Storage

Introduction

SpinetiX players are equipped with a reasonable large internal memory medium, thoroughly tested and validated by SpinetiX for best performance and reliability for digital signage content. The internal storage type and size is different depending on the player model, but should be suitable for most digital signage projects.

In some situations, however, the internal content storage might not be sufficient - for these cases, an external USB storage drive can be used with the HMP to have a bigger storage space; if this is required only temporarily, then the USB drive can be used in a plug & play mode, otherwise, it can be used as a permanent USB storage extension.

Storage information

HMP400, HMP400W, HMP350, HMP300

To get information about the storage, open HMP Control Center and click on the storage summary box.

Basic information about the storage space is displayed.

The address of the internal WebDAV-enabled HTTP server of the player is: http://HMP_address:81

This address can be used for listing the content present on the HMP in a browser, and also for pushing content on the HMP via WebDAV.

DiVA

To get information about the storage,

Open Control Center on DiVA
Click on the storage summary box - basic information about the storage space (free, used, total) is displayed in the tooltip.

HMP200, HMP130, HMP100

To get information about the storage, open HMP Control Center and go to "Storage" page (under the "Information" menu) which provides:

Basic information about the storage space of the System & Local Storage partitions.
The address of the internal WebDAV-enabled HTTP server of the player: http://HMP_address:81
This address can be used for listing the content present on the HMP in a browser, and also for pushing content on the HMP via WebDAV.

Internal storage

The information below is only for reference; any attempt to open the HMP to replace the internal memory medium, either by yourself or by an unauthorized third party, will void the Hardware Warranty!

The internal storage (also called internal memory medium) used by the player is different depending on the model and the hardware revision:

The HMP400, HMP400W, and HMP350 use a 16 GB solid state eMMC.
The HMP300 and DiVA use an 8 GB solid state eMMC.
The HMP200 uses an 8 GB CompactFlash card.
The HMP130 uses a 4 GB class 2 MicroSD card.
The HMP100 uses a 2 GB / 4 GB class 2 MicroSD card (capacity depending on hardware revision).

See also the Statement of volatility.

External storage

This section doesn't apply to DiVA players.

In case the internal storage of the HMP is not sufficient, you can use an external storage device, connected to the HMP via its USB port; any standard USB storage device can be used with the HMP, including USB "pen" drives, SSDs and standard hard drives.

Plug & play USB storage

See Plug & play USB drive content for more details.

If larger storage is required only temporarily, then the USB drive can be used in a plug & play mode, whereby the HMP can only read the content from the USB drive, but cannot write to it. In this case, the USB drive is first connected to a PC in order to push some content (from Elementi for instance) onto it and then it is connected to the HMP. To update the content, this process must be repeated.

Note:

The USB drive must be formatted as FAT32, to be used both by the PC and the HMP.

Permanent USB storage

If a larger storage is required for a longer period of time, then the USB drive can be used as a permanent storage, whereby the HMP can both read and write content onto the USB drive; in this case, the USB drive replaces the internal HMP storage (it is not an addition to the internal storage!) and updating the content can be done in the usual manner.

To make the USB drive writable by the HMP, it must be formatted from Control Center from:

Peripherals > USB page on HMP350, HMP300, and HMP400/W with DSOS SYSTEMS license
Content Settings > Content Source tab on HMP200, HMP130, and HMP100

Notes:

The maximum supported size of the external USB storage is around 2 TB for HMP350, HMP300, and HMP400/W, respectively 500 GB for HMP200, HMP130 and HMP100 devices.
The Content creation tool does not have access to the permanent USB storage (this is a known limitation).
When using external storage, power failures or unexpected shutdowns are much more likely to cause storage corruption, due to the way in which external drives manage read/write operations. This is especially true of USB 'keys'.

Troubleshooting

Corruption of storage

Power failures (including removing the power supply from an HMP without a proper shutdown), noisy power supplies or power surges can cause corruption on some partitions of the storage. As a result, the HMP might enter into a read-only mode and eventually reboot into Recovery mode; if that happens, you need to format the storage (see below) and / or reinstall the firmware.

For internal storage, use the "Format Internal Storage" button, which can be found in Control Center on
- Operation > Reset page for HMP350, HMP300, and HMP400/W devices;
- Maintenance page > Advanced tab for HMP200, HMP130, and HMP100 devices.
For external storage, use the "Format Now" button, which can be found in Control Center on
- Peripherals > USB page for HMP350, HMP300, and HMP400/W devices;
- Content Settings page for HMP200, HMP130, and HMP100 devices.