LiveTV not working with multiple streams

[ItsNoss]

I setup Jellyfin recently to look at moving away from Plex. The only thing I still need to get working well is live tv. I pay for 5 lines through my IPTV provider, however, I can only watch one channel at a time. When someone is watching live tv on one channel and someone else loads up live tv on a second channel, it kicks the first person out of their stream with no error message. This doesn't happen if person #2 is watching the same channel at person #1.

I've tried multiple clients, JF Web (multiple computers, using both Linux and Windows), phone (jellyfin and swiftfin app), AppleTV (swiftfin app). I've made sure all clients are the latest version. I've re-installed the server. I've tried multiple settings with transcoding and multiple m3u settings such as auto-loop, allow stream sharing, ignore DTS and Allow fMP4 transcoding container. Simultaneous stream limit is 0 but I've tried setting a number and it still didn't work. I've tried to force transcoding of remote media but none of this has worked. I checked the logs but nothing jumped out to me as an error. I did try enabling debug logs via the documentation, the logs provided were collected with that setting enabled. I am able to have simultaneous streams in IPTV Editor using their web app for watching the IPTV but not in Jellyfin. It also looks like all clients are using either direct stream or remuxing which (correct me if I'm wrong) I believe would not use transcoding on my server.

IPTV Setup:
IPTV Provider -> IPTVEditor -> Jellyfin

Server information:
Ubuntu 24.04 VM on ESXI 6.7 (latest updates)
Jellyfin 10.10.7 (installed via this method)
ram: 16 gb
cpu: 4
gpu nvidia quadro p2000 (setup via this method)

Jellyfin logs
FFMPEG Logs

[ItsNoss]

Since this post, I've tried switching to IPTV Provider -> IPTVEditor -> Threadfin -> Jellyfin but this did not work.

[ItsNoss]

Since I had Threadfin setup for testing, I tried it in Plex and it still happened. Also watching a stream Jellyfin/Plex and starting another in Open TV would have the same problem. This appears to be an issue with either my provider or IPTVEditor, just incase someone has this issue in the future.

[EPG Tech Talk]

It sounds like you are encountering a common frustration when trying to move from Plex to Jellyfin for Live TV, particularly with multiple streams. Your setup details and troubleshooting steps offer a clear picture of the problem. You correctly note that all clients appear to be direct streaming or remuxing. This means the server itself is not heavily transcoding, as you mentioned. This observation is key.

The heart of the issue likely rests with how Jellyfin interacts with your IPTV Editor setup. Even with multiple lines from your IPTV provider, the way IPTV Editor presents these to Jellyfin might be the limiting factor. When one user starts watching a channel, it seems to claim the stream from IPTV Editor in a way that prevents another, separate channel from opening simultaneously.

Troubleshooting Steps and Considerations

You have already tried many client-side and Jellyfin server settings, confirming the problem persists across different clients and reinstalled setups.

Your current setup is: IPTV Provider -> IPTV Editor -> Jellyfin.

It is worth considering the communication between IPTV Editor and Jellyfin. While you can watch simultaneous streams through IPTV Editor's web app, Jellyfin seems to hit a wall. This suggests an issue in how Jellyfin interprets or accesses the streams provided by IPTV Editor when multiple distinct channels are requested.

One area to explore is how IPTV Editor itself manages individual stream requests. Even with five lines, if IPTV Editor is presenting them to Jellyfin as a single source that only permits one active channel at a time, it would explain the behavior you are seeing. Jellyfin's "allow stream sharing" setting, which you tried, is usually for multiple users watching the same channel, which you confirmed already works. The problem arises when trying to watch different channels.

Consider trying a more direct integration with your IPTV provider, if possible, bypassing IPTV Editor, at least for testing. Some users find success by directly configuring Jellyfin's Live TV with an M3U playlist from their IPTV provider, even if it requires manual EPG setup. This would help isolate whether IPTV Editor is the source of the single stream limitation.

If direct integration is not feasible, look closely at IPTV Editor's internal settings. There might be a configuration within IPTV Editor that treats simultaneous requests for different channels as a single channel request, or otherwise limits parallel access.

Server hardware is not usually the problem here, as direct streaming or remuxing uses minimal CPU. Your Nvidia Quadro P2000 GPU would be essential if heavy transcoding were happening, but that does not appear to be the case.

The fact that debug logs did not highlight an error is consistent with the idea that Jellyfin is not encountering a server processing problem. It is more likely receiving a rejection or termination from the upstream source (IPTV Editor) when a second unique channel stream is requested.

Focus on the interface between Jellyfin and IPTV Editor. This connection point is where the true limitation likely lies.