SHOUTcast is a free and open-source Streaming Server. Cross-platform streaming media server

Hardware Requirements:

CPU: 2 cores minimum (4+ cores recommended)

RAM: 2GB minimum (4GB+ recommended)

Storage: 1GB for installation

Network: 8000 ports

Operating System:

Linux: Any modern distribution (RHEL, Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS, Fedora, Arch, Alpine, openSUSE)

macOS: 10.14+ (Mojave or newer)

Windows: Windows Server 2016+ or Windows 10

FreeBSD: 11.0+

Network Requirements:

Port 8000 (default shoutcast port)

Dependencies:

none

System Access: root or sudo privileges required

This guide supports installation on:

RHEL 8/9 and derivatives (CentOS Stream, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux)

Debian 11/12

Ubuntu 20.04/22.04/24.04 LTS

Arch Linux (rolling release)

Alpine Linux 3.18+

openSUSE Leap 15.5+ / Tumbleweed

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 15+

macOS 12+ (Monterey and later)

FreeBSD 13+

Windows 10/11/Server 2019+ (where applicable)

bash

# Install EPEL repository if needed
sudo dnf install -y epel-release

# Install shoutcast
sudo dnf install -y shoutcast none

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now sc_serv

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=shoutcast
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || systemctl status sc_serv

bash

# Update package index
sudo apt update

# Install shoutcast
sudo apt install -y shoutcast none

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now sc_serv

# Configure firewall
sudo ufw allow 8000

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || systemctl status sc_serv

bash

# Install shoutcast
sudo pacman -S shoutcast

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now sc_serv

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || systemctl status sc_serv

bash

# Install shoutcast
apk add --no-cache shoutcast

# Enable and start service
rc-update add sc_serv default
rc-service sc_serv start

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || rc-service sc_serv status

bash

# Install shoutcast
sudo zypper install -y shoutcast none

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl enable --now sc_serv

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=shoutcast
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || systemctl status sc_serv

bash

# Using Homebrew
brew install shoutcast

# Start service
brew services start shoutcast

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version

bash

# Using pkg
pkg install shoutcast

# Enable in rc.conf
echo 'sc_serv_enable="YES"' >> /etc/rc.conf

# Start service
service sc_serv start

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version || service sc_serv status

powershell

# Using Chocolatey
choco install shoutcast

# Or using Scoop
scoop install shoutcast

# Verify installation
shoutcast --version

bash

# Create configuration directory if needed
sudo mkdir -p /opt/shoutcast

# Set up basic configuration
sudo tee /opt/shoutcast/shoutcast.conf << 'EOF'
# SHOUTcast Configuration
maxuser=1000
EOF

# Test configuration
sudo shoutcast -t || sudo sc_serv configtest

# Reload service
sudo systemctl reload sc_serv

bash

# Set appropriate permissions
sudo chown -R shoutcast:shoutcast /opt/shoutcast
sudo chmod 750 /opt/shoutcast

# Enable security features
# See security section for detailed hardening steps

bash

# Enable service
sudo systemctl enable sc_serv

# Start service
sudo systemctl start sc_serv

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop sc_serv

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart sc_serv

# Reload configuration
sudo systemctl reload sc_serv

# Check status
sudo systemctl status sc_serv

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u sc_serv -f

bash

# Enable service
rc-update add sc_serv default

# Start service
rc-service sc_serv start

# Stop service
rc-service sc_serv stop

# Restart service
rc-service sc_serv restart

# Check status
rc-service sc_serv status

bash

# Enable in /etc/rc.conf
echo 'sc_serv_enable="YES"' >> /etc/rc.conf

# Start service
service sc_serv start

# Stop service
service sc_serv stop

# Restart service
service sc_serv restart

# Check status
service sc_serv status

bash

# Using Homebrew services
brew services start shoutcast
brew services stop shoutcast
brew services restart shoutcast

# Check status
brew services list | grep shoutcast

powershell

# Start service
net start sc_serv

# Stop service
net stop sc_serv

# Using PowerShell
Start-Service sc_serv
Stop-Service sc_serv
Restart-Service sc_serv

# Check status
Get-Service sc_serv

bash

# Configure performance settings
cat >> /opt/shoutcast/shoutcast.conf << 'EOF'
maxuser=1000
EOF

# Apply system tuning
sudo sysctl -w net.core.somaxconn=65535
sudo sysctl -w net.ipv4.tcp_max_syn_backlog=65535

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart sc_serv

bash

# Configure clustering (if supported)
# See official documentation for cluster setup

# Basic load balancing setup example
# Configure multiple instances on different ports

nginx

upstream shoutcast_backend {
    server 127.0.0.1:8000;
    server 127.0.0.1:{default_port}1 backup;
}

