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System Requirements - Transcoding Server

Below is a rough guideline for server hardware requirements for a transcoding server

For 10 Concurrent Streams

  • CPU:
    • 6–8 cores
    • This gives headroom to run roughly 20 concurrent encoding tasks (2 per stream) plus manage the passthrough.
  • RAM:
    • 8 GB minimum (16 GB recommended)
    • Ensures smooth operation with multiple encoder processes and OS overhead.
  • Network:
    • 1 Gbps NIC
    • Estimated Ingress: 10 × 4 Mbps ≈ 40 Mbps
    • Estimated Egress: 10 × (1.5 + 2.5 + 4) ≈ 80 Mbps
    • The 1 Gbps link easily covers this with room for spikes.

For 100 Concurrent Streams

  • CPU:
    • 16–32 cores
    • Each stream produces 2 CPU-intensive transcoding jobs; a larger core count is critical. The higher range is advised for pure software encoding.
  • RAM:
    • 16 GB minimum (32 GB recommended)
    • More concurrent encoding tasks will benefit from extra memory.
  • Network:
    • 10 Gbps NIC (or aggregated connections)
    • Estimated Ingress: 100 × 4 Mbps ≈ 400 Mbps
    • Estimated Egress: 100 × ~8 Mbps ≈ 800 Mbps
    • Although calculated bitrates are below 1 Gbps, using a 10 Gbps NIC provides ample headroom for overhead, bursty traffic, and potential increases in bitrate if you choose higher-quality settings.

Additional Considerations

  • Hardware Acceleration:
    If you can use GPUs or dedicated encoding hardware (NVENC aka NVIDIA), you can significantly reduce CPU requirements. For large-scale transcoding, this is often a more cost‑effective and energy‑efficient approach.

  • Scalability:
    For very high concurrency (hundreds to thousands of streams), consider a multi‑server or cloud‑based transcoding farm that distributes the load rather than relying on a single box.

  • Encoding Settings & Quality:
    More aggressive encoding quality settings will increase CPU load. Tailor these recommendations based on your specific quality versus resource trade‑offs.

  • Redundancy & Future Growth:
    Always plan with extra headroom for unexpected spikes and future scaling needs.

These guidelines provide a starting point to help you size your hardware. Actual requirements can vary significantly depending on your exact situation.

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