What is in this article?
This article introduces and explains the Upstream Monitor and its functions as part of the STREAMBOXY Livestream functions.
What is the upstream monitor?
The upstream monitor is located in a livestream session under the session settings. As soon as the livestream has been started, the upstream monitor appears under the other buttons. Detailed information on the session settings for livestreams can be found here.
In the upstream monitor, the livestream operator/speaker is shown information about the ongoing livestream in the respective session.
In addition to the status of the livestream, i.e. whether the connection rate is good, poor or non-existent because no data is being transmitted, there is the bit rate and the event log in which all events and information about the transmission rate of the livestream are stated. The data is visualized in the graph and indicated in detail in the event log.
Clicking on the respective button, the Upstream Monitor opens and displays the Livestream Health data.
What does the status show?
The status of the livestream is displayed in a button that changes its content and colour depending on the quality of the bitrate transmission.
The status in the upstream monitor thus indicates how "healthy" the livestream is.
The data points are also transferred into a graph, which is displayed under "Bitrate" (details below). The graph and the colours of the status button are only displayed when the upstream is active. The graph (bit rate) and the status button are therefore closely linked.
If the current bit rate is equal to or close to the expected bit rate, the livestream is considered as "healthy". The status button lights up green and indicates "healthy". This is the desired state.
If the current bit rate deviates (strongly) from the expected bit rate, the live stream is rated as "not healthy". The status button lights up red and indicates "Not healthy".
If no heartbeat data is available, the graph shows gaps and the status button is grey (no data).
What does the bit rate show?
The graph for the ingest heartbeat is displayed in the "Bitrate (Mbps)" field.
The graph shows two curves that are optimally identical. One of the curves shows the expected bit rate - the second curve shows the current bit rate. The bit rate is given in Mbps. On the y-axis the bit rate in Mbps and on the x-axis the time is indicated. The visual time frame that includes the last 10 minutes from the current time.
The data points for the two curves are derived from the expected video and audio bit rate and the current video and audio bit rate.
What does the event log show?
The event log displays all events and all current information.
These are recorded in chronological order and refresh with each new event that flows in. The most recent event is always at the top.
The following information is refreshed each time:
- Date
- Time
- Name of the transmitted event
- Bit rate
- Status "Healthy" (true/ false)
- Congestion of the live stream
- Status "Unexpected bitrate" (true/ false)
In the following you can findd the event types and the respective description:
| Event type | Description |
|---|---|
| LiveEventConnectionRejected | Encoder's connection attempt is rejected. |
| LiveEventEncoderConnected | Encoder establishes connection with live event. |
| LiveEventEncoderDisconnected | Encoder disconnects. |
| LiveEventIncomingDataChunkDropped |
Media server drops data chunk because it's too late or has an overlapping timestamp (timestamp of new data chunk is less than the end time of the previous data chunk). |
| LiveEventIncomingStreamReceived |
Media server receives first data chunk for each track in the stream or connection. |
| LiveEventIncomingStreamsOutOfSync |
Media server detects audio and video streams are out of sync. Use as a warning because user experience may not be impacted. |
| LiveEventIncomingVideoStreamsOutOfSync |
Media server detects any of the two video streams coming from external encoder are out of sync. Use as a warning because user experience may not be impacted. |
| LiveEventIngestHeartbeat |
Published every 20 seconds for each track when live event is running. Provides ingest health summary. After the encoder was initially connected, the heartbeat event continues to emit every 20 sec whether the encoder is still connected or not. |
| LiveEventTrackDiscontinuityDetected |
Media server detects discontinuity in the incoming track. |
How are the graph and event log updated?
The upstream monitor is initially loaded when the speaker joins the session.
All data is automatically updated from this point onwards and with every event that comes in. The update takes place every minute. There is also a refresh button for manual updates.
How do I get an export of the livestream status data?
The data can be exported at any time during the broadcast or directly afterwards. To do this, click on the corresponding selection directly below the graphic display of the upstream monitoring.
In the report itself, you can now view the entire log of your stream in detail.