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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteTo stream vertical video to YouTube with Castr, send your source to Castr, add YouTube as a destination, and configure the portrait output in YouTube Live Control Room. Castr handles ingest and forwarding; YouTube or your encoder determines how the portrait picture is composed. Set up the vertical format before going live—YouTube says it cannot be added after a stream has started.
How the Castr and YouTube parts fit together
Castr receives a video source and forwards it to configured destinations. YouTube controls the vertical live-stream layout and its stream settings. A single source sent through Castr does not, by itself, mean Castr has created a separate portrait composition. For a distinct portrait feed, your encoder must produce it and you must confirm how that feed is routed to YouTube’s vertical stream key.
Castr’s live-stream setup guide, dated August 4, 2026, documents creating a stream, choosing a hosting region, selecting a source method, and adding destinations. Its multistream guide, dated May 17, 2023, describes encoder ingest over RTMP or SRT; check the current Castr dashboard for any changed labels or plan-dependent destination limits.
Choose how to make the vertical picture
| Approach | Who composes the portrait view? | What to configure | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube built-in dual stream | YouTube adapts the horizontal stream using its vertical layout. | In Live Control Room, inspect the vertical preview and select center crop, fit to phone width, or stacked. You can adjust zoom and position. | Simpler if one horizontal source is enough, but check that cropping or stacking keeps important gameplay, overlays, and faces visible. |
| Encoder-supplied horizontal and vertical feeds | Your production encoder creates each format. | In Live Control Room’s Stream tab, choose Encoder for the vertical preview, select RTMP(S), and use the second stream key for the vertical feed. Route each matching feed to its corresponding key through your encoder and Castr setup. | Offers control over the separate portrait composition, but requires careful stream-key and routing setup before the event. |
YouTube documents both approaches but does not establish one as universally best. Choose based on whether an adapted crop is acceptable or you need a separately composed portrait feed.
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Create a Castr stream and add YouTube
- Create the stream: In Castr, create a live stream and choose a hosting region.
- Set the source: Choose a documented source method, such as Publish via RTMP/RTMPS or webcam. If you use an encoder, Castr’s multistream guide also describes RTMP or SRT ingest.
- Add the destination: Add a destination and choose YouTube.
- Connect YouTube: Link your YouTube account, or provide the platform server and stream key when using the manual connection option. Complete the requested platform fields.
- Enable the destination: Toggle the YouTube destination on. Confirm that the correct YouTube stream and key are associated with the intended feed.
Castr’s destination count may depend on your subscription plan. Because the available controls can change, use the current dashboard labels and verify the destination is enabled before starting.
Configure YouTube’s vertical stream before going live
Using YouTube’s built-in dual stream
- Open the stream setup in YouTube Live Control Room and enable the built-in dual-stream format.
- Review the vertical preview. Choose center crop, fit to phone width, or stacked, then adjust zoom and position if needed.
- Check that the portrait view keeps essential gameplay action, text, and overlays in frame. Do not assume a horizontal layout will crop cleanly.
Using a separate portrait feed from an encoder
- In YouTube Live Control Room, open the Stream tab and select Encoder for the vertical preview.
- Select RTMP(S), then identify the second stream key intended for the vertical feed.
- Configure your encoder and Castr routing so the portrait output goes to that vertical key and the horizontal output goes to its matching key.
- Check both previews and start the stream from YouTube Studio after configuration.
Do not add or change the vertical format after the stream has started: YouTube says the vertical format cannot be added mid-stream. Confirm in advance how the chosen encoder and Castr destination setup handle the separate keys.
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Preflight checklist
- Check channel eligibility: YouTube’s help page says a channel must be verified and must not have had a live-streaming restriction in the previous 90 days. Its stated minimum age for live streaming is 16.
- Choose the intended experience: Decide whether you need portrait-only output or both horizontal and vertical formats.
- Verify the composition: Review YouTube’s vertical preview, or confirm the encoder’s portrait feed is mapped to the vertical stream key.
- Confirm Castr forwarding: Make sure the YouTube destination is connected and enabled.
- Test before the event: YouTube recommends preparing encoder streams ahead of time, checking Live Control Room preview, and monitoring audio and video. Run an unlisted test stream if appropriate.
- If streaming from a phone: Lock screen rotation, test network speed, and test audio and video with an unlisted stream. YouTube notes an external battery pack can be useful, but it is optional.
Where viewers find vertical live streams—and what differs
YouTube says vertical live streams can appear as viewers browse Shorts and open into a full-screen vertical experience in the YouTube mobile app. The vertical live feed is not currently available on tablets; scheduled live streams and Premieres do not appear in that feed. Discovery is an opportunity, not a guarantee that YouTube will recommend a particular stream.
YouTube’s feature comparison distinguishes the vertical and horizontal feeds. The vertical feed supports discovery in the live/Shorts experience, scrolling through live streams, and certain fan-funding features. The horizontal feed supports clickable links in chat and channel descriptions, live pre-roll and mid-roll ads, 4K broadcast bitrate, Premieres, and Live Redirect, which are not listed for the vertical feed. Check YouTube Studio for current feature availability and eligibility.
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For YouTube’s built-in dual stream, viewers share a stream URL and chat. Live Control Room reports metrics for both streams together during and after the broadcast; metrics for only the vertical stream become available 24 hours later.
Troubleshooting common setup problems
- The destination does not receive video: Check that the YouTube destination is toggled on in Castr, the source is publishing, and the selected account or server/key details match the YouTube stream.
- The portrait preview is badly framed: For YouTube’s built-in layout, change the layout choice, zoom, or position and recheck the preview. If you need exact portrait framing, produce a separate portrait feed with your encoder instead.
- The vertical feed is missing: Confirm that vertical was configured before going live. For encoder-based dual streaming, verify the RTMP(S) vertical key and route the portrait feed to it.
- Audio or video is unreliable: Test the encoder output, network, and audio/video monitoring before the event. For phone streaming, check screen rotation and network conditions.
- Some viewers cannot find the vertical live feed: The Shorts-style vertical live experience is for the YouTube mobile app and is not available on tablets; scheduled streams and Premieres are also excluded from that feed.
Or let it run in the cloud
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