System Hardware Guide

Copyright © 2017 Userful Corporation. All rights reserved.
(Updated 2017.03.24)

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Introduction

Userful™ software appliance enables customers to group multiple displays to form a single large display, hence enabling a single Userful host to support one or more larger video wall displays. The software appliance is designed to utilize both the CPU and the GPU to maximize performance.

Please Note: Any commercial deployments of Userful™ requires use of a certified PC. Deployments using only certified hardware can be supported by Userful. For resellers selling Userful™ software appliance at a high volume, Userful is able to work with you to certify a PC of your choice. Please contact your Sales Representative or send an email to sales@userful.com for more details.

This document outlines the PCs certified with Userful™ software appliance and the scaling matrix.

Certified PCs

Model	Specifications
Entry Level Appliance HP ProDesk 400 G3 MT Lenovo IdeaCentre 300 Tower	Processor: Intel® Core™ i3-6100 with Integrated Intel® HD Graphics 530 Memory: 8 GB (2x4GB) Storage: 500GB HDD Network Interface: Realtek Semiconductor Co. RTL8111/8168/8411 Gigabit Ethernet
Mid Range Appliance HP EliteDesk 800 G2 Series Lenovo ThinkStation P310 Tower	Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-6700 with Integrated Intel® HD Graphics 530 Memory: 32 GB (supports up to 64 GB) Discrete GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Storage: 120 GB SSD (up to 500 GB SATA) or 180 GB SSD Network Interface: Intel® I219LM Gigabit Network Connection LOM (optional Startech 10Gig Network Card)
High End Appliance PC Available from Userful	Please contact your Sales Representative or send an email to sales@userful.com for more details.

Following advisements must be kept in mind before buying the intended hardware: Intel® Core i7 processor used should be a Desktop class full TDP processor with an integrated GPU. Ideally an unmanaged Gigabit switch should be used for network configuration. If you are going to use a managed switch, it should be configured only to perform the basic switching functionality. If you are planning to install additional cards for your capture needs, use either a mid-tower or full-tower form factor system. If you are planning to implement a 10Gig network, use a 10Gig NIC (Startech 10Gig Network Card) and a 10Gig uplink switch (NETGEAR ProSAFE 52-Port Stackable switch) Use dual memory channels rather than single memory channel for better graphics performance.

Why Certified PCs?

Please watch this video to know why certified PCs are important for installing Userful™ software appliance

Scaling Guide

Scaling guide provides the maximum video wall size and maximum recommended stand-alone displays supported with Entry Level and Mid Range Appliances.

Entry Level Appliance

Entry Level appliance is recommended for small deployments (e.g., playing signage content over 3x3 video wall setup). Userful strongly recommends Mid Range or High End Appliance if the user needs to go beyond 3X3 video wall setup.

The table below provides the maximum video wall size OR recommended stand-alone displays you can expect from a single Userful host (not exceeding 9 displays).

Intercative Sessions

Userful recommends Mid Range or High End Appliance for all interactive sessions.

Video (Non-Interactive) Sessions

Source Content	Video Wall Size	Stand-Alone Displays
1080p	3x3	4
4k	3x3	2

• One external 1080p source can be captured through Blackmagic DeckLink Capture card (i.e., DeckLink Mini Recorder).
• All the 9 displays can be a part of mirror group.

Mid Range Appliance

The table below provides the maximum number of stand-alone displays, maximum number of sources and example configurations of video wall size that you can expect from a single Userful host.

Interactive Sessions

Use Case	Maximum Recommended Stand-Alone Displays
	Cloud Desktop	Web Browser	Content Management System	Virtual Machines (VDI)
Low Usage Single application per Display Low-bandwidth web usage
	40	40	5	15
High Usage Several applications per Display High-bandwidth web usage (YouTube videos)
	15	6	3	7

Video (Non-Interactive) Sessions

Source Content	Maximum Number of Stand-Alone Displays
	Signage Player	Network Streamer	HDMI Capture
1080p	14	30 (720p source)	5
4k	4	N/A	1
6k	1	N/A	N/A
8k	Please contact your Sales Representative or send an email to sales@userful.com for details.

Video Wall Configuration

Content Resolution / Sources	Video Wall Size (example configurations - upto max. of 60 displays)	Maximum Number of Sources
1080p	2x2, 5x5, 7x7	8
4k	2x2, 5x5, 7x7	3
6k	4x4, 5x5	1
8k	Please contact your Sales Representative or send an email to sales@userful.com for details.
Non Standard Video Resolution (e.g. 32000 x 720)	1x50, 2x25	1
Content Management Systems (CMS)	5x5, 7x7, 7x8	4
Network Streamer (720p)	2x2, 6x5, 7x7, 7x8	10
Web Browsers	2x2, 4x4, 7x7, 7x8	6
Virtual Machines (VDI)	2x2, 6x6, 7x7, 7x8	7

Please Note: The scaling guide assumes displays are not part of the mirror group. These numbers might increase if the content is mirrored across displays. Please contact your Sales Representative or send an email to sales@userful.com for more details. Userful strongly recommends to use High End Appliance along with Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 or higher Supported Offload cards when you are connecting more than 40 displays from a single Userful host. Userful strongly recommends thoroughly testing a given system and network configuration with anticipated usage scenarios before deployment.

Related Links

• Nvidia Support
• Supported Zero Client Devices
  
• Supported Capture Cards
• Frequently Asked Questions