Digital signage on a Windows PC.
A mini PC, a NUC or a spare laptop behind the TV, running the CastWize player full screen and updating itself.
Use a PC you already have as a signage player
Plenty of businesses have a spare Windows laptop in a cupboard or a small office PC that is about to be replaced. Connected to a TV, either one makes a capable digital signage player, often more powerful than a dedicated signage box, with smooth playback for 1080p video and busy multi-zone layouts.
The CastWize player for Windows is a normal 64-bit installer. Once it's installed and paired, it opens in a full-screen kiosk window, adds itself to start when you sign in, and a watchdog relaunches it if it ever hangs. New stable versions download and install silently, so you don't have to visit the PC to keep it current.
Everything else happens in CastWize Studio in your browser: build slides on the canvas, add them to playlists, set day and time rules, and publish. Every screen on that playlist updates within seconds.
Who a Windows player suits
Offices and schools
IT teams can use standard Windows hardware and images they already manage for lobby and corridor screens.
Video-heavy screens
A PC with a modern graphics chip is the strongest player for 1080p video and several zones playing at once.
Reusing old hardware
A 2013-or-later laptop with 4 GB of RAM gets a second life behind a TV instead of going to landfill.
How to set up a Windows PC as a signage player
- 1
Download and run the installer
Get the Windows installer from the CastWize support page. The installer isn't code-signed yet, so SmartScreen shows "Windows protected your PC": click More info, then Run anyway.
- 2
Open the player and note the code
The player opens full screen with a 6-character pairing code, valid for 15 minutes.
- 3
Add the screen in Studio
In CastWize Studio, go to Screens → Add screen and type the code. The PC comes online and plays whatever you assign.
- 4
Set Windows up for unattended running
Set the power plan so the PC and display never sleep, and have Windows sign in automatically. The player starts itself at sign-in, so after a reboot or power cut the screen returns to your playlist.
What the Windows player does
- Full-screen kiosk window
- No taskbar or desktop on show, just your content edge to edge.
- Starts at sign-in
- The player registers itself to launch when Windows signs in.
- Silent automatic updates
- New stable releases download and install on their own, then the player restarts into full screen.
- Watchdog relaunch
- A separate watchdog process restarts the player if it stops responding.
- Keeps playing through internet drops
- Media is cached on disk (500 MB, checksum-verified, resumable downloads), so a Wi-Fi blip doesn't blank the screen.
- Remote screenshots
- Check what's on screen from Studio, from anywhere.
Requirements and limits
- Windows 10 (21H2 or later) or Windows 11, 64-bit. There is no build for Windows on ARM yet.
- At least a dual-core x64 processor from 2013 or later, 4 GB of RAM (8 GB recommended) and 4 GB of free disk space for the media cache.
- A TV or monitor connected by HDMI or DisplayPort, and a wired or Wi-Fi internet connection.
- One player drives one screen: to run two TVs, use two players.
- Video plays muted; there is no audio output for now.
- After a restart with no internet connection, the player needs to reconnect before it plays again.
The player doesn't change your power settings itself, so set the PC never to sleep or turn off the display, otherwise the screen goes dark at the power plan's timeout.
Pricing
One flat plan: $5 per screen per month, every feature and every player included, no tiers and no contract. Your first screen is free for 30 days with no credit card. See the pricing page for the calculator.
Windows PC: FAQs
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Ready to put your first screen up?
$5/screen/month, first screen free for 30 days, no credit card required.