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name shoutcast.example.com;
    return 301 https://$server_name$request_uri;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name shoutcast.example.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/ssl/certs/shoutcast.example.com.crt;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/ssl/private/shoutcast.example.com.key;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://shoutcast_backend;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        
        # WebSocket support (if needed)
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

apache

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName shoutcast.example.com
    Redirect permanent / https://shoutcast.example.com/
</VirtualHost>

<VirtualHost *:443>
    ServerName shoutcast.example.com
    
    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /etc/ssl/certs/shoutcast.example.com.crt
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/ssl/private/shoutcast.example.com.key
    
    ProxyRequests Off
    ProxyPreserveHost On
    
    ProxyPass / http://127.0.0.1:8000/
    ProxyPassReverse / http://127.0.0.1:8000/
    
    # WebSocket support (if needed)
    RewriteEngine on
    RewriteCond %{HTTP:Upgrade} websocket [NC]
    RewriteCond %{HTTP:Connection} upgrade [NC]
    RewriteRule ^/?(.*) "ws://127.0.0.1:8000/$1" [P,L]
</VirtualHost>

haproxy

frontend shoutcast_frontend
    bind *:80
    bind *:443 ssl crt /etc/ssl/certs/shoutcast.pem
    redirect scheme https if !{ ssl_fc }
    default_backend shoutcast_backend

backend shoutcast_backend
    balance roundrobin
    option httpchk GET /health
    server shoutcast1 127.0.0.1:8000 check
    server shoutcast2 127.0.0.1:{default_port}1 check backup

bash

# Set appropriate permissions
sudo chown -R shoutcast:shoutcast /opt/shoutcast
sudo chmod 750 /opt/shoutcast

# Configure firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=shoutcast
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Enable SELinux policies (if applicable)
sudo setsebool -P httpd_can_network_connect on

# Configure fail2ban
sudo tee /etc/fail2ban/jail.d/shoutcast.conf << 'EOF'
[shoutcast]
enabled = true
port = 8000
filter = shoutcast
logpath = /var/log/shoutcast/*.log
maxretry = 5
bantime = 3600
EOF

bash

# Generate SSL certificates
sudo openssl req -x509 -nodes -days 365 -newkey rsa:2048 \
    -keyout /etc/ssl/private/shoutcast.key \
    -out /etc/ssl/certs/shoutcast.crt

# Configure SSL in shoutcast
# See official documentation for SSL configuration

PostgreSQL Backend (if applicable)

bash

# Create database and user
sudo -u postgres psql << EOF
CREATE DATABASE shoutcast_db;
CREATE USER shoutcast_user WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'secure_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE shoutcast_db TO shoutcast_user;
EOF

# Configure shoutcast to use PostgreSQL
# See official documentation for database configuration

bash

# Create database and user
sudo mysql << EOF
CREATE DATABASE shoutcast_db;
CREATE USER 'shoutcast_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'secure_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON shoutcast_db.* TO 'shoutcast_user'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EOF

bash

# Kernel parameters
sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf << EOF
net.core.somaxconn = 65535
net.ipv4.tcp_max_syn_backlog = 65535
net.ipv4.ip_local_port_range = 1024 65535
net.core.netdev_max_backlog = 5000
vm.swappiness = 10
EOF

sudo sysctl -p

# SHOUTcast specific tuning
maxuser=1000

bash

# Configure system limits
sudo tee -a /etc/security/limits.conf << EOF
shoutcast soft nofile 65535
shoutcast hard nofile 65535
shoutcast soft nproc 32768
shoutcast hard nproc 32768
EOF

yaml

# prometheus.yml configuration
scrape_configs:
  - job_name: 'shoutcast'
    static_configs:
      - targets: ['localhost:8000']
    metrics_path: '/metrics'

bash

# Basic health check script
#!/bin/bash
if systemctl is-active --quiet sc_serv; then
    echo "SHOUTcast is running"
    exit 0
else
    echo "SHOUTcast is not running"
    exit 1
fi

bash

# Configure log rotation
sudo tee /etc/logrotate.d/shoutcast << 'EOF'
/var/log/shoutcast/*.log {
    daily
    rotate 14
    compress
    delaycompress
    missingok
    notifempty
    create 0640 shoutcast shoutcast
    postrotate
        systemctl reload sc_serv > /dev/null 2>&1 || true
    endscript
}
EOF

bash

#!/bin/bash
# SHOUTcast backup script
BACKUP_DIR="/backup/shoutcast"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)

mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"

