Sessions FAQs

Here is the list of frequently asked questions about the Sessions area. For more details on how Sessions work, check out our Session tutorial.

What are Sessions?

The quickest way to understand the Sessions area of RingCentral Events is to think of rooms, groups or virtual roundtables within your event. 

A Session can be set up as open, moderated, or powered by our built-in RingCentral Events Studio.

What is the difference between a Stage and a Session?

The Stage area can be compared to a stage of a real conference. It's a suitable place to host your main talks—keynotes, presentations, fireside chats, panels, interviews, and so on. You can create up to 5 Stages in your event. 

Sessions are more like breakout rooms or workshops. Attendees can request to join the screen to ask questions on video or join a roundtable, so it's very interactive. You can create an unlimited number of Sessions in your event.  

How many people can view a Session?

The maximum number of people who can watch a Session is up to 5,000, depending on the number of speakers and screen shares. To learn more, refer to our guide on Maximum on-screen and viewership limits. However, when using our built-in RingCentral Events Studio, a Session will support up to 10,000 viewers. 

How many people can participate in a Session with their video/audio?

You can have up to 50 participants and screen shares on screen. However, only 16 speakers can be visible on screen at any one time. Any additional speakers will be grouped in an "overflow" tile and will only be shown on the main screen if/when they begin speaking. 

When using our built-in RingCentral Events Studio, you can have up to 25 participants on screen.

How do I create a Session?

In a multi-track event, go to Event Dashboard > Venue > Sessions and click Add session. In a Webinar event, go to Event Dashboard > Setup > Basics and select Session as a webinar style.

Where can I find the Backstage of my Session?

An open or a moderated Session does not have a Backstage. To speak/present in a Session, navigate the Sessions area, enter a Session room, and click Share Audio and Video.

When using our built-in RingCentral Events Studio, you will have a Backstage, which Organizers and assigned Moderators can enter directly via the event venue.  

Can I run my Sessions alongside the Stage?

Absolutely! All major segments of the event - Stage, Sessions, Expo, and Networking - can be live at the same time.

How many Sessions can I create?

There’s no limit to the number of Sessions you can create. That means you can create and run an unlimited number of Sessions in your event.

We need to have 10 Sessions running at the same time, is that ok?

Absolutely! There’s no limit to the number of Sessions you can run simultaneously.

Who can watch a Session?

In the Session settings, you can select one of the following options. To learn more, refer to our guide on Setting up attendee and moderator access for Sessions.

• Anyone: All attendees can access and see the Session in the schedule (if added) and in the Sessions area.
• Private (invitation only): Only assigned attendees can access and see the Session in the schedule (if added) and in the Sessions area.
• Specific ticket types: Only assigned ticket type holders can access and see the Session in the schedule (if added) and in the Sessions area.
• Unlisted (access via link): The Session is not listed in the Sessions area and can be accessed via the direct Session URL only.

Who can participate and join the screen in a Session?

In the Session settings, you can select one of the following options. To learn more, refer to our guide on Setting up attendee and moderator access for Sessions.

• Anyone: All attendees can join the screen.
• Invite-only: Only assigned attendees can join the screen.
• Moderated: Organizers and assigned Moderators can join the screen and approve requests to join the screen from others. To learn more, refer to our guide on Adding a moderator to a Session or an Expo Booth.
• Studio: This Session will be hosted by our built-in RingCentral Events Studio. Organizers and assigned Moderators can enter and moderate the Studio and approve requests to join from others. 

As an Organizer, can I ‘force’ people to enter a Session and remove them when I need them to enter another session?

No, attendees can freely move around the event venue. The best workaround would be to create a detailed schedule to guide your attendees around the event and mark your Session schedule segment as recommended. 

What happens when the end time comes for a Session that is linked to the schedule? Does the Session get cut off? 

No. The Session does not end when the scheduled time is up. It can run as long as needed. The schedule only acts as a guide for the attendees to know what's happening at the time. 

How can I re-order the Sessions?

Large Sessions are listed before medium Sessions, while the configured Display priority number defines the Session's order in the Sessions area. To learn more, refer to our guide on Changing Expo Booths, Sessions, and Sponsors order.

What are the video settings for a Session?

The RingCentral Events platform will adapt video settings dynamically based on users window/connectivity to ensure you get the optimum settings for your set up. 

Can I stream via RTMP to a Session?

