Rebroadcaster Plugin

Rebroadcaster plugin

The Rebroadcast Schedule Tool is an advanced feature designed to simulate a live streaming experience for AVideo users. Instead of going live in real-time, users can schedule pre-recorded video files to be broadcast as if they were "live," allowing for a curated live viewing experience without the need to be present. This tool offers the added benefit of restreaming, enabling users to repeat the simulated live broadcast at additional scheduled times.

Usage

Scheduling a Video Broadcast

1. Navigate to the Videos Manager within your AVideo platform.

2. In the Videos Manager, locate and select the video you want to schedule for broadcast.

3. Click on the button labeled "Schedule Broadcast" to initiate the scheduling process.

4. A new window will open, providing options for scheduling the broadcast:

• Date: Select the specific date and time when you want the broadcast to occur.
• Status: Choose one of the following status options:
  • Active: The broadcast will be executed at the specified schedule.
  • Inactive: The broadcast will be ignored and not executed.
  • Executed: Indicates that the broadcast has already been completed.

5. Once you've configured the date and status, save your settings.

6. Immediate Execution:

• If the selected date and time are in the past or the current time, the broadcast will begin immediately upon saving.

7. How It Works:

• The Scheduler Plugin automatically checks for scheduled broadcasts every minute.
• When the scheduled time arrives, it plays the selected VOD (Video on Demand) video as a live broadcast.

Viewing and Verifying Scheduled Broadcasts

The rebroadcast schedule is available on the Rebroadcaster plugin editor page:

/plugin/Rebroadcaster/View/editor.php

Accessing the Schedule from a Video

1. Open My Videos or navigate to Admin → Videos → Manage Videos.
2. Locate the video you scheduled.
3. Click Schedule Broadcast in the video's actions menu. The button uses the broadcast-tower icon.
4. The Rebroadcaster editor will open, filtered to show schedules for that video.

Accessing All Scheduled Broadcasts

Administrators can view schedules for all videos and users:

1. Navigate to Admin → Plugins.
2. Find the Rebroadcaster plugin.
3. Click Edit.

You can also open the editor directly:

https://your-avideo-site.example/plugin/Rebroadcaster/View/editor.php

Administrators will see the Admin View — All Users label, indicating that the table includes schedules created by every user. Non-administrators only see their own schedules.

Understanding the Schedule Page

The editor contains:

• A Schedule Broadcast panel for creating or editing a scheduled broadcast.
• A filter bar where schedules can be filtered by:
  • Status
  • From Date
  • To Date
• A Scheduled Broadcasts table containing:
  • Start time
  • Video title
  • Current status
  • Owner, when viewed by an administrator
  • Edit and delete actions

The available statuses are:

• Active: The broadcast is waiting to be executed.
• Inactive: The scheduled entry is disabled and will not be executed.
• Executed: The scheduled broadcast has already been processed.

To verify a broadcast scheduled for earlier today, clear the date filters or set From Date and To Date to today. Also check both Active and Executed statuses.

After a broadcast starts, its status changes automatically from Active to Executed. Therefore, a schedule that is no longer visible under the Active filter may be found by selecting Executed or All Statuses.

If an Active schedule has a start time in the past, the time is displayed with a red warning. This normally indicates that the Scheduler has not processed the entry yet. Confirm that the Scheduler plugin and its cron job are installed, enabled, and running correctly.

Note: When a broadcast is saved with a start time in the past or at the current time, it is picked up during the next Scheduler cycle—normally within one minute. It does not necessarily begin at the exact moment the entry is saved.

Rebroadcast a Playlist

Check Programs and playlists for scheduling and rebroadcasting information.

Dependencies

To ensure the plugin functions correctly, the following plugins must be installed:

1. Scheduler Plugin: Provides core scheduling functionality. See the Scheduler plugin guide.
2. PlayLists Plugin: Manages playlists, which are essential for show scheduling.
3. Live Plugin: Manages the live broadcast delivered to viewers.

Common questions

Why is the channel silent or black? Check playlist order/media, Scheduler, Live destination/key, FFmpeg process, source access, and logs.

Why did the next program not start? Confirm calendar/timezone, Scheduler cron, playlist duration/order, and whether the previous process stopped.

Can it replace a licensed broadcast automation system? Validate timing, failover, monitoring, rights, and redundancy against your actual service requirements.