To diagnose an SRS publish error, capture the server log for one failed attempt, correlate its lines by timestamp and session, then check the publish target, any configured on_publish callback, and packet timing if the publisher appears stalled. The exact log location and messages depend on your SRS version and deployment; a single error line rarely identifies the cause by itself.
What SRS logs can—and cannot—tell you
SRS receives streams from publishing clients such as FFmpeg and OBS, then can distribute them for playback. A publish failure is therefore different from a viewer playback failure: first establish whether the publisher connected and sent a stream to the intended SRS application and stream name.
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The SRS documentation currently labels version 6.0 stable. Log paths and wording are not universal across releases or deployment methods. For example, the command below appears in SRS 7 getting-started material, while detailed session-log examples are from archived SRS 4 documentation. Treat older examples as illustrations of what to correlate, not guaranteed current message text. See the SRS 6 introduction, SRS getting started, and SRS 4 log guide.
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Record the environment
- Installed SRS version and how it is deployed: source build, package, or container.
- The configuration file in use and the publishing protocol and client, such as RTMP from FFmpeg or OBS.
- The destination host and port, intended application and stream name, and the exact time of a reproduction, including time zone.
- The publisher’s own error output as well as the corresponding SRS log lines.
This context prevents you from applying a setting or path from a different version or deployment to your server.
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Locate the log sink for your installation
In the SRS 7 getting-started example, the log can be followed with:
tail -n 30 -f ./objs/srs.logThat path is not a universal default. Check your SRS configuration, working directory, package or container logging setup, and instructions for the installed release. If the process is running but this file does not exist, do not assume the server is silent: it may be writing elsewhere.
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Trace one failed publishing session
- Start log capture, then make one publish attempt. Note the attempt’s start and failure times. Avoid mixing several attempts while you are identifying the relevant lines.
- Follow the sequence around the failure. Look for connection and handshake activity, the application or vhost, publisher identification, stream name, metadata, incoming packets, and disconnect details where your release logs them. Archived SRS 4 examples show these kinds of session details; labels and exact strings can differ in newer releases.
- Correlate lines by session identifier and timestamp. If your logs expose a client or session identifier, follow it across the related lines rather than diagnosing from an isolated error. Compare their timestamps with the client-side error.
- Identify the stage that stopped progressing. A connection that never reaches publisher identification points to a different area than a stream that is identified but then rejected by an authorization callback, or one that connects without delivering packets.
SRS 6 describes session-level traceable logs as a maintenance aid. Its HTTP API can query system and stream status, and the documentation also names a Prometheus exporter. These are complementary observability options if they are already available in your deployment; they are not prerequisites for reading logs. See the SRS 6 introduction.
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Check the publish target and stream name
Compare the destination configured in the publisher with the address and stream expected by SRS. SRS getting-started material gives rtmp://localhost/live/livestream as an example target. Here, live is the application and livestream is the stream name; replace the host, application, and stream with values that match your server and client.
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- Verify the publisher is connecting to the intended server and port, not a viewer/playback URL.
- Check that the application and stream portions of the publishing target match what you expect SRS to receive.
- Use the log progression to distinguish a failed publishing connection from a successful publish followed by a separate playback problem.
The sample target and SRS publishing model are documented in SRS getting started.
Inspect an enabled publish callback
If your configuration uses an on_publish HTTP callback, authorization logic can intentionally reject a publisher. The SRS callback documentation says a successful callback must return HTTP 200 and an error value of zero; a non-200 status or nonzero error value causes disconnection.
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- Check whether the callback is enabled for the relevant vhost or application.
- Confirm SRS can reach the configured callback endpoint and inspect the request generated by the failed attempt.
- Review the callback application’s policy decision and response body, then verify the actual HTTP status and error value returned.
- Correct the authorization decision or callback response only if the evidence shows that the callback is the rejecting step.
The detailed callback behavior cited here is described in the SRS 5 documentation; compare it with the configuration and documentation for your deployed release: SRS HTTP Callback.
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If the logs show a connection that is established but incoming packets are delayed or absent, compare the observed timing with the configured publish packet timeouts. SRS 6 Special Control documents defaults of 20000 ms for the first-packet timeout and 5000 ms for the normal packet timeout. These values are configurable, so inspect your effective configuration rather than assuming the defaults apply.
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Do not increase a timeout as a generic fix. First establish from the log timeline that the publisher is taking longer than the configured allowance to send the first packet or is pausing between packets. Then investigate why input is delayed; change a timeout only when the measured timing and intended operating conditions justify it. Details are in SRS 6 Special Control.
Verify the fix against the same failure
- Repeat the same publishing attempt with the same client, target, and stream name.
- Confirm the new log sequence progresses through publishing rather than stopping at the previously identified stage.
- Check that the stream is visible through the matching application and stream using a playback protocol enabled in your own SRS configuration.
- If publishing now succeeds but viewers still cannot play it, investigate playback and distribution separately rather than treating it as the original publish rejection.
SRS getting-started material includes example RTMP, HTTP-FLV, and HLS playback URLs, but the protocol available to you depends on your configuration: SRS getting started.
Common symptoms and next checks
| What you observe | What to check next |
|---|---|
| No corresponding SRS activity for the attempt | Confirm the log sink and time zone, then check that the publisher targets the intended SRS host and port. |
| Connection activity appears, but the expected publisher or stream is not identified | Follow the session’s next log lines and compare the publisher target with the intended application and stream name. |
| The session reaches an enabled publish callback and disconnects | Inspect callback reachability, its authorization decision, HTTP status, and response error value. |
| The session connects but packet arrival is delayed or stops | Compare timestamps with the effective first-packet and normal packet timeout settings before changing either value. |
| The publish progression appears successful, but playback fails | Check the matching stream and playback protocol enabled by your SRS configuration; treat this as a downstream playback issue unless logs show publishing also failed. |
These are diagnostic branches, not a complete error-code mapping. The official documentation cited here does not establish one universal list of current SRS publish errors or a remedy for every message.
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