Tutorial · Wowza Streaming Engine to Facebook
Wowza Facebook Live tutorial with a working RTMPS stream target
This Wowza Facebook Live tutorial gets your stream from Wowza Streaming Engine onto Facebook in one of two ways: the built-in Facebook Live stream target, which signs in to your account, or a generic RTMP target that carries your Facebook stream key over RTMPS.
Facebook takes live video over RTMPS only, so a target that still points at plain RTMP on port 1935 never connects. Both methods below send it the secure way.
Destination Host live-api-s.facebook.com Destination Port 443 Application Name rtmp Stream Name FB-STREAM-KEY Custom property sendSSL = true
Replace the stream name with the key Facebook gives you. Step 03 walks through each field.
Before you add a Wowza stream target
Check four things first. Most failed Facebook streams trace back to one of them, not to Wowza.
- Wowza version
- The Facebook Live target needs Wowza Streaming Engine 4.5 or later. The current release is 4.11.3, from August 2026, and it runs on Java 17 or 21.
- A live source
- Your encoder is publishing to a live application, for example
live. Open the application, then Incoming Streams, and note the exact stream name. - Facebook account
- Facebook asks for an account at least 60 days old, and a Page or professional profile with at least 100 followers, before it allows live video from streaming software.
- Port 443 out
- The server must reach
live-api-s.facebook.comon TCP port 443. A firewall that only allows 1935 out blocks the stream.
Wowza forwards the video exactly as your encoder sends it. Set the encoder to H.264 video, AAC audio and a keyframe every 2 seconds now, and Facebook accepts the stream on the first try. Step 04 has the full settings.
Method 1: the Facebook Live stream target
The quickest way. Wowza signs in to Facebook for you, creates the live post and sends the video over RTMPS on its own. Use it to post to your own timeline or to a Page you manage.
- In Wowza Streaming Engine Manager, open Applications and select your live application.
- Click Stream Targets. If the page says stream targets are off, click Enable Stream Targets and restart the application when Wowza asks. Your encoder reconnects on its own.
- Click Add Stream Target, choose Facebook Live and click Next.
- Fill in Stream Target Name (no symbols such as / : * ? or |), Source Stream Name (the name from Incoming Streams), and the Title and Description your viewers will see on the post.
- Click Login, sign in to Facebook and allow access. Facebook asks who may see posts from Wowza: pick the most public audience you will ever want, because a post can never be more public than this.
- Pick the Video Destination: My Timeline, or one of the Pages you manage. For your timeline, also set who can see the post.
- Click Add this target. The target shows Active while it sends, and the post appears on Facebook a few seconds later.
Method 2: a Wowza RTMPS stream target with your stream key
Use this one when you would rather set the title, the schedule and the audience in Facebook, or when the login method will not authorise. Facebook gives you a stream key and Wowza only delivers the video.
Get the stream key from Facebook
- On Facebook, open Live Producer and choose to go live with streaming software.
- Copy the stream key. Treat it like a password: anyone who has it can broadcast on your account.
- Leave the page open. You start the broadcast from here once the video arrives.
Add the generic RTMP target in Wowza
- In your application, click Stream Targets, then Add Stream Target.
- Choose Generic RTMP and click Next.
- Fill in the fields as in the table below, then save the target.
- Stream Target Name
- Anything you will recognise, for example
facebook. - Source Stream Name
- The stream name from Incoming Streams.
- Destination Host
live-api-s.facebook.com, without rtmps:// in front.- Destination Port
443, not the RTMP default of 1935.- Destination Application
rtmp- Destination Stream Name
- Your Facebook stream key.
- User Name, Password
- Leave both empty. The key is the only credential Facebook uses.
Turn on RTMPS with sendSSL
A generic RTMP target sends plain RTMP until you tell it otherwise. Open the target, go to its custom properties and add sendSSL with the value true. Wowza documents a second way: the target's line in the application's map file gets "sendSSL":"true".
livestream={"entryName":"facebook", "profile":"rtmp", "host":"live-api-s.facebook.com", "port":"443", "application":"rtmp", "streamName":"FB-STREAM-KEY", "sendSSL":"true"}
One line per target: your source stream name, an equals sign, then the target's settings. Wowza Manager writes this file, and its first line asks you not to edit it by hand, so make your changes in the Manager when you can.
When the target shows Active, Live Producer shows a preview of your video. Check the picture and sound there, then click Go live on Facebook.
