Automatic updating of catalog?

[shaneb]

Hi guys, this seems like something that should already exist, but I am not finding it.

In our workflow, we have a working drive attached to the workstations. That working drive is backed up every night to a server (bi-directional r-sync using Chronosync) That server holds not only the current year (working drive) but all previous years as well.

In a perfect, beautiful world, I would be able to point the catalog to the server and come back (probably in several days, ha!) and have a catalog of that server. However, it seems to me that the PM+ would also have the option to have that server be a "watched" folder and updated automatically as not only there are changes to the existing files (which would have happened overnight with the sync) but also recognize and add new files to the catalog automatically.

Is this an option? I don't think I am the only person/organization that works this way. Cataloging the working drive wouldn't really work because at the end of each year we turn off automatic sync for that year, create a new year and press on. eventually as the working drive fills up the oldest files are deleted to make room for new files, with of course copies on the server as well as tape backups.

Lots of details... thoughts?

[Kirk Baker]

Hi guys, this seems like something that should already exist, but I am not finding it.

In our workflow, we have a working drive attached to the workstations. That working drive is backed up every night to a server (bi-directional r-sync using Chronosync) That server holds not only the current year (working drive) but all previous years as well.

In a perfect, beautiful world, I would be able to point the catalog to the server and come back (probably in several days, ha!) and have a catalog of that server. However, it seems to me that the PM+ would also have the option to have that server be a "watched" folder and updated automatically as not only there are changes to the existing files (which would have happened overnight with the sync) but also recognize and add new files to the catalog automatically.

Is this an option? I don't think I am the only person/organization that works this way. Cataloging the working drive wouldn't really work because at the end of each year we turn off automatic sync for that year, create a new year and press on. eventually as the working drive fills up the oldest files are deleted to make room for new files, with of course copies on the server as well as tape backups.

Lots of details... thoughts?

We don't currently have such a feature, though one could be developed.

Watching for files being added/changed/deleted/moved/renamed on a server can be done from a desktop, but it would be network intensive.  It would be better to implement a solution on the server itself.

-Kirk

[shaneb]

I (and lots and lots of others) use Synology. So that's possible, but would require a lot of development from you guys. Running a "true"server that was a full blown mac or PC would do the trick if you could then share the catalog I suppose. Or if you had a dedicated machine to just watch the synology.

I don't know that for me the network traffic would be that big a deal. If I left PM running overnight (the workstation runs 24/7) it would see the newly populated files at about 4am and would surely be done (after the initial scan of the entire server which would take a week or more) before we started work at 9am or so. That is assuming that it scans by date modified and not the entire folder again.

Shane

[shaneb]

The other issue with this would be that even without the backup situation... I ingest RAWS (cool they are in the catalog) then i make selections, edit in lightroom, output JPGs and deliver. But unless I make a point to do it... the JPGs would not appear in the catalog... only the RAWs. I'd love to have both by having it autoscan the folders for new files. Even if it's just a once a day scan.