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DIVE Media Computer Network Configuration

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Oshoma Momoh edited this page Jan 26, 2017 · 3 revisions

About

DIVE Media Computers are configured, by default, to use DHCP ethernet networking. This is the recommended configuration, as it is most robust across different router configurations.

Ethernet is strongly recommended instead of wireless networking in order to provide the most stable connection and sufficient bandwidth for streaming media such as YouTube videos.

Methods for Customizing Your Network Settings

You can override the default network settings in two different ways:

  1. You can apply customized settings of your own via USB disk-on-key, as described below. This is the recommended approach, and it's more convenient if you need to change network settings frequently, and/or have complex settings. This approach is also useful if you are entering WiFi settings, since it does not require you to disclose WiFi passwords to anyone outside your own company.

  2. DIVE operators can remotely apply network settings on your behalf. This is useful in cases where you do not expect to change network settings frequently, or when the device is physically hard to reach. However this approach only works when your DIVE Media Computer is already online, and it carries the risk of stranding your Media Computer offline if the custom settings are incorrect.

Customizing Network Settings via USB Disk-on-key

DIVE Media Computers are programmed to accept new network settings provided in a specially-named text file on a USB disk-on-key.

How to Prepare Your Settings

  1. Copy one of the sample files as a starting point for your custom network settings. The DHCP Ethernet example is the simplest starting point.

  2. Work with your IT department to customize the network settings to your needs. The full set of supported values is described below. Don't bother adding WiFi settings unless you're sure you require wireless networking.

  3. Save your custom settings on a USB disk-on-key in a file named "dive-network-config.txt". The disk should be formatted with FAT16 or FAT32. Don't worry about any other files on the disk, as they will be ignored.

  4. Edit the network_settings_revision: xxxx value within the file to be sure it is a new value, i.e. different from the last value used on this particular DIVE Media Computer. This is a safety measure; DIVE won't overwrite network settings until you explicitly enter a new value. The value can be any string, but usually a date makes good sense. For example, 2015-09-10.001.

How to Apply Custom Settings

  1. Plug in an ethernet cable to the DIVE Media Computer, if you are planning to use ethernet.

  2. Turn on the DIVE Media Computer and wait 2 minutes to give DIVE time to start.

  3. Insert the USB disk into any of the USB ports on the DIVE Media Computer.

  4. Wait for the screen to flash and for DIVE to start up. This usually happens within 30 seconds, but if you don't see a flash you can wait as long as 60 seconds.

  5. Remove the USB disk.

During step 4 DIVE will apply the new network settings and attempt to reconnect to your local network. If all goes well you will see DIVE start up properly and begin streaming new content.

You can redo this process as many times as you want on a given DIVE Media Computer. You don't need to reboot the computer between attempts; just remove the USB disk, edit your settings file, and plug the USB disk back in, following steps 3, 4, and 5. Remember, though, you must enter a new network_settings_revision value each time, or your new settings will be ignored.

Troubleshooting

While the configuration process is quite reliable, sometimes DIVE fails to connect to your network. This can happen for various reasons. Carefully check to be sure you're following the steps above precisely. In particular:

  • Enter a new value for network_settings_revision every time you run this process on the same DIVE Media Computer
  • Make sure the settings filename is correct, as described above
  • Plug the Media Computer in to ethernet, if that's what you intend to use
  • WiFi passwords and SSID values are case-sensitive, and spaces matter
  • Enclose WiFi passwords with straight quotation marks like this: "pass word". Note that some versions of the Mac OS X will auto-correct straight quotation marks into curly quotation marks, and these will not work.
  • If you are using a USB disk other than the one provided by DIVE staff, make sure it is formatted with FAT16 or FAT32
  • The contents of the file must conform to the YAML specification. The easiest way to do this is to copy the example file.

DIVE staff are always happy to help as well.

List of Supported Settings as of 2015-09-10

Required Settings

The network_settings_revision must be defined. For example:

network_settings_revision: 2015-02-27.001

You must provide a new (not-already-used) network_settings_revision value. Your revision value will be compared to the currently-installed revision on the DIVE Media Computer, and DIVE only applies networking changes if the two revision strings differ.

The goal of this is to avoid inadvertently stomping on networking settings, and to avoid re-applying settings that are already in place. The network_settings_revision value is arbitrary but we recommend a date and version number e.g "2015-02-25.001".

Optional Settings

All other settings in the settings file are optional, although when specifying a static network configuration you must supply the IP address, netmask, and gateway.

Keep in mind the *_network_mode values always default to DHCP.

Here is the full list of supported networking parameters, together with example values. The symbol "|" means "or", i.e. you can enter any one of the listed values.

network_settings_revision: 2015-02-27.9

ethernet_network_mode: dhcp | static
ethernet_static_ip_address: 192.168.5.105
ethernet_netmask: 255.255.255.0
ethernet_gateway: 192.168.5.1    (optional)
ethernet_broadcast: xxx.yyy.zzz.aaa  (optional)
ethernet_dns_nameservers: 8.8.8.8  8.8.4.4

wifi_network_1_ssid: "myhouse"
wifi_network_1_ssid_hidden: false | true
wifi_network_1_password: "MyPassword Is Soooo Tricky!"
wifi_network_1_mode: dhcp
wifi_network_1_static_ip_address: 192.168.2.55
wifi_network_1_netmask: 255.255.255.0
wifi_network_1_gateway: 192.168.2.1
wifi_network_1_dns_nameservers: 8.8.8.8  8.8.4.4

wifi_network_2_ssid: "neighbor's house"
wifi_network_1_ssid_hidden: true | false
wifi_network_2_password: "Let Me In!"
wifi_network_2_mode: dhcp

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