Setting up the Control4 system—overview

Setting up a fully functional Control4 system includes the following major procedures.

For best results, Control4 recommends that you follow the procedures in this order:

  1. Install and connect the hardware—When deploying a Control4 system, install and connect the essential devices:
    • A Control4 controller (for example, an EA-3)
    • A Windows-based computer to set up and configure the home automation system using Composer Pro
    • The device to be controlled (for example, touch screen, DVD player, speakers, lights, Dock for iPod, etc.)
    • A controller and PC connection to the home network
  1. Purchase the required licenses—To use Composer Pro for your company or your employees, you’ll need to purchase and assign licenses. See the document Managing Dealer Accounts on My.Control4.Com for details.
  1. Install the Composer Pro software—Use the Composer Pro installation software to install Composer on a PC and activate it using your my.control4.com dealer user account.
  1. Connect to a Director— Each time you start Composer on your PC, you either connect to Director running on a local or remote controller (live connection) or a virtual Director running on your PC (virtual connection). Director is the software on a controller that stores the Control4 system configuration and manages the control of each subsystem and device in the Control4 system.
    • Live connection: To make changes to a Control4 system in real time, connect to the Director through either Local System (over the home network) or Remote System (over the Internet).

      • Note: Remote Access must be configured locally before using a remote connection to the controller. See “Setting up Remote Access.”

    • Virtual connection: Alternatively, to create or edit the system configuration offline and save the project file, connect to Director through Virtual System. The saved .c4p project file can be loaded later into a controller through a local connection to ensure that Director has the updated system configuration.
  1. Plan and design the system. To design a system in Composer Pro, you first create a project in the form of a project tree that represents the hierarchy of locations for the devices to be automated in the home-automation system (site > building > floors > rooms > devices) and the devices that reside in each room.
    • Create a plan. Creating a plan before you start your project in Composer Pro will help make your system design go much more smoothly.
    • Design the system using System Design view: Use the System Design view where you can view the project tree as you build the design.
  1. Make and test the connections. In the Composer Pro project, you must define all of the physical connections of the devices to the system: control (IR and serial)and AV (audio, video). You must also define other connections: room control and network connections. You can use Composer Connections view to complete the connections.
  1. Register the system. Control4 recommends that you register each system you install at customer.control4.com to maintain the system software through software updates and critical system patches.

    2. Important: Only registered systems can use all of the media services available. System registration is one of the essential steps that lets you access the system remotely (remote access) for repairs, updates, and additions.