Solstice Version 4.X Release Notes

When a Pod is in dual network mode and attached to a wireless network that does not have internet access, the Pod will now successfully attempt to reach Solstice Cloud using the attached Ethernet connection.

Applying a security template from Solstice Cloud no longer hangs when there is a difference between the Pod’s stored security certificate settings and the default security template’s certificate settings.

Solstice Pod

Bluetooth discovery for AirPlay is now disabled by default.

Bluetooth driver updated to fix reported crashes.

Boot looping no longer occurs when a custom certificate is installed on the Pod and resulted in an empty certificate or private key.

Reduced connection issues when using Miracast in Wi-Fi Direct mode.

Over Infrastructure or Wi-Fi Direct mode now successfully completes the security handshake.

The Windows Connect menu (Windows + K) no longer becomes unresponsive after an unsuccessful Miracast connection.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps

Reintroducing Miracast streaming support. Solstice’s support for Miracast provides another easy app-free sharing option for Windows and Android device users who haven’t installed the Solstice app. The latest Miracast implementation is the most enterprise-ready, enabling screen key to be used alongside Miracast streaming over enterprise networks for fully encrypted and secure guest sharing. Solstice also supports multiple Miracast streams with increased connection reliability, reduced latency, and greater overall performance. Solstice supports all Miracast features, including over Infrastructure (with added support for screen key), WiFi Direct, extended desktop and confidence monitor for presenters, audio streaming support, and more. Miracast support is available on Gen2i and Gen3 Pods only.

Bluetooth discovery now available for AirPlay. By adding Bluetooth discovery to Solstice’s support for AirPlay, guest users with Bluetooth enabled on an iOS or macOS device can walk into a Solstice room and connect to the display from their list of available Bluetooth devices. This streamlines the connection process for guest users by allowing them to discover the Solstice display without having to first connect to the network. However, users will have to connect to the same network as the Pod to stream content via AirPlay. This provides another alternative for discovery for environments that do not allow UDP broadcast traffic or Apple's Bonjour protocol. Available on Gen3 Pods only.

Additional channels have been added for Solstice Pods acting as wireless access points (5GHz only).These channel options are available in the Solstice Dashboard and the OpenControl API.

Moderators can now fully pass their moderation control to other users via the Solstice app.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps

Support for Solstice Active Learning. Solstice Active Learning is a new software-enabled video routing solution for multi-screen environments, facilitating active learning classrooms, confidence monitors, training rooms, and more. Gen3 Pods and an Active Learning subscription are required. Learn More

Ability to use RS-232 commands for display power management. Administrators can now use the Display Power Management settings (Solstice Dashboard > System tab) to schedule the Pod to send RS-232 commands to the connected display monitor(s) to turn them on and off. After the RS-232 codes are entered, Solstice will also use them for the Wake Display and Suspend Display options. ASCII and HEX codes are both supported.

Connect directly to a Pod using its DNS hostname. In the Solstice app’s ‘Enter Display URL’ tab, users will now be able to connect to a Solstice display directly using the Pod’s DNS hostname. Previously, users could only connect directly by entering the Pod’s IP address. IP addresses and DNS hostnames entered with a prefixed http:// or https:// protocol string will also be accepted.

Enhanced virtual memory for Gen2i Pods. The amount of a Gen2i Pod’s virtual memory being used by default has been significantly reduced, increasing the virtual memory space available and further enhancing stability.

Browser-based sharing support for Microsoft Edge on Windows. Solstice’s browser-based sharing capability now supports sharing with the latest version of the Microsoft Edge web browser on Windows laptops.

Enhancements were made to the Welcome Screen such as correcting text alignment, icons, and more. As a note, the word "Key" next to the Solstice display's screen key was removed from the initial view of the Welcome Screen. However, the 4-digit key is still visible.

The Solstice display now correctly shows the user how much longer the room is available for when the room calendar feature is enabled for that display.

When the scaling setting of a PC's display is greater than 100%, the mouse cursor in a desktop share now appears in the correct location on the Solstice display.

When a digital signage feed is set to appear in full screen mode, the browser now reports larger dimensions so that the signage feed displays properly.

When using a Solstice app on a mobile device with iOS v.13.2.3, the app no longer crashes when using the Japanese keyboard.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Windows Display Software License

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps

App-free wireless sharing via web browser. Users can now share to Solstice from a web browser on their laptop devices, extending wireless sharing support to Chromebook, Linux, guest, and unmanaged users who cannot install the Solstice App. The new capability also provides an additional sharing option from Windows and macOS devices. To use the new feature, enter the URL visible on the Solstice display in the browser of a laptop device to visit the Solstice Quick Connect page, then click the new option to launch Solstice in a web browser. This setting can be disabled in the Solstice Dashboard (Appearance and Usage tab > Client Sharing Options). This capability is supported on Gen3 and Gen2i Pods and is supported by Firefox and Chrome browsers.

