FFmpeg M3U8 Practical Guide: 50 Essential Commands Explained

FFmpeg is the Swiss Army knife for M3U8/HLS streaming. Whether downloading, converting, segmenting, or streaming, FFmpeg can handle it all. This article presents 50 most practical FFmpeg commands to help you become an M3U8 processing expert.

FFmpeg Fundamentals

Installing FFmpeg

# macOS
brew install ffmpeg

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update && sudo apt install ffmpeg

# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install epel-release
sudo yum install ffmpeg

# Windows - Using Chocolatey
choco install ffmpeg

# Compile from source (more encoder support)
git clone https://git.ffmpeg.org/ffmpeg.git
cd ffmpeg
./configure --enable-gpl --enable-libx264 --enable-libx265 --enable-libvpx
make && sudo make install

Verify Installation

# Check version
ffmpeg -version

# Check supported encoders
ffmpeg -encoders | grep -E "264|265|vp9"

# Check supported formats
ffmpeg -formats | grep m3u8

Part 1: M3U8 Download Commands (10)

1. Basic Download

ffmpeg -i "https://example.com/video.m3u8" -c copy output.mp4

2. Set Timeout and Reconnect

ffmpeg -timeout 5000000 \
       -reconnect 1 \
       -reconnect_at_eof 1 \
       -reconnect_streamed 1 \
       -reconnect_delay_max 2 \
       -i "URL" -c copy output.mp4

3. Add Request Headers

ffmpeg -headers $'Referer: https://example.com\r\nCookie: session=abc123' \
       -i "URL" -c copy output.mp4

4. Use Proxy

ffmpeg -http_proxy http://proxy.example.com:8080 \
       -i "URL" -c copy output.mp4

5. Rate-Limited Download

ffmpeg -i "URL" -c copy -re output.mp4

6. Download Specific Time Range

# Start from 10 minutes, download 5 minutes
ffmpeg -ss 00:10:00 -t 00:05:00 -i "URL" -c copy output.mp4

7. Download and Transcode

ffmpeg -i "URL" \
       -c:v libx264 -preset fast -crf 23 \
       -c:a aac -b:a 128k \
       output.mp4

8. Download Multiple Streams

# Download video and audio streams
ffmpeg -i "video.m3u8" -i "audio.m3u8" \
       -map 0:v -map 1:a -c copy output.mp4

9. Handle Encrypted M3U8

ffmpeg -allowed_extensions ALL \
       -protocol_whitelist "file,http,https,tcp,tls,crypto" \
       -i "encrypted.m3u8" -c copy output.mp4

10. Batch Download Script

#!/bin/bash
while IFS= read -r url; do
    filename=$(basename "$url" .m3u8).mp4
    ffmpeg -i "$url" -c copy "$filename"
done < urls.txt

Part 2: M3U8 Conversion Commands (10)

11. M3U8 to MP4 (Preserve Quality)

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -c copy -bsf:a aac_adtstoasc output.mp4

12. Convert and Compress

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 28 \
       -c:a aac -b:a 96k \
       -movflags +faststart \
       output.mp4

13. Convert to WebM

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -c:v libvpx-vp9 -crf 30 -b:v 0 \
       -c:a libopus -b:a 128k \
       output.webm

14. Extract Audio

# Extract to MP3
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -vn -c:a libmp3lame -b:a 192k output.mp3

# Extract to AAC
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -vn -c:a copy output.aac

15. Change Resolution

# Convert to 720p
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf scale=1280:720 \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 23 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

16. Add Watermark

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -i watermark.png \
       -filter_complex "overlay=10:10" \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 23 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

17. Crop Video

# Crop to 16:9
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "crop=1920:1080:0:0" \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 23 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

18. Adjust Frame Rate

# Convert to 30fps
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -r 30 \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 23 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

19. Merge Multiple M3U8

# Create file list
echo "file 'part1.m3u8'" > list.txt
echo "file 'part2.m3u8'" >> list.txt

# Merge
ffmpeg -f concat -safe 0 -i list.txt -c copy output.mp4

20. Convert to GIF

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "fps=10,scale=320:-1:flags=lanczos" \
       -t 10 \
       output.gif

Part 3: Create M3U8 Commands (10)

21. Basic Segmentation

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_list_size 0 \
       -f hls \
       output.m3u8

22. Multi-bitrate HLS

# 1080p
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -b:v 5000k -s 1920x1080 \
       -c:a aac -b:a 192k \
       -hls_time 10 -hls_list_size 0 \
       -f hls stream_1080p.m3u8

# 720p
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -b:v 2800k -s 1280x720 \
       -c:a aac -b:a 128k \
       -hls_time 10 -hls_list_size 0 \
       -f hls stream_720p.m3u8

# Create master playlist
cat > master.m3u8 << EOF
#EXTM3U
#EXT-X-VERSION:3
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:BANDWIDTH=5192000,RESOLUTION=1920x1080
stream_1080p.m3u8
#EXT-X-STREAM-INF:BANDWIDTH=2928000,RESOLUTION=1280x720
stream_720p.m3u8
EOF

