# Welcome to Nara

<figure><img src="/files/P94uxiUE5j31e4Dgz2df" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Nara is FilmLight’s next-generation media access and collaboration platform, designed from the ground up to meet the demands of modern, distributed post-production. It gives users instant, colour-accurate access to high-resolution media. No proxies, no transcoding, no waiting.

Whether you’re on-premises or halfway around the world, Nara empowers creative teams, producers, and stakeholders to review, search, and collaborate on footage with frame-accurate precision and full-fidelity playback, all directly in a secure browser interface.

{% embed url="<https://vimeo.com/1079764133>" %}

### Who is this guide for?

This guide is for anyone who wants to learn how to use, administer, or deploy Nara. Whether you're a beginner aiming to get started or an experienced user looking to enhance your skills, this resource is designed to provide you with the necessary knowledge and tools.

{% hint style="info" %}
Want to learn more about FilmLight? Why not visit [our website](https://www.filmlight.ltd.uk)
{% endhint %}

### Jump right in

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-cover data-type="image">Cover image</th><th data-hidden></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Using the App</strong></td><td>Learn the basics</td><td><a href="/files/xBz6LaQbCpAmgqPchwuN">/files/xBz6LaQbCpAmgqPchwuN</a></td><td></td><td><a href="/pages/7aUFmnCMx9m4smGncsXL">/pages/7aUFmnCMx9m4smGncsXL</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Advanced Features</strong></td><td>Do more with Nara</td><td><a href="/files/qyAwAo77c6lyoZ34aS0O">/files/qyAwAo77c6lyoZ34aS0O</a></td><td></td><td><a href="/pages/seSjS1W3QhY6wwXrw0oV">/pages/seSjS1W3QhY6wwXrw0oV</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Admin</strong></td><td>Managing Nara</td><td><a href="/files/uquOX54DwRhzDlzJL2Gg">/files/uquOX54DwRhzDlzJL2Gg</a></td><td></td><td><a href="/pages/1ogMYD54cZeCCAeqrqlj">/pages/1ogMYD54cZeCCAeqrqlj</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Deployment</strong></td><td>Installation and security</td><td><a href="/files/lqsNoV2XJmGqtfO6G2DF">/files/lqsNoV2XJmGqtfO6G2DF</a></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Glossary</strong></td><td>Nara terminology</td><td></td><td></td><td><a href="/pages/oR3AIKygho6tHmCVbkzD">/pages/oR3AIKygho6tHmCVbkzD</a></td></tr></tbody></table>


# User Interface Intro

## Navigating the Nara Interface

Nara is designed to be intuitive, responsive, and accessible. The user interface presents the media within in a clean, panel-based structure providing instant access to storage volumes, directories, projects and metadata.

<figure><img src="/files/oTt7ezcIXr2xilPSYSIZ" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

The separate areas or 'panels' are described below:

{% tabs fullWidth="true" %}
{% tab title="Left Panel" %}

## Projects & Browsing Modes

This is the main navigation hub. It allows you to browse through all the media storage you have access to. It also allows you to select an existing project or create a new one (as long as you have permission to do so - see the section on [user permissions](/admin/user-permissions) ).

* **Browser Mode**

  Clicking on the **Browse Storage** button will open the [media browser](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown) in the centre panel of the UI. The button tile (and folder icon) turns blue showing that you are currently in browser mode.
* **Project Selector**

  To select a project, simply click on its name in the [Projects list](/using-the-app-core-features/projects) - the project name will become highlighted with a blue background 'tile' and a list of any project folders and playlists (if any) will appear below the project name. The centre panel will now show media related to the selected project.&#x20;

  If you want to switch to another project, simply click on its name.
* **Baselight Job Browser**

  If this option is available to you then clicking on the [Browse Baselight](/advanced-features/browse-baselight) button will open a Job Browser in the centre panel allowing you to select a Baselight Job in order to view its media content.

The current mode is indicated by the blue highlighted button - the example below shows the [Browse Storage](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage) mode selected on the left and a [Project](/using-the-app-core-features/projects) (Anaconda25) selected on the right:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/5Ov275XU8YxX6tGEAHfE" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Centre Panel" %}

## Media Browser

This is your main working area, the heart of the application.

* **Thumbnails or List View**

  [Browse](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown) your media visually as thumbnails or in list format, depending on your preference or task. The list view shows columns of metadata.
* **Playback Window**

  Double-clicking a shot launches full-resolution [playback](/using-the-app-core-features/playback-window), with accurate colour and audio sync. Playback supports frame-by-frame navigation, loop ranges etc. The playback window also can also display timecode and other metadata plus it also allows you to type in notes for the media.
* **Storage Navigator (top)**

  The area above the thumbnails allows you to [navigate through](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage) the directory structures of the storage volumes you have access to.

<figure><img src="/files/0yvbzLipnMCOkUWJ5QqG" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Right Panel" %}

## Metadata Inspector

The right-hand panel can be shown or hidden by clicking on the panel show/hide button at the right-hand end of the browser's top bar. This is highlighted in blue in the example below:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/SIWMeliU1uJ7IrN0kBRn" alt="" width="140"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

All the available metadata for the currently selected clip will be displayed within the panel - everything from codec and resolution to scene/take info, camera/lens details, timecode, and more:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/pmA00fj7eZM3uzYsluSt" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

You can copy the metadata to your clipboard by clicking on the 'Copy to clipboard' button at the bottom right-hand corner of the metadata window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/ykf1zqmnoD49eRxT1syg" alt="" width="164"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

{% hint style="info" %}
When a button is active its icon is shown in blue. Inactive buttons have grey icons
{% endhint %}


# Browse Storage

The first place to start finding media in Nara is via the **Browse Storage** mode.\
You can find this option on the [left side](/using-the-app-core-features/editor#left-panel) of your user interface.&#x20;

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/CcrNglVEZyYzlJEPQP7J" alt="" width="272"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="warning" %}
This feature is controlled by the system administrator - if you do not see this option or it is greyed out, please contact your system administrator.&#x20;
{% endhint %}

Once you have this mode selected you can browse media across any of the storage available to you in Nara.&#x20;

## Storage Navigator

When Browse Storage mode is active, the top part of the middle panel will show the storage navigator.

Clicking on the Volume selector button at the top left corner of the storage navigator will give you a drop-down list of all the volumes that you have permission to access:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/10n2ahV68Yn1ySERIJJ8" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="warning" %}
These volumes are configured by your system administrator - if you do not see the correct volumes, please contact your system administrator.&#x20;
{% endhint %}

Once you have selected the media volume, you will then have the ability to browse it's folder structure. Nara's navigator works very similarly to any other column-based file browser - clicking on a folder will show its contents in the next column to the right:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/KBPtsHmCIKsDymIb4oK2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Each folder in the selected path is highlighted in blue. Horizontal and vertical scroll bars allow you to move the view around if there are more folders or columns than will fit on the screen. Note that you can also drag the lower edge of the navigation window to expand it downwards.

### Column Filter Button

If there are many items in the current column you can enable a text filter by clicking on the 'F' button at the top of the column. The 'F' will turn red showing you that the filter is enabled and open a text box. Only items with text matching what you type into the filter box will be shown, as in the example below (note that the text-matching is not case sensitive):

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/gpPs9ZAsEG05WDhRWOZN" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

To clear the filter, click on the red 'F' button to toggle it off. The text-match field will disappear.

### Path Button

At the top of the navigator is a long button which contains the complete path from the root of the volume to the current folder. If you click on this button you will see a drop-down of all the intermediate folder levels - click on them to navigate back up to a specific sub-folder level:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/JUXaCzIJiO8h23iPbZ4D" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

### Go to Folder

If you know the folder or directory you want to browse, you can enter it's path diferectly by clicking on the **Go to a directory** button at the right-hand end of the top bar:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/cBGwEHBvgx06z4MBSrJH" alt="" width="170"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will bring up an entry box showing the entire path to the current folder - edit this path or type in a completely different path to jump directly to the point where you want to browse for media, then click on the **Go** button in the pop-up box.&#x20;

### Volume Index Status

Nara has a powerful media index which stores all the metadata for your media. The status of the index for the current volume is indicated by the star button to the right of the long path button:

<table data-header-hidden><thead><tr><th width="95"></th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><img src="/files/j7E4pu7u7Loq7XhOpO6r" alt=""></td><td>Index OK</td></tr><tr><td><img src="/files/FNZoxjrVvWcgzuSE7P3f" alt=""></td><td>Index not available</td></tr></tbody></table>

{% hint style="warning" %}
The Nara index is an option. Please contact your system administrator if you think it should be available but does not appear to be working.
{% endhint %}

### Hiding the Storage Navigator

Once you have navigated to the folder you are intereseted in, you can hide the Storage Navigator (upper part of the browser) by clicking on the Show/hide browser toggle button - the icon is grey when the Storage Navigator is hidden.&#x20;

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/XI3FwTTVw4VRXJ281MBB" alt="" width="250"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Hiding the upper panel gives more space for the thumbnails or column view.

## Current Folder

The current folder is the one at the end of the path shown in the [path button](#path-button), or the right-most blue-highlighted folder in the navigator columns.

Media files in the current folder are shown either as a [grid](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid) of thumbnails or as a vertical [list](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-list) in the [media browser window](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown) directly below the navigator.

