Self-hosted video conferencing: what to look for
More organizations refuse to let meeting video, recordings and attendee accounts sit in an outside cloud, so self-hosted video conferencing is on more shortlists. Installing a server is only the start: you also need to check how attendees join, how the media server is built, where recordings live and how access is controlled. This guide lists what to verify before you commit, then shows how NetServ Meeting is put together against those points.
Seven criteria
| Criterion | What to verify |
|---|---|
| How attendees join | Can outside guests enter with just a link and a browser, with nothing to install? |
| Data location | Which servers keep video, audio, recordings and accounts, and who operates them? |
| Media architecture | Does each person upload once as meetings grow (relay/SFU design), and is there a relay for people behind firewalls? |
| Recording and retention | Recording limits, where files are stored, and whether interim saves protect against power or server failures. |
| Access control | Waiting room and approval, role management (RBAC), SSO, audit logs. |
| Sensitive meetings | Can external-AI captions and minutes be switched off per meeting? |
| Operations and cost | Who handles installation, certificates, updates and incidents, and is pricing per attendee or per host? |
How NetServ Meeting is built
Meeting is multi-party video conferencing where attendees join from a browser with nothing to install. With an invite link guests can join without logging in, and phone browsers are supported. Participants do not connect to each other directly; media goes through one relay server (SFU), so each person uploads their video once, and participants who cannot connect because of firewalls or NAT are routed through a relay (TURN) automatically. It offers screen sharing, a whiteboard, MP4 meeting recording stored on the server, a waiting room with host controls, and live captions and translation.
For sensitive meetings, choosing secure meeting mode when creating the room turns off live captions (browser and server) and AI minutes for that room, so no audio leaves for an external AI because of captions or minutes. Per-participant security levels (blocking capture transfer and file receipt, identity watermark) are also available.
Deploying on your own dedicated server
Instead of the default hosted servers, self-hosting lets us build a dedicated meeting server for your organization: control plane (accounts and rooms), media server (SFU), relay (TURN) and recording (Egress) are installed and configured, your domain, HTTPS certificate, media ports and recording storage are checked, and multi-party joins, screen sharing and recording are verified before handover. Updates, scaling and incident response continue under a support and maintenance tier. Suite add-ons such as organization and role management (RBAC), central billing, SSO and audit logs come with the self-hosted setup. Pricing is a quote built from build fee, license and support.
Try it first
The NetServ-hosted version has a Free plan you can use right away (up to 50 people, 300 host minutes a month, recordings up to 60 minutes each). Paid plans are monthly per host (the meeting organizer), and participants are free. See limits and prices on the Pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
With a self-hosted setup, do attendees have to install software?
No. Even on your own servers, Meeting attendees enter with an invite link and a browser. The Windows desktop app for hosts is optional.
Where are recordings stored?
When the host records, the MP4 is saved on the server and can be downloaded. On a dedicated server, video and recording data are operated so that they do not leave your infrastructure.
Can I stop audio from going to an external AI?
Live captions use each browser's speech recognition by default, while server captions go through external recognition and translation AI. Choosing secure meeting mode when creating a room turns off captions and AI minutes entirely.