VBrick Systems VOD-W Server VBrick v4.2.1 Manual

VBrick v4.2.1 VOD-WM Server
Admin Guide
April 15, 2008
4410-0179-0003
Ethernet TV VOD-WM
Video on Demand Server

Copyright
© 2008 VBrick Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
12 Beaumont Road
Wallingford, Connecticut 06492, USA
www.VBrick.com
This publication contains confidential, proprietary, and trade secret information. No part of this document may be
copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or reduced to any machine-readable or electronic format without
prior written permission from VBrick. Information in this document is subject to change without notice and
VBrick Systems assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies. VBrick, VBrick Systems, the
VBrick logo, StreamPlayer, and StreamPlayer Plus are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United States and
other countries. Windows Media is a trademarked name of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other
countries. All other products or services mentioned in this document are identified by the trademarks, service
marks, or product names as designated by the companies who market those products. Inquiries should be made
directly to those companies. This document may also have links to third-party web pages that are beyond the
control of VBrick. The presence of such links does not imply that VBrick endorses or recommends the content of
any third-party web pages. VBrick acknowledges the use of third-party open source software and licenses in some
VBrick products. This freely available source code is posted at http://www.vbrick.com/opensource.
FCC Notice
This equipment carries the CE mark and is UL listed in the U.S. and Canada. This equipment also complies with
the limits for Class B digital devices pursuant to FCC Part 15 testing standards for most electronic equipment.
These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is
operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy
and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference in which
case the user will be required to correct the interference at their own expense. This Class B digital apparatus meets
all requirements of the Canadian Interference-Causing Equipment Regulations. Cet appareil numerique de la
Classe B respecte toutes les exigences do reglement dur le materiel brouilleur du Canada.
About VBrick Systems
Founded in 1997, VBrick Systems, an ISO 9001 certified vendor, is a privately held company that has enjoyed rapid
growth by helping our customers successfully introduce mission critical video applications across their enterprise
networks. Since our founding, VBrick has been setting the standard for quality, performance and innovation in the
delivery of live and stored video over IP networks—LANs, WANs and the Internet. With thousands of video
appliances installed world-wide, VBrick is the recognized leader in reliable, high-performance, easy-to-use
networked video solutions.
VBrick is an active participant in the development of industry standards and continues to play an influential role in
the Internet Streaming Media Alliance (ISMA), the MPEG Industry Forum, and Internet2. In 1998 VBrick
invented and shipped the world's first MPEG Video Network Appliance designed to provide affordable DVD-
quality video across the network. Since then, VBrick's video solutions have grown to include Video on Demand,
Management, Security and Access Control, Scheduling, and Rich Media Integration. VBrick solutions are
successfully supporting a broad variety of applications including distance learning and training, conferencing and
remote office communications, security, process monitoring, traffic monitoring, business and news feeds to the
desktop, webcasting, corporate communications, collaboration, command and control, and telemedicine. VBrick
serves customers in education, government, healthcare, and financial services markets among others.

VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide iii
Contents
VOD-WM v4.2.1 Admin Guide
Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Font Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Related Publications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Printer-Friendly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
1. Server Overview
Feature Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Server Compatibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
External Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
VOD-WM Server Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
VOD-WM Server Software CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2. Getting Started
Installing the VOD-WM Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Step 1. Unpack the Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Step 2. Connect the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Step 3. Login to the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Step 4. Configure the IP Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Step 5. Configure the ETV Portal Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Step 6. Verify the Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3. Managing the Server
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Managing the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Server Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Performance Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Windows Event Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4. Creating Publishing Points
Creating Publishing Points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Creating Authenticated Push Publishing Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Creating Non-Authenticated Push Publishing Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Creating Pull Publishing Points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5. Adding Content
Content Backup and Recovery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

