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Ubuntu Linux Setup and Configuration

USER INTERFACE

The Ubuntu Linux operating system was specifically compiled to serve as an appliance type device. The OS was loaded with an ultra light X11 Window Manager. The Window Manager shell was stripped from al panels and desktop area to deliver the most efficient and reliable platform.

However you can still get the full power of the gnome Window Manager that is available for you to setup and management. To learn more about gnome you may visit:

Go to Gnome

To access the gnome panel right click on the black background and select Task Manager.Right clicking on the black background will pull additional menu options including reboot, open terminal and more.

You should explore the gnome panel to familiarize yourself with the available applications and utilities. Some of these applications include computer management, task manager and others. In the following sections we will cover the core configuration utilities that help with setting up the network and display properties.

NETWORK SETUP

Wired Network

The mediaBOX ships with DHCP enabled by default. You can check network status by opening the gnome panel, right click the black background and select Task Manager from the mouse right click properties menu. This will run the gnome management top panel.

WIRELESS NETWORK

The mediaBOX is preconfigured with a wireless module. The following section covers the wireless configuration necessary to enable wireless connectivity to your local secure wireless network.

Note that you should have a strong wireless router in close proximity to the mediaBOX to achieve good enough signal strength for smooth operation of your SignagePlayer.

If your wireless icon appears on the right corner it means you are currently not using the wired Ethernet connection. Also, if an exclamation appears next to it, it means you wireless network configuration is still not configured.

- 1. Right click on the black background and select Task Manager
- 2. From the gnome Task Manager select System > Preferences > Network Connections
- 3. Select the wireless tab
- 4. OR instead of following steps 1-3, you can click on the wireless icon directly from the taskbar as shown below

- 5. Once selected, you will be prompted to enter a wireless network key.

- 6. Next you will need to provide the root password.
The root password is: password

- 7. Once all fields are authenticated the wireless status bar and signal strength will appear on the gnome panel.

- 9. Click on your wireless network (Auto SignMon in our example ) and click on Edit.
- 10. Now select the Wireless Security tab
- 11. Next enter the password key again under Key:\
- 12. And be sure to select the Available to all users checkbox (important)

DISPLAY CONFIGURATION

The mediaBOX Media Player comes with 3 types of display connections including VGA, DVI and HDMI. You may use any one of these ports for your main display.

The mediaBOX Media Player also supports up to two active monitors per single box. When using two monitors you will have a desktop space which is the total of both monitor resolutions combined. In other words, you may create a signage presentation that spans both monitors. You can also configure the monitors in landscape or portrait mode.

Single display

To configure the mediaBOX screen display

- 1. Right click on the black background and select Task Manager
- 2. System > Preferences > Monitor
- 3. This will open the monitor preferences. If you have two monitors configured; the mediaBOX will detect each one and you can configure the resolution accordingly.

The display configuration screen allows you to control resolution, video Hz and detect monitors.

Dual display

You may also drag and drop each display box within the gray canvas to change the order and match your physical mounting installation.

In your Signage presentation a single screen division cannot surpass 2880 pixels in width or height. If the total width or height of both monitors combined exceeds 2880 pixels, you will need to break your screen setup into at least two divisions to compensate for this limitation. In most cases this is not a problem as multiple screen divisions are used. The SignagePlayer supports unlimited number of screen divisions.

Rotating the displayThe device driver allows you to rotate your display in portrait or landscape mode. To set this up, selects the Rotation from the main configuration menu and set left, right or normal respectively.

RUNNING THE SIGNAGEPLAYER

The mediaBOX Media Player is configured to preload the SignagePlayer and SignageController upon bootup. It is configured to run the gnome Windows Manager.

The following is the main startup configuration file: /home/user/.config/autostart/SignagePlayer.desktopwhich in turn runs: /opt/SignagePlayer/share/linux/startSignage.sh

The Black Box startup config file (.bbstartup) will launch the signageController.sh which is the proper (and only) way of executing the Digital Signage and Kiosk presentation. The signageController.sh script is responsible for launching the SignageController and the SignagePlayer. It also maintains the health status of the SignageController and validates the integrity of all running processes.

