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iggypop's avatar
iggypop
New member | Level 2
10 months ago

Slow playback when streaming with AVPlayer

We’re building an iOS App that streams mp4 video files from DropBox. We use SDK’s getTemporaryLink method and feed the returned URL to AVPlayer(url: …). The streaming doesn’t start until after a few seconds/minutes depending on the size of the file. Same issue when opening this link in a regular Safari tab. When opening the file directly in Dropbox website the video plays fine.

17 Replies

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  • iggypop's avatar
    iggypop
    New member | Level 2
    9 months ago

    eg we used this link, but it is slow....

    https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/3kv1n4r0d9odx4gtbornr/GX010667.MP4?rlkey=ufmmjtu9c49ah0c7pvogc8d92&st=dop7lgeg&dl=0&raw=1

    (VLC takes long time to load as well)

  • iggypop's avatar
    iggypop
    New member | Level 2
    9 months ago

    The problem is not only in the app but also in Safari when opening the links obtained with getTemporaryLink. rlkey=YYY&st=dop7lgeglong time to load.

    https://XXXXX.dl.dropboxusercontent.com/cd/0/get/ZZZZZZZZZZZ/file


    When we use links obtained through the usual sharing mechanism and add “raw=1” to them they display the same behavior. Video loads slowly

    https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/XXXX/ZZZ.MP4?rlkey=YYY&st=dop7lgeg&dl=0&raw=1

  • DB-Des's avatar
    DB-Des
    Icon for Dropbox Community Moderator rankDropbox Community Moderator
    10 months ago

    iggypop,

    Since video playback is working as expected on our platform, the issue may be related to the iOS app's implementation. We recommend further troubleshooting on your end, as we are not iOS developers and cannot provide specific guidance for Apple development.

    The only other thing we can suggest from our end is making edits to the shared links, as described in: https://help.dropbox.com/share/force-download

    Additionally, you may want to check factors such as:

    • How the video is being loaded and played within your app
    • Any platform-specific restrictions or optimizations in iOS
    • Network conditions or caching behaviors affecting playback

     

    If needed, consulting Apple’s developer documentation or seeking guidance from iOS development resources may be helpful.

  • iggypop's avatar
    iggypop
    New member | Level 2
    10 months ago

    Hello

    thank you for your answer!

    What do you mean with „you could always reach out to the other platforms' support teams for further guidance on optimizing performance“? Our iOS App is not really able to play most of videos with acceptable quality, however the official dropbox app is. Therefore we need some kind of guidance to solve this problem.

  • DB-Des's avatar
    DB-Des
    Icon for Dropbox Community Moderator rankDropbox Community Moderator
    10 months ago

    iggypop, as previously mentioned, it’s important to note that the official Dropbox app may use different mechanisms and infrastructure for various pieces of functionality compared to other platforms. As such, comparing the behavior between these platforms may not always provide an accurate or reliable source of truth.

    That said, besides the previously suggested troubleshooting steps, you could always reach out to the other platforms' support teams for further guidance on optimizing performance.

  • iggypop's avatar
    iggypop
    New member | Level 2
    10 months ago

    Hello

    thank you for you answer! We are accessing the video from an own OS app. If we access the same video through the official dropbox app, then it runs fine. What do we need to consider? Can we somehow affect the playback quality (eg just 480p)? Many thanks  

  • DB-Des's avatar
    DB-Des
    Icon for Dropbox Community Moderator rankDropbox Community Moderator
    10 months ago

    Hi iggypop

    There are several factors that could affect playback speed on external platforms. Since playback speed on external platforms is beyond our control, we recommend checking:

    • Network connection issues (bandwidth limitations, ISP throttling, congestion, etc.)
    • Platform-specific playback optimizations or limitations
    • Browser or device performance
    • Resolution and file size impacting buffering times

    You may want to try testing playback on different networks, clearing your browser cache, or lowering the resolution settings on the platform you're using.

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