{% hint style="info" %}
If there are no files in the current folder then the summary in the bar at the top of the media browser will say "Nothing in..." \<the current folder path>
{% endhint %}

The current folder can be added to the currently active project providing a quick way to group together media related to a specific project. To add the current folder to a project, first make sure that the correct project is currently active (the project will be highlighted with a grey background in the [project list](/using-the-app-core-features/projects)) and then click on the '+' button next to the project name:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/C9X372nqCPP49rOAiOsi" alt="" width="205"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

A pop-up box will ask you to provide a name for the folder and show you its path:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/AP2aH27cMwfkvvBkcTbf" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Click on the **Ok** button to confirm or **Cancel** if you decide not to add the folder. Note that folders can easily be removed from the list in the project - see the [Project Folders](/using-the-app-core-features/projects/project-folders) section for more details.

### Filter Button

If you only want to show media files which contain specific text in their name, click on the **Filter by name** button which can be found in the group of buttons at the right-hand side of the bar at the top of the media browser grid/list view:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/SU1SSYlmEjqQQNPPuXGi" alt="" width="165"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

When you enable the filter button a box will pop up allowing you to enter a text string to filter by - only files with names which contain the text will be shown in the browser window. Note that the text filter is not case sensitive.

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that this filter behaves slightly differently to the column filter. When it is active the button does not turn red and the filter text box is not visible. To clear the filter, click on the [refresh button](#refresh-button) - this will reload the thumbnails for the current folder and clear any filter which may have been set.
{% endhint %}

### Refresh Button

Clicking on this button (curled arrow) will reload the thumbnails for the current folder. This is useful if the folder contents have changed while you have been viewing the folder and they may not yet have automatically updated.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/Gglq69uzdIJf9Lvmx5gF" alt="" width="137"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

### Descend Folders

By default, the browser view only displays thumbnails for media files located directly within the selected folder - it won't show you any of the media files in sub-folders. In order to see thumbnails for **All** files in the current folder **and all the subfolder levels below** this point you need to enable the **Descend** button located in the group of buttons at the right-hand side of the media browser top bar:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/I64VIoYFgXAS1U5OdT5p" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="warning" %}
If you enable the descend option at a high level in your folder structure, there may be a huge number of media files to display. Although Nara can handle a great number of thumnails it may take a while for them to appear if you are browsing an un-indexed storage volume.
{% endhint %}


# Media Browser View

**Browsing Media** in Nara is fast, flexible, and format-agnostic. Each media file has a dedicated thumbnail showing the poster frame (centre frame).

Thumbnails for all the media files in the directory or folder currently selected in the [storage navigator](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage#storage-navigator) are shown either as a [grid](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid) or as small thumbnails in a column or [list](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-list), along with additional columns showing metadata for each media file.

Any non-media files in the same location as the media will also be shown, either as a summary on a special tile in the thumbnail grid or as an alternative [non-media file list](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/non-media-files) providing columns with details about the files.

To switch between the different browser views you click on the three buttons at the left-hand end of the bar at the top of the browser window - in the example below the grid view button is selected (the other two buttons select list view and non-media file list view respectively):

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/MTA8jevFQZQNOVz2eKoy" alt="" width="111"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that the width of the media browser panel can be adjusted by clicking and dragging on the vertical line separating it from the panel to the left or right.
{% endhint %}

The rest of the media browser top bar contains additional buttons for selecting other functions as well as a summary of the currently selected media and it's path - these are covered in the following sections of this manual:

<div align="left" data-full-width="false"><figure><img src="/files/E1ym5R5U0kXA3Ee0QmoL" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that in Nara media files or clips are called 'sequences'. This refers to the fact the the clip is made up of a sequence of frames. Some clips are actual frame sequences, for example EXR or PNG sequences, whereas some are movie files where the frame sequence is contained inside a single file such as QuickTime or MXF.
{% endhint %}


# Sequence Grid

This view is shown by clicking on the **grid button** at the left end of the browser top bar:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/MTA8jevFQZQNOVz2eKoy" alt="" width="111"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

A separate thumbnail is shown for each media file or 'sequence' with one or more rows of metadata below the image. The thumbnails are scaled automatically to form a grid - if there are more thumbnails than will fit within the window, a vertical scroll bar will allow you to view them all.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/I6wJzC9AVW1tLIUYVycR" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
The default frame which is displayed in the thumbnails is half way through the clip. If you want to view other frames, move the mouse near to the top edge of the thumbnail until a yellow bar appears. Click and drag in the bar to scrub through the clip.
{% endhint %}

To change the metadata which is shown below the thumbnails, click on the matadata selector button - this looks like a downward-pointing triangle below two short lines at the top right-hand corner of the thumbnail grid:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/XlD9ExAUpklEBw61wNlk" alt="" width="240"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open a pop-up window allowing you to choose which metadata item(s) you would like to see. Note that you can choose any number of items from the list.

## Selecting Clips

* Clips or 'sequences' are selected by clicking on the thumbnail and de-selected by **Ctrl**-clicking on the thumbnail (**Cmd**-click on a Mac). A selected clip is shown with a blue outline.
* To select multiple clips, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and click on the thumbnails you want to add to the selection. **Ctrl**-clicking on a selected clip will de-select that clip.
* To select a range of clips, click on the first thumbnail and then **Shift**-click on the last one in the range.
* To select ***all*** the clips in the current folder, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and press **A**.&#x20;
* To ***de***-select all, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and **Shift** and press **A**
* When multiple thumbnails are selected they all get blue outlines, however the outline for the last one you click on will have a brighter shade of blue - this is the 'current clip' and it's metadata will be shown in the [metadata inspector](/using-the-app-core-features/metadata-view) if the [right panel](/using-the-app-core-features/editor#right-panel) is visible. Clicking on a thumbnail with a dimmer blue outline will make it the current clip.

## Sorting the View

The order of the thumbnails is the same as the order the clips have in the Sequence List view. If you want to change their order in the grid view, click on the **list button**, [sort the clips](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-list#sorting-the-list) in the list view and then click on the **grid button** to return to grid view.


# Sequence List

This view is shown by clicking on the **list button** at the left end of the browser top bar:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/5bfsbw0oNEUIf4xs3isH" alt="" width="111"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Each clip is shown on a different row in the list view. A small thumbnail is displayed at the left-hand end of the row followed by columns of metadata:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/pHAwm0K8N5Y3MntqDMNt" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

If you want to make the thumbnails bigger, click and drag on the small vertical divider at the right-hand side of the header at the top of the thumbnail column. The mouse pointer will turn into a double-headed arrow indicating that you can resize the column:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/YU33ILaqcCrQ2VuyjZCc" alt="" width="281"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
To view the maximum number of rows within the browser window, drag the thumbnail column width as far left as it will go to shrink the thumbnails to their smallest size. Note that the width of all the other columns can be also be adjusted by dragging on the dividers between the column headers.
{% endhint %}

To change the metadata columns which are displayed, click on the **Toggle Columns** button at the top right-hand corner of the list view:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/iVQNhTRnuRlfzz3sdAvc" alt="" width="142"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open a pop-up window allowing you to choose which metadata columns you want to see.

If you want to change the order of the columns, click on a column header and drag it to a different position. The order of the columns will be remembered even if you hide and later un-hide a column.

## Selecting Clips

* Clips are selected by clicking anywhere within a row and de-selected by **Ctrl**-clicking (**Cmd**-click on a Mac). The row for a selected clip is shown with a blue background and the thumbnail gets a blue outline.
* To select multiple clips, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and click on the rows want to add to the selection. **Ctrl**-clicking on a selected row will de-select that row.
* To select a range of clips, click on the first row and then **Shift**-click on the last one in the range.
* To select ***all*** the clips in the current folder, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and press **A**.&#x20;
* To ***de***-select all, hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and **Shift** and press **A**
* When multiple rows are selected they all get blue backgrounds, however the thumbnail for the last one you click on will have a brighter blue outline (the top selected row in the example above) - this is the 'current clip' and it's metadata will be shown in the [metadata inspector](/using-the-app-core-features/metadata-view) if the [right panel](/using-the-app-core-features/editor#right-panel) is visible. Clicking on another row within the selection will make it the current clip.

## Sorting the List

* To sort by a specific metadata column, simply click on the heading at the top of the column - a small white triangle will appear to the right of the column heading pointing up or down to indicate the order of the sort.
* Clicking on the heading for the current sort column will reverse the sort direction.

{% hint style="info" %}
The order of clips in the list view is reflected in the order of the clip thumbnails in the grid view. Switching between list and grid view will retain the current sort order.
{% endhint %}


# Non Media Files

A storage volume containing media files will often contain other non-media files such as edit lists, reports, project exports and so on. If you are browsing in the grid view, as there is no media to display, a single thumbnail 'tile' will display a summary of the total number of non-media files along with buttons to allow you to select them and view their details:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/FKh18dp2kH7lm7Y1TQYP" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Clicking on the **Show Files** button will open the non-media file view in the browser window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/1ZwlaZBa0Hhd5IF0Qzna" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This view can also be accessed by clicking on the non-media file view button in the browser top bar:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/VwMAVdskXiKSTtpCR8Ot" alt="" width="115"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

To change the columns which are displayed, click on the **Toggle Columns** button at the top right-hand corner of the list view:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/M0WOHfKkXBmXaFL5MEL0" alt="" width="142"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open a pop-up window allowing you to choose which file data columns you want to see.

If you want to change the order of the columns, click on a column header and drag it to a different position. The order of the columns will be remembered even if you hide and later un-hide a column.


# Analytics

Nara provides comprehensive details about the data in your storage, including the number and type of files and the amount of space they are taking up - all with the click of a single button.

