For a local video to repeat overnight in OBS Studio on a Mac, add it as a Media Source and enable Loop. Also prevent the Mac from sleeping and enable Automatic Reconnect for recoverable connection drops; these settings address different problems and cannot guarantee an uninterrupted stream.
Before leaving a channel unattended, test the entire setup with the scenes, media, power and network you intend to use. If the stream stops, identify whether the file stopped playing, the Mac slept, capture froze or the connection dropped before changing settings.
Why an overnight loop may stop
A video that reaches its end and stays there is a playback problem. A Mac that sleeps can interrupt the running broadcast or affect capture after it wakes. A connection loss is different again: the media may still be playing locally while OBS cannot reach YouTube. Treating all three as “the loop stopped” can send you to the wrong setting.
Start by observing what happens in OBS and on the YouTube live control room. Does the source preview reach the end and go blank? Does the Mac show a sleep or wake event? Does OBS report a lost connection? If the picture continues in the preview but the audience cannot see it, investigate the connection or service rather than changing the media source.
There are other possibilities. A source hidden when a scene changes may stop or restart according to its visibility behaviour. The Mac may have a power interruption, OBS may struggle to render or encode the scene, or the streaming service may interrupt a broadcast under its own policies. A setting that solves one of these does not solve the rest.
For a broader view of playback approaches, the comparison in YouTube Live playlist scheduler alternatives to OBS can help you decide whether a desktop scene setup suits your channel. This article focuses on checks within OBS and macOS, not on every cause of a platform-side stream ending.
Enable Loop on a local Media Source
For one local video, use OBS’s built-in Media Source. Add the source to the scene, select the video file on the Mac and enable Loop in the source properties. OBS’s Media Sources guide documents the source and its loop property. It lists common formats such as MP4, MOV, MKV and WebM; if a file does not play correctly, verify the format and test it before the overnight run.
The Restart playback when source becomes active option is enabled by default according to the documentation. That behaviour matters if your scene hides and later shows the source. Check the setting against your scene changes rather than assuming that playback will always resume at the desired point. Setting names or layouts can vary by OBS version, so use the installed build’s properties as the final reference.
For a sequence of files rather than one video, OBS offers a VLC Video source with playlist support. OBS documents Loop Playlist as enabled by default for that source. VLC must be installed for the source type to appear, and the VLC architecture should match OBS; a 64-bit OBS installation requires 64-bit VLC. If the channel only needs one file repeated, adding that dependency may offer no benefit.
Visibility can affect a playlist source. OBS documents the default Visibility Behaviour as stopping playback while the source is not visible and restarting it when visible. If you switch between scenes, check whether the source is hidden and whether stopping or continuing playback is what you intend. A loop that behaves correctly in a single-scene test may not behave the same after a scene transition.
| Playback need | Suitable OBS source | Check before leaving it unattended |
|---|---|---|
| Repeat one local video | Media Source | Enable Loop and confirm the file reaches its end and starts again |
| Repeat a playlist | VLC Video | Install compatible VLC, check Loop Playlist and review visibility behaviour |
| Change scenes during playback | Either, depending on setup | Test what happens when the source is hidden and shown again |
A playlist may also need its own preparation: file order, audio transitions and durations should make sense when it repeats. For a separate approach to joining files before they are sent to YouTube Live, see using FFmpeg concat files for a nonstop podcast stream. That is a different workflow from configuring an OBS playlist source.
Prevent the Mac from sleeping during the stream
Configure macOS power and sleep settings so the computer does not go to sleep during the unattended broadcast. The exact controls and labels depend on the macOS release and Mac model, so check the current System Settings on the machine you will use. Connect the Mac to reliable power as appropriate, and confirm that the lid, display or other power settings will not trigger sleep in your actual arrangement.
Turning off the display is not necessarily the same as putting the Mac to sleep. Decide whether you need the display on, but verify that the system itself remains awake. A dim or dark display may be acceptable for a headless or unattended setup, while system sleep can stop OBS from doing its work. Do not rely on a setting name alone; test the behaviour in the same configuration you plan to leave overnight.
Keep the Mac in a place where it can stay powered and ventilated. Check that the power connection is secure and that cables are not likely to be disturbed. If the Mac is on battery, do not assume a long stream will continue simply because it began with charge remaining. The appropriate preparation depends on the machine and the room; no sleep setting can compensate for loss of power.
A local video can keep repeating while the computer is awake, but a sleeping computer is not an active streaming system. Conversely, a Mac that stays awake does not prove that the media source is looping or that the network connection will remain available. Keep these checks separate rather than treating “prevent sleep” as a general reliability switch.
Enable OBS Automatic Reconnect for recoverable drops
OBS has an Automatic Reconnect setting in its Advanced settings. The OBS Studio Overview Guide describes configuring it for streaming. Find the setting in the version installed on your Mac, enable it and review its available options. OBS interfaces can change, so follow the labels in your build rather than assuming every version presents the same controls.
Reconnect is intended to help when a stream connection drops and can be recovered. It is not a remedy for a video that finished without looping, a Mac that entered sleep, a power cut, invalid stream credentials or every service-side interruption. If OBS repeatedly reconnects, investigate the network path and the platform’s current guidance instead of assuming the retry itself has solved the underlying cause.
For a YouTube stream, verify the stream key and broadcast configuration before the test. Treat credentials as sensitive: do not include a key in a screenshot or share it in a troubleshooting post. If a connection fails, collect the OBS log and note the time and the message shown. That evidence is more useful than repeatedly toggling unrelated media settings.
