TrueConf Group Guide

# Managing Calls through the Web Interface

To access the call log and active videoconferencing session parameters, go to the Conference tab.

Depending on the parameters of the network that is used to connect the endpoint to your device, the video from your camera, as well as conference feed may be delayed.

If the PTZ camera image is freezing or if changing video layout takes longer than it should, it does not mean that the system is malfunctioning. Most likely, other meeting participants do not experience any issues.

Previews in the web interface are displayed at a rate of no more than 5 frames per second, which is intended to reduce the load on network resources.

# Changing devices

During a session, you can switch the device transmitting to the video layout with TrueConf Group "on the fly." To do this, go to the Conference → My camera tab, and select the video capture device from the Primary camera dropdown list. You can specify another webcam connected to the terminal or one of the capture card inputs. Additionally, switching devices is possible by changing angles.

To change the microphone or speakers used by the terminal, go to the Settings → Devices → Audio section and select the desired devices.

# On-screen controller

You can find a remote control emulation in the control panel, which can be useful (e.g. when entering the control panel from the mobile device).

To open the on-screen control panel, click the /docs/group/media/control_panel/web_remote_button/en.png button on the conference equipment control panel in the Conference section. You can manage all functions just like with the actual remote control, as described in the section "Managing the TrueConf Group terminal":

/docs/group/media/control_panel/web_remote/en.png

# Camera Settings

There are two blocks for displaying feeds at the top of the page:

/docs/group/media/control_panel/video_blocks/en.png

In each of them, you can choose the type of content to display:

  • My camera – view the image from the camera connected to TrueConf Group (self-view). Control of the camera (for compatible PTZ cameras) will be available. You can select your camera as the priority window in the video layout by clicking /docs/group/media/control_panel/favorite/en.png;

  • Content – preview of the content prepared for sharing. You can prioritize the presentation window in the video layout by clicking /docs/group/media/control_panel/favorite/en.png.

  • Primary display displays the video layout that is shown on the display connected to the terminal and manages the video transmission from the terminal's camera.

  • Conference layout – selection of the current layout and management of mixing settings for a group conference (available only when the MCU feature is activated; if MCU is not available, the conference layout will display video from the connected camera).

  • Participant – displays video from the selected participant and allows control of their PTZ camera.

If necessary, you can disable the display of the video window in the web interface by clicking /docs/group/media/gui/turn_off/en.png. However, this window will still be shown in the video layout.

# PTZ Camera Control

# Camera connected to the endpoint

Additionally, in this section, you can manage the connected PTZ camera and configure presets for it:

  1. Select the PTZ camera from the Primary camera dropdown list.

  2. Press the camera control button /docs/group/media/control_panel/ptz_control/en.png.

  3. The control panel will open, where you can adjust the camera position and zoom using the appropriate buttons, for example:

    /docs/group/media/control_panel/ptz_control_popup/en.png

To control the PTZ camera, make sure to select the correct method in the terminal's Settings → Devices → Camera menu or its web interface.

To use saved camera positions during a video session, do the following:

  1. In this same section, to the right of the Primary camera drop-down list, click Select.

  2. Select the angle in the opened window by clicking on it.

To learn how to set numbered PTZ camera presets, refer to the "Preparing for Conferences" section.

# Remote participant's camera

On the Conference tab, go to the Participant screen, select a user from the drop-down list, and click /docs/group/media/control_panel/ptz_control/en.png. Then control it as described above. Saving presets for remote PTZ cameras is not available.

# Call to a user

To call a subscriber, including adding them to an ongoing group conference, enter their IP address and URL in the Connect a participant section, select the protocol, and click the Call button. In the Participants section, you can add participants from the address book.

Calls via HTTPS links in the format https://server_address/c/conference_id are supported, for example, https://video.example.com/c/65184454.

/docs/group/media/control_panel/contacts/en.png

On the right is an area with contact lists from the address book. Select the desired contact and click /docs/group/media/control_panel/call/en.png. You can also call the contact by dragging them from the contact list to the Participants section using Drag-n-Drop.

