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This topic comprises 3 pages: 1 2 3
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Author
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Topic: current preferred server (6/2015)
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Brad Miller
Administrator
Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 06-12-2015 11:20 PM
GDC server...non-redundant OS and 3 drive software raid via standard 3.5" drives.
GDC IMS thing...I believe this is an actual hardware raid, but again only 3 drives and they are "laptop" drives, so that means even more expensive to replace.
Doremi DCP2K4/ShowVault...you can put 4 normal 3.5" drives in this model, but it's still a software raid. The OS is held on an SSD chip, but those chips have failed.
Doremi DCP2000...3 drive software raid. OS via SSD chip as above.
Doremi IMS 1000...3 drive hardware raid, but they chose the wrong raid controller and basically every one fails. "Laptop" drives too.
Doremi IMS 2000...back to the 3 drive software raid nonsense with "laptop" drives.
USL IMS thing..."laptop" drives. The good news is that there are 4, but the bad news is they are solid state. I've major concerns for the use of a solid state raid array. I don't recall if it is software raid or a true hardware raid.
Christie IMS...external NAS. Continual failures.
Sony...I'm not even going to go here.
Where does that leave us?
3 drive raid = dealbreaker
Software raid = not making me happy
Laptop size 2.5" drives = no thanks
I would hesitate to say "preferred" server, as that seems to imply ideal. So let's go with "least sucky" and say the DCP2K4/ShowVault.
Second option, although I haven't had a chance to test it yet, would be USL with non-SSD drives loaded.
Third option forces us to a 3 drive raid since that's all that is left, so the GDC IMS thing is the least painful of those options.
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Carsten Kurz
Film God
Posts: 4340
From: Cologne, NRW, Germany
Registered: Aug 2009
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posted 06-13-2015 06:59 AM
quote: Brad Miller
Sony...I'm not even going to go here.
Then I'll do:
6 drives hardware Raid6 with dual drive failure redundancy, one additional spare drive with automatic rebuild function prefitted in every server. That is, threefold failure redundancy. System SSD. UPS standard item for every server. All this already in their entry level systems.
Ah no, all this NOT if you order a Sony with a Doremi ShowVault and IMB-SA...
BTW - adding a fourth drive to a doremi only increases capacity, it doesn't offer more redundancy. Plus it slows down writing/ingest considerably.
Still, if I'd buy a 'real' server (not IMS), a ShowVault +IMB is the right thing to get.
That said - we need an IMB for a NEC 900C. What do I do? The IMS1000 seems to be out of the question now, and we can't wait for an IMS2000. GDC is not actually sold/supported here. I'm open towards a USL, especially as this system will be transported, and the SSDs are beneficial there (don't care about capacity or long-term stability, this will not be a daily operation). But the USL server is also not sold over here, and I hear it still has HDMI issues.
@Marco: It is obvious that Doremi/Dolby goes the WebGUI way for their discrete server systems as well. That means, on their IMS it is only WebGUI, on the classic server it will be the classic GUI for the old buffs, and the IMS-type WebGUI for everyone who doesn't hate it. Which is not a bad choice, to have both options.
The basic concept of the WebGUI is good, I think, placing all control functions in a more customizable front-end, instead of having it in OS dependent specific apps. It offers more options for future development and ergonomic improvement.
As a matter of fact, I don't choke on the IMS GUI. Maybe Dolby will streamline the Doremi WebGUI a little bit more towards their liking - the IMS2000 could be the first to show this. And then the WebGUI for the classic Doremi would follow. At least there is hope.
- Carsten
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Steve Guttag
We forgot the crackers Gromit!!!
Posts: 12814
From: Annapolis, MD
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 06-13-2015 09:48 AM
We all have our experiences, likes and dislikes.
For me...the Dolby DSS line represents the most reliable servers in the industry. The ONLY servers I've had to replace to get shows back on the screen was one where the power supply make the guts look like a road flare went off inside (Supermicro power supply). The other was an old DSP100 that locked up on boot up (has since been repaired). That is two servers over however many hundred we have in the field and one of them was over 5-years old.
Have there been show interruptions? Yes, the software has not been perfect but lost shows, none in our world other than the aforementioned ones.
Dolby's GUI again is simply the best. It is intuitive. I've trained people that don't know how to operate computers on it and they pick it up fast (seriously...one guy, 74, did not have the skills of "click" or "double-click." He runs his theatre very old school...right down to paper tickets off of the roll. In fact, there are no printers of any type I've seen in the theatre...not even a fax machine.
Can you teach someone the other UIs? Absolutely...but never as fast and as consistent as Dolby.
