iptv/.github/docs/stream-testing.md

Stream Testing

To make sure a stream link is working properly, just follow these simple steps:

1. Open it in a media player that supports HLS or DASH streams. In the examples below, we will use VLC media player.
2. Watch the broadcast for at least a minute. Make sure playback is stable and doesn't stop abruptly (some test streams cut off after 15–30 seconds).
3. Try restarting the stream. Make sure it isn't looping on a repeating segment and remains available.
4. Make sure the stream works for others too. You can verify this by using services like check-host.net or a VPN.

If the stream isn't playing, try opening the player's error log. You can usually find the exact cause there. In VLC, it is located under Tools -> Messages.

If the stream won't play in your media player but works fine in a web browser, the issue is likely missing HTTP User-Agent and/or HTTP Referrer headers.

In this case, open the stream in your browser. Press F12, go to the Network tab, and filter the requests for m3u or mpd:

Then switch to the Headers tab, scroll down, and copy the User-Agent and Referer values:

Next, open any text editor and paste the link along with the parameters you found, formatted like this:

#EXTM3U
#EXTINF:-1,Example TV
#EXTVLCOPT:http-referrer=https://example.com
#EXTVLCOPT:http-user-agent=Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64)
https://example.com/playlist.m3u8

Save the file with .m3u extension, then open it in your media player. In most cases, it should work immediately.

To test links that are already in the repository, you can simply run the playlist:test script.