Install dsigns.

Before you start

What you’ll need

• You need an invited dsigns account with player-management access. Downloads are public; managing screens requires sign-in and customer membership. Request trial access if you do not have an account yet.
• Use a dedicated signage PC and account or a compatible Android TV device, plus internet access for installation and initial content download.
• For desktop players, choose Windows 11 x64, Debian 13 x64, or a compatible Debian 13 ARM64 image with X11 and mpv 0.40 or newer. Desktop packages require 64-bit hardware. The Android TV pilot requires Android 8.0 or later and supports one display.
• Start with one 1080p display. Video acceleration and simultaneous outputs depend on the GPU, drivers and media. Check playback on your hardware before leaving it unattended.

Windows 11 · x64

A guided setup on your PC.

1. Download Windows Setup.exe above and open it in the Windows account that will run your signs. It includes the player and mpv; there is nothing to extract.
2. Select Finish. A new player opens its fullscreen pairing design with five large letters. An already connected player resumes playback. On another device, enter them in Players → Add player on the website. If you are reconnecting this PC, open its existing player and choose Reconnect player.
3. Playback starts after website approval; no keyboard or mouse is needed on the sign for pairing. New installations enable automatic playback at Windows sign-in. Change startup and foreground settings later from dsigns Settings in the Start menu. Automatic playback uses a logon task and a separate watchdog task.
4. Configure automatic Windows login, screen-lock settings and firmware power restoration before unattended operation. Playback runs without administrator privileges.

This is an unsigned MVP installer, so Windows may display an unknown-publisher warning. Some workplace policies require your administrator to approve software or register startup tasks.

While dsigns is running, right-click its icon in the Windows notification area for settings, the dashboard and the local log. The icon may be under the hidden-icons arrow. Pause playback to show the desktop, or quit with a 30-minute pause in watchdog recovery.

Linux · x64 & ARM64

Install once. Boot into signage.

For Intel/AMD PCs, start with Debian 13 minimal (amd64). For a supported Raspberry Pi, use Raspberry Pi Imager and Raspberry Pi OS Lite (64-bit, Debian 13). Other ARM boards need the vendor’s supported 64-bit image and graphics drivers.

1. Set up networking and your administrator account on the base OS. Download the matching .deb installer onto the device.
2. Open it with your software installer, or run the matching command from its download folder:

sudo apt install ./dsigns-linux-x64.deb

sudo apt install ./dsigns-linux-arm64.deb

The package manager installs mpv, the small X11 session and required packages. dsigns creates a standard signage account and configures automatic login and watchdog recovery. This changes the login setup on that dedicated device.

3. Reboot when ready. The signage session opens player setup on first login. If no network is connected, plug in Ethernet or scan the network-help QR code for Wi-Fi and static-IP instructions. Once connected, the player shows five letters to enter in the dashboard.
4. Choose whether to Start playback automatically when I sign in before approving the screen code. Playback starts after approval. After the first check-in, the detected screens appear under the group you chose. Use the application-menu shortcuts to open dsigns or its settings later.

sudo apt remove dsigns-player

Google TV / Android TV · pilot

Connect a TV or Android box.

The APK above is for Google TV and Android TV devices that allow app installation, including Chromecast with Google TV. Older casting-only Chromecasts, LG webOS and Samsung Tizen cannot install this APK. It is not listed in Google Play yet.

1. Download the APK and transfer it to the TV using a compatible file-transfer app or USB storage. Open it with the TV’s package installer and allow installation from that source if prompted. Installation menus vary by device.
2. Open dsigns from the TV’s apps. On your phone or computer, log in to the dashboard, choose Players → Add player, enter the five letters and select the customer and group.
3. Publish a playlist. Start with JPEG/PNG images and a 1080p H.264 MP4 video, then check the actual screen and audio.
4. Press OK or Back for sync, retry and network settings. Startup depends on the device settings; see the Android guide for the default Home option on supported devices.

This is a hardware pilot. TV installation, remote navigation and physical playback are not yet validated. It shares the desktop dashboard, pairing, playlists and schedules, but has fewer media formats and no screenshots, remote reboot or remote APK updates. Automatic startup depends on the TV or box and remains untested on physical hardware.

Install a newer signed APK when convenient to retain its pairing and cache. dsigns does not show update or installation prompts during playback. Never install a desktop update ZIP on Android. Download the Android TV setup guide.

Amazon Fire TV · Fire OS pilot

Use a Fire TV you already own.

This signed APK runs on Fire OS 7 or later. Check Settings → My Fire TV → About first. Fire OS 5, Fire OS 6 and Vega OS cannot install this build. Vega distribution is planned separately.

