Client Devices

A client device is any device other than the host computer that connects to Competition Control: a scoring tablet, a check-in laptop, a phone in a queuer's pocket, or a TV showing rankings. Client devices run entirely in a web browser. Nothing is installed on them and they store no event data, so you can swap or replace one at any time.

Every client device must be authorized before it can do anything. Authorizing a device gives it a role, and the role decides which pages it can see and what it can change. You authorize devices from the Devices page, which needs the Admin role. The host computer is always an Admin device, so you can start there. The host computer must have an event open, and the client device must be on the same network. It does not need internet access. If devices cannot reach the host computer, see Network Requirements.

Connecting a Device

1. On the host computer, open the Devices page from the sidebar. Find the Server address near the top of the Authorize Devices panel. If the host computer has more than one network connection, several addresses are listed, each labeled with its connection (Wired network, Wi-Fi, or Virtual adapter) and ordered with the most likely one first. Use the one that matches the network your client devices are on.
2. On the client device, open a browser and type the Server address exactly as shown, including http://, for example http://192.168.1.20. Most of the time there is no port number; if the address shown does include one, such as http://192.168.1.20:53243, type that too. The device shows a six-character device code in large type, along with a QR code. Codes never include the letters O or I or the digits 0 or 1, so they are easy to read aloud.
3. Back on the Devices page, type the code into Device Code. The field converts letters to capitals for you.
4. Optionally, type a name into Device Name (optional), such as Field 1 Scorer or Pit Rankings TV. Names can be up to 64 characters. Leave it blank to keep the generated name, which is two words and an animal, such as brave-curious-otter.
5. Choose a role from the Role list and click Authorize as followed by the role name, for example Authorize as Scorekeeper.

A Device authorized notice confirms the name and role, and within a few seconds the client device opens the pages for its role. A device code is valid for 10 minutes; if it expires, reload the page on the client device to get a fresh one.

[Screenshot: Devices page with the Authorize Devices panel and the Authorized Devices table]

If you already have a phone or tablet authorized as an Admin, you can skip typing the code. Scan the QR code on the new device's screen with the Admin device's camera and open the link. The Devices page opens with Device Code filled in and the Role list focused, so you only choose a role and click Authorize as. If the scanning device is not an Admin, the link shows that device's own code instead.

Another computer running Competition Control can also connect from its launcher, which lists host computers it finds on the network. See Connecting to Another Host Computer.

Choosing a Role

Pick the most restrictive role that covers the job the device will do. Each role is modeled on a volunteer position.

• Admin: Event Partners and trusted staff. Can do everything, including event setup, authorizing devices, and finalizing results.
• Check-In: The registration table. Marks teams present and records inspection.
• Display: TVs, projectors, and field monitors. Shows only the content of its display group and has no interactive pages.
• Solo-Only Scorekeeper: Volunteers running solo fields. Controls solo field timers and enters solo match scores.
• Scorekeeper: Volunteers running alliance match fields. Controls field timers, queues matches, and enters scores for alliance and solo matches.
• Head Referee: Everything a Scorekeeper can do, plus recording violations, viewing deleted matches, and editing team information.
• Judge Advisor: The judging room lead. Views team information, assigns award winners, records violations, and runs the Eligibility page.
• Judge: A limited judging role. Opens the Eligibility page and can set notebook status, but cannot change highlights or load the eligibility results. Use Judge Advisor for judging room devices.
• Queuer: Volunteers calling teams to the field. Marks teams as queued or present for their matches.

The full list of which pages each role can open is in Roles and Permissions.

Important

An Admin device can change anything about the event, including deleting devices and finalizing results. Give the Admin role only to devices you control, and keep the number small.

After Authorization

Devices with an operator role open the pages their role allows, and pages the role cannot use do not appear in the sidebar. Display devices show an Awaiting assignment screen with the device name in large type until you assign them to a display group. You can do that from the Display column of the Authorized Devices table, which reads Unassigned until you choose a group, or from the Displays page, where you also create groups and choose what each one shows. If a group is deleted while a device is assigned to it, the device returns to the Awaiting assignment screen until you assign another group.

The browser remembers the authorization. Closing the tab, restarting the browser, or restarting the device brings it back into the event without a new code. Clearing the browser's site data or using a private browsing window forgets the authorization. Authorized devices are saved in the event file, so reopening the same event file reconnects every device. Opening a different event file requires authorizing them again.

Managing Devices

The Authorized Devices table lists every device with its Name, Role, and Display assignment. The device you are using is tagged This device, and devices that have been turned off are tagged Disabled.

To change a role, use the list in the Role column. The change applies immediately. The Device actions menu at the end of each row offers:

• Rename: Changes the name shown in the table and on the device.
• Disable: Signs the device out and blocks it from reconnecting. The device shows a Device Disabled screen. Its authorization is kept, so you can bring it back without a new code. You are asked to confirm.
• Re-Enable: Restores a disabled device. It reconnects on its own within a few seconds.
• Delete: Removes the authorization completely. The device returns to the code screen and must be authorized again. You are asked to confirm.

Some devices are protected. The host computer cannot be disabled, deleted, or given a different role. You cannot disable, delete, or change the role of the device you are currently using; use another Admin device instead. The longest-standing Admin device cannot be disabled or removed, so the event always keeps a way in. Authorize another Admin device first, and the protection moves to that device.

Auto disable devices, below the authorize form, is on by default. It disables any operator device after one hour without use so the list stays current. The host computer and Display devices are never disabled by this setting. A device disabled this way shows Device Disabled; use Re-Enable to bring it back. The setting applies to the whole event.

Field Controllers on a Browser Device

Field controller support is in beta. For connecting, assigning, and testing controllers, see Field Controllers.

OpenFC boards can be driven from a device that uses Chrome or Edge instead of the desktop app. Browsers only allow this from a secure address, so open the Field Controllers page on that device and follow the secure address link it offers, which opens an address such as https://192.168.1.20. The host computer signs its own certificate, so the browser shows a warning the first time: choose Advanced and proceed, then authorize the device as usual (the secure address counts as a separate device).

Plug the board into that device, open Field Controllers, and choose Scan for Controllers: the browser opens a port chooser, and once you pick the board's port it appears in the Controllers table like any other, ready to be given a field. Every scan opens the chooser again, which is how you add a second board; ports you have already picked are remembered and come back on their own, including after a reload. If Field Controllers is opened from the plain http address instead, it links to the secure one. The VEXnet® Field Controller Kit always needs the desktop app.

Remarks

Authorize a phone as an Admin device for yourself so you can scan QR codes to authorize new devices as you walk the venue. Name devices by location or job (Field 2 Timer, Check-In Table) rather than by owner, since names appear in the table and on display screens waiting for assignment. Delete devices that leave the event, such as a volunteer's personal phone.

If a device shows Connection Lost, Device Disabled, or an authorization error, see Troubleshooting.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Note

On macOS, Alt is the Option key.