Welcome to PADS
Welcome to PADS, one of the most advanced and complete digital signage software packages that are available today.
What's Digital Signage?
Information and communication have become an integral part of our modern society. From all sides a large amount of information reaches us through various media. Therefore it’s important to provide people at the right moment with the right, targeted information. This is exactly what digital signage is about.
Digital signage is the generic term for displaying information to a targeted audience, at a selected loc-ation and moment using digital screens. This informloc-ation can be different per display and per moment. Some examples of digital signage are welcoming screens at reception areas, screens for dynamic guid-ance in buildings or advertising screens in shops. Also screens showing timetable information at air-ports are a form of digital signage.
Instead of digital signage one sometimes speaks about narrowcasting or digital out-of-home media (DOOHM).
Digital signage software
To control and manage the digital screens digital signage software is used. The quality and features of the chosen software mainly determine the capabilities of your digital signage system.
Requirements
There is a number of requirements that must be met before the PADS4 software can be installed. These requirements include hardware, network and software.
In this section
Hardware requirements
Describes the recommended hardware for a typical PADS system.
Network requirements
Describes the requirements for the network connection between the PADS components.
Software requirements
Hardware Requirements
The hardware requirements for PADS4 are mainly determined by the configuration you have selected. When you have a standalone installation with all PADScomponents on one single PC there will be dif-ferent requirements compared to a network installation where each PADS component is installed on a separate PC. Below the different configurations are listed, followed by a total view of the recommended requirements.
Server PC
The Server PC is the pivot of the system. On this PC the PADS Server software runs. Of course the require-ments for this PC mainly depend on the size of the system and how intensively the system is used. In gen-eral every modern PC will be satisfying to act as a PADS Server PC.
Scheduler/Designer PC
The Scheduler/Designer PC is a desktop PC that is intended to run the PADS Scheduler, PADSDesigner PC and optionally the PADS Agent, PADS System Management and PADS Domain Management soft-ware. There can be one or more Scheduler/Designer PCs, depending on the number of people that want to use the PADS system.
Viewer PC
The Viewer PC is mostly a small-sized PC that is attached to or built-in the public display device. Other names that are often used for this type of PC are 'display controller', 'graphical engine board (GEB)' or 'set top box'.
Depending on the kind of content you want to run on the Viewer PC, we've divided the Viewer PCs in a number of categories, each with their own recommendations.
l Simple Viewer
This type of Viewer needs to be able to play elementary content, like text and images. l Multi-media Viewer
This type of Viewer needs to be able to smoothly play content that puts a lot of strain on your sys-tem, like HD movies.
Requirements
Item Server Scheduler /
Designer PC Simple Viewer
Multi-media Viewer
Processor Intel Core2Duo or compatible
Intel Core2Duo or compatible
Intel Core2Duo or
compatible Intel I3 or higher
CPU 2,0 GHz or higher 2,0 GHz or higher 2,0 GHz or higher 2,0 GHz or higher
Memory 4,096 GigaByte 2,048 GigaByte 2,048 GigaByte 4,096 GigaByte
Hard disk 80 GigaByte 80 GigaByte 80 GigaByte 80 GigaByte
Video card Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) compliant 256 MB Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) compliant 256 MB Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) compliant Tier-2 Compliant 256 MB Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) compliant Tier-2 Compliant 512 MB or more Operating sys-tem Windows 2008 Server Windows 7 Windows 8 Windows 7 Windows 8 Windows 7 Windows 8 Windows 7 Windows 8
Network Requirements
There must be a network connection (Internet, Intranet or (W)LAN) between the installed PADS com-ponents so that they can communicate with each other.
Network infrastructure
The PADS system requires some type of network connection between the PADS Manager/Designer PC and the PADS Server PC on one side and between the PADS Viewer PCs and the PADS Server PCs on the other side.
The most commonly used network infrastructure is a LAN (Local Area Network) with UTP (at least CAT-5 quality) cabling. Other possibilities are a WAN (Wide Area Network), Intranet or Internet connection. Wireless connections are also supported. This includes GPRS as well UMTS.
NO T E
T h e n etw or k c on n ec ti on mu s t b e f u l l d u p l ex. T h i s i s n ec es s ar y to s u p p or t th e tw o- w ay c ommu n i c ati on of PADS.
Internet connection
When an Internet connection is used as network infrastructure between the PADS Viewer PCs and the PADS Server PC (or between a replicated PADSServer PC and a central PADS Server PC) then this requires some additional configuration settings, like port forwarding in routers etc. This will be described in more detailed further on in this help file.
