Copy of BrightSign Player Quickstart (2)

Owned by BrightSign TechDocs
Last updated: Mar 07, 2024
7 min read

Introduction

This guide walks through the various available methods of using BrightAuthor:connected to set up a BrightSign player. After the player is set up, see BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Quickstart to create a simple presentation and publish that presentation to a player for display.

Player Preparation

Requirements

  • A BrightSign player

  • A microSD or other storage device (a microSD card will be assumed for this guide). See Player Storage for more information.

  • A Mac or PC (additional requirement details can be found here)

  • A Display

  • An HDMI® cable

  • (optional) A microSD card adapter, if you are planning to transfer content from your computer to your player using a microSD card.

Connecting your Player

  1. Prepare the microSD card by erasing its contents. Cards must be formatted as exFAT or FAT32.

  2. Connect your BrightSign player to a power supply.

  3. Connect the player to a display with the HDMI cable.

  4. Put the blank microSD card in the player.

  5. Make sure the player is connected to your local network with an ethernet cable. Ideally, you should also have internet access.

Publishing Mode

Players can be configured in a variety of “Publishing Modes”, which reflect how content is transferred to the player. Consider the configuration that makes sense for your needs before proceeding:

BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Modes

Standalone

Local Network

Web Folder

BSN.cloud

Standalone

Local Network

Web Folder

BSN.cloud

Content is manually published to a storage device (usually an SD card)

Content is published to the player over the local network

Content resides on a web server that is accessible by the player

Content is stored, published, and managed via BSN.cloud

Network connection not required. The storage device is manually connected/inserted into each player

Local network connection required

Network connection between player and web server required. Players periodically check the web server for content updates, then new content is automatically published to the player

Internet connection required

Free

Free

Free (web server hosting charges may be required)

Subscription-based with free trial

Partner CMS Publishing Modes

Partner App

App Url

Partner App

App Url

Content is published through the selected partner CMS

Content is packaged and placed at a URL that is accessible by the player

Internet access is required

Internet access is required

Pricing depends on the partner CMS

Free (web hosting charges may apply)

Player Setup

Configurations involving the legacy BrightSignNetwork.com are not covered in this guide.

  1. Download, install, and launch the BrightAuthor:connected app on your Mac or PC.

  2. The BrightAuthor:connected Dashboard screen should appear, as shown above, indicating that you are not connected to BSN.cloud. While you do not need to connect to BSN.cloud to setup for Standalone, Local Network, or Web Folder, it is better to do so to get the full functionality of BrightAuthor:connected. You must create an account to use BSN.cloud setup. See this section for more information and details about how to create an account.

  3. From the Admin tab, select Setup. Follow the instructions below for your preferred Setup type.

Standalone Setup

Setup in BrightAuthor:connected

After selecting Setup in the Admin tab:

  1. Enter the Player Name and Player Description.

  2. Set your Time Zone. The player should be connected to the internet to set the time correctly, but the time can be set manually as well. See this page for more information.

  3. Select an Idle Screen Color. The default is black but it is helpful to select an alternate color to readily identify when the display is idling as opposed to powered off.

  4. For Publishing Mode, select Standalone.

  5. Select Save Setup and save to a blank microSD card. Save the files to the top/root level of the card; do not save to a sub-folder. A message may appear indicating that your OS should be up to date. Select OK.

Player setup

Make sure the player is powered off.

  • Insert the microSD card into the player.

  • Power up the player.

  • Upon bootup, the player should display a message on the screen indicating that Standalone setup is in progress. Do not unplug the player.

  • When complete, the player will display a message indicating that setup is complete.

The player is now ready to be published to. Refer to the BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Quickstart to publish a presentation to a Standalone player.

Local Network Setup

Setup in BrightAuthor:connected

After selecting Setup in the Admin tab:

  1. Enter the Player Name and Player Description.

  2. Set your Time Zone.

  3. Select an Idle Screen Color. The default is black but it is helpful to select an alternate color to readily identify when the display is idling as opposed to powered off.