iv Contents
6. Restoring Windows Media Services
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Restoring Windows Media Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
7. Reinstalling the Software
Reinstalling the Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Initializing the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Configuring the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Adding Content to the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Viewing and Verifying the Content. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide v
VOD-WM v4.2.1 Admin Guide
This VOD-WM Server Admin Guide is written for anyone who will be using or configuring a
VBrick EtherneTV VOD-WM Video on Demand Server. This includes system
administrators, network technicians, and others. This document explains how to set up and
configure the VOD-WM server and how to perform initial administration tasks. For most
common tasks like ingesting content, use the ETV Portal Server and refer to the ETV Portal
Server Admin Guide for details. You can perform most administration tasks using the Portal
Server. VOD-WM servers are a key component in VBrick's EtherneTV Media Distribution
System. They provide standard VOD features for Windows Media files.
Organization
Font Conventions
Arial bold is used to describe dialog boxes and menu choices, for example: Start > All
Programs > VBrick
Courier fixed-width font is used for code elements (C++, HTML) as well as
filenames, directories, etc.
Black Courier fixed-width font is used to indicate user input in keyboard commands,
scripts, etc.
Folder names and user examples are displayed in this sans serif font.
Folder names and user input are displayed in this bold sans serif font.
Italics are used to emphasize specific words or phrases.
Related Publications
Dell PowerEdge 1950 Documentation
Dell PowerEdge 2950 Documentation
Server Overview provides an overview of the WM server including compatibility
and system requirements.
Getting Started explains how to unpack and install the server. This includes
setting the IP address and configuration in ETV Portal Server.
Managing the Server explains how to use monitoring and performance resources on
the server to track bandwidth, usage, logging, etc.
Creating Publishing
Points
explains how to create authenticated and non-authenticated
publishing points on the server.
Adding Content explains how to ingest video content to the server.
Restoring Windows
Media Services
explains how to restore Windows Media Services management
after you change the computer name.

vi Preface
Printer-Friendly
VOD-WM Server Release Notes
VOD-WM Server Admin Guide

VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 1
Chapter 1
Server Overview
VBrick's VOD-WM Server has been integrated with the EtherneTV family of products
including the Portal Server, the WM Network Video Appliance, the Scheduler, and the
Network Video Recorder (NVR). The VOD-WM delivers stored Windows Media assets as
unicast/multicast streams across an Ethernet network and is built on a Dell hardware
platform. Other features include the ability to schedule asset playback, asset searching, user
and system statistics, and more. The Portal Server is required to gain the full benefits of the
VOD-WM server and is sold separately. In order to set up the Portal Server, follow the
directions in the EtherneTV Portal Server Admin Guide. Once the Portal Server is setup, you
can access video on the VOD-WM server through the Portal Server web interface.
Topics in this chapter
Feature Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
VOD-WM Server Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Feature Overview
VBrick VOD-WM servers provide interactive, on-demand playback of Windows Media video
that is stored on the server with a variety of methods. The VOD-WM servers are a basic
component in the VBrick's EtherneTV solution and work seamlessly with the EtherneTV
Portal Server. They ingest and deliver unicast (or multicast) streams in Windows Media
format. The VOD-WM Server supports Fast Forward and Rewind. The general
specifications for the VOD-WM servers are shown below. See the Dell documents listed in
Related Publications on page v for more information.
Table 1. VOD-WM Server Specifications
Model Hardware †Software †† Content Drives
(Internal)
Content Drives
(External) †††
Basic Dell 1950 Standard Edition 1–2 (300GB) 5 drives per 1.5TB (27TB
max) Hardware RAID5
Basic Dell 1950 Enterprise Edition 1–2 (300GB)
Advanced Dell 2950 Standard Edition 4 (146GB)
Hardware RAID5
Advanced Dell 2950 Enterprise Edition
(supports
multicast)
4 (146GB)
Hardware RAID5
† Dell PowerEdge Server (rack-mounted)
†† Microsoft Windows Server 2003
††† Dell MD1000 SAS with 1.5TB – 27TB (6 x 4.5TB).

2© 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
Table 2. VOD-WM Server Throughput
Figure 1. EtherneTV Media Distribution System
Server Compatibility
The VOD-WM servers are compatible with the following VBrick devices:
• VB6000 WM Network Video Appliances with VBDNA 1.0 or higher.
• EtherneTV Portal Server v3.2 or higher.
• EtherneTV Scheduler v3.2 or higher
• Network Video Recorder v3.2 or higher.
• StreamPlayer 4.3 or higher.
System Requirements
The VOD-WM server has been tested to provide the specified performance with no
additional software installed. Be aware that the installation of virus scanners or security software
that consume system I/O resources may have an adverse impact on streaming performance. These
components are not tested by VBrick and you should test the VOD-WM for performance
and reliability after installing them.
VOD-WM Server Max Throughput †
VOD-WM Basic (Standard) 125 Mbps
VOD-WM Basic (Enterprise) 125 Mbps
VOD-WM Advanced (Standard) 300 Mbps
VOD-WM Advanced (Enterprise) 300 Mbps
† These are qualified throughput measurements. Actual throughput depends on bitrate,
number of connections, disk fragmentation, and other factors, and may be higher.

