BrightSign, LLC. 16780 Lark Ave., Suite B Los Gatos, CA 95031
TECHNICAL NOTES
Configuring BrightAuthor for the BSNEE
Configurator version 1.04
BrightAuthor version 3.5.0.34 or later
BSNEE version 3.5 or later
408-852-9263 | www.brightsign.biz
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INTRODUCTION
The BrightAuthor Configurator provides an easy way to edit the installation
executable file for BrightAuthor. After you use this tool, you will be able to
distribute copies of BrightAuthor that point to BrightSign Network Enterprise
Edition URLs of your choosing. This technical note will also show you how to
provide a link to your custom BrightAuthor installer on the BSNEE WebUI.
Refer to the end of this document for the limitations of this tool.
Using the Configurator
You will find the BrightAuthorConfigurator.exe file in the .zip archive that you
downloaded:
1. Extract BrightAuthorConfigurator.exe file from the .zip archive.
2. Open the file. You will see a window containing several fields.
3. Select the target BSNEE version. This value defaults to the latest BSNEE version.
4. If you used standard domain names for BSNEE services during the BSNEE
installation process, you should perform Basic Configuration:
a. BrightAuthor Installer Path: Locate and select the BrightAuthor installer
executable file you wish to configure. Alternatively, you can locate the
BrightAuthor installer in Windows Explorer and drag it into the configurator file.
b. Basic Configuration: Enter the Base Domain Name that was used in the
BSNEE installer. The domain names of BSNEE nodes will be generated
automatically using the base domain name.
Note: The Basic Configuration field is only enabled if a supported BrightAuthor
installer file has been supplied.
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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5. If you used custom domain names for BSNEE services during the BSNEE
installation process, or if the “CN” attribute of the certificate installed for the BSNEE
Web Services node differs from the BSNEE Web Services domain name (FQDN),
you will need to perform the Advanced Configuration steps:
a. BrightAuthor Installer File: Locate and select the BrightAuthor installer
executable file you wish to configure. Alternatively, you can locate the
BrightAuthor installer in Windows Explorer and drag it into the configurator
window.
b. Check the Use Advanced Configuration box.
c. Specify the Protocol used for each node (HTTP or HTTPS).
d. Specify the Domain name and Port of each node. Ensure that the same
names and port numbers were used during the BSNEE installation process.
e. Set the WS-* Endpoint DNS Identity (CN) to a value that matches the “CN”
attribute of the certificate. If you’re using a self-signed certificate for the
BSNEE Web Services node (for testing purposes), check Disable Validation
to allow BrightAuthor to bypass certificate validation/revocation checks when
calling API methods.
Note: The Web Services node must use HTTP for BrightAuthor file uploads. As a
result, if you are using custom HTTP/HTTPS ports and you specify an HTTPS
port for the Web Services node, you must enter an HTTP port as well. This
condition does not apply to the Device Handlers and Storage nodes.
BrightAuthor will use standard HTTP/HTTPS ports if the Port fields are left blank.
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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f. If desired, enter the Default Time Server for BrightAuthor. Check the Use
BSN Cloud box if you wish to use the default BrightSign Network time server.
6. Click Next to proceed to the Connectivity Validation step. This optional step allows
you to test that all information was entered into the BrightAuthor Configurator
correctly. It also allows you to determine whether BrightAuthor will be able to
connect to the BSNEE instance in specific network environments.
7. Click Setup Proxy... if the Configurator will be connecting to the BSNEE instance
through a proxy server.
a. Check the Use Proxy box to configure the proxy settings.
b. Enter the IP address of the proxy server into the Host field.
c. Enter the port number of the proxy server into the Port field.
d. Check the Requires Authentication box if the proxy server requires you to
enter credentials. Enter your Username and Password.
e. Click OK when finished configuring the proxy connection.
8. Click Validate Connectivity. The configurator will attempt to communicate with all
relevant BSNEE endpoints and report whether each attempt was a success or
failure using standard HTTP status codes.
