FCPX wont recognize camera archive

Hello!

I'm trying to import two camera archives which have been sitting untouched on my external drive for two years. I plug in my drive, it appears in the FCP import window along with one of the camera archive names under 'camera archives' tab. But not the other one. I can import files from the one which popped up but I have no idea how to make this other one to appear so that I can import files from it. Anyone can help with suggestions?

If I try to get to this other camera archive by clicking on the external drive (in the import window) and open the folder containing both of these camera archives, it is no good either - I can see both of them but they are not clickable, so I can't select them for importing.

When I open external drive from finder, I see both of these camera archive icons (film rolls with key hole in the middle), I can check how big they are (20 GB each), so they both contain information and are not empty. But i still have no idea why one is good for importing but the other one is not...

I wonder if one is corrupt? FCPX writes its own database file into a camera archive. I did an experiment and removed that form one of the archives I have. It now shows up grayed out and inaccessible in the Import window.

Now, I did find I have one that doesn't show up at all. It was made at the same time as another, same day, from the same camera. No clue why FCPX won't recognize it. It was in the FCPX Archives folder in my Movies folder (no clue how it got there, not paying attention I guess). I moved it to my RAID, in my FCPX Archives folder I created there. Where they should all be living. Now FCPX sees it in the Import window, but it is grayed out. Show Package Contents lets me see a perfectly good FCArchMetadata.plist file in there. But no clue why it is inaccessible.

Anyone know what's up with this? Any repair utilities out there? I'd have to have to move it all out of the archive package and re-create a new archive from scratch.

I think these cam archives are totally useless!
Make a copy of your cam cards with Disk Utilities when you transfer files NOT with FCPX - that's all you need.

Try to change the image name extension to '.dmg'

You may have look at www.spherico.com/filmtools/X-Files/VCC.pdf


-Andreas

It's possible the .plist in the camera archive is corrupted or incompatible.
I can't use camera archives from my Blackmagic Pocket Camera made before July 2014. Yet, archives from AVCHD cameras preceding that date work fine.

Where both archives from the same camera?
If you right click and show package contents in Finder can you see the files?
If so you may copy them to a folder and import from there.

cseeman; for me, yes, same camera, different archives show and work, or show and don't work, or don't show, it is random.

Yes, I could remove the .fcarch suffix, and delete the FCArchMetadata.plist file, and have my original camera card folder, and FCPX sees it just fine, just like original camera card.

These were all made late 2014, and through out 2015. Like I said, very random. At least for me. Because archives made from the same camera on the same day, some work, some don't, some don't show.

Random...

I wonder if you look at the .plist of a couple of working archives in a text editor and compare it to a couple that aren't working from the same dates, if the difference would be evident.

If only there were some way to rebuild the .plist assuming it's a flawed .plist at issue.

This is just too wacked out. I did a reboot last night for other reasons, and the bad archive now shows up fine. My old archive of a P2 card was not working then. I removed the suffix, so it was a normal folder, deleted the FCPX metadata file. Worked just fine. Re-created the Archive. Now, as an camera archive, FCPX doesn't recognize the contents, just shows me the folder the lastclip file, no images. Remove the suffix, and as a regular folder FCPX sees it as a ligit camera card with video files. I've concluded that the FCPX camera archive system is very buggy at this point. Thankfully, I don't use this function very often.

UnfortunatelyI used Camera Archive for all my camera masters. Not horrific because, as you note, they're easily rescued.

I do think there needs to be a way to repair the .plist but it's only my hunch that that is where the issue lies. Given the intermittent nature of it, perhaps FCPX does attempt to repair it and sometimes doesn't succeed. All just wild speculation of course. I really do wish Apple would address this. For me, it worked for a time, seemed to have broken during an update, fixed again after another update for some archives. Perhaps if it's unreliable Apple should remove the function.

Everyone be sure to fill out the feedback form about this.
www.apple.com/feedback/finalcutpro.html

I just did, and included a link to this forum thread.

BenB wrote: Everyone be sure to fill out the feedback form about this.
www.apple.com/feedback/finalcutpro.html

I just did, and included a link to this forum thread.

Also sent feedback.

Yes, both archives are from the same camera.

I see .mts files when I look at the package contents. Are these the ones I need to copy to folder and import from there?