Version: 2.17

RTSP Load Testing

This document explains how to generate RTSP streams and use them for RTSP load testing in Ant Media Server.

In this guide, you will:

Generate an RTSP stream using a sample MP4 file.
Use the RTSP URL as a Stream Source in Ant Media Server.
Create multiple RTSP Stream Sources through REST API and Simulate RTSP ingest load on Ant Media Server.
Measure how many RTSP streams your server can handle.

Unlike RTMP/SRT publishing tests, RTSP load testing requires generating an RTSP source stream first and then using that RTSP URL as a Stream Source in the Ant Media Server.

Prerequisites

Ubuntu 20.04 or later
A server for generating RTSP streams
A server running Ant Media Server You can use separate servers for the RTSP generator and Ant Media Server, or run both on the same server for smaller tests.
Internet access between both servers

Install the required GStreamer packages using the below commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y gstreamer1.0* libgstrtspserver-1.0-0

Step 1: Download the RTSP Test Files

Download the RTSP load testing files from the Ant Media Scripts repository.

sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ant-media/Scripts/master/load-testing/rtsp_loadtest/start_rtsp_server.sh
sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ant-media/Scripts/master/load-testing/rtsp_loadtest/test-launch
sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ant-media/Scripts/master/load-testing/rtsp_loadtest/test.mp4

Step 2: Make the Files Executable

sudo chmod +x start_rtsp_server.sh
sudo chmod +x test-launch

Step 3: Start the RTSP Server

Run the following command:

sudo ./start_rtsp_server.sh test.mp4

By default, the script uses:

Resolution: 1920x1080
Frame rate: 25 FPS
Video bitrate: 2000 kbps
H264 codec

You can also edit the script and make the required changes in parameters according to the requirements.

The RTSP stream becomes available at:

rtsp://SERVER_IP:8554/test

Replace SERVER_IP with the public IP address of the RTSP server.

Example:

rtsp://203.0.113.10:8554/test

Step 4: Create RTSP Stream Sources in Ant Media Server for Load Testing

Use the REST API to create RTSP Stream Sources in Ant Media Server. For RTSP load testing, you can create multiple RTSP stream sources automatically:

Example-

for i in {1..10}
do
curl -X POST -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
"https://AMS_SERVER:5443/live/rest/v2/broadcasts/create?autoStart=true" \
-d "{
  \"type\":\"streamSource\",
  \"name\":\"rtsp-load-$i\",
  \"streamId\":\"rtsp-load-$i\",
  \"streamUrl\":\"rtsp://203.0.113.10:8554/test\"
}"
done

This command creates 10 RTSP stream sources with stream IDs such as

rtsp-load-1
rtsp-load-2
rtsp-load-3
...
...
rtsp-load-10

You can increase the stream count by modifying the following:

For example:

{1..50}

You can monitor CPU usage, RAM usage, active broadcasts, and network throughput from the Ant Media Server dashboard during the test.

Stopping the RTSP Server

To stop the RTSP server process:

sudo pkill test-launch

You have now created multiple RTSP Stream Sources and simulated RTSP ingest load on Ant Media Server.