Bring your own cloud. Keep your video. Skip the markup.
BYOC is the operating model behind NULX. This page defines the category, compares it against managed platforms and DIY, and says clearly who should not use it.
Definition
What BYOC video infrastructure means
NULX BYOC keeps permanent sources and streaming outputs in customer Cloudflare R2. With managed encoding, a NULX worker temporarily reads the source through a limited signed URL and writes the output to the customer bucket. Playback uses a customer domain or signed Cloudflare path. NULX does not resell R2 storage or delivery, so it adds no markup to those costs.
Three ways to run video
Managed vs. BYOC vs. DIY
The same workload, three custody and cost models.
| Managed | BYOC | DIY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where your video lives | In the vendor's account | In your account | On your servers |
| Transfer fees | Vendor markup | Direct cloud rates | Direct cloud rates |
| Operations burden | None | NULX plus customer Cloudflare setup | All on you |
| If the vendor shuts down | Assets at risk | Files remain in R2; service integration still moves | Not applicable |
| Cross-border data transfer | Depends on provider policy | Review managed processing and AI paths | Depends on deployment location |
Where the model comes from
An old enterprise pattern, late to video
Bring-your-own models are not new. Enterprise software adopted bring-your-own-storage and bring-your-own-key years ago, once buyers realized that custody and markup were bundled together. Video infrastructure was simply late; the industry normalized uploading your library into the vendor's account because that was how the first generation of platforms was built. As cloud storage became cheap and S3-compatible APIs became standard, the reasons to hand over custody disappeared.
Where it doesn't fit
BYOC is the wrong choice if…
- You don't have a cloud account and don't want one. A managed platform will serve you better.
- Your viewing volume is under roughly 500 hours a month. At that scale, the markup you avoid is smaller than the flat fee.
- You need a full CMS with editorial workflows. BYOC is infrastructure, not a newsroom tool.
- You want someone to own your uptime end to end. With BYOC, your storage and CDN stay in your account, so parts of the chain remain yours.
If any of the above is you, we'd rather you didn't sign up. Churn is expensive for both of us.
Good fit
Who BYOC is for
- You already run on Cloudflare R2, or are willing to move, and want video in the same account as the rest of your infrastructure.
- Your monthly viewing volume is large enough that per-gigabyte markup is the biggest line on your video bill.
- You need to review managed processing and Groq caption data flow and retain a clear access-revocation path.
- You want to own sources and standard HLS/DASH outputs to reduce future migration work.
Common misconceptions
Five things people get wrong about BYOC
| The assumption | The reality |
|---|---|
| “Isn't this just self-hosting?” | We operate the encoding, orchestration, and player pipeline. Only the ownership of the files moves to you, not the operations. |
| “Setup must be complicated.” | Setup requires a bucket, a bucket-scoped R2 token, and a playback domain. The product guides each step, while security review time depends on the organization. |
| “It must be more expensive.” | Below roughly 500 viewing hours a month, that's true; the flat fee outweighs the avoided markup. Above that, the math flips. |
| “What can the vendor do inside my bucket?” | The exact IAM permissions NULX requests are published in full: read and write on the prefix you choose, nothing else. |
| “What about performance?” | Playback comes from your CDN, so you pick the regions and the cache behavior. Delivery is as fast as any asset you serve today. |
Under the hood
How it works technically
Permanent storage and processing location are separate. Sources and outputs remain in customer R2, while managed transcoding temporarily reads the source on a NULX worker.
Your bucket
Contracted customers upload through the PC uploader using scope- and time-limited paths to customer R2.
Managed processing
A NULX worker temporarily reads the source through a limited path, encodes it, and writes HLS/DASH outputs to the same customer R2.
Your CDN
Playback URLs resolve to your CDN domain. NULX serves metadata and manifests; your CDN serves the segments.
Next step
See exactly what gets installed in your account
The setup guide shows the IAM policy, the bucket layout, and every permission before you grant anything.