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Setting up IRL streaming

When you stream on the go, the connection fluctuates, drops out and comes back. For an uninterrupted stream, three components therefore work together: the encoder, the relay server and OBS.

The video path

Your video passes through four stages before it reaches the viewer:

  1. Your encoder — a BELABOX or a phone with an app such as Moblin or IRL Pro. It bonds several connections (mobile network, Wi-Fi, USB modems) and sends them via SRTLA. If one fails, the others take over as far as their bandwidth allows.
  2. Your relay server with us — it receives the bonded connections, reassembles them into a single data stream and keeps it ready.
  3. OBS on your side — it pulls the stream from the relay as a source. This is where your scenes are: the live video, a break screen and possibly a low-bandwidth version for poor connections.
  4. The platform — OBS streams to Twitch, YouTube or Kick.
Why OBS is in between: That is where your scenes are. With the Klein plan and above, the relay switches the scene in your OBS to the break screen when the connection drops. Without your own OBS, the relay forwards the stream directly to the platform.

Requirements

An encoder with SRTLA
BELABOX, Moblin or IRL Pro. Anything that supports SRTLA works. If you use only one connection, you can also send plain SRT.
A relay server
Your own relay server with a dedicated IP address (view the plans). The free IRL Sponsored plan transmits via SRT over one connection and shows ads when the connection drops. Automatic scene switching is included from the Klein plan onward.
OBS on a computer that runs while you stream
Usually the computer at home. It must be able to decode the incoming stream and re-encode it for the platform. It must be online and, for scene switching, reachable from outside. How to do this is described in the guide to making OBS reachable.

Setup in five steps

  1. Order a plan. After activation, the customer portal shows your server's address, your stream key and your view key. Anyone who knows the stream key can stream to your relay. Anyone who knows the view key can watch. Treat both like a password and never show them on stream.
  2. Set up the encoder. The complete address is shown in the customer portal and looks like this:
    • bonded (IRL Klein and above): srtla://YOUR-ADDRESS:8383?streamid=publish/live/STREAMKEY
    • single connection: srt://YOUR-ADDRESS:8282?streamid=publish/live/STREAMKEY
  3. Connect OBS. Add a source of the type "Media Source", uncheck "Local File" and enter srt://YOUR-ADDRESS:4000?streamid=play/live/VIEWKEY under "Input", with mpegts as the "Input Format". The receiving side always uses SRT, even if your encoder bonds connections, because they are combined on the relay. The same address works in VLC under "Media → Open Network Stream".
  4. Create scenes. Three are common: LIVE for the video on the go, LOW for a weak connection and BRB as the break screen. Enter the names in the customer portal.
  5. Enable switching. With the Klein plan and above, enter in the customer portal how OBS can be reached. The "Verbindung zu OBS prüfen" (Check connection to OBS) button tests the connection.

If your address ever becomes known

It can happen that the settings are accidentally shown on stream or that someone you used to know still has them. Because every customer has a dedicated IP address with us, an attack affects only that one address, and you can get a new one in the customer portal with one click. You can also replace the old stream key at any time.

If you have questions, write to us at info@glowfish.de and briefly mention your encoder and the problem.