MediaConnect - Zixi Input

To create a MediaConnect Source for a Zixi input:

1. In the main navigation, click Sources.
2. Click + Add.
   The Create New Source window is displayed.
   
3. Click on MediaConnect.
   The Create MediaConnect Source window opens.
   
4. In the Info section, in the Name field, type a logical name for the Zixi Source.
5. In the Access Tags field, select one or more of the predefined Access Tags from the drop-down list.
   Access Tags are used for access control. By selecting an Access Tag, you are relating this Source to that Access Tag. Access Tags are associated with certain roles (through the Users & Roles screen), and roles, in turn, are associated with users and user groups. If you would like to create a new Access Tag, see Creating an Access Tag.

6. In the Events Configuration Profile field, select from the dropdown list the profile that you would like to apply to this Source. By default, the Default profile is applied.

   Events Profiles consist of a series of rules that determine precisely how various types of Events are logged and what results they trigger.

7. The Source's location is used to represent it in the proper position in the Map display (see Maps). By default, the location is determined automatically based on the Source's IP. If you would like to manually set the location of the Source (Optional), use the following procedure:
   1. Click on the Edit icon next to the Location field.
      A search box is shown below the Location field.
   2. Enter identifying info for the location (e.g. street address, zip code, coordinates).
      Search results are displayed below the search box as you type.
   3. Click on the desired location.
      The selected location populates the Location field.

8. In the Input section, under Protocol, select the Zixi radio button.

   If you would like to configure a non-Zixi input, use the procedure described in Media Connect – Non-Zixi Input.

9. In the Application section, select the radio button for the type of application that the input is coming from. Options are: Feeder, Broadcaster or Other.

   For a Zixi Feeder or Broadcaster that is managed by ZEN Master, ZEN Master automatically configures the Feeder/Broadcaster to push the stream to MediaConnect. For a Zixi-enabled device that is not managed by ZEN Master (i.e. Other) you need to manually configure the device to push the stream to MediaConnect.

10. If you selected Other, proceed to step 10. If you selected Broadcaster, proceed to step 9. If you selected Feeder, then use the following procedure to configure the Feeder input:
    1. In the Feeder field, select the desired Feeder from the drop-down list of available Feeders.
    2. In the Feeder Input field, select the desired input from the drop-down list of inputs on the selected Feeder.
    3. In the Bonding section, select the radio button for the desired bonding mode. Options are:
       • None (default) – no bonding
       • Manual – you specify which NICs are used for bonding
       • Auto – all available NICs are used for bonding
    4. If you selected None for Bonding, then in the Feeder Output NIC field, if you would like to specify which NIC is used, then select the IP of that NIC from the drop-down list. By default, Any is selected.
    5. If you selected Manual for Bonding, then in the Feeder Output NIC field, use the following procedure to specify which NICs are used.
       1. Select two or more NICs by clicking the button for each of the desired NICs.
          
       2. Selected NICs are shown above the Filter box. (You can remove an NIC by clicking the button for that NIC).
          
       3. For each selected NIC, you can adjust the following parameters:
          • In the Max Bitrate field, enter the maximum bitrate to be used on this NIC.

          • If you want to use this NIC only when there isn’t sufficient bandwidth available on the other NICs, then select the Backup checkbox.

            If the Backup checkbox is not selected then this NIC is used in parallel with the other selected NICs.

11. If you selected Broadcaster, then use the following procedure to configure the Broadcaster input:
    1. In the Broadcaster field, select the desired Broadcaster from the drop-down list of available Feeders.
    2. In the Broadcaster Input field, select the desired input from the drop-down list of inputs on the selected Broadcaster.
    3. If you want the Source to be sent over a single NIC (i.e. no bonding) then do the following:
       1. Do not select the Bonding checkbox.
       2. In the Broadcaster Output NICs field, if you would like to specify which NIC is used, then select the IP of that NIC from the drop-down list. By default, Any is selected.
    4. If you would like to use Bonding, then do the following:
       1. Select the Bonding checkbox.
       2. Select two or more NICs by clicking the button for each of the desired NICs.
          
          Selected NICs are shown above the Filter box. (You can remove an NIC by clicking the button for that NIC).
       3. For each NIC that is selected you can adjust the following parameters:
          • In the Max Bitrate field, enter the maximum bitrate to be used on this NIC.

          • If you want to use this NIC only when there isn’t sufficient bandwidth available on the other NICs, then select the Backup checkbox.

            If the Backup checkbox is not selected then this NIC is used in parallel with the other selected NICs.

12. In the Max Bitrate field (not shown for Zixi Broadcaster inputs), select from the drop-down list the maximum bitrate for this Source.

    Make sure that the value is greater than the max bitrate for the source. The default is set automatically based on the current bitrate of the source.

13. In the Whitelist CIDR block field, enter the CIDR for the range of IPs that you would like to allow to contribute content to this Source.

    You are required by MediaConnect to enter a valid Whitelist CIDR block.

14. In the Latency [ms] field, select the latency time for the stream (default 4000).

15. In the Source Configuration section, in the AWS MediaConnect Flow field, select from the dropdown list the Flow to which you would like to assign this Source.

    Specifying an AWS MediaConnect Flow (Channel) is optional. You can create a Source without assigning a Flow, although it won’t be activated until you assign a Flow at a later time. You can also switch a MediaConnect Source to a different Flow at a later time.

16. Select the Log SCTE-35 checkbox if you would like to log SCTE-35 markers for this stream.

    To log SCTE-35 markers, SCTE-35 needs to be enabled both on the Ingest Cluster and on the Source configuration.

    SCTE-35 logging is only available for v13.1.40262+ Broadcasters.

17. If Log SCTE-35 was selected, you can choose to receive alerts for SCTE-35 markers by selecting the Enable SCTE-35 alerts checkbox.

18. In the Initial State section, select the Muted checkbox if you would like to disable error/recovery notifications for this Source upon initial configuration.

    You can Unmute the Source at any time.

19. Click Save.
    The new MediaConnect Source is created.

    A MediaConnect Source is a specialized type of Source in ZEN Master. It can’t be assigned to a regular ZEN Master Channel, rather it must be assigned to a MediaConnect Flow Channel. See Adding MediaConnect Flow Channels.