Streamlined application window sharing in the Solstice App. When the App Window sharing option is selected in the Solstice app for Windows and macOS devices, the user will now be presented with a list of open applications windows to choose from, and any app window selected from the list will automatically be brought to the top of the user’s desktop. When an application window is being shared to Solstice, it will not appear in the list to prevent double sharing.

Increased digital signage caching. To accommodate larger content sources and digital signage feeds, the caching capacity for digital signage has been increased to 1GB. Additionally, the increased caching capacity significantly reduces the network resources needed to run digital signage on a Solstice Pod.

OpenControl API Update. When a developer sends an RS-232 request to a display monitor using the /api/serial-passthru endpoint, Solstice will return the monitor’s response back as a JSON response.

New HDMI input modes for persistent wired sources. Administrators can now set the default behavior for a wired input source connected to the HDMI-in port of a Gen3 Pod. This is for organizations that wish to use a persistent wired input source, such as a dedicated in-room PC or a digital signage media player, between meetings/sessions when the Solstice display is in active use for wireless collaboration. The following options are used to determine how Solstice will treat wired input sources:

Enhanced security for Solstice Local Release (SLR) updates. When network encryption is enabled for a Pod, the Dashboard will send SLR software updates to the Pod via port 443 to ensure the transmission of the update is secure.

Additional power management scheduling option. A new power management list option is available that tells the Solstice Pod to immediately stop sending the HDMI out signal after all users disconnect from the Solstice display. This allows external control units to know to switch the input to another signal.

Restart Pod option removed. The Restart button that allowed administrators to restart the Pod’s software was removed from the Dashboard to avoid confusion between the Reboot and Restart options. The Reboot option to restart both the Pod’s hardware and software is still available (System tab > Tools section).

Additional Pod details added to Dashboard’s CSV file export. MAC addresses and software versions were added to the exported file.

When the Pod is configured to attach to a wireless network, and if it is unable to connect to that network, the Pod’s software no longer occasionally restarts.

The Mac audio driver for the macOS version of the Solstice App now installs correctly.

When applying a static IP address to a Pod, changes made to the DNS 2 field now properly save.

When the HDMI-in share is deleted or docked using the Solstice App, the share’s audio now mutes as expected.

When the Pod is attached to a local wireless network, the Solstice Dashboard no longer displays the firewall settings that can only be used when the Pod is in WAP mode.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Windows Display Software License

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps

Security enhancement to prevent certain types of brute force attacks.

Resolved issues related to the digital signage feature that could cause Pod crashes. Additionally, the Solstice Dashboard will no longer falsely report that digital signage has been disabled.

When the display power management feature is enabled, Pods will now consistently wake up correctly.

When the display power management feature is enabled, Pods now output correctly when connected to two displays.

When a laptop connected via HDMI-in to a Gen3 Pod goes into sleep mode and is quickly woken back up, the laptop screen no longer appears as a black post on the Solstice display.

The Mac audio driver that enables macOS users to stream their desktop audio to the Solstice display now consistently installs from the Mac version of the Solstice App.

The amount of time needed to load a large list of discovered displays in the Solstice App from SDS has been reduced.

The Solstice App now launches correctly on Windows 8.1 devices.

Currently no audio support for Solstice App desktop sharing on Mac devices with Catalina OS.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps

Audio Support for HDMI Input. The Solstice Gen3 Pod now supports audio streaming when sharing via the HDMI input, improving the wired sharing experience. Audio streaming is also supported when using an adapter with the HDMI-in connection. Click here for a list of the verified supported adapters.

New capabilities of the OpenControl API:

Option to Add DNS Hostname for Each Connected Network. Administrators can now manually replace the IP address listed on the Solstice display with the DNS hostname. Users can type the hostname into a browser (for example, http://hostname.domain) to easily download the Solstice App. Network administrators must first configure DNS resolution on their networks, then can enter in the DNS entry that the Pod’s IP address will resolve to in the DNS Hostname field of each connected network (Solstice Dashboard > Network tab). If the hostnames entered for all connected networks are the same, the hostname will only be displayed once.

Option to Always Show Presence Bar. By default, the presence bar on the Solstice display’s welcome screen that shows the display’s IP address minimizes once a wireless or wired users connects to the display. Now, the presence bar can be set to persist at the bottom of the screen during a collaboration session so users in the room who are not yet connected can easily connect to the display (Appearance and Usage tab > Quick Connect Info).

