Single Large File transfer from Mac to PC

Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
So I've successfully created a video file fit for a Blu-Ray disc on the Power Mac here at the office. Now comes the problem. Final Cut Studio doesn't do the Blu-Ray thing, but Adobe Encore on my PC does. I have a 23GB MOV file that needs to get from the Mac to my PC, but nothing is working. I can't transfer to the central server on the network because of the FAT32 restriction. Same thing for a pair of 1 TB external drives connected to the Mac. I have a small 250GB passport drive, but its in the NTSF format, and the Mac won't even recognize it.

I did some searching both yesterday and this morning and downloaded some stuff that I thought would fix the problem- namely MacFUSE and the NTSF-3G programs. I also tried working with a program called FINK, but I find it incredibly confusing, and even after following the instructions, I still cannot write, let alone read an NTSF drive.

Am I missing something here? I've already cursed the machine and threatened to kick it to pieces, but that didn't have the desired effect. Neither did shaking my fist at it. Its extremely frustrating, especially since I only have to transfer a single file. Any ideas out there?
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
Hi Warren,

I think I've seen some 32GB thumbdrives floating around already, but I don't want to buy one just to transfer a single file. Also, I don't think it would work since my attempts to transfer this 23GB file to any other drive available have failed.

BlueWing, I have Paragon NTFS for Mac OSX installed, and it doesn't detect my 250 GB WD Passport Drive. I can plug this drive into the other Macs in the office, and it shows up as an NTFS drive, but for some reason, not on the Mac this huge file lives on. I'd gladly transfer this file to another Mac that recognizes my drive, but I can't even get it off of the Mac its on now.

I don't think I need Mac Drive for PC, since the file in question is on a Mac, and I'm trying to transfer it to a PC-formatted Drive.
 
Necktie Boy

Necktie Boy

Well-known member
Strange? Network the MAC and the PC with a hub or cross-over cable. You should be able to transfer the file that way. Also, have you tried to move the file to another MAC via network? Could be a file access restriction? Does an error box come up? A FTP site? Send it to that, then download the file using a PC?
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
Strange indeed!

Both the PC and Mac are connected to the same network. There's even a small hub in the office that I can connect another machine to. I'll try the FTP idea as soon as I get back in the office in the morning. When I try to transfer this file to one of the two 1TB Mybooks connected to the machine, it gets 4GB transferred before promptly spitting up an error message. "Error 10039 (I think)- Unknown Error". If the FTP idea doesn't work, I'll try to transfer it directly to the other machine. If that doesn't work.. Well, I might just go all Office Space on it.

Now, I understand the limitations of the FAT32 file structure (at least I think I get the gist of it!), but the other thing that stumps me is that the file even exists. If FAT32 doesn't recognize anything over 4GB, how is it possible to create a 23 GB file and save it to a local hard drive in the first place?
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
Thanks for the help everyone. It looks like a direct transfer to my machine over the network is working, even though its taking a drat long time. I also learned that an FTP transfer would work as well. Disaster averted!
 
Necktie Boy

Necktie Boy

Well-known member
Good to hear that the problem is solved without any extra money used. How long did it take to transfer the file? It sounds like the hub maybe out of date?(not 100)
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
I think it took about 8 hours, give or take 30 minutes. I started the transfer around 10:30 in the morning, and it was about 75-80% complete when I left at 6PM. I have a tiny little Linksys 10/100 5-port hub in my office, but once that cable disappears behind the wall, who knows where it goes! There are so many different little hubs and routers and switches scattered all over the office, its a wonder any of us can get to the internet let alone SEE other machines on the network.

Still, I'm glad to have crossed that hurdle. Thanks again for your input!
 
canuckcam

canuckcam

Well-known member
Necktie Boy said:
Strange? Network the MAC and the PC with a hub or cross-over cable. You should be able to transfer the file that way. Also, have you tried to move the file to another MAC via network? Could be a file access restriction? Does an error box come up? A FTP site? Send it to that, then download the file using a PC?
Click to expand...
Crossover cables are a thing of the past! Macs had auto MDX since the G3 days, if not earlier! Many if not all PCs also have that - so just plug in any Ethernet cable, set manual IP address one each computer, enable Windows file sharing, and voila.

