Optimize Recording
Live stream recordings start life in a format optimized for instant replay — great for the first few days after a service, wasteful for long-term storage. Optimize Recording compresses a past recording into a smaller file, saving 40-60% of the storage it used before.
What the button does
When you click Optimize Recording on a sermon, the app shows this prompt:
Optimize Recording? Compress "[sermon title]" to save storage.
This downloads the recording, compresses it on this device, then replaces the original. Same quality, smaller size.
Click Optimize to start. There's no quality trade-off toggle — the app uses a balanced compression preset that keeps visual quality high while meaningfully reducing file size.
When to optimize
- Wait 1-3 days after the stream — members watching the immediate replay get the full original-quality recording
- Before the next service — keeps storage usage consistent per week
- Anytime storage bills spike — batch-optimize old sermons to reclaim space
Optimization runs on your laptop because it's CPU-intensive. The option doesn't appear on mobile.
How to run optimize
- Open the Church Admin desktop app
- Click Sermons in the sidebar
- Find the sermon to optimize
- Three-dot menu → Optimize Recording
- Confirm when prompted
- Watch the progress dialog:
| Progress | Stage |
|---|---|
| 5% | Downloading the original recording |
| 45% | Compressing locally on your laptop |
| 70% | Uploading the compressed file to your cloud storage |
| 85% | Updating the sermon record to point to the new file |
| 90% | Cleaning up the original files from your bucket |
| 100% | Done |
Once done, the Optimize Recording option disappears for that sermon — each sermon can only be optimized once.
How long does it take
For a 60-minute sermon at 720p:
| Laptop | Approx time |
|---|---|
| Recent M-series Mac or i7/Ryzen 7 | 15-25 min |
| Older laptop (5+ years) | 40-60 min |
Most of the time is the compression stage — download and upload are usually under a minute each on a decent connection.
Storage savings
Typical 60-minute sermon at 720p:
| State | File size |
|---|---|
| Original recording | ~1.5 GB |
| After optimize | ~700 MB |
Exact savings vary with source bitrate and content (static pulpit shots compress more than dynamic camera cuts).
After optimization
- The sermon plays from the new compressed file — members see no change in quality
- The Optimize Recording menu option is hidden for that sermon
- The optimized state is remembered across app restarts
- The old files are removed from your bucket — storage freed immediately
When not to optimize
- The sermon is still being actively watched — wait a few days so early viewers get the higher-quality original
- You're on metered internet — the laptop downloads the full recording then uploads a compressed version
- Laptop battery is low — compression is CPU-heavy; plug in first
Troubleshooting
"Cannot optimize — missing recording info" — The sermon data is incomplete (no church or session ID attached). Usually fixes itself if you pull-to-refresh the sermon list.
Stuck at 5% (downloading) — Check your internet connection. A segment download that takes more than 30 seconds is retried automatically.
Stuck at 45% (compressing) — Compression takes time. A 60-min sermon may show no progress movement for 5-10 minutes on an average laptop — that's normal.
Failure mid-process — The original recording is preserved. Retry — the button reappears after a failure.
Optimize option keeps showing after success — Close and reopen the Church Admin desktop app. The optimized flag is saved locally and applied on next list load.