OBS Studio 33 on a 24/7 Streaming VPS: What Changed

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OBS Studio 33 drops Ubuntu 24.04, moves plugin folders and ships CEF 150 for browser sources. How to update OBS on a Linux VPS without a dark stream.

OBS Studio 33 update on a 24/7 streaming VPS

OBS Studio 33.0.0 came out on 23 October 2026 and the 33.0.1 hotfix on 29 October. Most coverage is written for desktops. On a Linux VPS that streams unattended, four things decide whether the update goes unnoticed: which build you can get, where plugins live, the new browser engine and what Safe Mode turns off.

Quick answer: OBS Studio 33 removed Ubuntu 24.04 support, so the official PPA only updates Ubuntu 26.04 and newer; on Ubuntu 24.04 and Debian 12 you get OBS 33 as the Flatpak from Flathub. Plugins keep loading from their old folders until at least OBS 34.0, expected around August 2027. Browser sources now run on CEF 150, so test overlays before you go live, and remember that Safe Mode keeps the WebSocket server off. Back up your config, update in a quiet hour and aim for 33.0.1.

This checklist is for OBS on a Linux VPS you manage yourself, such as a KVM VPS with full root access. On our streaming plans OBS Studio comes pre-installed and you use it through the browser, so the Linux commands below do not apply there.

What changed in OBS 33 for an unattended stream

From the 33.0.0 and 33.0.1 release notes:

  • Ubuntu 24.04 removed. OBS 33 also dropped build support for FFmpeg 6.x and 7.x and Qt 6.4 to 6.9, while Ubuntu 24.04 ships Qt 6.4.2 and FFmpeg 6.1.1.
  • Plugin loading rebuilt. First-party plugins moved into a core folder and third-party plugins get a new location and folder structure. Plugins in the old locations still load, marked Legacy in Tools, Plugin Manager.
  • CEF 127 to 150. The engine behind browser sources and docks jumps from its July 2024 release to September 2026. OBS expects no visible change and asks users to report browser source problems.
  • WebSocket in Safe Mode. Safe Mode still turns off third-party plugins, scripts and the WebSocket server; obs-websocket now checks for Safe Mode itself.
  • Missing encoder check. If a profile uses an encoder that is not there, OBS 33 shows a Missing Encoders window at startup. That catches a profile copied from a home PC with NVENC to a VPS that encodes with x264 on the CPU.
  • 33.0.1 fixes a memory leak in the Image Slide Show source that came with 33.0.0, plugins failing to load on Flatpak, a crash on Twitch login and a deadlock on YouTube login.

Which build you get: PPA or Flatpak

SystemOfficial buildVersion on 3 November 2026
Ubuntu 26.04PPA ppa:obsproject/obs-studio33.0.0
Ubuntu 24.04Same PPA, no longer updated32.2.0 (published 22 July 2026)
Ubuntu 24.04, Debian 12Flatpak com.obsproject.Studio33.0.1

On Ubuntu 24.04 you can stay on 32.2.0, switch to the Flatpak, or first upgrade to 26.04 (see our Ubuntu 26.04 guide). The Flatpak keeps its settings in ~/.var/app/com.obsproject.Studio/config/obs-studio instead of ~/.config/obs-studio, so export your scene collection and profile in the old OBS (Scene Collection and Profile menus) and import them in the Flatpak. Install commands are in our cloud OBS guide.

OBS Studio update checklist for a 24/7 VPS

  1. Stop the stream, close OBS with File, Exit over VNC, and back up the config:
# PPA build
tar czf ~/obs-backup-$(date +%F).tar.gz -C ~/.config obs-studio
# Flatpak build
tar czf ~/obs-backup-$(date +%F).tar.gz -C ~/.var/app/com.obsproject.Studio/config obs-studio
  1. Update:
# Ubuntu 26.04, PPA
sudo apt update
apt policy obs-studio
sudo apt install --only-upgrade obs-studio

# Flatpak installed with sudo (also updates plugin extensions)
sudo flatpak update
flatpak info com.obsproject.Studio

On 3 November the PPA still served 33.0.0. If you are on 32.x and a scene uses an Image Slide Show, run sudo apt-mark hold obs-studio until 33.0.1 reaches the PPA, then sudo apt-mark unhold obs-studio. In the GitHub report behind that fix, OBS held about 10 GB of RAM where the previous version used about 1.5 GB.

