

Updated “Setting Up the RAID Level 5 Cache Drives (Gen9)” on page

68.

About MCS 2.2

Please see the MediaCentral Platform 2.2 ReadMe and any ReadMe documents pertaining to

the solution(s) by which MCS is used.

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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Contents

Important Information ....................................................................................................................... 1

Revision History .................................................................................................................................. 1

P

ART I: INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW ........................................................................................................... 11

Welcome .................................................................................................................................................. 12

About this Guide ...................................................................................................................................... 13

Licensing ................................................................................................................................................... 13

Front End License Configuration .......................................................................................................... 13

Delivery of Licenses on Back-End Systems ........................................................................................... 14

Intended Audiences and Prerequisites .................................................................................................... 14

Basic Installation Skills .......................................................................................................................... 14

Clustering Skills ..................................................................................................................................... 15

Interplay | MAM Skills .......................................................................................................................... 15

Additional Documentation ....................................................................................................................... 15

Installing the MediaCentral | UX iPhone, iPad or Android Mobile Applications ................................. 15

RHEL Vulnerabilities and Patches ......................................................................................................... 16

Avid Knowledge Base ........................................................................................................................... 16

MCS Connectivity ..................................................................................................................................... 17

MediaCentral | UX Connectivity .......................................................................................................... 17

Interplay | MAM Connectivity ............................................................................................................. 17

Multi-Zone ............................................................................................................................................... 18

Media | Index ........................................................................................................................................... 18

Deployment Options ................................................................................................................................ 19

MediaCentral – iNEWS Only ................................................................................................................. 20

MediaCentral – Interplay | Production Only ........................................................................................ 21

MediaCentral – iNEWS and Interplay | Production ............................................................................. 22

Media Composer | Cloud Only ............................................................................................................. 23

Both MediaCentral and Media Composer | Cloud (Shared MCS) ........................................................ 24

Interplay | MAM................................................................................................................................... 25

Port Bonding in Interplay | MAM ..................................................................................................... 26

Port Requirements ................................................................................................................................... 26

DNS Requirements ................................................................................................................................... 27

Caching in MCS ......................................................................................................................................... 28

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The Dedicated Caching Volume ........................................................................................................... 29

Caching for Interplay | MAM ............................................................................................................... 30

Caching for iOS Devices in MediaCentral ............................................................................................. 30

Caching for MediaCentral | Cloud ........................................................................................................ 30

Working with Linux .................................................................................................................................. 30

Installing Linux ...................................................................................................................................... 31

Linux Concepts ..................................................................................................................................... 31

Key Linux Directories ............................................................................................................................ 31

Linux Command Line ............................................................................................................................ 32

Linux Text Editor (vi) ............................................................................................................................. 34

Linux Usage Tips ................................................................................................................................... 36

Volumes in Linux .................................................................................................................................. 37

Clock Synchronization in Linux ............................................................................................................. 37

Time Zones in RHEL .............................................................................................................................. 37

RAIDs in MCS ............................................................................................................................................ 38

Introduction to Clustering ........................................................................................................................ 39

Single Server Deployment .................................................................................................................... 39

Cluster Deployment .............................................................................................................................. 40

Multicast vs Unicast ............................................................................................................................. 40

Working with Gluster ........................................................................................................................... 41

P

ART II: INSTALLING & CONFIGURING ........................................................................................................... 42

Installation Workflow............................................................................................................................... 43

Before You Begin ...................................................................................................................................... 46

Security Updates .................................................................................................................................. 46

Make Sure the Host Solutions Are Installed and Running ................................................................... 46

Make Sure You Have the Following Items ............................................................................................ 46

Make Sure You Can Answer the Following Questions ......................................................................... 47

Make Sure You Have All the Information You Need ............................................................................ 49

Make Sure You Change the Default Passwords ................................................................................... 49

Obtaining the Software ............................................................................................................................ 50

Obtaining the MCS Installation Package .............................................................................................. 50

Obtaining Red Hat Enterprise Linux ..................................................................................................... 52

Obtaining the Storage Controller Driver ISO for the HP ProLiant Gen9 Server ................................... 52

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Obtaining Gluster ................................................................................................................................. 53

