> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.daily.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Multi-instance live streaming and recording

> Run independent live streaming and recording instances in a single Daily room, each with its own layout.

Daily allows multiple live streaming and recording instances to run simultaneously within a single room. Each instance is independently controllable with its own layout.

<Note>
  Multi-instance is not the same as sending one stream to multiple destinations. A single live streaming instance already supports sending to multiple RTMP endpoints simultaneously. Multi-instance is for generating independent *compositions* — for example, a portrait layout for mobile and a landscape layout for desktop.
</Note>

## Use cases

* Generating a portrait layout for mobile viewers and a landscape layout for desktop viewers
* Presenting an enhanced layout to users with more features enabled (such as premium features or moderation views)
* Defining separate layouts for a live stream and a recording of the same event

## Architecture

Daily uses the same underlying infrastructure for recording and live streaming. Recording and live streaming instances that share an `instanceId` are linked — updating the layout of one updates the other.

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/daily-co/k5NXwOZS3v6Jul7S/assets/guide-multi-instance.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=k5NXwOZS3v6Jul7S&q=85&s=2e731aa9e2bd50b56ad1c38c8a2520a7" alt="Multi-instance live streaming and recording architecture" width="1520" height="620" data-path="assets/guide-multi-instance.png" />

<Info>
  Recording and live streaming with the same `instanceId` are interlinked. [Updating](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/update-live-streaming) the layout of a live streaming instance will also affect the recording instance (if any) of that ID.
</Info>

## Setting up multi-instance

First, contact [Daily support](https://www.daily.co/contact/support) to configure `max_streaming_instances_per_room` for your domain.

Then pass a unique `instanceId` (a valid UUID) to [`startLiveStreaming()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/start-live-streaming) or [`startRecording()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/start-recording):

```javascript theme={null}
await call.startLiveStreaming({
  rtmpUrl: ['your_rtmp_url'],
  instanceId: 'YOUR_UUID',
  width: 1280,
  height: 720,
});
```

To update the layout for an existing live stream, use the [`updateLiveStreaming()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/update-live-streaming) or [`updateRecording()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/update-recording) call object instance methods:

```javascript theme={null}
await call.updateLiveStreaming({
  instanceId: 'YOUR_UUID',
  layout: { preset: 'active-participant' },
});
```

To stop a specific live streaming or recording instance, pass its `instanceId` to the [`stopLiveStreaming()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/stop-live-streaming) or [`stopRecording()`](/reference/daily-js/instance-methods/stop-recording) call object instance method:

```javascript theme={null}
await call.stopLiveStreaming({
  instanceId: 'YOUR_UUID',
});
```

When `instanceId` is provided, all subsequent calls to `updateLiveStreaming()`, `stopLiveStreaming()`, `updateRecording()`, and `stopRecording()` must include the same `instanceId`.

If no `instanceId` is provided, Daily assigns the reserved default ID `'c3df927c-f738-4471-a2b7-066fa7e95a6b'`.

All [live streaming](/reference/daily-js/events/live-streaming-events#live-streaming-started) and [recording](/reference/daily-js/events/recording-events#recording-started) events include an `instanceId` field so your app can distinguish between running instances.

## Using multi-instance with daily-react

**Per-instance state**

The [`useRecording`](/reference/daily-react/use-recording) and [`useLiveStreaming`](/reference/daily-react/use-live-streaming) hooks accept an optional `instanceId` for per-instance state:

```jsx theme={null}
import { useRecording, useLiveStreaming } from '@daily-co/daily-react';

// instanceId must be a valid UUID
const PORTRAIT_INSTANCE = 'a1b2c3d4-5678-9abc-def0-1234567890ab';
const MOBILE_INSTANCE = 'c3d4e5f6-789a-bcde-f012-3456789abcde';

// State for a specific recording instance
const portraitRecording = useRecording({
  instanceId: PORTRAIT_INSTANCE,
});

// State for a specific live streaming instance
const mobileStream = useLiveStreaming({
  instanceId: MOBILE_INSTANCE,
});
```

When `instanceId` is provided, event callbacks are also filtered to only fire for that instance:

```jsx theme={null}
const { isRecording } = useRecording({
  instanceId: PORTRAIT_INSTANCE,
  onRecordingStarted: (ev) => {
    // Only fires when this instance starts
    console.log('Portrait recording started');
  },
});
```

**Aggregate state**

Without `instanceId`, hooks return aggregate state across all instances — `isRecording` and `isLiveStreaming` are `true` if any instance is active:

```jsx theme={null}
const { isRecording } = useRecording();
// true if ANY recording instance is active
```

**Listing all instances**

To get an array of all instance states, use `useRecordingInstances` and `useLiveStreamingInstances`:

```jsx theme={null}
import {
  useRecordingInstances,
  useLiveStreamingInstances,
} from '@daily-co/daily-react';

const recordingInstances = useRecordingInstances();
const streamingInstances = useLiveStreamingInstances();

// Each instance has its own state (isRecording, layout, instanceId, etc.)
recordingInstances.forEach((instance) => {
  console.log(`${instance.instanceId}: ${instance.isRecording}`);
});
```

## Billing

Each instance is billed separately. Two instances running for 60 minutes = 120 streaming minutes billed.