Preferences

Preferences are accessible via the gear icon in the top-right corner of the main window, or via evrExpanse → Preferences… in the menu bar. Six tabs cover all configuration options.

General

Folder Sealing — MHL

Controls whether processed folders are sealed with an MHL file at the end of Offload, Transcode, and Export sessions.

None — no MHL file is generated.

ASC MHL — generates an ASC MHL file using the selected hash format.

Available hash formats:

MHL v1 — generates an MHL v1 file using the selected hash format.

Available hash formats:

ASC MHL Creator Info

Author, email, phone, role, location, and comments fields embedded in the ASC MHL file. Used for documentation and traceability.

Performance Level

evrExpanse defaults to Auto, the recommended setting. Auto adapts to each workflow and balances processing speed against system resources — for Offload it accounts for the storage type and file sizes on both ends, since more parallelism does not always mean faster transfers (small files on slower drives degrade with too many concurrent jobs). A higher fixed level is not necessarily faster: Maximum can saturate storage bandwidth or cause thermal throttling. Choose a manual level only when you have a specific reason to.

High or Medium is recommended for long operations to maintain system stability and avoid thermal throttling.

Notifications

When enabled, evrExpanse sends a macOS notification on session completion.

Custom FFmpeg Folder

By default evrExpanse uses the bundled ffmpeg binaries. To use a custom ffmpeg build, drag the folder containing the ffmpeg binary into this field. Enable Reset to Default to revert to the bundled binaries.

TC Mode

Controls how evrExpanse determines the timecode written to all metadata exports and transcoded files.

Use embedded timecode — preserves the timecode recorded by the camera. For drop-frame material (29.97, 59.94 and 119.88 fps), evrExpanse preserves the drop-frame notation and applies SMPTE ST 12-1 drop-frame arithmetic. Above 100 fps the frame field uses three digits, matching what Sony Catalyst Browse and Final Cut display. Photos carry no timecode in this mode and the field is left empty. For video, if no embedded timecode is found, timecode is set to 00:00:00:00.

Time-of-day — overwrites the embedded timecode using the recording date, formatted as HH:MM:SS:00 with frames set to zero. Useful for mixed video and photo workflows where consistent time-based ordering matters. The recording date is read from the file's capture metadata, preferring the local time where the camera records it. Files that carry no capture date — typically footage that has been re-encoded, which discards it — get a timecode of 00:00:00:00 for video, and no timecode for photos, with a warning in the export log naming each file.

00:00:00:00 — resets all timecodes to zero, regardless of what is embedded in the source. Useful when downstream systems require a clean start timecode.

Time-of-day and 00:00:00:00 always produce non-drop timecode, even for files that are natively drop-frame; drop-frame notation applies only in Use embedded mode.

For transcoded files, TC Mode requires Include source metadata to be enabled in the Transcode panel. With that option disabled, transcoded files keep the timecode recorded by the camera regardless of the TC Mode selected. Metadata exports are not affected.

For metadata exports, TC Mode always applies. In DaVinci Resolve and Final Cut Pro, evrExpanse writes the selected timecode as the native clip timecode — the one the application uses for display and synchronisation. Resolve receives it on both video and photos; Final Cut on video only. The Media Composer ALE keeps the media's embedded timecode in Start and End, so Avid can link clips to media, and writes the selected timecode in the evr · TC Start and evr · TC End columns.

For still photos, embedded timecode does not exist. Use embedded leaves the timecode field empty. Time-of-day derives HH:MM:SS:00 from the creation date as described above, but leaves the field empty if no valid date is found. 00:00:00:00 sets the timecode to zero.

Metadata Export

Metadata Destination

By default, exported metadata files are written next to the exported source, inside its evrE_FolderName subfolder. Set a Metadata Destination here to send them to a dedicated folder instead — useful for productions that collect deliverables in a central project folder, and for keeping your source media untouched.

Click the row to choose a folder, or drag and drop one onto it. All enabled formats — CSV, TSV, JSON, ALE, FCPXML, extracted LUTs and Sony RTMD — are written to an evrE_FolderName subfolder inside your chosen destination, so each exported source keeps its own subfolder and multiple sources can share one destination without mixing. Use "Reset to default" to clear the destination and return to writing inside the source folder.

The destination is saved with Session Presets, so each project can carry its own. If the folder can't be reached when you start a workflow, evrExpanse tells you before anything runs — it never falls back to writing into your source.

SCRATCH Integration

Watch Folder — path to the SCRATCH Watch Folder. Default: /Library/Application Support/Assimilator/Watch. The Project Name must match exactly with the existing project in SCRATCH.

Project Name — must match the SCRATCH project name exactly. An incorrect name causes the import to fail silently.

Group — optional field for SCRATCH project organization. Leave empty to import clips directly under the project root.

Timeline — optional. If left empty, the name of the folder being exported is used as the timeline name, matching the event name used for Final Cut Pro deliverables. The field shows the name that will be used, updating live as you change your source and destination folders. Any name you type yourself is always respected.

Final Cut Pro XML Version

Select the FCPXML version for Final Cut Pro export:

Choose the version that matches your Final Cut Pro installation.

Premiere Pro Plugin

evrExpanse includes evr Clips and Metadata, the Premiere Pro plugin that reads the Premiere Pro · JSON export: it adds a panel that brings your clips and their camera metadata into Premiere Pro projects. evrExpanse hands the plugin to the Creative Cloud app, which installs it, asks you to confirm, and manages it like any other plugin.

Requirements: Premiere Pro 25.6 or later, and the Creative Cloud app installed and signed in.

Install / Update — installs the plugin, or updates it when evrExpanse carries a newer version. The button appears only when there is something to do. Creative Cloud shows its own confirmation windows; the installation works offline too.