The SignagePlayer installation resides in /opt/SignagePlayer

The SignagePlayer Linux configuration resides in /opt/SignagePlayer/share/linux

Cached content resides in /opt/SignagePlayer/share/buisnessXXX where XXX is your business account number.

The Linux environment comes with several command line aliases. These aliases are quick shortcuts which can be execute from any open terminal.

HDMI SOUND

The Ubuntu mediaBOX is pre configured with standard audio through the back green mini jack output port. In order to enable HDMI sound through the HDMI port you should follow these steps:

- 1. Right click on the black background and select Task Manager
- 2. System > Preferences > Sound
- 3. Switch to the Hardware tab
- 4. From the profile drop down select Digital Stereo HDMI output

You can go back and forth between HDMI and Analog stereo input depending on your configuration requirements. You can also control the audio outout levels and other parameters through the sound configuration utility.

MAINTENANCE

The mediaBOX Linux edition does not require any special maintenance. The fstab auto validation and other normal disk utilities were removed as the OS is designed to work as a dedicated peripheral.

It is however a common practice to reboot the mediaBOX at least once per day. Although the SignagePlayer will run continuously without interruption for weeks or even months at a time, it is recommended to reboot once every 24 hours. Rebooting may help increase performance as system buffers flush and memory restored to zero fragmentation.

The Automatic Adobe AIR auto updates were disabled in order to prevent popup messages which may come up during new Adobe AIR software releases. To enable the automatic updates temporarily so you can find out if a new Adobe AIR runtime is available you can run:

/opt/ Adobe AIR Settings Manager/bin/Adobe AIR Settings Manager

and click "Enable Updates".

The Ubuntu automatic software updates were also disabled in order to prevent unnecessary downtime of the Media Player. If you would like to enable the automatic updates to check if new software is available:

- 1. Right click on the black background and select Task Manager
- 2. On the gnome panel select System > Administration > Update Manager
- 3. Click on Check to find new software updates
- 4. Once the check is done, click on Install Updates to proceed with the install

REMOTE LOGIN

The Desktop SignagePlayer can be remotely controlled using the SignageStudio (Web or Desktop version). The remote functions include Play, Stop, update software builds, receive a live screen capture, poll memory stats and more. Under normal circumstances you should not need any further remote functionality. However, it is a good idea to plan for disaster recovery. Part of this plan is to allow for secure remote desktop access to the mediaBOX over the internet.

The Ubuntu mediaBOX ships preconfigured with remote access. To enable remote access:

- 1. Right click on the black background and select Task Manager
- 2. On the gnome panel select System > Preferences > Remote Desktop
- 3. Select the "Allow other users to view my desktop"
- 4. Select the "Allow other users to Control my Desktop".
- 5. Close preferences

At this point you should be able to install TightVNC viewer on your personal Windows computer. To download the TightVNC viewer: Go to TightVNC

From the TightVNC viewer you will enter the IP address of the mediaBOX to remote login to it. If you are unsure of the IP address of the mediaBOX, right click on the Desktop and run Terminal and enter ifconfig -a to view the IP address of the network interface.

Note that if the mediaBOX resides behind a firewall or within a private Local Area Network and it is not configured with a static IP, you will need to configure the local router / gateway with port forwarding. Port forwarding allows remote computers (e.g., public machines on the Internet) to connect to a specific computer within a private LAN.You should consult with your network administrator on how to enable port forwarding and map your mediaBOX for remote access.

WHITE LABEL SETUP

The mediaBOX Ubuntu Linux is powered by Plymouth, a distribution made to fit the mediaBOX SignagePlayer. Plymouth is a boot loader utility which allows you modify the boot up image.

First begin by creating your own custom boot up image. The image must be in a in a png format. Name your custom image ubuntu-logo.png and place it in:

/lib/Plymouth/

Once the image has been copied you will need to update the system with the following command:

update-initramfs -u

This will apply your new custom bootup image as part of the internal system.

Reboot the mediaBOX Media Player and you should be able to preview your image as part of the boot up and shutdown process.