Port numbers
The network communication between the components of the PADS system uses TCP/IP. PADS now uses one port number to communicate and by default it's 7237.
If you are using a firewall on the PADS Server PC this means that one or more of the above port numbers will have to be opened in order for PADS to communicate. On the client side (for instance the PADS Viewer PC) it's not necessary to open any port numbers in the firewall.
NO T E
PADS4 h as b u i l t- i n f eatu r es to au tomati c al l y d etec t a PADS Ser ver i n you r n etw or k. How ever a PADS Ser ver c an on l y b e au tomati c al l y d etec ted w h en th e U DP p or t n u mb er 3 7 0 2 i s n ot b l oc ked b y a f i r ew al l on th e s er ver PC or s omew h er e el s e i n th e n etw or k.
Software Requirements
The PADS software requires certain software to be installed beforehand.
Operating systems
PADS4 runs on the following operating systems: Viewer software:
l Windows 7 Service Pack 1 or higher l Windows 8
Other software:
l Windows 2008 Server Release 2 Service Pack 2 or higher l Windows 7 Service Pack 1 or higher
l Windows 8
Frameworks
The PADS4 software requires some frameworks to run properly. Below these frameworks are listed, as well as what version or 64-bit) of the framework is required for a particular operating system (32-or 64-bit). As you can see, some need both versions.
N O T E
Star ti n g f r om r el eas e 2 , PADS4 r eq u i r es th e Mi c r os of t . NE T Fr amew or k ver s i on 4 . 5 . E ar l i er r el eas e ver s i on s of PADS4 r eq u i r e th e Mi c r os of t . NE T Fr amew or k ver s i on 4 . 0 .
Framework 64-bit operating
sys-tem
32-bit operating sys-tem
Microsoft .NET Framework version 4.5 (Full ver-sion)
Microsoft SQL Server Compact version 4.0
Microsoft Sync Framework 2.1 Provider Services
If you use the USB stick version of the PADS setup then the English version of these items are part of the installation and will automatically be installed when necessary.
With the download version of the PADS setup these items are NO part of the installation. This means that in this case you have to make sure that the frameworks have been installed before you start the PADS installation program. The frameworks and engine can be downloaded from
http://www.-microsoft.com/downloads.
When you install the frameworks you must make sure that you install exactly the same version of the frameworks on all computers that will run one or more of the PADS components. If the versions are not exactly the same then this may cause errors in the PADS software.
The USB stick version of the PADS setup will install the English version of the Microsoft .NET Framework. This means that any error message that is reported by the .NET Framework will be in the English lan-guage. Optionally you can separately install one of the .NET Framework language packs to have the error messages in your native language. For the Dutch, German and French language you can find these language packs in the \Tools\DotNet Framework 4.5 Language Packs\ folder on the USB stick. For other languages you will have to download it from the Microsoft websitewww.microsoft.com.
Microsoft Windows Media Player
For playing videos and sounds the PADS software uses Microsoft Windows Media Player technology. For this at least version 12 of the Windows Media Player is required. Without the Windows Media Player pads is not able to play any video or sound.
I M P O R T A N T
T o s u p p or t a c er tai n vi d eo f i l e f or mat you h ave to i n s tal l th e c or r ec t c od ec d r i ver f or th i s f i l e f or mat on th e PADS Des i g n er PC as w el l as eac h PADS Vi ew er PC. W i th ou t th e c or r ec t c od ec d r i ver PADS ( b u t al s o Mi c r os of t W i n d ow s Med i a Pl ayer ) w i l l n ot b e ab l e to p l ay th e vi d eo or s ou n d . See al s oDr i ver s & Cod ec s.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
PADS uses Microsoft Internet Explorer technology for displaying web contents in its web page element. For this it's required that you have at least version 9.0 of the Microsoft Internet Explorer installed on both the PADS Designer PC as well as each PADS Viewer PC.
Adobe Flash or Shockwave
The web page element of the special Flash add-on element of PADS can be used for displaying Adobe flash or shockwave files. For this it's required that you have installed the Adobe flash or shockwave plug-in on the PADS Designer PC as well as each PADS Viewer PC. This plug-plug-in can be downloaded from
www.adobe.com.