Yes. Streaming to a Session via RTMP is supported in multi-track events. For more information on how to set this up, refer to our guides on Streaming from OBS to Session via RTMP, Streaming from StreamYard to Session via RTMP, Mirroring an RTMP stream from another Session or Stage into a Session.

What are the recommended image dimensions for the Session? (width x height)

Session pictures can be uploaded in multi-track events where you can create multiple Sessions. Here are the recommended image dimensions for both Session sizes:

Large Session

Recommended: 1500 x 625px (2.40:1 aspect ratio)
Minimum size: 1000 x 415px

Medium Session

Recommended: 1500x600px (5:2 aspect ratio)
Minimum size: 800x320px

Can attendees create their own Sessions?

Yes. To enable it in a multi-track event, go to the Event Dashboard > Venue > Venue Control and select Enable attendee session creation. To learn more, refer to our guide on Allowing attendees to create Sessions in an event.

How do I know how many people are in a Session?

You can see how many people are watching the session in the top right corner of the video.

How can I see who is in the Session?

One way to discover who is viewing your Session is to navigate to the People tab in the activity panel.

Can presenters use their phones or tablets to connect or do they have to be at a computer to participate as a presenter in a Session?

Attendees can watch an event using our Attendee mobile app or mobile browsers. However, Speakers are advised to use a desktop device for a full event experience. To learn more, refer to our guide on Browser compatibility for RingCentral Events.

Can I set pre-recorded videos in a Session?

Yes, there are several ways you can broadcast a pre-recorded video in a Session. To explore them, refer to our guide on Sharing pre-recorded videos in Sessions.

Can I mute the audio of a participant/speaker for everyone?

In a standard Session, Organizers and Moderators can mute (but not unmute) the audio of a Speaker for everyone. Only Speakers can unmute their own audio.

When using our built-in RingCentral Events Studio, Organizers and Moderators can both mute and unmute the Speaker's audio. 

Can I blur my background or add a virtual background in a Session?

Yes! You can both blur your camera background and add a virtual background in your video setting when joining a screen in a Session. For detailed steps, refer to our guide on Using a virtual video background in a Session.

I have a PDF file I want to share in a session, how can I do that?

When using our built-in RingCentral Events Studio, you will be able to upload your file and share it on screen. For detailed steps, refer to our guide Studio: Sharing slides and presentations.

You don't have a similar option in a standard Session. Alternatively, you can upload it to Google Drive or Dropbox, get a shareable link, and post it to the Session chat. Organizers can pin the message to the top of the chat for better visibility. You can also create a Session banner with this link. 

Additionally, in the Session settings, you can make use of the Additional information area to place all files and other information.

Can I create breakout rooms within a Session?

Yes, refer to our guide on Managing breakout rooms in a Session to learn more about it. 

I can see the Session in the Event Dashboard but not in the Session area in the event venue, what happened?

Here’s what could have happened:

• Your session is connected to a schedule and is not live yet. By default, scheduled sessions show up in the Sessions area 5 minutes before the scheduled time. To learn how to change it, refer to our guide on Accessing a scheduled Session before the start time.
• The Session is set Unlisted, so it can only be accessed via the direct URL.
• The access to Session is restricted to specific ticket types only.

I have multiple Sessions scheduled for the same time, how do I change their order in the Schedule?

At this time, Sessions scheduled to begin at the same time appear in random order.

Can I disable the Sessions and just have Stage or Networking for my event?

Absolutely! You can disable any of the main event areas (Stage, Sessions, Networking, and Expo) anytime before or during the event. Attendees will need to do a quick refresh if the area is enabled/disabled during the event.

How can I make a Session visible before or after its scheduled time slot?

By default, a scheduled Session is displayed in the Session area 5 minutes before and after the scheduled time. In a multi-track event, you can adjust this in Event Dashboard > Setup > Basics > Advanced Settings.

Can I record a Session?

Yes. Sessions are recorded by default unless you disable this option. In the Session settings, make sure the option Record this session? is enabled.

Where are my Sessions recordings?

You can find recordings in the Event Dashboard > Recordings tab. To learn more, refer to our guide on Accessing recordings.

How do I share recordings with my attendees?

You can download your recordings, upload them to a cloud storage service like Dropbox, Google Drive, etc, and send the link to your attendees. Alternatively, you can enable the Replay area in your event and publish your recordings. 

Can the event attendees access the Sessions after the event is over?

No. However, you can enable the post-event Replay experience and publish your recording so attendees can catch up on the missed content.