Device management

Suitest aims to simplify testing your apps on as many devices as possible at once. You can configure your own devices with Suitest or use the ones made publicly available from other organizations.

All the devices which are available to you can be found in a convenient overview from within your account.

Suitest Remote app

The Suitest Remote mobile app allows you to control and manage your Suitest devices right from the palm of your hand. Download it for iOS and Android, then use your regular Suitest credentials to login.

Search Filters

Search function has an option of filtering your devices and making searching easier.

Search Filters

  • status: - list of device statuses can be found below
  • brand:
  • model:
  • name:
  • ID: - device ID can be found here
  • platform: - list of supported platform can be found here
  • ams - text search of "ams" inside names, brands, models etc. (to find e.g. "Device Amsterdam 1", "Samsung TV")
  • own TV - texts search of "own" and "TV" inside names, brands, models etc. (to find e.g. "My own Samsung TV")

It is also possible to combine multiple filters in single search. All search filters needs to be separated by empty space. E.g.

  • status:ready cust - status "ready" and text "cust"
  • status:ready cust brand:sony rasp - status "ready" and (text "cust" and text "rasp") and brand "Sony"
  • status:ready cust - status "ready" and text "cust"

Connect to a device

To connect to the device interactively from Test Editor press Connect device in the top right corner of the screen. Then choose a device that you would like to connect to:

Choosing a device to interactively connect to

The ability to connect to a device depends on two factors; if the CandyBox is operational and the device status.

While a user is connected to the device, Suitest will not launch scheduled tests on it in order not to interrupt the user's work. If somebody schedules a test on a TV that is in use, the led will start flashing

Device IN USE
. Other users will see this device as IN USE and will not be able to connect to it while someone else is connected.

Connection list

On the devices page, the list of available devices is shown. The device details are displayed and can be filtered by brands, their status and platforms. The list can also be searched through using model name or device name.

The list can be filtered using Only working option. When enabled, it would limit the list to the devices that are functional (this includes IN USE devices).

Device Connection List

Device statuses

Suitest tracks the state of a device and assigns it a status. They are separated into two categories, statuses that you can connect to and that you cannot.

Can connect to

  • READY (Blue) - The device is ready and connected to Suitest.

  • READY (VRC) (Blue) - The device is not tuned to the Suitest channel but is otherwise fine and can be operated in interactive mode.

  • TURNED OFF (Gray) - The device has been turned off by Suitest because it was idle for more than 10 minutes. It will turn on automatically once you connect to it.

  • TESTING (Green) - The device is currently performing a (scheduled) automated test. If connected to, the test will be aborted and rescheduled.

  • POWER ON (Gray) - The device is powering on for an automated test. If connected to, the test will be aborted and rescheduled.

Cannot connect to

  • IN USE (Yellow) - The device is being used by a user in interactive mode.

  • API CONTROLLED (Yellow) - The device is being used by Suitest JavaScript API in automated mode.

  • OFFLINE (Gray) - The device seems to be offline as its IP is unreachable from the CandyBox.

  • DISABLED (Red) - A person with the administrator privileges has disabled the device. Until the device is enabled again, it will not be usable in Suitest. You would want to disable the device to keep the Boogeyman out.

  • CANDYBOX OFFLINE (Red) - The CandyBox responsible for controlling this device is offline or turned off.

  • SUITESTDRIVE TURNED OFF (Red) - Devices using SuitestDrive cannot be connected to as SuitestDrive is not running.

  • SUITESTDRIVE UPDATE (Red) - Devices using SuitestDrive cannot be connected to as SuitestDrive is being automatically updated.

  • BLASTER ERROR (Red) - Device's infrared blaster is disconnected or malfunctioning. Verify that all cables are connected correctly, if you have a spare infrared blaster then replace the malfunctioning blaster.

  • AVAILABLE (Light blue) - Can request access to the device, that is shared publicly. However cannot connect till access granted.

Note: Users with administrative privileges can disable devices even when somebody is connected to them. Disabling the device effectively kills the connection but keeps the settings in the same state.

Device Badge statuses

These are the statuses that are seen on the screen of your device when you are located on the Suitest channel.

  • Connecting (Gray) - Connection is being established with the device.

  • Ready (Gray) - The device is ready to be added to Suitest.

  • Ready (Green) - The device is ready to be connected to or for a scheduled test.

  • Connected (Green) - User is connected to the device, ready to be controlled.

  • In progress (Recycling Icon) - A scheduled test is in progress on the device.

Connection button statuses

The device you are currently connected has specific colors to quickly indicate the status of your device.

  • Connecting (Gray) - Connection is being established with the device.

  • Ready (VRC) (Blue) - The device is not tuned to the Suitest channel but is otherwise fine and can be operated in interactive mode.

  • Connected (Device name) (Green) - User is connected to the device, ready to be controlled.

  • Connected (Device name) (Flashing Green) - User is connected to the device and a scheduled test is queued.

Error Statuses

  • Error (100) (Red) - Internet connection between the device and Suitest is down.

  • Error (102) (Red) - Device is malfunctioning. This is caused by browser driver missing, Chrome/Firefox not installed, or wrong device IP. To solve this, please resolve the potential issue(s) listed above and then please disable and enable device in Suitest. If you are still having problems, restart SuitestDrive and/or the host computer. Please let us know if the issues persist.

