--- title: Creating New Adaptive Groups slug: zixi-broadcaster-zec-current-version/creating-new-adaptive-groups docTags: createdAt: 2024-12-26T15:46:27.921Z --- ## To Create a New Adaptive Group: ::::WorkflowBlock :::WorkflowBlockItem In the Zixi Broadcaster administrative screen, click the **Adaptive** tab. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Click **Add Group**. The **Adaptive live streams group** window is displayed. ::Image[]{src="https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/mzxtTQEvCNIdUNgF2kuwJ/arwHfBAqyS3b7MXYaxcev_new-adaptive-group.png" size="80" isUploading="false" position="center" width="1132" height="1088" darkWidth="1132" darkHeight="1088" showCaption="false"} ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem In the **Group Name** field, enter the unique string as the adaptive group's name. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Under **StreamID**, select a stream from the drop-down list to create an adaptive bitrate. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Enter the desired **Bitrate\[kbps]** for that stream in the adjacent field to **Stream ID**. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem If the Adaptive Group will be used as the input for a [TAMS Output](docId\:gW6mTo1mu738enoD19nr8), you must enter the IDs for the video and audio flows, which are in the form of UUIDs. You must also: - select **HLS** as at least one of the outputs - select **Send distinct audio/video elementary streams** ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Click **+ Add Stream** to add as many streams as you want to include in the group, and repeat steps 4 and 5 for every stream that is added to the group. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Select one or more **Protocols** that will be supported for this adaptive group. The Zixi protocol option enables devices using the Zixi SDK to view the stream using the Zixi protocol. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Select **Send distinct audio/video elementary streams** if the input streams include multiple audio/video channels to enable multiple separate audio/channels channels in the adaptive group. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem If the video has CEA-708 captions, check the box to convert these to WebVTT captions. For Broadcaster V18.8 or later, you can also specify the placement of the captions: ::Image[]{src="https://app.archbee.com/api/optimize/mzxtTQEvCNIdUNgF2kuwJ/pQHRIHcWryziC9zgOcJRu-20251020-194838.png" size="80" width="982" height="516" position="center" alt="Options for Captions Placement" darkWidth="982" darkHeight="516" showCaption="false"} **Line**: % 0-100 - **Definition:** Specifies the **vertical position** of the cue box. - **Range:** 0–100 (as a percentage of the video height) - **Meaning:** - 0% positions the cue at the **top** of the video frame. - 100% positions the cue at the **bottom** of the frame. - If omitted, the cue defaults to near the bottom (depending on browser defaults). **Position**: % 0-100 - **Definition:** Specifies the **horizontal position** of the cue box’s **anchor point**. - **Range:** 0–100 (as a percentage of the video width) - **Meaning:** - 0% aligns the cue box with the **left edge** of the video. - 100% aligns it with the **right edge**. - Intermediate values shift the cue horizontally across the video. **Align**: Left, Middle, Right - **Definition:** Defines the **text alignment** or **anchor point** within the cue box. - **Accepted values:** - **Left** – The cue box’s left edge is anchored to the specified position. - **Middle** – The cue box’s center is anchored to the specified position. - **Right** – The cue box’s right edge is anchored to the specified position. - **Meaning:** Controls how the text block aligns relative to the position value. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Specify the HLS/Dash segment/chunk duration and count (See details in the table below and also [HLS DVR Maximum Recording Duration](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw) ). ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Specify the duration to **Keep recorded files for \[minutes]**. If the field is left blank, the system will use the global settings specified in the **Settings > Live Protocols** screen in the [HLS DVR Maximum Recording Duration](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw) field. