Use a RAM disk to store temporary HLS video fragment files of your live-stream server

What exactly is a RAM disk?Why would I want to use a RAM disk?How large should the RAM disk be?How to create a RAM disk I’ve posted several articles in the past, most noteably this one, on the subject of live-streaming, so it shouldn’t be a real big surprise that I’m doing another post on it. A RAM disk can enhance your live-stream server, while at the same time increasing …

Use this script to automate the setup of a live-stream server on Ubuntu 22.04

What the script does, is build a decent live-stream server for you, from scratch, on a machine running on Ubuntu 22.04. The live-stream server will be fully configured and work out-of-the-box, with an RTMP entry to send your stream to, Adaptive bitrate streaming for the viewers in HLS and/or DASH formats. A webpage with a very basic video player is also included, and a simple /stat page can be used to display some data on the live-streams. To top it all off, I included a couple of pointers that will help you on your way in this environment.

Block countries based on Geo data with UFW firewall

I while ago, I wrote this post about how to block all network traffic from-and-to certain countries using UFW firewall based on recent Geo data. The statistics of this website show that this post is still one of the most popular posts here. Many people found their way here through Google searches like: UFW, Geo and Block. If you happen to be one of these people, welcome! You came to …

The god(s) of data-storage

I seem to have somehow upset the god(s) of data storage. It feels like I’m being punished, or at least challenged by them as of recently. Specifically the last three months. It feels like this for me because hard drives have been failing to the left and to the right of me, and even directly in front of me. And all within a crazy short amount of time. This is …

Create a secure adaptive bit-rate HLS stream with Nginx/RTMP/Ffmpeg on Ubuntu 20.04 (2021)

6-8-2023 UPDATE: I wrote a new tutorial, suited for Ubuntu 22.04. Go to the new tutorial. 24-07-2023 UPDATE: Before you read/follow this tutorial, I want to inform you of something important. In case you follow this tutorial, there’s a big chance you won’t be able to get the adaptive streams to work correctly. I don’t know exactly why or what has changed, but I believe the audio codec is no …

Ant Media Server on Ubuntu 18.04

This short guide will show you how to install Ant Media Server (Community Edition) on a Ubuntu 18.04 VPS server. Ant Media Server is a fork of Red5. The community Edition is free, but it does have its limitations that can be unlocked by purchasing a license. It runs on Java, so we’re also installing that on our server. The server that I used in this example has Nginx installed …

Fix the Nginx module in Webmin (Ubuntu 18.04)

For a long time now, the Nginx plugin that exists for Webmin did not work after installing it on Ubuntu/Debian. I never got around to figure out how to fix this but today I did. Here’s how to fix the Nginx plugin in Webmin on a Ubuntu server. Now in all honesty I have no idea what step of all the steps below did the trick of actually getting it …

Block all traffic from a Geo-located country with UFW firewall on Ubuntu

Update 30-7-2023 – This post is a bit old. I have written a new article on the subject. Check it out here: https://www.ustoopia.nl/featured/block-countries-based-on-geo-data-with-ufw-firewall/ I was noticing some really strange requests in my web server’s log files on a VPS that I manage. Requests that seem to be focused on finding vulnerabilities or exploits. Turns out, most of the originating IP addresses are from China. Since the VPS is not behind …