Digital signage content management: how B/S and C/S publishing systems work and how to choose

Short answer: A digital signage CMS (content management system) is the software that puts the right video, images and text on the right screens at the right time, and proves afterwards that they played. Choose it in this order: where the server runs, how operators reach it (browser or desktop client), which features your content plan needs, and what happens when the network drops. This guide explains both architectures and states only what our brochure and data sheets list for our own publishing system.

1. What a digital signage CMS does

A digital signage CMS is a server plus a player app: the server stores media, playlists and device records, and the player on each screen downloads its schedule and plays it from local storage. Operators never touch the screens; they work in the CMS and press publish.

Every signage CMS does five jobs:

1. Media library: upload video, images, text and web content once.
2. Layout: divide the screen into zones with a template, for example video on top, images in the middle, scrolling text at the bottom.
3. Schedule: decide what plays at which time of day, on which days.
4. Distribution: send a program to one screen, a group or the whole network.
5. Monitoring and logs: see which screens are online and what each one played.

MJK, the factory behind DisplaySourcing, started as a signage mainboard designer in 2005 and launched its own B/S and C/S multimedia publishing software in 2007. Our digital signage displays ship with it; the remote-control parts of the system are the subject of this guide.

2. B/S vs C/S: two ways to reach the same server

B/S (browser/server) means operators log in through a web browser; C/S (client/server) means they install a desktop client that talks to the server. The screens behave the same either way. The difference is who operates the system and from where.

Point	B/S (browser/server)	C/S (client/server)
Operator access	Any computer with a browser and an account	Computers with the client installed
Installation and updates	Nothing on the operator side; update the server once	Install and update the client on each operator PC
Typical users	Many editors in different offices or stores	A small central team at fixed workstations
Large file handling	Uploads go through the browser	The client manages local folders of material
Our version (brochure)	Program editor in the browser; home screen with program production, publishing management, terminal information and real-time monitoring	Modules for material, secondary server, terminals, playback, users and logs, plus an electronic map

Our B/S editor adds widgets to a layout: background, video, image, scrolling text, combined video/image, clock, web page, text and weather forecast, then saves the layout and publishes it with one click. In our C/S client the operator first puts images, video and text into material management, then opens playback management to set the play mode and play time.

Rule of thumb: choose B/S when store managers or several departments edit content; choose C/S when one marketing team runs the network from head office.

3. Cloud, on-premise or offline

Architecture answers "how do operators log in"; deployment answers "where does the server run". These are separate decisions, and deployment matters more for IT approval.

Deployment	Server location	Suits	Watch out for
Cloud	A hosted server on the internet	Chains with screens in many cities on store broadband or 4G	Data residency rules; monthly hosting cost; every screen needs internet
On-premise / LAN	Your own server inside your network	Banks, government halls, factories and campuses where IT forbids outside servers	You maintain, back up and secure the server
Offline (USB / SD)	No server; content is copied to the player	One to a few screens, or sites with no network	Someone walks to every screen for each update; no play logs centrally

Our players cover all three. The outdoor floor-standing model lists networked program publishing, local program update and standalone playback. Indoor signage and the stretched bar display play from SD card or USB, and the A-frame poster plays a USB playlist. The stretched bar brochure page lists cloud publishing and cloud control; for other models, tell us whether the server must sit on your own network and we confirm the setup with the quote.

4. Features in our publishing system

The table lists what our brochure states for the publishing system and the signage players. If a feature you need is not here, ask before you order rather than assume it.

Feature	What the brochure lists
Split screen	Free split-screen layouts and multiple publishing templates; split-screen and full-screen mixed playback on the bus stop sign
Text and widgets	Scrolling text, clock, web page, text and weather forecast
Scheduling	Play time settings; time-slot program management; auto play, list play and timed insertion; real-time ad insertion on outdoor models
Groups and users	Group management and information publishing; tiered permission management
Logs and statistics	Detailed play log statistics; footfall analysis and statistics
Monitoring	Remote terminal monitoring and control; ad playback monitoring on the on-bus unit
Weak networks	Resumable downloads; breakpoint memory after power loss on the bus stop sign
Power schedule	Scheduled power on/off by day, week or month on the outdoor model; several on/off periods per day on the bus stop sign
Offline playback	SD card and USB playback
Upgrades	USB, SD card and remote system upgrade on the portable outdoor poster
Languages	Multiple display languages

Footfall statistics need an input such as a camera; say in the inquiry if you want them, because the camera is an option on most models.

5. Running your own or a third-party CMS on Android

You do not have to use our software. If your company already runs a signage CMS, choose an Android build and load its player app instead. Our Android boards and media players list an APK installer among the system apps, and the board firmware is supplied with your launcher and boot logo.