Obtaining Additional Packages ............................................................................................................. 53

Preparing the MCS Installation USB Key .................................................................................................. 54

Preparing the HP ProLiant Gen9 Server Installation USB Key .............................................................. 55

Preparing the HP ProLiant Gen8 (or Other ) Server Installation USB Key ............................................ 58

Copying Gluster to the USB Key ........................................................................................................... 59

Installing the Network Interface Cards .................................................................................................... 60

Connecting to ISIS Proxy Storage ......................................................................................................... 61

Connecting to non-ISIS Proxy Storage .................................................................................................. 62

Changing BIOS Settings and Creating RAIDs on the HP ProLiant Gen9 ................................................... 62

Setting the System Clock and Disabling HP Power Saving Mode (Gen9) ............................................. 62

Setting Up the RAID Level 1 Mirrored System Drives (Gen9) .............................................................. 66

Setting Up the RAID Level 5 Cache Drives (Gen9) ................................................................................ 68

Changing BIOS Settings and Creating RAIDs on the HP ProLiant Gen8 ................................................... 70

Setting the System Clock and Disabling HP Power Saving Mode (Gen8) ............................................. 70

Setting Up the RAID Level 1 Mirrored System Drives (Gen8) .............................................................. 72

Setting Up the RAID Level 5 Cache Drives (Gen8) ................................................................................ 74

Installing RHEL and the MCS Software ..................................................................................................... 76

Booting RHEL for the First Time ............................................................................................................... 80

Booting from the System Drive ............................................................................................................ 81

Security Updates .................................................................................................................................. 82

Changing the root Password ................................................................................................................ 82

Verifying the Date and Time ................................................................................................................. 82

Setting the Time Zone .......................................................................................................................... 83

Editing the Network Connections ............................................................................................................ 84

Identifying NIC Interfaces by Sight ....................................................................................................... 85

Verifying the NIC Interface Name ........................................................................................................ 85

Swapping NIC Interface Names ............................................................................................................ 87

Removing the MAC Address Hardware References ............................................................................. 88

Ensuring the NIC Interface Comes Up at System Startup .................................................................... 89

Configuring the Hostname and Static Network Route ......................................................................... 90

Verifying the hosts file Contents .......................................................................................................... 92

Verifying Network and DNS Connectivity ............................................................................................. 94

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Synching the System Clock ....................................................................................................................... 94

Creating the File Cache on the RAID ........................................................................................................ 96

Partitioning the RAID ............................................................................................................................ 96

Creating the Logical Volume, Filesystem and Mounting the Cache ..................................................... 97

Installing the MediaCentral Distribution Service ................................................................................... 101

Determining Where to Install MCDS .................................................................................................. 101

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................ 102

Configuring MCS for Interplay | MAM ................................................................................................... 103

Configuring MCS for MediaCentral and/or Media Composer | Cloud .................................................. 105

Configuring Workflow ........................................................................................................................ 105

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................ 106

Configuring the MediaCentral UI ....................................................................................................... 108

Logging into MediaCentral ................................................................................................................. 109

Setting the System ID and Changing the Administrator Password .................................................... 113

Configuring iNEWS Settings ................................................................................................................ 114

Configuring Interplay | Production Settings ...................................................................................... 115

Configuring MCPS for Interplay | Production .................................................................................... 116

Configuring the MCPS Player.............................................................................................................. 118

Configuring the MCPS Player for Media Composer | Cloud .............................................................. 119

Configuring the ISIS Connection(s) ..................................................................................................... 119

Mounting the ISIS System(s) .............................................................................................................. 121

Verifying the ISIS Mount..................................................................................................................... 122

Verifying Video Playback .................................................................................................................... 123

Configuring Wi-Fi Only Encoding for Facility-Based iOS Devices ....................................................... 123

P

ART III: CLUSTERING ................................................................................................................................ 125

Setting up the Server Cluster ................................................................................................................. 126

Clustering Workflow .............................................................................................................................. 129

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................ 130

Configuring the Hosts File and Name Services File ................................................................................ 130

Adding Host Names and IP Addresses to the hosts file ...................................................................... 131

