Best Practices

Media Administrator Best Practices

This guide covers essential tips and best practices for administrators working with the Nomad Media platform. These recommendations are based on real-world implementation experience.

1. File Transfer and Cloud Access Setup

Choosing the Right Tool

When working with cloud storage (AWS S3), two primary application types are used for bulk uploads and daily file management:

Dedicated transfer applications — e.g. CyberDuck, S3 Browser Pro
Virtual drive mounting tools (recommended) — e.g. TntDrive or MountainDuck

Both offer equivalent speed, but virtual drive mounting provides a more familiar user experience.

Critical Setup Requirements

Always purchase the full license (~$50/user) — the free version runs significantly slower
Use consistent drive letter mapping across all workstations (e.g. Drive T for all users)
Configure individual user accounts — never use shared credentials; individual accounts maintain accountability
Implement credential rotation using IAM Identity Center
Enable S3 bucket versioning — this is your safety net for accidental deletions or overwrites

Application Cache Behavior

TntDrive and similar tools include local caching that can improve performance but may cause issues with large media files. Consider disabling cache for more predictable behavior, or monitor disk space closely if keeping it enabled.

2. Working with Cloud-Mounted Drives

Treat It Differently Than Local Storage

Cloud-mounted drives look like regular file systems but behave differently. When you rename, move, or copy files:

The system downloads the entire file, makes the change, then re-uploads the entire file
A simple folder rename with 10,000 files can take 6+ hours
Users cannot turn off their computers during these operations

Do not deploy cloud drive access without proper user training. Create a certification process covering:

How file operations differ from local storage
The time implications of renaming/moving large folders
Proper upload and download workflows
When to work locally vs. directly on the cloud drive

Permission Strategy

Default to read-only access for most users
Grant read-write permissions only to users who have completed training and need it for their role

3. S3 Bucket Configuration

Your S3 bucket must have:

Versioning enabled — allows recovery from accidental deletions or overwrites
Logging configured — provides audit trail of all activity
Public access blocked — never allow public access to media buckets
Appropriate IAM security roles — follow the principle of least privilege

4. Directory Structure Best Practices

Never place files at the root level of your bucket — always use folders. Create three primary top-level folders:

RAW

Purpose: Master source content that never changes
Camera footage, recording device outputs, original sources
Read-only by default; your intellectual property archive

FINAL (or "Produced")

Purpose: Completed, deliverable content
High-resolution final outputs ready for end-user consumption
Rendered videos, final images, completed audio files

PROJECTS (or "WIP")

Purpose: Active working files and project materials
Editing project files, fonts, supporting materials
References content from RAW (does not duplicate it)

Consider adding a parent folder (e.g. media or your department name) above these three if multiple departments will share the bucket.

5. Organizing RAW Content

If you have content with different security requirements (unreleased footage, sensitive material):

Create Secure and Non-Secure subfolders within RAW
Apply this same pattern to PROJECTS and FINAL if needed

Folder Hierarchy Options

Date-first (recommended for most teams):

RAW/
  Non-Secure/
    2025/
      11/
        Zoom/
        Fathom/
        Field-Recording/

Source-first:

RAW/
  Non-Secure/
    Zoom/
      2025/
        11/

Date-first is more versatile — users can correlate content to time periods and it scales better as content sources grow.

6. Organizing FINAL Content

For series/episodic content:

FINAL/
  Documentary-ABC/
    S01/
      Episodes/
        E01/
        E02/
      Trailers/
    S02/

When you have multiple versions of the same content (MP4, ProRes, audio-only, cover art), place all formats in the same folder. Start simple — do not over-engineer with 300+ folder templates.

7. Managing Work-In-Progress (PROJECTS)

PROJECTS/
  Current/
    2025-11/
      Documentary-ABC/
        Episode-01/
          Premiere/
          Audio/
          Fonts/
          Supporting-Docs/
  Archive/

Critical: Do not copy RAW content into your PROJECTS folder. Reference files from RAW using relative paths (e.g. ../../../RAW/[path]/file.mp4). This prevents duplication and saves storage costs.

When a project is complete: export to FINAL, move from Current to Archive.

8. Adobe Creative Suite Integration

Adobe applications (Premiere, After Effects, Photoshop) work well with mapped drives.

For small files (< 1 GB): Working directly from the cloud drive is usually fine.

For large files (1 GB+): Download to local storage first, edit locally, upload finished work back to cloud. This prevents playback issues and slow response.

Give Premiere its own dedicated subfolder and let it manage its internal structure.

9. Documentation and Training

Create a structure document: Google Doc or Word file with your folder hierarchy, naming conventions, and examples. This ensures consistency and serves as onboarding material.

Develop user training: Cover how to access the cloud drive, the folder structure, where to put content, cloud drive operational differences, what operations to avoid, and who to contact for help.

Certification approach: Require team members to complete training and sign off before receiving write access.

10. Workflow for Incoming Content

For recurring content (Fathom recordings, Zoom calls, field footage):

Determine content date
Identify content source/type
Check if releases are needed (Secure vs. Non-Secure)
Place in appropriate RAW subfolder
Use consistent file naming
Update tracking system (if applicable)

11. Common Pitfalls to Avoid

❌ Over-engineer the initial structure — Start simple, add complexity as needed

❌ Grant universal read-write access — Default to read-only, grant write access deliberately

❌ Skip version control — This is your undo button; always enable it

❌ Allow shared user accounts — Individual accountability is essential

❌ Work with large files directly from cloud — Download first for better experience

❌ Rename large folder hierarchies casually — This triggers massive re-uploads

❌ Deploy without training — Users will make expensive mistakes

❌ Duplicate content across folders — Reference from RAW instead

❌ Ignore security classifications — Separate Secure and Non-Secure from the start

❌ Put files at bucket root level — Always use folder structure