If you find transfers being slow (with account for FTP/network overhead,) it could be a combination of old and failing equipment or simply improper cabling, from termination, bend radiuses to installation. Although at 100Base-T, it really shouldn't be too big an issue. I've seen some horrific installers pull cable like they're rappelling off a rock face. Ugh.
 
J

justashooter

Member
Chugach3DGuy,

Your original file can be 23 gigs because it was created on a Mac. The hard drive file structure of the Mac OS does not have a 4GB limit like FAT32 does.

Duane
 
Necktie Boy

Necktie Boy

Well-known member
Canuckcam,

I didn't hear about Pc's being to auto MDX. Just finishing taking a Network+ Class. I know that both of my PC's(less than 3 years) require a crossover cable. I'll ask my A+ Instructor about it.

Also if you use "obtain an IP Address automatically" in the IP Properties box, you don't need to set a manual IP Address. It will give it a private IP Address if if cannot "obtain an IP Address automatically"
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
Ahh, I figured something had to be different on the Mac's Hard drives. Still, I find it all quite frustrating.

The latest hurdle I found that needs to be crossed is that the huge file I've rendered isn't compatible with Adobe Encore. I get an error saying I need a quicktime codec. Has anyone else had to go from Final Cut Studio to Blu-Ray for delivery? Ideally, I'd render out 8 or 10-bit uncompressed HD and let Encore do the encoding it needs, but this 2-hour film would take up nearly a Terabyte of space. That's disk space that I don't have, and purchasing yet another 1TB drive is out of the question at this point as per Boss man's verdict.
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
Yep! I have the most up-to-date version of Quicktime available. I figure its gotta be something to do with Final Cut or some kind of codec used while exporting from Final Cut. When I render out individual shots, I have to go through Export->Quicktime Conversion. If I render out an MOV file that way, it works beautifully on my PC. The only problem is rendering out the entire 2-hour timeline. The size of the file is just too large. Even if I were to break up the film into manageable chunks, the sheer size of everything is too large for the hard drive on my PC to take.

Fortunately, I do have good AAC files for the audio, and I designed the menus in Photoshop on my PC. All that's left is the video, and while looking through the different exporting options in Final Cut, I had another idea. I'm now going to try exporting the video as a still image sequence. Yes, there will be something 172,000 frames, but I'm well-versed in assembling Still image sequences back together in After Effects. Also, I can keep all the resolution and quality of the original video AND circumvent the super-gigantic file sizes caused by rendering out as an MOV! So far, it seems to be working. I'll keep my fingers crossed that I can export all these frames without mishap.

If that doesn't work, then I'll check out that forum and pick their brains. However, I have a good feeling about the Still Sequence approach!
 
Chugach3DGuy

Chugach3DGuy

Well-known member
So far, so good. I can open up the still sequence in After Effects and Premiere Pro, so I should be good to go getting it into Encore. Whew! What an ordeal this has been!

Thanks again for all the tips!
 
S

semi

Member
A fellow I know builds Blu-Rays on his Mac, even though Mac doe not yet, and may never have, Blu-Ray support. He exports his sequence as a QT movie (self conatined- but whatever) and runs that thru Compressor. Now, I'm not in front of the Mac right now but if memory serves, you can choose either SD or HD once you get into DVD Studio Pro. He of course chooses the HD selection, and goes to work building the disc. When it comes time to burn, he uses Toast 10, and an external Lacie Blu Ray burner.

He has burned multiple playable Blu-Ray discs, because Toast can burn Blu Ray, all you need is compatible assets- which DVD SP provides, apparently.

He says they are quite good quality, much better than SD but not really, really good. Compressor is not that great especially for something like Blu Ray- I am in the process of setting something like this up, so I might look at Cine- something, Cinecraft, I think, an aftermarket encoder that kicks the ars of Compressor.

I am trying to save you the pain of getting those huge QT files out, which are a real pain. Ask me how I know. If you have Toast on your Mac, I would recommend this arrangement, it would be worth a try. Once I get set up, maybe in a couple of weeks, I'll post with my Blu-Ray-from-Mac-n'-Toast results. I plan on making playable discs for our people to take to trade shows etc- I shoot in HD, but have to downconvert everything which sucks. I look forward to giving my people the power of Blu-Ray!
 
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