Not auto-playing next episode

[Blueskies278 60]

@LukeI'd like to kindly follow up on a bug that has been persisting for quite some time.  I'm a bit disappointed that a permanent fix hasn't been implemented yet. I hope this can be prioritised and resolved as soon as possible.

Thanks.

Here's the technical explanation of why it breaks auto-next-episode:

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When Emby streams video via HLS (HTTP Live Streaming), it splits the video into small segments (.ts files) and creates a playlist (.m3u8 file) that tells the client where all the segments are.

When subtitles are present, Emby also generates separate WebVTT subtitle segments alongside the video segments. The problem is that these subtitle segments are generated asynchronously — they don't always finish at the same time as the video segments.

When the video reaches the end, the HLS playlist should contain an #EXT-X-ENDLIST tag to tell the client "the stream is finished, move on". But because the subtitle segment generation is still running or hasn't closed cleanly, the playlist never gets that clean end signal.

The iOS/Android Emby app is waiting for the stream to properly end before triggering auto-next-episode — but it never gets that signal, so it just freezes at the last frame waiting forever.

When I enable Disable HLS Subtitles, Emby stops generating those WebVTT subtitle segments entirely, so the video-only HLS playlist terminates cleanly with #EXT-X-ENDLIST, the app receives the end signal, and auto-next-episode triggers correctly.

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In short: subtitle segments race against video segments at the end of a stream, and the subtitle segments win — preventing the stream from ever cleanly ending.

 

Edited May 24 by Blueskies278

[Blueskies278 60]

On 02/05/2026 at 11:16, Blueskies278 said:

@LukeHopefully, this should help track down the bug.

Thanks 

 

emby_bug_report.html 16.09 kB · 8 downloads

emby_android_1777611608448.txt 286.52 kB · 3 downloads

Here's a reminder.

[Blueskies278 60]

@LukeAny closer to finding a permanent fix to this 2-year bug

 

Thanks

[Blueskies278 60]

Could not wait any longer, fix it myself. Now working natively without diagnostic plug in.

Edited yesterday at 12:29 AM by Blueskies278

[Blueskies278 60]

@vdatanetCould not wait any longer, fix it myself.

1. Auto-next episode freeze fixed — HLS subtitle manifest fix. Now working natively without diagnostic plug in.
2. Auto-next episode now instant — after fixing the freeze, discovered another bug where the next episode had a 4 second delay caused by an MKV end-of-file error cascade, next episode now plays instantly
3. Auto-next episode countdown — GUI progress bar now animates smoothly, matching the web version.

Edited 1 hour ago by Blueskies278

[Blueskies278 60]

@LukePlease let me know if you would like to hear about how I resolved the bugs.

Thanks 

[Luke 42646]

42 minutes ago, Blueskies278 said:

@LukePlease let me know if you would like to hear about how I resolved the bugs.

Thanks 

Certainly.