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem In the **File name template** field, specify the file name pattern that Zixi will use to generate when saving the recorded content. ::: :::WorkflowBlockItem Click **OK**. The new Adaptive Group is created and appears on the Adaptive screen. ::: :::: ## HLS DVR Maximum Recording Duration For Broadcaster 19.3 and later, the **Segment Count** field is no longer capped at 60, but rather unlimited. Retaining more segments allows you to lengthen the DVR sliding window for purposes of recording or rewinding. :::hint{type="warning"} Note that there are memory implications to keeping the segments longer. For example: if you want to keep 6 hours of 6 second segments at a bitrate of \~30MBPS, the memory requirement will be \~1.3GB. ::: To calculate the appropriate Segment Count, divide the length of the rewind window you want by the segment length (6 seconds is a generally recommended segment length). For example, if you would like a 3 hour rewind window with 6-second segments, divide 3 x 3600 (sec/hr) by 6 -> (3 \* 3600) / 6 = 1800. 1800 is the value you would enter for the **Segment Count**. ### S3/HTTP push behavior The playlist and segments in object storage grow for the life of the stream; rolling window does not automatically delete rolled-off S3 segments in this implementation. ### Broadcaster restart/crash behavior The playlist resets on output stop/start - there is no persistence of prior segments across restarts. ### API `hls_chunk_count` parameter (the equivalent of Segment Count in the UI) now accepts values above 60; document valid range and any new fields exposed via list\_adaptive\_channels.json ## Parameters Table | **Parameter** | **Description** | | ------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Group Name** | Specifies the unique identifier for this group. | | **Stream ID** | Select an input stream from the drop-down list. | | **Bitrate \[kbps]** | Specify the bitrate for the selected stream.
The value should be the sum of the video and audio bitrates plus a small amount to account for streaming overhead. For transcoded sources, ZEN Master automatically sets a default value that can be adjusted manually. For sources in which either the video, audio, or both are not transcoded, the user must manually input the value based on the actual bitrates of the source. It is important to enter an accurate value since it will be included in the HLS/DASH manifest. | | **Video TAMS Flow UUID** | If this group will be output to a TAMS system, this UUID is required - see [Adding TAMS Outputs](docId\:gW6mTo1mu738enoD19nr8) and [TAMS and Zixi](docId\:Xb6n9zuNCcGOdDaBrvsba) | | **Audio TAMS Flow UUID** | If this group will be output to a TAMS system, this UUID is required - see [Adding TAMS Outputs](docId\:gW6mTo1mu738enoD19nr8) and [TAMS and Zixi](docId\:Xb6n9zuNCcGOdDaBrvsba) | | **Protocols** | Select one or more Protocols that will be supported for this adaptive group - Zixi HLS (enables devices using the Zixi SDK to view the stream using the Zixi protocol), HLS, CMAF (DASH + fMP4) | | **Send distinct audio/video elementary streams** | Select this checkbox if the input streams include multiple audio/video channels to enable multiple separate audio/video channels channels in the adaptive group. **Note: be sure to check this box if you are enabling DRM for these streams.** | | **HLS Over Multicast** | Select this checkbox to enable multicasting of the adaptive stream (requires multicast to be enabled in the Settings) | | **Fast playback** | Select this setting to enable low latency HLS delivery. The **Enable HLS Fast playback** on the **Settings > Live Protocols** screen must be enabled. Only the TS segments version of the HLS stream will be available for adaptive streaming, not the fragmented MP4 (fMP4) version. When enabled, the following playback URLs will be available:
* http\://\:7777/playback.m3u8?stream=\ * http\://\:7777/\.m3u8 | | **Convert CEA-708 to WebVTT** | Extracts closed caption from video elementary stream and converts it to WebVTT format. This feature is currently available for HLS only.

**For Broadcaster v18.8 or later**, there are also placement options for the captions:
**Line**: % 0-100
* **Definition:** Specifies the **vertical position** of the cue box. * **Range:** 0–100 (as a percentage of the video height) * **Meaning:** - 0% positions the cue at the **top** of the video frame. - 100% positions the cue at the **bottom** of the frame. - If omitted, the cue defaults to near the bottom (depending on browser defaults).
**Position**: % 0-100
* **Definition:** Specifies the **horizontal position** of the cue box’s **anchor point**. * **Range:** 0–100 (as a percentage of the video width) * **Meaning:** - 0% aligns the cue box with the **left edge** of the video. - 100% aligns it with the **right edge**. - Intermediate values shift the cue horizontally across the video.
