Android Player Setup | easyCMS Digital Signage

Android media players are the most popular way to run easyCMS: small, silent, inexpensive boxes (or Android-based signage screens) that plug into any display via HDMI. This guide takes you from a fresh device to an authorised, always-on signage player.

Choosing and preparing the device

Almost any reasonably recent Android device works, but for reliable long-term signage use pick dedicated player hardware rather than a bargain TV stick, signage runs 24/7 and cheap boxes overheat and stutter. A device on a recent Android version (Android 9 or newer is recommended) with a quad-core CPU and 2GB+ RAM handles Full HD layouts comfortably; 4K playback needs correspondingly stronger hardware. easyCMS can also supply pre-configured player hardware if you prefer not to source your own.

Before installing:

Connect the device to your network (Ethernet is more reliable than Wi-Fi for permanent installs).
Check the date, time and timezone are correct, scheduling depends on the player’s clock.
Allow installation of apps from outside the store (the “unknown sources” or “install unknown apps” permission), since the player is installed from an APK file.

Installing the player

Download the easyCMS Android player APK to the device, either through its own browser or by copying the file onto a USB stick and plugging that into the screen. USB is usually easier on a TV with no keyboard.
Open the APK from the file manager and step through the installation. Android may ask you to allow installation from unknown sources first; that setting is per-app and can be switched off again afterwards.
When it finishes, tap Open.
The player asks for two Android permissions in turn. Tap Allow on both:
- access photos, media and files — the player caches your content on the device, and cannot play anything without it.
- access this device’s location — used for location-based scheduling and reporting.
The player then opens its connection screen.

Connecting to your CMS

Some builds ask for a licence email before this point. Most do not — if yours goes straight to the connection screen, nothing is wrong. When it does ask, the address is licence@myeasycms.com.

On first run the player asks how you want to connect, offering Activate Player and Configure Manually.

Choose “Configure Manually”. The activation code — six characters like 4EFF15 — belongs to a different enrolment service and cannot be used with easyCMS. If the screen is showing a code, you are on the wrong option; go back and pick Configure Manually.

Then enter your CMS address, normally https://app.myeasycms.com, typed in full including https://, and your CMS key, and save. Both values are in your welcome email; there is no screen in easyCMS to look them up, so ask us if the email has gone missing.

The player will say it is waiting for authorisation. That is expected. Leave it switched on and claim the screen from Add a display, on a phone or computer using the same internet connection as the player. That is what turns a registered player into a working display, and it is the route to use rather than anything inside the CMS itself. Connecting your first display walks through it.

One last step on the screen itself: once it is claimed, press Connect on the player again. Authorising alone does not move it off the waiting screen — it collects its configuration and starts playing on the next connection attempt.

Within a minute or two the screen shows the default easyCMS layout. That is the sign that everything worked: the player is registered, licensed, claimed and taking content. From there, schedule your own layouts to it.

Two different licences are involved, and confusing them causes most Android support tickets. Claiming the screen uses one of your display licences, the one included with your account or an additional lifetime licence at 99€. Separately, the Android player software carries a commercial player licence, using the code sent in your purchase confirmation email. That one re-verifies about every 30 days: if the check cannot complete, the screen carries on playing what it already has and quietly stops taking anything new. There are no monthly fees for either. Player licence problems covers the symptoms.

Recommended settings for reliable operation

Start on boot: enable the player’s autostart option so it launches by itself after a power cut. For fully unattended operation, set it as the device launcher/home app.
Screen always on: disable the device’s sleep and screensaver settings.
Display settings profile: in the CMS you can manage Android player settings centrally through a display settings profile, collect interval, orientation, operating hours and more, instead of configuring each box by hand. Changes to the profile reach every assigned display automatically.
Orientation: for portrait screens, set the rotation in the player/profile settings and design portrait layouts to match.

Verifying playback

Authorised and scheduled, the player downloads its content and begins playing within a few minutes. To check a player on site, press i on a keyboard attached to the device. The Status window shows the connection state, what it has downloaded and any faults. On older players, or with no keyboard, touch the screen or move a mouse to bring up the action bar and choose Status from there. Reading the player status window explains what it is telling you. Remotely, the display monitoring tools in the CMS show check-in status and can request a screenshot.

Tip If the screen stays on the splash screen or never appears in easyCMS, work through the offline display checklist.