Targeted for DVB network operators, the server provides a central point for the broadcasting firmware upgrades to set-top boxes. The Playout Bootloading Server supports the following methods for bootloading and download of firmware upgrade:
• DVB-SSU (Simple & Enhanced profile)
• Nordig
• Playout of proprietary streams
The server provides all the means for signaling presence of firmware streams as well as multiplexing all the firmware streams together and doing necessary PID remapping.
Through the Playout Management Console (PMC) descriptors included in various tables and messages (NIT,PMT, PAT, DII, DSI) can be dragged from the firmware input stream to the multiplexed output stream. Descriptors can also be inserted manually.
The server also supports 2-layer SSU data carousels or multi-manufacturer carousels. In SSU Enhanced profile a 2-layer data carousel is decoded, re-packetised and re-signaled at the head-end. In this way bandwidth and PID resources can be shared amongst a number of set-top box manufacturers. The Enhanced profile is stated mandatory in the German DVB-T Minimum Reuirements and Guideline from DVB-T Receivers (DVB-T 111) specification.
The server can also be run in ‘Opportunistic Data Insertion’ mode, thus only using surplus bandwidth.
An off-line tool for generating Nordig and SSU compatible Transport Streams will be provided at a later stage.