Server Overview
VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 3
External Storage
VBrick's SAS (serial attached SCSI) ES5, ES10, and ES15 external storage arrays are fully
compatible with all VOD-WM servers.
VOD-WM Server Software
All server software is pre-installed by VBrick. If, for some reason, you ever need to reinstall
the software, use the Dell recovery CDs to reinstall the Windows Server 2003 (Standard or
Enterprise) operating system. Contact VBrick Support Services if you need help. Each VOD-
WM server has the following software pre-installed.
• Windows Server 2003 (Standard or Enterprise Edition).
• Internet Information Services (IIS).
•ASP.NET.
VOD-WM Server Software CD
The VOD-W Server Software CD has all server documentation including this VOD-WM
Server Admin Guide in searchable HTML format.
Figure 2. VOD-WM Server Product CD
Note Windows Media Services are installed and a publishing point is configured on the
server prior to shipment. The Computer Name of the VOD-WM Server is VODWM.
If you subsequently change this name, you will temporarily be unable to manage
Windows Media Services. See Restoring Windows Media Services on page 21 and/
or contact VBrick Support Services for more information.

4© 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
Technical Support
If you can’t find the information you need from the documentation or from your reseller, you
can contact VBrick Support Services on the web at www.VBrick.com/support The Support
Services website has downloads, FAQs, documentation, support guidelines, and an on-line
form you can use to submit questions. VBrick will make every effort to answer your technical
questions in 24 business hours or less.

VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 5
Chapter 2
Getting Started
Installing the VOD-WM Server
The hardware installation of the VOD-WM server is straightforward. Unpack the server and
connect the cables as described below. Note that all server software is pre-installed before
being shipped.
TTo install the server onsite at your location
Step 1. Unpack the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Step 2. Connect the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Step 3. Login to the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Step 4. Configure the IP Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Step 5. Configure the ETV Portal Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Step 6. Verify the Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Step 1. Unpack the Server
Each shipment comes with:
• A Dell PowerEdge 1950 or 2950 server configured with a Microsoft Windows Media
streaming server.
• All power cords and cables.
• Rack mount kit.
•ThisEtherneTV-VOD-WM Server Admin Guide.
• VBrick VOD-WM Server Product CD.
Step 2. Connect the Server
TTo set up the VOD-WM server:
1. Connect the monitor, keyboard, mouse, and network cables as described below.
Note The following steps explain how to connect Dell PowerEdge 1950/2950 servers. To
connect 1850/2850 servers, refer to the previous version of this manual that was
shipped with those servers. To view all VBrick product documentation, go to
www.vbrick.com/support/documentation

6© 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
Figure 3. VOD-WM (Dell 1950 – Rear View)
Figure 4. VOD-WM (Dell 2950 – Rear View)
2. If rack mounting the unit, mount the VOD-WM server in the rack, using the rack mount
kit provided.
3. Connect the VOD-WM server to the network by plugging the 10/100/1000 BaseT
Ethernet cable into the Ethernet port 1 on the rear of the unit.
4. Connect the monitor cable to the blue video port (front or rear) on the VOD-WM server.
Turn the monitor on.
5. Connect a mouse and keyboard to any available USB ports (front or rear) on the
VOD-WM server.
6. Plug the VOD-WM server into a power source, using the power cords provided. (All
VOD servers have redundant power supplies, each with its own cord.)

Getting Started
VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 7
7. Turn the VOD-WM server's main power on by pressing the power switch at the front of
the unit.
Figure 5. VOD-WM (Dell 1950 – Front View)
Figure 6. VOD-WM (Dell 2950 – Front View)
8. The VOD-WM server will boot and automatically load using the default settings. Wait 5–8
minutes for the unit to fully power up. As new hardware is attached (for example a
keyboard and mouse) the operating system will automatically find and install the drivers.
Step 3. Login to the Server
After the server boots, the next step is to login with the default user name (Administrator).
After logging in, it is always a good idea to add a password.
TTo add an administrator password:
1. Go to Start > Administrative Tools > Computer Management.
2. In the left panel expand Local Users and Groups and then click on Users.
3. Highlight the Administrator user and then right-click and select Set Password.
4. Ignore any warning and enter and confirm an Administrator password.