Microsoft Powerpoint
There are two page elements in PADS that can be used to run Microsoft Powerpoint presentations: l The web page element
l The external application element
In both cases you must make sure that the complete Powerpoint application or at least the Powerpoint Viewer application has been installed on the PADS Designer PC as well as each PADS Viewer PC.
When you use the web page element to run Powerpoint presentations, you must be aware that this only works in combination with Microsoft Powerpoint Viewer 97 or the complete Microsoft Powerpoint application. Because of build-in limitations in the Powerpoint software it will not work in combination with Microsoft Powerpoint Viewer 2003 or higher.
With the external application element you can start the Powerpoint Viewer executable with the Power-point presentation as a command line argument. This works with any version of the PowerPower-point Viewer, but the Powerpoint Viewer will always run full-screen.
For more information about how to include Microsoft Powerpoint presentations in your PADS present-ation, please see the PADS Designer help file.
Drivers & Codecs
For a properly functioning PADS system, check if the following drivers are already in place. l DirectX
The graphical engine PADS uses, relies on Microsoft's framework for handling tasks related to multimedia, which is called DirectX. It's required that you have at least version 9.0c.
l Video card driver
Please make sure that the driver for you graphical card is Windows Display Driver Model (WDDM) compatible. This is as much required as it is for the video card itself.
Please make sure that you use a correct codec driver. Practice has turned out that certain codec drivers have a memory leak. This can lead to PADS Viewer PCs to hang. Correct codec drivers can be found atwww.freecodecs.com.
l TV card drivers (analog/digital)
If the PADS Viewer PCs and the PADS Designer PCs have been equipped with an TV card, analog or digital, then you must make sure that you install the latest WDM driver software for this card.
Standalone
With a standalone configuration all PADS components are installed on one single PC. The computer acts as a Scheduler/Designer PC, Server PC and Viewer PC. System Management and Domain Management are installed as well.
The following components are installed: l PADS Server
l PADS Designer l PADS Scheduler l PADS Viewer l PADS Agent
l PADS System Management l PADS Domain Management
If these applications are only used by one single user it's recommended to install these components on the Server PC instead of a separate desktop PC if possible. This makes it easier to handle content files (pictures, videos etc.) and real-time data.
Remarks
An alternative set up would be a PC containing the PADS Server and Viewer and another PC the Sched-uler/Designer PC.
Network
The most commonly used PADS configuration is a network configuration whereby a Server PC, one or more desktop PCs and a number of Viewer PCs is used.
Server PC
Usually the following components are installed on the Server PC of the PADS system: l PADS Database
l PADS Server
Desktop PC
l PADS Designer l PADS Scheduler l PADS Agent
l PADS System Management l PADS Domain Management
If these applications are only used by one single user it's recommended to install these components on the Server PC instead of a separate desktop PC if possible. This makes it easier to handle content files (pictures, videos etc.) and real-time data.
Viewer PC
Usually the following component is installed on each Viewer PC: l PADS Viewer
Installation of PADS
To install the PADSsoftware you have to run the PADSinstallation program on all PCs where one ore more of the PADScomponents must be installed.
In this section
Quick installation
If you don't need specific background information about the installation then this is the quickest guideline for installation of the PADS software.
Installation program
Quick installation
The quickest way to install the PADS software is to follow one of the procedures as described below. If you like to have more background information on certain parts of the installation then you should con-sult the other information in this installation manual.
To quickly perform a standalone installation (all components on one single PC) 1. Run the installation program setup.exe.
The setup program can be found on the PADS4 USB stick or can be downloaded from . In the setup choose for a Complete Installation.
2. Run the PADS4 License Wizard.
The License Wizard can be found in the Windows Start menu under (All) Programs, PADS4, Tools. 3. Start the PADS4 Viewer application.
To start PADS Viewer double click the shortcut for this application on the desktop.
To quickly perform a network installation
1. Run the installation program setup.exe on the PADS Server PC.
The setup program can be found on the PADS4 USB stick or can be downloaded from . In the setup choose for a Custom installation and select to install:
l PADS License Wizard l PADS Designer l PADS Scheduler
l PADS System Management l PADS Domain Management l PADS Server
Optionally, these components can be installed on a separate desktop PC. 2. Run the PADS4 License Wizard on the PADS Server PC.
The License Wizard can be found in the Windows Start menu under (All) Programs, PADS4, Tools. 3. Run the installation program setup.exe on the PADS Viewer PC.
Installation program
To install the PADSsoftware you have to run the PADSinstallation program on all PCs where one ore more of the PADScomponents must be installed.
