USER MANUAL Version 2.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Copyright EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A.– Copyright © 2012-2013. All rights reserved. Disclaimer The information in this manual is furnished for informational use only and subject to change without notice. While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this user manual is accurate, up-to-date and reliable, EVS Broadcast Equipment cannot be held responsible for inaccuracies or errors that may appear in this publication.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS WHAT'S NEW? 1. INTRODUCTION IV 1 1.1. Product Overview 1 1.2. Accessing Xsquare 2 1.3. Xsquare User Interface 3 2. JOB INITIATORS 5 2.1. Concepts around Jobs 5 2.2. Configuring Targets 7 2.2.1. Target Window 7 2.2.2. Defining a Target 8 2.3. Configuring ScanFolders 9 2.3.1. ScanFolder Window 2.3.2. Defining a ScanFolder 2.4. Configuring ScanXML 3. 9 11 13 2.4.1. ScanXML Window 13 2.4.2.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 3.3. Icons Manager 4. ADMINISTRATION 4.1. Users and Access 5. Table of Contents 49 50 50 4.1.1. User and Access Window 50 4.1.2. User Levels 51 4.1.3. Adding a User 52 MONITORING 53 5.1. Job Monitoring Window 53 5.2. Job Grid 55 5.3. Cluster Area 57 5.4. Manipulating and Analyzing Monitoring Data 58 5.5. Managing Monitored Jobs 60 5.6.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 What's New? In the Xsquare manual, the icon has been added on the left margin to highlight information on new and updated features: The changes linked to new features in version 2.1 are listed below. New EVS Servers window • See section "EVS Server Monitoring Window" on page 61 New cluster load icons in the Monitoring window • See section "Cluster Area" on page 57 The changes linked to new features in version 2.0 are listed below.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 1. Introduction 1.1. Product Overview Description Xsquare acts as an orchestrator that centralizes all job requests from client applications, and dispatches them to the most appropriate processing device, taking into account load balancing, job type, etc.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 • EVS or third-party applications that use the new or the old job types that Xsquare can process • Files that are dropped in a folder and trigger a job process. Xsquare Orchestrator Xsquare itself consists of four processes: • The job orchestration process that receives the job requests and send them to the right processing device.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 How to Access Xsquare 1. Open a web browser and type the Xsquare URL using one of the following pattern: ◦ On the local computer: http//localhost:9004 OR http//hostname:9004 ◦ On another computer on the network: http//xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx:9004 where the crosses correspond to the IP address of the machine on which Xsquare is installed OR http//computername:9004 where computername is the full computer name of the machine on which Xsquare is installed. 2.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Area Description Xsquare is made up of the following modules: # Module Task 1. Job Initiators Allows users to configure, start or stop different systems that initiate jobs the processing devices will manage. See section "Job Initiators" on page 5 2. Configuration The Configuration section contains configurable elements in Xsquare: • The Orchestration tool allows users to group the processing devices in clusters dedicated to specific job types.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 2. Job Initiators 2.1. Concepts around Jobs Job A job consists in a process to be executed on a source material. The result of the process is saved in a destination. A job is therefore made up of three elements: • the source material (clip, file or EDL) selected by a user in the client application, dropped in a folder or specified in an XML job definition file. • the process to be executed on the source material.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Job Initiators Three job initiators are available in Xsquare: Job Initiators Description Targets A job is triggered from a client application when the user calls the Target associated to the job. See section "Defining a Target" on page 8 ScanFolders A job is triggered when a file is dropped in a folder defined in the ScanFolder configuration and scanned by Xsquare.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Job Templates Templates that specify a job process and destination. Xsquare users select a predefined templates or create a custom template when they create a ScanXML, ScanFolder or Target. See section "Types of Job Templates" on page 44 for more information on the types of job templates. 2.2. Configuring Targets 2.2.1.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the fields in the Target window: GUI Element Description Target Name field Name of the Target that will appear in the EVS application where the Target is available Template field Job template to be associated to the Target The button allows users to open the displayed job template, and create a customized job template based on it. 2.2.2. Destination Name field Name of the destination.