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OBS Studio

YouTube Stream Key Not Saved After Restarting OBS? Settings to Check

Check the active OBS Profile, inspect Settings > Stream, and verify that OBS uses the current YouTube stream key.

By VGSources Team 4 min read
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If your YouTube stream key seems to disappear when OBS restarts, first check that OBS reopened the Profile where you saved it. OBS stores Stream settings in Profiles. Then open Settings > Stream and check the selected service and key. If the key was reset in YouTube, replace the old one in OBS with the current key. These are two separate issues: which local OBS settings are active, and whether the YouTube credential is still current.

1. Check which OBS Profile is active

OBS Profiles store Stream and Output settings, so a different Profile after restart can make it look as though your YouTube settings were not saved. OBS describes a Profile as saving “most a solid chunk of OBS Studio settings, primarily related to outputs.”

  1. In OBS, open the Profile menu and note the selected Profile.
  2. If you use more than one Profile, select the one you configured for YouTube.
  3. Open Settings > Stream and check whether the expected service and key are present.

OBS Project’s Profiles guide explains that Profiles can be exported to JSON and imported as a backup or on another installation. Export a working Profile if you want a settings backup. Profiles do not contain scenes; OBS uses Scene Collections for those.

2. Inspect the Stream settings in OBS

OBS’s Stream settings are where you select a service or server and enter the stream key. With the intended Profile active, open Settings > Stream and check:

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  • Service: Confirm that YouTube or the intended custom server is selected.
  • Stream key: Check that the field contains the key you expect. If it is blank or outdated, get the current key from YouTube and enter it here.

The OBS Studio Overview Guide covers selecting the service/server and entering the key. If the key is present in the correct Profile, the issue may instead be that YouTube’s current key differs from the one OBS has saved.

3. Check the current key in YouTube Studio

YouTube creates and manages stream keys in Live Control Room. YouTube describes them as “like your YouTube stream’s password and address.” Compare the key intended for your stream with the one configured in OBS; if someone reset the YouTube key, update OBS to use the new one. YouTube says only a channel owner or manager can reset a key.

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  1. Open YouTube Studio’s Live Control Room and locate the stream key you intend to use.
  2. If you reset the key or discover it changed, copy the current key.
  3. In OBS, open Settings > Stream for the correct Profile and replace the old key.
  4. Save the setting and confirm it remains present after closing and reopening OBS.

See YouTube Help’s Manage live stream settings for key management details. Treat a stream key as a credential: do not share it publicly. If you suspect it has been exposed, resetting it in YouTube means updating OBS with the replacement.

4. Keep YouTube’s Reuse settings in perspective

YouTube’s Reuse settings feature copies metadata, settings, and the key from an earlier stream when creating a new YouTube stream. It can help when setting up another broadcast, but it does not prove that OBS saved its local configuration or control which OBS Profile opens after restart.

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YouTube also describes auto-start and auto-stop as controls for starting or stopping a stream from the encoder. These settings may be copied when you reuse a stream, but they are not OBS credential-persistence settings.

5. Diagnose by where the key is missing

What you find Likely area to check Next step
The key appears when you select another Profile Active OBS Profile Choose the Profile configured for YouTube; consider exporting it as a JSON backup.
The correct Profile is active, but the YouTube key was reset YouTube credential Copy the current key from Live Control Room into OBS.
YouTube’s key is current, but the setting is still missing after restart Local OBS configuration Confirm the Profile again and consult version- and operating-system-specific support if it persists.
You are creating a new YouTube stream and want to reuse prior details YouTube stream setup Use Reuse settings for the new stream; separately verify the OBS Profile and Stream settings.

6. If the setting still disappears

If the intended Profile is active and the Stream setting remains missing after restarting, the official OBS and YouTube guidance cited above does not establish a single cause. It does not specify how every operating system stores credentials, nor does it diagnose file permissions, damaged Profile directories, portable installations, or version-specific defects. Do not assume that resetting a YouTube key will fix a local OBS save problem.

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  • Record your OBS version and operating system before seeking version-specific help.
  • Export the Profile if it still contains the settings you want to preserve.
  • Keep the distinction clear: a missing local setting points to the OBS Profile/configuration; a changed credential points to YouTube key management.
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