In this section
Starting the installation program
Explains how you can start the setup which will install the PADS software.
Selecting an installation configuration
Describes which PADS components are selectable for installation.
Ready to install
Describes the final steps before the actual installation takes place.
Finishing the installation
Starting the installation program
To install one or more components of the PADS software on your computer you must use the PADS installation program. The installation program can be found on the PADS4 USB stick or can be down-loaded from .
To start the PADS installation program
1. (USB stick version) Browse to the root folder of the PADS USB stick and double clickSetup.exe. T I P
In or d er to p r even t an y s ec u r i ty p r ob l ems d u r i n g th e i n s tal l ati on p r oc es s i t' s r ec ommen d ed al w ays to b e l og g ed on as Ad mi n i s tr ator , w h en s tar ti n g th e i n s tal l -ati on p r og r am. If - l i ke w i th s ome ver s i on s of W i n d ow s - i t' s n ot p os s i b l e to b e l og g ed on as Ad mi n i s tr ator i t' s r ec ommen d ed to r i g h t c l i c k th e S et u p. exef i l e an d u s e th e Ru n As. . .op ti on f r om th e c on text men u to s tar t th e i n s tal l ati on p r o-g r am as Ad mi n i s tr ator .
2. (Download version) Browse to the folder where you have stored the downloaded PADS setup and double click on the downloaded executable.
3. From the list of displayed languages, select the language for the installation and clickOK.
N O T E
T h e l an g u ag e you s el ec t h er e w i l l al s o b e u s ed as d ef au l t l an g u ag e f or th e PADS s of tw ar e to b e i n s tal l ed .
4. (USB stick version) If the Microsoft .NET framework version 4.0 has not yet been installed on your computer, then the installation program will install it. In this case follow the guidelines of the .NET framework installation. Afterwards you might have to reboot your computer to complete the .NET framework installation.
6. Read the license agreement for the PADS software and if you agree then selectI accept the terms in the License Agreementand clickNextto continue with the installation.
7. In the next screen choose if the PADS software needs to be installed forAnyone who uses this Computer (All Users)orOnly for me(the current user) and clickNextto continue.
Selecting an installation configuration
In the next step of the PADS Installation Wizard you can specify the setup type that best suits your needs.
To specify the setup type in the PADS Installation Wizard
From the drop down list you can select one of the following configurations: 1. Complete Installation
This will install all PADS components on the PC. 2. Viewer Installation
This will install the PADS Viewer only.
You will be asked to enter some extra information in anadditional screen. 3. Server Installation
This will install the server components: l PADS License Wizard
l PADS System Management l PADS Server
l PADS Domain Management 4. Designer / Scheduler Installation
5. Custom Installation
This option will enable you to select any or all PADS components you would like to install on the PC.
Specifying Viewer settings
When you've chosen a the Viewer installation as the installation configuration, you need to specify some viewer settings like name, Server location, and port number.
To specify the Viewer Name l Computer Name
When this option is selected the PADS Viewer software will automatically use the name of your computer as the name to uniquely identify the PADS Viewer in your PADS installation. When the name of your computer changes the system will automatically take over the new name.,
l Manual
This option allows you to choose your own viewer name.
N O T E
T h e Vi ew er n ame mu s t u n i q u el y i d en ti f y th e PADS Vi ew er i n you r PADS i n s tal l ati on , s o you mu s t en s u r e you r s el f th at th e c h os en vi ew er n ame i s n ot al r ead y i n u s e.
To specify the Server location
TheServer Locationhas the following options to specify the Server PC: l Automatic
This option lets the Viewer search for a PADS Server on the network and connect to the first Server it encounters. This will happen every time the Viewer is starting up.
l This Computer
This option will select the PC the Viewer is installed on as its Server. l Other
This option will allow you to specify a PC manually by entering a name or IP address. Alternatively, you can clickSearch...to have the system executing an automatic search for PADS Servers:
Select the available PADS Server of your choosing and click OK to confirm your choice.
Port number
By clickingAdvanced Settingsthe area for port number information unfolds.
If you want to specify another port number than the default (7237), then you can enter it manually or by using the up/down arrows.
When you've made your selection, clickNextto continue the installation.
Viewer security settings
In the Viewer security settings screen that appears next, you have the possibility to specify special secur-ity settings for PADS Viewer. This is especially intended for situations - like Windows 8 - where the default security settings may be insufficient to run PADS Viewer.