A dropped connection can have causes beyond the Mac, including local network changes or a service interruption. If the symptom is specifically a connection failure, the checks in YouTube RTMPS connection troubleshooting may offer a useful starting point for distinguishing connection details from playback problems. Its network context is not a universal diagnosis for every Mac or connection.
Understand the documented sleep-related capture issue
OBS has a documented issue report describing macOS Screen Capture freezing after a Mac wakes from sleep in a specific older configuration: macOS 13 with OBS 29.1.1. The OBS Studio GitHub issue records that context. The report’s author described restarting OBS or switching to another scene collection and back as a way to restore capture in that case.
Treat this as a version-specific report, not proof that every current OBS build, macOS release or local Media Source will fail after sleep. It concerns macOS Screen Capture in the reported setup; it does not establish that a local video source has the same behaviour. The practical lesson is narrower: if your scene uses screen capture, sleep and wake are worth testing, and preventing sleep avoids depending on a recovery step that may not suit your broadcast.
If your stream uses a camera, display capture or other live input alongside the loop, distinguish a frozen capture source from a frozen local file. Check the preview and source properties. A media source may still be playing even when a capture source in the same scene is frozen, or the reverse may be true. Restarting OBS can disrupt an otherwise active broadcast, so do not make it the first response without identifying the symptom.
Software compatibility also changes over time. Before updating or troubleshooting a particular Mac, check OBS’s macOS compatibility table for the operating system and processor architecture in use. Its listed compatible versions can change; verify the current table rather than relying on a version number remembered from an earlier setup.
Test the full unattended setup
Run a supervised test using the actual scene collection, source files, output settings, Mac power arrangement and network that will be used overnight. Confirm that the video reaches its end and begins again. For a playlist, confirm that the next item loads and that the final item returns to the first one. Watch a scene change if the source can be hidden, and confirm that the expected audio continues.
Then check the stream as a viewer would see it, not only in the OBS preview. Confirm that YouTube receives the broadcast and that picture and sound remain acceptable. OBS recommends testing stream settings and scenes in advance in its overview guidance. A short preview confirms that the connection works at that moment; it does not establish that the same network or service will remain available all night.
Make a simple record of the settings that matter: the source type, Loop or Loop Playlist state, visibility behaviour, sleep configuration and Automatic Reconnect status. If you later change an OBS version, macOS release, video file or scene, repeat the relevant test. A change can introduce a new variable even when the channel appeared stable previously.
If something fails, preserve the OBS log before restarting or changing multiple settings. Note whether the file stopped, the scene capture froze, OBS reported a disconnection, or the entire Mac was asleep. OBS’s system requirements page cautions that compatible hardware alone does not guarantee streaming capability; load depends on factors such as encoder, resolution, frame rate and scene complexity. If OBS struggles, simplify the scene or use the Auto-Configuration Wizard as a starting point, then test the actual output.
You can also watch the stream remotely from another device during the test. That helps reveal a viewer-side blank picture or interruption that might not be obvious from the Mac’s local preview. Check that the remote device is not simply showing a stale player state: refresh or reopen the live page if the picture appears frozen, and compare with OBS’s status and log.
Know the limits of these safeguards
Loop, sleep prevention and reconnect each cover a bounded failure mode. Loop repeats a source when its playback reaches the end. Keeping the Mac awake avoids one class of sleep-related interruption. Automatic Reconnect may help restore a recoverable stream connection. None of them ensures the stream stays live through every software fault, network outage, power problem, computer failure or platform decision.
YouTube’s treatment of a broadcast, stream-key behaviour and any runtime or service-side conditions can change. Check YouTube’s current official guidance for the specific live workflow and account you use. The OBS settings described here cannot establish whether a platform will accept a broadcast or keep it active under every circumstance.
If a channel must continue while your Mac is switched off, a desktop OBS setup is not a fit for that requirement: OBS needs a running computer to operate. A hosted workflow can remove the need to keep your own computer running. For example, StreamNeo takes an uploaded video and runs it as a YouTube live stream, so you do not have to leave OBS open on your Mac; it remains YouTube-only, and it does not remove the need to prepare suitable content or check YouTube’s current rules.
If the channel’s format is more involved than a single looping file, such as scheduled news items, compare the workflow with ways to schedule recorded news videos on YouTube Live. Choose the approach that matches your need for scene control, playlists and unattended operation. Do not infer from any workflow that approval, delivery or continuous availability is guaranteed.
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FAQ
Will OBS repeat a video forever if I turn on Loop?
The Media Source’s Loop property repeats playback after the video completes, as documented by OBS. That controls media playback, not the Mac’s power state, network connection or YouTube’s handling of the live broadcast. Test the full scene and stream before leaving it unattended.
Does Automatic Reconnect restart a video that has stopped?
No. Automatic Reconnect applies to a recoverable stream connection loss; it does not restart a source that reached the end without looping. Check the source’s Loop setting and diagnose connection errors separately.
Can I turn off the Mac’s display overnight?
A display turning off is not necessarily the same as the Mac sleeping, but exact power controls vary by model and macOS release. Verify the system stays awake in your planned setup and test it before relying on it. Sleep prevention does not protect against power loss or other failures.
Is the sleep-related capture report proof that OBS will freeze on my Mac?
No. The cited report concerns macOS Screen Capture on macOS 13 with OBS 29.1.1, not every current version or every local media source. Check current compatibility guidance and test the sources and scenes your channel actually uses.