System Requirements

GlueArrow Box OS — Broadcast Operations Platform Document version: 1.0 · Applies to Box OS 1.6.0+

---

1. Overview

GlueArrow Box OS is deployed in one of three modes. Hardware and software requirements differ by mode. Select the mode that matches your deployment and verify each table before installation.

Mode	Typical buyer	Hardware	Installation
A. GlueArrow Box Appliance	Stations wanting a sealed, plug-and-play broadcast engine	Pre-flashed appliance shipped from GlueArrow	None — boot and pair
B. Linux Server	Stations running their own Linux infrastructure	Customer-supplied server	install-linux.sh
C. Windows Workstation	Stations retrofitting an existing production PC	Customer-supplied workstation	Windows installer

All three modes run the same engine, produce the same proof-of-play ledger, and receive the same over-the-air updates.

---

2. Mode A — GlueArrow Box Appliance

The appliance is the recommended path for new deployments. No IT assembly required.

Component	Specification
Platform	Nano-N3322 class mini PC (Intel 12th Gen, fanless)
CPU	4 cores / 4 threads, 3.4 GHz turbo
Memory	8 GB DDR4 (16 GB on Pro/Enterprise tier)
Storage	256 GB NVMe SSD (512 GB on Pro/Enterprise tier)
Network	3× Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6 (Pro/Enterprise tier)
Video out	3× HDMI 2.0 (4K @ 60 Hz per port)
USB	4× USB 3.2 (audio interfaces, cameras, USB drives)
Audio	3.5 mm line-in, line-out; USB audio class-compliant
Power	12 V DC, 60 W typical draw; 24/7 operation certified
Status display	7" color LCD showing IP, QR pair code, system health (Pro/Enterprise tier)
Operating system	Korra OS (hardened Ubuntu 22.04 LTS derivative, A/B partitions)

Environmental:

• Operating temperature: 0 °C to 40 °C
• Humidity: 10% to 80% non-condensing
• Ventilation: 50 mm clearance on all sides
• Enterprise deployments: UPS recommended for 24/7 availability

---

3. Mode B — Linux Server

For stations running their own Linux infrastructure (bare-metal or virtualized).

3.1 Hardware minimums

Workload	CPU	RAM	Storage
Radio only (audio + RTMP simulcast)	2 cores, 2.4 GHz	4 GB	60 GB SSD
Radio + TV (single video source, HD)	4 cores, 2.8 GHz	8 GB	120 GB SSD
Multi-camera production (2+ cameras, HD)	6 cores, 3.0 GHz	16 GB	240 GB SSD
High-availability / 24/7 enterprise	8 cores, 3.2 GHz	16 GB	500 GB NVMe + UPS

3.2 Operating system

Distribution	Minimum version	Tested
Ubuntu	22.04 LTS	✅ Production
Debian	12 (Bookworm)	✅ Tested
RHEL / Rocky / AlmaLinux	9	🟡 Community support
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server	15 SP5	🟡 Community support

Virtualization is supported: VMware ESXi, Proxmox, KVM/QEMU, Hyper-V Gen 2. LXC and Docker are not supported deployment targets.

3.3 Runtime dependencies

Installed automatically by install-linux.sh. Listed here for IT review:

• Python 3.11 or newer
• FFmpeg 5.0 or newer (with libx264, libvpx, libopus, libmp3lame)
• PulseAudio or PipeWire (audio I/O)
• v4l-utils, alsa-utils
• SQLite 3.37+ (bundled with Python)
• Chromium 120+ (HDMI kiosk mode only)
• systemd 249+ (service lifecycle and hardening)
• Python packages (45 dependencies, full list in requirements.txt)

3.4 User account

Installer creates a dedicated system user gluearrow (UID 900+) with membership in audio, video, tty, and input groups. No interactive shell access. The user owns /opt/gluearrow-box-os, /etc/gluearrow-box-os, and /var/lib/gluearrow-box-os.

---

4. Mode C — Windows Workstation

For stations using existing Windows hardware.

Component	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system	Windows 10 version 21H2, 64-bit	Windows 11, 64-bit
CPU	Intel Core i5 (10th gen) or AMD Ryzen 5 (3000 series)	Intel Core i7 (12th gen) or AMD Ryzen 7 (5000 series)
Memory	8 GB	16 GB
Storage	256 GB SSD	512 GB NVMe SSD
Network	1 Gigabit Ethernet (wired strongly preferred)	Same
Audio input	USB audio interface OR enabled Stereo Mix	Dedicated USB audio interface
Display	1920 × 1080 @ 60 Hz	Same or higher
Administrator rights	Required for installation	Required

Home editions of Windows are supported. Windows Server is supported for enterprise deployments.

Windows Defender and third-party antivirus are compatible. Add C:\Program Files\GlueArrow Box OS\ to the exclusion list to avoid real-time scanning of active HLS segments.

---

5. Network Requirements (all modes)

See network-and-firewall.md for the complete specification.