**Align**: Left, Middle Right
* **Definition:** Defines the **text alignment** or **anchor point** within the cue box. * **Accepted values:** - **Left** – The cue box’s left edge is anchored to the specified position. - **Middle** – The cue box’s center is anchored to the specified position. - **Right** – The cue box’s right edge is anchored to the specified position. * **Meaning:** Controls how the text block aligns relative to the position value. | | **HLS Segment Duration \[sec]** | Specify the duration in seconds of each segment/chunk in the HLS playlist. You can specify sub-second durations (e.g. 0.5). (Default: 6 seconds) | | **HLS Segments Count** | Specify the number of segments in the HLS playlist held in active memory for rewind capability (see [HLS DVR Maximum Recording Duration](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw)) | | **DASH Segment Duration \[sec]** | Specify the duration in seconds of each segment/chunk in the DASH adaptive group. You can specify sub-second durations (e.g. 0.5). (Default: 6 seconds) | | **DASH Segments Count** | Specify the number of segments in the DASH adaptive group. | | **Recording** |
| | **Keep recorded files for \[minutes]** | Specifies the maximum time for storing the recording. If the file is left as blank, the system will use the global settings specified in the **Settings > Live Protocols** screen in the **HLS DVR Maximum Recording Duration **field. | | **File name template** | Specify the file name pattern that Zixi will use to generate when saving the recorded content. A separate file will be generated for each recording up to the time specified in the Max recorded file duration parameter (see above). After this duration a new file will be generated.
The file name pattern can include any string and up to three variables listed below. Only the %T=HH.MM.SS Timestamp is mandatory. You can change the order of these variables and add text as long as you maintain the legitimate structure of the file in Linux and Windows:
%G = Group Name – optional
%N = Sequence Number – optional
%T=HH.MM.SS Timestamp - mandatory | ## Advanced Mode The fields discussed below are optional and available only in **Advanced Mode**. To enter Advanced Mode add the URL parameter `?advanced=1` to the Zixi Broadcaster URL in your browser and press Enter/Return to reload the page: ::Image[]{src="https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/amUtKWPrNQCS-26DKyGuI-5OBE4QsRN0icABdoD4ciK-20250421-173825.png" size="70" width="800" height="55" position="center" alt="Advanced Mode URL Param" darkWidth="800" darkHeight="55" showCaption="false"} :::hint{type="info"} Note the Advanced Mode settings are generally intended for advanced users and special cases. If you do not understand the settings, you should probably accept the default values. ::: You will then see a number of additional input parameters: ![](https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/mzxtTQEvCNIdUNgF2kuwJ/5ejxtdzyqEDyiBZm1s8Qr_new-adaptive-group-advanced-19-2.png) ### Advanced Mode Parameters | **Parameter** | **Description** | | ------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Don't synchronize** | Disable automatic synchronization between audio and video streams during the transcoding process. | | **Drop first segment** | For HLS workflows, this can help ensure smoother playback by eliminating non-keyframe segments that might cause decoding issues. | | **MMT** | Select this checkbox to enable MPEG Media Transport (MMT) protocol instead of the Zixi protocol. | | **Compress Zixi** | **Requires selecting Zixi as the protocol.**
Select this checkbox to compress the stream before transmitting it. The compression reduces bitrate if there are redundancies in the stream, like NULL packets and also optimizes the elementary stream if possible. Nothing is taken out of the stream - it is 100% identical to the source on the receive side. Having compression on not only reduces bitrate, but also improves resiliency. Packets are less likely to get dropped, and it leaves more headroom for error correction (FEC/ARQ). | | **Max segments in folder** | Specify the maximum segments before Zixi starts to delete old segment when new ones are ready. This setting is relevant for DVR. 0 – unlimited | | **Adjust VA timestamps** | In many cases in Transport Streams the video timestamp arrives ahead of