Disk Database Location - OS Drive

Hi there,

Where do you store your Resolve Disk Database? On the OS SSD? External Media Drive? External SSD?

Cheers

A disk database should be on the boot drive. Putting it elsewhere can cause weird errors.


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I disagree with Seth. My practice and advice is to store nothing on the System drive but the OS and Software. I've had no troubles with it and have avoided troubles when the OS needs a wipe/refresh.

I use the following setup.

System
Projects (Databases)
Cache
Media
Exports

I disagree with Seth. My practice and advice is to store nothing on the System drive but the OS and Software. I've had no troubles with it and have avoided troubles when the OS needs a wipe/refresh.

I use the following setup.

System
Projects (Databases)
Cache
Media
Exports

The disk database needs the native OS file system to function properly.

I previously stored a disk database on a network share and ran into strange issues with caching: Resolve's cache files stored on a NAS via SMB3 are trashed whenever a project is saved
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?share_ ... are_type=t

An external HFS Plus, APFS, NTFS or EXT4 might be OK, but don’t use a network share.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for your answer.

We have to peopleo with two different suggestions - anybody else?

I disagree with Seth. My practice and advice is to store nothing on the System drive but the OS and Software. I've had no troubles with it and have avoided troubles when the OS needs a wipe/refresh.

I use the following setup.

System
Projects (Databases)
Cache
Media
Exports

The disk database needs the native OS file system to function properly.

I previously stored a disk database on a network share and ran into strange issues with caching: Resolve's cache files stored on a NAS via SMB3 are trashed whenever a project is saved
https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?share_ ... are_type=t

An external HFS Plus, APFS, NTFS or EXT4 might be OK, but don’t use a network share.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

+1 with Seth

An advice :
In disk Database with windows:
Always make sure to leave under:
C: \ ProgramData \ Blackmagic Design \ DaVinci Resolve \ Support (hidden directory by default)

after:
C: \ ProgramData \ Blackmagic Design \ DaVinci Resolve \ Support \ Resolve Disk Database

C: \ ProgramData \ Blackmagic Design \ DaVinci Resolve \ Support \ Resolve Disk Database14_3

C: \ ProgramData \ Blackmagic Design \ DaVinci Resolve \ Support \ Resolve Disk Database15_x

C: \ ProgramData \ Blackmagic Design \ DaVinci Resolve \ Support \ as you like

You can connect or disconnect. Backup/save...etc...

Other :
Do not complain if it does not work.

[Dwaine Maggart]

All right, I'll add to the confusion.

I would suggest it be on a PERSISTENT, i.e. NON-REMOVABLE local storage volume.

It can be the boot drive. It can be a local media drive or RAID array.

But I would not recommend a network drive. And definitely not a cloud drive. And definitely not on a removable USB or Thunderbolt drive.

The disk database needs the native OS file system to function properly.

That may be, but typically all internal drives will be using the native OS file system, so the database doesn't need to be on the System drive, and I maintain is better placed elsewhere.

I previously stored a disk database on a network share

I think that was your issue.

I'm suggesting a Local drive installed inside the case.

Do not complain if it does not work

Keeping my databases on their own Local drive always has.

Do not complain if it does not work

Keeping my databases on their own Local drive always has.

+1
No problem Jim

Reviving this discussion with some thoughts and questions from the academic, computer lab world.
We have struggled trying to solve a significant problem with DaVinci and weird behaviors in our labs. This should be considered, I hope, by BlackMagic a real problem to be solved fast.

Computers in labs in an academic environment are locked down for good reason. The IT folks are not keen on granting rights to folders inside the system and other critical file areas. However, our IT does allows the software(s) to access the stuff in the Library/Application support area. So far that fits with the needs of Resolve.

Our IT locks down the documents, music, Pictures, and video folders. That is where Resolve likes to place cache, capture, render folders. So the students get the continual 'you do not have read/write privileges..." This also breaks the Gallery stills and any hope of doing the split screen color correction comparison between clips.

The big variable.. the students. Although lots like to set at the same machine each class, off hours they are not so fortunate and might have to park at another machine. Now they do not have access to their projects on the other machine where the database resides.

We have them create their database and other required folders on their personal USB drives. In theory, this should work. It doesn't. They have lots of issues, although losing projects or having them over-written is not one of them. They do have a black screen on one side of the comparison split screen between two clips. And there are other little things that glitch as well.

