MistServer

MistServer is a public‑domain, full‑featured streaming media toolkit that turns any Linux or Windows host into a low‑latency OTT platform. At its core it receives, transcodes, repackages and delivers media over modern transport protocols such as RIST, SRT, WebRTC (WHIP), HLS/DASH, and classic RTMP/HTTP‑Live‑Streaming. The architecture is deliberately modular: a lightweight controller (MistController) orchestrates independent binaries (e.g., MistInput, MistOutput, MistFilter) that expose a uniform JSON‑over‑TCP API on port 4242. This design lets developers drop or replace components without touching the core, enabling rapid experimentation and custom pipelines.

Architecture & Technical Stack

• Language & Build – The entire codebase is written in C++17, compiled with Meson/Ninja. Meson’s wrap system pulls in all dependencies (FFmpeg, GStreamer, libRIST, libSRT) automatically; if a system‑wide library is present it will be preferred, reducing build times.
• Core Runtime – MistController scans its directory for binaries named with the Mist* prefix, loads them as shared objects (or executes them as separate processes), and discovers available inputs, outputs and filters. Each component registers itself via a tiny internal service‑registry, allowing the controller to expose a consolidated REST‑like API.
• Transport Layer – The toolkit bundles mature open‑source libraries:
  • FFmpeg for decoding/encoding and container handling.
  • libRIST & libSRT for low‑latency, error‑correction transport.
  • WebRTC/WHIP stack for browser‑based ingestion and delivery.
  • Optional HLS/DASH muxers for long‑term storage or CDN push.
• Data Plane – Media streams are passed as packetized buffers (e.g., AVPacket) between components via shared memory or zero‑copy queues, minimizing CPU overhead. The API accepts JSON commands; responses are also JSON, making integration with orchestration tools trivial.

Core Capabilities & APIs

• Dynamic Pipelines – Build arbitrary ingest‑to‑delivery chains (e.g., OBS → RIST → WebRTC) by composing inputs, filters, and outputs via the API.
• Live & VOD – Supports live transcoding to multiple bitrates, as well as on‑demand playback from local or remote storage.
• Token & ACL – Built‑in simple token authentication for stream keys and IP‑based access control.
• Analytics Hooks – Exposes metrics (RTCP stats, packet loss) that can be forwarded to VictoriaMetrics/Grafana or custom dashboards.
• Webhooks & Event Bus – Emits events (stream start/stop, error) that can trigger external scripts or CI pipelines.

Deployment & Infrastructure

• Self‑Hosting – Runs on any x86_64 or ARM64 host; requires only a recent C++ runtime and the optional libraries. The controller can be daemonized with systemd, Docker, or Kubernetes (sidecar pattern).
• Containerization – Official Docker images are available on the website; they expose port 4242 and mount a persistent config directory. For Kubernetes, the controller can be deployed as a StatefulSet with PVCs for storage and ConfigMaps for API secrets.
• Scalability – Horizontal scaling is achieved by running multiple controller instances behind a load balancer, each managing its own set of inputs/outputs. RIST/SRT streams can be multicast across nodes, reducing bandwidth.

Integration & Extensibility

• Plugin System – Any binary that follows the Mist* naming convention and implements the expected API is automatically discovered. This allows third‑party developers to ship custom encoders, DRM wrappers, or analytics collectors without modifying core code.
• Scripting Hooks – The API accepts shell commands or Python scripts (via MistScript) for ad‑hoc processing, enabling rapid prototyping.
• Web UI – A lightweight React/Bootstrap interface runs on port 4242, exposing all API endpoints and providing a convenient test harness.
• Open Source Licensing – Public domain release removes licensing friction, making it ideal for embedded or commercial deployments where closed‑source components would be problematic.

Developer Experience

• Documentation – The online manual (https://docs.mistserver.org) covers installation, API reference, protocol guides, and integration tutorials. Code examples are provided in JSON and curl syntax.
• Community & Support – While the project is still maturing, an active mailing list and GitHub issue tracker facilitate quick feedback. The developer portal offers pre‑built binaries, changelogs, and a FAQ for common integration pitfalls.
• Configuration – All settings are exposed via the API; no hard‑coded config files mean CI/CD pipelines can generate runtime parameters on the fly.

Use Cases

1. Enterprise OTT Platforms – Companies can spin up a private streaming server that ingests from OBS, re‑packages to RIST/SRT for internal delivery, and pushes WebRTC streams to web clients.
2. Event Production – Live events can be encoded once and distributed over multiple protocols (SRT for studio links, WebRTC for mobile viewers) with a single MistServer instance.
3. Edge Streaming