the audio timestamps, since video decoding requires more time. Select this option to adjusts the order of packets, so all timestamps will be monotonically increased. The adjustment of the video and audio timestamps will bring them closer together. Note that this feature will modify the order of packets and will increase memory usage. | | **Segment on SCTE-35** | SCTE-35 markers found in the source input will be used to segment the stream and the #EXT-X-CUE-IN/#EXT-X-CUE-OUT tags will be added to the manifest. Select the tag that will be used to segment the stream from the SCTE-35 tag field below. | | **DASH Binary format for SCTE-35** | Use binary representation rather than XML for SCTE-35 messages in DASH. | | **Duration attribute in CUE\_OUT** | The #EXT-X-CUE-OUT tag can be printed out to the playlist in two formats:
* #EXT-X-CUE-OUT\:DURATION=\ * #EXT-X-CUE-OUT:\
When the Duration attribute in CUE\_OUT option selected the first format is used, and when it is not selected, the second format is used. | | **Don't add EXT-X-CUE-IN** | Select this option to remove the EXT-X-CUE-IN tag, which indicates where to back to the program, from the playlist. | | **SCTE-35 tag** | Select the ad marker tag that will be used to segment the stream:
:inlineImage[]{src="https://api.archbee.com/api/optimize/mzxtTQEvCNIdUNgF2kuwJ/huTjZLAQzGPRCAWpUkTK8_add-scte-tags-dropdown.png" alt caption}
* EXT-X-CUE – cue-in and cue-out ad markers. * EXT-X-DATERANGE - With EXT-X-DATERANGE ad marker tags, you use SCTE35-OUT attributes to specify the timing of the ad avail. * EXT-X-CUE and EXT-X-DATERANGE – Zixi will use both ad marker tags to segment. * EXT-X-CUE & EXT-OATCLS-SCTE35 - the EXT-OATCLS-SCTE35 marker tag includes the Base-64 encoded SCTE payload. Zixi will use both ad marker tags to segment. | | **Add discontinuity on CUE** | When checked, every HLS segment that carries an SCTE-35 cue gets an #EXT-X-DISCONTINUITY tag written alongside its CUE-OUT or CUE-IN tags, regardless of whether the stream timeline actually changed. Normally Broadcaster only writes the discontinuity tag when it detects a real timeline break. This option was added to shield players and SSAI from skips and playback errors during transitions from ad to program. | | **Add EXT-X-CUE-OUT-CONT tags** | This provides per-segment elapsed time and duration countdown during SCTE-35 ad breaks - a requirement for some downstream ad insertion platforms. | | **Ascending order** | Select this option to order the master playlist in ascending order by bitrate. | | **Drop unaligned segments** | Select this option to have Zixi detect unalignment between segments of different bitrates. In case unalignment is detected, the unaligned segments will be dropped and will not be recorded to DVR. | | **Additional segment delay** | Normally Zixi maintains segment data in memory until it reaches the size of a chunk. When selecting this option, additional data held in memory (size of segment duration) will be used to try to sync between different streams that are not synced (e.g. one of the bitrate versions is delayed by up to the duration of half a segment). | | **Single stream WebVTT** | In case there is several streams in adaptive group, by selecting this option, only the subtitles of the first stream will be used for entire group. IF the checkbox is not selected, Zixi Broadcaster will create separate WebVTT files for each individual stream. | | **Multiserver sync** | Select this option to use the absolute system clock time to segment the stream in order to be able to synchronize the stream segmentation between multiple Zixi Broadcaster servers. The absolute time is determined by the multiple of the value set in the **HLS segment duration**. i.e. if segment duration is 6 sec. then the segmentation occurs when the seconds in the system time indicate one of the multiples of 6 - 0s, 6s, 12s ....
For example, if the HLS segment duration is set to 6 seconds and the adaptive group was added at 12:01:03:
* Without multi-server sync - the first segmentation will be at 12:01:09 and then at 12:01:15….etc. * With multi-server sync – the first segmentation will be at 12:01:06, 12:01:12 ....etc. | | **EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME source** | The EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME is an HLS tag that specifies the "real world" clock in stream.
