# What Is MediaLive?
AWS Elemental MediaLive is a real-time video service that lets you create live outputs for broadcast and streaming delivery.
You use MediaLive to transform live video content from one format and package into other formats and packages. You typically need to transform the content in order to provide a format and package that a playback device can handle. Playback devices include smartphones and set-top boxes attached to televisions.
**Topics**
+ [MediaLive Terminology](what-is-terminology.md)
+ [Related Services](related-services.md)
+ [Accessing MediaLive](what-is-accessing.md)
# MediaLive Terminology
CDN
A content distribution network (CDN) is a network of servers that is downstream of the origin server or packager. The CDN distributes the content from the origin server to dozens or hundreds of networked servers that serve the content to your viewing users. This distributed network ensures that content can be delivered to thousands or millions of viewing users simultaneously.
Channel
A MediaLive channel ingests and transcodes (decodes and encodes) source content from the inputs that are attached to that channel, and packages the new content into outputs.
Channel class
Each channel belongs to one of the following classes:
+ Standard class – a channel has two processing pipelines
+ Single-pipeline class – a channel has one processing pipeline
Channel configuration
A MediaLive channel configuration contains information about how the channel ingests, transcodes, and packages content into output.
Downstream system
The *downstream system* is a set of one or more servers that is positioned after MediaLive in the workflow. The downstream system handles the content that is output from MediaLive.
Encode
An encode exists within an output. There are three types of encodes: video, audio, and captions. Each encode contains the instructions for one video stream, one audio stream, or one captions track that the transcoding process will create. Different encodes have different characteristics. For example, one video encode produced from the input might be high resolution while another is low resolution.
Input
A MediaLive input holds information that describes how the upstream system and the MediaLive channel are connected. The input identifies endpoints (IP addresses) in MediaLive (for a push input, where the upstream system pushes to MediaLive) or source IP addresses on the upstream system (for a pull input, where MediaLive pulls from the upstream system). MediaLive has different input types for different formats and protocols of the source content. For example, HLS input and RTMP Push input.
Input security group
A MediaLive input security group is a set of one or more ranges of IP addresses that define an allow list. You associate one or more input security groups with a push input in order to identify a range of IP addresses that are allowed to push content to the input.
Output
An output exists within an output group. It is a collection of encodes that you want to handle as one set.
Origin service
An origin service might be part of the downstream system that is positioned after MediaLive in the workflow. It accepts the video output from MediaLive.
Output Group
An output group is a collection of outputs within the MediaLive channel.
Packager
A packager might be part of the downstream system. It accepts the video output from MediaLive and repackages it. AWS Elemental MediaPackage is a packager.
Pipeline
In MediaLive, there are one or two separate and independent pipelines that perform the processing within the MediaLive input and the MediaLive channel.
Playback device
A playback device is the final component of the downstream system. It is the device that the people who are your audience use to view the video.
Schedule
Each MediaLive channel has an associated schedule. The schedule contains a list of actions to perform in the channel at a specific time.
Source content
The video content that MediaLive transcodes. The content typically consists of video, audio, captions, and metadata.
Upstream system
The system that is in front of MediaLive in the workflow and that holds the source content. Examples of an upstream system are a streaming camera or appliance that is directly connected to the internet, or a contribution encoder that is located in a stadium at a sports event.
# Related Services
**Amazon CloudWatch** is a monitoring service for AWS Cloud resources and the applications that you run on AWS. Use CloudWatch to track MediaLive events about the progress of running channels and to view metrics about your resources.
**AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) ** is a web service that helps you securely control access to AWS resources for your users. Use IAM to control who can use your AWS resources (authentication) and what resources users can use in which ways (authorization).
**AWS Elemental MediaPackage** is a just-in-time video packaging and origination service that runs in the AWS Cloud. You can use AWS Elemental MediaPackage to package content that has been encoded by MediaLive.
**AWS Elemental MediaConnect** is a transport service for live video that runs in the AWS Cloud. You can use MediaConnect as a source for video to transcode.
**AWS Elemental MediaStore** is a video origination and storage service that offers the high performance and immediate consistency required for live and on-demand media. You can use AWS Elemental MediaStore to store assets that MediaLive retrieves and uses when transcoding, and as a destination for output from MediaLive.
**AWS Resource Groups** includes a tagging editor that lets you assign metadata to AWS resources. You can use Tag Editor to assign metadata to MediaLive channels and other resources.
**Amazon Simple Storage Service** **(Amazon S3)** is storage for the internet. You can use Amazon S3 to store assets that MediaLive retrieves and uses when transcoding, and as a destination for output from MediaLive.
**AWS Systems Manager** lets you store passwords in MediaLive in a secure manner, rather than storing them as plaintext. If you connect to external servers that you provide user credentials for, it is likely that you will have to use Systems Manager.
**Amazon Virtual Private Cloud** lets you set up your own virtual network within the AWS Cloud. Use Amazon VPC as the location for an upstream system, so that the transfer of source content is within a private cloud.
# Accessing MediaLive
You can access MediaLive using any of the following methods:
+ **AWS Management Console** – The procedures throughout this guide explain how to use the AWS Management Console to perform tasks for AWS Elemental MediaLive.
+ **AWS SDKs** – If you're using a programming language that AWS provides an SDK for, you can use an SDK to access AWS Elemental MediaLive. SDKs simplify authentication, integrate easily with your development environment, and provide easy access to MediaLive commands. For more information, see [Tools for Amazon Web Services](https://aws.amazon.com/tools).
+ **AWS Elemental MediaLive API** – If you're using a programming language that an SDK isn't available for, see the [AWS Elemental MediaLive API Reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/medialive/latest/apireference/) for information about API actions and about how to make API requests.
+ **AWS Command Line Interface** – For more information, see the [AWS Command Line Interface User Guide](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/userguide/).
+ **AWS Tools for Windows PowerShell** – For more information, see the [AWS Tools for PowerShell User Guide](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/powershell/latest/userguide/).