Linux Installation - Ant Media Server

Overview

Ant Media Server can be installed on various Linux distributions including Ubuntu, Debian, CentOS, Rocky Linux, and AlmaLinux. This guide covers the complete installation process, system requirements, and post-installation configuration.

System Requirements

Minimum Hardware Requirements

CPU: 2 cores (4+ cores recommended for production)
RAM: 4GB minimum (8GB+ recommended for production)
Storage: 20GB minimum free disk space
Network: Public IP address with required ports open

Software Requirements

Operating Systems:
- Ubuntu 20.04 LTS or later
- Debian 10 or later
- CentOS 8 or later
- Rocky Linux 8 or 9
- AlmaLinux 8 or 9
Java: OpenJDK 17 (installed automatically)
Required packages: jq, dnsutils/bind-utils, iptables

Network Requirements

The following ports must be open in your firewall:

Port	Protocol	Purpose
5080	TCP	HTTP (Web Panel, REST API)
5443	TCP	HTTPS (Web Panel, REST API)
1935	TCP	RTMP
8443	TCP	RTMPS (if SSL enabled)
5000-65000	UDP	WebRTC (media streams)

Installation Steps

Download the Installation Script

Download the latest Ant Media Server installation script from the official repository:

wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ant-media/Scripts/master/install_ant-media-server.sh
chmod +x install_ant-media-server.sh

Run the Installation

Execute the installation script with root privileges:

sudo ./install_ant-media-server.sh

The script will:

Install OpenJDK 17 if not already installed
Download the latest Ant Media Server package
Extract and configure the server
Create the antmedia system user and group
Set up systemd service
Configure necessary permissions

Verify Installation

Check if the Ant Media Server service is running:

sudo systemctl status antmedia

You should see output indicating the service is active and running.

Access the Web Panel

Open your browser and navigate to:

http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:5080

You should see the Ant Media Server dashboard. On first access, you’ll be prompted to create an admin account.

Default Installation Directory

Ant Media Server is installed to:

/usr/local/antmedia

Directory Structure

/usr/local/antmedia/
├── conf/              # Configuration files
├── webapps/           # Applications (LiveApp, WebRTCAppEE)
├── log/               # Log files (symlink to /var/log/antmedia)
├── start.sh           # Manual start script
├── shutdown.sh        # Stop script
├── enable_ssl.sh      # SSL configuration script
└── change_server_mode.sh  # Cluster/standalone mode switch

Service Management

Ant Media Server runs as a systemd service named antmedia.

Start the Service

sudo systemctl start antmedia

Stop the Service

sudo systemctl stop antmedia

Restart the Service

sudo systemctl restart antmedia

Check Service Status

sudo systemctl status antmedia

Enable Auto-start on Boot

sudo systemctl enable antmedia

View Logs

View real-time logs:

sudo journalctl -u antmedia -f

View application logs:

tail -f /var/log/antmedia/antmedia-error.log

Systemd Service Configuration

The service file is located at /lib/systemd/system/antmedia.service.

Key service configuration details:

User/Group: antmedia
Working Directory: /usr/local/antmedia
File Descriptor Limit: 65536-524288
Tasks Max: 64000
Restart Policy: on-failure with 5s delay
Java Home: /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64

Firewall Configuration

Ubuntu/Debian (UFW)

sudo ufw allow 5080/tcp
sudo ufw allow 5443/tcp
sudo ufw allow 1935/tcp
sudo ufw allow 5000:65000/udp
sudo ufw reload

CentOS/Rocky/AlmaLinux (firewalld)

sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=5080/tcp
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=5443/tcp
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=1935/tcp
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=5000-65000/udp
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

iptables (Manual Configuration)

If you’re using iptables directly:

sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5080 -j ACCEPT
sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5443 -j ACCEPT
sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 1935 -j ACCEPT
sudo iptables -A INPUT -p udp --dport 5000:65000 -j ACCEPT
sudo iptables-save | sudo tee /etc/iptables/rules.v4

Configuration Files

Main Server Configuration

Location: /usr/local/antmedia/conf/red5.properties Key configuration parameters:

# Server settings
server.name=
server.licence_key=

# HTTP/HTTPS ports
http.host=0.0.0.0
http.port=5080
https.port=5443

# RTMP settings
rtmp.host=0.0.0.0
rtmp.port=1935

# Resource limits
server.cpu_limit=75
server.memory_limit_percentage=75

# Logging
logLevel=INFO
nativeLogLevel=ERROR

# Cluster mode
clusterdb.host=localhost
clusterdb.user=
clusterdb.password=

Application Configuration

Location: /usr/local/antmedia/webapps/{APP_NAME}/WEB-INF/red5-web.properties Each application (LiveApp, WebRTCAppEE) has its own configuration file for app-specific settings.

