PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC CM4 & CM5

This article describes how to install and configure the PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC Compute Module 4 (CM4) and Compute Module 5 (CM5) devices.

Installing the Sharp/NEC Compute Module Image

Sharp/NEC provides a custom Raspberry Pi image that is required to run web applications on the Compute Module. If your device is not running the Sharp/NEC image, install it by following the Manual flashing the Raspberry Pi over USB section of the Quick Reference Guide for Sharp MPi4 Kit 4.1. During the installation:

Select Custom Image.
Select the current Sharp/NEC image.

Note At the time of writing the current image is: Sharp_4.1_EU_20250501.img This image version may change in future releases.

After installation, configure a unique hostname for the device.

Allowing Access to the Sharp/NEC API

By default, the Sharp/NEC image only allows applications running on localhost to access the API. Connect to the Compute Module using SSH. Default credentials

Setting	Value
Username	`user`
Password	`CM@SHARPdisplays`

Open the configuration file:

cd /sharp/controls
sudo nano web-comms.py

Locate the CORS configuration:

CORS(
    app,
    resources={r"/*": {"origins": "http://127.0.0.1"}},
    methods=["GET", "POST"]
)

Replace http://127.0.0.1 with the URL of your PADS4 environment. For example:

CORS(
    app,
    resources={r"/*": {"origins": "https://pads4.contoso.com"}},
    methods=["GET", "POST"]
)

To allow all origins, use:

resources={r"/*": {"origins": "*"}}

Save the file and reboot the device.

Configuring the Viewer

The Sharp/NEC image contains a configuration endpoint that is used to configure the browser startup behavior. Open:

http://<ip-address-or-hostname>/config

Download the configuration file. Default credentials

Setting	Value
Username	`user`
Password	`CM@SHARPdisplays`

Open the configuration file in a text editor and configure the settings.

host

Specifies the PADS4 Server. Possible values:

127.0.0.1
IP address of the PADS4 Server
Hostname of the PADS4 Server

When an IP address or hostname is specified, the Viewer waits until the server is reachable. When 127.0.0.1 is specified, the Viewer starts even when the device is offline.

Note Using 127.0.0.1 requires the Viewer application to be hosted using HTTPS.

auto_close_browser

Recommended value:

false

wait_for_time_server

When enabled, the Viewer starts only after time synchronization has completed.

url

URL of the PADS4 Viewer application. Example:

https://<server>/pads4/apps/viewer/

incognito_mode

Recommended value:

false

autorefresh

Recommended value:

false

ntp_server

Specifies the NTP server. The PADS4 Server can also be used as the NTP server. Upload the modified configuration file and reboot the device.

Updating the Viewer

After the initial installation, Viewer updates are installed automatically. When the PADS4 Server is upgraded, the Viewer automatically updates to the version available on the server.

Supported Features

Feature	Support
Display Models	Supported
Portrait Mode	Supported
HTTPS	Supported
Text	Supported
Formatted Text	Supported
Scrolling Text	Supported
Line	Supported
Shape	Supported
Table	Supported
Interactive Button	Supported
Screenshot	Supported
Web Content	Supported*
Colors	Supported*
Property Bindings	Supported
Viewer Variables	Supported
Rules	Supported
Offline Content Library	Supported
Offline Schedules	Supported
Offline Data	Supported
Automatic Viewer Updates	Supported
Turn Off Display	Supported
PADS4 Ctrl Center	Supported

* Interactive address bar is not supported. * Texture and pattern colors are not supported.

Video Support

Feature	Support
Video Playback	Supported
HTTP Streaming	Supported
RTP Streaming	Not Supported
RTSP Streaming	Not Supported
MMS Streaming	Not Supported
UDP Streaming	Not Supported

Image Support

Format	Support
JPG	Supported
PNG	Supported
SVG	Supported
GIF	Supported

Unsupported Features

Feature
Block Remote Control
Flash
LED
NFC
Wake-on-LAN
Shutdown Device from Ctrl Center

PADS4 Ctrl Center Support

Supported functionality:

Screenshot
Viewer Log
Synchronization Log
Viewer Settings
System Information
Viewer Blackbox
Proof of Play
Refresh Device
Reboot Device
Viewer Variables
Monitoring & Alerts
Current Connection State

\

Supported Features & Limitations

General Features

Feature	Description
✅	Automatic Software Updates – The Viewer updates automatically when the PADS4 Server is updated.
✅	Offline Mode – Plays scheduled content for 7 days while offline.

Device Features

Feature	Description
✅	Portrait Mode – Device automatically adjusts rotation.
✅	Cluster Viewer – Can be used in a cluster setup.
✅	Block Remote Control – Prevent unauthorized screen control.
✅	Turn Off Display – When no presentation is scheduled.

Video & Content Support

Feature	Description
✅	2 Videos Per Page – Supports seamless playback.
✅	Video Rotation, Reflection, Skew, Flip – Supported.
✅	HTTP Streaming – Supported.
❌	Flash Element Support – Not supported.

Device Management

Feature	Description
✅	Remote Management via PADS4 CTRL Center
✅	Connection State Monitoring & Alerts
✅	Reboot Support – Supported.
✅	Remote Screenshot Capture
❌	Shutdown Support – Not supported.

General Limitations

Feature	Description
❌	Local File Playback – Only supports files from PADS4 Content Library.
❌	Local Proof of Play Storage – Limited to 50,000 records.
❌	PowerBI Support – Not supported.

Getting Started

System Configuration

Install PADS4

PADS4 Certified Devices

Install PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC CM4 and CM5

PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC CM4 & CM5

Installing the Sharp/NEC Compute Module Image

Allowing Access to the Sharp/NEC API

Configuring the Viewer

host

auto_close_browser

wait_for_time_server

url

incognito_mode

autorefresh

ntp_server

Updating the Viewer

Supported Features

Video Support

Image Support

Unsupported Features

PADS4 Ctrl Center Support

\

Supported Features & Limitations

General Features

Device Features

Video & Content Support

Device Management

General Limitations

​PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC CM4 & CM5

​Installing the Sharp/NEC Compute Module Image

​Allowing Access to the Sharp/NEC API

​Configuring the Viewer

​host

​auto_close_browser

​wait_for_time_server

​url

​incognito_mode

​autorefresh

​ntp_server

​Updating the Viewer

​Supported Features

​Video Support

​Image Support

​Unsupported Features

​PADS4 Ctrl Center Support

​\

​​

​​

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​​

​Supported Features & Limitations

​General Features

​Device Features

​Video & Content Support

​Device Management

​General Limitations

PADS4 Viewer on Sharp/NEC CM4 & CM5

Installing the Sharp/NEC Compute Module Image

Allowing Access to the Sharp/NEC API

Configuring the Viewer

host

auto_close_browser

wait_for_time_server

url

incognito_mode

autorefresh

ntp_server

Updating the Viewer

Supported Features

Video Support

Image Support

Unsupported Features

PADS4 Ctrl Center Support

\

Supported Features & Limitations

General Features

Device Features

Video & Content Support

Device Management

General Limitations