Room Modes & Exclusive Sources

Room Modes in Space CE define operational states for a room (e.g. “Presentation”, “Video Conference”, “Lecture”). From Space CE v2.17.0, each room mode can restrict which AV sources are available, simplifying the touch panel interface and preventing users from selecting irrelevant sources for a given activity. From v2.24.0, the controls offered in each mode (microphones, cameras, lighting, partner rooms) can also follow the mode through a Visibility Condition on each object, and a mode can show an image in place of an icon.

There is no separate “Exclusive Sources” switch to turn on. A mode restricts its sources simply by having a non-empty list of Available AV Sources. That list becomes the whitelist for the mode. If a mode has no such list (or the list is empty), all sources are available in that mode. In Room Manager the “Exclusive Sources” feature is presented as populating this per-mode list of allowed sources.

Key concepts

Term	Description
Room Mode	A named operational state that configures the room for a specific activity. Modes control which sources and destinations are surfaced on the user interface.
Available AV Sources	The per-mode whitelist of AV sources. A non-empty list restricts the mode to only those sources; an empty or absent list leaves the mode unrestricted.
Default Mode	The mode the room enters when it powers on.
Visibility Condition	An expression on an individual object (a microphone, camera, lighting preset or partner room) that hides it while false, typically room.RoomMode == "...". Configured on the object rather than on the mode.

How source restriction works

When a mode has an Available AV Sources whitelist, only the sources on that list appear on the touch panel while the mode is active. When a mode has no whitelist (or an empty one), every AV source defined in the template is available in that mode.

Example:

• Presentation mode: Shows only the HDMI input, wireless presenter, and document camera
• Video Conference mode: Shows only the far-end camera feed, content share, and laptop HDMI
• Lecture mode: Shows only the lecture capture source and wireless presenter

This reduces clutter and prevents users from selecting sources that are irrelevant or could cause confusion in a particular mode.

Availability rules

Source availability is decided per mode, not globally:

• A source is available in a mode if that mode has no whitelist or an empty whitelist.
• Otherwise, a source is available in a mode only if it appears in that mode’s Available AV Sources list.

There is no global “belongs to no mode” rule. Whether a source shows in a given mode depends entirely on that mode’s own whitelist.

Field reference

Room modes live under the top-level Room Modes object. Its Available Room Modes array holds one entry per mode.

Field (Room Modes)	Description	Required	Default
Available Room Modes	Array of room-mode definitions (see below).	No	none
Default Mode	The room mode selected when the room starts. When absent, the first entry in Available Room Modes is used. A room with no Room Modes block at all runs in a single mode named Presentation.	No	first mode

Room mode entry

Each entry in Available Room Modes defines one mode:

Field	Description	Required	Default
Room Mode	The mode’s name, shown on the touch panel (e.g. Presentation). An entry with no Room Mode is ignored.	Yes	-
Room Mode Icon	An icon name from the user interface’s icon set, or the URL of an image to show for the mode. See Mode images.	No	none
Available AV Sources	The per-mode source whitelist (see below). A non-empty list restricts the mode to those sources; an empty or absent list leaves the mode unrestricted.	No	none (unrestricted)

Available AV Sources entry

Each entry in a mode’s Available AV Sources array names one permitted source and, optionally, the destinations that source may route to while the mode is active:

Field	Description	Required	Default
AV Source ID	The ID of an AV Source permitted in this mode. An entry with no AV Source ID is ignored.	Yes	-
Available Destinations	An optional list of destinations this source may route to while the mode is active (see below).	No	source’s own destinations

Available Destinations entry

Available Destinations restricts, per mode, where a source may route. If a source has available destinatiosn defined in both the AV Sources and Room Modes sections the configuration specified within the active Room Mode will override those defined in the AV Sources section. Each entry names one destination:

Field	Description	Required	Default
Destination	A destination type (e.g. Main Display, Preview) or a destination group ID, as defined under AV Destinations.	Yes	-

Configuration

1. Open the Space CE template in Room Manager.
2. Navigate to the Room Modes configuration section.
3. Select a room mode (or create a new one).
4. Populate the mode’s list of available AV sources with the sources that should appear when this mode is active. Leaving the list empty makes all sources available in that mode.
5. Optionally set a Room Mode Icon, and optionally override the destinations for a source within the mode.
6. Repeat for each mode as needed.
7. Save the template and deploy to the room.