23. Encrypted HLS Stream

# Generate key
openssl rand 16 > encrypt.key

# Create key info file
cat > encrypt.keyinfo << EOF
https://example.com/encrypt.key
encrypt.key
$(openssl rand -hex 16)
EOF

# Segment and encrypt
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_key_info_file encrypt.keyinfo \
       -hls_playlist_type vod \
       -hls_segment_filename "segment_%03d.ts" \
       output.m3u8

24. Set Segment Naming

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c copy \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_segment_filename "video_%Y%m%d_%03d.ts" \
       -strftime 1 \
       output.m3u8

25. Add Subtitles

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i subtitles.srt \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -c:s webvtt \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -var_stream_map "v:0,a:0,s:0" \
       output.m3u8

26. Generate Thumbnails

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -vf "fps=1/10,scale=160:90" \
       -hls_segment_filename "segment_%03d.ts" \
       -f hls \
       -hls_flags program_date_time+append_list \
       output.m3u8

27. Set Maximum Segments

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c copy \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_list_size 5 \
       -hls_flags delete_segments \
       output.m3u8

28. Create VOD Playlist

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c copy \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_playlist_type vod \
       -hls_segment_type mpegts \
       output.m3u8

29. Use fMP4 Container

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_segment_type fmp4 \
       -hls_fmp4_init_filename "init.mp4" \
       output.m3u8

30. Custom HLS Tags

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 \
       -c copy \
       -hls_time 10 \
       -hls_flags independent_segments \
       -hls_segment_options "mpegts_flags=+initial_discontinuity" \
       output.m3u8

Part 4: Live Streaming Commands (10)

31. Stream to RTMP

ffmpeg -re -i input.m3u8 \
       -c copy \
       -f flv rtmp://live.example.com/live/stream_key

32. Screen Recording Stream

# macOS
ffmpeg -f avfoundation -i "1:0" \
       -c:v libx264 -preset fast -crf 22 \
       -c:a aac -b:a 128k \
       -f hls -hls_time 4 \
       output.m3u8

# Windows
ffmpeg -f gdigrab -i desktop \
       -c:v libx264 -preset fast \
       -f hls output.m3u8

33. Webcam Live Stream

# Linux
ffmpeg -f v4l2 -i /dev/video0 \
       -c:v libx264 -preset fast \
       -f hls -hls_time 2 \
       -hls_list_size 3 \
       -hls_flags delete_segments \
       live.m3u8

34. Loop Playback

ffmpeg -stream_loop -1 -re -i video.mp4 \
       -c copy \
       -f hls \
       -hls_time 4 \
       -hls_flags delete_segments+append_list \
       loop.m3u8

35. Multi-stream Mixing

ffmpeg -i input1.m3u8 -i input2.m3u8 \
       -filter_complex "[0:v][1:v]hstack=inputs=2[v]" \
       -map "[v]" -map 0:a \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -f hls output.m3u8

36. Add Live Subtitles

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "drawtext=text='%{localtime}':fontsize=24:fontcolor=white:box=1:boxcolor=black" \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a copy \
       -f hls output.m3u8

37. Audio Visualization

ffmpeg -i audio.mp3 \
       -filter_complex "[0:a]showwaves=s=1280x720:mode=line:rate=25[v]" \
       -map "[v]" -map 0:a \
       -c:v libx264 -c:a aac \
       -f hls visualization.m3u8

38. Delayed Live Stream

ffmpeg -i live_input.m3u8 \
       -c copy \
       -muxdelay 30 \
       -f hls delayed_output.m3u8

39. Record Live Stream

ffmpeg -i "https://live.example.com/stream.m3u8" \
       -c copy \
       -f segment \
       -segment_time 3600 \
       -segment_format mp4 \
       -strftime 1 \
       "recording_%Y%m%d_%H%M%S.mp4"

40. Forward to Multiple Targets

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -c copy -f hls output1.m3u8 \
       -c copy -f hls output2.m3u8 \
       -c copy -f flv rtmp://server/live/stream

Part 5: Advanced Processing Commands (10)

41. GPU Hardware Acceleration (NVIDIA)

ffmpeg -hwaccel cuda -hwaccel_output_format cuda \
       -i input.m3u8 \
       -c:v h264_nvenc -preset fast \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

42. Intel Quick Sync Acceleration

ffmpeg -hwaccel qsv \
       -i input.m3u8 \
       -c:v h264_qsv -preset fast \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

43. Batch Processing Script

#!/bin/bash
find . -name "*.m3u8" | while read file; do
    output="${file%.m3u8}.mp4"
    ffmpeg -i "$file" -c copy "$output" &
done
wait

44. Quality Analysis

# PSNR and SSIM analysis
ffmpeg -i original.mp4 -i compressed.mp4 \
       -lavfi "psnr=stats_file=psnr.log;[0:v][1:v]ssim=stats_file=ssim.log" \
       -f null -

