Managing and Deactivating Emergency Overrides

Once an emergency override is activated, it continues to display on all affected players until it is deactivated or expires. This article covers how to monitor and deactivate overrides.

Dashboard Indicator

When an emergency override is active, the Slideshow Manager Dashboard displays a visible indicator. This alert shows that an override is currently affecting player screens and serves as a reminder to deactivate the override when the emergency has passed.

Deactivation Methods

Manual Deactivation

To manually deactivate all overrides:

1. Open the Emergency Override dialog from the Dashboard.
2. Click Deactivate All.
3. Confirm the deactivation when prompted.

The system deactivates all active overrides for the selected scope (current location or all locations). The sync status is updated and players return to normal playlist playback on their next poll (within 30 seconds).

The deactivation is logged to the activity log with the details of what was deactivated.

Expiration-Based Deactivation

If an expiration time was set when the override was activated, the override automatically becomes inactive after the specified time. Players stop showing the override message during their next poll after the expiration time passes.

Expiration-based deactivation does not require any manual action. The player checks the override's expiration time during each poll and ignores expired overrides.

Best Practices for Emergency Overrides

• Always set an expiration. Even for genuine emergencies, set an expiration of a few hours. This provides a safety net — if the person who activated the override is not available to deactivate it, it will expire automatically.
• Use clear, actionable messages. Tell people what to do, not just what happened. "Please evacuate via the nearest exit" is better than "There is a fire."
• Choose appropriate colors. Red for safety emergencies, yellow/amber for warnings, blue for informational overrides.
• Use the correct scope. Only use "All Locations" for company-wide emergencies. For location-specific situations, use "Current Location" to avoid disrupting unaffected locations.
• Deactivate promptly. Once the emergency has passed, deactivate the override immediately so normal signage content resumes.
• Review the activity log. After an emergency, review the activity log to see when the override was activated and deactivated for incident documentation.

What to Read Next

• Using the Slideshow Dashboard and Activity Log for reviewing override history.
• Slideshow Permissions and Role Recommendations for controlling who can activate overrides.