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While BrightAuthor:connected users may find the info presented on this page interesting, it is not strictly necessary for them to understand these concepts because BrightAuthor:connected automatically takes care of these details. CMS partners who are looking to integrate with BrightSign’s products may find this high-level explanation of player configuration helpful. |
Player Configuration
When a fresh-from-the-factory BrightSign player is unboxed, it cannot do much without first being provisioned configured.
Provisioning Configuring a player is the process in which a “Player Config” Setup is applied to the player and a “Player App” is installed on the player. The Player Config Setup applies various settings to the player (such as settings needed for the player to connect to the network) while the Player App network settings, logging, etc.) and includes a Player App which provides instructions for what the player should do upon bootupstartup.
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When using BrightAuthor:connected, the Player Config and Player App are applied through a player Setup. Setups are created within the app and when applied to a player, the Setup applies the Player Config and creates the Player App which, in the case of BrightAuthor:connected, is often called the autorun.
Player Config
A Player Config establishes various settings for the player and may include the following:
Network settings (wired, wireless, etc.)
Player name and description (players can be uniquely identified by their serial number, but adding more descriptive info can be useful)
Time zone (especially relevant if players are geographically dispersed)
Publishing mode (tells the player how to retrieve content)
Diagnostic web server (enables access to a wealth of diagnostic info on the player)
Logging (enables various logging options)
Debugging (enables access via various logging tools)
BrightSignOS version (enables the assignment of a specific OS version to the player)
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By default, the player will search for a network connection via Ethernet. Therefore, explicitly applying a Player Config is not necessarily required if the player is intended to be connected via Ethernet to the local network. |
Player Config for BrightAuthor:connected
When using BrightAuthor:connected, the Player Config is included in a file called a Setup. Setups can be created, saved to a library, and applied to a player or group of players.
Player Config for Partners
Partners who choose to use their own CMS can use our APIs to enable their CMS to apply Player Configs to players.
Player App
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Player Provisioning
As mentioned, provisioning refers to using BSN.cloud to configure a player, and given that BSN.cloud (either the Control Cloud or Content Cloud tiers) is used the vast majority of time to configure players, the term provision is often used when referring to player configuration.
The primary cases where a player might be configured instead of provisioned (i.e., BSN.cloud is not used to configure the player) are:
Standalone player configurations where the Setup is manually copied to a storage device and then the storage device is connected to a player.
Uncommon situations where a partner chooses to configure players without using BSN.cloud.
With BSN.cloud, provisioning a new player can be nearly automatic - if things are properly set up beforehand, new players can be automatically provisioned just by plugging them in! For customers who can’t or don’t want to connect to the internet, offline provisioning options are also available.
Setup
Setups can be created in BrightAuthor:connected or the aforementioned free and unbranded Control Cloud at control.bsn.cloud. Setups can be saved to a library, modified, and applied to other players.
Once created, Setups can be applied to a player or group of players using either BrightAuthor:connected or control.bsn.cloud. Alternatively, the information contained in a Setup can be directly incorporated into the Player App (described below) and manually copied to the player’s storage device.
More info about Setups can be found here and more info about provisioning can be found here.
Player Settings
The Setup establishes various player settings which include things like Publishing Mode, network settings (Ethernet, WiFi, etc.), player identification (name and description), logging, and more.
Player App
The set of files and folders that instruct the player what to do upon boot up .
Player App for BrightAuthor:connected
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is collectively known as the Player App. At a minimum, the Player App
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must contain an autorun
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.brs file (the .brs extension denotes a BrightScript file) which instructs the player what to do upon startup.
When a
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Setup is applied to a player via BSN.cloud, an autorun.brs
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file is automatically created on the player.
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Partners can write
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custom Player Apps according to their specific needs. For example, the Player App may be designed to connect
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to the partner CMS to download content from the CMS for the player to display.
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The term Partner App may sometimes be used when referring to the partner’s Player App. |
Publishing Modes
The Setup created by BrightAuthor:connected also configures the player for the desired “publishing mode”, and this info is contained in the autorun.brs file that is generated from the Setup. Publishing modes define how and where the player should look for content to display. More info about these modes can be found here.
While these publishing modes are typically associated with BrightAuthor:connected, partners can also take advantage of similar functionality through their preferred CMS.
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