Encoder settings Facebook Live accepts
These are Meta's current figures for live video. Facebook now takes up to 1080p at 60 frames per second and broadcasts of up to 8 hours, so the 720p and 4-hour limits in older Wowza guides, including the first version of this page, no longer apply.
| Resolution | Frame rate | Video bitrate |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 × 1080 | 60 fps | 4,500 to 9,000 kbps |
| 1920 × 1080 | 30 fps | 3,000 to 6,000 kbps |
| 1280 × 720 | 60 fps | 2,250 to 6,000 kbps |
| 1280 × 720 | 30 fps | 1,500 to 4,000 kbps |
| 854 × 480 | 30 fps | 600 to 2,000 kbps |
| 640 × 360 | 30 fps | 400 to 1,000 kbps |
- Video codec
- H.264. Level 4.1 up to 1080p at 30 fps, level 4.2 for 1080p at 60 fps.
- Keyframes
- Every 2 seconds. Meta sets 4 seconds as the limit.
- Audio
- AAC-LC, stereo, 44.1 or 48 kHz, 128 kbps (256 kbps at most). Meta asks for audio and video in every stream, so send a silent track if you have no sound.
- Protocol
- RTMPS, on port 443.
- Length
- 8 hours at most. When the built-in target reaches it, Facebook ends the post and Wowza starts a new one with the same settings.
A stream target passes your encoder's keyframes through untouched. If Facebook warns about the keyframe interval, fix it in the encoder, or send the target a rendition from the Wowza Transcoder with the keyframe interval set to twice the frame rate.
Stop the stream and fix the usual errors
To end the broadcast, open Stream Targets and click Disable this stream target, or stop your encoder. The target stays saved for next time.
| What you see | Why | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The target waits and never turns Active | The source stream name does not match what the encoder publishes. | Copy the name from Incoming Streams into the target, including upper and lower case. |
| The connection fails or keeps retrying | Plain RTMP, port 1935, or a firewall blocking port 443 out. | Set port 443 and sendSSL to true, and allow TCP 443 out from the server. |
| Facebook says the stream key is invalid | Keys from Live Producer can expire after a broadcast ends. | Copy a fresh key and paste it into Destination Stream Name. |
| The Facebook login stopped working | The authorisation of the built-in target expired or was removed on Facebook. | Delete the target and add it again, then sign in to Facebook once more. |
| Facebook warns about the keyframe interval | The encoder sends a keyframe less often than every 4 seconds. | Set the encoder to a keyframe every 2 seconds. |
Going live on Facebook with Primcast
You only need Wowza Manager when Wowza runs on your own server. Pick the line that fits your setup.
A Primcast video streaming plan
No stream target to configure. In your account, open the Live streaming card, go to Restream, click Add a destination, pick Facebook and paste your stream key. The panel already uses Facebook's RTMPS address on port 443. Your first destination restarts your channel once, and your encoder reconnects within a few seconds.
The same card sends one stream to YouTube, Facebook, Twitch or any RTMP server at once, up to five destinations.
Wowza on your own dedicated server
Rent a whole machine and run Wowza Streaming Engine on it, with every stream target in this tutorial under your control. On request we install and manage Wowza for you. The Wowza licence is billed beside the machine, never folded into its price.
Wowza and Facebook Live questions
What is a stream target in Wowza Streaming Engine?
A stream target is a destination Wowza pushes one of your incoming streams to, such as Facebook, YouTube or another RTMP server. You add targets per application under Stream Targets, and each one starts sending as soon as its source stream is live.
How do I set up a Wowza RTMPS stream target?
Add a Generic RTMP target, enter the destination host and port 443, then add the custom property sendSSL with the value true. Without sendSSL the target sends plain RTMP, which Facebook does not accept.
Can Wowza send one stream to Facebook and YouTube at the same time?
Yes. Add one stream target per destination on the same source stream, and Wowza sends a copy to each. Wowza suggests no more than 10 targets on a single Facebook account. Each copy uses its own upload from the server, so count every destination when you size the port.
What resolution can I stream to Facebook Live from Wowza?
Up to 1080p at 60 frames per second, at 4,500 to 9,000 kbps, according to Meta's live video specifications. Wowza sends what your encoder makes, so set the resolution and bitrate in the encoder or in a Wowza Transcoder rendition.
Can I stream to a Facebook Group or Event?
The built-in Facebook Live target offers your timeline and the Pages you manage. For any other place Facebook lets you go live, create the live video in Live Producer and send it with method 2 and the stream key it gives you.
Which Wowza Streaming Engine version do I need?
Version 4.5 or later has the Facebook Live target, and any version with the Generic RTMP target can send RTMPS with sendSSL. The current release is 4.11.3, from August 2026.
Do I need Wowza to stream to Facebook with Primcast?
No. On a Primcast video streaming plan, the Restream section of your Live streaming card sends your stream to Facebook with just the stream key. You use Wowza Manager only when Wowza runs on a dedicated server of your own.
More live video tutorials
Set up the encoder that feeds Wowza, or skip Wowza and send straight from your computer.
Want Facebook Live without running Wowza?
Your Primcast video channel restreams to Facebook from the panel: paste the stream key and you are live. If a target will not connect, our chat answers in seconds and can check your account and your stream, and a person steps in whenever you ask.