Save Installer… — saves a copy of the plugin installer (.ccx) to take to a Mac without evrExpanse, such as the one you edit on. Double-click it there: Creative Cloud installs the plugin. If Creative Cloud reports error -2, give the Creative Cloud app Full Disk Access in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access, then double-click the file again.

The status line shows the state of the plugin:

When evrExpanse offers the plugin. The first time you turn on the Premiere Pro · JSON export format, evrExpanse offers to install the plugin, only once. When a newer version comes with an evrExpanse update, the update is offered at launch; if you choose Later three times for the same version, evrExpanse stops asking and the update stays available here.

Before installing, evrExpanse warns you when Premiere Pro is open during an update, because the update reloads the panel: wait until it has finished importing or writing. It also warns you when Premiere Pro is set to write XMP IDs into files on import, which changes your media files.

If two copies of the plugin are installed, one from the Adobe Marketplace and one from evrExpanse, this section tells you: Premiere Pro would show two panels with the same name. Remove one in Manage plugins in the Creative Cloud app.

For using the panel in Premiere Pro, see the evr Clips and Metadata User Guide.

Transcode

Keep Original File Names

When enabled, transcoded files retain the same name as the source file. The codec suffix is not appended.

example.mp4 → example.mov

When disabled, the default naming convention applies:

example.mp4 → example_evrE_ProRes_422.mov

Maintain Folder Structure

When enabled, transcoded files mirror the original directory hierarchy of the source. A subfolder named after the source folder is created at the destination.

When disabled, all transcoded files are placed in a single flat output folder.

Auto-Rotate

When enabled, evrExpanse automatically applies rotation to transcoded files based on the source file's rotation metadata. Available in Smart and Manual modes only. Does not apply in Rewrap mode.

Optimize for Final Cut Pro in Smart Mode

When enabled alongside Smart Mode, evrExpanse transcodes CineForm and DNxHR files to Apple ProRes, ensuring compatibility with Final Cut Pro which does not natively support those codecs.

Preserve YUV Format in Smart Mode

When enabled, if a source file is already in YUV format, evrExpanse bypasses transcoding and copies the video stream directly to the output.

HEVC Bit Depth

Controls the bit depth used when transcoding to HEVC:

• Auto — matches the bit depth of the source file
• 8-bit — applies 8-bit depth to all files in the batch
• 10-bit — applies 10-bit depth to all files in the batch

Offload

Exclude Hidden Files and Folders

When enabled, hidden items within the source directory — system files, configuration data, .DS_Store — are excluded from the offload. Only visible, user-relevant media files are transferred.

Save Transfer Report to Destination

When enabled, a detailed Transfer Report is saved alongside the offloaded files at the destination. The report includes filenames, timestamps, checksums, and verification results.

Stop on Duplicate Checksum Mismatch

When enabled, if a file already exists at the destination and its checksum differs from the source, the offload stops immediately without renaming. Filename integrity is preserved absolutely across all destinations.

When disabled, the conflicting file is saved with (evrE copy) appended to the filename.

Preserve Extended Attributes

When enabled, macOS extended attributes — including Finder Tags and color labels — are preserved during the offload. Organization and tagging applied to source files are reflected at the destination.

Enable o/PARASHOOT Integration

Appears only if o/PARASHOOT is installed on the system. When enabled, evrExpanse triggers a ParaShoot handoff after a successfully verified offload and if the source is the root volume of the card (e.g. /Volumes/CARDNAME).

Tags

Include Duplicate Files

When enabled (default), duplicate file references in the metadata — the same clip listed in multiple Resolve bins or FCP events — are processed rather than skipped.

When disabled, duplicates are skipped and recorded in the Duplicates Log.

Presets

Session Presets let you save your current configuration as a named preset and re-apply it later with a single click. This is useful for switching between recurring setups — a specific operator, camera, or delivery target — without reconfiguring everything each time.

What a preset stores

A preset captures the state of the app at the moment you save it:

• General preferences are always stored: sealing mode and hash format, ASC MHL creator info, performance level, notifications, custom ffmpeg folder, and TC mode.
• Workflow options are stored only for the workflows that are active when you save. If Offload, Transcode, or Export is turned on, its options are captured; if it is off, its options are left out and are not changed when the preset is applied.
• Tags selections are stored only when a valid source is loaded and the metadata panel is shown. Only the field group matching the source type is captured — DaVinci Resolve fields for a Resolve CSV, Final Cut Pro fields for an FCPXML, or the evrExpanse set for a folder or TSV.

Source and destination folders are never stored in a preset. Applying a preset never changes the folders you are working with, so it can never point you at a card or volume that is no longer mounted.

Saving a preset

Click Save current settings… and give the preset a name. Saving is available only when there is something meaningful to capture — at least one workflow active, or a valid Tags source loaded. Preset names must be unique; if a name is already in use, the Save button is disabled and a message appears.

Applying a preset

Select a preset and click Apply. Applying overwrites all settings except source and destination folders: workflows stored in the preset are turned on with their options, and workflows not stored are turned off. You can apply a preset at any time except while a job is running, when the Apply button is temporarily disabled.

Presets can also be applied instantly from the Presets menu in the menu bar, without opening Preferences.

Managing presets

Each preset in the list shows which workflows it contains and when it was last applied. Alongside Apply, the toolbar lets you Rename, Duplicate, and Delete presets. The list stays available even while a job is running, so you can review your presets at any time.

Reset to Default Settings

The Default Settings button at the bottom of the Preferences window resets all settings to their factory defaults. Use this to recover from a misconfiguration or to start fresh.