  4. For Publishing Mode, select Local Network.

  5. If not checked, select Enable Local Web Server.

  6. Select Save Setup and save to a blank microSD card. Save the files to the top/root level of the card; do not save to a sub-folder. A message may appear indicating that your OS should be up to date. Select OK.

Player Setup

Make sure the player is powered off.

  • Insert the microSD card into the player.

  • Power up the player.

  • Upon bootup, the player should display a message indicating that the Local Network setup is in progress. Do not unplug the player.

  • When complete, the player will display a message indicating that setup is complete. The message will also show the player’s IP address; take note of this as it may be required for publishing. If an IP address is not showing, check that the player is properly connected to the network. Unless wireless access was set up, the network connection will typically be via an Ethernet cable from the player to a router.

The player is now ready to be published to. Refer to the BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Quickstart to publish a presentation for a Local Network configured player.

 

Web Folder Setup

Setup in BrightAuthor:connected

After selecting Setup in the Admin tab:

  1. Enter the Player Name and Player Description.

  2. Set your Time Zone.

  3. Select an Idle Screen Color. The default is black but it is helpful to select an alternate color to readily identify when the display is idling as opposed to powered off.

  4. For Publishing Mode, select Web Folder.

    1. Enter URL for Web Folder. This is the web accessible folder where the presentation resides.

    2. Optional: if authentication is desired, enter the User Name and Password.

  5. Select Save Setup and save to a blank microSD card. Save the files to the top/root level of the card; do not save to a sub-folder. A message may appear indicating that your OS should be up to date. Select OK.

Player Setup

  • Insert the microSD card into the player.

  • Power up the player.

  • Upon bootup, the player should display a message indicating that Web Folder setup is in progress. Do not unplug the player.

  • When complete, the player will display a message indicating that setup is complete.

If a presentation has already been published to the Web Folder, then the presentation should begin playing. To publish a presentation to the Web Folder, refer to the BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Quickstart.

BSN.cloud Setup

Of the various player setup configurations, setting up a player for BSN.cloud is the easiest.

  • Connect your player to the network (such as by connecting an Ethernet cable from the player to an internet connected router).

  • Insert a blank microSD card.

  • Plug the player in. The player will then automatically connect with BSN.cloud servers and configure itself. You may see several screens flash on the display indicating that “BSN.cloud setup is in progress” and “BSN.cloud registration is in progress”. After a short while, the purple activation screen will be displayed. You will use the Code displayed later to activate the player.

 

  • From the main Dashboard of the BrightAuthor:connected app, Connect to BSN.cloud by clicking on Connect to BSN.cloud:

  • If you are a new user, you will have to set up an account. If possible, use an admin email when creating your account so that other users can access the account.

  • Once you have set up an account, log in with your username and password.

  • You will then be prompted to enter a Network Name and agree to the terms of service. The Network Name helps you to keep track of a collection of players. You can create multiple Networks which can be useful when managing a large number of players.

  • You will then be taken to the BrightAuthor:connected Dashboard.

  • To begin your free trial, select the Admin tab then Content Cloud 30-Day Trial. After entering your password to confirm, your free trial will begin.

  • Return to the Dashboard and select Activate Player.

  • Enter the Activation Code displayed by your player and select Submit.

  • The player will finish the setup process and soon you will see a message indicating that setup has been completed.

The Dashboard will now indicate the presence of the player. Clicking on the Network tab will show further details about the player like giving the player a name and description.

  1. Enter a Player Name (a).

  2. Enter a Description (b).

  3. The Target Group (c) feature enables players to be put into groups for easier management. By default, players are placed in the Default Target Group.

Your player is now active on your BSN.cloud account is ready to be published to. Refer to the BrightAuthor:connected Publishing Quickstart to publish a presentation to a BSN.cloud configured player.