Clustering for $0
Yes, even on the entry plan
Failover, load balancing, a single control panel and archive replication between nodes. Not a separate license, not an enterprise edition, not "ask your account manager". Just take it and use it.
Clustering is usually sold separately.
We give it away.
Failover is not a premium feature, it is a normal requirement for broadcasting. That is why the Cluster Manager ships with every plan: you pay for the media servers, and the control plane costs nothing.
Not a checkbox on a feature list, but a working control plane
The Cluster Manager polls the nodes over their API, keeps the inventory and the history, and runs changes as tracked operations — with locks, checks and rollback.
Automatic failover
A node fails and its streams move to a healthy one — with a confirmation delay, a cooldown, a cap on simultaneous moves and an automatic return once the node is stable again.
A health model, not a ping
Node state is computed from the API, CPU/RAM, network, disks, inputs, outputs, archive and cache. Transitions have hysteresis — no status flapping out of nowhere.
Stream balancing
Evenly, round-robin, by weight or by load. First a dry-run with the plan of moves, then the apply — you always see what will happen before it happens.
Viewer balancing
One URL per channel — the cluster sends each viewer to a suitable node: by client count, by outgoing bitrate, or by subnet rules for specific sites.
Archive replication
Closed segments are copied to other nodes with SHA-256 verification and a confirmed copy — with bandwidth limits, priorities and a ban on putting replicas at the same site.
N+1 / N+M capacity planning
The cluster gives you an honest answer to "can we survive losing a node" — by stream count, by bitrate and by licenses. Plus what-if simulations for load growth.
What the plan includes, and what it does not
No asterisks in fine print: clustering is free, and you pay only for the media servers it manages.
| Component | Our price | How it usually goes on the market |
|---|---|---|
| The cluster control plane | $0, included in every plan | A separate license or a higher edition |
| Number of nodes in a cluster | Unlimited | Sold in node packs |
| Failover and balancing | Included | Often in a separate HA module |
| Archive replication between nodes | Included | Usually handled by external tooling |
| The media server license itself | Your plan, per server | The vendor's plan |
Clustering costs nothing extra and does not count nodes. Only the media server itself is licensed — under the plan you chose.
Three steps to resilient broadcasting
Set up the media servers
Install NextGen:Mediaserver on two or more servers and activate the licenses — a 14-day trial will do.
Start the Cluster Manager
A separate lightweight service: a config, systemd and a reverse proxy. It barely uses resources — media does not flow through it.
Add the nodes to the panel
Nodes are connected with an API key. From there you get one picture across every server, plus balancing and failover.
The questions people ask first
What's the catch?
There is none. We earn on media server licenses, and the cluster is what makes those licenses more useful. Holding failover back for the sake of an upsell is something we consider wrong.
Is clustering really available on Basic?
Yes. The Cluster Manager is not tied to a plan and does not check the license edition. The only requirement is media server version 26.8.0 or newer.
How many nodes can I join?
There is no limit on the number of nodes in a cluster. Each server needs its own media server license — the same as without a cluster.
Do I need a separate server for the cluster?
A small virtual machine is enough: media traffic does not pass through the control plane. For the panel's own resilience, a second instance is run in active/passive mode.
Is there documentation?
There is — a full guide to installation, operation and the REST API in the knowledge base of your dashboard, in Russian and English.
What about support?
Clustering is supported just like the media server itself: through your dashboard, within your plan.
Build your cluster today — no invoice will follow
A 14-day trial license takes a couple of minutes to get, and no card is needed.