BrightSign player gets a 403 error when connecting to the BrightSign Network

Subscriptions

This can happen if the BrightSign player doesn't have a valid subscription. To see the subscription status of the player, go to the Manage > Status window in BrightAuthor or go to the Groups page in the BrightSign Network WebUI and click the properties of the player.

This FAQ explains how to use BrightSign Network subscriptions once you've purchased them. It also describes the two different options for managing subscriptions on your network.

BSN Connectivity

A 403 error can also indicate an inability to communicate with the AWS servers that host the BrightSign Network. A proxy server, firewall, or some other kind of network filter can intercept outbound traffic, blocking a BrightSign player that is attempting to contact BSN. 

You can use the BSN Connectivity Checker to determine if access to the BSN servers is allowed from your network location. See this FAQ for a list of URLs and ports that need to be open on a local network for a player to communicate with the BrightSign Network.

Using the DWS to Test Connectivity

You can run the following test on a player to determine if it is having problems downloading the files from the BSN server to the SD card. If the Diagnostic Web Server is enabled on the player, you should be able to access the unit from a web browser using the player IP addresses. To determine the local IP address of a BrightSign player, refer to this FAQ. Your computer must be located on the same local network as the player.

1. Access the Diagnostic Web Server from a web browser
2. Click the SD tab. 
3. Find the current-sync.xml file and click the magnifying glass icon to view the current-sync.xml file. You will see the names of the files that are included in the presentation and the http:// links to those files. 
4. Copy one of the http:// links and paste it to a web browser. Verify if you can download the file using a web browser on your computer.
5. Click the Diagnostics tab. 
6. Copy the http:// URL into the Download Speed Test field and Press the Speed Test button. If the test fails, it will normally return details about the failure. That would provide more info about where the unit might be failing trying to grab the files.
7. Click the Run button under Network Diagnostics to run a network test on the player and verify that it can connect to the Internet.

Testing the DNS Server

You can test the player using different DNS servers. You will need to manually set the IP address of the player and set the DNS to the Google public DNS values 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4:

1. Reset the player to factory defaults.
2. Open BrightAuthor.
3. Go to Tools > Setup BrightSign unit.
4. Select BrightSign Networking and assign the unit to a desired group.
5. Enable the Diagnostic Web Server.
6. Click Advanced Network Setup.
7. Select the Wired or Wireless tab depending on how the unit is connected to the network.
8. Assign the IP-address settings manually.
9. Save the setup files onto a blank SD card, insert it into the player, and power it up.
10. Repeat the Diagnostic Web Server steps outlined above.