Watch Folder Settings Dialog

In this dialog, you can make adjustments for handling Watch Folders.

  • To open the Watch Folder Settings dialog, in the Watch Folders window, select Functions > Settings.

Main Tab

After Processing Input File

After an input file is successfully processed, it has to be removed from its folder. The following options are available:

  • Move Input File to the “Sources” Subfolder

    If this option is activated, processed files are moved to a folder called Sources, inside the Watch Folder. The original folder structure is preserved.

    Note

    When using an XML file to describe the files to process, an audio file can be located anywhere outside the Watch Folder. In that case, the Move It to Source Subfolder option has no effect.

  • Delete Input File

    If this option is activated, processed files are deleted from the Watch Folder.

If an Input File Cannot Be Processed

If an input file cannot be successfully processed, it has to be removed from its folder. The following options are available:

  • Move Input File to the “Errors” Subfolder

    If this option is activated and a file cannot be successfully processed, it is moved to a folder called Errors, inside the Watch Folder. The original folder structure is preserved.

  • Delete Input File

    If this option is activated and a file cannot be successfully processed, it is deleted from the Watch Folder.

Scheduled Folder

You can specify a time range for the processing of Watch Folders. This allows you to automatically process files over night or during lunch break, for example.

To do so, create a folder named Scheduled inside the Watch Folder, activate the Scheduled Folder option, and specify the time range.

Files that are copied outside the Scheduled subfolder are processed immediately.

Notification after Processing

If this option is activated, a system tray notification pops up when the files have been processed successfully. Clicking this notification opens the folder where the last file was rendered.

Add Readme File to Each Watch Folder

If this option is activated, a file called “readme.html” is added to the root folder of each Watch Folder. The readme file contains information about the settings of the Watch Folder.

Advanced Tab

Timing

  • Poll Period

    This is the period during which WaveLab Pro scans Watch Folders. The shorter the time, the sooner the files that are copied into the Watch Folder are processed.

  • Delay before Processing Starts

    A file must be fully written to the Watch Folder before processing can start. Therefore, WaveLab Pro monitors how the file size increases and the time stamp of the file. Once these indicators are stable, WaveLab Pro waits for the specified time before starting the batch processors.

    If the files are written by another application, for example, a Cubase mixdown, we recommend a value of 2 seconds. If the audio files are copied or moved from the File Explorer/macOS Finder, you can use a smaller value.

  • Wait for Ancillary File

    If an audio file is copied into the Watch Folder along with a marker file (.mrk), the processing should only start when both files are present in the Watch Folder. The delay value specifies how long WaveLab Pro waits for a marker file.

    If you never process audio files with marker files, you can set this value to 0.

    WaveLab Pro also waits for both mono audio files of a dual mono file if this is activated in the batch processor. The Wait for Ancillary File option is independent from the dual mono file capability, which relies on file naming analysis that you can set up in the Audio Files Preferences.

Log File

You can create a log file that is continuously updated with messages about the batch processing inside the Watch Folders. The log file helps you locate errors in the Watch Folder configuration.

  • File Path

    Allows you to specify the name and the location of the log file.

    If you use Watch Folders in a distributing network environment, one independent log file is created on each computer.

  • Clear Log File when Activating Watch Folders

    If this option is activated, the log file is cleared each time Watch Folders are activated. This option is always activated if the log file has a markup format.

  • Only Report Errors

    If this option is activated, only error messages are written to the log.

  • Format

    Lets you select whether the log file is a raw text file or a markup file (XML or HTML).

    For markup files, an end tag is added only when the Watch Folders are deactivated. In case of a distributing computing environment, this tag is added by the master computer.