To access this information, click on the Analytics button above the grid/list window in the browser (highlighted in blue below):

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/adxxjKZwV0wefblp75go" alt="" width="153"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open the analytics view at the point you are currently browsing - in the example below browser is currently looking at the root of the volume 'QC - Seven BL2':

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/3QOlmgY9hdLt2cc23ukf" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

At the top of the view is a tile which summarises the total amount of space used and the total available in the current storage volume. Below that is a summary providing a more detailed breakdown of the number of movies, frame sequences, non-media files and so on.

The relative size of sub-folders below the current folder level is shown as a pie-chart containing rings broken into segments - the inner ring is the first sub-folder level, the next one is the next level down and so on. The relative amount of space taken up by each sub-folder determines the length of each segment.

To the right of the pie-chart are bars indicating the size of the largest first-level sub-folders.

Hovering the mouse over a segment (or one of the bars to its right) will highlight the segment and show the folder name and it's size:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/mIKpVAt70TeW4JUS8l6r" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Note that very small sub-folders will be grouped into one segment.

Clicking on a segment will make that sub-folder the centre of the pie-chart, allowing you to see more detail in the sub-folders below that point.

{% hint style="info" %}
Hovering the mouse over the centre of the pie-chart will show the full path to the current sub-folder. If you want to navigate back up to a point higher in the folder structure, click on the&#x20;
{% endhint %}

Below the pie-chart is a colour-coded indication of how long it is since they were last modified - this is useful as it shows how much of your storage is being updated regularly and how much of it hasn't stayed the same for ages. In the example below, about half the storage in this volume has had the same files for over two years.

There is also a breakdown of the different media and other file types within the current folder (and its sub-folders) shown in the form of both relative length bars and as a pie chart:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/2VKTSJ9MxpAktlKCRNqI" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Hovering the mouse over any of the bars or segments in the pie chart will pop-up a further breakdown showing the different encoding formats within the media file type - for example, hovering over the QuickTime Movies in the above example shows the following:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/u8PYZNn6C8eE0Ip2dwTu" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Clicking on a bar or segment will switch back to grid view showing thumbnails of just the selected media type within the current folder. This selection is made by automatically enabling the [metadata pivot](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/metadata-pivot) button and setting the appropriate MediaType.

* You can return to the analytics view by clicking on the Analytics button again.


# Metadata Pivot

The pivot button looks like a P with an arrow pointing backwards - it can be found in the group of buttons at the right-hand side of the bar at the top of the media browser grid/list view:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/gDz1kEESUQEwAwVyyIFZ" alt="" width="307"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Enabling this button allows you to group the media within the currently selected folder(s) according to its metadata and view only the thumbnails which match a specific value.

In the example below, only the clips which were shot with the 70mm lens are selected:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/0BOUCkQ9woljo4eoKmAi" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The list of **Metadata Keys** in the left column of the pivot view will depend on the actual metadata present in the media in the current folder (and its subfolders if the [Descend button](broken://pages/IBTMaQtyZ3HolPZRQNrl) is enabled)


# Context Menu

Clicking with the right mouse button in certain parts of the browser view or storage navigator will bring up a context-sensitive menu enabling the user to perform various operations.

## Storage Navigator

Right-clicking on any folder in the [storage navigator](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage#storage-navigator) at the top of the browser view will bring up a menu with the following options:

* **Add Folder to Project** (adds the folder to the active project)
* **Copy Link** (copies a unique 'Nara link' to the folder which you can send to someone else)
* **Copy Path** (copies the path to the folder so it can be pasted into a browser or text document)

{% hint style="info" %}
If the **Add Folder to Project** option is greyed out it is because you don't currently have an active project . See the [Projects](/using-the-app-core-features/projects) section for more information.
{% endhint %}

## **Media Browser View**

Right-clicking on a thumbnail in the sequence grid or a row in the sequence list will bring up a menu with the following options:

* **Launch Player** (this will switch to the playback window with the selected media file(s) ready to play. It is the same as double-clicking)
* **Consolidate & Transcode** (will open the [Consolidate & Tanscode](/advanced-features/consolidate-and-transcode) view in a pop-up window)
* **Copy Link** (copies a unique 'Nara link' to the selected clip(s) which you can send to someone else)
* **Copy Full Path/s** (copies the path to the selected media file so it can be pasted into a browser or text document. If multiple thumbnails are selected then this option will copy all the paths with each one on a new line)
* **Copy File Name/s** (copies just the file name, without the path, for the selected media. If multiple thumbnails are selected then this option will copy all the file names with each one on a new line)

{% hint style="info" %}
If the selected media is an image sequence it will be made up of a series of sequentially numbered image frame files. Rather than list all of these files separately, Nara will just list a single file name and substitute the frame number with '%.nF' where n is the number of digits in the frame numbers.
{% endhint %}

* **Deselect All** (deselects any media files currently selected in the browser view. It is the same as pressing **Shift**+**Ctrl**/**Cmd**+**A** on the keyboard)
* **Go to Containing Folder** (this option is only available if the [descend](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage#descend-folders) mode is active - it will navigate down the directory tree to the folder containing the selected media file)

{% hint style="info" %}
If multiple thumbnails are selected then this option will change to **Go to Common Folder**, however it will be greyed out if all the selected media files are not in the same folder.
{% endhint %}

## Advanced Options

Some additional advanced options may also be available in the right-click menu - these are detailed in the [Advanced Features](/advanced-features/consolidate-and-transcode) section of this manual:

* **Send via MASV**
* **Transcribe Audio**


# Metadata View

Nara allows you to access all the metadata for the currently selected media file. To view the available metadata you need to open the right-hand panel by clicking on the **Metadata View** button at the right-hand side of the bar at the top of the media browser view:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/5gihbwzlJtbEX6Ge5Kjd" alt="" width="306"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The Metadata View shows all the values for the currently selected media file:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/dDn4fhraRx6qPX2WcyuG" alt="" width="347"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
If more than one media file is currently selected, then metadata for the one with the brighter blue outline (the last one you clicked on) will be displayed.
{% endhint %}

Note that the metadata is read from the header of the media file - the actual fields available will depend on the file format.

## Exporting Metadata

All the metadata currently displayed in the Metadata View can be exported as text by clicking the **Copy to Clipboard** button at the bottom right-hand corner of the window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/UGpQASb7fiiXL35ReF93" alt="" width="216"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>


# Playback Window

Any media can be played back directly within Nara on your web browser - it doesn't need to be transcoded as Nara will do that in real-time as the media files are read directly from your storage. This means that what you see the master media rather than a transcoded proxy copy.

To play back a single media file simply double-click its thumbnail in the browser (or the small thumbnail if you are in the list view) - this will open the Nara playback window. You can also select the thumbnail first by single-clicking on it and then press the space bar.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/c17QCn2GilJSgTbjZ6oB" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The image will be scaled so that it fits within the window and playback controls are located at the bottom.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/26JXrqpVoMDyCzB6RuXs" alt="" width="368"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

From left to right these controls have the following functions:

* **Play all frames** (frames will not be dropped to maintain real-time playback)
* **Scene Head** (jump to first frame)
* **Previous Cut** (only applicable when multiple clips are selected for playback)
* **Play Backwards** (click again to stop playback)
* **Play Forwards** (click again to stop playback)
* **Next Cut** (only applicable when multiple clips are selected for playback)
* **Scene Tail** (Jump to end)
* **Playback Mode** (Bounce, Loop, Once, Freeplay - default is Loop)
* **Playback Speed**

Playback can be controlled using the **J**, **K** and **L** keys on the keyboard for play backwards, stop and play forwards respectively. Pressing **J** or **L** repeatedly will double the speed.

Note that you can also use the space bar to start and stop playback. To step single frames forward or backwards use the left and right arrow keys on your keyboard.

At the bottom of the window is a green bar - this indicates that the clip has been cached.

{% hint style="info" %}
Caching happens automatically in Nara and ensures that formats which have a large resolution or which are located on slower storage will always play back smoothly. You may notice that the first time you open a new clip this green bar is still 'growing' across the screen as the clip is loaded into the cache. This bar may also be purple rather than green - this indictes that caching is not required to play back the current media file.
{% endhint %}

As the media plays back a small blue cursor runs along the bottom of the window. You can drag this using the cursor or click to its left or right to move to any frame in the clip.

To return to the browser click on the **Back** button at the bottom left corner of the playback window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/4NIsJfeKiFRKPm8nPR2S" alt="" width="102"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

## Playing Back Multiple Clips

As well as playing just a single media file, Nara can also play back a selection of clips as a single sequence. Simply [select multiple thumbnails](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid#selecting-clips) (or rows in the list view) and then double-click on one of them or press the space bar.

The clips will be loaded into the playback window end-to-end creating a basic 'timeline'. At the very bottom of the window you will see that there is an additional bar with alternating shades of grey indicating the different clips.

The **Previous/Next Cut** buttons mentioned above allow you to jump between the clips.

## Playback Functions

The row of buttons at the bottom right-hand corner of the playback screen is used to access additional functions during playback:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/ynACogqKGs0ySwbECINg" alt="" width="230"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

These buttons have the following functions (from left to right):

* [**Create Playlist**](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) (this button will not appear if you do not have a project selected)
* [**Client Notes**](/using-the-app-core-features/playback-window/client-notes) (allows you to add notes and flags to a clip or frame)
* [**Audio Monitoring**](/using-the-app-core-features/playback-window/audio-monitoring) (volume control and output channel mixer)
* **Full Screen Mode** (expands the player to fill the entire monitor screen)
* [**Playback Options**](/using-the-app-core-features/playback-window/player-options) (timecode and other overlays, colour space journey)


# Client Notes

While you are playing back media you may want to add notes or comments. These can be added to an entire clip or just a single frame within a clip. Once notes have been added they are stored in the Nara database and will appear whenever the media is played back.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Note that notes are only stored within a [playlist](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) - if you add them to a clip which is being played back from a selection made directly in the storage browser then they will not be saved unless you add the current playback selection as a new playlist.
{% endhint %}

To add a note to the current clip, click on the **Client Notes** button:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/C7slTykSM6YiIHFseoN4" alt="" width="218"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open the Client Notes window. Choose whether you want to add the note to the **Entire Shot** (this will be visible regardless of the playback position in the clip) or just the **Current Frame** - the text will appear as an entry in the notes list along with a time-stamp showing when the note was added:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/FKxk2PG41eV61IH6eQYN" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

More than one note can be added to a clip and multiple notes can also be added to a single frame - in the example above two notes have been added to this clip.

