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Ad-Flow Limitations

This document outlines the technical limitations and constraints of Ad-Flow to help you plan your deployment effectively.

Stream Processing Limitations​

  1. Existing Markers

    • Streams with existing SCTE-35 markers will not receive additional markers
    • Ad-Flow skips marker insertion for streams that already contain SCTE-35 data
    • No marker modification capability for existing SCTE-35 content

  2. Transport Stream Constraints

    • PAT must fit within a single transport stream packet
    • PMT must fit within a single transport stream packet after adding SCTE-35 information
    • Marker insertion is skipped if these conditions are not met

  3. Timing Limitations

    • Maximum processing delay: Limited by configured buffer size
    • Marker insertion precision: Frame-level accuracy not guaranteed

Ad Detection Limitations​

  1. Detection Accuracy

    • Baseline detection rate: ~80% of standard ad breaks
    • May miss non-standard ad patterns
    • False positives possible with similar content patterns

  2. Content Type Restrictions

    • Cannot detect ad breaks in:
      • Streams where ads are replaced with slates
      • Heavily processed or modified content
      • Streams with significant quality issues

  3. Analysis Constraints

    • May be affected by unique channel characteristics
    • Performance varies with content type

Technical Constraints​

Resource Requirements​

  1. Processing Power

    • CPU utilization increases with:
      • Higher bitrate streams
      • More complex ad patterns
      • Additional monitoring requirements

  2. Memory Usage

    • RAM requirements scale with:
      • Stream buffer size
      • Number of concurrent streams
      • Bitrate of processed streams

Scalability Limits​

  1. Container Constraints

    • Single container processes one stream
    • Vertical scaling limited by instance capacity
    • Horizontal scaling requires multiple instances

  2. Monitoring Overhead

    • Metrics collection impacts performance
    • Dashboard refresh rate limitations
    • Storage requirements for historical data

Integration Limitations​

Protocol Support​

  1. Input Protocols

    • Limited to RTP and SRT
    • No direct support for:
      • RTMP
      • HLS
      • DASH
      • WebRTC

  2. Output Constraints

    • Output protocol must match input
    • No protocol conversion capability
    • Limited stream manipulation options

Third-Party Integration​

  1. Encoder Compatibility

    • Tested primarily with:
      • AWS MediaLive
      • Standard industry encoders
    • Other encoders may require validation

  2. Platform Restrictions

    • Cloud platform dependencies
    • AWS-specific optimizations
    • Limited cross-platform testing

Future Considerations​

While these limitations exist in the current version, some may be addressed in future releases. For specific requirements or workarounds, please contact support for guidance.