# What you need > A display, something to run Screenly on, and an internet connection. Plus the network details to pass on to your IT team. Three things: a display to show your content on, something to run Screenly on, and an internet connection. You do not need a server, anything installed on your own computers, or anything opened up on your network. ## A screen Any TV or monitor with an HDMI socket works. Commercial signage displays, office monitors, and ordinary televisions are all fine, and Screenly does not mind which brand it is. Some business displays have a computer built in and can run Screenly on their own, without anything plugged in. See [Supported platforms](/docs/anywhere/overview/supported-platforms/) for which ones. Every plan shows content at 1080p. For 4K you need a device capable of it and a Business plan or higher. > [!WARNING] > Upgrading your plan does not make a 1080p device show 4K. A Screenly Player and a Raspberry Pi both stop at 1080p whatever your plan says. For 4K you need a Screenly Player Max, or a Screenly Anywhere device that supports it. ## Something to run Screenly on Something has to run the Screenly software and drive the display. On many business displays that is the display itself, because it has a computer built in. Otherwise it is a small device you connect to it. You have three routes. Existing Scala players can be converted too: see [Scala players](/docs/screenlyos/hardware/scala-players/). [Choose what runs on your screens](/docs/get-started/requirements/what-runs-on-your-screens/) covers the difference in full. {{< tabs id="device" >}} {{< tab title="Screenly Player" >}} Our own hardware, which arrives ready to use. Plug it into the display and the network, turn it on, and it shows a pairing code. There is nothing to install and nothing to set up. The Screenly Player shows content at up to 1080p. The Screenly Player Max is the more powerful model and goes up to 4K. This is the most capable route, because we look after the whole device. {{< /tab >}} {{< tab title="Your own Raspberry Pi" >}} A Raspberry Pi can run [ScreenlyOS](/docs/screenlyos/), the same software our own hardware uses. You download the image and copy it onto an SD card. A Raspberry Pi shows content at up to 1080p, and behaves the same as a Screenly Player in almost every way. {{< callout note >}} A Raspberry Pi running our software is not a Screenly Player. That name means the hardware we sell, which matters when you are reading hardware-specific pages. {{< /callout >}} {{< /tab >}} {{< tab title="Hardware you already own" >}} [Screenly Anywhere](/docs/anywhere/) is an app you add to a device that already has its own system: an Android device or Android TV, an Amazon Fire TV, a Samsung commercial display running Tizen, an LG webOS television, an Amazon Signage Stick, a ChromeOS Flex device, or a browser tab on any computer, Windows included. Managing content works exactly the same way. What you give up is depth, because the device's own system is still running alongside ours. A browser tab is the fastest way to try Screenly without buying anything. {{< /tab >}} {{< /tabs >}} ## An internet connection Screens need internet access, the same as a phone or a computer. Wi-Fi or a network cable both work. Screens only ever connect out to us. Nothing connects in to them, so there is nothing to open up, forward, or expose on your network. > [!IMPORTANT] > If someone tells you Screenly needs a port forwarded, a fixed public address, or a screen placed outside your firewall, that is not something we need. One thing worth passing on: screens need to be able to check the time automatically. Scheduling runs on each screen's own local time, so a screen with the wrong clock shows the wrong thing at the wrong hour.
Network details for your IT team Every connection is initiated by the device, outbound only. | Purpose | Protocol | Port | Direction | |---|---|---|---| | Content download and API | HTTPS | 443 | Outbound | | Live connection to the cloud | WebSocket over TLS | 443 | Outbound | | Clock synchronization | NTP | 123 (UDP) | Outbound | No inbound ports are required, and no static or public IP address. If your network uses an allowlist rather than open outbound access, [contact support](https://support.screenly.io/) for the current list of hostnames to permit. ScreenlyOS also supports 802.1X on wired and wireless connections, static IP configuration from the on-screen setup wizard, and mutual TLS client certificates for reaching internal services. For screens that need to display a dashboard on a private network with nothing exposed publicly, Tailscale can connect a whole fleet. See [ScreenlyOS](/docs/screenlyos/).
## How much data it uses Not much. Content downloads once and then plays from the device itself, so a screen looping the same playlist all day is not downloading it over and over. The one thing to expect is a burst the first time you send new content out, particularly video. If you are bringing a dozen screens online at one site at once, they will each pull down their first playlist together. ## A web browser The dashboard runs in any current version of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari. There is nothing to install and nothing to keep updated. You do not need to be on the same network as your screens. Managing a screen in another building works exactly like managing one in the next room. ## A Screenly account [Signing up](https://login.screenlyapp.com/sign-up) takes an email address and starts a [free trial](/docs/get-started/plans/free-trial/) with no card required. There is no password to choose. [Sign up and create your workspace](/docs/get-started/first-screen/create-your-workspace/) lists the sign-in options. ## Next [Create your workspace](/docs/get-started/first-screen/create-your-workspace/) and connect your first screen.