Optimizing the Lookup Service Order: Editing the Name Service Switch File .................................... 132

Setting Up DRBD .................................................................................................................................... 133

Starting the Cluster Services .................................................................................................................. 136

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Joining the Cluster .................................................................................................................................. 139

Replicating the Cluster File Caches using Gluster .................................................................................. 140

Gluster Workflow ............................................................................................................................... 140

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................ 142

Mounting the USB Key ....................................................................................................................... 143

Installing Gluster ................................................................................................................................ 144

Unmounting and Removing the USB Key ........................................................................................... 145

Creating the Trusted Storage Pool ..................................................................................................... 145

Configuring the GlusterFS Volumes ................................................................................................... 147

Setting Gluster Volume Ownership .................................................................................................... 149

Making the RHEL Cache Directories ................................................................................................... 150

Changing Ownership and Mounting the GlusterFS Volumes in Linux................................................ 152

Testing the Cache ............................................................................................................................... 153

Ensuring Gluster is On at Boot ........................................................................................................... 154

Reconfiguring the MCPS Player for MediaCentral in a Cluster .............................................................. 154

P

ART IV: INSTALLING THE MAM CONNECTOR ............................................................................................. 156

Overview ................................................................................................................................................ 157

MAM Connector Installation Workflow ................................................................................................. 157

Before You Begin .................................................................................................................................... 158

Preparing the MAM Connector Installation USB Key ............................................................................ 158

Bringing the Cluster Offline .................................................................................................................... 159

Installing the MAM Connector ............................................................................................................... 160

Uninstalling the MAM Connector .......................................................................................................... 161

P

ART V: MULTI-ZONE CONFIGURATION ...................................................................................................... 163

Overview ................................................................................................................................................ 164

Making Changes to a Multi-Zone Configuration ................................................................................ 164

Multi-Zone Workflow ............................................................................................................................. 165

Creating and Installing the RSA Keys ..................................................................................................... 165

Creating the Master Zone and Initiating Multi-Zone Environment ....................................................... 167

Adding Slave Zone(s) to the Multi-Zone Environment .......................................................................... 169

Validating Multi-Zone Functionality ...................................................................................................... 171

Troubleshooting the Multi-Zone Setup ................................................................................................. 172

Bus Error ......................................................................................................................................... 172

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Failed to Resolve Zone URL ............................................................................................................ 173

Errors in Zone Configuration .......................................................................................................... 173

Errors During Setup ........................................................................................................................ 174

Dismantling a Multi-Zone Environment ................................................................................................. 174

P

ART V: POST-INSTALLATION ..................................................................................................................... 177

Determining the Installed MCS Version ................................................................................................. 178

Verifying ACS Bus Functionality ............................................................................................................. 178

Verifying Cache Directory Permissions .................................................................................................. 179

Validating the FQDN for External Access ............................................................................................... 180

Securing the System ............................................................................................................................... 181

Enabling and Securing the Player Demonstration Web Page ................................................................ 181

Backing up the MCS System Settings and the MCS Database ............................................................... 182

Monitoring Services and Resources ....................................................................................................... 185

Identifying the Master, Slave and Load-Balancing Nodes ..................................................................... 186

Tables of Services, Resources and Utilities ............................................................................................ 187

Single Node Deployment .................................................................................................................... 187

Cluster — All Nodes ............................................................................................................................ 189

Cluster — Master Node Only ............................................................................................................. 192

Cluster — Pacemaker Resources ........................................................................................................ 193

Monitoring the AAF Generator Service ................................................................................................. 194

Monitoring MCS High-Availability .......................................................................................................... 195

Monitoring Load Balancing .................................................................................................................... 197

Observing Failover in the Cluster ........................................................................................................... 198

Testing the Cluster Email Service ........................................................................................................... 201

Changing the Cluster Administrator Email Address ............................................................................... 202

Reconfiguring MediaCentral Settings in a Cluster ................................................................................. 203

Taking a Cluster Node Off-Line Temporarily .......................................................................................... 203

Permanently Removing a Node from a Cluster ..................................................................................... 203

Adding a New Node to a Cluster ............................................................................................................ 204

Retrieving MCS Logs ............................................................................................................................... 206

