Troubleshooting FAQ: 35 questions answered
Most digital signage faults come down to four things: power and display settings, the HDMI connection, the network, or the schedule. Work through them in that order: check the power LED and input, reseat or swap the cable, confirm the player is online, then confirm something is scheduled for the current time in the player's time zone. Restarting the player clears a large share of problems, and swapping the player, cable or screen tells you which part has failed.
Black screens and power
Why is my digital signage screen black?
Work through it in order. If the display's power LED is off, it is a power problem: check the outlet, the cable and the power button. If the screen says No Signal, the display works but gets no video, so check the input and the HDMI cable. If the player is running but shows nothing, check that it is online and that content is scheduled for right now. The black screen guide has the full flowchart.
What does No Signal mean on my digital signage display?
It means the display is working but is not receiving video from the player. Confirm the display is on the correct input, since many have HDMI 1, HDMI 2 and more. Reseat the cable at both ends, try another HDMI port on the display, and check that the player is powered and has finished booting, which can take 1 to 3 minutes. Then connect a laptop to the display to find out whether the player, cable or screen is at fault.
How do I fix an HDMI handshake problem on a digital sign?
Force a fresh handshake in this order. Power off both the display and the player. Disconnect the HDMI cable. Power on the display first and wait 30 seconds. Reconnect the HDMI cable, then power on the player and let it boot fully. Handshake failures cause black screens, flickering or a purple or green tint. If it keeps happening, replace the cable, use a shorter one, or lower the output resolution.
Why does my digital signage go black at night or at certain times?
Usually either a gap in the schedule or the display's own power settings. Check that the schedule in your CMS covers every hour the screen should show content, and give each screen default content that plays when nothing else is scheduled. Then check the display menu for an off timer, a sleep timer, an on/off schedule or an energy-saving mode that switches the panel off at a set time.
Why does my digital signage screen turn off or go to sleep by itself?
Something is putting it to sleep: the display, the player or HDMI-CEC. In the display menu, disable auto power off, energy saving, eco timers and power-down on no signal. On the player, turn off sleep and screen blanking; Raspberry Pi OS blanks the screen after about 10 minutes unless you disable it in raspi-config, and Windows sleep and display-off timers must be set to never. If the display switches off or changes input randomly, disable HDMI-CEC.
Why did my screen stay black after a power outage?
The player or the display did not come back on by itself. Enable power-on after mains power returns, in the player's settings or in a PC's BIOS; many consumer Android sticks lack this option. Make sure the player app starts on boot, and turn on the display's own auto power-on so a sleeping TV does not hide a healthy player. Test by pulling the plug, then add a nightly reboot and a watchdog so a hung player recovers without a site visit.
Player offline and network problems
Why does my player show offline in DigitalSignage.com?
An offline player almost always means it cannot reach the internet. Check the network cable or the Wi-Fi credentials, confirm the player has an IP address, and check that the firewall allows outbound HTTPS on port 443 and that DNS works. Corporate proxies and expired DHCP leases are other common causes. Then restart the player app or reboot the device. Offline players keep playing their cached content, so an offline status does not always mean a blank screen.
Why does my signage player keep going online and offline?
Intermittent status usually points to an unstable connection or an unstable player. Check the Wi-Fi signal at the player (-65 dBm or better is recommended), change the Wi-Fi channel or move to Ethernet, and turn off network power saving. Also look at power and heat: a weak power supply or an overheating player can drop off the network and reboot. A continuous ping from the player shows whether packets are being lost.
Why does Wi-Fi keep dropping on my signage player overnight?
Wi-Fi power saving is the usual cause, followed by roaming between access points and DHCP lease changes. Turn off Wi-Fi power saving on the player; on a Raspberry Pi this is a NetworkManager setting, and on Windows disable power saving for the network adapter. Consider a DHCP reservation for each player. The most reliable fix is a wired Ethernet connection, which removes most overnight blank-screen reports.
Why are my web page and live data zones blank while videos still play?
Because those zones need a live connection and the videos do not. SignPlayer caches images, videos and layouts on the player and plays them from local storage, but web pages, RSS or weather feeds, social walls and live streams are fetched from the internet as they play. If those zones go blank, check the player's connection and whether the site allows embedding. Keep a cached fallback image in important zones.
How do I tell if the problem is the player, the screen or the network?
Swap one part at a time. Connect a laptop to the display: if the laptop shows a picture, the display is fine. Connect the player to another display: if it still shows nothing, the player is at fault. Try a known-good HDMI cable. If only one screen is affected, suspect that screen, cable or player; if every screen is black or offline at once, suspect the internet connection, the firewall or the schedule.
Content and scheduling problems
Why is my digital signage not showing my latest changes?
