NetFrames

NetFrames is a lightweight, connected display platform that allows digital picture frames or embedded screens to automatically fetch and display images from a central server. Designed for Raspberry Pi, Meadow, or mobile clients, NetFrames is ideal for personal photo galleries, public displays, or IoT art installations.

Contents

• Architecture
• Build and Setup
• Support

Architecture

NetFrames.Server

NetFrames.Server is a .NET Core Web API, exposing endpoints to:

• Upload an image
• Get list of images
• Get specific image by ID.

NetFrames.WebPortal

The purpose of this portal is to manage the image collection that client devices will display on its screens.

NetFrames.EmbeddedClient

You can build this digital portrait using a Meadow F7 Feather board and a ILI9341 TFT SPI 320x240 display.

Wiring

Wire the Meadow F7 Feather board with the ILI9341 like the diagram below:

Enclosure

Feel free to 3D print this enclosure so you can place it on a desk or mount it on a wall. STL files are here or download directly from TinkerCad.

Build and Setup

Both the Server and WebPortal target .NET 10. Make sure you have the .NET 10 SDK installed.

Configuration

The WebPortal connects to the Server's API via the ApiBaseUrl setting in Source/NetFrames.WebPortal/appsettings.json:

{
  "ApiBaseUrl": "http://localhost:5233"
}

Update this value depending on where the Server is running (see scenarios below).

Scenario 1: Running both locally (development)

When running both projects on the same machine, the default launch profiles handle the ports:

Project	HTTP	HTTPS
NetFrames.Server	http://localhost:5233	https://localhost:7044
NetFrames.WebPortal	http://localhost:5150	https://localhost:7118

These ports are configured in each project's Properties/launchSettings.json.

1. Start the Server:

   cd Source/NetFrames.Server
   dotnet run
   

2. In a separate terminal, start the WebPortal:

   cd Source/NetFrames.WebPortal
   dotnet run
   

3. Make sure ApiBaseUrl is set to http://localhost:5233 in appsettings.json (the default).

4. Open http://localhost:5150 in your browser.

Scenario 2: Server on a remote machine (e.g. Raspberry Pi)

When running the Server on a separate machine (such as a Raspberry Pi), you need to configure the Server to listen on all network interfaces and point the WebPortal to the server's IP address.

On the remote machine (Server):

1. Update Source/NetFrames.Server/Properties/launchSettings.json to bind to all interfaces:

   "applicationUrl": "http://0.0.0.0:5000"

   Or pass the URL directly:

   cd Source/NetFrames.Server
   dotnet run --urls "http://0.0.0.0:5000"
   

2. Note the machine's IP address (e.g. 192.168.1.73).

On your local machine (WebPortal):

1. Update ApiBaseUrl in Source/NetFrames.WebPortal/appsettings.json to point to the remote server:

   {
     "ApiBaseUrl": "http://192.168.1.73:5000"
   }

2. Run the WebPortal:

   cd Source/NetFrames.WebPortal
   dotnet run
   

3. Open http://localhost:5150 in your browser.

NetFrames.EmbeddedClient

Finally, to set up your Meadow-powered Digital Frame, you'll only need to set your WIFI credentials in the wifi.config.yaml file, and set the base URL in the RestClientController class:

public class RestClientController
{
    // Base URL for the REST API (IP Address:Port)
    string baseUrl = "http://192.168.1.73:5150/";
...

Roadmap

The following table show's whats available and what features are next in upcoming updates.

Support

Finding bugs or wierd behaviors? File an issue with repro steps.