Run Viewer as User
By default both PADS Viewer and PADS Controller will be started with your current Microsoft Windows user account. Depending on your situation it may be required to start these applications as a different user with different permissions. For instance, you can start the applications as Administrator to ensure that you have (remote) access to all PADS features.
User Name
The user name of the Windows user account that will be used to start both PADS Viewer and PADS Con-troller.
Password
The password that belongs to the specified user name. Domain
Windows User Account Control (UAC)
User Account Control helps prevent potentially harmful programs from making changes to your com-puter. This means for instance that you will be notified when programs want to make changes to your computer or your Windows settings. Since Windows 7 Microsoft automatically turns on UAC. Depending on the security settings of your Windows user account this may a proper working of some PADS features like e.g. the automatic installation of software updates. To overcome this problem UAC must be
switched off. Disable UAC
When you select this option then the PADS software will check your UAC settings at startup and auto-matically switches off UAC. Please not that the UAC settings will not be set back to the original settings when the PADS software is closed.
N O T E
If you c h an g e th eD i sabl e U AC s etti n g th en you n eed to r es tar t you r c omp u ter i n or d er f or th i s n ew s etti n g to take ef f ec t.
Ready to install
After you have chosen an installation configuration you are about to start the physical installation.
To specify the location of short cuts
In theShortcutsarea select any or all options for creation of the PADS shortcuts. The options are:
1. Create shortcuts on the Desktop
This will place PADS shortcuts on the Windows Desktop. 2. Create shortcuts in the Start Menu
3. Create shortcuts in the Startup Folder
This will place PADS shortcuts in the Startup Menu in the Windows Start Menu.
Applications whose shortcuts have been placed in the Startup Menu are started automatically after logging on to Windows.
I M P O R T A N T
W h en r u n n i n g W i n d ow s 8 c h ec ki n g th i s op ti on w i l l au tomati c al l y f or c e W i n d ow s to s w i tc h to th e c l as s i c Des ktop at s tar tu p of W i n d ow s .
To specify the installation folder
The final step in making the PADS License Wizard ready for install is specifying the folder where PADS needs to be installed.
1. ClickBrowseto navigate for the new destination folder or manually enter the name of the folder.
To start the installation
1. ClickInstallto start the actual installation.
Finishing the installation
After the PADS software has been successfully installed you can close the PADS Installation Wizard.
To close the PADS installation wizard after a successful installation
1. If you want to activate your PADS installation as soon as the License Wizard is closed, selectStart the License Wizard now to activate your product.
Activation of PADS
Once PADS has been installed, the system needs to be activated to work properly. For this you will need an activation key.
In this section
Activating your PADS installation
Activating your PADS installation
Before you can start using the PADS software you must first activate the software by entering a product key. The product key reflects the number of licenses and optionally the licensing period for the software. The product key can be entered with the PADS License Wizard.
To start the PADS License Wizard
l Click theStartbutton on the Windows taskbar.
l Select (All) Programs, PADS4and thenConfiguration. l SelectLicense Wizard.
To select the correct PADS Server
Make sure your PADS Server is listed. I M P O R T A N T
If you ac ti vate you r l i c en s e at th e w r on g PADS Ser ver , you w i l l n eed to c on tac t Net Di s -p l ay Sys tems to u n d o th i s ac ti vati on .
If your PADS Server is listed, select it, and clickNext.
If it's not listed here, make sure the PADS Server has been installed and is running properly. Or click the buttonThe PADS Server I want isn't listed. Then the next screen will appear:
Fill in theNetwork Address(name or IP address), and optionally thePort Number, of your PADS Server manually and clickNextto retry.
To activate your installation
This screen offers you the following options: l Activate a new installation
This the default option and will be further used to describe the activation process. l Continue offline activation
Select this option if you've already initiated an offline activation. Offline activation is further described inthis topic.
ClickActivate a new installationto continue. In the next screen, enter your product key.
If your product key has been validated, clickNextto continue.
TheLicense Wizard will send information online to Net Display Systems for verification and processing of product key and license information, and when successful it will ask you to verify the information found.
If all information is correct, you can clickActivate online nowto actually activate your license. When your license has been successfully activated at the License Activation Server, the next screen will confirm your activated license information.
ClickFinishto complete the activation process and leave the PADS License Wizard. Your installation has now been activated.
Offline Activation
For certain PADS installations it's not possible or desirable to have an Internet connection. Although reas-ons for this can be very valid, the PADS installation still needs to be activated. This can be done through an offline activation.