You can jump the cursor directly to a note by selecting its number in the left-hand column in the Notes window.

Click on the Notes button again to close the pop-up window. Note that the button will change to orange if there are notes set within the current playlist.

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that the position of frame notes is also shown by markers in the bar at the bottom of the playback window. You can jump between them without opening the Client Notes window by holding the **Shift** key and pressing **Z** or **X** on the keyboard.
{% endhint %}


# Audio Monitoring

Nara provides high quality audio playback within the browser. Both audio embedded within movie files as well as separate audio files such as WAV can be monitored.

To enable audio monitoring click on the Audio button at the bottom right of the player window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/LDFooq46WNpt1WeMSkcQ" alt="" width="216"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open the **Audio Monitoring** controls:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/iYuvJl4z8MqhP0zRklGq" alt="" width="307"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

These controls allow you to adjust the volume of the audio monitoring output, the channel mapping and the visibility of the audio meters.

Channel mapping options are:

* **Standard** (each channel in the media file is mapped to the corresponding monitor channel)
* **5.1 to Stereo** (performs a 5.1 downmix and outputs it on the Left and Right outputs)
* **7.1 to Stereo** (performs a 5.1 downmix and outputs it on the Left and Right outputs)
* **Stereo (7&8)** (sends channels 7 & 8 from the media file to the Left and Right outputs)
* **Solo Channels** (allows you to choose which channels to listen to)

When **Show Audio Meters** is enabled a small meter overlay appears in the bottom corner of the playback window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/Si3xuP4mf4ekpRL5gUyZ" alt="" width="177"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>


# Player Options

The button with three dots opens a pop-up menu allowing you to set certain options for the playback window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/wy96bbzk71zIsb1yfm3l" alt="" width="206"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

## Colour Space Journey

Clicking on the **Colour Space Journey** option will bring up an overlay of the Colour Space Journey for the current clip you are viewing:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/aysgjZIA9ImEZKP1wvNs" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The **Colour Space Journey** gives you an overview of how the colour is being transformed on its way from the master source media on its way to the display you are viewing it on.

In the example above, the media file itself has a colour space of 'Sony S-Gamut3' which is being converted via an intermediate 'Working Colour Space' into the Viewing Colour Space of my local display which is 'PQ, 1000 nits'.

This pop-up view enables you to check that the colour is being managed correctly and that what you are seeing is an accurate representation of the original media. Note that if you are viewing several clips together it is possible they may have different source colour spaces - the Colour Space Journey will show you the colour journey for the clip you are currently seeing in the display.

{% hint style="info" %}
The colour workflow can be customised for each project according to your requirements - see ??? for details.
{% endhint %}

To close the Colour Space Journey window, click on the 'X' button at its top-left corner.

## Export Report

{% hint style="info" %}
This option is only available if you are currently playing back a [playlist](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) - if you opened the playback window from the browser and select this option, a temporary playlist will be created to enable a report to be exported.
{% endhint %}

Click on the [Export Report](/using-the-app-core-features/export-report) option to switch to the reports view for your current playlist.

## HDR Display

If your display supports HDR then enabling the **HDR** option will switch the video stream from the a 100nits 'Rec.709' standard dynamic range signal to a 1000nits 'PQ' stream enabling you to accurately view HDR footage on your local display.

You can use the [Colour Space Journey](#colour-space-journey) to check the colour space currently being used to display your media.

## Counter Overlays

Enabling the **Counters** option will overlay timecode counters and the current media file path within the playback window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/vF69kBlzxu1ZlZSTomFR" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>


# Projects

In addition to its powerful browsing capabilities Nara allows you to create 'Projects' - collections of media files which relate to a project you are working on. For example a set of VFX shots, editorial previews for a music video or every piece of media relating to a feature film.

Project access is restricted per user - a list of the projects available to the current user appears in the left panel of the Nara user interface below the browse mode selector buttons:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/84EWLMOsr4hYCsKx4D8F" alt="" width="270"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The options at the top right of the project list provide the following (from left to right):

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/fJHGxLxGFM9mbjeE1Og5" alt="" width="245"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

* **Show All Projects**

  Clicking in the **Show All** check-box will show a complete list of all the projects in Nara, not just the ones for your user login. Note that this may not be available if you don't have permission to see projects not owned by you.
* **Refresh Project List**

  Clicking on the looped arrow will update the list of projects to make sure it shows any changes which may have been added by users logged into other Nara clients.
* **Create New Project**

  Click on the '+' button to create a new project - see below for details.

## Creating a New Project

Click on the '+' button to create a new project:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/77Jk0PbYzUYmNkKpEGz6" alt="" width="240"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

A pop-up box will appearallowing you to type in a name for the project. Click the **Ok** button to continue or **Cancel** if you don't want to create a new project.

The name of the new project will appear in the projects list, however at this point it is just an empty project.

## Setting the Active Project

To add [folders](#folders-and-playlists) and [playlists](#folders-and-playlists) to the project first you need to click on its name so it becomes the  'active' project - the background tile of the active project is shaded blue:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/fa5F8N1PpoNYzNAPz7C8" alt="" width="205"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
If you switch to [Browser mode](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown) the currently selected project will remain 'active' but the background highlight will turn grey
{% endhint %}

Click on the three dots button to the right of the project name to pop up a menu with the following options:

* **Settings** (this gives access to the [project settings](#project-settings))
* **Delete** (clicking this option will allow you to delete the current project)
* **Rename** (use this option to change the name of the project)

## Folders and Playlists

Folders can be added to a project to attach media to that project - see the [Project Folders](/using-the-app-core-features/projects/project-folders) section for more details.&#x20;

A project can also contain a set of playlists - collections of individual media files which are played in a sequence, like a 'mini edit' or compilation of clips. Playlists can be 'sent' to clients as a link so they can play back the clips in their own browser. Note that NO rendering is needed to create a playlist as Nara is able generate and stream the browse video in real time directly from the master source files. See the [Playlists](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) section for more details.


# Project Settings

Each project has settings which control the users which have access to that project, media rules which can be automatically applied, the end-to-end colour workflow and the project's media 'container'

These settings are detailed below (note that you can close the settings by clicking on the **◀Project** button at the top left corner of the window):

### Project Members

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/LbTIQxwlFwLvQSL183tv" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

When the **Members** button is enabled you will see a list of the users who currently have access to this project. Click on the **Add Member** button to add extra users to the project. Note that the list of users who can be added and the permissions controlling what they can do within the project are controlled by the system adimistrator. See the section on User Permissions for more details.

### Media Rules

Media rules can be defined to set up or modify specific parameters for one or more media files within your project. For example you can create a rule to set all R3D files to be decoded a maximum quality or apply all embedded LUTs from a specific camera.

Selecting the **Media Rules** button in the Project settings allows you to inspect any existing rules and create new ones. See the section on [media rules](/advanced-features/media-rules) for more details.

### Colour Workflow

Clicking on the Colour Workflow button in the Project Settings will bring up the following window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/pRU9qqnKeZQx7z6wPJhg" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The two drop-down buttons allow you to select the Display Rendering Transform or DRT for this project. Several options are available including 'ACES RRT' ARRI REVEAL' and 'Truelight CAM'. Each DRT can be applied according to different viewing conditions such as 'Cinema 48nits' 'Office 100nits' and 'VideoWide 1000nits'. Choose the appropriate DRT for your project's overall colour workflow and the viewing environment for your display.

### Container

The project 'container' is the default directory or folder for media storage. It is used as the default location for consolidated or transcoded media files:

<figure><img src="/files/fwSqdweFmM6oEZn7DTn3" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

You can change the container's path by clicking on the green folder icon - this will open a browser window allowing you to choose any folder you have access to within the media storage system. Note that the folder you choose may not provide write access for your user - please refer to the [Consolidate & Transcode](/advanced-features/consolidate-and-transcode) section for further information.


# Project Folders

Folders can be added to a project to link or 'attach' media to that project. You can add any number of folders to a project containing, for example, raw camera footage, VFX shots, rendered movies for production review and so on.

You add folders by first finding them in the [media browser](/using-the-app-core-features/browse-storage#current-folder) and then click on the '+' button next to the project name:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/C9X372nqCPP49rOAiOsi" alt="" width="308"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

A pop-up box will ask you to provide a name for the folder and show you its path so you can check it is the correct folder:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/AP2aH27cMwfkvvBkcTbf" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Click on the **Ok** button to confirm or **Cancel** if you decide not to add the folder. Note that folders can easily be removed from the list in the project - see the [Project Folders](/using-the-app-core-features/projects/project-folders) section for more details.

Any number of folders can be added to a project - they will appear listed below the project name:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/cWqJRVjmjiGIW0QMaP0n" alt="" width="232"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The list can be hidden and un-hidden by clicking on the small triangle icon to the left of 'Folders'.

