Providers hand out access in three shapes, and the shape decides how much of their library you actually see. All three work in IPTVnator; they are not equally rich.
If your provider gave you a username and a password, use Xtream Codes. If they gave you a MAC address, use the Stalker portal form. Use a plain M3U playlist only when a link is all you have, because a playlist carries channels but no movie catalog, no provider guide and no account information.
Everything below is about the source type, not about the provider. A generous provider on a plain playlist still cannot send what the format cannot carry.
| Inside IPTVnator | M3U playlist | Xtream Codes | Stalker portal |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you enter | A link, a file or pasted text | Server URL, username, password | Portal URL and MAC address |
| Live TV channels | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Movies and series as a catalogA playlist can list movie files, but it carries no seasons, categories or detail pages. | Only as flat entries | Yes | Yes |
| Posters, descriptions, cast | From TMDB only | Yes | Yes |
| Program guide | XMLTV you supply | From the provider | From the portal |
| Catch-up / archive | If the playlist declares it | Yes | Yes |
| Resume where you stopped | Movies only | Yes | Yes |
| Offline downloadsDesktop app only, for movies and episodes. | No | Yes | Yes |
| Local catalog for instant opening | Whole playlist is stored | Yes | Lists are fetched on demand |
| Account and expiry information | No | Yes | Yes |
| Refresh from the provider | Yes | Yes | Continuous |
| Works in the browser versionThe self-hosted web version proxies all three; the desktop-only features above stay unavailable there. | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Providers rarely name the format. The shape of what you received does it for them.
A plain playlist. Add it as an M3U URL, or download it and import the file. This is the lowest common denominator: channels and nothing else.
An Xtream Codes account in disguise. The part before the endpoint is the server URL, and the username and password sit in the query string. Add it as Xtream credentials instead of as a playlist.
An Xtream Codes account. Enter the three fields and use the connection test before adding it.
A Stalker or Ministra portal, the kind MAG set-top boxes use. The MAC address is the account; IPTVnator authenticates with it the way a box does.
The same subscription is often reachable as both a playlist and an Xtream account, because the panel builds the playlist link out of the account. Adding it as Xtream credentials is strictly better: you get the same channels plus movies, series, the provider guide, catch-up and an expiry date, and the desktop app keeps a local catalog so the source opens instantly next time.
Stalker portals are the exception. A MAC address is a different identity mechanism, and a portal cannot be expressed as a playlist or an Xtream login. If that is what you were given, the Stalker form is the only way in.
Switching later costs nothing: add the better source, check that it works, and remove the old one. Favorites and history belong to the source, so they do not carry over.
Prefer Xtream Codes when you have a username and password: it carries movies, series, provider metadata, the program guide and catch-up that a flat playlist cannot. Use a Stalker portal when the provider identifies you by MAC address. Use a plain M3U playlist when that is all you were given, or when you keep a hand-made channel list.
Almost always, yes. Panels generate that link from an Xtream Codes account, so the same credentials work in the Xtream form and unlock the movie and series catalog. Paste the whole link into the Server URL field and IPTVnator fills in the username and password for you.
Yes. Every source is separate, with its own favorites, history and catalog, and the dashboard, global favorites, recent items and search combine them. Several accounts of the same kind are fine too.
Xtream and Stalker portals publish their own schedule, so the guide works without any setup. An M3U playlist needs an XMLTV source, which you add once in the settings, or which the playlist declares in its header. On the desktop app your own XMLTV sources can also fill gaps in a portal guide.
No. It talks to the portal directly for every list and resolves a fresh link for every stream, which is what keeps favorites and history working when temporary links expire. There is no export of portal content into a playlist file.
From an IPTV provider you have a contract with. IPTVnator is a player: it ships without channels, playlists or accounts, and it never sells them.
Import an M3U or M3U8 playlist into IPTVnator from a URL, a file or pasted text, keep it updated, and attach an XMLTV program guide. Covers channel groups, catch-up attributes, EPG matching by tvg-id, and the usual reasons a playlist or guide does not load.
Read more
Connect an Xtream Codes API provider to IPTVnator step by step. What the server URL, username and password are, how to test the login, how to paste the message from your provider, and what to do when the portal refuses to connect.
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Add a Stalker portal to IPTVnator step by step. Which URL shapes work, how the MAC address is normalized, what device IDs and serial numbers are for, how IPTVnator detects the portal type, and what the usual refusals mean.
Read moreOfficial downloads only
IPTVnator is a player, not a TV service. It is distributed exclusively through GitHub releases and the package managers listed on this page. Websites that sell "IPTVnator subscriptions", channel packages or "activated" copies are not affiliated with the project. How to recognize unofficial sites.