Set up NDI® bridge over SRT
In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to create an NDI® bridge over SRT using Callaba.
This guide will walk you through the process step by step, using two instances of Callaba: one on-premises and another in the cloud.
We'll convert an NDI® stream to SRT with the on-premises version, send it to the cloud, and then convert the SRT stream back to NDI®.
0. Before you begin
For this tutorial, you will need :
▶ Callaba software
⬇️ Callaba on AWS Marketplace (cloud) | 📖 Guide: How to launch
⬇️ Callaba self-hosted license (on-premises) | 📖 Guide: How to install self-hosted
▶ NDI® device
Let’s dive in.
1. Set up your on-premises instance
Log in to your on-premises Callaba instance.
Turn on your NDI® device so that it can be discovered by Callaba.
Once it’s detected in the NDI® discovered devices section, you’re ready to move forward.
2. Create an SRT server in the cloud
Log in to your cloud-based Callaba instance.
Create an SRT Server in the cloud instance. This server will receive the stream from your on-premises instance.
This might sound counterintuitive, but we need to establish the destination address (receiver) first before we can send the stream from the on-premises instance.
→ To create an SRT Server:
Navigate to the SRT Servers section in Callaba.
Click "Add New"
Name your SRT server, change ports if you want to, then save it.
Port : This port is used for sending the stream to the SRT Server.
Receiver Port : This port is used for receiving the stream from the SRT Server.
Save your SRT Server.
This server will act as the receiving point for the video stream.
Copy SRT publisher URL generated by the SRT server.
We’ll use this to send the stream.
3. Send the NDI Stream as SRT
Go back to your on-premises Callaba instance.
Create a re-stream that sends the discovered NDI® stream to the cloud’s SRT Server.
Open the Restreaming section in Callaba.
Click "Add New".
Give your restream a name.
Input settings
Input Type: Set the input type to NDI® Device.
Device: Select your NDI® device name from the list.
Destination settings
Stream Destination: set the destination to SRT Output URL
Output Stream URL: Paste SRT Publisher URL you've copied from the cloud instance
Save your settings.
Your NDI® stream is now being sent as SRT to the cloud.
4. Convert SRT Back to NDI® in the cloud
Switch back to the cloud instance.
Confirm that your stream is being received by the SRT Server.
Now we're going to convert SRT back to NDI®.
To do that, we need to create an NDI® adapter.
Navigate to NDI® adapters section
Click "Add New"
Name your NDI® adapter
Source Input: SRT Server
SRT Server: select your SRT Server
Target Output: NDI® Output Device
Name your NDI® device
Save your settings.
Now you can discover your new NDI® device within your cloud network and use it.
But in case you want to test your video stream, you can follow the next steps.
5. (OPTIONAL) Record and test the stream
This is optional part - do this if you want to record and view your video.
Create a recording process.
Navigate to Recording
Click "Add New"
Name your recording process
Input type: SRT Server
SRT Server: Pick your SRT Server from the list
Output Format: m3u8 file.
This format will allow you to watch the stream live while it’s being recorded.
Note: Since HLS is being used for the recording, there will be some latency in the playback.
Click "Save"
In the Recording section, click "Files".
Then click "Play" to preview your video.
Conclusion
By following these steps, you’ve successfully created an NDI® bridge over SRT.
This setup allows you to transmit NDI® streams over long distances via SRT and recover them on the other side, making it ideal for remote video production or hybrid workflows with both on-premises and cloud components.
If you encounter any issues or have questions, feel free to reach out ([email protected])
Happy streaming!
Learn more
- How to launch Callaba on Amazon Web Services
- How to create a playlist of videos with Pay Per View monetization
- Multilingual Web Player
- Set up SRT backup stream in case of main stream interruption
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