Note that folders can be added from anywhere you have access to browse in your storage system. This means it is possible to gather together a collection of media assets which are physically located across several different storage volumes which may even be in different locations.

{% hint style="info" %}
Adding a folder to a project doesn't make any changes to the actual folders or move anything around in the storage system - it is simply creating a link or 'pointer' to the physical location of that media. If the physical folder goes offline for some reason the folder name will be shown in red.
{% endhint %}

## Viewing Folders

Clicking on a folder name in this list will bring up that folder in the browser view. You can then play back individual clips or a selection within the playback window by selecting them in the browser window - see the section on [playback](/using-the-app-core-features/playback-window) for more details.

It is also possible to select multiple folders and view their contents together in a single thumbnail grid or list view. Click on the first folder you want to see and then hold **Ctrl** (or **Cmd** on a Mac) and click on additional folder(s) in the project list - they will be added to the thumbnails or rows in the browser window. In the example below the contents of both the 'Conform Assets' and 'Graphics' folders are being shown together in a single thumbnail grid:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/p3yITrRvzNR2REue49Sb" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

As these clips may be contained in different storage volumes it may be useful to check their physical location. Clicking on the **Show/hide path tiles** button at the top right of the browser window will display the complete paths for the selected folders:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/6yWSrPWdYj8hiURxbvhW" alt="" width="285"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

In this example there are two separate paths listed showing that the two folders are on different storage volumes ('moaf-images' and 'seven-images'):

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/IxvXRDgon78DkNufvsqT" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

## Folder Options

If you hover the mouse over a folder name it will highlight the folder and show an options menu button (three dots) to the right of the name. Click on this button to access the following options:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/mK3WAhsFajhEYdEgKfkb" alt="" width="337"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

* **Copy Path** (this will copy the path to the folder into the clipboard as text so you can then paste it into a text document or the path field in a browser window)
* **Delete** (will remove the folder from the project. Note that this will *NOT* delete any actual media - it is simply removing the link to this project)
* **Rename** (allows you to give the folder a new name in this list. Note that this will *NOT* change the name of the actual folder in the storage system)


# Playlists

A Nara playlist is a collections of media files which will play back as a single sequence. Clips can be assembled into a playlist from different media files within the same folder and then played back in the Nara Playback window.

A playlist does not have to be rendered and no media is copied - the video (and audio) stream is created in real-time directly from the actual source media in your storage system. It is exactly the same as when you play back a single clip.

## Creating a New Playlist

To create a playlist, first make sure that the currently [active project](/using-the-app-core-features/projects#setting-the-active-project) is the one you want to add the playlist to.&#x20;

Select multiple thumbnails or rows in the browser (see [Selecting Clips](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid#selecting-clips) in the media browser) and then open the selection into the Player by pressing the space bar.

Click on the Add playlist to project button at the bottom right-hand corner of the Playback window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/b8e9L53F8asYvfnI797E" alt="" width="417"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

A pop-up window will open asking you to give the playlist a name - the default name will simply be 'Playlist n' where 'n' is a number starting at 1. Click on the **Ok** button in the pop-up to add the playlist to project. The Add playlist button will now be blue:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/fDeZjQb9KyvdejjTlBQR" alt="" width="228"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Playlists appear in the active project under the list of folders:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/Uys9vaQza27vX8pFVoyf" alt="" width="213"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

They can be hidden and un-hidden by clicking on the small triangle icon to the left of 'Playlists'.

Clicking on the name of a playlist will immediately open it into the Playback window.

## Playlist Options

If you hover the mouse over a playlist name it will highlight the playlist and show an options menu button (three dots) to the right of the name. Click on this button to access the following options:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/Ge0z9f9F59refaXm7LCY" alt="" width="285"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

* **Copy Link** (this will copy a unique '[Nara link](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists/nara-links)' to the playlist into the local clipboard which you can send to other people to allow them to play back the media on their own computer or tablet)
* **Delete** (allows you to remove the playlist from this project)
* **Rename** (click on this option to change the name of the playlist)

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that once a playlist has been created it can't be modified. It also isn't currently possible to open the contents of a playlist in the media browser.
{% endhint %}


# Nara Links

A Nara link is a unique URL (Uniform Resource Locator - also known as a web link) which you can send to someone else. They can then open this link in a standard web browser and it will automatically open Nara on their computer with a login prompt. Once they have entered their [security credentials](/configuration/single-sign-on) and they have been verified by the Nara server, the playlist will automatically open in the Nara Playback window allowing them to view the media.

The stream which is sent via a Nara playlist link is exactly the same as the stream you view in the Nara user interface. It comes straight from the master media and has the same accurate colour management applied.

{% hint style="info" %}
The format of a Nara link is: [https://\<nara\_server>?playlist=9dbc4411-54b0-4ac0-bab8-fc0ae36230cb](https://192.168.193.79/prod/?playlist=9dbc4411-54b0-4ac0-bab8-fc0ae36230cb)&#x20;

This secure link includes a unique key which prevents anyone without authorised access to the Nara server from identifying any of the media or anything about the project to which it belongs.
{% endhint %}


# Export Report

Nara can export a spreadsheet in CSV format or a PDF file containing details of selected media files. This can be very helpful when keeping track of media within a project and helps facilitate quick and accurate communication between departments and clients.

To export a report first select the media you want to include - this can either be made using a [selection within the browser](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid#selecting-clips) or by selecting a [playlist](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) within a project. Then open the selection in the playback window by pressing the space bar.

The report option is accessed by clicking on the 'three dots' (options) button in the lower right-hand corner of the player window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/DbtnwmfF0Gbziusfa34I" alt="" width="219"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Select **Export Report** from the pop-up menu - the report window will then appear with a preview of the cover page of the report. To preview the other pages of the report use the left and right arrow buttons at the top right corner of the report window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/zVx2iiNVEMr7p631FktE" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

If this is a new report it will have the name 'Untitled Report' - this can be changed by typing a new name into the **Name** field at the top of the report settings panel on the left.

Click on the **Format** button choose whether you want the report in a printable PDF format or as a spreadsheet in CSV format.

The rest of the settings allow you to set up the various sections of the report according to the type of report you have chosen:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/Ydgnyjx0z4Ym228u2D7G" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Once you have entered the required settings to format the report the way you want it to appear,  these will automatically be saved under the name you gave the report. This can then be used to format similar reports for different selections of media.

The preview will update as you make changes allowing you to check what the report will look like. An example of a page from a PDF report is shown below (note that there is no preview for a CSV report)

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/O8J9bHpQhyfNhFfx9VpL" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

To export the report click on one of the three export buttons at the bottom of the report settings panel:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/7E4SwxAAMzhERRjefPOS" alt="" width="497"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

* **Export** (this button will use the 'Filename' and 'Directory' fields in the report settings)
* **Export As...** (will open a browser allowing you to choose the destiation and file name for the report)
* **Open in New Tab** (will create the report in a temporary location and display it in a new tab in your internet browser)
* Click on the **Back** button to return to the player window.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Note that if you create a report from a [selection of clips](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid#selecting-clips) in the browser rather than an existing [playlist](/using-the-app-core-features/playlists) in a project, any changes you make to the report settings (including its name) will not be saved.
{% endhint %}


# Codec & Format Support

Nara supports an extensive range of image and movie formats that employ many different codecs and are stored in different media file containers such as QuickTime, MXF and EXR.

The following tables provides details of all supported formats:

