Getting Started — OneIP

Modified on Tue, 28 Apr at 5:31 PM

This guide is for installers who are new to the Pulse-Eight OneIP AV-over-IP system. OneIP distributes 4K60Hz video over a standard 1GbE network rather than HDBaseT. This gives you flexibility in system design — any source can go to any display, distances are limited by the network infrastructure rather than cable runs, and the system scales without adding matrix hardware.

The biggest difference from a traditional HDBaseT matrix install is that the network switch is the backbone of the system. Getting the switch configured correctly before connecting any OneIP devices is the most important step in the installation. If the switch is wrong, nothing will work — and it can be difficult to diagnose. Read the switch requirements carefully before you start.

What You Need Before You Start

Hardware

OneIP devices (Transmitters, Receivers, and/or Transceivers as specified)
A managed network switch — unmanaged switches will not work reliably with OneIP. See switch requirements below.
PoE+ capable switch ports (802.3at, 30W per port) — or a separate 12V DC power supply per device if not using PoE+
Cat5e or better — Cat6 recommended
HDMI cables for sources and displays
A commissioning laptop on the same network

Accounts and access

A Pulse-Eight Installer ID — see How to Get Your Installer ID
Access to your managed switch's admin interface

Step 1 — Configure the Network Switch First

Do not connect OneIP devices to the switch until the switch is correctly configured. OneIP uses IP multicast to distribute video streams across the network. Without proper switch configuration, multicast traffic will flood all ports — which means every device on the network receives every video stream simultaneously. On a busy network this will cause congestion and video dropout. On a dedicated switch it will still cause instability. Configure the switch first, then connect devices.

OneIP requires the following switch settings. The setting names and their location in the menu will vary between switch manufacturers — refer to your switch's documentation if you are unsure where to find them. For specific configuration guides for tested and supported switches, see the OneIP Network Configuration Guides article.

Required switch settings

Setting	Required value	Why
IGMP Snooping	Enabled	This is the critical setting. IGMP Snooping makes the switch learn which ports are interested in which multicast streams and only forwards them there. Without it, every stream floods every port on the switch.
IGMP Querier	Enabled — set on your core/primary switch only in multi-switch setups	The querier periodically asks devices which multicast groups they want to receive. Without a querier, IGMP Snooping tables time out and streams stop. Only one querier per network segment.
Fast Leave	Enabled on endpoint ports (OneIP device ports). Disable on inter-switch uplink ports.	Fast Leave allows the switch to immediately stop forwarding a stream to a port when a device leaves the multicast group, rather than waiting for the next query cycle. Do not enable on uplinks as it can cause premature stream termination when multiple devices share an uplink.
Unregistered Multicast	Drop or Filter	Prevents multicast traffic that is not tracked by IGMP Snooping from flooding all ports. Essential for keeping unrelated multicast traffic off OneIP device ports.
Multicast Report Suppression	Optional — can be enabled as an optimisation on multi-switch setups	Reduces the volume of IGMP report messages on larger installations with many devices.

For multi-switch setups, ensure the inter-switch uplinks have sufficient bandwidth for the number of streams crossing them. For example, if 10 OneIP devices on Switch A are all receiving streams originating from Switch B, the uplink between them must support at least 10Gbps. A 1GbE uplink will bottleneck in this scenario — use a 10GbE uplink or distribute devices across switches to reduce inter-switch traffic.

OneIP works best on a dedicated switch or VLAN isolated from general network traffic. If OneIP is sharing infrastructure with building LAN traffic, VLAN separation is strongly recommended.

Step 2 — Connect and Power On Devices

Connect OneIP devices to the switch

Once the switch is configured, connect each OneIP device to a switch port using Cat5e or better. If using PoE+, the switch port powers the device directly — no separate PSU needed. Allow 30–60 seconds for each device to fully boot after connecting.

Connect HDMI sources and displays

Connect HDMI sources to the HDMI input on each Transmitter or Transceiver. Connect displays to the HDMI output on each Receiver or Transceiver. Transceivers have both in and out — configure the mode in the web interface (step 5).

