Preparing for digital signage 3: Support technical & maintenance

This article is the third in a series on choosing the network architecture for your digital signage system, If you're new to the concept of digital signage, or unfamiliar with the different architectures that existthen start with this article: Digital signage: getting ready. If you missed the previous article, see: Getting ready #2: Installation time and effort

Unfortunately, there's no such thing as a brave new world!
And NO solution works forever without incident.
So how do you resolve incidents, and where do you turn?

Case of a dynamic display solution based on a hosted model

In this architecture, the service provider can access neither the servers nor the remote players, since they are isolated on the customer's local network. This means that the customer's technical team is responsible for resolving any incidents. In many cases, the service provider can be reached by e-mail, chat or telephone, and can guide the technical team (these services are generally billed separately from the hardware, in the form of an annual subscription). Nevertheless, incidents that cannot be resolved by the company's own technical team require on-site intervention by the service provider. In addition to the time required to resolve such incidents, these interventions may also be subject to additional invoicing.

For large fleets of screens, it is often necessary for the client company to assign a dedicated technical team to the ongoing maintenance of the system, which often represents additional personnel costs. Once trained, however, this team will be able to intervene more rapidly in the event of an incident. They can also supervise the network to prevent such incidents.

Digital signage solution based on SaaS model

In this architecture, the servers are hosted by the service provider, who can react rapidly in the event of an incident. It can also intervene remotely on players hosted on the customer's premises and connected to the Internet. As the service provider can communicate with all the equipment in the system, he can also supervise the equipment and prevent any malfunctions. In the event of a major incident on the players (for example, preventing the service provider from intervening remotely), a standard exchange by parcel is often included in the subscription (depending on the service provider chosen for the player).

The case of the hybrid model depends very much on the solution chosen. The service provider can sometimes intervene remotely on the server, but rarely on the players, which remain isolated. In some cases, the service provider can also supervise the server and prevent incidents relating to its operation.

Whatever the architecture, a technical support is often available by e-mail, chat or telephone, prior to any intervention.

So, when it comes to installing a digital signage system, it's important to anticipate the system's maintenance requirements. The best architecture will essentially depend on the company's existing infrastructure, the presence of a technical team and its ability to resolve any incidents. Nevertheless, digital signage solutions based on the SaaS model appear to be more effective and less costly than those based on the on-premise model, because the service provider can intervene remotely on all the equipment he knows about, and because the cost of these interventions is often included in the subscription.

Continue reading :

• Getting ready #1: Equipment
• Getting ready #2: Set-up time and effort
• Getting ready #4: Training and familiarization time
• Getting ready #5: Connectivity and bandwidth
• Getting ready #6: Safety
• Getting ready #7: Usability and scalability
• Getting ready #8: Pricing
• Summary: Getting ready for digital signage

Cenareo offers you an intuitive, scalable Saas solution, perfectly adapted to the needs of communications professionals in all sectors of activity: POS, in-house communications, hospitality and DOOH.

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