Content pull
From SpinetiX Support Wiki
Although retrieving individual remote resources (images, data feeds, etc.) can also be seen as content pull, this page focuses on the retrieval of an entire project (or part of it) from a content server. See also the Web server page.
Introduction
Content pull is a content deployment mechanism whereby one or more HMP devices are instructed to retrieve an entire project (or just part of it) from a centralized content server via HTTP(S). Here are some reasons for using content pull:
- Direct network access is not possible for pushing the content on the HMP, for instance the HMP is in a private network using firewall / NAT.
- The new content has to be pushed on the HMP according to a fixed schedule.
- Parts of the content are managed by different persons who do not have access to the player content in order to avoid accidental changes. In this case, the new content is uploaded on a content server (e.g., local web server, Box etc.) and the HMP retrieves it from there. See also content delegation page.
Methods
The HMP can retrieve an entire project (or part of it) from a content server through one of the following mechanisms:
| Mechanism | Description | Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Download*, | The HMP first retrieves the content onto its local storage and then plays it from there. The download can be triggered manually, according to a schedule, or using RPC commands. | • Resilience to network failures. • Works with slow network connections. • Content pull is skipped if the server is not accessible. |
• The content might not be the very latest. |
| Live Source*, | The HMP plays the content stored on a remote content server, directly from there. Each resource is verified & retrieved when it needs to be played; some resources might be cached locally to minimize the network bandwidth. | • "Live" playing of the content from the server. | • Not resilient to network failures and the server needs to be accessible at any time. • The network connection needs to be (very) fast. |
* Scheduled Download and Live Source are features present only on HMP350 and HMP300.
Content server
Any public or private web server can be used as a content server as long as it is HTTP compliant - the most common web servers are Apache and Microsoft IIS.
Note: