Configuration

The sample configuration file shows all options and their default options. Start with a copy of this file and then modify it as needed.

cp example_config.yml config.yml
sensible-editor config.yml

The only value that must be set is the audio capture device. If the video capture device is set to None, only audio will be recorded.

Audio capture devices and their capabilities can be listed using:

ffmpeg -loglevel warning -sources alsa

Sample Output:

Auto-detected sources for alsa:
null [Discard all samples (playback) or generate zero samples (capture)]
hw:CARD=Snowflake,DEV=0 [Direct hardware device without any conversions]
plughw:CARD=Snowflake,DEV=0 [Hardware device with all software conversions]
default:CARD=Snowflake [Default Audio Device]
sysdefault:CARD=Snowflake [Default Audio Device]
front:CARD=Snowflake,DEV=0 [Front output / input]
dsnoop:CARD=Snowflake,DEV=0 [Direct sample snooping device]

In the above example, hw:CARD=Snowflake,DEV=0 is one valid string that can be used for configuration. It is wise to test all available options to determine which will yield the most complete result.

Video capture devices and their capabilities can be listed using:

v4l2-ctl --list-devices --all

Sample Output:

Integrated Camera: Integrated C (usb-0000:64:00.4-1):
        /dev/video0
        /dev/video1
        /dev/video2
        /dev/media0
        /dev/media1

Lenovo 500 RGB Camera: Lenovo 5 (usb-0000:01:00.0-1.2):
        /dev/video3
        /dev/video4
        /dev/media2

[...]

Format Video Capture:
        Width/Height      : 1920/1080
        Pixel Format      : 'MJPG' (Motion-JPEG)
        [...]
Streaming Parameters Video Capture:
        Capabilities     : timeperframe
        Frames per second: 5.000 (5/1)

[...]

This sample output provided shows a webcam that can record at a maximum resolution of 1920x1080 at a framerate of 5. Note that only “video” devices should be used as a video capture device.