Overview

Copyright

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Note on Product Naming and Versions

This documentation describes software product IBM Archive and Essence Manager Pak (AREMA Pak) version 1.0.

AREMA Pak is a bundled, containerized, pre-packaged build of the IBM Consulting software asset IBM Archive and Essence Manager (AREMA) version 3.0.0. Whereas AREMA is a flexible and widely customizable software asset targeted at usage in projects and engagements of IBM Consulting, AREMA Pak is a streamlined software product intended for direct download, installation and use by IBM clients and packaged for a subset of industry-specific use cases (such as Media and Entertainment workflows for ingest, management and export of audiovisual content).

Both solutions share the same code base. AREMA Pak version 1.0 is technically built upon AREMA version 3.0.0. If not explicitly stated otherwise, contents of this documentation apply both for the AREMA Pak product and for the upstream AREMA software asset. For simplicity reasons, the software is referred to as AREMA on most occasions throughout the documentation.

General Introduction in AREMA Functionality

AREMA enables the IBM clients to transition their business into the tapeless world by reusing legacy applications for metadata management, newsroom or scheduling without the need to implement a new content management silo system.

AREMA is a multi-format essence (media files) management application focused on archiving, storing, transferring, transcoding and otherwise processing media files to support production workflows in media and in particular broadcast enterprises. AREMA enables the enterprise to offer a single, distributed layer to all their media and broadcast applications.

AREMA manages any kind of media essences such as video, audio, text or image and offers a basic search function for media files based on technical and descriptive metadata. AREMA provides extensive and flexible interfaces (SOAP, REST, watchfolder …) that can be used by third party applications in order to make use of the services offered by AREMA. AREMA is mainly a programmable middleware providing services to other applications, but also comes with a graphical user interface for management, monitoring and basic end-user tasks.

AREMA provides functionality to build workflows (so called jobs) in order to orchestrate the tasks performed on the media files. It uses independent agents to execute specific tasks. The agents can run simultaneously and on multiple servers and the system is expandable for more servers while processing.

AREMA also manages remote and local disk storage as well as content stored in an automated tape library making use of either IBM Spectrum Protect (previously known as IBM Tivoli Storage Manager) via TSM API, IBM Spectrum Archive / Linear Tape File System (LTFS), or FrontPorch DIVArchive. AREMA also supports operation with storage systems implementing AWS S3 protocol.

Key Scenarios

In reference to the crossed-arrow chart, this module demonstrates key scenarios to which AREMA has been applied successfully. They show typical definite use cases for each corner of the crossed-arrow chart. It is important to understand that AREMA can be used in small scale as well as in large scale.

Advantages of AREMA

AREMA provides the following benefits to the enterprise when managing an archive and essences:

Flexibility

AREMA increases infrastructure flexibility with the enterprise-wide management of archived files withspecial support for media essences.

Cost

AREMA optimizes storage and costs by using a shared, highly scalable, open-standards-based storage pool.

Control

AREMA improves transparency and control over processes and transactions by using workflow and business rules at the essence level.

Integration

AREMA eliminates “islands” of content and provides flexible and open interfaces to enterprise applications.

Scalability

An AREMA system can grow from one server to many servers as demands increase.