Log Cycling ............................................................................................................................................. 207

Using SNMP Monitoring on the MCPS Server........................................................................................ 207

Migrating the ICP Database from Windows to Linux ......................................................................... 208

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Backing up and Restoring the MCS Database ........................................................................................ 208

Reconfiguring the ISIS Connection(s) ..................................................................................................... 209

Appendix A: Installing MCS on Non-HP Hardware ................................................................................. 211

Non-HP Installation Notes .................................................................................................................. 211

Appendix B: Installing MCS on Dell Hardware ....................................................................................... 213

Setting Performance Profile ................................................................................................................... 213

Verifying RAIDs ....................................................................................................................................... 213

Deleting the RAIDs ................................................................................................................................. 213

Creating the RAIDs ................................................................................................................................. 213

Deleting the System Disk Partition Table on Preconfigured Systems .................................................... 214

Editing the Kickstart File ........................................................................................................................ 219

Booting from the USB Key...................................................................................................................... 219

Additional Notes .................................................................................................................................... 221

Appendix B: Configuring Port Bonding for Interplay | MAM (Optional) ............................................... 221

Verifying the Ethernet Ports ............................................................................................................... 222

Configuring the Port Bonding ............................................................................................................. 222

Appendix C: Migrating the UMS Database with the User Management Utilities Tool .......................... 225

Appendix D: Installing the Chrome Extension for MediaCentral MOS Plug-Ins .................................... 228

Setting Up Your Browser .................................................................................................................... 228

Enabling MOS ..................................................................................................................................... 228

Installing Plug-Ins ............................................................................................................................... 228

Uninstalling the Chrome Extension .................................................................................................... 229

Appendix E: Enabling MediaCentral MOS Plug-Ins in IE9 ...................................................................... 229

Sample ActiveX Object in the Preferences File .................................................................................. 230

Appendix F: Unicast Support in Clustering ............................................................................................ 231

Appendix G: Installing the Interplay | Production License for MediaCentral........................................ 234

Appendix H: Configuring iNEWS for Integration with MediaCentral ..................................................... 235

Verifying MediaCentral Licenses on iNEWS ....................................................................................... 235

Editing SYSTEM.CLIENT.VERSIONS ..................................................................................................... 236

Editing SYSTEM.CLIENT.WINDOWS .................................................................................................... 237

Appendix I: Installing and Configuring the Avid MediaCentral | UX Mobile Application for iPad or iPhone

............................................................................................................................................................... 239

Before You Begin ................................................................................................................................ 239

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iNEWS Configuration for iPad and iPhone Integration ...................................................................... 239

Editing SYSTEM.CLIENT.VERSIONS ..................................................................................................... 240

Adding iPad and iPhone Devices to the iNEWS Configuration File .................................................... 241

Installing Avid Central on the iPad or iPhone ..................................................................................... 243

Appendix J: Installation Pre-Flight Checklist .......................................................................................... 244

System ID and Default Password Information ................................................................................... 244

Contact Information ........................................................................................................................... 244

Hardware ............................................................................................................................................ 245

Software ............................................................................................................................................. 245

Network Settings ................................................................................................................................ 246

NTP Time Server ................................................................................................................................. 246

MCS Server Information ..................................................................................................................... 246

Cluster Information ............................................................................................................................ 247

iNEWS Information ............................................................................................................................. 248

MediaCentral and Media Composer | Cloud Information ................................................................. 248

Interplay | Production Information.................................................................................................... 249

ISIS Information .................................................................................................................................. 250

Interplay | MAM Information ............................................................................................................ 251

Copyright and Disclaimer ....................................................................................................................... 252

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PART I: INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW

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Welcome

Welcome to the MCS Installation and Configuration Guide. This document will guide you

through the installation and set up of the MediaCentral Services (MCS) software components. It

provides step by step instructions to visually verify the hardware setup, install Linux and the

MCS software, and configure the software systems that will make use of MCS. It also provides

detailed steps for optional activities, for example: setting up a cluster of MCS servers, or

configuring for an iPad-only deployment.

Note: Beginning with version 2.0, the term “MediaCentral Services” replaces “Interplay

Central Services.” In addition, the term “MediaCentral Playback Services” replaces

“Interplay Central Playback Services.”

