Choosing how to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core

Helix DAM assets are stored on the Helix Core Server. Assets must be stored in a Helix Core stream depot or classic depot to work with them in Helix DAM.

A stream depot is a container for streams. Streams provide a "mainline" approach to managing groups of related files, which makes it easier to administer a project from development to releases. To learn more, see Streams in Helix Core Overview.

A classic depot, also known as a local depot, is a repository of Helix Core Server files that is not streams-based. A classic depot is the top-level unit of storage for versioned files and contains branches that are sets of related files that exist at a specific location in the Helix Core depot. A Helix Core Server can contain multiple depots. To learn more, see Local depots in Helix Core Server Administrator Guide.

Important

Helix DAM does not support task or virtual streams.

Before your team starts using Helix DAM, decide how to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core. You can choose to automatically create Helix Core depots and mainline streams when projects are created in Helix DAM, or to manually link Helix DAM projects to existing Helix Core streams and display their contents in Helix DAM. To learn more, see Considerations.

After deciding how to store assets, a company admin needs to update the company settings to turn automatic depot creation on or off. To learn more, see Changing the automatic depot creation company setting.

Considerations

Before deciding on a method to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core, review the following information to make the best choice for your team.

  • If you do not have existing assets stored in Helix Core that you want to work with in Helix DAM and you do not need to control the structure used to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core, you may want to use automatic depot and stream creation. Consider using this option if your team is only using Helix Core to support Helix DAM. To learn more, see Automatic depot and stream creation.

  • If you have existing assets stored in a Helix Core stream that you want to work with in Helix DAM and want control of the structure used to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core, you may want to use manual stream linking. Consider using this option if you share a Helix Core Server with others in your organization, such as engineers. Before you make a decision, contact the Helix Core administrator to discuss options. To learn more, see Manual stream linking.

  • If you have existing assets stored in a Helix Core classic depot that you want to work with in Helix DAM and want control of the structure used to store Helix DAM assets in Helix Core, you may want to use manual classic depot linking. Consider using this option if you share a Helix Core Server with others in your organization, such as engineers. Before you make a decision, contact the Helix Core administrator to discuss options. To learn more, see Manual classic depot linking.

Automatic depot and stream creation

If the Automatic depot creation company setting is turned on:

  • When a user creates a project in Helix DAM, in the Create new project dialog box, the Automatically create Helix Core depot option is displayed and turned on.

  • When the new project is created, the corresponding depot and mainline stream are automatically created in Helix Core. The stream depot name is <projectname>_stream and the mainline stream name is main . The stream depot depth is two and cannot be changed. The appropriate Helix Core groups and permissions are also automatically created.

  • When a user creates a collection in a Helix DAM project, a corresponding stream is created in Helix Core. To learn more, see Creating collections.

If the user turns off Automatically create Helix Core depot when creating a project, the project must use manual stream linking. This option cannot be changed for a project after it is turned on or off.

To learn more, see Creating projects.

Manual stream linking

If the Automatic depot creation company setting is turned off:

  • After a user creates a project in Helix DAM, they must link the project to corresponding Helix Core streams that contain the assets to work with in Helix DAM. Mainline streams are represented as repositories in Helix DAM. Individual streams are displayed in repositories in Helix DAM as collections. To learn more, see Linking projects to Helix Core Server streams.

  • You must manually manage groups and permissions in Helix Core. These permissions are respected by Helix DAM.

  • Users cannot manually add collections to Helix DAM projects, but they can upload assets to existing collections. These assets are also added to Helix Core. Users can create folders in collections to organize assets. To learn more about adding folders to collections, see Creating folders in collections.

  • Repositories are used in Helix DAM to group collections. A repository is a Helix Core mainline stream. The project admin can enter a different name for the repository displayed in Helix DAM when they link the project to a stream.

Manual classic depot linking

If the Automatic depot creation company setting is turned off:

  • After a user creates a project in Helix DAM, they must link the project to corresponding Helix Core classic depot that contain the assets to work with in Helix DAM. Classic depots are represented as repositories in Helix DAM. Individual branches are displayed in repositories in Helix DAM as collections. To learn more, see Linking projects to Helix Core Server classic depots.

  • You must manually manage groups and permissions in Helix Core. These permissions are respected by Helix DAM.

  • Users cannot manually add collections to Helix DAM projects, but they can upload assets to existing collections. These assets are also added to Helix Core. Users can create folders in collections to organize assets. To learn more about adding folders to collections, see Creating folders in collections.

  • Repositories are used in Helix DAM to group collections. A repository is a Helix Core classic depot. The project admin can enter a different name for the repository displayed in Helix DAM when they link the project to a classic depot.

Where to go next

After deciding how to store assets, a company admin needs to update the company settings to turn automatic depot creation on or off. To learn more, see Changing the automatic depot creation company setting.