Exclusions for Proxy Server. Two new settings have been added to the Web Proxy Settings. Administrators can choose to bypass the proxy server if Solstice detects a local address on the same subnet as the Pod. Additionally, administrators now have the ability to add an exclusion list for the proxy server (Network tab > Web Server Proxy).

Administrators now have the option to add a username for MSI client installations.

When power management and digital signage are both enabled, the Pod now works as expected.

The Solstice App installed on a Google Pixel 2 no longer crashes when trying to connect to a Pod.

On the Solstice App, application sharing is now working correctly when sharing a Microsoft Edge browser window.

When installed on an iOS 13 device and the language is set to Korean, Japanese, or Chinese, the Solstice app incorrectly displays the characters.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Windows Display Software License

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Discovery Service (SDS)

Solstice Apps

Expanded Multi-Network Support via IEEE 802.1Q VLAN Tagging.Enterprise Edition Solstice Pods (Gen2i and Gen3 only) now support IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging on the wired Ethernet interface. In addition to handling the usual untagged Ethernet traffic on the default VLAN for the connected switch port, Solstice Pods can now communicate using tagged traffic over the wired Ethernet interface on up to three additional VLANs. By allowing the Pod to support multiple VLANs at once, administrators no longer need to create routing between VLANs for users to connect and collaborate from multiple VLANs. When the Pod is attached to multiple VLANs via the Dashboard, users can connect to the Pod using any of the configured VLANs. If SDS is used for Pod discovery, one SDS server instance is required per VLAN (SDS version 3.1 or later).

802.1Q VLAN Tagging Network Configuration. Enterprise Edition Solstice Pods (Gen2i and Gen3 only) can now be configured via the Solstice Dashboard to be attached to up to three VLANs, in addition to the default VLAN for the connected switch port, using the wireless Ethernet interface (Network tab > VLAN Settings).

Bandwidth consumption between the Solstice App and the Pod has been reduced to maximize network performance.

The Solstice App for Android no longer freezes when permission to access the device’s location is denied.

The Solstice App for macOS now launches correctly due to fixes to the client installer.

The RSS feed is no longer truncated on 4k displays.

Digital signage feeds now work properly when using an HDMI switcher with the Pod.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Discovery Service (SDS)

Solstice Apps

Miracast Streaming Enhancements. The latency of Miracast streaming to a Solstice display has been enhanced to improve performance (Pods only).

OTA Updates via HTTPS. OTA updates for Solstice now use HTTPS as opposed to HTTP for more robust security (Pods and Windows Display Software Licenses).

Option to Schedule Daily Restart for Pods. Administrators can now enable and schedule daily Pod software restarts to refresh the Pod’s memory usage and maximize system performance. This setting is available in the Pod’s configuration panel (Tools tab) and the Solstice Dashboard (System tab > Tools).

Wired Input Improvements for Gen3 Pods. Significant improvements to wired sharing via the Gen3 Pod’s HDMI input through expanded support and improved performance for various HDMI adapters. However, some adapters are still not supported (such as Apple’s USB-C-to-HDMI adapter) and other adapters introduce long delays between plugging in and content appearing on the display, especially Mini DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapters. For more information, check out our support bulletin.

Display Power Management Support. The Pod can now be configured to stop sending an HDMI output signal after being idle for the specified amount of time (Solstice Dashboard > System tab). This allows the display monitors connected to the Pods to use their own sleep settings. The Pod will resume its normal functionality either when a user attempts to connect to the display, before a scheduled meeting begins, when a mouse or keyboard is plugged in to the Pod, or when an emergency message is sent out via Solstice. (Note: This feature is not supported on Gen2 Pods.)

Private Meeting Details Now Hidden. The display’s room calendar will now hide meeting titles and organizers if a meeting on the configured Outlook or Exchange calendar is marked as “Private”.

Set Room Calendar Update Frequency. Administrators can now define how often the display will check for updates to the Outlook or Exchange calendar configured for the display. Increasing the update frequency can ensure the display is showing the most current calendar information to in-room users (Solstice Dashboard > Calendar tab).

Custom Instructions Dynamically Resize. When customized instructions have been added to the modern splash screen, the display’s Welcome Screen will automatically resize the instructions to fit better within the screen’s layout.

OpenControl API Updates. New capabilities of the OpenControl API:

Option to Schedule Daily Restart for Pods. Administrators can now enable and schedule daily Pod software restarts to refresh the Pod’s memory usage and maximize system performance (System tab > Tools).