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Procedure To add a Target in Xsquare, proceed as follows: 1. Select Targets in the Job Initiators menu. 2. Click the + button at the bottom of the window to add a row for a new Target. 3. Type a name for the Target in the Target Name field. 4. Select a template from the list. If the available templates do not meet your needs, you can create a new template based on an existing one by clicking the Edit button.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 GUI Element 2.3.2. Description Owner field Logon of the user who has created the ScanFolder. Non editable field only available for users logged as administrators. + button (Add button) Button that allows users to add a ScanFolder. - button (Remove button) Button that allows users to remove the selected ScanFolder.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 3. In the ScanFolder field, do the following: a. Click and select the folder to be scanned. b. Enter the Windows login and password to access the computer where the ScanFolder is located. c. If requested, click to specify ScanFolder options. 4. If requested, modify: a. the default Scanfolder Name. b. the default extension of the files the ScanFolder has to process specified in the Filter field. 5.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 2.4. Configuring ScanXML 2.4.1. ScanXML Window General Description The ScanXML window makes it possible to take over XML file jobs, by scanning the ScanXML folder where XML job definition files are dropped. From the ScanXML window, you can define ScanXML that will handle the ScanXML jobs in two possible ways: • Taking over the XML file job, and processing it as originally defined in the XML file. In this case, you will not apply any template to the ScanXML job.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the fields in the ScanXML window: GUI Element Description ScanXML field This field is made up of several elements, described below, from left to right: • Icon: icon identifying whether the ScanXML service for the is • started or not for this ScanXML folder. Path: path to the ScanXML folder, and ScanXML folder name • : icon that allows users to select the ScanXML folder.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 2.4.2. Merge Rules for ScanXML Jobs When you have associated a template to a ScanXML definition in Xsquare, the parameters from the XML file job and from the ScanXML job in Xsquare based on the job template are merged into a final job definition. In this merge process, priority rules are applicable to determine which parameters will prevail in case of conflicting parameters in the job based on the XML file and on the Xsquare template.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Job Type in the XML File Job to EVS Server Job to File Job to EVS Server 16 Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Job Type in the Xsquare Template Description Result Destination Codec/Wrapper Format Other Options Template to File (multidestination: 1st dest.) No merge All parameters are taken over from the XML file job. Xsquare does not add anything. Template to File (multidestination - other dest.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Job Type in the XML File Job to File 2. Job Initiators Job Type in the Xsquare Template Description Result Destination Codec/Wrapper Format Other Options Template to EVS server (multidestination - 1st dest.) No merge All parameters are taken over from the XML file job. Xsquare does not add anything. Template to File (multidestination - other dest.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. 2.4.3. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Defining a ScanXML Introduction By adding a ScanXML in Xsquare, the application will handle the XML file jobs by scanning the ScanXML folder where XML job files are dropped, and applying Xsquare job definition, if requested. For the ScanXML service to take ScanXML jobs into account, you must start the ScanXML in Xsquare. Note See section "ScanXML Window" on page 13 for additional information on the field values specified in this procedure.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 6. In the Destination field, do one of the following according to the selected job template: ◦ If you do not want to change the original destination defined in the XML job file, keep
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Target: ScanXML: ScanFolder: IP Addresses In this field, specify the IP addresses of the one or both GigE ports of the EVS server. In the ScanXML job initiator, Xsquare will use the value from the XML job if you leave the field empty. For the other job initiators, you have to provide at least one IP address. Lock Icon Clicking this icon opens the EVS Server Authentication window.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 2.5.2. Clip Location on an EVS Server Introduction When the destination is an EVS server, you can specify which location (page, bank, position, camera) will be used to store the generated clips on the EVS server. You specify this in the Location field available by clicking the Lock icon in the Destination column of the job initiator window. The following table explains how the application will assign the location based on the value specified in the Location field.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Parameter Value Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Behavior Null or empty The application uses the first free location from clip number 111 to 099, by iterating on all cams for each clip number.