# Stop service (if required)
systemctl stop sc_serv

# Backup configuration
tar -czf "$BACKUP_DIR/shoutcast-config-$DATE.tar.gz" /opt/shoutcast

# Backup data (adjust paths as needed)
tar -czf "$BACKUP_DIR/shoutcast-data-$DATE.tar.gz" /var/lib/shoutcast

# Start service
systemctl start sc_serv

# Clean old backups (keep 30 days)
find "$BACKUP_DIR" -name "*.tar.gz" -mtime +30 -delete

echo "Backup completed: $BACKUP_DIR"

bash

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop sc_serv

# Restore configuration
sudo tar -xzf /backup/shoutcast/shoutcast-config-*.tar.gz -C /

# Restore data
sudo tar -xzf /backup/shoutcast/shoutcast-data-*.tar.gz -C /

# Set permissions
sudo chown -R shoutcast:shoutcast /opt/shoutcast
sudo chown -R shoutcast:shoutcast /var/lib/shoutcast

# Start service
sudo systemctl start sc_serv

1. Service won't start:

bash

# Check logs
sudo journalctl -u sc_serv -n 100
sudo tail -f /var/log/shoutcast/*.log

# Check configuration
sudo shoutcast -t || sudo sc_serv configtest

# Check permissions
ls -la /opt/shoutcast
ls -la /var/lib/shoutcast

2. Connection refused:

bash

# Check if service is listening
sudo ss -tlnp | grep 8000
sudo netstat -tlnp | grep 8000

# Check firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --list-all
sudo iptables -L -n

# Test connection
telnet localhost 8000
nc -zv localhost 8000

3. Performance issues:

bash

# Check resource usage
top -p $(pgrep sc_serv)
htop -p $(pgrep sc_serv)

# Check connections
ss -ant | grep :8000 | wc -l

# Monitor I/O
iotop -p $(pgrep sc_serv)

bash

# Run in debug mode
sudo shoutcast -d
# or
sudo sc_serv debug

# Increase log verbosity
# Edit configuration to enable debug logging

yaml

version: '3.8'
services:
  shoutcast:
    image: shoutcast:latest
    container_name: shoutcast
    ports:
      - "8000:8000"
    volumes:
      - ./config:/opt/shoutcast
      - ./data:/var/lib/shoutcast
    environment:
      - shoutcast_CONFIG=/opt/shoutcast/shoutcast.conf
    restart: unless-stopped
    networks:
      - shoutcast_net

networks:
  shoutcast_net:
    driver: bridge

yaml

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: shoutcast
spec:
  replicas: 3
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: shoutcast
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: shoutcast
    spec:
      containers:
      - name: shoutcast
        image: shoutcast:latest
        ports:
        - containerPort: 8000
        volumeMounts:
        - name: config
          mountPath: /opt/shoutcast
      volumes:
      - name: config
        configMap:
          name: shoutcast-config
---
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: shoutcast
spec:
  selector:
    app: shoutcast
  ports:
  - port: 8000
    targetPort: 8000
  type: LoadBalancer

yaml

---
- name: Install and configure SHOUTcast
  hosts: all
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Install shoutcast
      package:
        name: shoutcast
        state: present
    
    - name: Configure shoutcast
      template:
        src: shoutcast.conf.j2
        dest: /opt/shoutcast/shoutcast.conf
        owner: shoutcast
        group: shoutcast
        mode: '0640'
      notify: restart shoutcast
    
    - name: Start and enable shoutcast
      systemd:
        name: sc_serv
        state: started
        enabled: yes
  
  handlers:
    - name: restart shoutcast
      systemd:
        name: sc_serv
        state: restarted

Maintenance

bash

# RHEL/CentOS/Rocky/AlmaLinux
sudo dnf update shoutcast

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade shoutcast

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -Syu shoutcast

# Alpine Linux
apk update && apk upgrade shoutcast

# openSUSE
sudo zypper update shoutcast

# FreeBSD
pkg update && pkg upgrade shoutcast

# Always backup before updates
tar -czf /backup/shoutcast-pre-update-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /opt/shoutcast

# Restart after updates
sudo systemctl restart sc_serv

Regular Maintenance Tasks

bash

# Clean logs
find /var/log/shoutcast -name "*.log" -mtime +30 -delete

# Verify integrity
sudo shoutcast --verify || sudo sc_serv check

# Update databases (if applicable)
sudo shoutcast-update-db

# Optimize performance
sudo shoutcast-optimize

# Check for security updates
sudo shoutcast --security-check

Official Documentation: https://docs.shoutcast.org/

GitHub Repository: https://github.com/shoutcast/shoutcast

Community Forum: https://forum.shoutcast.org/

Wiki: https://wiki.shoutcast.org/

Comparison vs Icecast, Liquidsoap, Azuracast: https://docs.shoutcast.org/comparison

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Note: This guide is part of the HowToMgr collection. Always refer to official documentation for the most up-to-date information.

Streaming servers

Icecast Installation Guide

SHOUTcast Installation Guide