To start the offline activation
There are two things required to activate a PADS installation that doesn't have an Internet connection: l The PADS installation that's without Internet connection
l A device that has access to the Internet and the ability to transfer files to a PC, directly or indirectly (by means of a data storage device or such).
To get the offline activation file
In order to activate offline, you will need to get the offline activation file. This file contains all necessary data from the PADS Server you want to activate. To get this file, you need to start the License Wizard on the PADS installation without Internet connection, most commonly the PADS Server PC:
l Click theStartbutton on the Windows taskbar. l Select (All) Programs, PADS4and thenTools. l SelectLicense Wizard.
ClickActivate a new installationto let the License Wizard connect to the online License Activation Server at Net Display Systems. It will detect a connection is not possible, resulting in the following screen:
Read the button labeledCreate offline activation filecarefully and then click it to indicate the folder location on this PC where the activation file needs to be created.
N O T E
By d ef au l t th e p r od u c t key i s s u g g es ted as f i l e n ame, b u t you c an c h oos e an y n ame you l i ke.
If you have specified the location and name of the activation file, the Wizard will be closed.
Now the activation file has been created, you can store it to a data storage device, like a USB stick and go to a PC that has an Internet connection.
To get the license file from the activation portal
Plug in the data storage device in the PC and go to the Net Display Systems activation portal at
The License Activation Server will retrieve the license information online from Net Display Systems. It will ask you to verify the information found. If all information is correct, clickNextto continue. It will ask you to do the same for your contact information.
The license file has been downloaded. ClickOKto close the activation portal. To finish the offline activation
Now the license file has been stored to a data storage device, it can be returned to the PADS installation, so that the license can be entered with help of the PADS License Wizard.
Return to the PC you started the offline activation with and repeat the first steps, as described at the top of this document, until you reach theCurrent license informationscreen:
Browse to the license file, select it and clickOpento retrieve the license file. The actual activation will start immediately after that.
ClickFinishto complete the activation process and leave the PADS License Wizard. Your installation has now been activated.
Configuration of PADS
After you have successfully installed and activated the PADS software you can best configure PADS to meet your exact requirements.
In this section
Using Microsoft Active Directory
Using Microsoft Active Directory
Many organizations use Microsoft Active Directory to centrally manage the user accounts of their employees. With the Active Directory connection of PADS you can make optimal use of this information.
N O T E
PADS c an w or k w i th you r exi s ti n g Ac ti ve Di r ec tor y s tr u c tu r e ' as i t i s ' an d d oes n ' t r eq u i r e an y ad j u s tmen ts to or g an i z ati on al u n i ts or u s er g r ou p s i n Ac ti ve Di r ec tor y. After setting up a connection with Active Directory, you can beside 'normal' PADS users create so-called LDAP users in PADS. These users are automatically linked to user accounts in active directory. When a user logs on with an LDAP user name, then the PADS system will automatically use the credentials stored inActive Directory. When the user name or password of the user is changed in Active Directory this is automatically taken over by the PADS system. If a user account is disabled in Active Directory then the user can no longer logon to the PADS applications. When the user is removed from Active Directory it will also automatically be removed from the PADS system. If the credentials that you have specified for PADS server to access Active Directory have limited permissions, then the updates in Active Directory might not be taken over by PADS instantly, but will only become effective after a restart of the PADS Server.
Memberships of user groups, permissions and, license assignment are all done in PADS for all users, including LDAP users.
If an LDAP user is removed from PADS, it will NOT be removed from Active Directory.
When the connection with Active Directory is disabled in PADS, then the existing LDAP users that have been defined in PADS remain exist. This way, you can reuse them when you decide to enable Active Dir-ectory again at a later time.
To configure the usage of Active Directory in PADS
1. Specify the Active Directory connection settings in the server settings window of PADS System Management.
2. Reboot the PADS Server to make the Active Directory connection settings effective.
3. Go to the Users window in PADS System Management and create one or more LDAP users. Make sure that the users are assigned to a user group and that you assign the right licenses. After this the Active Directory connection is ready-to-use and users can logon with one of the specified LDAP user accounts.
Upgrading from a previous PADS version
If you want to install the PADS4 software on a computer where you already have a previous release ver-sion of the PADS software installed then there are certain aspects to take into consideration.
N O T E
Y ou c an r u n an y ol d er ver s i on of PADS al on g s i d e PADS4 , i f you s o d es i r e.