<table><thead><tr><th width="178">Format</th><th width="103">Extension</th><th>Notes</th><th data-hidden>FIELD3</th><th data-hidden>Depth/channels</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>ARRIRAW</td><td>.ari</td><td>Raw camera format; including Alexa raw. Decoded with ARRI SDK</td><td>Read only</td><td>12/16 bit</td></tr><tr><td>ARRIRAW 
(HDE-compressed)</td><td>.arx</td><td>Codex lossless High Density Encoding optimised for Bayer pattern images</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Canon RMF</td><td>.rmf</td><td>Canon Raw Media Format</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Cineon</td><td>.cin</td><td>Supports keycode</td><td>•</td><td>10 bit RGB</td></tr><tr><td>Cintel RAW</td><td>.cri</td><td>Blackmagic Cintel scanner format</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DALSA RAW</td><td>.dpx</td><td>Raw camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td>14 bit</td></tr><tr><td>DPX</td><td>.dpx</td><td>Can also read 8 bit grey; 10 bit grey and RGBA; 12 bit; 16 bit RGBA and 10 bit YCC. Supports timecode, keycode Northlight IR matte and Scanity 2-bit dirt matte</td><td>•</td><td>10 bit RGB; 16 bit grey, RGB, 8/10/16 bit 
4:2:2/4:4:4 Y’CbCr</td></tr><tr><td>DPX-C</td><td>.dpx</td><td>Cineform DPX format</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>HEIC/HEIF</td><td>.heic/.heif</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>JPEG</td><td>.jpg/.jpeg</td><td>Can also read 8 bit grey and RGBA</td><td>•</td><td>8 bit RGB</td></tr><tr><td>JPEG 2000</td><td>.jp2</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>JPEG 2000 Codestream</td><td>.j2c/.j2k</td><td>Writes DCI and IMF-compliant JPEG 2000 Codestream files</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>OpenEXR</td><td>.exr/.sxr/.mxr</td><td>Read-only support for multi-part and multi-view OpenEXR files</td><td>•</td><td>Unlimited channels/layers</td></tr><tr><td>Panasonic V-RAW</td><td>.vrw</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>PGM</td><td>.pgm</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8 bit grey</td></tr><tr><td>Photron RAWW</td><td>.raww</td><td>Raw camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>PNG</td><td>.png</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8/16 bit; grey, RGB/A</td></tr><tr><td>PPM</td><td>.ppm</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8/16 bit; RGB</td></tr><tr><td>RGB</td><td>.rgb</td><td>Compressed or uncompressed</td><td>•</td><td>8/16 bit; grey, RGB/A</td></tr><tr><td>RUST RAW</td><td>.dpx</td><td>Raw camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td>10 bit</td></tr><tr><td>SGI</td><td>.sgi</td><td>Compressed or uncompressed</td><td>•</td><td>8/16 bit; grey, RGB/A</td></tr><tr><td>Targa</td><td>.tga</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8 bit; grey, RGB/A</td></tr><tr><td>TIFF</td><td>.tif/.tiff</td><td>12 bit conforms to DCI spec</td><td>•</td><td>32 bit RGB/A ; 8/12/16 bit grey, RGB/A</td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Canon raw 2</td><td>.cr2</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Canon raw 3</td><td>.cr3</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Nikon raw</td><td>.nef</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Kodak raw</td><td>.dcr/.kdc</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Olympus raw</td><td>.orf</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Sony raw</td><td>.arw/.sr2</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Adobe Digital Neg.</td><td>.dng</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Panasonic raw</td><td>.rw2</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Hasselblad raw</td><td>.3fr</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Mamiya raw</td><td>.mef</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Pentax raw</td><td>.pef</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>dSLR - Others</td><td>.erf/.mos/ .raw</td><td>Raw dSLR stills camera format; read only</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><thead><tr><th width="181">Format</th><th width="102">Extension</th><th>Notes</th><th data-hidden>FIELD3</th><th data-hidden>Depth/channels</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>MXF</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>1:1 4:2:2</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8/10 bit YCbCr</td></tr><tr><td>1:1 4:4:4</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>10 bit 4:4:4 RGB</td></tr><tr><td>ARRIRAW</td><td>.mxf</td><td>From Alexa cameras; supports HDE compression</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>AVC Intra 50/100 (H.264)</td><td>.mxf</td><td>From camera or Avid Media Composer</td><td>Read only</td><td>Up to 16-bit</td></tr><tr><td>Canon EOS</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Including C200, C300, C700; supports split-file media</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Canon X3 HEVC</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Cinema DNG</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Supports lossy compression (e.g. Blackmagic URSA)</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>D-10 IMX/MPEG</td><td>.mxf</td><td>MPEG 30, 40, 50</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DNx444</td><td>.mxf</td><td>4:4:4 DNxHD</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DNxHD</td><td>.mxf</td><td>DNxHD TR+, TR-SQ, LB, SQ, HQ, HQX (10 bit), 444</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DNxHR</td><td>.mxf</td><td>DNxHR LB, SQ, HQ, HQX (10 bit), HQX (12 bit), 444</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DNxUncompressed</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Dolby Vision Mezzanine</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Only appears if Dolby Vision mastering display has been selected in scene settings. Dolby Vision metadata is write-only</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DV25/DV50</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DVCPRO</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DVCPRO HD</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>JPEG 2000</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Writes DCI and IMF-compliant MXFs</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Motion JPEG (2:1, 4:1 etc.)</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ProRes</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Panasonic EVA1 RAW</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Panasonic Varicam</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Including Varicam LT</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Sony RAW</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Including F5, F55, F65, FS700, VENICE/CineAltaV; also supports high frame rate (HFR) and F65 RAW-Lite</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Sony X-OCN</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Including X-OCN XT, X-OCN LT, X-OCN ST; supports 4K 6:5, 4K 2.39:1, 6K 17:9, 6K 1.85:1, 6K 16:9, 6K 2.39:1 bitstreams</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Sony XAVC</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Supports long-GOP data; XAVC proxy extension is .mp4</td><td>•</td><td>12/10/8 bit</td></tr><tr><td>SStP/L2 4:2:2</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Sony HD-CAM SR SStP MPEG-4 codec</td><td>•</td><td>4:2:2 YCbCr</td></tr><tr><td>SStP/L2 4:4:4</td><td>.mxf</td><td>Sony HD-CAM SR SStP MPEG-4 codec HD, 2K</td><td>•</td><td>4:4:4 RGB; 10/12 bit</td></tr><tr><td>XDCAM HD, HD 4:2:2, EX (MPEG2)</td><td>.mxf</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>YCbCr</td></tr><tr><td>AVI</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Cineform</td><td>.avi</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DV</td><td>.avi</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Uncompressed 4:2:2</td><td>.avi</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>10 bit</td></tr><tr><td>Motion JPEG</td><td>.avi</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MSMPeg 4v3 (DivX3)</td><td>.avi</td><td>Microsoft DivX 3</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MSMPeg 4v3 (WMP)</td><td>.avi</td><td>Microsoft WMP</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>QuickTime</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Animation (RLE)</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Apple ProRes RAW</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>AVC Intra</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Avid 1:1x</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Avid DNxHD</td><td>.mov</td><td>DNxHD 36, 115, 120, 145, 175, 185, 220, 220x</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Avid IMX</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Cineform</td><td>.mov</td><td>HD, 2K, 4K</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Component Video YUV422</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DNxHR</td><td>.mov</td><td>DNxHR 444, HQX (12 bit), HQ, SQ, LB</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DV</td><td>.mov</td><td>PAL and NTSC</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DVCPRO</td><td>.mov</td><td>PAL and NTSC</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>DVCPRO50</td><td>.mov</td><td>PAL and NTSC</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.263</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.263+</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.264</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>HEVC</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>JPEG</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Motion JPEG A</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MPEG4</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Packed YUV</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>8 bit YCbCr</td></tr><tr><td>Planar YUV</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>•</td><td>4:2:0/4:4:4 YUV; 4:4:4:4 YUVA</td></tr><tr><td>PNG</td><td>.mov</td><td>With alpha</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ProRes 422</td><td>.mov</td><td>LT/Proxy/HQ; uses Apple’s ProRes library to encode/decode</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ProRes 4444</td><td>.mov</td><td>XQ; uses Apple’s ProRes library to encode/decode</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>UT Video</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>XDCAM EX</td><td>.mov</td><td>720p 24/25/30/50/60; 1080i 50/60; 1080p 24/25/30</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>XDCAM HD</td><td>.mov</td><td>1080i 50/60; 1080p 24/25/30</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>XDCAM HD422</td><td>.mov</td><td>720p 50/60; 1080i 50/60; 1080p 24/25/30</td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>XF-AVC</td><td>.mov</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td>12-bit 4:4:4</td></tr><tr><td>3GP</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.263</td><td>.3gp</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MPEG-4</td><td>.3gp</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MP4</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>AVC Intra</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.263</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>H.264</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>HEVC</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MPEG-4</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>•</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>MPEG-2</td><td>.mp4</td><td>Supports long-GOP MPEG2 data; e.g. from Sony F3 camera</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Sony XAVC S</td><td>.mp4</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>BRAW</td><td>.braw</td><td>Blackmagic raw camera format</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Canon CRM</td><td>.crm</td><td>Canon RAW Light file</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Phantom</td><td>.cine</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td>Raw, RGB</td></tr><tr><td>RED</td><td>.R3D</td><td></td><td>Read only</td><td>All</td></tr><tr><td>Silicon Imaging</td><td>.siv</td><td>SIV Raw</td><td>Read only</td><td>10 bit log/12 bit linear</td></tr><tr><td>Subtitles</td><td>.xml</td><td>CineCanvas and SMPTE ST 428-7 subtitle XML</td><td>Read only</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>


# Consolidate & Transcode

Nara provides two functions which can be used to create copies of your media:

* **Consolidate** - copies selected media files into a single destination folder enabling you to bring all the media for a particular project into one common location. For example, you can use this function to only copy the media which is actually used and leave out any bad takes.
* **Transcode** - similar to Consolidate but the media is converted into a different format and resolution during the copy process. This is useful for creating viewing copies or review movies from high resolution master media. It can also be used to convert source media files into image sequences for delivery to VFX for example.

## Consolidating Media Files

First you need to [select the media file(s)](/using-the-app-core-features/markdown/sequence-grid#selecting-clips) you want to consolidate - they can all be within the same folder or spread across multiple folders on different volumes. Your selection will be shown by the blue outlines around the thumbnails (or the blue shaded background of the rows in the media browser list view. Note that non-media files cannot be consolidated).

Right click on any of the clips in the selection and select Consolidate & Transcode from the pop-up menu:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/0vX4XRQq8Rv0S5WFO7XT" alt="" width="196"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The Consolidate & Transcode view will appear in a floating window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/E1csj9o0VbzE0L74mxS5" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

The left-hand side of the window provides a list of presets which you can choose by clicking on them. These are arranged into a hierarchy - Factory > Site > Project > Current > User. You can change the selected level in the hierarchy by clicking on the button at the top of the list. There is also an 'Include Presets Above' option - if enabled, the preset list will show presets at the current level as well as any parent presets. In the above example it is only showing Project presets with 'Cons. To Selects' chosen.

The settings from the preset are shown in the main part of the window. Note that by default they are locked to prevent you from modifying them. However, if you want to change any of the settings from their preset values you can click on the **Unlock** button below the preset list:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/93VO0g6yZy1QevAdNYeE" alt="" width="316"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="warning" %}
Normally it is a good idea to use presets without modifying them as this will give you consistent results within a project. However, during the planning stages it may be necessary to create several different presets to support your workflow - this can be done using the '**+ Create**' button.
{% endhint %}

Once you have the correct settings for the consolidation operation, click on the **Submit Consolidate** button at the bottom right corner of the window.

