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If FFmpeg skips an item in a YouTube live stream, first identify which playlist FFmpeg is reading: a local concat script and an HLS playlist are different formats with different rules. For a local concat script, check its syntax and file paths, confirm that every input has compatible streams, and verify the durations that determine later timestamps. If you are sending HLS to YouTube, check that you send a Media Playlist and use unique segment filenames across restarts.
First identify which playlist is involved
“Playlist” can refer to more than one part of the workflow. A local concat script tells FFmpeg which files to read in sequence. An HLS playlist describes media segments being sent to YouTube. The fixes are not interchangeable: YouTube’s HLS requirements do not apply to a local concat script merely because the output is a YouTube stream.
| Workflow | What to inspect |
|---|---|
| Local concat script pushed to YouTube over RTMP | file directives, paths and escaping, input stream compatibility, durations, and loop or pacing options. |
| HLS sent to YouTube | Whether the submitted playlist is a Media Playlist, and whether segment filenames remain unique after encoder or stream restarts. |
FFmpeg’s concat demuxer documentation describes a virtual concatenation script that reads files in sequence as though their packets were muxed together. YouTube’s HLS ingestion guidance concerns the separate HLS workflow.
Fix a local concat script
1. Check the script’s first line and file directives
A native concat script can look like this:
ffconcat version 1.0
file '/media/one.mp4'
file '/media/two.mp4'For automatic recognition, the marker must be exactly ffconcat version 1.0 on the first line, with no leading whitespace or byte-order mark. If you use a named text file without that marker, specify the concat demuxer explicitly with -f concat.
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Check each file path, including capitalization, spaces, punctuation, and whether the account running FFmpeg can read it. Quote or escape paths according to concat-script syntax; shell quoting rules and concat-script quoting rules are not the same. Use -safe 0 only if a legitimate path is rejected by the default safety policy. It relaxes path restrictions; it will not fix a typo, missing file, or unreadable directory.
2. Compare the media streams
The concat demuxer expects the files to have compatible stream layouts, including the same streams, codecs, and time bases. Compare the video and audio streams for every entry, especially the file immediately before and after the apparent skip. Useful properties include stream count, codec, video dimensions, audio sample rate, channel layout, and time base.
Use ffprobe to inspect each file, for example:
ffprobe -v error -show_streams -show_format -of json '/media/one.mp4'If the inputs differ, stream-copy concatenation may not work as intended. Normalize or transcode the files to compatible streams rather than assuming FFmpeg can bridge arbitrary format differences.
3. Check duration and timestamp alignment
FFmpeg adjusts timestamps so the first file starts at zero and each subsequent file starts where the previous one ends. That calculation uses file durations and applies across streams; audio and video streams with different actual lengths can therefore produce gaps or timestamp artifacts.
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Compare the durations FFmpeg probes with the actual playable duration of each file. If a duration was inferred inaccurately, or a file is truncated, later timestamps can be misplaced. When you know a reliable duration and the probed value is wrong, add an explicit duration directive for that file in the concat script. Do not guess a duration: an incorrect override can shift the following entries too.
4. Keep looping and real-time pacing separate
-stream_loop -1 repeats an input indefinitely; -re reads file input at real-time speed. These options affect repetition and pacing, not whether the script is valid, its paths are accessible, its streams are compatible, or its durations are accurate. Place input options so they apply to the intended input, and verify their behavior in a short local run before reconnecting to YouTube.
An illustrative command shape for a local concat script sent over RTMP is:
ffmpeg -re -stream_loop -1 -f concat -safe 0 -i playlist.txt \
-c:v libx264 -c:a aac -f flv 'rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2/REPLACE_WITH_STREAM_KEY'Replace the path, output settings, ingest address, and placeholder with the values for your setup. This is not a universal command: re-encoding may be necessary, and copy mode works only when the inputs and output constraints are compatible. Never post a real stream key in a command, log, screenshot, or support request.
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If you are sending HLS to YouTube
Apply this branch only when FFmpeg is sending HLS to YouTube—not when FFmpeg reads a local concat script and pushes an RTMP output. YouTube’s HLS ingestion documentation says that it supports Media Playlists and ignores Master Playlists. Check that the playlist you submit is a Media Playlist.
The same guidance says media segment filenames should remain unique across encoder reboots and stream restarts. Reusing segment names after a restart can confuse the receiving workflow. Review your HLS playlist and segment naming around the restart where the apparent omission began.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Tell a truly skipped file from a playback or timestamp problem
A file can appear to be skipped even if FFmpeg read it: its packets may be silent, black, timestamp-shifted, incompatible with the output muxer, or rejected during processing. A video that is present but has no visible picture is not the same failure as a file that was never opened. Logs and inspection of the affected media are needed to distinguish these cases.
For an exact diagnosis, preserve the playlist order and collect the evidence around the first affected entry:
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- The complete FFmpeg command, with the stream key and other secrets redacted.
- The playlist text, retaining file order and relevant path structure.
- The output of
ffmpeg -version, because current FFmpeg documentation may not match an older installed release. - The FFmpeg log lines from just before through just after the suspected omission.
ffprobeoutput for the entry before the suspected skip, the entry itself, and the entry after it.
Without these details, treat the checks above as diagnostic possibilities rather than a confirmed root cause.
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