I teach about 100 students DaVinci (edit, color, etc) each semester at our University. Most are liking DaVinci and might move from Premier. Some do. Some don't because of this glitchy lab experience. Valid comment from them is 'do I really want to trust something this glitchy. Premier does not do this in our labs.'

I am not a programmer. I do, however, understand database driven environments. I would think that if Blackmagic understood the magnitude and impact of schools introducing their program to thousands of students where the program behaves badly on a daily basis, that might not be a good way to win over recruits. This should be something to fix... and it's not that hard. The folks working under the hood on DaVinci are crack coders. They got Fairlight integrated in what I would deem, unbelievable time frames. Same with Fusion. Fixing how the program deals with databases in the root of the OS or on networks or user USB drives should be a cake walk.

I offer a thought from the AVID playbook. If it makes it easier, require the database folder to be on the root of any attached drive. Avid MediaFiles folder has to be there for Avid to find it. And it will on any drive attached.

If anyone has a solution to similar lab environment fixes, I need some. Big thanks.

Bob Trim
Assoc. Prof. Digital Media
Utah Valley University

Avid ACI
DaVinci certified instructor
((RADAR)) certified DIT

Qualification: Bachelor of Computer Science Maj. Networking

My contribution would be that there's no need for the database to be on the C drive, mine works fine - I've switched between my laptop and desktop for editing by putting the database and project files on a removable T5 SSD - I've had no issues - I currently use this method to divide raw footage from my cache so I can read from one and write to the other for quick turnaround transcoding.

Writing to a network share is different in more ways you'd be interested in hearing about and I would expect issues with that, over time.

Remapping user environments to network shares can be done a variety of ways and each will behave in a different way, most commonly roaming profiles which often fail because of caching issues and version inconsistency in my experience.

I now have a Macbook Pro and a Windows Workstation. Is there a way I can have a shared Database? For instance via Dropbox / Google Drive?

I think you missed what everyone's saying about networks causing issues, Janis

Our IT locks down the documents, music, Pictures, and video folders.

Those are the folders that anyone using a computer most need access to. It's...idiotic...to lock those. You should politely impress that idea upon your IT folks.

Those are the folders that anyone using a computer most need access to. It's...idiotic...to lock those. You should politely impress that idea upon your IT folks.

To the contrary, it's totally normal to not have access to another user's home folders. The solution here is to configure Resolve to use a directory accessible by all authenticated users elsewhere on the drive, and set the media/gallery/stills/whatever directories in Resolve to use those folders.

A disk database should be on the boot drive. Putting it elsewhere can cause weird errors.

In defense of the idea "put disk databases on Google Drive": I'm just setting up a new Resolve edit PC and thinking about essential backups.

1) The /Google Drive/ folder lives on the c:/ drive by default. So Resolve would not be accessing the cloud when loading. Google Drive's purpose is simply to clone everything to the cloud.
2) If I need to hand over the project to a post house then could I not simply give them a rushes-drive, plus give share-access to the relevant database stored in my g-drive cloud?
3) Assuming I've backed up my rushes, then is this not a good "basic minimum" backup solution?

Advice appreciated.

Doing some research around internal disk layouts to better support DaVinci Resolve in my next system ran across this thread.

For me, the current plan is to go 3-4 individual SSD M.2 NVMe drives, depending on #4 options
1.) 1 OS running Windows 10 (at least 500+ GB, Windows isn't large, but having space for Games)
2.) 1 Media files for projects such as video and music files, plus install Binaries of Resolve (+2 TB)
3.) 1 Resolve Cache/proxy files (1TB in size)

4.) 1 Local Postgres database - Dedicated drive (256GB)
4a.) Placing on the Media File Drive - Shared total
4b.) Leaving on the OS drive, and using Project Backup feature to the Media Drive - Shared

Backup and long-term retention
5.) Local Network NAS - Export of project with all original media files (already have this for years)
6.) Remote Offsite NAS - Nightly incremental backups (already have this for years)

Like a few people here the OS is 100% throw away. I don't want to stress installing. OneDrive built-in takes care of most of the data, avoid saving on desktop and other odd places.


Bom Trim = The Teacher!
I would recommend personally setting in the lab one or two dedicated systems. The first is a resolve project server so the students can create their own databases and not worry about keeping them on one computer. HOWEVER, security side never investigated it would be can other students open each other's databases, delete each other's databases, etc. Project server was designed to collaborate and there isn't a cheating concern. There is a RBAC based model or away to only allow students to have access to their databases after you create it, etc.

If this system is powerful enough could also use it as a remote rendering server too rather than having to scale up all the hardware in the lab.