The Iconik Storage Gateway (ISG) is responsible for file indexing, transfers, and proxy generation. Hardware requirements vary depending on your workload, source media formats, and the number of files being processed simultaneously.
General Requirements
Operating Systems
The Iconik Storage Gateway supports:
- Windows Server 2019 or newer
- Windows 10/11
- Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04 LTS
- Enterprise Linux 8 and 9
- Amazon Linux 2
- FreeNAS / TrueNAS
- Apple Silicon macOS systems
Storage
We recommend using SSD or NVMe storage for the operating system and temporary transcoding workspace.
For larger deployments, dedicated scratch storage can improve proxy generation performance and reduce contention with operating system processes.
Memory
Memory requirements vary depending on source media and concurrency.
- Minimum: 32 GB RAM
- Recommended: 64 GB RAM
- Large-scale deployments: 128 GB+ RAM
Workflows involving frequent 4K ProRes or DNx media may require additional memory.
CPU Sizing Considerations
Proxy generation workload scales primarily with the number of concurrent transcoding jobs. As a general guideline, plan for approximately four modern CPU cores per concurrent HD proxy generation stream. Higher resolution media, more complex codecs, or generating both web and edit proxies simultaneously may require additional CPU resources.
Lower clock speed processors may reduce overall transcoding throughput, even when sufficient CPU cores are available.
GPU
The Iconik Storage Gateway does not currently utilize dedicated GPU hardware for proxy generation. CPU performance remains the primary factor when sizing an ISG.
Checksumming
If checksumming is enabled, additional CPU and storage resources are required because every file must be read in its entirety to calculate the checksum. Environments performing frequent checksum operations should account for this additional workload when sizing their Storage Gateway.
Recommended Hardware Configurations
The following recommendations are intended to help size an ISG based on the number of simultaneous proxy generation jobs expected.
Actual performance will vary depending on source codec, resolution, bitrate, and proxy settings.
GOOD
Best For
- Mostly 1080p source media
- Occasional 4K media
- Small teams
- Light to moderate ingest volumes
Expected Capacity
Typically supports 1–2 simultaneous inputs generating both web and edit proxies.
If edit proxies are not enabled, this configuration may support 3–4 concurrent web proxy jobs.
x86 (Windows/Linux)
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | 12–16 modern CPU cores |
| Memory | 32 GB RAM |
| Storage | 512 GB+ NVMe SSD |
For frequent 4K ProRes or DNx media, 64 GB RAM is recommended.
Apple Silicon
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | M-Series processor |
| Memory | 32 GB RAM |
| Storage | 512 GB+ SSD |
BETTER
Best For
- Mixed 1080p and 4K workloads
- Frequent ProRes and DNx media
- Moderate team sizes
- Consistent daily ingest
Expected Capacity
Typically supports 3–6 simultaneous inputs generating both web and edit proxies.
x86 (Windows/Linux)
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | 24–32 modern CPU cores |
| Memory | 64 GB RAM |
| Storage | 512 GB+ NVMe SSD |
For environments processing large volumes of concurrent 4K mezzanine files, 128 GB RAM is recommended.
Dedicated operating system and scratch NVMe volumes are also recommended.
Apple Silicon
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | Higher-tier M-Series desktop system |
| Memory | 64–128 GB RAM |
| Storage | 512 GB+ SSD |
BEST
Best For
- Large-scale deployments
- Heavy mezzanine ingest
- High-volume proxy generation
- Centralized processing environments
Expected Capacity
Typically supports 8–12 or more simultaneous proxy pairs depending on source media characteristics.
x86 (Windows/Linux)
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | 48–64 workstation-class CPU cores |
| Memory | 128 GB+ RAM |
| Storage | Multiple NVMe SSDs |
Recommended storage layout:
- Operating System Volume
- Dedicated Scratch Volume
- Optional Dedicated Ingest Volume
Apple Silicon
| Component | Recommendation |
| CPU | Top-tier M-Series desktop system |
| Memory | 128 GB+ RAM |
| Storage | 1 TB+ SSD |
While Apple Silicon systems provide excellent transcoding performance, high-concurrency environments typically benefit from workstation-class x86 systems with larger core counts.
Scaling Beyond a Single Storage Gateway
Organizations with higher throughput requirements should consider deploying multiple Storage Gateways rather than continually increasing the size of a single server.
Benefits include:
- Improved fault tolerance
- Easier maintenance
- Horizontal scalability
- Better workload distribution
Multiple Storage Gateways can be assigned to the same storage location and process jobs in parallel.
When multiple Storage Gateways are connected to the same storage location, we recommend segmenting workloads using scan directories. Each Storage Gateway should be configured to monitor a unique set of directories to prevent overlap in file scanning and processing. This ensures files are only scanned once and allows workloads to be distributed efficiently across gateways.
Example:
- ISG 1 scans /Projects/Marketing
- ISG 2 scans /Projects/Sports
- ISG 3 scans /Projects/Archive
This configuration allows all gateways to process jobs in parallel while avoiding duplicate scanning activity.
Network-Based Storage (NAS/SAN)
When the Storage Gateway is connected to network-attached storage (NAS) or a storage area network (SAN), it should be considered an additional client consuming storage bandwidth.
During scanning, metadata extraction, checksumming, uploads, and proxy generation, the ISG performs read operations against the storage. If the storage infrastructure is already operating near capacity, introducing an ISG may impact workstation or application performance.
Network connectivity between the ISG and storage should be sized according to the expected number of concurrent file reads and the bitrate of the media being processed. High-throughput environments commonly benefit from 10 GbE or faster network connectivity.
Additional read activity may occur when:
- Checksumming is enabled
- Local proxy generation is enabled
- Technical metadata is extracted from media files
Local Storage
When storage is directly attached to the Storage Gateway, read performance is generally limited only by the storage hardware itself.
If that storage is simultaneously shared with other workstations or services, ISG activity may compete for available disk throughput during large ingest or transcoding operations.
Internet Connectivity
The Storage Gateway requires outbound internet connectivity to communicate with the Iconik cloud platform. No inbound connections from the Iconik cloud to the Storage Gateway are required.
Organizations uploading original media to cloud storage should provision internet bandwidth appropriate for their ingest volume. While proxy uploads typically require significantly less bandwidth, available upload speed directly affects how quickly previews become available within Iconik.
Performance Considerations
Proxy generation performance depends on several factors:
- Source codec (H.264, H.265, ProRes, DNx, RAW formats)
- Resolution and bitrate
- Number of concurrent jobs
- Storage throughput
- Network performance
- Whether both web and edit proxies are generated
For customers unsure which configuration is appropriate, we recommend starting with the Better profile and scaling based on observed ingest and transcoding workloads.