Troubleshooting

Find your symptom. Two attachments make almost any report solvable: the OBS log (Help → Log Files → View Current Log) and Options → Camera diagnostics from the app.

The sources do not appear in OBS#

• Restart OBS — plugins load once, at startup.
• Check OBS is 32 or newer (Help → About).
• Linux, log says libavcodec.so.60: cannot open shared object file: tarballs up to v1.7.x linked the build machine's FFmpeg, so they loaded only on distros with that exact major. Update, or build from source, which links your own.
• macOS, from the zip: clear the quarantine flag, or OBS refuses to load it silently.

The source is called "iOS Camera", or updates do not seem to apply#

A pre-1.0 copy (ios-camera-source.dll) is still installed and wins over the current one — the log says "Source 'ios_camera_source' already exists". Delete both of these and restart:

obs-plugins\64bit\ios-camera-source.dll
data\obs-plugins\ios-camera-source\

The current installer removes it automatically.

USB device not found (Windows)#

• Install iTunes — it provides Apple's device driver. There's no way around this on Windows.
• Tap Trust, with the phone unlocked.
• Use a data cable. Nothing in the interface can tell a charge-only cable from a data one.

"Device found, but the LensLink app isn't reachable" means the cable and driver are fine: the app isn't in the foreground, or the phone is locked.

The phone does not appear in the Phone dropdown#

iOS requires the Local Network permission for the name broadcast: allow it when asked, or in Settings → Privacy & Security → Local Network → LensLink. Typing the IP works regardless.

Also check both devices are on the same network, and that it isn't a guest network or one with client isolation.

The app stops working after a week (sideloaded only)#

Free Apple IDs expire sideloaded apps every 7 days. Re-install to refresh (settings are kept), or switch to the TestFlight build, which doesn't expire.

"Hey Siri, start streaming with LensLink" is not recognized (sideloaded only)#

Re-signing rewrites the bundle ID, orphaning the compiled phrase data: Siri refuses even though the same action works from Shortcuts. Use TestFlight, or a Shortcut with lenslink://start. Also check the app has launched once and that "Use with Siri" is on in Settings → Siri & Search → LensLink.

Control Center video effects are missing or greyed out#

These are iOS effects, toggled in Control Center while an app uses the camera. iOS offers them only on certain cameras and formats — typically the front camera, nothing above 1920×1440 — and on many iPhones the rear cameras get none.

• Options → Camera diagnostics shows what your device offers, per camera and format.
• LensLink already picks an effect-capable format when your settings allow one.
• A toggle that greys out means the frame rate is too high: drop it, and turn on Options → Allow system video effects.
• Before 1.8.1 the panel never appeared at all — iOS populates it only for apps that declare each effect in Info.plist, which LensLink now does.

Apple's Camera-app filters and Photographic Styles aren't available to any third-party app. Use OBS filters instead (right-click → Filters).

The screen broadcast will not connect#

• Screen mirror tools → Check broadcast link, while broadcasting: it verifies the extension independently of OBS.
• Sideloaded builds: re-signing can silently break the extension. TestFlight builds are unaffected.
• Check the source is a LensLink Screen source — a Camera source fed a broadcast says so in its Status field.

No audio, or audio you cannot hear#

• DRM apps are silent during a broadcast: iOS mutes Apple Music, Spotify and Netflix. Game, app and browser audio is fine.
• Recorded but not audible: set Audio Monitoring to Monitor and Output in OBS's Advanced Audio Properties.
• No phone mic in OBS: turn on Send phone mic to OBS. If Auto lip-sync reference is on, it isn't — one mic, one role.

Two sources, one phone#

A phone feeds one source at a time; a second says the device is in use. The exception is Disconnect when this source isn't shown anywhere: a hidden source releases the phone, so sources in different scenes can share it.

Latency spikes on Wi-Fi when zoomed in#

Digital zoom magnifies sensor noise, which compresses badly and spikes the bitrate. Use the Telephoto lens, or switch to USB.

"Connected, but this OBS build can't decode the stream"#

That build has no HEVC decoder. Switch the app to H.264 — the same picture, more bandwidth.

The picture freezes or goes black when I switch apps on the phone#

Expected: iOS suspends camera capture for apps that aren't on screen. A screen broadcast is the exception and keeps running across apps.

Nothing here matches#

Open an issue on GitHub and include:

• The OBS log, with Verbose diagnostics (Tools → LensLink Settings) on while you reproduce it once.
• Options → Camera diagnostics.
• Device and iOS version, OBS and plugin versions, and Wi-Fi or USB.