Set Up a Live Linear Channel

Set up a Live Linear Channel

Learn how to stream a live linear feed. Alternatively, stream a single live event by taking advantage of our live event streaming capabilities.

Software Prerequisites: Linux

Knowledge Prerequisites: Basic understanding of Linux

Key Steps

Create a live channel.
Install, configure, and start the Live Slicer.
Capture media.
Test playback.

Step 1: Set Up an Account and Sign in

An account is required to stream content via our service.

Step 2: Create a Live Channel

A live channel determines how content generated by a Live Slicer will be made available to viewers.

From the Streaming section of the CMS, navigate to the Live Channels tab.
Select +Channel from the bottom-left corner of the CMS.
In the Channel Name option, enter the name to assign to the live channel.
In the Slicer ID (Optional) option, enter the alphanumeric ID to assign to the live channel.
(Optional) Set channel options:
- Check the Enabling Scheduling option to use the advanced scheduling interface and the latest channel APIs.
- Tick the Edit after creation box to open the record after submitting.
Select Create.

Step 3: Install the Live Slicer

Install the Live Slicer on a Linux computer.

💡
If you plan on using a Blackmagic DeckLink SDI capture card, then the Live Slicer must be installed on the computer where that card is housed.
For Live Slicer version 21092100 or higher:
- Install the libnl-3.200 library.
```
sudo apt install libnl-3-200
```
Install Python and bzip2 applications.
```
sudo apt install python bzip2
```
Download the Live Slicer by selecting Downloads from the bottom right-hand corner of the CMS and then selecting the desired OS.

Extract the zip file to the desired directory.

$ tar -xvf uplynk_slicer_linux_64-231114.04.01.tbz2

Navigate to the newly created directory.

$ cd uplynk_slicer_linux_64-231114.04.01-master/

Run install_live.
```
$ sudo ./install_live
```

Step 4: Configure the Live Slicer

Define Live Slicer settings within the Live Slicer configuration file.

Open /etc/uplynk.conf in a text editor.
Set the username setting to the email address associated with your account.
```
username: [email protected]
```
If present, delete the password line.
```
password: samplepassword
```
If missing, add a line for the apikey setting. Set it to your secret API key. Find your API key via Integration Keys > Settings tab > Integration Keys from the side navigation > API Keys section.
```
apikey: abcDEFghiJKLmnoPQRtuvWXYz123ABCdefGHIJKL
```
Set the slicerID setting to the case-sensitive slicer ID assigned to the channel in step 2.
```
slicerID: marketingvids01
```
Set the card setting to the number assigned to the Blackmagic capture card that will generate the source feed.
```
card: 1
```

Step 5: Start the Live Slicer

Start or restart the Live Slicer whenever you modify the Live Slicer configuration file.

Start the Live Slicer using one of the following commands:

Upstart
```
sudo start uplynk_liveslicer
```

systemd

sudo systemctl start uplynk_liveslicer.service

Step 6: Start Audio/Video Capture

Set up the Blackmagic capture card to capture the audio/video feed.

Connect an audio and video source to the Blackmagic capture card.
Open Blackmagic system preferences and configure the connections as input sources.
Open Preferences (Edit > Preferences) and then:
- Set a project format.
- Choose a capture file format.
- Specify a storage location.
Close Preferences and select the Log and Capture tab.
Select Capture. The Live Slicer will automatically pick up the feed.

Step 7: Test the Live Linear Stream

You have successfully created and broadcast a live linear feed. Now test the stream through the test player provided in the CMS.

💡
A link to a test media player that has been exposed to unauthorized individuals may be invalidated at any time by clicking the rubbish bin icon within the live channel's Test Players (Warning: Restriction free) section.

From the Live Channels tab in the CMS, make sure that the live channel is selected.
Select the Playback tab.
From the Test Players section, follow the View link corresponding to the desired test player.

Please refer to our media player tutorial to learn how to create a media player.