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Choose between a looping playlist and externally triggered changes
The right setup depends on what “change videos” means. A fixed ordered or shuffled rotation is simplest as a playlist inside OBS. If another program must decide when a particular video or scene appears, use an automation client with OBS WebSocket and validate the relevant request for your source type and installed version.
| Approach | Best for | Setup and control | Failure handling and observability |
|---|---|---|---|
| OBS VLC Video playlist | A fixed sequence, optionally shuffled and looped | Configure the playlist in the source; no custom switching client is needed. Per-item scheduling or metadata control is not established by the playlist feature described here. | Playback is handled by the source, but a playlist does not protect against OBS, computer, power, storage, or network failure. |
| Custom OBS WebSocket automation | Changes driven by an external schedule, trigger, or controller | Requires a WebSocket client and version- and source-specific supported requests. The protocol provides remote control; it does not itself define the schedule. | Build monitoring and recovery into the wider setup. WebSocket alone does not establish automatic recovery or uninterrupted playback. |
Set up a fixed playlist in OBS
Install the matching VLC build
OBS’s VLC Video source supports playlists with optional shuffle and looping. VLC must be installed separately. Match its architecture to OBS: 64-bit OBS requires 64-bit VLC.
Add and configure the source
- In OBS, add a VLC Video source to the scene that will be on air.
- Add the video files to the source’s playlist in the order you want them played.
- Enable looping for a continuous repeat. Enable shuffle only if you want the sequence randomized rather than fixed.
- Check playback and audio in the OBS preview. Test the end of one file and the start of the next, and confirm the intended scene remains active.
This method uses the VLC source’s playlist capability. It does not supply a universal WebSocket payload for editing playlist entries remotely; do not assume playlist controls are identical to scene or source controls.
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Use OBS WebSocket for externally controlled changes
Check the OBS version and secure the server
OBS WebSocket is included by default in OBS Studio 28 and newer; older releases may require the separate plugin. OBS Project’s Remote Control Guide describes it as a way to “help automate and/or control your scenes and sources with external tools.”
In OBS, open Tools > WebSocket Server Settings to configure the server. Keep authentication enabled and set a strong password. Do not expose the WebSocket port to untrusted networks; limit access to the machine or trusted network that needs to control OBS.
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Connect using the matching protocol
- Connect your automation client to the OBS WebSocket server at the address and port configured in OBS.
- Follow the protocol’s Hello/Identify handshake. If the server requests authentication, calculate and send the authentication response as specified by the protocol; do not skip authentication or send credentials through an untrusted network.
- After identification succeeds, send only requests supported by the protocol version and OBS build in use.
- For the intended action, confirm the request name and fields in the generated protocol documentation matching that installed version. Check the source kind as well as the OBS version: changing a scene or source is not necessarily the same operation as changing an individual item in a media playlist.
- Test in a separate scene with representative files before connecting the automation to a live broadcast. Verify the trigger, resulting source or scene, audio, and transition behavior.
Do not copy a request payload from an unrelated example without checking its protocol version and source type. There is no single playlist-update command established here that applies to every OBS media source.
Keep scheduling outside the connection itself
Your automation client must decide when to act—for example, from a schedule or an external trigger—and handle missed events, reconnects, and unexpected source state. OBS WebSocket is the control channel, not a scheduler or a guarantee that a change will happen at a particular time. Add logs and status checks appropriate to your client, and test what happens if OBS or the client restarts.
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Connect OBS to a YouTube live stream
Configure the encoder in Live Control Room
- In YouTube Live Control Room, create or select the stream and obtain the server URL and stream key provided for the encoder.
- In OBS, open Settings > Stream, choose the YouTube service or custom server option as appropriate, and enter the provided server URL and stream key.
- Keep the stream key private. Anyone with access to it may be able to broadcast to your stream.
- Start with a private or unlisted test where appropriate, then verify video, audio, transitions, and stream health before relying on unattended operation.
Use a stable, compatible video configuration
YouTube’s encoder guidance recommends RTMPS, “a secure extension to the popular RTMP streaming video protocol.” It lists H.264, H.265/HEVC, and AV1, supports up to 60 fps, recommends constant bitrate (CBR), and recommends a two-second keyframe interval (do not exceed four seconds). Confirm current YouTube guidance when configuring an encoder, since recommendations can change.
For one specific reference point, YouTube’s current encoder guidance accessed in 2026 lists 5 Mbps minimum and 14 Mbps recommended for H.264 at 1080p30. That is YouTube’s guidance for that resolution, frame rate, and codec—not a universal bitrate for every stream. Choose settings your upload connection can sustain consistently, and test representative motion and audio rather than judging only a static preview.
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Understand what a 24/7 stream does—and does not—archive
YouTube says streams under 12 hours are automatically archived. That guidance does not establish that a 24/7 broadcast will be saved as one uninterrupted video. Plan separately for the channel’s live playback and any archive or recording you need.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Test and plan for unattended operation
- Content: Test the actual files and transitions in the lineup, not just a short sample.
- Audio: Check levels, silence, clipping, and continuity when sources change.
- Runtime: Let a representative test run long enough to observe scheduled changes and stream health.
- Local dependencies: If OBS runs on your computer, the process, machine, power, storage, and internet connection all need to remain available.
- Recovery: Decide how you will detect a stopped OBS process, lost network, failed client, or YouTube disconnect. The setup described here does not establish automatic recovery behavior.
Troubleshoot common problems
The VLC playlist does not appear or play
Check that VLC is installed and that its architecture matches OBS; 64-bit OBS needs 64-bit VLC. Confirm the file paths are accessible to the account running OBS and that the VLC Video source is visible in the active scene.
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The client connects but cannot send requests
Check whether the server requested authentication and whether the client completed the Hello/Identify handshake successfully. Then verify that the request name and fields match the protocol documentation for the installed version. A connection by itself does not mean a request is valid.
A request works for scenes but not for a playlist item
Scene and source control do not prove that the same request can modify an individual playlist entry. Confirm the source kind and supported request schema for your OBS/WebSocket version; test in a non-live scene before changing the production setup.
YouTube does not receive the OBS stream
Recheck the server URL and stream key in OBS, confirm the key is current and private, and review stream health in Live Control Room. Test that the upload connection can sustain the selected encoder settings.
The stream stops when the computer or connection fails
A local OBS setup depends on the computer, OBS process, power, storage, and network. A WebSocket controller does not remove those dependencies. Add monitoring and a recovery plan, or consider a cloud playout option.
Or let it run in the cloud
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Quick Recap
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