Summary:

Requirement	Value
Inbound port (control panel)	TCP 5002 (LAN-local)
Outbound bandwidth (minimum)	10 Mbps sustained upload
Outbound bandwidth (recommended)	25 Mbps sustained upload
Outbound latency to cloud	Under 500 ms round-trip
DNS	Recursive resolver reachable
NTP	pool.ntp.org or customer NTP source

Wired Ethernet is strongly preferred. Wi-Fi deployments are supported but not recommended for stations running live RTMP simulcasts above 720p.

---

6. Audio Capture (all modes)

One audio input is required. Supported sources in priority order:

1. USB audio interface (recommended) — any USB Audio Class 1 or 2 compliant device. Tested: Focusrite Scarlett, PreSonus AudioBox, MOTU, Behringer UMC, Steinberg UR series, RØDE AI-1.
2. Line input — 3.5 mm or XLR (via interface) from station mixer's AUX OUT or REC OUT.
3. Loopback (Windows) — Stereo Mix enabled in Sound settings.
4. Loopback (Linux) — PulseAudio monitor source or ALSA loopback module.

Sample rate 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz. The engine accepts mono or stereo. Signal level target: -20 dBFS to -12 dBFS peak.

---

7. Video Capture (optional, TV stations only)

Platform	Capture method	Notes
Linux	v4l2 (USB cameras, HDMI capture cards)	Tested: Elgato Cam Link, Magewell USB Capture HDMI, Logitech C920/C925
Windows	DirectShow (dshow)	Same capture cards supported
Appliance	USB 3.2 or internal HDMI-to-USB	Up to 3 simultaneous 1080p30 sources

NDI sources are supported via the OBS bridge (obs_bridge.py). SRT ingest is on the roadmap.

---

8. Storage Breakdown

Disk space is consumed as follows. Values are typical steady-state; actual usage scales with library size and schedule density.

Path	Typical size	Contents
/opt/gluearrow-box-os/ (Linux) or C:\Program Files\GlueArrow Box OS\	400 MB	Application binaries, Python virtualenv
local_station.db	20 MB to 500 MB	Schedules, shows, ads, speakers, proof-of-play
smartvault_music.db	1 MB per 10,000 tracks	Music fingerprint cache
static/hls/	50 MB to 200 MB	Active HLS segments (rotating buffer)
static/ads/	500 MB to 5 GB	Cached ad media
static/videos/	Variable	Fallback video, station ID, promos
Station music library	Variable (user drives)	Catalogued in place, not copied

The appliance ships with a 256 GB SSD; typical production use stays under 30% capacity after 12 months.

---

9. Browser Compatibility (Control Panel)

The browser-based control panel targets modern standards. Tested configurations:

Browser	Minimum version	Notes
Google Chrome	120	Recommended
Microsoft Edge	120	Recommended for Windows stations
Mozilla Firefox	118	Full support
Safari	17 (macOS 13+)	Full support
Chromium	120	Kiosk mode on the appliance

Internet Explorer is not supported. Mobile browsers (iOS Safari 17+, Android Chrome 120+) are supported for the tablet-optimized workspaces.

---

10. Peripheral and Integration Support

Category	Supported equipment / protocol
DJ software	Serato DJ Pro, rekordbox, Virtual DJ, Traktor Pro, SAM Broadcaster, Myriad (via polling bridge)
Video mixers	OBS Studio 28+, vMix (NDI), Wirecast (RTMP) — via obs_bridge.py
Tally lights	TSL UMD v3.1/v5 (hardware tally controllers)
RTMP destinations	YouTube Live, Facebook Live, Twitch, LinkedIn Live, any RFC-compliant RTMP 1.0 ingest
Restream aggregation	Restream.io API (optional, paid third-party service)
Proof-of-play export	CSV, JSON, webhook push
SSO	SAML 2.0 via accounts.gluearrow.com (enterprise tier)
Monitoring	Prometheus 2.45+, Grafana 10+

---

11. Time Synchronization

Proof-of-play integrity depends on accurate system time. All modes require NTP synchronization.

• Appliance: chrony is configured at first boot and maintains time automatically.
• Linux server: Ensure systemd-timesyncd or chrony is running against a reliable NTP source.
• Windows workstation: Ensure Windows Time Service (w32time) is running and synchronized.

Stations with enterprise NTP infrastructure should configure the box to use the station's time source. Clock drift exceeding 2 seconds for 5 minutes will trigger a health alert.

---

12. Not Supported

For transparency, the following are explicitly out of scope for the current release:

• Running multiple Box OS instances on the same host operating system
• ARM architecture on Windows or Linux (appliance uses x86-64 only)
• Headless installation without any persistent storage
• Continuous cloud audio recording (the cloud receives detection metadata, not raw audio — see security-whitepaper.md)

---

13. Support and Escalation

• Standard support: support@gluearrow.com
• Enterprise support (SLA-backed): See Service Level Agreement
• Security issues: security@gluearrow.com — see security-whitepaper.md §10

---

GlueArrow Inc. — 1111B S Governors Ave # 50266, Dover, DE 19904, United States Document identifier: GA-SYSREQ-1.0 · Last reviewed: 2026-04-24