ApsaraVideo Live:FAQ about playback

Audio plays but no video is displayed in the console or browser

Symptom: When you play a live stream in the console or a browser, you hear audio but see no video. A decoding failed error might also appear.

Solution:

1. Check if the stream ingest source uses H.265 codec. Some browsers do not support H.265 and cannot render the video.

2. If so, switch the codec at the stream ingest source to a common format, such as H.264 or AV1.

3. If you must use H.265, play the stream using a dedicated player that supports H.265, such as ApsaraVideo Player.

The live stream suddenly goes black but recovers after rejoin

Symptom: During playback, the screen suddenly goes black. The video recovers after you exit and rejoin the stream. The screen might also flash once and then disappear.

Cause:

• Disordered timestamps from the ingest source: The audio and video Decode Time Stamps (DTS) from the ingest source increase too rapidly or are not incremental. This causes the player to fail to parse the stream.

• Missing keyframes: The ingest source does not insert keyframes at regular intervals. This prevents the player from decoding the stream correctly.

• Network fluctuations at the ingest source: The network connection for the ingest source is unstable, which interrupts data transmission.

Solution:

• Check the stability of the stream ingest device and software to ensure the ingest source is running correctly.

• Set the Group of Pictures (GOP) to 2 s or less to ensure keyframes are inserted regularly.

• Check the bandwidth and network conditions of the ingest source. Ensure the upstream bandwidth is sufficient and the connection is stable.

How do I fix a white screen when using the Web Player on HarmonyOS?

Symptom: When you use the Web Player to play a live stream on a HarmonyOS device, the page shows a white screen with no video.

Cause: An outdated version of the Web Player SDK is not compatible with the HarmonyOS environment.

Solution:

1. Upgrade the Web Player SDK to version 2.37.8 or later to ensure compatibility with the HarmonyOS environment.

2. Make sure the Web Player License is correctly configured: the application's client type must be set to Web, and a License must be bound to the application. For configuration steps, see License Integration Guide, section "Obtain and configure a Web Player SDK License".

Green screen occurs when playing over RTMP

Symptom: The video turns green when you play a live stream over the RTMP protocol.

Solution:

• Switch the playback protocol to FLV or M3U8 (HLS). Both protocols are more stable than RTMP and can resolve occasional green-screen issues.

How do I troubleshoot audio-only playback (no video) or fast-forward stuttering on iOS and Mac devices?

Troubleshooting steps:

• Switch to a different network environment and try again.

• Switch to a different iOS device or an Android device for a comparison test, to rule out an issue specific to the device or network environment.

• If the basic checks above do not resolve the issue, further investigate whether it is a cross-device compatibility issue.

Error 4008: Buffer data timeout

Cause: The network connection at the playback end is unstable, or the player's buffer policy is configured incorrectly. This causes a data loading timeout.

Solution:

• Check the network connection at the playback end to ensure it is stable.

• Refresh the page or reload the player.

• If the problem persists, check the player's buffer policy configuration.

manifestLoadError (error code 4006) when loading an M3U8 stream in an H5 player

Causes:

• The HTTPS certificate for the playback domain name is invalid, or a Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) policy is not configured.

• Referer hotlink protection is enabled, but the player's domain name is not on the whitelist.

• The AppName or StreamName in the URL does not match the configuration in the console.

Solutions:

• Verify that the HTTPS certificate for the playback domain name is correctly configured, valid, and matches the domain name.

• Confirm that the CORS configuration allows access from the domain where the player is hosted.

• If Referer hotlink protection is enabled, add the player's domain name or the default Alibaba Cloud Referer to the whitelist.

• Verify that the AppName and StreamName in the playback URL exactly match the stream ingest configuration in the console.

Failure in concurrent stream pulling

Symptom: When pulling multiple live streams simultaneously, some streams fail to load. Closing one stream allows the others to recover.

Causes:

• Duplicate StreamNames for different streams cause a resource allocation conflict.

• The player has insufficient local connections or decoding resources, which prevents the simultaneous processing of multiple streams.

Solutions:

• Ensure that the StreamName for each stream is unique to avoid conflicts.

• Check the player's concurrent connection limits. If necessary, adjust the player's concurrency settings or pull the streams in batches.

What do I do if AliPlayerSDK on iOS times out when playing an RTMP stream?

Cause: iOS supports pulling RTMP streams, but you cannot debug AliPlayerSDK by using Xcode online debugging. If your phone is connected to your computer over USB while debugging, the connection causes the playback to time out.

Solution: Disconnect the USB connection between your phone and computer, and then test playback again.

How do I configure the player SDK to support H.265 playback?

Description: To play an H.265-encoded live stream with ApsaraVideo Player SDK, you must meet the following prerequisites:

• Apply for permission to enable H.265 playback (or configure your project in the console to support H.265).

• Add the parameter is_enhanced_rtmp_play=on to the playback URL.

How do I troubleshoot a stuck video when pulling a stream with a third-party plugin such as live-player?

Troubleshooting steps:

1. Use the Alibaba Cloud Player Demo for a comparison test: select the live streaming type and enter the pull URL to preview.

2. If playback in the Demo is normal, the issue lies with the third-party plugin or the client environment. Check the client-side logs.

3. If the stuttering also occurs in the Demo, check the offline logs for the pull domain to rule out server-side 5xx errors and 403/404 configuration issues.