Getting Started for Video Conferences

General video settings

In Configuration → Video → Streams section, you can:

1. Limit the video bitrate.

2. Track the bandwidth load balancing.

3. Set adaptive video quality control depending on the channel bandwidth.

4. Automatically recover lost packets. This will be helpful when making SIP calls if there are regular packet losses that are not caused by the channel overflow. This method can restore up to 10 percent of the lost packets.

5. The encoding quality of the primary stream (video) and secondary stream (content) depends on the selected profile: the endpoint will find the best balance between the frame rate and video resolution.

6. Set the percentage of the channel bandwidth for additional streams (for content streaming).

Layout settings

To configure layout settings, go to the Configuration → Video → Layout section where you can:

• Choose if your self-view should be displayed during a call (in the Hide selfview section)

• Enable the display of the volume indicator in each video window

• Choose the video scaling mode on the screen:

  • Scale to fit: scale the displayed layout while keeping proportions intact to make sure the video feed fits the screen

  • Crop to fill: display the layout so that the feed on the screen is aligned vertically

• Enable overlay layout mode in which one of the video windows is maximized to the full screen while the video slots of other participants will be displayed on top of it. Below, you can specify the overlap percentage.

The layouts created on the side of TrueConf Group, check the “Layout management” section.

Call settings

In the Configuration → Call section, you can configure the following general video call settings:

1. The display name shown in the layout window created for the endpoint. It will also be shown in the list of available devices in the address book of other TrueConf Group endpoints.

2. Call queue.

3. The order of protocols used when making calls.

4. Permission to remotely control the camera connected to TrueConf Group.

5. Using H.239/BFCP stream to share content.

6. Sharing slides with a button or upon connecting to the source.

In the Configuration → Call → Answer settings menu, you can set up additional parameters for incoming calls:

1. Configure the settings for receiving the first incoming call and all further calls (if MCU is used): Auto, Ask, or Do not disturb to automatically decline the call.

2. Receive calls only from the contacts in the address book.

3. Mute the microphone and disable the camera during incoming calls.

4. Protect from SIP spam; it is similar to the Configuration → Network → SIP section.

5. Block incoming SIP calls.

6. Block all incoming calls if the endpoint is recording or streaming.

Enabling MCU Mode

By default, TrueConf Group operates in point-to-point mode. During the video call, both participants can see and hear each other. If another user calls the endpoint during the video call, this user will not be able to join the call; instead, a notification that the device is busy will be displayed.

On the customer’s request, the endpoint can be equipped with a built-in MCU server. When TrueConf Group operates in this mode, the video call can be escalated in a group video conference. In this case, users who are calling the endpoint automatically join the meeting (if the number of external connections does not exceed the MCU license).

Take the following steps to enable this feature:

1. Go to the Configuration → Call → MCU settings section.

2. In MCU support, choose On.

3. Configure Answer mode: Auto, Ask or Do not disturb.

4. Indicate Mixing mode for video streams:

   • All on screen: All conference attendees can see and hear each other

   • Video lecture – all participants can see only the moderator (in this case, the person using the endpoint), but everyone can hear each other

   • Voice activated: All on screen conference layout, the active speaker is displayed in the main video window.

4. If necessary, enable the display of the volume indicator in each video window.

5. If you do not want to create a separate window for slides or content shared by meeting attendees, enable Reject incoming presentation.

Codecs

Learn more about all codecs supported by the endpoint in the Supported protocols and codecs section.

Go to Configuration → Video → Codecs and enable only those video codecs which are supported by all conference devices.

Repeat this process for audio codecs in the Configuration → Audio → Codecs section.

G.711 audio codec cannot be disabled.

Stream Settings

To make sure that your conference can be viewed by larger audiences, you don’t need to add them as attendees. It is possible to configure streaming to third-party services via RTMP or SAP and to the local network via NDI:

1. Go to the Configuration → Recording and streaming section.

2. You can configure RTMP streaming in the RTMP menu and set the necessary parameters: server address, RTMP application, stream name/key, login, and password.

3. Streaming via SAP protocol can be configured in the SAP menu. You will be able to indicate the address and port.

4. To stream an event via NDI, go to the NDI menu and specify the stream name.

For any of the streaming methods you can enable automatic start and ending of broadcasting (when the meeting starts and ends).

Recording

To enable conference recording, use the Configuration → Recording and streaming → Record to disk section. Moreover, there you can check available disk space.

If you enable Cycle recording, new conference videos will be recorded and saved to replace the oldest recordings when the device runs out of free disc space. Recording will be permanent, and you will not need to worry about how much disk space is left.

By enabling Auto start, you can automatically start video call recording when it launches. Accordingly, Auto stop automatically stops recording when the call ends.

In the Configuration → Recording and streaming → Layout configuration section, you can specify:

1. Recording layout: All video windows according to the selected layout, only incoming video streams, only endpoint camera feed, or voice activated layout.

2. Content recording: Disabled, content displayed in a separate window, or content displayed in full screen instead of all video windows.

3. Video resolution in the recording.

If the Space saving option is activated, the recording bitrate will be reduced by about 40 percent. So, the file size will also be reduced at the expense of video quality.

Assigning PTZ Camera Presets

You can set typical PTZ camera presets to enable users to switch between them during a call by pressing one button. To that end:

1. Go to the upper menu.

2. Press the back button on the remote control to hide the menu. After that, you will be able to control the camera using the arrows in the center of the remote control and zoom buttons.

3. Set the desired camera position.

4. Press the button on the remote control and choose Assign camera position in the pop-up menu.

5. Press any number on the numeric keypad. The current position will be fixed under the corresponding number. Repeat the process for all the positions you need.

If multiple cameras are connected to TrueConf Group, you can create presets for any of them by preliminary selecting the camera in the video capture settings. Then, if you select a preset (either with a remote control or in the control panel) during a conference or call, the endpoint will automatically switch to the corresponding camera and put it in the configured position.

For more information on how to use saved presets, check the section "During a conference → PTZ camera control".