Cloud digital signage refers to solutions whose software runs online: you control your screens from a browser, from anywhere, with no server to install or maintain. It is the simplest approach today, and the one MisterSignage uses. Here is what it brings, and its honest limits.
What is cloud digital signage?
Content and scheduling live in the cloud; each screen connects to it via the player address and a code. You add a photo, change a price, set a schedule from your browser, and every affected screen updates, wherever it is. No machine to administer on your side.
Cloud vs self-installed: the difference
A self-installed solution (local server, open source like Xibo) gives you full control, but the load too: hosting, updating, backing up, troubleshooting. The cloud removes that load, everything is ready and maintained. In exchange, your data is hosted by the provider. We compare both models in free vs open source.
The benefits of the cloud
- Zero server to install or maintain;
- Remote control, from any device;
- Automatic updates, always the latest version;
- Multi-site by nature: all your screens in one place;
- Backups and uptime handled for you.
What if the internet drops? Offline playback
That is the classic worry, and the answer is offline playback: each screen caches the last content received and keeps playing even with no network. Control becomes possible again as soon as the connection returns. You never end up with a black screen because WiFi hiccupped.
To choose your tool, see how to choose digital signage software, the pricing, and for the basics, what is digital signage. The full tour is on the features page.