1. Install Downloader by AFTVnews from the Amazon Appstore and open it once.
2. If Developer options is hidden, open Settings → My Fire TV → About, select the device name and press the centre button seven times. Go back to Developer options → Install unknown apps and turn on Downloader. Some devices call this Apps from Unknown Sources. ADB debugging is not needed for Downloader.
3. In Downloader’s Home URL field, enter https://dsigns.bitprecision.com/fire-tv.apk and select Go. When the download finishes, choose Install, then Open.
4. On your phone or computer, open dsigns and choose Players → Add player. Enter the five letters shown on the TV and select the customer and group.
5. Assign and publish a playlist. Start with a JPEG/PNG image and a 1080p H.264 MP4, then check the screen and sound. Press OK or Back for the player menu.

Open dsigns after every restart or power cut. Home returns to Amazon’s home screen. This app does not replace the launcher or start itself automatically.

Hardware pilot; long-running playback and recovery testing are pending. No Amazon Appstore listing, screenshots, remote OS reboot or automatic APK updates. “Install unknown apps” allows an app from outside the Appstore; the dsigns APK is signed.

If Downloader is missing from the permission list, open it once, check for a Fire TV system update and revisit Developer options. Reinstall a newer signed dsigns APK to update; avoid uninstalling or clearing app data if you want to keep its pairing and cache. Download the Fire TV setup guide.

BrightSign · compatibility coming soon

Test with a spare SD card.

The downloadable pilot is for supervised hardware testing. No BrightSign models have been validated yet. Start with an HTML-capable video player with Node.js 14 or newer (8.5.31+ on the BrightSignOS 8.5 branch).

1. Keep the original card. Extract the ZIP contents to the root of a fresh, writable FAT32 SD/microSD card. autorun.brs must sit at the top level.
2. With the player powered off, insert the card and connect Ethernet and HDMI. Turn it on.
3. If five letters appear, sign in and open Players → Add player. Enter the code, select the customer and group, and publish a simple playlist.
4. Test a JPEG/PNG image and a short 1080p H.264/AAC MP4, then check network loss and an offline restart on that player.

Hardware-test pilot only. Trial-account pairing and the current subscription playback policy are not implemented; do not deploy this build to customer screens. Use an existing administrator-managed test account. Physical boot, HDMI, video/audio and SD-card recovery still need testing.

One landscape HDMI output. No rotation, video walls, screenshots, remote reboot or app updates. Existing network settings and vendor provisioning remain; a card swap is not a factory reset. The SD app uses the existing BrightSignOS and may not start on older or restricted players.

Download the SD-card instructions ↓. To return to the original setup, power off and reinsert the original card.

Connect a player

Enter the letters on your screen.

1. Install and open dsigns. Connect the device to the internet. A branded fullscreen view displays five letters.
2. Log in to the dashboard and open Players → Add player. Enter those letters, choose the customer and group, and select Connect player.
3. The player starts automatically after approval. Its detected screens inherit the selected group’s current content. An empty group shows the dsigns splash screen.
4. Adjust screen settings and Publish when your content is ready.

Screen codes expire after ten minutes and renew automatically while setup remains open. No dashboard password is entered on the player. Its private device credential is retained across reboots.

Keep your player current

Installers, updates and earlier builds.

Use the installer for a new device or when upgrading from player 0.6.2 or earlier. Those versions reject a required file in the update package. For later connected Windows or Linux players, open it in the dashboard, choose Update player, then confirm Install update. The dashboard selects the right package. Playback pauses briefly during the restart; follow its result in Activity.

Connected Windows, Linux and Raspberry Pi players can restart and check for newer automatic releases on a schedule. The default is every day at 3 am in Australia/Brisbane. Change the time, timezone, days and actions in the player’s Settings → Restarts and updates, or keep the workspace defaults. The player must be online within 15 minutes of that time; a missed window waits for the next scheduled day. Startup update checks also follow this schedule. Application updates include the bundled onboarding and settings screens. Android APK updates remain manual.

Application updates retain player identity and cached content. Operating-system packages, drivers and the Linux supervisor copy are maintained through the OS/package installer. Test updates and rollback on one device before rolling them out.

Your media

Bring your images and videos.

For Windows and Linux, upload JPEG, PNG, GIF, static WebP and BMP images, or MP4/M4V, MOV, AVI, MKV and WebM videos. Android supports JPEG, PNG, static WebP, BMP and device-supported MP4. Use player 0.5.3 or later for the added formats. Some files play on the native player even when your browser cannot preview them; test your files on the actual device.

New screens are muted by default. Set Volume in the screen settings and Publish to change it; 0 keeps audio off. Windows, Linux and Android videos play to the end. The BrightSign pilot advances at the configured item duration or when the video ends. Images and GIFs use the playlist duration, starting at 10 seconds.

Before you leave it running

Check playback and recovery before you leave.

Try an image, an H.264 MP4 and a schedule boundary. Verify monitor placement, offline reboot and recovery on the actual device. On Windows and Linux, dashboard screenshots show a rendered frame; they cannot prove the physical panel is powered on.

Player details include check-ins, playback reports and incidents. Screenshots are available on Windows and Linux. The Windows and Linux packages also include local diagnostic collection tools.