Check four things. First, confirm the updated content is saved and assigned to the right screen or screen group. Second, confirm the player is online, since an offline player keeps playing its old cache. Third, check that the player has free storage space for the new files. Fourth, force a refresh or restart the player so it downloads the change. Large videos can take several minutes to download on a slow connection before they appear.
Why is my scheduled content not showing?
The schedule usually does not cover the current moment. Check the start and end dates, since an expired campaign stops playing silently, and confirm the days of week and hours are right. Look for overlapping schedules where a higher-priority item overrides yours. Check the player's time zone. Finally, set default content for each screen so something useful plays whenever nothing else is scheduled, rather than a black screen.
Why does my content play at the wrong time?
The player's time zone or clock is wrong. Set the player's time zone to its physical location, not the office where the content was made. Make sure the player can reach an NTP time server on UDP port 123: when NTP is blocked by a firewall, the clock drifts and dayparted menus change at the wrong hour. A Raspberry Pi has no battery-backed clock by default, so after an offline reboot it can start with the wrong time.
Why is the wrong content showing on one of my screens?
Usually the screen is assigned to the wrong screen group or campaign, or an older, higher-priority schedule is still active. Check which campaign the screen is actually assigned to, remove expired or overlapping schedules, and confirm the screen's name matches the physical location. If the assignment is right, the player may be showing old cached content: force a refresh, and if that fails clear the player's cache so it downloads everything again.
Video and sound problems
Why won't my video play on my digital signage player?
The most common cause is a codec the player cannot decode, such as HEVC or AV1 on older hardware, or ProRes and other editing formats. Other causes are a bitrate or resolution beyond the player's hardware, a variable frame rate recording from a phone, or a file that did not download completely. Re-encode to H.264 in an MP4 container and upload it again. The video encoding guide lists settings per player.
What video settings play reliably on every signage player?
Use an MP4 container with H.264 High Profile video at the screen's native resolution, a constant frame rate, and the fast start option that puts the index at the beginning of the file. For 1080p, 6 to 10 Mbps suits typical signage and 4 to 6 Mbps is enough for text and slow motion. Reserve H.265 for 4K on players that decode it in hardware. Free tools such as HandBrake can produce these settings.
Why does my video stutter or play choppy on a digital sign?
The player cannot keep up with the video. Lower the bitrate (15 to 25 Mbps is a safe ceiling for 1080p) and match the video resolution to the screen. Reduce the number of zones playing at once, since several videos in one layout multiply the load. Check for overheating, which throttles the processor, and slow storage such as a worn microSD card. If it still stutters, the hardware is too weak for the content.
Why is there no sound from my digital sign?
Check the simple things first: the display volume and mute, and whether the video file actually contains an audio track. Then check the player's audio output is set to HDMI rather than a headphone jack or another device. Browser-based players may block autoplay with sound; the Chromium kiosk flag for autoplay without a user gesture fixes that. If you use a separate sound bar, make sure the display is passing HDMI audio to it.
Picture and orientation problems
Why is my content cut off at the edges of the screen?
This is overscan, and it is almost always a TV setting. Consumer TVs enlarge the HDMI picture by roughly 3 percent by default, cropping the edges of your layout. In the TV's picture menu, set the picture size to Just Scan, Screen Fit, Full Pixel or 1:1, depending on the brand. If a Raspberry Pi still shows black borders or cropping, set the exact output mode on the kernel command line.
Why is my content sideways or upside down?
The layout orientation, the player's display rotation and the physical mounting do not match. For a portrait screen, build the layout in portrait in SignStudio, then set the player's display output to portrait: in Windows under Settings, Display, Display orientation; on a Raspberry Pi in the Screen Configuration tool; on Android in the display or player settings. If the image is upside down, rotate the output 180 degrees or use the opposite portrait setting.
Why does my digital signage look stretched or blurry?
The player's output resolution does not match the screen, or the content was made at the wrong size. Set the player to the display's native resolution, such as 1920 x 1080 for Full HD or 3840 x 2160 for 4K. Build layouts at the same resolution and use images at that size, since small images look blurry when scaled up. If the display reports an unsupported resolution, start at 1920 x 1080 and work up.
Why does my screen flicker or show lines on the picture?
Usually the cable or the signal. Replace the HDMI cable with a known-good certified one, use a shorter cable or an active cable for long runs, and power-cycle both devices to redo the HDMI handshake. Try a lower output resolution or refresh rate. Horizontal tearing during video is different: enable V-Sync in the graphics settings on Windows, update firmware on Android, or reduce the resolution on a Raspberry Pi.
Raspberry Pi, Android, Windows and browser issues
Why does my Raspberry Pi signage screen go black after 10 minutes?
