Last Updated: September 22, 2023 9:49:08 AM PDT
Every Kaltura user at UCSD has unlimited media storage with our partner Kaltura. However, content will not be kept in the cloud indefinitely unless it's viewed every so often.
All content uploaded to Kaltura must be in support of teaching and learning at UC San Diego. Media that is clearly not related to this mission may be subject to deletion.
UCSD-Kaltura Data Retention Policy
Your multimedia content will remain in Kaltura's cloud indefinitely. However, your content must be viewed briefly at least once every couple of years. Below are the two triggers of which to be aware:
- If your Kaltura media has not been viewed for 2 years, the entry's flavors (alternate quality versions) will be deleted. The source (the original file that was uploaded to Kaltura) will remain. The system will send you an email warning you that this will occur one week prior to the 2-year mark.
- If your Kaltura media has not been viewed for 4 years, the entry will be deleted entirely. The system will send you an email warning you that this will occur one week prior to the 4-year mark.
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What are flavors?
Almost all video entries in Kaltura have multiple versions generated on the back end at varying quality levels. Kaltura calls these alternative quality versions "flavors." Flavors exist largely to facilitate a better viewing experience for Kaltura users: if the Kaltura player detects that a user's bandwidth is poor, it may instead present them with a lower-quality version rather than risking them having to stop and buffer occasionally. (Note that users can always override this and manually select their quality level.)
What is the impact if flavors for an entry are deleted?
If the source is playable, viewers can still watch your video.
As mentioned in the FAQ above, "flavors" are alternate quality versions that are generated by Kaltura largely to account for variable user bandwidth. If these are deleted, all that will be left for the player to play will be the source - the original media file uploaded to Kaltura. Given the versatility of the Kaltura player, it's likely that this file will work when a viewer clicks play on the entry. Just know that they'll be streaming / progressively downloading the original file which was uploaded, which could be quite large. Viewers in bandwidth-constrained areas could struggle to get a good viewing experience.
If the source is not playable by the Kaltura media player, it will display a message indicating that there's a problem with the source file. If you see this message, you can take one of several actions:
- You can determine that the video isn't needed anymore and delete it.
- You can download the file to your computer and re-upload it to create a new entry with flavors. We recommend that you delete the old entry.
- You can send an email to kaltura@ucsd.edu and request that we re-process the flavors.
How do I download a video?
How do I restart the clock?
Watch the video for at least 15 seconds.
In both of the conditions articulated above, we start with "If your Kaltura media has not been viewed [...]" In order for Kaltura media to be considered "viewed," the video must be watched for at least 15 seconds in order to be counted as "played." This can be done in "My Media," a Media Gallery, or anywhere the video is embedded.
How can I determine the last time my media was viewed?
Check in the video's analytics the last time the media was played.
Set the date range of the entry to "since creation" and scroll down to the "video performance over time" graph. Click the "plays" tab, and you should be able to see the last time the video had at least one play.
See our documentation on video analytics to learn more.