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Parameter Value 2. Job Initiators Behavior [1;5;0][BCF] The application uses the first free locations on page 1, for CAM B, C and F. Then it uses the free locations on page 5 for the CAM B, C and F, and finally the same on page 0: Page 1, CAM B, C and F: 110B-110C-110F- … -199B-199C-199F Then on page 5, CAM B, C and F: 510B-510C-510F- … -599B-599C-599F Then on page 0.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. 3. Configuration 3.1. Orchestration 3.1.1. Introduction Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Before working with an Xsquare application, the administrator has to associate the requested engines (XTAccess) to the specific Xsquare application. This association is performed in the Association tool, a dedicated application you can install with the Xsquare Suite setup package.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 3.1.3. Orchestration Window Introduction Once engines have been associated to an Xsquare application, they can be configured and organized in clusters of engines that will be dedicated to specific job types. This cluster organization is defined in the Orchestration window. Note The Xsquare and engine orchestration can be modified live, while jobs are being processed, without requiring any engine or Xsquare reboot.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Area Description The table below describes the various parts of the Orchestration window: Part Name Description 1. Cluster area Area displaying the defined clusters. You can add new clusters from there. See section "Cluster Area" on page 27 and "Managing Engine Clusters" on page 35. 2. Engine area Area displaying metadata on all engines associated to Xsquare. See section "Engine Area" on page 30 and "Configuring Engines" on page 37. 3.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Working Process In the Orchestration window, you will usually work in the following order: 1. Creating the required clusters in the Cluster area. See section "Managing Engine Clusters" on page 35. 2. Specifying the cluster settings whenever required or requested in the Selected Cluster Information area. See section "Selected Cluster Information Area" on page 32. 3. Setting the engine orchestration parameters and others in the Engine area.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the various fields of the Cluster box: Part Name Description 1. Cluster name Name of the cluster, and associated color. At installation, all engines associated to Xsquare are included in the default cluster which processes all job types. 2. Engine names Names of the associated engines. The name is made of the nickname assigned in the Engine List area, and the hardware serial number. 3.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 The table below describes the available cluster types, the jobs that each cluster will process, and the parameters you need to specify in the Selected Cluster Information area: Cluster Name Description Needed Parameters Ingest from EVS Server The cluster engines will process the backup of trains triggered by the IPDirector Ingest Scheduler. This cluster will not handle usual train backups. IP addresses of one/several source EVS server(s).
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Cluster Name Description Needed Parameters Playlist Rendering The cluster engines will process the jobs of rendering a playlist EDL into a consolidated file and/or clip (in an EVS server). No parameter Warning When you assign an engine to this cluster, you need to make sure the associated engines have the Xsecure transcoding license, as not check is performed in the engine assignment.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Field Description The table below describes the various fields and buttons of the Engine area: 3. Configuration Name Description Online Icon showing the engine (XTAccess) connection status: when the engine is online when the engine is offline when the engine is online, but disabled. when the engine is offline and disabled. Disabled Check box you can select to disable an engine, that is to say to prevent the engine from handling future jobs.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Name Description Reset Configuration button Button used to reset the configuration of the selected engine. Show Advanced Configuration button Button used to display additional configuration parameters at the right of the Engine grid. When you click the Show Advanced Configuration button, you have access to more advanced parameters. Please contact the EVS support before using them. 3.1.7.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Illustration The Selected Cluster Information area will be slightly different depending on the cluster type.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table hereafter describes the fields in the Selected Cluster Information area: 34 Available in cluster type Field Description Cluster Type Type of EVS cluster. This is the name of the cluster type you have selected. It cannot be modified. All Cluster Name Name of the EVS cluster. This is the name you can assign to the cluster. By default, the name is the same as the cluster type (or an abbreviated form).
