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Stream restart problems with new YouTube interface

With recent changes to YouTube Studio interface (and removing the classic Studio interface), the stream ingestion seems to have changed. If you used the old "Stream Now" or the new (dark) "Stream Tab", you probably need to change stream setup in YouTube to still use 24/7 streaming.

Problem

Stream displayed as offline in YouTube player, even if stream status is ok in webcam.io dashboard. Manual restart in webcam.io temporarily solves this.

Solution

Use a “Scheduled Stream” in YouTube, instead of the “Stream Now”/“Stream Tab”:

  1. Open YouTube Studio
  2. Click “Go Live” in the upper right to open the Live Control Room
  3. If still active, end the current stream in “Stream Tab” on the left
  4. Open the Manage Tab and create a scheduled stream (“Schedule Stream” in upper right). Set name, visibility etc.
  5. Open upcoming stream from the list. It should be waiting for data from encoder (webcam.io)
  6. Recommended settings: Auto-start/-stop off, DVR off, Normal latency
  7. “Stream key” should still be the “Default key”. Please check it is the same in webcam.io settings.
  8. Restart stream in webcam.io
  9. Wait 1-2 minutes for preview in Live Control Room
  10. Click “Go Live”

Permanent URLs and embed codes with your channel ID still show the first stream visible in your Channel (How to embed a YouTube Live stream into your website)

Please contact us if there are still problems (including a screenshot of your YouTube setting screen, with streamkey and a link to your channel and live stream)

While the old “Stream now” (in classic interface) worked fine restarting ended streams by just re-sending to the stream key URL again, in the new interface the stream will appear offline and requires user interaction in YouTube interface.

To fix this condition, these steps are required each time the stream ends:

  1. visit the Stream Tab (only to start listening for incoming streams again)
  2. then restart the stream in webcam.io interface so YouTube starts the stream

Restarting the stream in webcam.io takes 30-60 seconds until data is sent out and (depending on latency setting) around 30 seconds in YouTube to display the preview. Clicking restart button again will not make this faster ;-)

For now, we recommend using the scheduled streams in YouTube, as these keep listening for incoming streams.

What if the scheduled stream is ended ?

If the scheduled stream is ended, which might happen after hours of stream inactivity (unfortunately there is no documentation), you need to recreate and start the scheduled stream in the manage tab and select to reuse the previous settings

We recommend using the “Backup stream” option in webcam.io to keep the stream alive, if your camera or network is down for a longer time.