Raspberry Pi OS blanks the screen after about 10 minutes by default. Run sudo raspi-config, choose Display Options, then Screen Blanking, select No and reboot. Then check the television's own energy-saving and no-signal sleep settings, because a TV that sleeps on its own hides a healthy player. The Raspberry Pi guide covers the three settings that catch most first installs.
Why does my Raspberry Pi sign freeze or reboot randomly?
Check power, storage and heat. An underpowered supply causes random reboots, so use the official 27 W supply on a Pi 5 or 15 W on a Pi 4 rather than a phone charger. A worn microSD card causes freezes or a read-only filesystem, so replace it with an A2 card or boot from an SSD. A Pi throttles above 80°C, so fit a heatsink case or active cooler. Add a nightly reboot and the hardware watchdog.
Why does 4K video stutter on my Raspberry Pi?
It is almost certainly encoded as H.264. Neither the Pi 4 nor the Pi 5 decodes H.264 at 4K in hardware: the Pi 4 stops at 1080p60 and the Pi 5 has no H.264 decoder at all, so the processor decodes it in software and stutters. Re-encode 4K video as H.265 at 25 to 35 Mbps, which both boards decode in hardware at 60 frames per second, or deliver 1080p H.264 instead.
Why won't my Raspberry Pi player start after a reboot?
Something is not set to launch at boot. SignPlayer's Raspberry Pi installer registers the player as a service, so if it does not start, re-run the install command from your account's Downloads page. A do-it-yourself Chromium kiosk needs its own autostart entry or a systemd service with Restart=always, plus desktop autologin enabled in raspi-config. Test by pulling the power and watching the screen come back on its own.
Why does my Android box show the home screen instead of the signage player?
The player is not set to launch on boot, or a system update pushed the launcher in front of it. Turn on the player app's start-on-boot option. On devices enrolled in Android Enterprise device-owner mode, you can make the player the home app so Android launches it at startup. Consumer sticks often apply firmware and launcher updates on their own, which is one reason commercial Android players are recommended for permanent screens.
Why does my Android stick keep overheating or restarting?
A sealed consumer stick behind a warm display throttles within hours and then restarts, because it was never designed for continuous duty. Use an HDMI extension cable to move it away from the panel's heat, keep the back of the display ventilated, and schedule a nightly reboot. If restarts continue, replace it with a commercial Android player with a fanless metal case rated for 24/7 operation.
Why does my Windows signage player restart or show update screens?
Windows Update is restarting the PC or showing notifications over the player. Set active hours to cover your opening hours, control updates with Group Policy or Windows Update for Business, and schedule restarts for a quiet overnight window. For a permanent player, Windows IoT Enterprise LTSC receives security fixes without feature updates. Also disable sleep, screen timeout and network adapter power saving so the player stays awake and connected.
Why can people exit my Chrome OS signage to the browser?
The device is not running in kiosk mode. On a Chromebox, Chromebase or ChromeOS Flex device, auto-launching a single signage app and locking the device to it requires a paid Chrome Enterprise Kiosk license for each device, configured in the Google Admin console. Without it, anyone passing can exit to the browser or desktop. Enroll the device, assign the license, and set the signage app as the auto-launch kiosk app.
Why does my browser-based signage stop after a network blip?
A plain browser tab has no reliable offline cache: when it reloads during an outage, it has nothing to show. If you run Chromium in kiosk mode, remove the incognito flag, which disables the disk cache, and add the autoplay flag so videos start without a click. For permanent screens, install the native SignPlayer app instead, which caches content locally, restarts itself after a reboot and keeps playing through outages.
Getting help and preventing problems
What should I do when my digital signage player is frozen?
Give it 2 to 3 minutes first, since it may be downloading or processing content. Then restart it remotely from the management dashboard; DigitalSignage.com's documentation describes remote restart and remote screenshots, so you can see what the screen shows without a site visit. If the player does not respond, unplug it for 30 seconds, plug it back in and allow 1 to 3 minutes to boot. Repeated freezes point to heat, a failing power supply, worn storage or content too heavy for the hardware.
How can I prevent digital signage problems before they happen?
Build in recovery. Schedule a nightly or weekly player reboot during closed hours, enable a watchdog that restarts a hung player, and set alerts for players offline more than about 5 minutes. Use wired Ethernet, commercial-grade power supplies and adequate cooling. Test new content on a spare player before publishing it. Inspect cables and update player firmware quarterly, and keep default content on every screen so a schedule gap never shows black.
How do I contact DigitalSignage.com support?
Free-plan users get self-service support through the documentation, video tutorials and the community; Plus+ and Enterprise plans add business-class support. You can email support@digitalsignage.com or call MediaSignage Inc. toll-free at +1-877-344-7446. Before contacting support, note the screen name, the player hardware and operating system, the exact error message, a photo of the screen, what changed before the problem started and what you have already tried.