If you’re lucky enough to be running Apache (a good portion of the internet does), you can stream your own videos direct from your website. This involves the addition of a small module called Mod-H264.
Here’s how to do it. You will need root access to do this and I am assuming you’re running Centos, but the directions should pretty much apply for all linux distributions out there.
First, you’ll need to download the package from code-shop.com
Execute the following statements:
cd /usr/src
wget http://h264.code-shop.com/download/apache_mod_h264_streaming-2.2.7.tar.gz
tar -zxvf apache_mod_h264_streaming-2.2.7.tar.gz
cd mod_h264_streaming-2.2.7
./configure –with-apxs=`which apxs2`
make
make install
Now, go to your httpd.conf file and modify it. Use the following command:
vi /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf
Add the following lines:
LoadModule h264_streaming_module /usr/lib/apache2/modules/mod_h264_streaming.so
AddHandler h264-streaming.extensions .mp4
Now save the file and restart httpd by typing:
service httpd restart
That’s it! You’ve now configured apache to stream .mp4 files! Drop one into your web root and see what happens! You’ll find it works quite well!
Here’s the reality. If you’re streaming video, you’re going to want to use h.264 anyway due to the quality compression and the fact that it’s supported on pretty much every platform. (ipads, iphones, android, blackberry, etc) anyway.
It’s a great solution and it really works quite well. I use it for my family blog so that my family can see my little girl grow up!