Raspberry Pi
Signital provides a ready-made operating system image for the Raspberry Pi. You write it to a microSD card, boot the Pi, and it runs the Signital player and nothing else. The image updates itself.
Before you start
- A Raspberry Pi 4 Model B or newer, with its power supply.
- A microSD card of at least 8 GB.
- An HDMI connection to the display.
- A computer with Raspberry Pi Imager (opens in a new tab) installed.
- A display created in the portal. See Displays.
Install the Signital image
Download the image
In the portal, open the display's page, press Connect, open Player not installed yet?, pick Raspberry Pi and press Download .zip. That link always points at the newest image, so there is nothing to look up.
Write it to the card
- Insert the card into your computer and open Raspberry Pi Imager.
- Choose your Pi model under Choose device.
- Under Choose OS, scroll to Use custom and pick the file you downloaded.
- Under Choose storage, pick the card, then press Next.
Configure the Pi
When the Imager offers to apply OS customisation, choose Edit settings:
- Set username and password, and enter ones you will remember.
- For Wi-Fi, tick Configure wireless LAN, enter the network name and password and choose the country. For Ethernet, leave it unticked.
- Set locale settings to your time zone and keyboard layout.
Press Save, confirm, and wait for the write to finish.
Boot the Pi
Insert the card into the Pi, connect the display and power. The Pi boots into Signital and shows a 5-character pairing code.
Connect the display
- The Pi shows a 5-character pairing code and a QR code.
- In the portal, open the display's page, press Connect and type the code. The fifth character submits it. Or scan the QR code with your phone and tap the display.
The full steps are in Connect a display.
Tips for this platform
- The Pi runs only Signital. There is no desktop to configure and no browser to update.
- The player updates itself over the network. Rewrite the card only if the Pi stops booting.
- Restart, Identify and, on the Business plan, Reboot device all work from the display page. See Manage a device.
- A Pi 3 will boot the image but struggles with video. Use a Pi 4 or newer.
Troubleshooting
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| The display stays black | Check the HDMI cable and the display's input. Confirm the Pi's power light is on. |
| The Pi boots but shows no pairing code | It has no network. Rewrite the card with the correct Wi-Fi details, or plug in Ethernet. |
| Signital does not start after boot | The write may have failed. Write the image to the card again. |
For anything else, see Troubleshooting.