Live stream: Test before going live

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Check your layout, connection, and branding with a private test stream on Riverside or YouTube so you can Go live knowing your setup works.

Who: Hosts
Plan: All plans
Device: Computer browser

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Step by step

  1. Join a studio as a host.
  2. Set up your live stream destinations.
    You can run a test stream on Riverside and YouTube destinations only.
  3. At the bottom of the studio, click the arrow on the Go live button.
  4. Click Test stream.
    In the Live stream panel, check that the Riverside destination shows Private and Connected. 
    Riverside adds this private destination for you, so you don't need any other accounts to test a live stream.
  5. If YouTube is part of the test, a confirmation window may appear. It asks what to do if YouTube's private test mode isn't available:
    • Allow fallback and start: If Youtube's private test mode is not available, Riverside will briefly create a private live stream and then delete the private video when your test ends.
    • Test without fallback: If YouTube's private test mode is not available, the test stream to YouTube fails.
      Select Don't show again to skip this message next time.
  6. While the test runs, a TEST STREAM timer appears at the top of the studio, and each destination shows Testing in the Live stream panel on the right side of the studio.
    Test streams can take a few seconds to start.
  7. To view the test stream, click the View as audience icon next to a destination:
    • Riverside opens a private preview page that only you can see.
    • YouTube opens your stream in YouTube's Live Control Room.
  8. To stop the test stream, click End test at the bottom of the studio.
    If you don't stop it, the test ends automatically when the 10 minute timer runs out.

Icon.svg Good to know

  • The test uses your real stream output, including your layout, overlays, and branding, so you see exactly what viewers would see.
  • A test stream isn't recorded and doesn't appear in your recordings.
  • YouTube tests run in YouTube's testing mode, so nothing reaches your audience. If you test on a scheduled YouTube event, the event stays ready for you to go live afterward.
  • If you click Go live in YouTube's Live Control Room while viewing the test stream, Riverside stops sending the test stream.
  • If your YouTube channel isn't enabled for live streaming yet, YouTube can take up to 24 hours to enable it. In the meantime, you can test on Riverside.

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