Introduction to Extended control
signageOS gives you one consistent way to manage every display, whatever it is. Some things, though, only exist on one vendor's panels: wake-on-LAN behaviour, energy saving, video wall layout, PRO mode. Those settings live in the display's own firmware rather than in the player software, and they are usually changed with a remote control while standing in front of the screen.
Extended control is where Box exposes them remotely. It is a tab on the device detail, and what it offers depends on the device in front of you.
Where to find it
Open any supported device in Box and select the Extended control tab. The tab only appears for devices that have something to show, so you will not see it on platforms with no extended control available.
What each platform offers
| Platform | Available in Extended control |
|---|---|
| LG webOS | Deploy the recommended production configuration; set the tile (video wall) layout |
| Samsung | Deploy the recommended production configuration on Tizen; power, input source and VNC through Samsung extended management |
| Sony | PRO mode and device settings, monitoring information, firmware upgrade, allowed applications |
What it takes to see the tab
Requirements differ per action, and they are listed on each platform page. In general:
- Configuration actions on LG webOS and Samsung Tizen run as scripts on the display, so the organization needs the
scriptsfeature entitlement and the device has to support Custom Scripts. - Samsung extended management (power, input, VNC) needs the
extendedControlfeature entitlement and a device connected to the Samsung RM server. - Sony extended control needs a Sony device provisioned through the Sony cloud.
If a feature entitlement is missing, Box tells you rather than hiding the tab silently. Talk to your account manager to have it enabled.
Applying settings takes a moment
Extended control talks to the display itself, not to a copy of its configuration in the cloud:
- The device has to be online. Actions are disabled for offline devices.
- Changes are written immediately and overwrite whatever is currently set on the panel.
- Results come back per setting, so you can see exactly what the display accepted and what it refused.
Panels differ within the same product family. A model without a wireless module, a light sensor or tile support will refuse the settings it has no hardware for. Box reports those as Skipped rather than failures, so a successful run on a simpler panel still reads as a success.