Network Administrator’s Guide
Crowd Mics is an audience engagement
system comprised of a mobile application and
form factor computer called the ATOM. The
application allows attendees of an event, such
as a lecture or a company meeting, to use their
phones as a wireless microphone. It also allows
text commenting viewable by a moderator as
well as live polling.
This document is intended to guide network
administrators and IT teams in successfully
integrating a Crowd Mics system within a
network environment.
ATOM Network Characteristics
The ATOM has the following external connections
for networking and A/V:
• Dual 100/1000Base-T Ethernet ports
• 2x HDMI connections (mirrored)
• Dual USB 3.0 ports (Type A)
• 1/8” unbalanced audio out
• Euroblock connector (balanced audio out)
Network Prerequisites
The ATOM and all mobile devices (moderator
and participants) must be connected to the same
WLAN, and must be in the same subnet address
range in order to receive multicast inter-device
discovery data.
• Each device must have an IP address
provided by the WLAN, assigned via DHCP
by default or via Crowd Mics conguration
software or API.
• IP addresses are based on IPv4 (IPv6 not
supported).
Network Ports
Some communication ports might be locked by
default, typically for security reasons in routed
or restricted network segments such as public
wireless access for guests. For optimal operation
of Crowd Mics, ports in the table that follows
should be open and without restriction for the
duration of the Crowd Mics event.
Port TCP/UDP Protocol
443 TCP HTTPS
8888 TCP HTTP/Web Sockets
5353 UDP mDNS
1024-
65535
UDP RTP/SRTP
Network Connection and
Performance
Due to the potential that dozens of users will
connect to the same WLAN to participate in
an event, Crowd Mics should be deployed on a
professional, enterprise-grade wireless network
to ensure optimal reliability/connectivity during
an event.
Deployment
An open WLAN between participants and the
presenter is the recommended method to deploy
Crowd Mics. This entails the participants’ and
moderator being on the same wireless network/
subnet and uninhibited communication on any
port.
Conguration Details
• IPv4 WLAN for moderator and participants
• Bonjour/mDNS allowed in the WLAN
• Client isolation/peer-to-peer blocking
disabled (allow ‘any-to-any’ communication
among devices on the WLAN.)
This conguration allows direct communication
between the participants and the moderator.
Physical Connections
that Port 1 be used for management (control)
and Port 2 be used for connecting to the wireless
network.
Both ports are on independent NICS, they
are not switched, and the ATOM has been
penetration tested to ensure isolation of the two
ports. Once all connections are made, power up
the ATOM.
Diagrams on the last page of this document give
typical network connection examples.
1. Ethernet Ports - Control and User Networks
2. USB 3.0 (Type A)
3. HDMI
4. Euroblock Audio Connector
5. 1/8” (3mm) unbalanced Audio Out
6. Power
Connect power to the ATOM.
Connect HDMI, 1/8” balanced audio ports, USB
and/or the Euroblock connector to the venue’s
A/V system. These connections may be used
simultaneously in any combination.
ATOM Conguration
The ATOM is designed to deploy ‘out of the box,’
with no conguration needed, but is equipped
with an advanced setup feature which allows
users to access more advanced conguration
options via a dashboard.
Make all physical connections described
previously. Connect to the ATOM conguration
dashboard via a PC on the same subnet with the
following URL:
https://atom-XXXXXXXXXXXX.local
X’s represents the MAC address of the ATOM and
may be found on a label on the underside of the
ATOM:
Connect the user Ethernet network port to
the venue’s Wi system. On the user side, the
protocols are a combination of mdns-sd, webrtc,
and http. Mobile devices will nd the ATOM via
mdns over wi. atom.local broadcasts on the
user port.
The second Ethernet network port is optionally
used for control via SageVue and may be
connected to the corporate LAN. The protocols
on the control side are https and http.
Either port may be congured for network or
control, but for consistency it is recommended
Alternatively, a user may navigate to the
dashboard page via the IP Address if it is known.