Scripting

Scripting for log in (explained)

You can use scripting to control parts or all of the login procedure in XProtect Smart Client.

  • If using Basic authentication or Windows authentication, you can make the XProtect Smart Client login window open with a pre-filled server address and user name fields so users only have to enter a password to log in.
  • If using Windows authentication (current user), you can make the XProtect Smart Client connect to the surveillance system automatically, based on the user's current Windows login.

Scripting the login procedure based on Basic authentication or Windows authentication requires that you add non-encrypted, sensitive information to an SCS file that you store locally with the XProtect Smart Client program files:

  • Host name
  • Username
  • Password

Storing non-encrypted information may compromise the security of your system or GDPR compliance. The information in the SCS file can be read:

  • By anyone who can access the file
  • In the memory footprint of the XProtect Smart Client application that was started by the SCS file or a command-line that delivers the username and password

Milestone recommends that you use Windows authentication (current user). If you must Basic authentication or Windows authentication, you should limit access to the SCS file.

Scripting for log in - parameters

You can use these parameters:

ServerAddress

Refers to the URL of the server to which XProtect Smart Client connects.

For XProtect Corporate, XProtect Expert, XProtect Professional+, XProtect Express+, and XProtect Essential+, this is the URL of the management server.
For XProtect Professional, or XProtect Express it is the URL of the image server.

The following example shows the XProtect Smart Client login window with http://ourserver in the Server address field:

Client.exe -ServerAddress="http://ourserver"

The default authentication type is Windows authentication (current user). Unless you change this, using the AuthenticationType parameter (described in the following section), the login window automatically displays the current Windows user in the User name field.

Scripting HTML page for navigation

You can use scripting to create HTML pages that let you switch between views. HTML pages can be added to your views, so they appear together with video from your cameras.

Example: In an HTML page, you can insert a clickable floorplan of a building that allows operators to simply click a part of the floorplan to instantly switch to a view that displays video from that part of the building.

In the following, you will see examples of HTML pages for XProtect Smart Client navigation:

  • A simple HTML page with buttons
  • A more advanced HTML page with a clickable image map
  • A check list for system administrators outlining the tasks involved in creating and distributing HTML pages to XProtect Smart Client operators