MCS is a set of software services running under the Linux operating system. MCS serves layouts

for applications, provides user authentication, manages system configuration settings, and

provides proxy-based playback of video assets over the network to web-based and mobile

clients.

MCS supports several different Avid Integrated Media Enterprise (IME) solutions, including

MediaCentral | UX, and Media Composer | Cloud, and Interplay | MAM. MCS installs on its own

set of servers, distinct from the IME solution it is supporting. Multiple MCS servers can be

clustered together to obtain one or more of high-availability, load balancing and scalability.

Note: Refer to the “MediaCentral Platform Services Hardware Guide” for detailed

information on hardware specifications and deployment options. The guide is available

on the Avid Knowledge Base

MCS 2.2 web page.

The installation and configuration steps vary depending on the deployment model, target

hardware, and optional steps. For example, installations on qualified HP servers can use an

express process involving a USB key and the Avid-supplied kickstart (ks.cfg) file. Kickstart files

are commonly used in Linux installs to automatically answer questions for hardware known in

advance. On non-HP servers you must install Red Hat Enterprise Linux manually.

Note: All decisions pertaining to hardware, deployment model, optional activities (such

as setting up a cluster), network connections (GigE vs 10GigE), must be made before

beginning the installation. If these decisions have not been taken, or, to verify a non-HP

server, please consult an Avid representative.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux — sometimes just called Red Hat, but referred to in this guide as RHEL

— is a commercially supported, open source version of the popular Linux operating system. No

matter what the deployment model and target hardware, the installation of RHEL is mandatory.

Note: MCS requires RHEL 6.5. Do not install any OS updates or patches if they are not

approved by Avid. Do not upgrade. Do not run the Linux yum update command. For more

information, see “

RHEL Vulnerabilities and Patches” on page 16.

For more information on Red Hat see “Working with Linux” on page 30. RHEL licensing and

support options are covered in the “MediaCentral Platform Services Hardware Guide”,

available on the

Avid Knowledge Base MCS 2.2 web page.

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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Note: Clock setting and synchronization play an important role in some MCS

deployments. For a discussion of the issues associated with clock synchronization and

using a time server to set the system clock, see “Clock Synchronization in Linux

” on page

37.

About this Guide

This guide provides all the instructions you need to set up MCS 2.2. The installation and

configuration is complex and can be difficult, particularly if you are unfamiliar with Linux.

The following tips will ensure a smooth installation:

• Read the whole guide, thoroughly and all the way through, before beginning the

installation process.

• Gather all the information required to perform the install before you start. Waiting until

the information is called for by an installation step will result in considerable delays.

• For a list of required information, see “Appendix J: Installation Pre-Flight Checklist

” on

page 244.

• Complete all the relevant sections in the pre-flight checklist for your deployment.

Licensing

Licenses must be installed on an iNEWS server, an Interplay | Production server, or both. No

licenses are installed on the MediaCentral Services server.

For Interplay | Production, the license types are J (Interplay | Production Base license) and G

(Advance license).

• Base license: Can connect to only one system type: iNEWS or Interplay | Production.

Access is limited to specific panes.

• Advance license: Can connect to both system types: iNEWS and Interplay | Production,

with access to all panes.

Note: Please refer to the “MediaCentral Administration Guide” for licensing details, such

as the panes and features made available by each license type. The guide is available

with other MediaCentral v2.2 documentation on the Avid Knowledge Base:

http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/readme/Avid-MediaCentral-Version-2-1-x-

x-Documentation

Front End License Configuration

You specify the type of license for each MediaCentral role in the Details tab of the Users layout.

For more information, see "MediaCentral Client Licensing" in the Avid MediaCentral

Administration Guide.

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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Delivery of Licenses on Back-End Systems

An iNEWS client license or an MediaCentral mobile license for a specified number of clients is

sent to the customer through email along with specific installation instructions. However, to

ensure proper licensed integration between MediaCentral and iNEWS, additional modification

to system files in the iNEWS database is also required.

For more information see “Appendix H: Configuring iNEWS for Integration with MediaCentral

”

on page 235.