### Consolidate Settings

{% hint style="info" %}
Note that the settings available are different for Consolidate and Transcode operations - use the **Action** buttons to switch between the required operation.
{% endhint %}

**Output Directory** (this is the target location into which the selected media files will be copied. You can either manually enter a path, browse for a folder by clicking on the green browser button or build up the path using template blocks by clicking on the '**+▼**' button).

**Directory Prune Depth** (The number of sub-folders or directories which will be removed from the top of the path for each file which is copied. A value of 0 will not remove anything from the path so the copied files will all include the entire path from the original source - including the volume name. In the example above 2 directories are pruned so "/vol/moaf-images/" will be removed from the copied path)

**Example** (this shows an example of which directories will be included in the paths for files copied to the new location).

The lower part of the window provides feedback showing the progress of the copy operation.

{% hint style="info" %}
When you submit a consolidate operation it is added to the queue of tasks which are processed in the background by Nara. You can monitor these background processes by clicking on the 'Q' button next to the progress bar at the bottom of this window: <img src="/files/vi5c8bG0bsTyByZBkjo3" alt="" data-size="line">
{% endhint %}

## Transcoding Media

The process of selecting the media you want to transcode is the same as [selecting media to be consolidated](#consolidating-media-files). Once you have the selection you want and have opened the Consolidate & Transcode window you need to select a preset transcoding operation from the list on the left.

If there are no transcoding operations set up as presets then you can create one by clicking on the '**+ Create**' button at the bottom of the list. This will pop up a box where you enter the preset name and also decide its 'Scope' or level in the preset hierarchy.

{% hint style="info" %}
When creating new presets, you may wish to include 'Cons.' or 'Trns.' as part of the preset name so you can tell at a glance what type of preset it is. Note that the preset also includes the destination folder path so you may also want to add something to the name which indicates the destination for the copied media files.
{% endhint %}

Make sure that the 'Unlock' button is active at the bottom of the presets list and then choose either **Transcode to Sequences** or **Transcode to Movies** using the 'Action' buttons at the top of the window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/eOkYqX1r27aHX8USfvzE" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

### Transcode Settings

The **Output Directory** (destination folder) and **Directory Prune Depth** settings are the same as for consolidate mode, the rest of the options differ slightly depending in whether you are creating image sequences or movies:

**File Name Template** (use building blocks from the '**+▼**' button to set up a template for the transcoded files. The drop-down list allows you to include various metadata from the input media. The button to the right selects the file name extension as either lower or upper case - note that this extension is set according to the type of file being created)

**Example** (the template settings and pruned directory path are used to provide an example of the output file - this will update live as you make changes to the settings above so you can try different template options and check they give you the filename you expect)

**Render Format** (the format - i.e. pixel resolution and aspect ratio - if the transcoded media files. By default the output media will match the input media in terms of its H x V pixels, click on this button for a drop-down list of other formats. It is also possible to make [custom formats](/advanced-features/custom-formats)).

**Render Colour Space** (this is the colour space of the transcoded media. The default is to create files which have the same colour space as the original media, click on this button for a list of different colour spaces).

{% hint style="info" %}
If you are creating transcoded footage to be viewed in a media player then you should choose a 'Display-referred' colour space such as Rec.1886: 2.4 Gamma / Rec.709 (for standard 'Rec.709' viewing) or Rec.2100: ST 2084 PQ / Rec.2020 / 1000 Nits (for HDR viewing). The 'Scene-referred' colour spaces are intended for media which will be used as a source for further processing within the production pipeline such as VFX shots.&#x20;
{% endhint %}

**File Type** (this button gives you either a list of the image sequence file types or movie 'container' files depending on whether you selected **Transcode to Sequences** or **Transcode to Movies**)

{% hint style="info" %}
Depending on the File Type chosen for the transcoded media there may be additional options available such as Codec or Compression and 'Video LUT' which sets the output video range to 'full' or 'legal range'. You should check on the requirements of your workflow to confirm the correct settings here.
{% endhint %}

**Metadata** (the final option will also depend on the type of media files you are creating - it is used to select the metadata which will be added to the transcoded files)

The example below shows a transcode preset which will create HD (1920x1080) sized ProRes 422 HQ QuickTime files with a 'Rec.709' colour space. The metadata in the transcoded files will match the original timecode, tape names and clip names from the master media files:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/qyAwAo77c6lyoZ34aS0O" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>


# Media Rules


# Browse Baselight


# The Queue Monitor

Media operations such as consolidate and transcode are performed automatically as background tasks in Nara. When you submit an operation it is added to the queue and will be processed according to its position in the queue.

The status and completion of these operations can be checked using the Queue Monitor.

To access the queue monitor, click on the main Nara 'actions button' (the small cog-wheel button at the top right-hand corner of the left panel) and click on Queue Monitor in the pop-up menu:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/qZPuFd9BHo7P85Br1x8U" alt="" width="234"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

This will open the queue monitor in a floating window:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/WSLwitCgtCXeYtnB5P1o" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>


# Custom Formats


# FilmLight CONNECT


# Nara Server Admin

Nara provides a web-based administration interface making it easy to check on the system performance and perform administrative tasks.

The administration interface is accessed via the following URL: https\://\<nara\_server>/admin (note that you will need a secure admin login to access this page).

Once the interface loads you will see the following screen:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/uquOX54DwRhzDlzJL2Gg" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Ths presents an overview of the server's configuration and current status. The tabs along the top allow you to access different parts of the system:

**Nara Admin** (Details of running processes, logged in users and GPU usage. This page also provides access to the various system logs as well as the [Formats Editor](/advanced-features/custom-formats) which allows you to create and manage custom formats).

**Queue** (a detailed view of the operations queue on the local server - this provides the same information as the [Queue Monitor](/advanced-features/the-queue-monitor) available from the main Nara interface)

**Diagnostics** (Nara includes a set of built-in diagnostic tools which help to keep the server running at its optimum performance level)

**Software** (A list of the currently installed application software versions)

**Licence** (This is where you can check the status of the Nara server licences and add new licences for additional functionality)

**Web Config** (allows you manage who has access to the administration interface, what they can see and what they are allowed to change)


# User Permissions


# On-Prem Deployment

This section provides details of installing and setting up a Nara server hardware and clients within your organisation as an on-premises system.

{% content-ref url="/pages/zLQXpLJHyyVjNpXBSjBm" %}
[Hardware Installation](/configuration/on-prem-deployment/hardware-installation)
{% endcontent-ref %}


# Hardware Installation

The Nara server is supplied as a pre-configured HPZ4 Rack G5 workstation. This is a 1U high unit designed to be mounted in a standard server rack.&#x20;

Internally, there is a dual width A6000 GPU fitted along with a 15TB NVMe drive (used for image caching) and a 10GBase-T Flex IO module to provide a 10 Gigabit Ethernet connection to your media network. There is one free PCIe slot available so if you prefer, you can install an alternative NIC to connect to your network.

The inside of the server is shown below:

<figure><img src="/files/lqsNoV2XJmGqtfO6G2DF" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## Physical Connections

Connections to the server should be made according to the following diagram:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/pavin3pzcJcXywvyptW2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Dual power supplies are installed in order to provide sufficient power for the GPU - ensure that power cables are connected to both power inlets. The server will not run reliably and may fail to boot if one of the power cables is missing.

{% hint style="danger" %}
The Nara server does not provide any power redundancy so you should ensure that it is powered from a suitably backed up power supply such as a UPS. See the [hardware specifications](/configuration/on-prem-deployment/hardware-specifications) section for power requirements and other specifications.
{% endhint %}

The 1GbE port can be used to connect the server to your admin network switch; the 10GbE is normally used to connect to the media network, often via a different switch to the admin network.

Please refer to the [software setup](/configuration/on-prem-deployment/software-setup) section for full details of networking options.

{% hint style="warning" %}
For normal operation you should not need to connect any devices to the USB or Display connectors, however these can be used for a standard keyboard, mouse and monitor if you need to configure the machine locally or for diagnostic purposes.
{% endhint %}


# Software setup


# Hardware Specifications

For customers wishing to provide their own hardware we recommend the following minimum specifications:

* Server-level system to run Rocky-based Linux (we provide an installer for the OS)
* Nvidia RTX A-series GPU or RTX Ada GPU
* Enterprise level high endurance SSD for cache


# Cloud Deployment

Nara can be deployed as a cloud-based service rather than as a physical hardware server hosted within your organisation.

Currently we offer Nara on the Amazon EC2 (Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud) platform. Deployment is  easy for you as we can provide an AMI (Amazon Machine Image) for the latest version of Nara.

Please [contact us](https://nara.stream/contact-us/) for full details and pricing.


# Single Sign-On

Nara supports Single Sign-on (SSO) for users to simplify the process of providing secure access to users.

This section covers the different options supported to integrate Nara with an Identity Provider (IdP) to authenticate user logins.

## Nginx with Oauth2-proxy

In order to integrate Nara with an IdP we have taken the approach of using nginx (<https://nginx.org/>) as a reverse proxy with authentication handled by oauth2-proxy (<https://oauth2-proxy.github.io/oauth2-proxy/>).

The Nara application itself consists of a node.js application which accepts connections on port 443 and starts processes for authenticated users on demand. These processes communicate with the node.js application over a variety of ports using the web sockets protocol which are ultimately fed through the port 443 connection to the client.

