Jitsi Meet is a powerful open-source video conferencing platform. But like any real-time communication system, it can run into issues—from video/audio glitches to full-blown connection failures. Debugging Jitsi Meet can be tricky due to its multi-component architecture. This guide walks you through a systematic approach to identify and resolve common server-side issues.
1. Understand the Architecture
Before diving into logs, it's important to understand Jitsi Meet's core components:
- Jitsi Meet (Web UI) – The front-end interface.
- Jicofo (Focus component) – Manages conference sessions.
- Prosody (XMPP Server) – Handles user authentication and signaling.
- JVB (Jitsi Videobridge) – Routes video/audio streams.
- Nginx or Apache – Web server proxy (often with HTTPS and WebSocket forwarding).
Knowing how these interact helps pinpoint the failing layer.
2. Check Logs in the Right Places
Each component has its own logs. Check them in the following order:
✅ Prosody Logs
Location:
/var/log/prosody/prosody.log
and
prosody.err
Look for: Authentication issues, connection denials, or component registration problems.
✅ Jicofo Logs
Location:
/var/log/jitsi/jicofo.log
Look for: Room creation errors, XMPP connection failures, conference creation attempts.
✅ JVB Logs
Location:
/var/log/jitsi/jvb.log
Look for: ICE failures, STUN/TURN issues, packet loss, and bridge reachability.
✅ Web Server Logs (Nginx/Apache)
Location (Nginx):
/var/log/nginx/error.log
and
access.log
Look for: HTTP errors (404, 502), WebSocket connection problems.
✅ Browser Console Logs
Tools: Press
F12
in browser → Console/Network tabs.
Look for: WebSocket failures, CORS issues, or media permission problems.
3. Common Problems & Fixes
"Failed to join conference"
- Cause: Prosody may not be running or not configured correctly.
Fix: Restart Prosody and check domain configuration in
/etc/prosody/conf.avail/
No Audio or Video
Usual Cause: Media not reaching the bridge or blocked by firewall
Fix:
- Verify JVB is listening on correct ports (UDP 10000).
- Check firewall/NAT settings (especially on cloud VMs).
- Use
tcpdumporssto check traffic flow.
WebSocket Connection Fails
Usual Cause: Web server (Proxy) misconfiguration.
Fix:
Ensure Nginx is forwarding WebSocket requests to
/xmpp-websocket/
.
Add proper proxy settings in
nginx.conf
Authentication Not Working
Cause: Misconfigured JWT or internal authentication.
Fix:
- Check Prosody's config for authentication method.
- If using JWT, verify token structure and shared secret.
4. Use Debugging Tools
- Jitsi Meet in debug mode:
Add
#config.debug=true
to your meeting URL.
- ICE Debugging:
Check
about:webrtc(Firefox) or WebRTC Internals (Chrome).
Look at ICE candidate gathering and connectivity checks.
Test TURN/STUN:-
Use tools like trickle-ice to validate your server's ICE configuration.
-
5. Networking and Firewall Checks
Make sure these ports are open:
- TCP 443 – HTTPS
- UDP 10000 – Media (JVB)
- TCP 4443 – (Optional, fallback media)
- TCP 5222 – XMPP (if not using BOSH/WebSocket)
# ss -tuln ufw status
6. Component Health Checks
Do
# systemctl status
for each main jitsi component services:
# systemctl status prosody
# systemctl status jicofo
# systemctl status jitsi-videobridge2
Check uptime, errors, or failure restarts.
7. Enable More Verbose Logs
Increase logging levels for deeper debugging:
- Prosody: Edit
/etc/prosody/prosody.cfg.lua→ setlog = { ... debug = "*"}. - Jicofo/JVB: Edit
/etc/jitsi/jicofo/logging.propertiesand/etc/jitsi/videobridge/logging.properties
→ change log level toFINEorALL.
8. Update & Restart Services
Sometimes updates or configs don’t apply until services are restarted:
# apt update && apt upgrade systemctl restart prosody jicofo jitsi-videobridge2 nginx
Final Closure Thoughts
Debugging Jitsi Meet requires a structured approach, start from the user-facing symptoms, trace through each service, and verify network and authentication configurations.
Debug the status of prosody, jicofo and jitsi-videobridge2, check the firewall openings are okay to the jitsi server
With some log analysis and a bit of patience, experimentation and the help of forums or Artificial Intelligence tool like ChatGPT, the Jitsi server errors will get solved.
