Installing Streambox Bridge (Encoder) on AWS using Cloud Formation
Note: The current release of the Cloud Formation Template only supports AWS Zones in the US-WEST-* region.Gather Required Information from Editing Platform or Other CDI Source VM (Sourcebox)
Begin by logging in to AWS EC2 and navigating to the instance which will be sending video to the Streambox Bridge encoder. Since the origin of this video source could be a lot of different apps (e.g. Baselight, ColorFront, Flame, or even Streambox SpectraVM’s CDI pass-through), let’s call this instance the Sourcebox.
Open the detail page of the Sourcebox’s instance and note the following parameters, which we’ll need to match on the new Streambox instance.
Note the VPC ID, the Subnet ID, and the AZ (Availability Zone).
Generally, it’s enough to note just 3 or 4 digits of the VPC ID and Subnet IDs; you’ll be able to search from available IDs and select one.
The AZ is a subgroup of the Region, so it’ll look like, say, us-west-2b which is a zone within us-west-2.
We’ll return to these values later. Also, following the creation of the Streambox instance, we’ll be returning to the Sourcebox to update its security groups, so you may leave this open in a different tab.
Amazon Linux 2 template for Cloud Formation
Download AL2_SBX_BRIDGE.template
https://streambox-support.s3.a...
This template is configured to use Default Amazon Linux 2 images and supports us-west-* availability zones.
You can modify if default Amazon Linux 2 ( x86_64 ) images are different for you or AMI IDs have changed since this document was created.
Cloud Formation Workflow to create Instance, AMI Role and Security Group
Go to AWS Cloud Formation page: https://console.aws.amazon.com/cloudformation/
Make sure you are in the same AWS Zone as the instance that’ll be producing the CDI video source for the Encoder to capture.
From the top right, Select Create Stack and Create with New Resources.
Select Choose existing Template, And Upload a template file and use the provided template: AL2_SBX_BRIDGE.template (it will support US-WEST-* Amazon Linux 2 images)
Click Next
Specify Stack details: The VPC of your Streambox instance should match the VPC of your other Sourcebox.
a) Stack name: Enter a unique name
b) Instance type: should be pre-selected (can change later if needed)
c) Key Pair Name: EC2 key pair that matches configuration of editor app
d) SSH IP Address Range: set to the hosts you want to allow ssh access. For
example, use 0.0.0.0/0 to allow access to all hosts
e) ID of pre-existing VPC: select the subnet VPC in which you want to install
Streambox Bridge, shared by your Sourcebox
f) ID of pre-existing subnet: select the subnet within the VPC shared by your Sourcebox
g) Subnet availability zone: select the AZ (Availability Zone) of the subnet shared by your Sourcebox
8. Review Configure stack options page, then click the ‘Next’ button to leave this page with
default settings.
9. Review your new Stack, then click the ‘Create stack’ button
Click Next.
Parameters on second page are optional so click NEXT again
Acknowledge stack creation and click submit.
After Stack creation is complete, new instance “sbx-cdi-al2” will be created.
Update Security Group of Sourcebox
The Stack creation process created, in addition to your new Streambox instance, a new Security Group. Make a note of its ID right away, but its name is sbx-cdi-al2..
Return to the EC2 instance of your Sourcebox; perhaps you left it open in a different tab.
Go to Actions -> Security -> Change Security Groups
Locate the “Select security groups” field and enter the security group from the new Streambox instance. Click “Add Security Group.” This step will enable communication between the Sourcebox and the Streambox.
For more information see AWS CDI documentation
https://github.com/aws/aws-cdi-sdk/blob/mainline/README.md#create-an-efa-enabled-instance
Installing Streambox Bridge on new Amazon Linux 2 instance
Connect to your new instance. There are two ways to do it; the first is simplest but not successful in every browser.
Connect from AWS: From the list of AWS instances, select the new Streambox instance and click the Connect button. On the next page, accept the defaults, and click Connect in the lower right. Your browser should open a new tab with a command-line terminal within, OR:
SSH into “sbx-cdi-al2” instance:
ssh -i YourKey.pem ec2-user@INSTANCE_IP_OR_DNS
Once connected by either method, execute Streambox Bridge and Networking Installer
curl -fsSL https://streambox-cdi.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/aws/install.sh | sudo bash
The installation process will take several minutes. Reboot the Streambox Bridge instance once this install is complete.
Activate Streambox Bridge
Use a web browser to access the IP address (http or https, your choice) of your new Streambox Instance.
Default login is: Administrator
Default password is: demo
Please review steps 2,3,4 for the Streambox Bridge manual for AWS MarketPlace deployment.
https://streambox-cdi.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/latest/linux/linux_cdi_bridge_getting_started.pdf
Click on the first Encoder channel, navigate to the Features Tab, and contact Streambox Support with the 6-digit Hardware ID found in the System tab (of any channel).
Support will provide several keys to be entered into that System Tab, which will activate the channels, the Encoder itself, and any special features or resolutions that’re part of your demo or order.
Send CDI Signal to Streambox Bridge
Open the Encoder channel you’ll be using for a stream and view the Info tab. It should have the following “CDI: No connection, listen (an IP address and port)”
This is the IP and Port to put into the CDI output settings of your Sourcebox software such as Baselight, Colorfront, etc. (Even an instance of Streambox Spectra with CDI pass-through.) 5000 is the default port for Encoder channel 1, but it can be configured on the Config tab.
If CDI stays in NON-Connected state please make sure to add the newly-created “sbx-cdi-al2” security group to your source CDI instance.
Once connected, the CDI: field will report “Connected,” followed by info about the resolution, framerate, color, and audio of the detected stream.
From here, set Encoder stream parameters and start streaming!