The following diagram illustrates the interfaces between these components:

<div align="left"><figure><img src="/files/cwZNyd9X8nHVBkAWYIaB" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Currently Nara works with the following IdPs - click on the links to find configuration examples :

* [Microsoft Entra](/configuration/single-sign-on/microsoft-entra)


# Microsoft Entra

## Configuration steps

The following steps are required to integrate MS Entra with Nara

* [Oauth2-proxy Configuration](#oauth2-proxy-configuration-ms-entra)
* [Nginx Configuration](#nginx-configuration-ms-entra)
* [Final Configuration](#final-configuration-ms-entra)

## Oauth2-proxy Configuration (MS Entra)

We have taken the example oauth2-configuration file from <https://oauth2-proxy.github.io/oauth2-proxy/configuration/providers/> as a starting point.

{% code lineNumbers="true" fullWidth="false" %}

```
## OAuth2 Proxy Config File
## https://github.com/oauth2-proxy/oauth2-proxy

## <addr>:<port> to listen on for HTTP/HTTPS clients
http_address = "127.0.0.1:4180"
https_address = ":443"

## Are we running behind a reverse proxy? Will not accept headers like X-Real-Ip unless this is set.
reverse_proxy = true

## TLS Settings
# tls_cert_file = ""
# tls_key_file = ""

## the OAuth Redirect URL.
# defaults to the "https://" + requested host header + "/oauth2/callback"
redirect_url = “https://example.com/oauth2/callback"

## the http url(s) of the upstream endpoint. If multiple, routing is based on path
# upstreams = [
#     "http://127.0.0.1:8080/"
# ]

## Logging configuration
#logging_filename = "/tmp/oauth2.log"
#logging_max_size = 100
#logging_max_age = 7
#logging_local_time = true
#logging_compress = false
#standard_logging = true
#standard_logging_format = "[{{.Timestamp}}] [{{.File}}] {{.Message}}"
#request_logging = true
#request_logging_format = "{{.Client}} - {{.Username}} [{{.Timestamp}}] {{.Host}} {{.RequestMethod}} {{.Upstream}} {{.RequestURI}} {{.Protocol}} {{.UserAgent}} {{.StatusCode}} {{.ResponseSize}} {{.RequestDuration}}"
#auth_logging = true
#auth_logging_format = "{{.Client}} - {{.Username}} [{{.Timestamp}}] [{{.Status}}] {{.Message}}"

## pass HTTP Basic Auth, X-Forwarded-User and X-Forwarded-Email information to upstream
pass_basic_auth = true
pass_user_headers = true
set_xauthrequest = true 
## pass the request Host Header to upstream
## when disabled the upstream Host is used as the Host Header
# pass_host_header = true

## Email Domains to allow authentication for (this authorizes any email on this domain)
## for more granular authorization use `authenticated_emails_file`
## To authorize any email addresses use "*"
email_domains = [ 
    "*" 
]

provider="entra-id"
#provider="oidc"
oidc_issuer_url=""
scope="openid email profile"
## The OAuth Client ID, Secret
client_id = ""
client_secret = ""

## Scopes Added to the request
## It has the same behavior as the --scope flag
# scope = "openid email"

## Pass OAuth Access token to upstream via "X-Forwarded-Access-Token"
#pass_access_token = true

## Authenticated Email Addresses File (one email per line)
# authenticated_emails_file = ""

## Htpasswd File (optional)
## Additionally authenticate against a htpasswd file. Entries must be created with "htpasswd -B" for bcrypt encryption
## enabling exposes a username/login signin form
# htpasswd_file = ""

## bypass authentication for requests that match the method & path. Format: method=path_regex OR path_regex alone for all methods
skip_auth_routes = [
  "GET=^/probe",
  "^/metrics"
]

## mark paths as API routes to get HTTP Status code 401 instead of redirect to login page
# api_routes = [
#   "^/api"
# ]

## Templates
## optional directory with custom sign_in.html and error.html
# custom_templates_dir = ""

## skip SSL checking for HTTPS requests
# ssl_insecure_skip_verify = false


## Cookie Settings
## Name     - the cookie name
## Secret   - the seed string for secure cookies; should be 16, 24, or 32 bytes
##            for use with an AES cipher when cookie_refresh or pass_access_token
##            is set
## Domain   - (optional) cookie domain to force cookies to (ie: .yourcompany.com)
## Expire   - (duration) expire timeframe for cookie
## Refresh  - (duration) refresh the cookie when duration has elapsed after cookie was initially set.
##            Should be less than cookie_expire; set to 0 to disable.
##            On refresh, OAuth token is re-validated.
##            (ie: 1h means tokens are refreshed on request 1hr+ after it was set)
## Secure   - secure cookies are only sent by the browser of a HTTPS connection (recommended)
## HttpOnly - httponly cookies are not readable by javascript (recommended)
cookie_name = "_oauth2_proxy"
cookie_secret = ""
# cookie_domains = ""
cookie_expire = "168h"
cookie_refresh = "1h"
cookie_secure = true
cookie_httponly = true

whitelist_domains = "login.microsoftonline.com"

```

{% endcode %}

## Nginx Configuration (MS Entra)

We have taken the example nginx configuration file at <https://oauth2-proxy.github.io/oauth2-proxy/configuration/integration> as a starting point.

{% code lineNumbers="true" fullWidth="true" %}

```
location /oauth2/ {
                proxy_pass       http://127.0.0.1:4180;
                proxy_set_header Host                    $host;
                proxy_set_header X-Real-IP               $remote_addr;
                proxy_set_header X-Auth-Request-Redirect $request_uri;
                # or, if you are handling multiple domains:
                # proxy_set_header X-Auth-Request-Redirect $scheme://$host$request_uri;
        }
        location = /oauth2/auth {
                proxy_pass       http://127.0.0.1:4180;
                proxy_set_header Host             $host;
                proxy_set_header X-Real-IP        $remote_addr;
                proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Uri  $request_uri;
                # nginx auth_request includes headers but not body
                proxy_set_header Content-Length   "";
                proxy_pass_request_body           off;
        }

        location / {
                auth_request /oauth2/auth;
                error_page 401 =403 /oauth2/sign_in;

                # pass information via X-User and X-Email headers to backend,
                # requires running with --set-xauthrequest flag
                auth_request_set $user   $upstream_http_x_auth_request_user;
                auth_request_set $email  $upstream_http_x_auth_request_email;
                auth_request_set $groups  $upstream_http_x_auth_request_groups;
                auth_request_set $username $upstream_http_x_auth_request_preferred_username;
                proxy_set_header X-User  $user;
                proxy_set_header X-Email $email;
                proxy_set_header X-Groups $groups;
                proxy_set_header X-Preferred-Username $username;
                proxy_pass_request_headers on;

                # if you enabled --pass-access-token, this will pass the token to the backend
                auth_request_set $token  $upstream_http_x_auth_request_access_token;
                proxy_set_header X-Access-Token $token;

                # if you enabled --cookie-refresh, this is needed for it to work with auth_request
                auth_request_set $auth_cookie $upstream_http_set_cookie;
                add_header Set-Cookie $auth_cookie;

                # When using the --set-authorization-header flag, some provider's cookies can exceed the 4kb
                # limit and so the OAuth2 Proxy splits these into multiple parts.
                # Nginx normally only copies the first `Set-Cookie` header from the auth_request to the response,
                # so if your cookies are larger than 4kb, you will need to extract additional cookies manually.
                auth_request_set $auth_cookie_name_upstream_1 $upstream_cookie_auth_cookie_name_1;

                # Extract the Cookie attributes from the first Set-Cookie header and append them
                # to the second part ($upstream_cookie_* variables only contain the raw cookie content)
                if ($auth_cookie ~* "(; .*)") {
                        set $auth_cookie_name_0 $auth_cookie;
                        set $auth_cookie_name_1 "auth_cookie_name_1=$auth_cookie_name_upstream_1$1";
                }

                # Send both Set-Cookie headers now if there was a second part
                if ($auth_cookie_name_upstream_1) {
                        add_header Set-Cookie $auth_cookie_name_0;
                        add_header Set-Cookie $auth_cookie_name_1;
                }

                proxy_set_header Authorization $http_authorization;

                proxy_pass https://evija:443/;
        }
     	location ~ ^/(prod/gigl/\d+|nara/\d+/?$|nara/\d+/\d+|formats/gigl/\d+) {
                auth_request /oauth2/auth;
                proxy_http_version 1.1;
                proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
                proxy_set_header Connection "Upgrade";
                proxy_set_header Host $host;
                proxy_read_timeout 7d;
		    auth_request_set $username $upstream_http_x_auth_request_preferred_username;
    		    proxy_set_header X-Preferred-Username $username;
    		    proxy_pass_request_headers on;

    		    proxy_pass https://backend-nara/$1$is_args$args;
        }

```

{% endcode %}

## Final Configuration (MS Entra)

### To configure Nara:&#x20;

* Set the logout URL in the Nara configuration file at /usr/fl/etc/service.nara.cfg. This should be set to log out of oauth2-proxy, Entra and ideally to finally redirect back to the login page. Note that the logout URL will depend on your tenant id and can be found in the OIDC well known configuration page.&#x20;
* Also set the ENABLESSO variable to 1 to enable reading of the http headers by the Nara application.

## Testing

In order to successfully integrate with Entra Nara requires that the proxy sets the X-Preferred-Username header after successfully authenticating. If this header is found, an entry will be written to the Nara access log at /usr/fl/log/nara.log which looks like:<br>

`6/3/2025, 12:55:01 PM : SSO Auth success for JohnAppleseed@nara.stream Administrator`<br>

You can check whether oauth2-proxy is successfully setting this header by visiting eg [example.com/oauth2/auth](http://example.com/oauth2/auth) and examining the http headers.


# Glossary

This section explains the meaning of specific terms and words used in Nara.


# User Interface Controls