45. Audio-Video Sync Repair

# Delay audio by 100ms
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -itsoffset 0.1 -i input.m3u8 \
       -map 0:v -map 1:a \
       -c copy \
       output.mp4

46. Extract Keyframes

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "select='eq(pict_type,I)'" \
       -vsync vfr \
       keyframe_%04d.png

47. Create Video Wall

ffmpeg -i input1.m3u8 -i input2.m3u8 -i input3.m3u8 -i input4.m3u8 \
       -filter_complex \
       "[0:v]scale=640:360[v0]; \
        [1:v]scale=640:360[v1]; \
        [2:v]scale=640:360[v2]; \
        [3:v]scale=640:360[v3]; \
        [v0][v1][v2][v3]xstack=inputs=4:layout=0_0|640_0|0_360|640_360[v]" \
       -map "[v]" \
       -c:v libx264 \
       -f hls \
       mosaic.m3u8

48. Color Space Conversion

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "colorspace=all=bt709:iall=bt601-6-625:fast=1" \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 18 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

49. Denoise Processing

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "hqdn3d=4.0:3.0:6.0:4.5" \
       -c:v libx264 -crf 20 \
       -c:a copy \
       output.mp4

50. Generate Playback Statistics

ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -vf "signalstats,metadata=print:file=stats.txt" \
       -f null -

Performance Optimization Tips

CPU Optimization

# Use all CPU cores
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -threads 0 -c:v libx264 output.mp4

# Specify thread count
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -threads 8 -c:v libx264 output.mp4

# Set encoding preset (ultrafast to veryslow)
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -c:v libx264 -preset fast output.mp4

Memory Optimization

# Limit buffer size
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -max_muxing_queue_size 1024 \
       -c copy output.mp4

# Set analysis duration
ffmpeg -analyzeduration 10M -probesize 10M \
       -i input.m3u8 -c copy output.mp4

Network Optimization

# Set buffer size
ffmpeg -rtbufsize 100M -i input.m3u8 -c copy output.mp4

# Set TCP options
ffmpeg -rtsp_transport tcp -i input.m3u8 -c copy output.mp4

Common Problem Handling

Problem 1: Timestamp Errors

# Regenerate timestamps
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -fflags +genpts -c copy output.mp4

Problem 2: Audio-Video Out of Sync

# Use async parameter
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -async 1 -c copy output.mp4

Problem 3: Missing Segments

# Ignore errors and continue
ffmpeg -err_detect ignore_err -i input.m3u8 -c copy output.mp4

Problem 4: Encoding Errors

# Force encoding format
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 \
       -c:v libx264 -profile:v baseline -level 3.0 \
       -c:a aac -strict experimental \
       output.mp4

Debugging and Analysis

Display Detailed Information

# Show stream info
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8

# Show detailed logs
ffmpeg -v debug -i input.m3u8 -c copy output.mp4

# Analyze only, no processing
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -f null -

Performance Analysis

# Show processing speed
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -c copy -progress pipe:1 output.mp4

# Benchmark
ffmpeg -i input.m3u8 -c:v libx264 -preset fast -f null - -benchmark

FFmpeg Configuration File

Create ~/.ffmpeg/ffmpeg.conf:

# Default parameters
-hide_banner
-loglevel warning
-stats

# Hardware acceleration
-hwaccel auto

# Network settings
-timeout 5000000
-reconnect 1
-reconnect_at_eof 1

Practical Script Examples

Batch Conversion Script

#!/bin/bash
# batch_convert.sh

INPUT_DIR="./input"
OUTPUT_DIR="./output"
THREADS=4

mkdir -p "$OUTPUT_DIR"

export -f convert_file
convert_file() {
    local input="$1"
    local output="$2"
    ffmpeg -i "$input" \
           -c:v libx264 -preset fast -crf 23 \
           -c:a aac -b:a 128k \
           -movflags +faststart \
           "$output"
}

find "$INPUT_DIR" -name "*.m3u8" | \
    parallel -j "$THREADS" convert_file {} "$OUTPUT_DIR/{/.}.mp4"

Monitor Download Script

#!/bin/bash
# monitor_download.sh

URL="$1"
OUTPUT="$2"

while true; do
    ffmpeg -i "$URL" \
           -c copy \
           -t 3600 \
           -f segment \
           -segment_time 300 \
           -strftime 1 \
           "${OUTPUT}_%Y%m%d_%H%M%S.mp4"
    
    sleep 1
done

Conclusion

FFmpeg is a powerful tool for M3U8/HLS processing. Master these 50 commands, and you can handle most scenarios:

Download Scenarios - Use appropriate timeout and reconnect parameters
Conversion Scenarios - Choose encoding parameters based on requirements
Creation Scenarios - Set segment time and list size reasonably
Live Streaming - Pay attention to buffer and delay settings
Optimization Scenarios - Fully utilize hardware acceleration

Remember, FFmpeg's power lies in its flexibility. These commands can be combined and adjusted according to specific needs. If you just need simple M3U8 video playback, using M3U8 Player would be more convenient.

Coming Soon

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