  • Error (103) (Red) - Internal back-end error. Suitest developers have been notified and are hard at work fixing the issue. Please let us know if the issues persist.

  • Error (105) (Red) - Deleted device. Device was deleted and is no longer usable, add the device via device wizard to use it again.

Device details

When a device is selected in the connection list, a modal dialog pop-up with device properties, specification and sharing options.

In the dialog header you can also see device custom name, brand, model, firmware, availability and sharing status.

Summary

The summary tab of the device dialog includes: Control unit, Custom name, IP and Device ID fields.

Device modal - summary tab

Control unit

The control unit field's value depends on the kind of the control unit. In the case of SuitestDrive - the version is displayed. In case of CandyBox - the CandyBox number and port are displayed.

Custom name

You can change the custom name of the device so that it is recognizable to you (instead of using the brand and model name).

Local IP

The local IP address is also displayed, the local IP of the device can be changed this is in-case there were adjustments in the local network.

Important: To prevent connection failures due to the device IP address changes you should consider configuring your DHCP server to assign static IP address to the device.

Settings

The settings tab of the device dialog includes: Platforms, Boot sequence (for HbbTV/Freeview Play devices), Team ID (for Apple devices), Com port (for PlayStation 4 devices), automatic turn off timer, Custom buttons, Camera and Smart Plug fields. There is also an option to permanently remove device.

Device modal - settings tab

Custom buttons - Configure

Record or rewrite buttons which were either not recorded during initial device setup or were recorded incorrectly. Check the Recording specific buttons section for more information.

Turn off after

Turn off after allows devices to be configured to turn off after a specific amount of inactivity (not connected and no tests running). Default value is 10 minutes.

Camera

Camera field allows you to associate a USB camera with a specific device, so that you can access the camera feed faster right from the device dialog.

Smart Plug

Smart Plug field allows you to associate a TP-LINK Smart Plug with a specific device, so that you can find the correct power switch easier.

Specifications

The device specifications includes the Brand, Type, Model and Firmware. The device specification also includes the Device ID which is used for Suitest API. They can be edited via Edit Device Information button to quickly change the specifications (Device ID cannot be changed).

Device modal - specifications tab

Sharing & access rights

Suitest allows you to share your devices with other organizations (excluding Personal accounts).

To share a device go to the Sharing tab on the device details page and then press Share device. Enter one or more IDs of the organizations you wish to share the device with.

If you have a USB camera associated with the device, you can choose to share it as well. Besides, you can specify the maximum allowed resolution, frame rate and audio availability. The organization, that you share a device with, will be able to view the stream only when being connected to the device.

Share device pop-up

After the device is shared, the share receiver will see additional information about the device, such as device custom name, local IP address etc., as well as your organization name.

You can revoke device sharing for every organization individually in the same tab. You will also see if the USB camera associated with the device is shared and what is the maximum allowed resolution and frame rate you have set.

Device modal - sharing tab

Note: When other organizations are using the device shared by you, testing minutes will be charged to the actual user and not to you (see testing minutes).

Disable/enable a device

Devices paired with your organization in Suitest can be disabled. This feature allows you to temporarily disable a device in Suitest to prevent its use (for connecting to it or scheduled tests), for example, if you want to use it with another tool for a certain period.

A device in Suitest can be disabled by clicking on Disable button on the device details modal window.

How to disable a device

A disabled device in Suitest can be determined by the status. If you want to enable such device, you can do so by clicking on Enable button on the device details modal window.

How to enable a device

Removing a device

Devices can be removed, which means that they are completely removed from Suitest (shared user will lose their access as well). If you wish to use the device in the future then the set-up process will have to be done again.

Removing a device from Suitest

Control units

We call CandyBoxes and SuitestDrives control units, as they are used to interface and control other devices.

Available control units

The available control units tab contains a list of all CandyBoxes and SuitestDrives belonging to a selected organization or personal account. Selecting a control unit allows you to view the list of devices which are configured with that particular control unit. The device list contains the status and assigned devices, you can also quickly edit a devices details if needed.

Important: If you delete a SuitestDrive unit, all devices attached will be removed as well. It is worth mentioning that CandyBoxes cannot be deleted from control units.

Get a control unit

The get a control unit tab is where the download to SuitestDrive, for all the operating systems that are supported. You can order a CandyBox here as well.

Your very own boogeyman

Sometimes you may get a feeling that something is wrong with your TVs. All of a sudden, it starts doing things on its own as if a boogeyman really wanted to get you. Know then that it is just Suitest - diligently trying to do its job.

Suitest checks periodically if the device sends in reports. If the connection falls out at some point, Suitest will assume that the device has misbehaved and try to beat it back into shape. "Back into shape" in this instance means making sure that the device has opened Suitest channel and launched the Suitest RedButton app.

So if you, for example, switch to another channel or open an app without a Suitest code, you'll kill the connection between the device and Suitest will try to repair it by executing a so-called boot sequence.

Important: You can tell Suitest to stay out of your way by disabling the device. For this, open the device properties page and click on the Disable button.