An Interplay | Production license for a specified number of clients is supplied to the customer on

a USB flash drive as a file with the extension nxn.

For more information, see “

Appendix G: Installing the Interplay | Production License for

MediaCentral” on page 234.

Intended Audiences and Prerequisites

This guide is aimed at the person responsible for performing a fresh install of MCS, or upgrading

or maintaining an existing MCS installation. It can also be used by someone creating a cluster of

MCS nodes out of a non-clustered setup. In particular, the following audiences have been

identified:

• Avid Professional Services: Avid personnel whose responsibilities include installing and

upgrading the MCS system, at a customer’ facility.

• Avid Channel Partners and Resellers: Selected organizations qualified by Avid to educate,

market, sell, install, integrate and provide support for the Avid product line, including MCS.

• In-House Installers: Clients with a sophisticated in-house IT department that has expertise

in systems integration and Linux (including networking, port-bonding, etc.). This kind of

person might be called on to add a new server to an already established cluster of MCS

servers, for example.

Basic Installation Skills

The following skills are needed to perform the basic installation:

• Windows: Format a USB key, unzip files, etc.

• Server: Access to the physical server, booting/rebooting, interrupting startup screens to

enter BIOS and other utilities, navigating and altering BIOS, setting up RAIDs.

• Network Interface Cards (NICs): Identify a NIC, knowledge of which NIC interface is

being used.

• Linux (install): Previous experience installing Linux is preferred but not essential,

knowledge of manually installing RPM files will be helpful.

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• Linux (general): Work with Linux directories (cd, mkdir, ls), create volumes,

mount/unmount directories, volumes and devices (e.g. USB key), verify the status of a

Linux service.

• Linux (file editing): Use the Linux text editor (vi) to open/create files, add/delete text,

save/close files, etc.

• Networking: An understanding of network topologies and Ethernet protocols (TCP/IP),

using ping command, verify/change a NIC card Ethernet interface (i.e. eth0).

• System Clocks: Setting the system clock in BIOS and in Linux. For a discussion of system

clock options, see “Clock Synchronization” on page 37

.

Clustering Skills

The following skills are desirable for setting up a cluster of MCS nodes:

• Gluster: Familiarity with Gluster, as it is used to create a shared pool of storage,

including starting/stopping Gluster services, creating shared storage pools, creating

GlusterFS volumes, etc.

• Networking: A basic understanding of unicast or multicast and IP networking. An

advanced understanding of networking in Linux would be helpful, but is not essential,

since all instructions are provided.

Interplay | MAM Skills

The following skills are desirable or setting up MCS for Interplay | MAM (port bonding optional):

• Port Bonding (general): Knowledge of theory and practice of port bonding (also called

link aggregation).

• Port Bonding (Linux): Understanding contents and purpose of Linux network-scripts

directory, editing interface configuration (ifcfg-ethN) files, restarting network services.

Note: Port bonding is an option that is exclusive to Interplay | MAM installations. Do not

perform port bonding when performing any other kind of install.

• Interplay | MAM configuration: Ability to work as administrator in Interplay | MAM.

Additional Documentation

This section points to sources of additional documentation the might be required to complete

the installation.

Installing the MediaCentral | UX iPhone, iPad or Android Mobile

Applications

The Avid MediaCentral | UX mobile application is a native user interface designed to run on the

Apple iPad, Apple iPhone, or supported Android device. The mobile apps enable direct, secure

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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access to your station’s iNEWS system. The iPad and iPhone apps additionally provide access to

your Interplay | Production databases.

For iOS installation information, see “

Appendix I: Installing and Configuring the Avid

MediaCentral | UX Mobile Application for iPad or iPhone” on page 239.

For Android installation information, see the “MediaCentral | UX User’s Guide”, or the Android

app help. The Android app can be downloaded here:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.avid.avidcentral

.

RHEL Vulnerabilities and Patches

Once you have installed RHEL, please apply any RHEL patches. For a list of approved patches, see

the “Avid MediaCentral Platform v2.2 ReadMe”.