9. Click Dump Log to retrieve a log of error messages.
10. Select the Output format of the BrightAuthor installer package:
a. CAB SFX executable: This package is built using Windows IExpress
technology. It supports the “unattended” installation mode for enterprise
network deployment.
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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b. 7-Zip SFX executable: This package is smaller than the CAB SFX
executable. It should be used if Windows IExpress is unavailable or cannot be
supported.
c. .ZIP with MSI package: This package contains an archive with an .msi and
related files.
11. Check the Include Validation Module box to include a Connectivity Validation
module with the BrightAuthor installer. The module will test connectivity
automatically when the installer is launched, allowing a user to determine if
BrightAuthor can connect to BSNEE in his or her network environment.
12. Click the Save button and select a destination folder. The configured BrightAuthor
installer will be created in the selected folder.
Before distributing the custom installer to end users, check the generated executable by
using it to install BrightAuthor on your PC.
Configurator Error Messages
The BrightAuthor Configurator may return the following messages during the setup
process:
No valid BrightAuthor Installer found or version is unsupported.
The Installer package specified in the BrightAuthor Installer Path field is not supported.
Base Domain Name cannot be empty.
The Base Domain Name field is empty and the Save button is clicked.
Application Services domain name cannot be empty.
The Application Services Domain Name field is empty and the Save button is clicked.
Device Handlers domain name cannot be empty.
The Device Handlers Domain Name field is empty and the Save button is clicked.
Storage domain name cannot be empty.
The Storage Domain Name field is empty and the Save button is clicked.
Error: Unsupported BrightAuthor Installer.
An error occurs during the BrightAuthor extraction process.
An unknown error occurred while creating 7-Zip package
An error occurs during creation of 7-Zip package (before it is an SFX executable).
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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Distributing the BrightAuthor Installer via the WebUI
You can easily distribute your new custom BrightAuthor installer to end users through the
BSNEE WebUI. After completing the steps below, there will be an additional section
labeled “Download BrightAuthor Link” on the settings page of the WebUI of your BrightSign
Network.
1. Copy the custom BrightAuthor installer to your BrightSign Network Enterprise Edition
persistent storage. The following is a common file path (yours may be different):
C:\BSNEE\Storage\Persistent\ba\BrightAuthor.3.x.x.x.setup
.exe.
Note: You have now created a download link to the custom installer. For example, if
the URL of your storage server is http://storage.mydomain.com, then the download
link will be http://storage.mydomain.com/ba/BrightAuthor.3.x.x.x. setup.exe
2. Navigate to your website location and open the account.aspx file with a text or script
editor (Notepad, TextEdit, or a similar program). The following is a common location
(yours may be different):
.
C:\inetpub\wwwroot\BSNEEWebSite
3. Add the following HTML markup between the </asp:LoginView> and
</dxp:PanelContent> tags (located at string ~163):
<div class=”panel x4”>
<div class=”panelContent”>
<h4>Resources</h4>
<ul class=”notificationOptions”>
<li>
<a
Href=”http://storage.mydomain.com/ba/BrightAuthor.msi">Download
BrightAutor</a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
Note: This example uses an example file path to the BrightAuthor installation in the
storage. This link will be different in your case. To determine the correct link, refer to
Step 1.
4. Check the download link on the BrightSign Network WebUI to make sure it works.
End users will now be able to download the custom installer from the WebUI.
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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Command-Line Switches for Configured BrightAuthor Packages
Configured executable BrightAuthor packages have command-line switches that can assist
in deploying packages over an enterprise network or performing “unattended” setup (i.e.
BrightAuthor is installed with default settings automatically without prompting the user).
• CAB SFX executable
o /Q – Unattended install
o /Q:A – Administrative install (extract only)
o /? – Help
• 7-Zip SFX executable
o /Q – Unattended install
o /A – Administrative install (extract only)
If you have any questions, please contact technical support at
http://support.brightsign.biz.
Technical Notes – BrightAuthor Configurator
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