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When you are working on hotel Wi-Fi, at a remote location, or anywhere with limited internet, prepare Aspect so playback depends less on your connection. Start by testing your download speed, then pin the files you need. For large camera originals, use smaller proxies to begin editing while the originals download in the background. Use the Aspect desktop app on macOS or Windows and mount your Active Storage project before following this workflow.

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1. Test your connection and enable Slow connection mode

Run the speed test on the computer and Wi-Fi network you will use for editing.
1

Open Speedtest

Go to speedtest.net in your browser. Pause large uploads or downloads while you run the test.
2

Run the test

Click GO and wait for the test to finish.
3

Check the download result

Look at Download, measured in Mbps. Use the download result to decide whether to enable Slow connection mode.If your download speed is below 50 Mbps, turn on Slow connection mode in Aspect using the steps below.

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Turn on Slow connection mode

1

Open mounts

In the Aspect desktop app, click the hard drive icon to open your mounts.
2

Open mount settings

Click the gear icon to open mount settings.
3

Expand Advanced

Scroll down to Advanced and click it to expand the section.
4

Enable Slow connection mode

Turn on Slow connection mode.
Even above 50 Mbps, large camera originals or several clips playing at once can exceed your connection’s capacity. Test playback with your actual footage and use pinning or proxies if it pauses or buffers.

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2. Pin the files you need

By default, Aspect streams media as your editing application requests it. Pinning downloads the complete selected files or folders and keeps them on your computer. Once pinning finishes, playback reads that media locally, so a slow or dropped connection does not interrupt access to those files.
1

Choose your working files

In the Aspect desktop app, open the mounted project and select the files or folders needed for your session. Include the footage, project files, audio, graphics, and any other linked assets your edit uses.Pin only the content you need to reduce download time and local storage use. Check that your computer has enough free space for the complete files.
2

Pin the selection

Choose Pin. Keep the desktop app running and connected while Aspect downloads the content.If you know you will be working somewhere with poor internet, start pinning while you still have a faster connection.
3

Confirm completion

Wait until the files you need have finished pinning before going offline. Check their status in Aspect and open them from the mounted drive to confirm they are available.
4

Keep editing through the mounted drive

Open your project and media from the same mounted paths. Changes made offline stay on your computer and synchronize back to Aspect when you reconnect with the desktop app running.
Opening a file once is not the same as pinning it. The automatic cache may hold only parts of a file and can remove older data. Pinning keeps complete files locally. Pinning an editing project file does not automatically pin the media it references.
See Pinning for progress checks, storage requirements, and how to unpin content when you are finished. Managing Cache explains how to manage space used by automatically cached media.

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Watch pinning and offline work

This walkthrough shows pinning files and folders, using them offline in Finder, and syncing with your team after reconnecting.

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3. Edit with proxies while originals pin

Large raw files can take time to pin on a slow connection. Proxies are smaller video copies that need less bandwidth and local storage. Copy a folder of camera originals into a separate proxy folder, start editing with those copies, and let the originals pin in the background.

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Copy the footage as proxies

1

Select the original footage

In Aspect, select the folder containing your raw footage, right-click, and choose Copy to…. You can also select individual videos or several footage folders.
2

Choose a proxy destination

Choose a separate destination, such as Edit/Proxies, in an Active Storage project.
3

Copy videos as proxies

Under Content, turn on Copy videos as proxies, then select Copy.Videos are copied as smaller MP4 proxies instead of full-size originals. The source originals stay in place. Other file types in the selection are copied as-is.
4

Wait for the proxy copies

Follow progress in the transfer center. If a video’s proxy is still processing, the copy waits until it is ready. Wait for the copies you need before using them in your editor.

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Pin both the proxies and the originals

Pin both folders separately. Edit with the smaller pinned proxies while the camera originals finish pinning in the background. Keep the originals pinned so they are available locally for grading and full-quality exports.
  1. Mount the project containing the originals and proxy copies. If they are in separate projects, mount both.
  2. Select the original source folder and choose Pin to start downloading the full-quality media. Keep Aspect running and connected until pinning finishes.
  3. Select the copied proxy folder and choose Pin too. These smaller files can finish pinning sooner, giving you local media to edit with while the originals continue pinning.
  4. In your editor, attach the copied proxies to the original clips using their mounted-drive paths and enable proxy playback. Follow the steps for Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut Pro.
  5. Check picture and audio on a few clips before continuing the edit. If your editor needs a different proxy format, generate compatible proxies in that editor and keep them in the shared project.
You can stream the proxies while connected, but waiting for them to finish pinning gives you local playback and makes those files available offline. Pin any supporting project files, audio, and graphics you need too.
Pinning the proxy folder does not pin the camera originals. Before grading or exporting at full quality, confirm that the required originals have finished pinning, switch back to the originals, and check that the export uses the full-quality media.
See Proxy based workflows for more detail on using proxy copies alongside your camera originals.