Setting Up an RTMP Server on a Linux Machine

==================================================

In this article, we will walk through the process of setting up a reliable Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP) server using NGINX. This guide assumes that you have basic knowledge of terminal commands and package management systems.

Step 1: Choose Your Operating System

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Before proceeding with the installation instructions below, ensure your Linux distribution is supported by NGINX and has a compatible package manager installed. Currently, Red Hat-based (RHEL/CentOS) distributions are explicitly covered in this article; however, similar steps should apply to other popular distros such as Ubuntu/Debian.

Step 2: Install NGINX and RTMP Module

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To install NGINX with the necessary RTMP module on your RHEL-based system:

1. Open a terminal window.

2. Run the following command to update package lists:

```

sudo apt-get update -y

```

3. Then, all you have to do is install NGINX and its dependencies along with the `nginx-module-rtmp` module using these commands:

```bash

sudo yum -y install nginx nginx-module-rtmp

```

Step 3: Enable RTMP Support in NGINIX

Once you've installed the required packages, follow these steps to enable RTMP support within NGINX:

1. Open your preferred text editor (e.g., nano or vim) and navigate to `/etc/nginx/` directory.

2. Create a new file called `rtmp.conf`. If it doesn't exist already.

3. Inside this newly created file, paste the following configuration:

```

# Define RTMP stream

rtsp {

# Replace 'your_stream_name' with your desired stream name

# Change '/path/to/recordings/' to the actual path where you want recorded streams saved.

application rtmp {

live on 127.0.0.1:1935;

record all;

# Set path for recording files (default is /var/www/html/rtmp)

# Example:

# record 'rtmp://your_stream_name';

# Specify the permissions for this stream

# For example, allow only local access with password 'password'

# limit client-ip 192.168.*.*;

# digest-username my_username;

# digest-password my_password;

}

# End of RTMP block

# NGINX basic server configuration

...

# Finally, restart your NGINX service to apply the changes.

sudo systemctl reload nginx

Now you should have a functional RTMP server up and running on port 1935 (or whatever IP address/ports are specified in the above example). To test it out with OBS Studio or any other compatible media player software, simply open your preferred media player client application, navigate to its 'Preferences' -> 'Stream settings', select 'RTMP' as the stream type under 'Transport' section and fill in details accordingly based on what was configured earlier within /etc/nginx/rtmp.conf file - such as server IP address & port number etc.

That's it! Your RTMP server should now be fully operational, ready to accept incoming connections from compatible clients like OBS Studio or other media players.

Create rtmp server