# BigBlueButton Exporter

  

  

Server-side version of the script that enables users to download BigBlueButton 2.3 recordings as a single video file.

  

  

## What's supported?

  

  

✅ Annotations <br  />

  

✅ Captions <br  />

  

✅ Chapters <br  />

  

✅ Chat (with an option to anonymize names) <br  />

  

✅ Cursor <br  />

  

✅ Integration with Greenlight <br  />

  

✅ Polls <br  />

  

✅ Screen shares <br  />

  

✅ Slides<br  />

  

✅ Text <br  />

  

✅ Webcams <br  />

  

✅ Zooms <br  />

  

  

![BigBlueButton recording exporter](/demo/export_example.png)

  

  

## Server-Side Usage

  

Place the file `presentation.rb` in the `/usr/local/bigbluebutton/core/scripts/post_publish` directory with executable rights.

Do the same for the file `lib/interval_tree.rb`, moving it to `/usr/local/bigbluebutton/core/lib/recordandplayback`.

  

After a session is over and the presentation is processed, the script will begin to export the recording as a single video file. It can be accessed and downloaded at https://`your.bbb.hostname`/presentation/`meeting-id`/meeting.mp4 once rendering completes, or directly in the Greenlight interface.

  

The meeting's ID is the alphanumeric string following the 2.3 in the recording's URL.

  

Existing recordings can be re-rendered by running the exporting script on an individual basis:

  

    ./presentation.rb -m <meeting_id> -f presentation

  

Note that this will stop automatic exports unless executed with the `bigbluebutton` user! See the "Troubleshooting" section below.

  

Alternatively,

    bbb-record --rebuild <meeting_id>

  

will rebuild the entire recording (including the playback in the browser).

  

To re-render all existing recordings, run

  

    bbb-record --rebuildall

  

If you do not have access to a BBB server, check out the branch 'client-side'.

  

For caption support, recompile FFmpeg with the `movtext` encoder enabled and uncomment the `add_captions` method.

  

The chat component can be disabled by turning `HIDE_CHAT` on. If you want to keep the messages but anonymize the names, set `HIDE_CHAT_NAMES` to true.

  

### Requirements

  

Root access to a BBB 2.3 server.

  

### Rendering options

If your server supports animated strokes on the whiteboard, set the flag `REMOVE_REDUNDANT_SHAPES` to **true** in `presentation.rb`.

  

Less data can be written on the disk by turning `SVGZ_COMPRESSION` on.

  

To make rendering less resource-intensive, download FFMpeg's source code and replace the file `ffmpeg/libavcodec/librsvgdec.c` with the one in this directory. After compiling and installing FFMpeg, enable `FFMPEG_REFERENCE_SUPPORT` in `presentation.rb` . [Steps by @felcaetano](https://github.com/danielpetri1/bbb-recording-exporter/issues/44#issuecomment-904464887).

  

The video output quality can be controlled with `CONSTANT_RATE_FACTOR`.

  

### Troubleshooting

  

Exports don't start after the meeting ends: `/var/log/bigbluebutton/post_publish.log` and `/var/bigbluebutton/published/video/` must be chowned to `bigbluebutton:bigbluebutton`

  

### Get in touch

  

If this code helped you or you encountered any problems, please do get in touch! This script was developed for my [bachelor's thesis](https://mediatum.ub.tum.de/doc/1632305/1632305.pdf) at the Technical University of Munich, so feedback is welcomed.