In this section
Upgrading from PADS 3.1 SR1
Describes the steps to upgrade to PADS4 from PADS 3.1 SR1.
Upgrading from PADS 3.1
Describes the steps to upgrade to PADS4 from PADS 3.1.
Upgrading from any earlier version of PADS
Upgrading from PADS 3.1 SR1
Essential to upgrading the PADS version to PADS4 is leaving your current PADS version untouched. This way information about viewers, schedules, content and other data can be upgraded in a adequate man-ner.
To upgrade from PADS 3.1 Professional SR1 to PADS4 1. Start the PADS4 installation program.
2. Install the PADS4 software as described atInstallation of PADS.
3. Start the PADS4 Conversion Wizard to migrate your PADS 3.1 SR1 data and content to PADS4. Follow the instructions given.
Upgrading from PADS 3.1
Essential to upgrading the PADS version to PADS4 is leaving your current PADS version untouched. This way information about viewers, schedules, content and other data can be upgraded in a adequate man-ner.
To upgrade from PADS 3.1 Professional to PADS4 1. Start the PADS4 installation program.
2. Install the PADS4 software as described atInstallation of PADS.
3. Start the PADS4 Conversion Wizard to migrate your PADS 3.1 data and content to PADS4. Follow the instructions given.
Upgrading from any earlier version of PADS
For PADS versions that precede PADS 3.1, steps to migrate to PADS4 could be too convoluted. Of course, you can go through the steps of upgrading the software from one older version to a newer one until you get to the point of PADS4, but we advise otherwise.
To upgrade from an earlier version of PADS
1. Install the PADS4 software as described atInstallation of PADS. 2. Uninstall the old PADS software.
Maintaining the installation
Once PADS has been installed, there are several tools to maintain the installation.
In this section
Restoring to a previous build version
Describes the steps to restore the installation to a previous build.
Modifying the installation
Describes the steps to modify the installation.
Repairing the installation
Describes the steps to repair the installation.
Removing the installation
Updating the installation
Once PADS has been installed, updates for the system will come available from time to time. These updates need to be downloaded and installed. You can choose how PADS will handle these updates.
In this section
Automatic update
Describes the steps to have your PADS installation perform updates automatically.
Manual update
Automatic update
Manual update
Every application within the PADS installation offers the functionality to manually check for updates.
To update a PADS application manually
You can start any of the PADS applications to perform a manual update. For this example, the Scheduler is used.
l Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar. l Select (All) Programs, PADS4and thenScheduler.
l In the ribbon bar select theToolstab and then click theCheck for Updatesbutton.
l The welcome screen of the PADS Software Update Wizard is shown.
It will show the date at which the last check for updates was performed.Nonemeans there have not been any checks before.
ClickNextto continue.
l If a new version has been found, the Wizard will show that an update is available alongside the newer version number and its build date.
N O T E
If n o u p d ates w er e f ou n d th e s c r een w i l l d i s p l ay th e text No U pdat es Av ai l abl e. ClickDownload Software Updateto continue.
l When the download is complete, you can install the update. ClickInstallto continue.
l The Installation Wizard is started and from this point the same procedure is followed as in the regularPADS installation.
Restoring to a previous build version
Depending on your product key and the contract information contained therein, you may not have the rights to install a certain update of PADS after a specified date. If you do so anyway, thePADS system will notify you of this, and you will have to revert to a previous build version of PADS. PADS4 offers this func-tionality.
To retrieve the current build version number
PADS4 build versions have their own build version numbers. This is in the format of 4.X.YYYY, for example: 4.0.4372. To retrieve the current build version number, perform the following steps.
1. Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar. 2. SelectControl Panel.
3. Double clickAdd or Remove Programs(Windows XP) orPrograms and Features (Vista/Win-dows 7).
4. ClickPADS4In the list of installed programs to select it. 5. Click theUninstall/Changebutton.
6. The introduction page of thePADS4Installation Wizardis shown and next to the textVersion currently installedyou will find the current build version number.
To restore to a previous build version of PADS
Now that you have the current build version number you can restore to a previous build version. 1. Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar.
2. SelectAccessories. 3. SelectWindows Explorer.
5. Open the folder that contains a lower build version number than the current one. 6. Double-clickSetup.exe.
7. The PADS Installation Wizard is started, but now for the previous build version that you selected. 8. Follow the instructions from there. It's analogue toStarting the installation program.