Access the web interface via gotomymatrix.com

Open a browser on your commissioning laptop and go to gotomymatrix.com. This will list all Pulse-Eight devices found on the local network. Select a device to open its web interface. If devices do not appear, confirm the laptop and devices are on the same network and that mDNS traffic is not blocked by the switch.

Log in and register your Installer ID

Default credentials are admin / admin. Change the password after first login. Go to the Cloud connections Tab and enter your Installer ID to link the device to your account.

Adopt all devices into the mesh

OneIP devices form a mesh — one device acts as the primary and manages the others. On the primary device's web interface, go to the Mesh Setup Tab. Devices on the network that have not yet been adopted will appear in the Discovered Devices list. Adopt each one. Once adopted, all devices are visible and configurable from the primary device's interface.

Unadopted devices will not receive streams. All devices must be adopted before configuring routing.

Update firmware

Go to the Hardware Details Tab on each device. If an update is available, apply it using the upgrade or Upgrade All Devices in Mesh button. Do not interrupt power during an FPGA or Firmware update.

Assign a static IP to the primary device

Go to Network Setting on the primary device and assign a static IP. Note this down for control system integration. Other mesh devices can remain on DHCP as they are accessed through the primary.

Configure video routing

Go to the Video Routing Tab. Assign which source (transmit device) feeds which display (receive device). Test each zone with a known-good source before moving on.

Configure EDID, CEC and IR per device

Go to the Device Settings Tab on each device to set EDID, CEC behaviour, and IR pass-through. These are configured per device rather than per output as on the Neo Matrix.

Run the network health tests

On each device go to the Device Health Tab and run the IGMP test and Uplink Cable Test. The IGMP test confirms multicast is working correctly on the switch. If the IGMP test fails, go back to the switch and verify IGMP Snooping and Querier settings.

First Install Checklist

Managed switch configured — IGMP Snooping on, IGMP Querier on (primary switch), Fast Leave on device ports, Unregistered Multicast set to Drop
All OneIP devices connected to switch and powered on
All devices visible on gotomymatrix.com
Admin passwords changed from default on all devices
Installer ID registered on all devices
All devices adopted into the mesh
Firmware up to date on all devices (including FPGA where applicable)
Static IP assigned to primary device
Video routing configured and tested to all zones
EDID reviewed per device
CEC and IR configured per device
IGMP test passed on all devices
Uplink Cable Test passed on all devices
Control system driver loaded and tested

Common First-Install Issues

Devices not appearing on gotomymatrix.com

Check the commissioning laptop and all OneIP devices are on the same network segment. If the switch has VLANs configured, confirm the laptop port and the device ports are in the same VLAN. mDNS does not cross VLAN boundaries without a multicast DNS repeater.

Devices appear on gotomymatrix.com but video is not routing

Confirm all devices are adopted into the mesh. Unadopted devices appear in the discovered list but do not participate in routing. If devices are adopted and routing is configured but no picture appears, run the IGMP test — a failure here means multicast is not being handled correctly by the switch.

Video drops out intermittently

The most common causes are switch-related: confirm IGMP Snooping is enabled, Unregistered Multicast is set to Drop, and Fast Leave is enabled on device ports. If the installation uses multiple switches, confirm the inter-switch uplinks have sufficient bandwidth for the number of streams crossing them — a 1GbE uplink will bottleneck with more than one 4K stream. Also verify the switch port is running at 1Gbps and not 100Mbps.

IGMP test failing

Go back to the switch and verify: IGMP Snooping is enabled globally and on the VLAN, IGMP Querier is enabled on one switch, and there are no firewall rules blocking IGMP traffic (IP protocol 2).

One device won't adopt into the mesh

Confirm the device is on the same network segment as the primary. Try accessing the unadopted device directly via its own IP address — if it is accessible, it is on the network and the issue is likely a firmware mismatch. Update firmware on the unadopted device first, then retry adoption.

Next Steps

OneIP Local WebUI Guide — full reference for every page in the web interface
OneIP Range — Product Guide and Selection — which device does what

Need help during installation?
Have the device serial numbers, firmware versions, switch make and model, and a description of the issue ready when you call.

UK: 01202 413 610 | US: (858) 748-8250 | support@pulse-eight.com