  1. Start OBS and look at it once over VNC. The title bar should not say SAFE MODE. If Missing Encoders appears, set Settings, Output to Software (x264). If Plugin Errors appears, check Tools, Plugin Manager for plugins marked Error or Legacy.
  2. Run an unlisted test stream for a few minutes and watch alerts, chat overlays and other browser sources.
  3. Test remote control from your Stream Deck or scripts before you switch back to your real stream key.

Plugins: what moves before OBS 34

OBS's knowledge base says you do not need to do anything yet. Legacy locations keep working until at least OBS 34.0, planned for around August 2027. When a plugin author ships a release for the new structure, install it: OBS tries the new location first and skips an older copy of the same plugin in a legacy folder.

Per-user plugin folders that OBS 33.0.1 loads on Linux:

BuildLegacy (works until 34.0)New
PPA~/.config/obs-studio/plugins/<name>/bin/64bit/<name>.so~/.local/share/obs-studio/plugins/<name>/<name>.so
Flatpak~/.var/app/com.obsproject.Studio/config/obs-studio/plugins/<name>/bin/64bit/<name>.so~/.var/app/com.obsproject.Studio/data/obs-studio/plugins/<name>/<name>.so

In the new layout the plugin's data folder sits next to the .so file. System-wide plugins move from /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/obs-plugins to /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/obs-modules/plugins; let the plugin's package handle that.

For a PPA plugin whose bin/64bit folder holds only its own .so, you can copy it to the new layout and keep the old copy as a fallback:

P=your-plugin-name
OLD=~/.config/obs-studio/plugins/$P
NEW=~/.local/share/obs-studio/plugins/$P
mkdir -p "$NEW"
cp "$OLD/bin/64bit/$P.so" "$NEW/"
cp -r "$OLD/data" "$NEW/"

Restart OBS. If Plugin Manager no longer marks it Legacy, delete the old folder; if it fails, delete the new folder and the legacy copy loads again.

Safe Mode still means no WebSocket remote control

After a crash or a forced kill, OBS 33 opens "OBS Studio Crash Detected" with Run in Safe Mode and Run in Normal Mode; Normal Mode is the default button. Safe Mode disables third-party plugins, scripting and WebSockets, and Tools, WebSocket Server Settings then says "Server is not started automatically when Safe Mode is enabled." Pick Safe Mode over VNC and your Stream Deck, Companion or watchdog script cannot connect. Our remote control guide covers the WebSocket setup.

Check whether OBS came up in Safe Mode (Flatpak logs are under ~/.var/app/com.obsproject.Studio/config/obs-studio/logs):

grep -h "Safe Mode" ~/.config/obs-studio/logs/*.txt | tail -n 5

"OBS is in Safe Mode. WebSocket server will not be started." means you should use Help, Restart in Normal Mode. Keep --safe-mode out of start scripts for a stream you control remotely.

FAQ

When did OBS Studio 33 come out? 33.0.0 was published on GitHub on 23 October 2026 and the 33.0.1 hotfix on 29 October 2026.

Can I install OBS 33 on Ubuntu 24.04? Not from the PPA, which ends at 32.2.0 for 24.04. The Flathub Flatpak had 33.0.1 on 3 November 2026 and runs on 24.04 and Debian 12.

Do I have to move my OBS plugins now? No. Legacy folders load until at least OBS 34.0. The cleanest fix is a new release from the plugin's author.

Why can my Stream Deck not reach OBS after a crash? OBS probably started in Safe Mode, which keeps the WebSocket server off. Restart in Normal Mode from the Help menu.

Should I install the OBS Studio update on a 24/7 stream right away? If 32.2 runs stable, there is no rush. When you update, go to 33.0.1.

Sources

All opened on 3 November 2026: