Player Alerts


Players can display 4 different status colors (gray, green, yellow or red).


Status indicators change colors automatically. For example, a new unassigned player license status will change from gray to green when the license has been activated and a player sends its first signal back to the server.  Also, an online player that loses its network connection, or is turned off will automatically change its status from green to red. The cycle is reversed once the player gets back online and the status indicator switches back to green.


Yellow alerts are the exception to the rule. A player’s status indicator turns yellow to announce an alert and once the indicator goes yellow, it will remain in that state until either the player is shut down/disconnected from the network, or when the user resets (clears) the alert. Clearing a yellow alert restores the player to a green state so this step should only be performed when the cause of the alert has been corrected. However, if the issue hasn’t been resolved, the status will return to yellow at a later point and the alert counter will increment accordingly.



Yellow alerts are triggered by the following issues:


  • Player software has unexpectedly stopped.
  • No content scheduled in the grid. The player is currently showing the default media.
  • No data feed available. The server publishing this feed is no longer reachable.
  • Player’s available free storage space is under its programmed threshold.
  • Player software has automatically restarted or the player has rebooted on its own to correct an issue (caused by depleted resources, or other unforeseen circumstance).
  • Content ignored – not playable (for example, unrecognized video codec or corrupt media file). In these situation the content is skipped by the player but the status changes to alert the user.

 

It’s important to note that many errors can be detected over time, while the player is displaying a yellow alert status.  This is where the alert counter comes into play.  

The counter is shown in the monitoring window.  It’s in the PLAYER column to the right of the status indicator.



Click the Clear alerts button to reset all yellow alerts back to green.  If the issue has not been resolved, the status will revert to yellow once it's detected again.


Resetting Alerts


Yellow alerts can be reset in multiple ways:


  • By clicking the Clear Alert  button as described above.
  • By opening the Alert & Event window and selecting the Reset All box at the top of the table. 
    All the alerts will be reset and the player status will turn green. The alert counter will be reset to 0.
  • By opening the Alert & Event window and selecting individual alert check boxes in the table. 
    If you don't select all the alerts, the player status will remain yellow and the counter will show there are unchecked alerts.



What are Events?


Events are part of the normal, day to day operation of the player.  Events are are recorded in the Alert & Event table for future reference.  


Here is a list of events that will be recorded:


  • Player has received a new program.
  • Screen has been turned ON or OFF.
  • Player software has been updated.
  • Content is waiting to be approved.


What are Alert and Event Profiles?


Administrators control which type of alerts and events users can see and receive. For example, a IT specialist would require access to technical alerts and events.


A person in charge of content requires access to content related alerts and events.This information is recorded in the user’s assigned alert and event profile.


Administrators have total control over profiles and can even create custom profiles if required.


Alert Queries


It’s easy to stay on top of the status of small networks simply by selecting players and checking their status individually. 

However, QL’s Monitoring window includes a query system that makes it very easy to monitor the status large groups of players.

Creating and Managing Queries


Queries are meant to assist users when monitoring the status of large numbers of players.  The idea behind queries is to give users the ability to enter and save specific search parameters that can be called up using a pull down menu.  Basically, queries let you filter the results in the Monitoring window. For example, you can create queries that only show players with a red status, or players that are currently online (meaning they are showing a green or yellow status).  Users have access to several parameters they can set to quickly access the information they need, regardless of the number of players selected.

Creating a New Query

Click the options button (3-dots) located at the top of the Monitoring window.



To add a new query to the list, click Create query.  A new window will appear.


Enter a descriptive name for the new query.  In this example, we are building a query that filters the results so only players with a red status will appear in the Monitoring report.



Query Filters



  1. Select a filter to search on. 
    Available options are:
    1. Name
    2. Serial Number
    3. Tag
    4. Period
    5. Downloads
    6. Status
    7. Display
    8. Alert
    9. Version
    10. Technical Profile
  2. Select an operator. The list of available operators will change depending on the criteria you chose. 
    For example, choosing the "Status" filter will let you select between "Equal" and "Not Equal".
  3. Select a criteria. The list will change depending on the criteria you chose. 
    For example, choosing the "Status" filter will let you choose between the following options: Running, Green, Yellow, or Red.
  4. To create complex filters, use the "and/or" logical operators to link each expression. 
    For example, you can create a filter that will return only the players that are "Running" (meaning they have a Green or Yellow status) and that are still using an older version of the QL software.


You can delete any filter by clicking the corresponding "X" in the right column.


When you are done, click OK to save your new query.


The new query will now appear when you click on the pull-down field.



Result… You only see players with a red status.  Other selected players have been removed from the results.


To disable the query and return to the default view, select “None” from the pull-down menu.


Email Alerts


Users can automatically receive an email each time a player reports an alert.  Emails will list the nature of the alert and include the name of any content that is triggering the error.


Here is a list of email alerts that are sent out by the server:

PLAYER OFFLINE (CODE: A-01-01)

This alert is sent out when a player is offline.

DOWNLOAD ERROR (CODE: A-01-02)

This alert is sent out when a player has failed to download a file.

ABNORMAL TERMINATION (CODE: A-02-01)

This alert is sent out when a player has been shut down unexpectedly due to an unplanned PC/Android media player reboot or hardware crash.

NO TIMESLOT ON SCHEDULE (CODE: A-02-02)

This alert is sent out when a player has no programming scheduled for the current day or if the player has run out of programming


(exceeded the number of days without an update as per MENU > Tools > Player Technical Profile > Planning).

CONTENT PLAYBACK ERROR (CODE: A-02-03)

This alert is sent out when any content is skipped by a player because it could not be played


(for example: Player received a video file encoded with an unsupported codec so it skipped the item).


In order to send out email alerts, the server must be configured with a valid SMTP email account. Also, user accounts must include a valid email address.  Lastly, the “send email” option must be enabled in the User Account settings.