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 3.1.8. Managing Engine Clusters Introduction From the Cluster area of the Orchestration window, you can perform the following actions: • add or remove clusters dedicated to a specific job type • associate engines to a cluster, or remove the association. • define the cluster priority in handling jobs. Possible Actions on Clusters Note When you add a cluster, bear in mind that the cluster position determines the cluster priority in handling a job type.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Remove a cluster • Click the button next to the cluster name you want to remove. The cluster is removed, and the orchestration configuration of the engines associated to this cluster is updated accordingly. Add an engine to a cluster You can assign an engine to several clusters, and several engines to the same cluster.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Set a cluster to a higher/lower priority in the job processing • 3.1.9. Drag the cluster to a higher or lower position in the cluster list and drop it at the requested position when you see a blue + arrow: Configuring Engines Introduction From the Engine area in the Orchestration window, you can set the several parameters for each XTAccess associated to Xsquare.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Define the engine orchestration This means you defined the maximum destinations + the maximum destinations with transcoding the XTAccess can handle in each cluster it belongs to. 1. Click the Orchestration field. A dialog box similar to the following one is displayed: 2. In this window, type the maximum destinations and maximum destinations with transcoding the XTAccess can handle in each cluster it belongs to. 3. Click OK. The values in the Max. Dest.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 The following screenshot presents the Job Templates window. As the Encoder/Wrapper Profile window is designed in the same way, it is not illustrated below. The window parts and buttons described below are applicable to both windows: 3.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Area Description The table below describes the various parts of the Job Templates window: Part Name Description 1. Filter area The Filters area makes it possible to filter the list of job templates or encoder/wrapper profiles based on their name. See section "Filtering and Sorting Grid Items" on page 43 2. Items grid The Items grid (Job grid or Encoder/Wrapper grid) provide information on the job templates and encoder/wrapper profiles.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 The table below describes the fields in the Job Template grid: Field Name Description Name Name of the job template Usage Number of job definitions the job template is used in Default Check box to specify whether the job template is predefined (selected check box) or customized (cleared check box) Owner User who created the job template. No owner is specified for predefined templates.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Possible Actions on Job Templates and Encoder Profiles The job templates and encoder/wrapper profiles are managed respectively from the Job Template window, and the Encoder/Wrapper Profile window. The actions described in the table below are available in these windows: Button Description Opens the definition of the job template or encoder/wrapper profile of the corresponding row. This button is available for predefined templates or profiles.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Filtering and Sorting Grid Items Introduction You can filter and sort the grid items in the Job Template and Encoder/Wrapper Profile windows. How to Filter the Grid Items To filter the grid items based on the name of the items, proceed as follows: 1. If the filtering field is not displayed on the left of the Filters label, click the icon. The filtering field is now displayed 2. To search for job templates containing a string of characters, type the string in the filtering field.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. 3.2.2. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Customizing Job Templates and Encoder Profiles Types of Job Templates The job templates specify a job process and destination. Xsquare users select a predefined templates or create a custom template when they create a ScanXML, ScanFolder or Target. Several job templates are available in Xsquare, whatever the job initiator. For each job initiator, predefined templates are available in Xsquare.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 How to Create a Customized Job Template To create a customized job template, proceed as follows: 1. Open the job template that is close to the requested customization in one of the following ways: ◦ From one of the job initiators window, click an Edit button in the Template column of the requested job initiator definition: ◦ From the Job Templates window, click the Open button in the Action column of the requested template: The Job Template window opens: 2.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Possible Actions for Customizing a Job Template You can perform the following actions from the Job Template window: Specify how the EVS Server source is selected For multi-essence configurations, you need to specify how Xsquare will select an EVS server source. 1. Click Source Configuration on the top left part of the window The Source pane opens on the right. 2.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 3. Fill in all the requested parameters in the pane related to this destination, displayed on the right when the destination is selected. Remove a destination 1. In the destination list, select the destination you want to remove. 2. Click the cross sign next to the selected destination: 3. Click Yes to confirm you want to delete the destination. Change the destination icon 1. In the destination list, select the destination whose icon you want to change. 2.