Wiretap is Autodesk's cross-platform client-server interoperability framework, providing Lustre with high-performance access to remote media and metadata. With Wiretap, there is no need to export files from the Autodesk Visual Effects and Finishing application, nor to output to a VTR, prior to grading in Lustre. You can import Visual Effects and Finishing timelines directly from the host application, and read/write clips and frames on remote Visual Effects and Finishing Stone FS and Standard FS storage devices with the same ease as you would local media.
Lustre gains access to the remote media and metadata via Wiretap servers running on the host workstations. A Wiretap server is installed by default with most Visual Effects and Finishing applications, and runs independently of the application. By default, Lustre automatically detects all the Wiretap servers running on the Wiretap network. You can then browse for footage on the remote filesystem and load it into the Shot bin or timeline, just as if it were locally attached storage.
Lustre can interpret a Visual Effects and Finishing timeline as a single one-sequence clip, or as an EDL. When you reference a Wiretap EDL in Lustre, the dissolve and splice transitions are maintained. The Wiretap EDL appears on the Lustre timeline as a series of shots and transitions. Each shot comprising the EDL is added separately to the Shot bin, with DLEDL appended to the shot name. Working with remote timelines containing soft-imported clips is equally possible.
Regarding clip playback speed, network bandwidth and traffic play the expected role. On an optimized GigE network, for example, you can achieve up to 80 MB/sec throughput. This is enough for real-time playback of SD clips, or about 1/4 real-time for 2K material. Better results can be achieved using InfiniBand. Note that the Visual Effects and Finishing application on the Wiretap server host workstation can also affect performance. Visual Effects and Finishing applications have guaranteed access to the 'local' framestores—remote access by Lustre over Wiretap is at a lower priority. If you notice playback is suffering, consider rendering local proxies for the remote material.
Once you are finished grading the material from the Stone FS or Standard FS, there are different rendering possibilities. As with any Lustre grading project, you can render to the local storage array. Under Wiretap it is also possible to render back to the Stone FS or Standard FS, and to publish soft-import links to rendered media.