Load Self-Signed CA Certificate Bundle. Administrators are now able to load a self-signed CA certificate bundle onto one or more Pods via the Dashboard to be used for HTTPS communications and to validate the Pod’s access to external data connections such as digital signage feeds, RSS feeds, and Mersive Kepler. This is especially important for networks that use a MITM proxy that intercepts HTTPS requests (Security tab > Encryption settings). The bundle is used in addition to the Pod's built-in CA certificates, which are suitable for most internet access. Important note: Only a PEM certificate with a .crt file extension is supported.

Display Power Management Support. The Pod can now be configured to stop sending an HDMI output signal after being idle for the specified amount of time (System tab > Power Management). This allows the displays connected to the Pods to use their own sleep settings. The Pod will resume its normal functionality either when a user attempts to connect to the display, before a scheduled meeting begins, when a mouse or keyboard is plugged in to the Pod, or when an emergency message is sent to the Pod via the Solstice Dashboard. The Dashboard also gives the options to manually wake or suspend the Pod.

Set Room Calendar Update Frequency. Administrators can now define how often the display will check for updates to the Outlook or Exchange calendar configured for the display. Increasing the update frequency can ensure the display is showing the most current calendar information to in-room users (Calendar tab > Update Settings). The interval can be set to update as frequently as every 5 seconds, or more periodically.

Scalability and Usability Improvements. If SDS is being used centrally to list Solstice displays across multiple locations, each of which has its own subnet, administrators can now group Solstice displays by subnet which will allow a user’s Solstice App to only see displays on the same subnet they are connected to, as opposed to viewing a list of every display on the main network that was configured for SDS. SDS can now group displays by subnet based on either a single, global prefix length configured in the Windows Registry OR based on an explicit list of subnets with varying prefix lengths via a text file placed in the Solstice program data folder. This feature allows administrators to scale their centrally managed deployments without negatively impacting the user’s display discovery experience. For more information on how to configure SDS with subnets, see our SDS Guide.

For the Classic Splash Screen, the wireless IP connection was not possible to read due to a white background.

When an internal time server was set for a Pod, the Pod would still attempt to reach out to the default internet time server.

In the Solstice Dashboard, the 30-character limit for a wireless network password has been removed.

When digital signage was running, proxy settings were not being applied when Solstice would attempt to load a remote digital signage URL.

Minor stability and usability issues were fixed for the Solstice App.

Airplay sharing performance has been improved on the Gen3 platform.

Additional bugs fixes and stability improvements.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Windows Display Software License

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Discovery Service (SDS)

Solstice Apps

Solstice Ink. Available in the Solstice iOS and Android App, Solstice Ink allows users to highlight and temporarily mark up content on the Solstice display from anywhere in the room by simply pointing and drawing with their smartphones (feature not supported on tablets). This feature is also supported in moderator mode. Solstice Ink has three modes of use:

Internationalization Expansion. Ten new languages are now supported in the Solstice Pod and Windows Display Software, Solstice App, and Solstice Dashboard -- Arabic, Danish, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Turkish, and Simplified Chinese.

Software Support for Solstice Pod Gen3 Platform. The 4.0 version of Solstice adds support for the new Gen3 Solstice Pod hardware platform to integrate the new hardware capabilities, such as expanded input/output options, into a unified meeting experience. Gen3 Pods are available as Enterprise Edition only.

Customizable Welcome Screen Instructions. Administrators can now customize instructions that appear on the Welcome Screen of Enterprise Edition Pods and Windows Display Software licenses using a rich text editor (Solstice Dashboard > Appearance and Usage tab). Admins can add a dynamic IP address in the instructions by including the network name in brackets, e.g. [INTERNAL], and the string will be replaced with the corresponding IP address. After configured, the instructions appears on the display’s Welcome Screen.

OpenControl API Updates. New capabilities of the OpenControl API:

Critical security update for the Solstice Pod (upgrade highly recommended).

General usability improvements.

Time-server and time zone fixes. The default time server was changed to NTP for added reliability. The last known time is also stored in the datastore in the event the time server can’t be reached.

Customizable Welcome Screen Instructions. Administrators can now customize the instructions that appear on the Welcome Screen of Enterprise Edition Pods and Windows Display Software licenses using a rich text editor (Appearance and Usage tab). Admins can add a dynamic IP address in the instructions by including the network name in brackets, e.g. [INTERNAL], and the string will be replaced with the corresponding IP address. After configured, the instructions appears on the display’s Welcome Screen.

Dual Display Options. When a Solstice Pod Gen3 is simultaneously connected to two displays, the following dual display modes can be configured in the Solstice Dashboard (Appearance and Usage tab > Display Options). Note: Classic splash screen mode not supported in Extend or Seamless Extend.

Solstice Pod

Solstice Windows Software

Solstice Dashboard

Solstice Apps