Node-Media-Server on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS

Node-Media-Server is a lightweight, open source live media streaming server written in Node.js. It ingests an RTMP feed from any publisher (OBS Studio, ffmpeg, a hardware encoder, a mobile app) and republishes it in real time as HTTP-FLV, WebSocket-FLV and HLS for low latency playback in browsers and native players, with a JSON admin API for live stream and session statistics. This image delivers it fully installed and secured so a working ingest and playback endpoint is operational within minutes of launch, with no manual package installation, no Node.js version wrangling and no service configuration required.

Unlike a bare deployment, this image is secure by default. Node-Media-Server ships with no authentication at all, which means anyone who can reach it could publish to or play from your server and read the admin API. This image enables authentication and generates two independent secrets on each virtual machine's first boot, written to a root only file: an admin API credential that protects the statistics API, and a stream signing secret that every publish and playback URL must be signed with. There are no shared or default credentials, and nothing is baked into the image, so no two deployments are ever the same and the server refuses to start in the insecure open mode. The service runs as an unprivileged system user under systemd for automatic restarts and clean logging.

The image includes ffmpeg and two helper tools: one that generates a signed stream URL from your signing secret, and one that runs an end to end self test by publishing a short test pattern, pulling it back over signed HTTP-FLV, and confirming the admin API and the authentication rules all behave. RTMP ingest is on port 1935 and HTTP playback plus the admin API are on port 8000.

This is a repackaged open source software product with additional charges for cloudimg support services. Node-Media-Server is a trademark of its respective owner. All product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Use of them does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by them.