Avid Knowledge Base

The Avid KB is a good resource for up-to-date information and additional documentation,

including instructions on installing SSL certificates, applying approved RHEL patches, etc. To

search for documentation related to MCS 2.0 use the search terms “mediacentral 2.0

documentation” at the following link:

http://www.avid.com/US/search?q=&site=kbase&filter=0&subfilters

For instructions on installing SSL certificates see the following article:

http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/en_US/how_to/SSL-Certificates-for-server-to-browser-

connections

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

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MCS Connectivity

Before examining specific deployment options it can be helpful to have an understanding of

where MCS sits in terms of connectivity to other Avid components.

MediaCentral | UX Connectivity

Interplay | MAM Connectivity

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Multi-Zone

By default, MCS operates within a single environment such as a particular facility, or department

within a facility. A single facility may in fact house numerous MCS systems, each of which, by

default, operates independently. In a multi-zone configuration, two or more single-zone systems

are joined together. These can even be separated geographically — for example, one server or

cluster could be located in Toronto and another in Munich.

Once joined together as multi-zone environment, user information and media assets are

sharable between the different zones. For example, a user in one zone can find media assets in

remote zones, and transfer them to their local zone for use in their local work. In addition,

multi-zone features centralized user management across all zones.

Multi-zone is configured once you install and set up the independent zones.

For more information, including instructions for configuring a multi-zone environment, see

“P

ART V: MULTI-ZONE CONFIGURATION” on page 163.

Media | Index

MediaCentral UX provides two methods of searching your asset databases. First, federated

search allows you to query single or multiple databases in your local zone to find media

available to your local MediaCentral UX configuration. Second, Media Index allows you to search

using the central index, which comprises both storage and a query engine.

The central index receives its data from the original data sources — generally, the databases of

multiple asset management systems, including Interplay Production, MAM and iNEWS — and

then pushes the data to the service that does the indexing.

Media | Index is installed with MCS by default, but the Media Index services are not started. You

configure Media Index after you have installed and set up the MCS system.

You can configure Media Index in both a single- and a multi-zone configuration. If you use MCS

in a multi-zone environment, you must first configure the multi-zone components.

The following key services are needed for delivering media and assets between Interplay

Production workgroups or MediaCentral zones:

• Elasticsearch

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• Interplay Media Services Automation

• Interplay Consolidate

• Interplay Delivery

• Production Engine Bus Connector (PEBCo)

For more information, see the Avid Media | Index Configuration Guide.

Deployment Options

MCS is a collection of software services designed to support a number of Avid enterprise

solutions and deployment options. Since each deployment scenario has different hardware and

software configuration requirements (and playback characteristics), it will be helpful to have a

high-level overview of the deployment of interest before proceeding.

As noted, the installation follows one of these basic deployment models:

• MCS for MediaCentral

o iNEWS only

o Interplay | Production only

o iNEWS and Interplay | Production

• MCS for Media Composer | Cloud

• MCS for MediaCentral and Media Composer | Cloud (Shared MCS)

• MCS for Interplay | MAM

This section provides an overview of each of these deployments.

MCS 2.2 Installation and Configuration Guide

20

MediaCentral – iNEWS Only

One of the most straightforward deployments is MCS for MediaCentral in an iNEWS-only

environment; that is, with connections to iNEWS but no connection to Interplay | Production. In

this deployment MCS provides the ability to browse and edit iNEWS content (queues, stories)

from a remote web client. The ability to browse, play and edit associated video requires

Interplay | Production and is not provided by the iNEWS-only deployment.

The iNEWS-only deployment typically requires a RAID 1 (mirrored RAID) for the Linux operating

system. Since MCS is not providing playback of any video assets, there is no need for caching, so

the media cache volume referred to in this guide is not required. Typically, a single MCS server is

sufficient. Two MCS servers configured as a cluster provide high-availability.

Note: The iNEWS-only deployment can be

on smaller, less expensive server hardware.

Refer to the “MediaCentral Platform Services Hardware Guide” for detailed information

on hardware specifications and deployment options. The guide is available on the

Avid

Knowledge Base MCS 2.2 web page.

Deployment Summary:

• Browse and edit iNEWS content

• RAID 1 required

• Media cache volume not required

• Clustering yields high-availability

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Avid MediaCentral MediaCentral 2.2 Configuration Guide

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