Livestreaming FAQ
Answers to common setup and operating questions about Livestreaming.
For what the app is and how to set it up from scratch, see the
Livestreaming Overview.
Setup
Do I need to configure a streaming provider before anyone can go live?
Most tenants use the managed provider and need no provider setup — streams work out of the box once the app is enabled. Enterprise tenants that need their own account can configure one under Admin → Integrations (category: Livestreaming). The Settings page shows a Provider card so you can confirm what is connected.
Who can schedule and host streams?
The Who can schedule and host streams setting in Apps → Livestreaming → Settings controls this. The default is Admins and app admins only. Changing it to Any user lets every employee schedule and host streams. Business admins and Livestreaming app admins can always host regardless of this setting.
What are the default settings when I first enable the app?
| Setting | Default |
|---|---|
| Who can schedule and host streams | Admins and app admins only |
| Record streams by default | On |
| Auto-caption recordings (AI transcription) | On |
| Add scheduled streams to the company Calendar | On |
| Draft a “We’re live” Broadcast on go-live | On |
| Auto-post recordings to the Communications feed | Off |
Permissions and access
Who can manage or moderate a specific stream?
Moderator access is tied to the stream, not to a general role. The stream’s host, the stream’s creator, any business admin, and any Livestreaming app admin can open the host console, go live, end the stream, remove chat messages, mark questions answered or dismissed, launch polls, and use the AI features. A user who merely has the hosting capability cannot moderate someone else’s stream.
Why can’t I open the host console for a stream I didn’t create?
Only the stream’s host, creator, or an admin can open the console. If you need access, ask the stream’s host or creator to designate you as the host, or ask a business admin to manage it.
Day-to-day
What RTMPS ingest URL do I point my encoder at?
The host console displays the ingest URL and stream key for each stream. The ingest endpoint is rtmps://global-live.mux.com:443/app. Use any RTMPS-capable encoder — OBS, Wirecast, vMix, Zoom, or Teams.
Can I edit or cancel a stream while it is live?
No. A live stream must be ended before it can be edited or canceled. End the stream first from the host console, then make changes.
What happens when I click “Go live”?
The platform provisions a stream with the provider, saves the ingest URL and stream key, and flips the status to Live. If notification settings are on, every active user (or the targeted audience) receives an in-app/push “join now” notification, and a draft “We’re live” Broadcast is created for an admin to publish. The host also receives a 15-minute pre-stream reminder notification.
What notifications do viewers and hosts receive?
Two notification types fire automatically:
- Pre-stream reminder — sent 15 minutes before the scheduled start to the host (with a link to the console) and, when the stream targets a specific audience, to those audience members (with a link to the watch page). Untargeted streams do not send a 15-minute reminder to the whole company — the calendar event handles general awareness.
- Go-live notification — sent to every active user (or the targeted audience) when the host clicks Go live, with a link to join the stream. The host is excluded.
Both are one-shot per stream per user, so overlapping schedules or retries never double-send.
When something looks wrong
I clicked “Go live” and the stream shows “Failed” — what happened?
The provider refused to create the stream. The host console displays the error reason. Common causes are missing or expired provider credentials, a provider rate limit, or a network issue. Click Retry on the console to try again. The stream stays editable — it is not locked into a failed state. If retries keep failing, check Admin → Integrations (for enterprise accounts) or contact support (for the managed account).
The live viewer count on the host console seems frozen or too high
The viewer count is driven by a heartbeat from each watch page. If a viewer’s tab crashes or their laptop sleeps without sending a leave signal, their session ages out of the active count within 2 minutes. A background sweep runs every minute to clear stale sessions. If the count still looks wrong after a couple of minutes, the sweep may have been delayed — end and restart the viewer’s session.
“Catch me up” says the stream is just getting started, but it’s been going for a while
“Catch me up” summarizes what has happened based on audience activity — chat messages, questions, and poll results. If no one has chatted, asked questions, or launched a poll yet, the recap has nothing to work with and reports “just getting started.” Encourage audience participation.
My recording is missing — the stream ended but there is no playback
Check whether Record this stream was checked when the stream was scheduled. If recording was turned off for that stream, the provider still auto-records but the recording is discarded at the provider level, so nothing is stored and playback is not available. The stream’s status stays Ended rather than moving to Recorded.
The “Auto-post recordings to the Communications feed” setting is on, but no post appeared
Two switches must be on. In Livestreaming Settings the Auto-post recordings to the Communications feed toggle must be enabled, AND in the Communications app’s contributor settings the Livestreaming — allow posting to the feed switch must also be on. If the contributor switch is off, the auto-post is skipped silently.
A viewer says they can watch the stream without logging in — is playback public?
Playback is signed (access-controlled) only when a signing key is configured. The Settings page shows a Secure playback badge: Active means new streams use signed tokens (valid for 6 hours), and a leaked URL cannot be watched from outside. Public playback means no signing key is present and anyone with the URL can watch. Contact support to enable signed playback, or configure your own signing key for enterprise accounts.
Polls and Q&A
Can a viewer vote more than once in a poll or upvote a question twice?
No. Each viewer gets exactly one vote per poll and one upvote per question. Duplicate submissions are silently ignored.
Can viewers still ask questions after the stream ends?
New questions are blocked once the stream ends. Upvoting existing questions remains open, so a viewer who watches the recording can still push a question up the host’s follow-up list.
Licensing and limits
Does Livestreaming require a licence?
No. Livestreaming is a pay-as-you-go app billed per broadcast minute. It is available to every tenant without a separate license purchase. An admin enables it from Apps Marketplace.
How is billing calculated?
Billing is by broadcast minute — the stream’s wall-clock duration, rounded up to the next whole minute when the stream ends. The count is audience-independent: how many employees watch never changes the bill. There is no monthly minimum.
Are there limits I should know about?
| Limit | Value |
|---|---|
| Chat message length | 500 characters |
| Question length | 1,000 characters |
| Chat rate limit | 5 messages per 10 seconds per viewer per stream |
| Catch me up throttle | Once per minute per viewer (60 seconds between requests) |
| Signed playback token lifetime | 6 hours |
| Live-viewer heartbeat window | 2 minutes (a viewer without a heartbeat within this window drops out of the active count) |
| Sync log retention | 90 days |
| Poll minimum options | 2 (one per line) |
More help
- Livestreaming Overview
- Ask AI — the assistant answers Livestreaming questions from these articles.