Modifying the installation
After you have installed PADSyou can make modifications to the installation at any time. The modi-fications you can make in the installation include installation of certain components that have not been installed yet or the other way around, the removal of any of the installed components.
To modify the PADSinstallation on your computer 1. Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar. 2. SelectControl Panel.
3. Double clickAdd or Remove Programs(Windows XP) orPrograms and Features (Vista/Win-dows 7).
4. ClickPADS4In the list of installed programs to select it. 5. Click theUninstall/Changebutton.
9. Specify which shortcuts need to be created. 10. ClickModify.
Repairing the installation
PADSoffers the possibility to have your installation automatically repaired when one or more of the installed components got lost or corrupted.
To repair the PADSinstallation on your computer 1. Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar. 2. SelectControl Panel.
3. Double clickAdd or Remove Programs(Windows XP) orPrograms and Features (Vista/Win-dows 7).
4. ClickPADS4 In the list of installed programs to select it. 5. Click theUninstall/Changebutton.
Removing the installation
If you no longer want to make use of the PADSsoftware you can choose to remove it entirely from your computer.
IM P O R T A N T
W i th th i s p r oc ed u r e al l i n s tal l ed c omp on en ts of PADS4 w i l l b e r emoved f r om you r c omp u ter . So i f you h ave i n s tal l ed PADS Sc h ed u l er as w el l as PADS Vi ew er th en b oth aomp omp l i c -ati on s w i l l b e r emoved . If you on l y w an t to r emove s ome of th e i n s tal l ed c omp on en ts b u t n ot al l th en you s h ou l d f ol l ow th e p r oc ed u r e as d es c r i b ed u n d er Mod i f yi n g th e i n s tal l -ati on.
To remove the PADSinstallation from your computer 1. Click theStartbutton on the Windows task bar. 2. SelectControl Panel.
3. Double clickAdd or Remove Programs(Windows XP) orPrograms and Features (Vista/Win-dows 7).
4. ClickPADS4 In the list of installed programs to select it. 5. Click theUninstall/Changebutton.
9. ClickFinishto close the wizard.
Things to consider after removing the installation from your computer
When you've removed PADS4 from your computer, there are some issues to be considered.
l There are some files of the PADS installation that are not automatically removed from your com-puter. This includes the PADSdatabase (pads4.sdf) and a number of .XML files with program set-tings.
To make sure that the PADS software is completely removed you can best manually remove the folder C:\ProgramData\PADS and all of its subfolders after uninstalling the PADS software. l With removing the installation only files that have been installed by the PADS installation program
itself can be removed. Files that have been created afterwards with using the PADS software (like .PADSX files with the designed presentations) are not removed and will have to be removed
manually afterwards.
l The uninstall routine will also NOT uninstall the Microsoft .NET framework. If you want to have this removed from your computer as well you should uninstall this separately. However, please be careful with this, because there might be other applications on your computer that use this Microsoft component.
Troubleshooting
A lot of effort has been put into PADS4 to make it easier to trace and backtrack the cause of problems in the PADS installation, if any occur.
In this section
Detailed error messages
Describes the new PADS error messages in detail.
PADS Logging
Describes the way PADS keeps track of its own log messages.
PADS Black Box
Describes the mechanism to bundle all PADS error information into one compact package to be sent to Net Display Systems for inspection.
Microsoft Event Viewer
Detailed error messages
With PADS4 we have made the descriptions of the messages as specific as possible. This should simplify working with PADS and pinpoint any causes if an error occurs.
An example of a detailed error message
Below an example is given of a message box that contains a detailed error message.
It contains the error, a description and details. All can be attached to the Windows Clipboard and put in an e-mail message that you can send to your support contact person, if the error proves to be to com-plex to handle yourself.
PADS Logging
For each PADS application PADS4 now offers the possibility view log messages about application spe-cific information, warning or error messages.
PADS Black Box
PADS4 now offers the possibility to gather information about the system and send it to Net Display Sys-tems when all other methods fail to clarify the source of the issues.
Microsoft Event Viewer
With some end-user applications like PADS Scheduleryou usually get an error message telling you more about the problem. However, other applications usually store their messages in the Windows Event Viewer logs like the PADS Server service on the PADS Server PC.
To view Microsoft Event Viewer log information 1. In the WindowsStartmenu clickControl Panel. 2. Double clickAdministrative Tools.
3. Double clickEvent Viewer.
4. Check theApplication log,Security logandSystem logto see if there are any messages from one of the PADSapplications or services.
