Troubleshooting
How to Refresh an IPTV Playlist
Channels missing or the list looks stale? How to force a playlist refresh in IPTV Smarters, TiviMate, IBO Player and MAG boxes — and when a re-add beats a refresh.
Updated 27 August 2026 · Reviewed by Nexlivo Support Team · 2 min read
Your channel list is a copy, downloaded from the server when the playlist was added. When channels are added, renamed or reorganised on the service side, an old copy can look wrong — missing channels, dead entries, odd categories. The fix is a refresh, and it takes under a minute.
When a refresh is the right fix
- Channels you know exist aren't in the list
- A channel plays but under an outdated name or category
- The list looks fine but hasn't changed in months
- Support has told you "we've updated the line-up — refresh your playlist"
If instead nothing loads at all, start with login problems; and if streams play but stutter, that's buffering, not the playlist.
Refreshing, app by app
IPTV Smarters — from the main screen open Settings → Refresh All (or on the Live TV screen, the refresh icon). The app re-downloads live, film and series categories.
TiviMate — Settings → Playlists → select your playlist → Update playlist. TiviMate also auto-updates on a schedule; setting it to daily keeps the list current without thought.
IBO Player / IBO Player Pro — on the home screen choose Reload. If you manage playlists via the developer's website, any change there needs a reload on the device to take effect.
MAG boxes — restart the portal: Settings → General → Restart Portal (or power-cycle the box). MAG boxes rebuild the channel list on every portal load.
iOS / Android mobile apps — pull down on the channel list, or use the in-app refresh from settings.
When to re-add instead
If refreshing changes nothing and the list is clearly wrong, delete the playlist entry and add it fresh with the details from your welcome message. A clean import rebuilds everything the app cached — this cures the rare cases where the local database itself is corrupted.
After any refresh, give the EPG a minute to catch up — guide data downloads separately from the channel list. If it stays blank, see fixing an IPTV EPG.
If something is not working
- Refresh fails with a network error — confirm the device is online and try once more; if it persists, message support so we can check things from our side.
- List refreshes but a specific channel is still missing — tell support which channel; line-ups do change and we can confirm whether it's moved category or been replaced.