How many files should be in listed in the index file during a continuous, ongoing session?
The specification requires at least 3 media files be listed in the index file, but the optimum number may be larger. The client identifies an ongoing session by the lack of an #EXT-X-ENDLIST tag in the index file. The client does not allow the user to seek into the last two files in the index for ongoing broadcasts. Periodically, the client requests a new copy of the index. The important point to consider when choosing the optimum number is that the number of files available during a live session constrains the client’s behavior when doing play/pause and seeking operations. The longer the list, the longer the client can be paused without losing its place in the broadcast, the further back in the broadcast a new client begins, and the wider the time range within which the client can seek. The trade-off is that a longer index file adds to network overhead—during live broadcasts, the clients are all refreshing the index file regularly, so it does add up, even though the index file is typi
