# Identify the output group types for the downstream system
Step 1: Identify output group types

The first step in planning any AWS Elemental MediaLive workflow is to determine which types of [*output groups*](what-is-terminology.md) you need to produce, based on the requirements and capabilities of the systems that are downstream of MediaLive.

Perform this work with the downstream system before you assess the [upstream system](evaluate-upstream-system.md). Decision making in a workflow starts with the downstream system, then works back to the upstream system.

**Important**  
You should have already identified the downstream system or systems that you are going to send MediaLive output to, for this workflow. If you have not yet identified the downstream system, you must do some research before continuing with preparing your workflow. This guide can't help you to identify your downstream system. When you know what your downstream systems are, return to this section.

**To identify the output group**

1. Obtain the following information from your downstream system.
   + The required output formats. For example, HLS.
   + The application protocol for each. For example, HTTP.

1. Decide on the delivery mode for your outputs.
   + You might have an output that is on a server that is on your EC2 instance in your VPC. Or you might have an output that is in Amazon S3. If one or both of these situations apply, you might want to set up for delivery via your VPC. For more information, see [Delivering outputs via your VPC](delivery-out-vpc.md).
   + If you don't have any of these types of outputs, you will deliver in the regular way.

1. Make sure that MediaLive includes an *output group *that supports the output format and protocol that the downstream system requires. See [Output types supported in MediaLive](outputs-supported-containers.md). 

1. If your preferred downstream system is another AWS media service, [read this for information about choosing the service](dss-choose-service.md). 

1. If your downstream system supports Microsoft Smooth Streaming, see [Options for handling Microsoft Smooth output](downstream-system-for-mss.md) for options.

1. If you want to send your output to other AWS Regions or to other AWS accounts before distribution, consider creating a MediaConnect Router output group. MediaConnect Router is an excellent choice for workflows that require cross-region or cross-account distribution.

1. Decide if you want to create an Archive output group in order to produce an archive file of the content. An archive file is a supplement to streaming; it isn't itself a streaming output. Typically, you create an archive file as a permanent file version of the streaming output. 

1. Decide if you want to create a Frame capture output group in order to produce a frame capture output. A Frame capture output is a supplement to streaming; it isn't itself a streaming output. This type of output might be useful for your workflow. For example, you might use a Frame capture output to create thumbnails of the content. 

1. Make a note of the output groups that you decide to create.

   For example, after you have followed these steps, you might have this list of output groups:
   + One HLS output group with AWS Elemental MediaPackage as the downstream system. 
   + One RTMP output group sending to the downstream system of a social media site.
   + One Archive output group as a record.

**Topics**
+ [

# Choosing among the AWS media services
](dss-choose-service.md)
+ [

# Choosing between the HLS output group and MediaPackage output group
](hls-choosing-hls-vs-emp.md)
+ [

# Options for handling Microsoft Smooth output
](downstream-system-for-mss.md)

# Choosing among the AWS media services


If your preferred downstream system is another AWS media service, following are some useful tips for choosing the service to use: 
+ If you need to choose between AWS Elemental MediaPackage or AWS Elemental MediaStore for HLS outputs, follow these guidelines: 
  + Decide if you want to protect your content with a digital rights management (DRM) solution. DRM prevents unauthorized people from accessing the content. 
  + Decide if you want to insert ads in your content. 

  If you want either or both of these features, you should choose MediaPackage as the origin service because you will need to repackage the output. 

  If you do not want any of these features, you could choose MediaPackage or AWS Elemental MediaStore. AWS Elemental MediaStore is generally a simpler solution as an origin service, but it lacks the repackaging features of MediaPackage. 
+ If you have identified AWS Elemental MediaPackage as an origin service, decide if you will produce the HLS output using an HLS output group or a MediaPackage output group. For guidelines on making this choice, see the [next section](hls-choosing-hls-vs-emp.md).

# Choosing between the HLS output group and MediaPackage output group
HLS versus MediaPackage

If you want to deliver HLS output to AWS Elemental MediaPackage, you must decide if you want to create an HLS output group or a MediaPackage output group. 

## Delivering to MediaPackage v2


If you are delivering to a MediaPackage channel that uses MediaPackage v2, you must create an HLS output group. The MediaPackage operator can tell you if the channel uses version 2 of the API. One use case for using version 2 is to implement a glass-to-glass low latency workflow that includes both MediaLive and MediaPackage.

## Delivering to standard MediaPackage (v1)


There are differences in the setup of each type of output group:
+ The MediaPackage output requires less setup. AWS Elemental MediaLive is already set up with most of the information that it needs to package and deliver the output to the AWS Elemental MediaPackage channel that you specify. This easier setup has benefits, but it also has drawbacks because you can't control some configuration. For information about how MediaLive sets up a MediaPackage output group, see [Result of this procedure](mediapackage-create-result.md).
+ For a MediaPackage output, the MediaLive channel and the AWS Elemental MediaPackage channel must be in the same AWS Region.
+ In a MediaPackage output, there are some restrictions on setting up ID3 metadata. For details, see [Working with ID3 metadata](id3-metadata.md). 

# Options for handling Microsoft Smooth output
Options for Microsoft Smooth

If you are delivering to a Microsoft Smooth Streaming server, the setup depends on whether you want to protect your content with a digital rights management (DRM) solution. DRM prevents unauthorized people from accessing the content. 
+ If you don't want to implement DRM, then create a Microsoft Smooth output group. 
+ If you do want to implement DRM, you can create an HLS or MediaPackage output group to send the output to AWS Elemental MediaPackage, then use AWS Elemental MediaPackage to add DRM. You will then set up AWS Elemental MediaPackage to deliver to the Microsoft Smooth origin server.