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BigBlueButton

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Velocity6.3

Open-source web conferencing system for online learning

bigbluebutton.org ↗

BigBlueButton is polishing the 4.0 beta it already committed to LiveKit, while 3.0 stays the production line.

web-conferencinglivekit-migrationself-hostedmobile-layoutbeta-hardeningsecurity-advisories
◆Current state
The 4.0 beta series is in its fifth iteration and the hard architectural decisions are behind it — LiveKit became the default media stack in beta.4 with the legacy SIP.js bridge deleted, BlockNote became the default shared notes engine, and the JVM moved to Java 21. Beta.5 is consolidation: a mobile layout overhaul with paginated webcams and landscape side-by-side camera and presentation, automatic light/dark switching, a dedicated Audio settings tab with push-to-talk, and better BBB-to-LiveKit state reconciliation on reconnect. Packaging gained a bbbctl admin tool and a bbb-coturn package, with bbb-etherpad and bbb-pads now optional. The project still recommends 3.0.x for production.
◆Where it's heading
The 4.0 line is converging toward a release candidate, and the work has shifted from replacing subsystems to making the new ones survive real conditions — reconnects, phones, and administrator tooling. Making etherpad and pads optional alongside a security advisory that urges API secret rotation points at shrinking the default install's attack surface. The parallel 3.0.x train continues shipping security patches, so the ecosystem is carrying two branches until 4.0 stabilises.
◆Prediction
Expect beta.6 or a release candidate to focus on the LiveKit reconnection and mobile paths that beta.5 only started, since those are the areas where a self-hosted media migration typically breaks. The optional-package work suggests a slimmer default deployment is being prepared for the 4.0 release.

◆Recent moves

  1. 5d ago

    4.0 beta.5: mobile layout overhaul, audio settings, bbbctl admin tool

    Beta.5 spends its effort on the parts of 4.0 that the LiveKit cutover left rough: mobile layout, audio settings and push-to-talk, and state reconciliation on reconnect. The bbbctl admin tool and optional etherpad and pads packages tighten the default install, and the release carries a security advisory urging administrators to rotate their API secret.

    View source ↗
  2. 26d ago

    4.0 beta.4: LiveKit becomes the default media stack, SIP.js bridge removed

    ⚡ SPARK

    Beta.4 is the release the rest of the 4.0 cycle is cleaning up after — deleting the legacy audio bridge rather than deprecating it set the migration cost for every self-hosted install and made LiveKit reconciliation the thing subsequent betas have to get right.

    View source ↗
  3. 2mo ago

    4.0 beta.3: layout system rebuilt, Unified layout becomes default

    Beta.3 rebuilt the layout system around a Unified default with refined camera sorting and a dual-sidebar mode, and added a WASM audio processor over the mic stream. Substantial interface work that set up the media-stack switch landing two months later.

    View source ↗
  4. 5mo ago

    3.0.23: breakout-room fixes, security patches, renamed bbb-web properties

    A 3.0 stable iteration focused on breakout rooms, carrying several direct security fixes and renaming two bbb-web document-insertion properties. Maintenance on the branch administrators are still told to run in production.

    View source ↗
  5. 6mo ago

    3.0.22: client and core fixes, security patches

    Client and core fixes plus a couple of direct security patches on the 3.0 line. Routine upkeep with nothing that changes how the product is used.

    View source ↗
  6. 6mo ago

    3.0.21: security fixes and minor client improvements

    Security fixes and minor client and core improvements on 3.0, with administrators advised to update promptly. Another maintenance drop on the production branch.

    View source ↗