Wi-Fi or wired: getting your screens a reliable connection

A network cable is the more reliable choice, and it's the one you need for screens that play in sync. Wi-Fi is fine for most single screens as long as the signal is strong where the screen hangs. Casty players download content ahead of time and play it from their own storage, so a short Wi-Fi wobble won't blank the screen. If someone's running cables for power anyway, get a network cable put in on the same visit.

How much connection a screen needs

Less than you might expect. The player checks in with the CMS at regular intervals, picks up any changes to its schedule and downloads the files it needs, by default two days before they're due to play. After that it plays them from its own storage. A video that loops all day is downloaded once and then played from the player, however many times it comes round.

So the connection matters most when there's something new to fetch. Still images are small and arrive quickly. Big video files take longer, especially on a slow line, and a screen shows Downloading in the Displays list until it has everything.

The exceptions are things that need the internet the whole time they're on screen: a web page in a layout, a live stream, or widgets that pull from outside services, such as weather. Those depend on a steady connection from start to finish.

If the venue's broadband is slow and shared with the tills and the office, a bandwidth limit can be set on the players so they don't hog it. It's one of the player settings we look after, so email us if you think you need one.

When Wi-Fi is fine

Wi-Fi works well for a single screen showing mostly images and short videos, close enough to the router or an access point to get a strong signal.

Test the spot before you commit. Stand where the screen will hang, hold your phone about where the player will sit, and run a speed test. Remember the player will be tucked behind a TV, which blocks some of the signal, so treat a borderline result as a no.

Sticks sit right behind the screen, which is a poor place for Wi-Fi. A short HDMI extension lead lets the stick hang below or beside the TV, and that can make a noticeable difference.

When to run a cable

Run a network cable when:

• the screens play in sync, as a video wall or mirrored along a bar. Players in a sync group talk to each other over the local network, and a wired connection with matching hardware keeps them in step
• it's a Sony Bravia professional display, which needs a wired connection while it's being set up
• the screen is a long way from the router, behind thick stone walls or down in a cellar bar
• the screen plays a lot of video or a live stream
• the Wi-Fi gets crowded, like a pub on match day with a full room of phones all looking for a signal

A cable costs most when it's fitted on its own. If an electrician is putting a socket behind the screen anyway, add a network point in the same visit and you'll have it if you ever need it.

Options in between

If a cable really isn't practical, there are a few middle routes.

A mesh Wi-Fi system, or an extra access point near the screens, puts a strong signal where it's needed. If the venue's Wi-Fi already struggles when it's busy, proper business access points are worth looking at for customers and screens alike.

Powerline adapters carry the network through the building's mains wiring: one plugs in near the router, the other near the screen. Results vary a lot from building to building, so try one before you rely on it.

Some sticks and boxes will take a USB network adapter, which gives you a wired connection when there's a network point nearby but no network port on the player. Check the player model first.

Keep the screens off the guest Wi-Fi

Put screens on the venue's own network and keep them away from the Wi-Fi your customers use. Guest networks often have a sign-in or "accept the terms" page that a signage player can't click through, and they get busiest at exactly the times you most need the screens working. Keeping the two apart also means someone on the guest network can't reach your players.

If your IT supplier locks the network down with a firewall, the players still need to reach Casty. Email us and we'll help work out what needs to be allowed.

Write down the network name and password the screens use and keep them somewhere safe. A new router from your broadband provider, a changed Wi-Fi password or a screen moved to another room can all stop a player connecting. If you know a change like that is coming, tell us beforehand, as the players may need setting up again.

Checking connections from the CMS

The Displays list shows how each screen's connection is doing. A tick in Logged In means the player is checking in as expected, and a cross means it hasn't for a while. Last Accessed gives the time of its last check-in. The IP Address column shows the network address it checked in from, which is useful when you're not sure which network a screen is on.

If several screens in one venue go offline at the same time, the cause is most likely the venue's internet or power. A screen shows as offline has the checks to make in order, and what happens when the internet drops explains what the screens do while they're cut off. If you're still planning where the screens go, where to put screens in a venue covers power and network at each spot.