General steps for a third-party player on Android:

1. Send us the APK and your CMS server address, or the provisioning code your vendor uses.
2. We install it on the sample and set it to start on boot.
3. Kiosk mode: a custom launcher opens only the player and hides system settings, so staff cannot exit to the Android home screen.
4. Test the sample for a week of real schedules, including a power cut and a network drop.
5. Approve the sample; production units ship with the same image.

Check with your CMS vendor which Android version its player supports. Our RK3399 board runs Android 7.1 or 8.1, and the RK3288 vs RK3399 comparison is in our board article. If your CMS player exists only for Windows, read Android vs Windows: our indoor signage is also available with an Intel Core i3, i5 or i7 PC.

6. Network and security basics

A signage network is a set of unattended computers in public places, so treat each screen as an IT device. This section is general guidance.

• Connection type: wired Ethernet wherever possible; Wi-Fi is built in on our indoor signage, and 4G is an onboard option for sites without fixed lines.
• Separate network: put players on their own VLAN or guest network, away from tills and office PCs.
• Outbound only: with a cloud server, players should only connect out to the server; do not open inbound ports at stores.
• Accounts: change default passwords, give each editor a personal account, and use tiered permissions so a store can edit its own zone but not head-office campaigns.
• Physical access: lock USB and SD slots behind the service door so nobody can load their own content.
• Bandwidth: players download a program once and play it locally, so publish large video outside opening hours on 4G or shared store lines.

7. Content specifications: resolution, orientation and formats

Make content at the panel’s native resolution and orientation; the player then shows it pixel for pixel without scaling. A portrait screen needs portrait artwork, not a rotated landscape file.

Model	Native resolution	Orientation
55″ indoor floor-standing	1920 × 1080	Portrait cabinet: design at 1080 × 1920
55″ wall-mount	1920 × 1080	Landscape or portrait
Ceiling-hung double-sided	43″: 1920 × 1080 · 55″: 3840 × 2160	Two faces back-to-back
43″ portable outdoor poster	1080 × 1920	Portrait
4K media player box	Up to 4K output	Matches the connected screen

Formats from our data sheets: the RK3399 board decodes H.265, H.264, VP8, WMV, AVS, H.263 and MPEG4 at 4K, 2K and 1080P, and shows JPG, BMP and PNG images. The portable outdoor poster plays more than 30 video formats including AVI, RMVB, MKV, WMV, MOV, MP4, FLV, TS and 3GP up to 1080P, and BMP, JPEG, PNG and GIF images. As a general rule, export video as H.264 MP4 at native resolution; H.264 is listed on the data sheets of both our RK3288 and RK3399 boards. Keep scrolling text short enough to read in one pass, and test outdoor content in daylight; the outdoor signage guide covers brightness.

8. Scaling from 10 to 1,000 screens

Ten screens can be run by hand; a thousand cannot. What changes is structure, not software features.

• 10 screens: one group, one or two templates, one editor. USB updates are still workable for a single site.
• 100 screens: groups by region and store type; a naming rule for every device (city, store, position); a weekly check of offline devices and play logs.
• 1,000 screens: tiered permissions (head office, region, store), fixed templates so stores only change their own zone, staggered publishing so all players do not download at once, and a written process for replacing a failed unit with the same image.

Plan the server for the final size, not the pilot. Our C/S client includes a secondary-server module next to material, terminal, playback, user and log management; tell us the target screen count and how many sites, and we propose the server layout. Chains with existing TVs can join the same network with the media player box, which the brochure describes as publishing to every store from one console. Store-by-store examples are on the retail page, and bus stops, on-bus bars and stations on the transportation page, including the stretched bar display and electronic bus stop sign.

9. Specification checklist for your RFQ

Item	What to specify
Screens	Models, sizes, orientation, indoor or outdoor, quantity now and in two years
CMS	Our B/S or C/S system, or your own CMS (send the APK and supported Android versions)
Deployment	Cloud, your own server on the LAN, or offline USB/SD
Operators	Number of editors, locations, permission levels
Content	Layouts, zones, scrolling text, weather, web pages, languages
Schedule	Opening hours, power on/off times, time slots, insertions
Network	Ethernet, Wi-Fi or 4G per site; firewall and VLAN rules
Reporting	Play logs, footfall statistics (camera option)
Branding	Boot logo, launcher, housing color, packaging

Send it through the contact page. If the screens will carry your own brand, read OEM vs ODM; the sourcing guide covers samples, inspection and payment.

10. Common mistakes

• Buying screens first and choosing the CMS after delivery, then finding the player app does not support the board.
• Designing landscape content for portrait cabinets and letting the player scale it.
• Using a cloud CMS where IT forbids outside servers, or an on-premise server nobody maintains.
• Giving every store manager full rights, so one store overwrites a national campaign.
• No power schedule: screens run all night, or switch off before closing.
• No offline plan: when the network drops, nobody knows whether the screen keeps playing.
• Never reading the play logs, so a dead screen is found by a customer, not by you.

Frequently asked questions