User Manual

Media Storage
This panel lets you define the scratch disk and other media storage locations used by
DaVinci Resolve, as well as the default cache directories locations to be used when creating
new projects.
 Media Storage Locations: This list lets you define the scratch disk of the system. The
first volume in this list is where Gallery stills and cache files are stored, so you want to
make sure that you choose the fastest storage volume to which you have access.
 Mapped Mount: This column allows you to specify translatable media path mapping
between Mac, Linux, and Windows file system conventions.
 Direct I/O: This Linux-only option allows DaVinci Resolve to write directly to the drive
using the kernel buffers, bypassing the normal storage cache in RAM. This allows
access to the full performance of the drive.
 Automatically display attached local and network storage locations: This checkbox
lets DaVinci Resolve access media on all temporarily and permanently mounted
volumes, including SATA and eSATA, SAS, USB, FireWire, Thunderbolt, Gigabit Ethernet
(GbE or GigE), Fibre Channel, and otherwise connected hard drives, without having to
add them to this list. This is on by default.
If you’re using the Apple App store version of DaVinci Resolve, turning on
“Automatically display attached local and network storage locations” automatically
prompts you via a dialog to add “Macintosh HD” as a storage location. Clicking Add
Location prompts you to select the Macintosh HD volume with another dialog, and
clicking Open then adds that volume to the Media Storage Volumes list. After you click
Save to close the Preference windows, Resolve should now auto-mount any volumes
attached to your computer in the Media Storage browser of the Media page. Don’t do
this until after you’ve added a fast storage volume to the Media Storage Locations list,
because you don’t want Macintosh HD as the first volume in this list – the very first
volume in this list should always be reserved for your fast scratch volume.
Adding Storage Locations Manually
Some versions of DaVinci Resolve do not allow automatic display of attached volumes. In this
case, you can right-click anywhere in the background of the Media Storage panel’s volumes list
on the Media page and choose “Add New Location” to open a dialog you can use to choose a
volume you want to add.
Manually adding a volume to the Media
Storage panel’s volumes list
Using Path Mapping to Access Volumes From Other Operating Systems
Shared media path mapping support for Mac, Linux and Windows makes it easier for multi-
system shops to share Resolve projects among different platforms that use different file path
conventions.
Chapter – 3 System and UserPreferences 120