# Content Sharing

The terminal allows you to view presentation materials outside of a video session. During a video session, you have two behavior options:

Behavior Option Option Description
Transmit by Button A new video window with a preview of the selected content will appear on the terminal screen for confirmation
Transmit on Connection Content sharing in the conference starts immediately

TrueConf Group supports:

  • transmitting content from devices connected via HDMI cable (available in certain configurations only);

  • demonstration from an external USB drive and internal storage of images in PNG, JPG, TIFF formats, PDF documents, MKV, MP4, TS videos;

  • displaying content from a second webcam connected to the terminal. For example, if a USB PTZ camera is used for video transmission in a meeting room, and you connect a laptop via an HDMI capture card for content capture;

  • transmission of NDI streams available on the local network (detected automatically);

  • RTSP or VNC stream demonstration – the list shows the configured streams.

To transmit RTSP or VNC streams, you must first add them to the address book, as shown in the operator's manual. Then, create a device in the Settings → Devices → Device management section.

To stream a PDF document, image, video file or HDMI content to the conference:

  1. In the list above one of the image output blocks, select the Content option.

  2. In the displayed list, specify the content source in Content source.

    • to select a file previously uploaded to the terminal, choose Uploaded files from the list;

    • to upload a new file, click the Upload button;

    • To stream content from a source connected to the capture card, select one of the HDMI inputs.

    • To transmit an RTSP or VNC stream, select the appropriate option from the Content source dropdown list (which is generated from the list of allowed devices);

    • to transmit the available NDI stream on the network, select it from the list that will be generated automatically;

    • To display content from an additional camera, select it from the list.

If there are multiple connected cameras, you can specify which one should be used for sending video when configuring video capture devices. In this case any of the remaining cameras will be used for content sharing.

You can now start sharing the selected content with your participants by clicking the Start sharing button. If the call settings were configured to send the presentation when a source is connected, sharing will begin immediately after the content is selected.

To zoom and navigate the transmitted image or document, click the /docs/group/media/control_panel/ptz_control/en.png button in the preview window. In the control panel that opens, you will be able to zoom in and move the image using the respective buttons.

# Switching Layouts

In group conference mode, you can manage the video layout of its participants. To do this, go to the image output block and select the Primary display or Conference layout tab. Then, in the dropdown menu Layout type, choose the desired layout scheme.

# Mixing settings

When using the MCU function, you can change video stream mixing parameters "on the fly" during a video call. To do this, in one of the image output blocks, select the Conference layout tab. At the top of the block, a button labeled MCU settings will appear, where you can:

  • enable MCU usage;

  • Control the volume indicators displayed in users’ video windows

  • change mixing mode:

    • Video lecture
    • All on screen

    • Voice activity detection.

# List of Participants

You can view the list of subscribers connected to the terminal in the Participants section on the Conference tab. To disconnect all participants, use the End for all button. You can also disable the MCU function here if it was previously activated. In this case, the area for adding new users to the conference will become inactive.

/docs/group/media/control_panel/participants/en.png

You will see the following information about each video call participant:

  • display name;

  • Call direction (arrows are used to indicate incoming and outgoing calls)

  • Address (may be SIP, H.323, RTSP, VNC, NDI)

  • button to disconnect a participant from the conference.

  • Icon /docs/group/media/control_panel/speaker_icon/en.png if a participant is displayed in a spotlighted window

  • By clicking /docs/group/media/control_panel/more_cyan/en.png, a panel with participant management buttons will open:

/docs/group/media/control_panel/more_menu/en.png

# DTMF dialing

After clicking /docs/group/media/control_panel/dtmf_button/en.pngDTMF dialing, a window will open where you can enter a command using the on-screen numeric keypad:

/docs/group/media/control_panel/dtmf/en.png

To view detailed information about the connection with a subscriber, click the Connection information button in the same menu. A Connection information window will open with detailed data about the protocols used in the connection, as well as the incoming and outgoing video and audio streams.

At any time during the conference, you can manually assign the priority video window in the layout to a specific participant. To do this, click on the /docs/group/media/control_panel/speaker_icon/en.png.

To disconnect a specific user from the video call, press the button /docs/group/media/control_panel/end_call/en.png.

# Recording and streaming

At the top of the Conference page, there is a button panel for managing recording and streaming:

/docs/group/media/control_panel/recording_streaming/en.png

With these, you can start or stop recording a video or broadcasting it via RTMP, NDI, or SAP protocols. Only those streaming methods that were previously configured from the control panel or in the Settings → Recording and streaming menu of the web interface will be active.

You can start recording or broadcasting not only during a video session but also outside of a call. Additionally, you have the option to broadcast video from a camera connected to the terminal, for example, to test the quality of video and audio beforehand.

← Video Recordings →