I think the thing I hate most about the DSS server is the 6:30 boot up time (faster on the DSS220). Since I use automations, the lack of macro capability on it is of no consequence to me and it does have real relays so you can control things like masking and lights out of the box.
But if you need to bank on the server running that night...nothing beats a Dolby DSS server, particularly the DSS200 though the DSS220 starting in System 4.6 has been reliable too.
Need a cheap TMS...well if you have three screens or less (and most have tested up to four without an issue) Dolby does that out of the box for no extra $$$. There is no learning a different system.
Another big plus on the Dolby DSS line...you can kill the power to them without corruption unlike GDC and Doremi.
I also like the Jupiter Client but there are times it is very advantageous to work on a system from a support standpoint without having to share the UI with the end-user.
The USL GUI seems to mimic a lot of the Dolby GUI so it is one that we're looking at. But I have no hard data on its reliability or shortcomings.
GDC's GUI is a mixed bag. I think their SMS screen is just fine and I like the whole touchpanel aspect of it. I also like that via VNC you can remotely control it and set up shows (even for a manager this can be handy rather than handy). Having to go through the "Control Panel" screen to get to the Content/Ingest stuff seems like an unnecessary step.
I have been successful training non-computer literate people on the GDC GUI though it took about four times as long to be proficient as with the Dolby GUI. But like most things, once you get used to them, you get proficient/fast with it.
I don't like that you can't get to the configuration pages once the show starts. It is an unnecessary hindrance for at least some of the things. If that stuff was moved over to the Admin screen, then it would still be password protected but also available. Those things that absolutely can't be changed once a show starts, one could leave there. In fact, the swap the config button and the content button in the control panel and you'd have something that makes more sense to me. Then, the user has everything they need right there on the SMS screen where they live.
This business of having to shut down the server before the projector (IMB) is silly. Yes, I've automated it so that the automation shuts things down but it is not intuitive to the end user. To them, the IMB is part of the projector. Since there are IMBs out there that have figured out how to survive and instant power off (e.g. the CAT745), it is time to step up your game. Make your system robust .
Failure rates on our GDC systems do not mimic Mark's accounts. The HFR IMB has had a rather large failure rate in our world and it is essentially the SX-3000 but with a conventional OS in a conventional server chassis. We don't have many SX3000s out there but they have not been problem free. I do not want to give the impression that they are dropping like flies but in comparison to Dolby, the hardware has been nowhere near as reliable. Likewise for their earlier HDSDI based systems...they have been mostly reliable and as Mark said, they kept their UI throughout their models and I commend them on that. If you know GDC, you know ALL GDC models.
I don't like that GDC's logs are encrypted such that only they can read them. I can only imagine that when they pull logs they are getting some sort of sensitive data in there that needs a level of security to them. Christie series 1 projectors did that too. However, if you have the right access levels and know where they are stored, you CAN get to the individual log files.
Doremi I have the least experience with but I can say without hesitation, the UI of the IMS1000 is an abomination. Seriously? A black background with warning messages with red lettering? Did someone flunk GUI school on that one? And your system, based on a web GUI requires a shutdown before turning off the projector? Seriously? So is it reasonable that there will be a web interface at each projector or is the manager just carrying around their phone on the booth network? Or does one shut all of the servers down from a central location and then shut the projectors off?
What Doremi has always been good at is being first and nimble with the changes in the industry. They were the first on the IMB, first on the IMS...got problems with captions, no problem, WE'LL generate them as burned in right here on the server! Want to display them but the show didn't have the font needed in the package? No problem, we got one of those too! Doremi has a reputation of being able to play the "difficult" CPLs.
I wonder how this will change under Dolby. A big problem of Dolby and the DSS line is the lack of nimbleness. It can take months to years to getting feature implemented. When I ran into the subtitle font thing, I was quoted DCI rules rather than "yeah, we can come up with a workaround for that."
Doremi does still have the HDSDI based servers for those that are in the 2K world and want reliability. I dislike the PICe cable thing on their IMB solution...big, stiff and limits you to under 15-feet. I prefer the Dolby or GDC Ethernet based solution.
Christie and Barco both have IMB/IMS type solutions but if you go that way, you are pretty much committed to their respective projectors...which can pose problems, from a uniformity standpoint. Both are new guys to the server world and both have had some serious growing pains. The Barco Alchemy, when fully operational, will bring 4K alternative content to the table (at faster than 30Hz). For us, this could be a big feature since this has come up several times in several locations. But again, that requires a Barco projector. What if the existing projector is a Christie or NEC?...they have to throw out a projector to put in a server? Seems silly to me. And Christie's IMB...100% failure rate in our world...fortunately, never sold one and have replaced them with Dolby DSS200s when possible.
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