How an IPTV TV guide works
Three things have to line up for a programme to appear in the right place on your guide:
- The guide data exists. Your provider (or another source) publishes listings as a file, normally in a format called XMLTV.
- The app downloads it. With an Xtream Codes login, most apps fetch the guide automatically from your server. With an M3U playlist, the guide address is either inside the playlist or entered separately.
- Each channel is matched to its listings. Every channel in the guide file has an ID. The app matches it to the channel in your list. A channel whose ID doesn’t match shows “No information” even though the file downloaded perfectly.
When a guide goes wrong, it’s almost always one of those three links in the chain, which is why the fixes differ.
Common guide problems
| Symptom | Usual cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The whole guide is empty | The guide wasn’t downloaded, or the address is wrong | TV guide not loading |
| Listings are an hour or more out | Time zone or offset setting | Check the device time zone first, then the app’s guide offset |
| Some channels show “No information” | Channel IDs don’t match the guide data | Ask your provider, or use an app that lets you match channels by hand |
| The guide stops after a day or two | The app hasn’t refreshed the guide | Refresh the guide in the app and set an automatic update interval |
Getting a guide into your app
With an Xtream Codes login, try a manual guide update in the app before anything else, because most apps load the guide automatically with your login. With an M3U playlist, look for a field called “EPG URL”, “XMLTV URL” or “TV guide source” in the playlist settings. Your provider should give you the address if one is needed. Our M3U playlist guide explains where that address sits inside a playlist file.