System Director Functionality
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Both Controllers are active at the same time; there is no Active and Standby designation.
If one entire Controller fails, the System Director service (and other services) can fail over to the
other one while the system keeps running. However, failover does not occur if the network
connection to a Controller fails. Failover occurs only between Controllers in the same physical
chassis, never between Controllers in different chassis.
16GB vs 32GB Memory Controllers
As of Avid NEXIS version 2019.10.0, Controllers with 16GB of memory (see “Types of Controllers”
on page 13) in Avid NEXIS | E2 or Avid NEXIS | E2 SSD engines no longer support new activations
of Avid NEXIS | Cloudspaces if they are also serving as the System Director for a shared-storage
system. Avid NEXIS | E2 and Avid NEXIS | E2 SSD Controllers with 16GB of memory can be used
in the storage-only Engines in a Cloudspaces configuration.
If you have an embedded System Director running on an Avid NEXIS | E2 or Avid NEXIS | E2 SSD
and Cloudspaces is already activated, after you upgrade to Avid NEXIS version 2019.10.0 or higher
a warning message is displayed in the Management Console advising you to upgrade the 16GB
Controllers to a 32GB version (available as a fee-based upgrade) in the Engine running the System
Director. You can continue to create and manage Cloudspaces (Workspaces) in an existing
Cloudspaces configuration.
System Director Functionality
The System Director maintains all information about the file system. The System Director is either
embedded on a Controller in an Engine, or runs separately on a System Director Appliance. In any
Avid NEXIS configuration, there is only one System Director. If the System Director is embedded,
the first Engine configured in a multi-Engine system runs the System Director for the entire system.
The embedded System Director can manage up to four Media Packs.
The System Director Appliance can manage more than four Media Packs, up to the limit described in
the Avid NEXIS ReadMe, with either the Avid NEXIS | FS Extended license or the Avid NEXIS | FS
Advanced license. The System Director Appliance cannot be used with an Avid NEXIS | PRO.
The System Director:
• Manages the metadata by storing directory information and file attributes.
• Provides a location to coordinate file access modes (read/write), file locking, range locking,
performance data collection, logging, file lookup, and directory change tracking for client
systems.
• Provides the following information:
- Identity of all connected storage systems
- Information about the drives, power, cooling and Controllers in the configuration
- Names of workspaces
- Lists of users and groups within the system
The System Director does not store client data (media files); these are stored on the Media Packs
(drives) within one or more Engines. System Director metadata is mirrored on the system drives in
the Engines or in the System Director Appliance.
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