How to Share Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve Media Across Two Editing Workstations Without Broken Paths

Keep media on one shared NAS namespace, give both workstations the same logical project paths, and separate shared originals from local cache and application state.

Broken paths usually appear when two editors see the same footage through different mount names, drive letters, local copies, or project conventions. The NAS setup should remove that ambiguity before collaboration begins: one authoritative media root, predictable share names, consistent user permissions, stable mount points, and an application-specific plan for Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve project state. The goal is not merely to make both computers reach the files, but to make them resolve the same files in the same way.

Start With One Authoritative Media Root

Create one shared root for camera originals, shared audio, graphics, proxies that must be common, and delivered assets. Do not let each editor maintain a separate working-media tree and expect the NLE to reconcile them later.

The physical storage can change over time, but the logical root should remain stable. A project should continue to resolve media even after disks inside the NAS are replaced, the pool expands, or the switch changes.

Adobe's Team Projects guidance explains that collaborators using network shared storage must each be able to access and map the same media. That shared-media mapping requirement is the starting point for a stable two-workstation topology.

Give Both Workstations the Same Logical Share Name

Mount the media share consistently on both machines. On two Macs, keep the same server and share names. On two Windows systems, use the same drive letter where practical. In mixed macOS and Windows environments, document the translation between the two roots instead of relying on each editor's memory.

Do not encode one user's home directory, desktop path, temporary SSD name, or manually copied folder into the project. Those paths are workstation-specific and will break the moment the project moves.

A current DaVinci Resolve NAS guide emphasizes consistent mount points and Resolve path mapping when operating systems expose the same media differently. That path-mapping layer between workstations is especially important for mixed-platform studios.

Keep Shared Media Separate From Local Cache

Camera originals and common project assets belong on the shared path because both editors must reach the same authoritative files. Media cache, waveform files, conform data, preview renders, and other rebuildable state can usually remain on each workstation's fast local NVMe.

This prevents one editor's temporary cache from becoming another editor's dependency. It also reduces unnecessary network writes while keeping the shared pool focused on media that actually needs to be common.

Frame.io's guide to Premiere Pro Productions recommends keeping media cache on each editor's fastest local drive. That division fits a NAS topology where collaboration and performance have separate storage roles.

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Use Premiere and Resolve Collaboration Models Differently

Do not assume that a shared media folder makes project files safe for simultaneous editing. Premiere Pro Productions, Team Projects, and ordinary project files behave differently, while DaVinci Resolve uses project libraries and collaboration features rather than a normal shared project-file workflow.

For Premiere, choose Productions or Team Projects when multiple editors need coordinated access, and keep the production structure in the application-supported arrangement. For Resolve, keep the media shared while project-library state follows Resolve's supported collaboration model.

Studio Network Solutions' Resolve shared-storage guide separates central media storage from the collaborative project workflow, showing why shared storage and project collaboration are separate layers.

Give Each Editor an Individual Account and Stable Permissions

Create separate user identities for both editors instead of sharing one administrator login. Give them consistent read and write access to active media, while restricting archive, backup, or delivery locations that should not be modified during normal editing.

Permissions should follow the workflow rather than the workstation. If editor two changes computers, the account should recover the same access without recreating a new share layout.

Synology's creator workflow describes multiple editors working from the same footage, which requires the NAS to make identity and access part of the setup.

Size the Network for Two Simultaneous Timelines

The server-to-switch path must serve aggregate demand. Two workstations each playing a moderate codec may still fit comfortably inside 10GbE, while multicam RAW or heavy background transfers can push the shared uplink much harder.

Test one editor first, then run the same sequence from both workstations while monitoring NAS throughput, disk latency, and client behavior. If one editor becomes unstable only when the second joins, the bottleneck is part of the shared topology rather than the NLE project itself.

TechRadar's 10GbE NAS editing test showed the importance of a complete fast path from NAS through switch to workstation adapter. That end-to-end 10GbE editing path is the hardware layer both editors depend on.

Prove the Setup by Opening the Same Project From Both Seats

Use one representative project, not a synthetic folder test. Open it from workstation one, close it safely, then open it from workstation two and confirm that media stays online without relinking. Repeat the test after rebooting both clients.

Then simulate the real collaboration method: simultaneous access if the application supports it, local cache generation, render or export, and a controlled media move inside the shared structure. The project should remain understandable even when one workstation is offline.

SmallNetBuilder's 10GbE testing guidance shows why network and storage performance should be isolated during validation. If paths remain stable but throughput does not, test the network and pool separately before changing the project structure.

The adjacent ZimaSpace guide on stable NAS file paths for video proxies explains the path identity problem in more detail. The setup is complete when both editors see the same media root, application state follows a supported collaboration model, and local cache can disappear without breaking the shared project.