Tried something new(new to me)

[lightzilla]

So I have the main SD card & a backup SD card just in case the main SD card fails. Well the main SD card failed tonight & so I used the backup card. However there is one sequence I really wanted because I can't open the lms file or the bak file to that sequence. Actually I don't remember how to open a bak file.

Anyway I inserted the faulty SD card into the SD slot on the laptop. I made 12 separate folders (named each one) Song 1, Song 2, Song 3 and so on up to song 12.  Then I move song 1 & seq 1 from folder to a new SD card, then song 2 seq 2 to SD card, then song 3 seq 3 and so on... until all 12 songs & sequences were on the new SD card. Went upstairs and inserted the SD card into the Director unit & it works great. So I still have a main SD card & a backup SD card with the one song that I worked hard on. That sequence won't open. The good thing about that song is I had it partly sequenced again. (Forgot I started it).

So maybe someone already knew about this way of taking songs & sequences from a failed SD card and uploading to a new SD card (via folders), but to me it was good just to save that one song & sequence for the show. 

[Orville]

I always have at least 2 SD Cards with the show on them {total of 3 SD Cards} but I also copy my SD Card DIRECTLY, just as it is into a folder on my hard-drive called SD BACKUP SHOW, and I just copy and paste from the SD Card at the time AFTER the Show is written to the SD Card, into that folder on the Hard Drive.  Then I just need to reformat the original card {if, or when it fails} by copying those files from that folder directly back to my SD Card.   Never had an issue in doing this.

 

As for .bak files, you DO NOT open them, you RENAME them back to the original sequence .lms filename.   Filename should look something like HollyJollyCHristmas.lms.bak, just rename the file by deleting the ".bak" portion of it.   MOVE the original lms file to a different folder or create a subfolder to store it in BEFORE renaming the .bak file!  However, if the SE refuses to open the lms file, you can just delete it, no reason to save it, not if you can't access it via the SE.

Now there could be an issue, .bak files are the latest backup of a lms file, if or when you last made any changes to the sequence.  So look at the date on the backup, once renamed, open it in the Sequence Editor and make sure it's a complete sequence, or if not, you can now, or should be able to modify and make changes to it that are needed.

 

Edited December 17, 2021 by Orville

[lightzilla]

23 hours ago, Orville said:

I always have at least 2 SD Cards with the show on them {total of 3 SD Cards} but I also copy my SD Card DIRECTLY, just as it is into a folder on my hard-drive called SD BACKUP SHOW, and I just copy and paste from the SD Card at the time AFTER the Show is written to the SD Card, into that folder on the Hard Drive.  Then I just need to reformat the original card {if, or when it fails} by copying those files from that folder directly back to my SD Card.   Never had an issue in doing this.

 

As for .bak files, you DO NOT open them, you RENAME them back to the original sequence .lms filename.   Filename should look something like HollyJollyCHristmas.lms.bak, just rename the file by deleting the ".bak" portion of it.   MOVE the original lms file to a different folder or create a subfolder to store it in BEFORE renaming the .bak file!  However, if the SE refuses to open the lms file, you can just delete it, no reason to save it, not if you can't access it via the SE.

Now there could be an issue, .bak files are the latest backup of a lms file, if or when you last made any changes to the sequence.  So look at the date on the backup, once renamed, open it in the Sequence Editor and make sure it's a complete sequence, or if not, you can now, or should be able to modify and make changes to it that are needed.

 

Thankyou for the tips.  I shall follow your instructions & try it now.

Edited December 18, 2021 by lightzilla

[Orville]

3 hours ago, lightzilla said:

Thankyou for the tips.  I shall follow your instructions & try it now.

Just a side note.  I always keep 2 SD Cards in my weatherproof box that houses my N4-G4 Director, the main SD card that is inserted in the Director, and an "emergency" backup SD Card in its little enclosure inside with the Director.   That way, if my main SD Card were to fail for some reason, I just open the emergency SD card box up, and replace the inserted SD card.  

This is so I don't have to run inside the house and find the emergency backup SD Card, and I use the 3rd card, which was in the director that failed} as the new backup SD Card.  Bring in the failed card, reformat and copy the show back to it.   This way I always have 3 SD Cards with my show on them, and 2 are always kept inside the box with the Director, the one in it, and the emergency replacement.   

This way I have a very quick turn around without a huge dark gap in my show.  Usually takes me less than a minute or so before the show is up and running again, as opposed to being dark for several minutes retrieving the backup show SD Card from inside, then going out to replace it.  Has saved me a lot of time and even less down time doing it this way.

I also always number my SD cards, like X1, X2 and X3, the X designates those are specifically for Christmas, other Holiday shows would be labeled like V1, V2, V3 = Valentine's Day, VE1, VE2 and VE3 = Veterans Day, J4-1, J4-2 J4-3 = July 4th, Halloween I would use HW1, HW2, HW3,  etc., etc.  You just have to get creative with figuring out an alphanumeric system that works for you, and ones that you'll remember.  This is how I know which SD cards are for which show.  Yes, a lot of "extra SD cards", but this how I do it, and has worked for me for years now.

Just some added tips that you might want to consider using.