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 2. Click the Destination metadata tab in the Destination pane: 3. Select the check box of the metadata whose value has to be modified in the destination file. A field appears on the right of the metadata field. 4. Enter the value in the field displayed on the right.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Automatic Value for EVS Server Source If the EVS Server Source Selection setting is set to Automatic in the underlying job template, Xsquare will select the source as follows: 1. If Xsquare cannot connect to the MTPC board of the EVS server, Xsquare will define the clip source as Intra, and look for an Intra clip. If no Intra clip exists, the job will fail (even if an XDCAM clip exists). 2.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 4. Administration 4.1. Users and Access 4.1.1. User and Access Window Introduction The User window allows administrators to manage users and their access rights. It is only accessible to users logged on as administrators.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 4.1.2. Item Description Add button (+) Adds a row to define a new user, its credentials and right level Refresh button Refreshes the window display User Levels Introduction When you define a user, you assign a user level to this user, which is associated with a set of rights to use the application.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. 4.1.3. Issue 2.1.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 5. Monitoring 5.1. Job Monitoring Window General Description From the Job Monitoring window, you can monitor all the operations processed by the various engine clusters. Various filters can be applied to restrict the jobs displayed on screen. The Job Monitoring window contains the areas highlighted on the screenshot below: 5.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Area Description The table below describes the various parts of the Job Monitoring window: Part 1. Name Description View tabs Each tab corresponds to a monitoring view. By default, the General tab only is available. By clicking the button right of the tabs, and assigning a name to the view, you can add a monitoring view. 54 2. Cluster area It displays the clusters defined in the Orchestration window.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 5.2. Job Grid Introduction The Job Grid area in the Monitoring window shows metadata on the jobs that you are monitoring. Combinable column filters are available below the column headers. This section describes the fields in the Job grid, and describe filtering rules. The screenshot below shows the first general columns in the Job Grid in the Monitoring window: 5.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the fields available by default in the Job Grid area. If you want to display other fields or hide displayed field, you can right-click a column header and select or unselect the field from the contextual menu. Field Name Description ID Job identifier in Xsquare.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Field Name Description Destination Location where the job output will be stored: • In case of an EVS server, the GigE IP address(es) is/are mentioned. • In case of a shared folder, the full path is specified as follows: \\ComputerName\FolderName. Message Message giving information on the outcome of the job. Frames/s Transfer rate in number of frames per second. MBytes/s Transfer rate in megabytes per second. This information is not always available.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the various fields of the Cluster area: Part Name Description 1. Cluster name Name of the cluster and associated icon as defined in the Orchestration window. 2. Cluster Load icon Provides information on the number of jobs scheduled in the cluster, and therefore on the workload on the cluster: No job is scheduled in the cluster. From 0 to 6 jobs are scheduled in the cluster.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 Filtering Job Grid Items The field is available below the column header allows you to type or select a search filter for a given column: The following rules are applicable when you define a filter: • The filters defined on each column are associated by an AND operator. • The field values selected in one filter are associated by an OR operator • The filters based on text entered by the user do not support wildcards.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. 5.5. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Managing Monitored Jobs Introduction Several actions that allow users to manage monitored jobs are available from a contextual menu when you right-click a row in the Job Grid area of the Monitoring window, or in the Queue Management tab.
USER MANUAL Xsquare 2.1 5.6. EVS Server Monitoring Window Introduction The EVS Server Monitoring window displays the list of EVS servers detected on the network. This window allows users to check that: • the EVS servers defined as the destination in the Job Definition • the EVS servers used as the source in a multiessence configuration have effectively been discovered and identified on the network. 5.
EVS Broadcast Equipment S.A. Issue 2.1.A June 2013 Field Description The table below describes the various fields of the EVS Servers window, from left to right: Part Name Description 1. EVS Server Name Name of the EVS Server in the SDTI network. This corresponds to the Net Name field displayed in the Server Monitoring page on the EVS Server (SHIFT+F5). 2. Serial Number Serial number of the EVS Server.
Corporate +32 4 361 7000 North & Latin America +1 973 575 7811 EVS Headquarters Liège Science Park 16, rue Bois St Jean B-4102 Seraing Belgium To learn more about EVS go to www.evs.com Asia & Pacific +852 2914 2501 Other regional offices www.evs.com/contact EVS Broadcast Equipment is continuously adapting and improving its products in accordance with the ever changing requirements of the Broadcast Industry. The data contained herein is therefore subject to change without prior notice.