JVM Memory Configuration

By default, Ant Media Server uses -Xms1g for initial heap size. To customize memory settings:

Edit the Service File

sudo systemctl edit antmedia

Add the following override:

[Service]
Environment="JVM_MEMORY_OPTIONS=-Xms2g -Xmx4g"

Reload and restart:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl restart antmedia

Using start.sh (Manual Mode)

If running manually with start.sh:

cd /usr/local/antmedia
./start.sh -j "-Xms2g -Xmx4g"

Server Configuration Options

The start.sh script supports various configuration options:

./start.sh [OPTIONS]

Options:
  -g true/false              Use global (public) IP for network communication
  -s true/false              Use public IP as server name
  -m standalone/cluster      Server mode (standalone or cluster)
  -h <connection_string>     MongoDB/Redis connection string
  -l <license_key>           License key for Enterprise Edition
  -a <turn_url>              TURN/STUN server URL (e.g., stun:stun.l.google.com:19302)
  -n <turn_username>         TURN server username
  -w <turn_password>         TURN server password
  -k <kafka_url>             Kafka broker URL (e.g., localhost:9092)
  -j "<jvm_options>"          JVM memory options (e.g., "-Xms2g -Xmx4g")
  -c <percentage>            CPU limit percentage (default: 75)
  -e <percentage>            Memory limit percentage (default: 75)

Example: Configure Public IP

./start.sh -s true

Example: Cluster Mode with MongoDB

./start.sh -m cluster -h "mongodb://username:password@mongodb-host:27017/antmedia"

Post-Installation Tasks

Configure SSL/TLS

For production environments, enable SSL. See the SSL Setup guide.

Set Up License Key (Enterprise)

If using Enterprise Edition, add your license key:

sudo nano /usr/local/antmedia/conf/red5.properties

Set:

server.licence_key=YOUR_LICENSE_KEY

Restart the service:

sudo systemctl restart antmedia

Configure Resource Limits

Adjust CPU and memory limits based on your server capacity:

sudo nano /usr/local/antmedia/conf/red5.properties

Modify:

server.cpu_limit=80
server.memory_limit_percentage=80

Set Up Monitoring

Configure log rotation and monitoring for production:

# Check log directory
ls -lh /var/log/antmedia/

Upgrading

To upgrade to a newer version:

cd /usr/local/antmedia
sudo ./upgrade.sh https://path-to-new-version.zip

Always backup your configuration and database before upgrading:

sudo cp -r /usr/local/antmedia/conf /usr/local/antmedia/conf.backup

Uninstallation

To completely remove Ant Media Server:

cd /usr/local/antmedia
sudo ./uninstall.sh

This will:

Stop the antmedia service
Remove the systemd service file
Delete the installation directory
Remove the antmedia user and group

Troubleshooting

Service Won’t Start

Check the error logs:

sudo journalctl -u antmedia -n 50
tail -100 /var/log/antmedia/antmedia-error.log

Port Already in Use

Find which process is using the port:

sudo lsof -i :5080

Permission Issues

Ensure proper ownership:

sudo chown -R antmedia:antmedia /usr/local/antmedia
sudo chown -R antmedia:antmedia /var/log/antmedia

Java Not Found

Verify Java installation:

java -version
which java

Set JAVA_HOME if needed:

export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-openjdk-amd64

​Overview

​System Requirements

​Minimum Hardware Requirements

​Software Requirements

​Network Requirements

​Installation Steps

​Default Installation Directory

​Directory Structure

​Service Management

​Start the Service

​Stop the Service

​Restart the Service

​Check Service Status

​Enable Auto-start on Boot

​View Logs

​Systemd Service Configuration

​Firewall Configuration

​Ubuntu/Debian (UFW)

​CentOS/Rocky/AlmaLinux (firewalld)

​iptables (Manual Configuration)

​Configuration Files

​Main Server Configuration

​Application Configuration

​JVM Memory Configuration

​Edit the Service File

​Using start.sh (Manual Mode)

​Server Configuration Options

​Example: Configure Public IP

​Example: Cluster Mode with MongoDB

​Post-Installation Tasks

​Upgrading

​Uninstallation

​Troubleshooting

​Service Won’t Start

​Port Already in Use

​Permission Issues

​Java Not Found

​Next Steps