8© 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
Step 4. Configure the IP Address
You need to configure the IP address as explained below on the server machine. When done, be sure
to reboot the machine before configuring the server in the ETV Portal Server. VBrick
strongly recommends that you use a static IP address rather than a dynamically-configured
DHCP. The use of a DHCP server creates a number of issues when the IP address changes.
For example clients configured to point to the VOD-WM server's IP address may need to be
re-configured. Also, the ETV Portal Server is configured to use the IP address of the VOD-
WM server so the Portal Server configuration will have to change. You can configure the IP
address by connecting a monitor to the VGA port on the server.
TTo configure the static IP address of the server machine in Windows:
1. Go to Start > Control Panel > Network Connections > Local Area Connection.
2. Then click on Properties and double-click on Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
3. Click on Use the following IP address and enter the values provided by your system
administrator for IP address, Subnet mask, and Default gateway.
4. Click OK when done.

Getting Started
VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 9
Step 5. Configure the ETV Portal Server
The VOD-WM server must be configured in VBrick's ETV Portal Server before it is
recognized as part of the ETV system.
TTo configure the VOD-WM server in ETV Portal Server:
1. Launch ETV Portal Server and login as an administrator.
2. Go to Global Settings > Servers and select VOD-WM-STANDARD or VOD-WM-
ENTERPRISE from the dropdown list.
3. Enter the IP or Domain, Server Description (optional), FTP User Name (default =
vbrickuser) and FTP Password (default = vbrickuser).
4. Accept the default Publishing Point parameters and click Add when done.
This completes the Portal Server configuration. However in order to verify the installation as
explained below, you must manually sync up the VOD-WM server with the ETV Portal
Server as follows:
TTo manually sync the VOD-WM server with the ETV Portal Server:
1. Launch the ETV Portal Server admin tool and go to Global Settings > Global
Assignments > Assign VOD Polling Interval.
2. Click Sync Now. Do not change anything else and exit when done.
Step 6. Verify the Installation
Use the following sequence of steps to verify the VOD-WM server is installed properly and
can communicate with the ETV Portal Server. If you can use the ETV Portal Server to
launch a video stored on the VOD-WM Server, you have tested connectivity and verified the
installation. For more information about ETV Portal Server, see the ETV Portal Server
Admin Guide.

10 © 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
TTo verify the installation:
1. Ping the IP address of the VOD-WM server from any PC in the same network.
2. Launch an ETV Portal Server client. Open a browser and enter the ETV Portal Server
hostname or IP address (e.g. http://portalserveripaddress) in the address bar.
3. Go to the Asset Library and launch any of the Windows Media (wmv) videos available in
the Demo folder. If it runs, you have successfully completed the installation.

VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 11
Chapter 3
Managing the Server
Topics in this chapter
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Managing the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Windows Event Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Overview
Windows Media Services provides numerous tools to help you manage a streaming media
server. This section provides a brief overview of some of the resources that are available to
help you manage the server. Use the Help pages embedded in the server application to
understand the concepts and get help for specific issues. You can also go to the Microsoft
Streaming Server website for additional information: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/
windowsmedia/9series/server.aspx
Managing the Server
TTo launch the Windows Media server:
1. Go to Start > Administrative Tools > Manage Your Server.
2. On the Managing Your Server Roles page, click on Manage this streaming media
server. This displays the Welcome to Windows Media Services 9 Series page.
3. Double-click on the server name to display the Getting Started page and expand the tree
control.

12 © 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
This page has four tabbed windows as follows.
Getting Started Displays various help topics to help you get acquainted with the
system.
Properties Displays various server properties such as Logging, Event
notification, etc. Highlight any property in the Category list, then
right-click and select Properties in the Plug-in list (or use the
View properties icon at the bottom of the page)
Advertising Used to add advertising content.
Monitor Information only. Click the View Performance Monitor icon to
launch the Windows Media Performance Monitor.

Managing the Server
VBrick VOD-WM Server Admin Guide 13
Server Properties
TTo display or set logging properties:
1. Select Logging in the Category list.
2. Select WMS Client Logging and right-click to Enable/Disable logging.
3. Right-click and select Properties to set Logging Properties including the location of the
log file.
Note The default Publishing Point on the VOD-WM server is VBP and it must match the
server configuration in ETV Portal Server. You can change the Publishing Point
name but VBrick strongly recommends you keep the default.

14 © 2007 VBrick Systems, Inc.
Performance Monitor
Click on the Monitor tab for a quick read-only view of bandwidth and usage metrics. Use the
icon to Start/Stop services, reset counters, or to launch the Performance Monitor.
TTo view the Performance Monitor:
1. Click the View Performance Monitor icon at the bottom of the window.
2. Use the toolbar controls above the display area to add or remove counters.