Saving Cakewalk files

[jbltwin1]

I have been using Producer 5 for a long time and now use producer 7. Yeah, it's been discontinued but I like it. Anyway, I have a lot of stuff that I have done and I have run into a problem. When I want to clear my computer to save space, I want to move my Cakewalk projects to an external hard drive. When I go to the cakewalk folder and move the ENTIRE folder to a project to my external hard drive, It moves fine. However, when I want to work on it again later, I move the ENTIRE folder(with all data and sound files) BACK into the Cakewalk projects folder. It goes there, no problem. HOWEVER, when I open it in Producer, the CPU usage is extremely high and the disc says high capacity too. When I try to PLAY the file, then I have problems and altering ANYTHING is a lost cause. It then suffers a dropout and it is PITA. Don't know if all the files that I have moved to the external hard drive are now junk are what. Have I done an incorrect move here or am I just missing something. Mike.

[Barrowford Blue]

I experienced something similar when exporting a project from Cubase and then re-building it in Live. Depending on the number of projects you are talking about, my advice would be to bounce each track down to audio, and export each track either as an audio or midi file. It's more time consuming but you end up with a complete replication of your project that can be taken just about anywhere - providing you can deploy the same plug-ins/instruments.

Make sure you set all the "markers" to the same length for each track - generates a larger file size initially, but you can always trim the bits you don't need at a later date if that makes sense.

[cakewalkKaKed]

I want to move my Cakewalk projects to an external hard drive.

thats your problem right there,the external drive cant keep up with the data flow ... you could take that drive out the case and install it internally

[mixsit]

So "move the ENTIRE folder to a project to my external hard drive", and then later move it back to the original internal drive-?
That would be everything (Cake', the CWP and the song data) running off the 'C drive I guess?

And one song/project per this folder, or all songs/projects data and CWPs?
-Not sure this matters at this point, just trying to get the picture.

One thing- on a different note, is I hope you are keeping at least two sets of the data during this for backup.

I don't know what's to think yet, but how about trying a 'Consolidate Audio for a test for one of the projects?
That gathers and copies everything for just that one project into a new folder it generates (make sure there disk room for it..)

That new folder should be copied to the backup drive. With the original data, plus this new 'consolidated folder safe on the b/u drive, it should be safe to remove the old troubled version data from your primary drive and run from this new folder.

When you run the project now since you changed the location/folder name it may likely say 'files missing. But it should have a 'refer project files from' for direction to the new folder (or similar. In 8' when I've done this and it seems to 'see the new data once and acknowledge and swap to the new location as 'the project folder. (this info BTW can be seen under 'file, 'project audio files'.
Anyway maybe a clean start might help clear things up?

[dug dog]

When I load a Cakewalk project that hasn't been used for a while, the computer will often spend several minutes re-building the images of the waveforms and during this time the CPU and disk load is very high. Way too high to do anything. Once the images are built, it works as normal. I don't know much about how Cake stores those images or picture caches or whatever they're called, and maybe I'm doing something wrong, but this is what happens.

[fuzzsniffvoyage]

Seems to me it might be your guys' computer or settings, maybe you don't have enough RAM?. I use an external USB HD and have no problems working on Sonar projects saved on that drive, which is also routed thru a USB Hub. Which I have several External HD's and use for my camera, phone and printer. And I don't go moving files or folders back and forth. When I open a file in Sonar, I just go to the drive and folder and open it.

[jbltwin1]

Sorry I haven't responded to these suggestions-broke my wrist so I've been away from the game. Anyway, I still don't get what the problem is here. I move the ENTIRE folder from the "Cakewalk Projects" folder. This includes all cwp data, sound files, everything. It all transfers to the backup drive. Later, If I want to yutz with it some more, I move the entire folder BACK into the "Cakewalk Projects" folder on my main computer. The data is ALL there-sound files, cwp, everything. But when I open the project from the folder view, it loads alright but cpu usage is off the charts and drops out. Doesn't do it until it's been moved out and back. It's reading the data FROM the main hard drive, not the backup. I'm still confused. Mike.

[dug dog]

Mike:

Do the waveforms appear right away or does Cake "rebuild" them when you open the project?

[mixsit]

... But when I open the project from the folder view, it loads alright but cpu usage is off the charts and drops out. Doesn't do it until it's been moved out and back. It's reading the data FROM the main hard drive, not the backup. I'm still confused. Mike.

So open from the folder view is; Select the project's data folder in 'Global, 'General(?-- not sure that's the tab's name), 'Project Data, then from cake's list of CWP's start the project?

..not at the daw here, and still not sure I got those names right.. The place where you steer 'Cake to the correct project audio/data folder..

[fuzzsniffvoyage]

I still think it's your computer.