* **None** – Default. No #EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME tags written to playlists. * **System time - **Each rendition's segmenter reads the wall clock independently per segment. Can produce small (10-20ms) drift across variants. * **SEI timecode** - Derives PDT from SEI Picture Timing in the source bitstream. Note: always writes PDT on every segment regardless of the "Segments between EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME tags" value. Requires SEI pic\_timing to survive through to the segmenter (will not work if the stream is transcoded, as the transcoder strips SEI during re-encode). * **Packet arrival** – Uses packet arrival time. Affected by "Segments between" setting. (see [Notes](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw) below) * **Segmentation time - **(NEW in v19) Calculates PDT as (current PTS - first PTS) + group creation time. Produces identical PDT values across all renditions since they share the same base time. Recommended for workflows requiring consistent PDT (e.g. SSAI / dynamic ad insertion). (see [Notes](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw) below) | | **Segments between EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME tags** | Configure the the frequency in which the EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME tags will appear in the manifest by specifying the number of segments between each EXT-X-PROGRAM-DATE-TIME tag. | | **DRM** | Enable DRM on the streams for this group
**Note**: DRM is supported by Broadcaster v18 or later and requires that you have [ ir.deto](https://irdeto.com/video-entertainment/drm-solution-content-protection?_gl=1*jfrji0*_up*MQ..*_ga*Mjg2Nzc0ODk0LjE3NDUyNDYwMDQ.*_ga_GMSWG3KMBN*MTc0NTI0NjAwMy4xLjEuMTc0NTI0NjU1NC4wLjAuMA..*_ga_GM5BFB2CC0*MTc0NTI0NjAwNC4xLjEuMTc0NTI0NjU1NC4wLjAuMA..) or another external DRM provider. | | **User Name** | Username for your DRM service | | **Password** | Password for your DRM service | | **URL** | Place the License URL from the DRM Provider here
* This is the URL end playback devices submit their requests for access to the decryption license - Broadcast writes this in the Adaptive manifest output | | **KID** | is a 128-bit value in UUID format given by your DRM provider that uniquely identifies a specific content encryption key (CEK). The KID is essential for associating encrypted content with its corresponding decryption key. | | **Content ID** | An identifier in the DRM provider that holds the DRM Business rules | | **FairPlay LAURL** | The License Acquisition URL used in Apple FairPlay DRM (Digital Rights Management). It is the endpoint where a video player requests a decryption key to unlock protected content. | | **Target Tag** | The HLS tag to modify (e.g., `EXT-X-STREAM-INF, EXT-X-MEDIA`). Free-form text, case-sensitive.
See [Sample Use Case for Custom Tags](docId\:I8dEsWrqTZabwG4ZOwcKw) | | **Target Filter** | Optional. Key-value filter to target specific instances of a tag (e.g., `TYPE=SUBTITLES`). If omitted, the attribute is applied to all instances of the target tag. Case-sensitive. | | **Attribute Key** | The attribute name to add (e.g., `LANGUAGE`). Free-form text, case-sensitive. | | **Attribute Value** | The value for the attribute (e.g., `eng`). Free-form text, case-sensitive. | ### Notes 1. This setting is **ignored** when "SEI Timecode" is selected — PDT is always written on every segment in that mode. It is respected for "Packet arrival" and "Segmentation time" modes. 2. Best-practice note: For customers using SSAI or requiring consistent PDT across renditions, recommend **"Segmentation time"** with "Segments between PDT tags" set to **1.** ### Sample Use Case for Custom Tags Adding LANGUAGE="eng" to subtitle tracks: :::BlockQuote{listStyleType="disc" indent="1"} **Target Tag:** EXT-X-MEDIA ::: - **Tag Filter:** `TYPE=SUBTITLES` - **Attribute Key:** `LANGUAGE` - **Attribute Value:** `eng` **Result:** `LANGUAGE="eng"` is added to both subtitle tracks; the audio track is unchanged. .