Adobe Anywhere

digitalfilms by Oliver Peters

Adobe Anywhere for video is Adobe’s first foray into collaborative editing. Anywhere functions a lot like other shared storage environments, except that editors and producers are not bound to working within the facility and its hard-wired network. The key difference between Adobe Anywhere and other NLE/SAN combinations is that all media is stored at the central location and the system’s servers handle the actual editing and compositing functions of the editing software. This means that no media is stored on the editor’s local computer and lightweight client stations can be used, since the required horsepower exists at the central location. Anywhere works within a facility using the existing LAN or externally over the internet when client systems connect remotely over VPN. Currently Adobe Anywhere is integrated directly into Adobe Premiere Pro CC and Prelude CC (Windows and OS X). Early access to After Effects integration is part of Adobe Anywhere 1.6, with improved integration available in the next release.

The Adobe Anywhere cluster

Adobe Anywhere software is installed on a set of Windows servers, which are general purpose server computers that you would buy from a vendor like Dell or HP. The software creates two types of nodes: a single Adobe Anywhere Collaboration Hub node and three or more Adobe Mercury Streaming Engine nodes. Each node is installed on a separate server, so a minimum configuration requires four computers. This is separate from the shared storage. If you use a SAN, such as a Facilis Technology or an EditShare system, the SAN will be mounted at the OS level by the computing cluster of Anywhere servers. Local and remote editors can upload source media to the SAN for shared access via Anywhere.

The Collaboration Hub computer stores all of the Anywhere project metadata, manages user access and coordinates the other nodes in the system. The Mercury Streaming Engine computers provide real-time, dynamic viewing streams of Premiere Pro and Prelude sequences with GPU-accelerated effects. Media stays in its native file format on the storage servers. There are no proxy files created by the system. In order to handle real-time effects, each of the Streaming Engine servers must be equipped with a high-end NVIDIA graphics card. read more...