Worked example

Two modes: Presentation restricts to two sources and overrides one source’s destinations, while Video Conference lists a different set. A mode with an empty or absent Available AV Sources list would leave all sources available.

{
  "Room Modes": {
    "Available Room Modes": [
      {
        "Room Mode": "Presentation",
        "Room Mode Icon": "presentation",
        "Available AV Sources": [
          {
            "AV Source ID": "source.pc",
            "Available Destinations": [
              { "Destination": "Main Display" }
            ]
          },
          { "AV Source ID": "source.doccam" }
        ]
      },
      {
        "Room Mode": "Video Conference",
        "Available AV Sources": [
          { "AV Source ID": "source.laptop" },
          { "AV Source ID": "source.camera" }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}

Which fields to use and when

• Populate Available AV Sources on a mode only when you want that mode restricted. Leave it empty or absent to keep every source available in that mode.
• Set Available Destinations on a source within a mode only when that mode needs different destinations from the source’s own configuration. When present, it overrides the source-level destinations for that mode.
• Set Room Mode Icon only if you want a mode-specific icon on the user interface.

Mode images

Room Mode Icon accepts either an icon name or an image URL such as https://images.example.com/room-modes/lecture.jpg. A user interface that supports mode images shows the image on the mode’s start tile and falls back to the icon set if the image cannot be loaded. The image is hosted outside the room configuration and is fetched by the user interface, so the URL must be reachable from the panel’s network, in the same way as a Revit URL.

Controls per mode

A mode’s Available AV Sources list determines what can be routed. To change which controls a mode offers, set a Visibility Condition on each object that follows the mode. Space CE re-sends the affected control lists with a visible flag whenever the mode changes, and the user interface hides the objects flagged as not visible.

Object	Condition	Effect
Camera camera.1	room.RoomMode == "Lecture"	Camera controls are shown only in the Lecture mode.
Microphone mic.2 (lapel)	room.RoomMode != "Presentation"	The lapel microphone is not shown in the Presentation mode.
Lighting preset light.preset.vc	room.RoomMode == "Video Conference"	A lighting preset offered only in the Video Conference mode.
Partner room room.link.b	room.RoomMode != "Lecture"	The partner room is not offered for linking in the Lecture mode.

Whole control groups follow the same rule. When every microphone is hidden in a mode, the user interface shows no microphone control in that mode.

What else follows the mode

• Default Routes under Automation fire on the transition into a mode, so each mode can route a different source on entry. See Default Routes.
• Macros can trigger on the room’s RoomMode state (Guid room, Property RoomMode, Value the mode name) to recall camera and lighting presets, move screens, or power off a display that the mode does not use. See Macros.
• Audio startup actions on each channel are re-applied when the mode changes while the room is on, so the mode’s audio baseline is restored in the same way as its routes.

Touch panel behaviour

When a user starts the room, a user interface with more than one mode configured offers a tile for each mode in place of a single start button. When a user selects a room mode while the room is on:

• The source selection area updates to show only the sources permitted for that mode, and controls with a Visibility Condition appear or disappear.
• The mode’s Default Routes and macros run, so displays may change source.
• A source that is already routed is not un-routed by the mode change unless a Default Route replaces it. Selecting a mode filters the sources shown to the user; it does not deselect or tear down an active route. The routed source may simply no longer appear.

Related Articles

• AV Sources
• AV Destinations
• Default Routes and Hot Plug Routes
• Macros
• Room Link
• Creating a Space CE Template
• Space CE v2.17.0 Release Notes