1. Stream Verification — IPTV Checker

Repository: Dispatcharr-IPTV-Checker-Plugin    

Goal

Probe each stream with ffprobe, mark dead or low-framerate sources, and sync technical metadata (codecs, resolution, bitrate, FPS) back into the Dispatcharr database. The metadata gathered here is what Stream-Mapparr later uses to rank stream quality and filter out broken sources.

Back up your database first

This plugin makes bulk changes that cannot be undone. Back up the Dispatcharr database before running any actions.

Plugin Flow

flowchart TD
    A["Save settings"] --> B["Validate Settings"]
    B --> C["Load Groups"]
    C --> D["Start Stream Check"]
    D --> E{"Long run<br/>hours possible"}
    E --> F["View Check Progress"]
    E --> G["docker logs -f"]
    F --> H["View Last Results"]
    G --> H
    H --> I["Rename / Move /<br/>Delete dead channels"]
    H --> J["Add format suffix<br/>UHD/FHD/HD/SD"]
    H --> K["Export CSV"]
    I --> Z(["Metadata feeds Stream Mapparr"])
    J --> Z
    K --> Z

Configuration Options

• Groups to Check: Comma-separated group names; empty = all groups. Wildcards supported (e.g., US-*, *Sports*).
• Check Alternative Streams: Probe every backup stream attached to a channel, not just the primary.
• Connection Timeout (default 10s), Probe Timeout, and Dead Connection Retries (default 3).
• Per-Stream Cooldown to avoid hammering a single host.
• FFprobe Analysis Flags and FFprobe Analysis Duration for tuning probe behavior on slow streams.
• Streamlink-Only Hosts: Comma-separated host patterns probed via streamlink instead of direct ffprobe.
• Dead Channel Rename Format and Move Dead Channels to Group (default Graveyard).
• Low Framerate Rename Format and Move Low Framerate Group (default Slow).
• Video Format Suffixes: Default UHD, FHD, HD, SD, Unknown.
• Enable Parallel Checking with Number of Parallel Workers for faster scans.
• FFprobe Path: Default /usr/local/bin/ffprobe.
• Delete Dead Channels with Auto-Delete Confirmation for fully removing dead channels rather than just renaming them.
• Webhook URL and Send Webhook Notification to fire an external notification when a check completes.
• Enable Scheduled Checks, Scheduled Check Times (cron syntax), Scheduler Timezone, Export CSV for Schedule.
• Use Windowed Schedule with Window End Mode, Window Duration, Window End Time, and Reset Window Progress for time-bounded scans that pick up where they left off.

Action Sequence

1. Save scan preferences.
2. Run Validate Settings to confirm ffprobe path and configuration.
3. Run Load Group(s) to pull the channel list. Large lists load in the background.
4. Run Start Stream Check. The scan runs in a background thread and survives browser timeouts.
5. Monitor with View Check Progress for live ETA, then View Last Results or View Results Table when finished.
6. Optionally run Rename Dead Channels, Move Dead Channels to Group, Rename Low Framerate Channels, or Add Video Format Suffix.
7. Export with Export Results to CSV. Use Clear CSV Exports to clean up old exports.
8. Use Cancel Stream Check to stop a running scan, Cleanup Orphaned Tasks to clear stale Celery entries, or Check Scheduler Status to verify scheduled runs.

Important Notes

Plan for hours, not minutes

A single-threaded check can take 24 hours on ~6,000 streams. Even with parallel workers, large catalogs commonly run for several hours. Schedule the plugin rather than running it interactively.

Recommended approach for large catalogs

• Use the scheduler. Enable Scheduled Checks with a cron time during your low-traffic hours rather than triggering scans manually. The scheduler also survives Dispatcharr restarts. If cron syntax is unfamiliar, build the expression interactively at crontab.guru — for example, 0 3 * * * runs once a day at 3 AM.
• Tune parallel workers. If your IPTV provider allows N concurrent connections, set Number of Parallel Workers to roughly half of N. Going higher risks the provider rate-limiting or banning your account; going much lower wastes time.
• Consider Windowed Scheduling for very large catalogs. The plugin will pick up where it left off on the next window, so a multi-day scan does not need to complete in one sitting.

Watching progress

If the browser tab is open, View Check Progress gives a live ETA. If you closed the tab or the browser timed out, watch the container logs:

docker logs -f dispatcharr | grep "IPTV-Checker"

Wait for ✅ COMPLETED in the log before queuing the next action — the UI button re-enabling does not always mean the scan finished.

Other notes

• Metadata syncing happens automatically during the check and feeds Stream-Mapparr's quality ranking and dead-stream filtering.
• Run this plugin first so downstream plugins have accurate stream data to work with.
• The standard Dispatcharr container ships with ffmpeg, ffprobe, and pytz already installed — no manual setup is needed.