How to Use On-Screen Display on a Decoder (Omega, Ultra, and MaxColor Series)

Jul 15, 2026

Overview

On-Screen Display (OSD) allows a Decoder to display text over the current video output. OSD messages can be used for room identification, notifications, troubleshooting, testing, and system automation.

This feature is supported on Omega Series, Ultra Series, and MaxColor Series Decoders.

Legacy Systems: For 2G Series systems, see On-Screen Display for 2G Series.

Example On-Screen Display message

Before You Begin

Ensure you can access the Decoder using either Telnet or the HTTP API.
Execute OSD commands on the Decoder connected to the display where the message should appear.
For instructions on accessing a Decoder, see How to Access a Just Add Power Device.

Message Appearance

OSD messages can be displayed using either center or left alignment. Font size is specified by the command and does not automatically scale with the output resolution. As a result, the same font size appears progressively smaller on higher-resolution displays.

	Center	Left
720p
1080p
4K

Command Line

The following commands are executed directly on the Decoder using Telnet.

Display an OSD Message

osd "$STRING" [-c RRGGBB] [-s SIZE] [-a left|center] [-t TIME]

Option	Description	Default
`"$STRING"`	Text to display.	Required
`-c RRGGBB`	Text color.	`00FF00`
`-s SIZE`	Font size (1-250).	30
`-a left` `-a center`	Text alignment.	center
`-t TIME`	Display time in seconds.	Persistent

Examples

osd "Doorbell"

osd "Doorbell" -c FFFFFF

osd "Conference Room" -a left -s 50

osd "Presentation Starting" -t 10

Additional Commands

Additional OSD functions are available to identify Decoders, display diagnostic information, and remove OSD messages.

Note: Most OSD commands affect only the Decoder on which they are executed. Identification mode is an exception and displays information on every visible Decoder in the system.

Function	Command	Description
Turn Off OSD	`osd -x [seconds]`	Removes the current OSD immediately or after a delay.
Display Debug Information	`osd -d`	Displays diagnostic information.
Identify Decoders	`osd -i` `osd -i off`	Displays or removes identification on every visible Decoder.

HTTP API

Devices running B1.X.X or newer support OSD control through the HTTP API.

Display an OSD Message

Endpoint

POST /command/osd

Property	Description	Default
`string`	Text to display.	Required
`color`	Text color.	`00FF00`
`size`	Font size (1-250).	30
`align`	`left` or `center`.	`center`
`timeout`	Display time in seconds.	0 (Persistent)
`opacity`	Background opacity (0-100).	100

Example

POST /command/osd

{
  "string": "Doorbell"
}

Additional Commands

The following HTTP API commands provide additional On-Screen Display (OSD) functions.

Note: Identification mode displays information on every visible Decoder in the system. Other OSD commands affect only the Decoder that receives the request.

Identify Decoders

Endpoint

POST /command/osd

Function	Request Body	Description
Enable Identification	`{ "identify": "on" }`	Displays the IP address and MAC address on every visible Decoder.
Disable Identification	`{ "identify": "off" }`	Removes the identification display from every visible Decoder.

Examples

Enable Identification

POST /command/osd

{
  "identify": "on"
}

Disable Identification

POST /command/osd

{
  "identify": "off"
}