Executive Summary
Merge Conference is a modern, enterprise-grade multi-tenant video conferencing and business messaging platform designed to meet the evolving communication needs of organizations worldwide. Built with cutting-edge technologies including Next.js 16, React 19, MongoDB, and Redis, Merge Conference delivers seamless real-time collaboration with comprehensive features for video meetings, instant messaging, screen sharing, whiteboarding, and recording.
This white paper outlines the complete architecture, feature set, security implementations, and enterprise capabilities that make Merge Conference an ideal solution for businesses seeking professional communication infrastructure.
1. Platform Overview
1.1 Core Capabilities
- •HD Video Conferencing: Crystal-clear video meetings with up to thousands of participants, supporting multiple quality settings and adaptive bitrate streaming
- •Instant Messaging: WhatsApp-style business messaging with real-time delivery, read receipts, and persistent chat history
- •Screen Sharing & Whiteboard: Interactive collaboration tools for presentations, brainstorming, and real-time content sharing
- •Meeting Recording: Distributed recording system with automatic chunk-based WebM storage in cloud blob storage
- •Calendar Integration: Scheduled meeting management with react-day-picker calendar views and real-time synchronization
- •Virtual Background: AI-powered background blur and custom image support using MediaPipe Selfie Segmentation
1.2 Target Market
Merge Conference serves enterprises, SMBs, and organizations requiring professional communication infrastructure. Our platform is particularly suited for:
- • Remote-first and hybrid organizations
- • Customer-facing communication teams
- • Training and educational institutions
- • Business process outsourcing (BPO) companies
- • Healthcare and professional services
- • Enterprise customers requiring data sovereignty
2. Technical Architecture
2.1 Microservices Architecture
Merge Conference employs a clean separation of concerns with two primary components:
Frontend Layer (Next.js 16)
Runs on port 5000 providing responsive UI with React 19, TypeScript, and Tailwind CSS. Handles server-side rendering (SSR) for public pages and client-side rendering (CSR) for authenticated experiences. Integrates with Radix UI component library for accessible, professionally-designed interfaces.
Backend API (Fastify on port 3001)
High-performance API and real-time backend handling REST endpoints, WebSocket connections via Socket.IO, MongoDB operations, and Redis caching. Built with Fastify for superior throughput and minimal overhead.
Proxy Layer (server.js)
Node.js proxy server routing API requests and WebSocket connections from frontend to Fastify backend, enabling seamless integration and consistent port binding.
2.2 Technology Stack
Frontend
- • Next.js 16 (App Router)
- • React 19 with Hooks
- • TypeScript for type safety
- • Tailwind CSS & Radix UI
- • SWR for data fetching
- • next-themes for dark mode
Backend
- • Fastify web framework
- • Socket.IO for real-time
- • MongoDB for persistence
- • Redis for caching
- • Zod for validation
- • JWT for authentication
Real-time & Messaging
- • Socket.IO with Redis adapter
- • Presence tracking
- • Message queuing (BullMQ)
- • Pub/Sub via Redis
- • Video SDK for conferencing
Infrastructure
- • Vercel Blob for storage
- • OpenTelemetry tracing
- • Pino structured logging
- • Cockatiel circuit breakers
- • Helmet security headers
3. Features & Capabilities
3.1 Video Meeting System
- Instant Meetings: Create meetings with one click, with configurable instant answer with audio/video options
- Scheduled Meetings: Plan meetings in calendar with rich participant selection and group invitations
- Meeting Recording: Automatic distributed recording with 2-second WebM chunks, cloud storage integration
- Whiteboard: Real-time collaborative whiteboarding with drawing tools and asset management
- Screen Sharing: High-quality screen and application sharing with low latency
- Lobby System: Pre-meeting waiting room with audio/video preview and permission controls
- Chat Timeline: Unified chat history with call records showing duration, status, and direction
- Call Management: Multi-state call system with busy queue, reject/cancel/missed status tracking
3.2 Messaging System
- Business Messenger: WhatsApp-like messaging with persistent chat history and rich UI
- Conversation Management: Create or join conversations with contacts or groups
- Real-time Sync: Messages sync instantly via Socket.IO with automatic read receipts
- Unread Tracking: Per-user unread counts with badge indicators and offline persistence
- Typing Indicators: Real-time user presence showing who is typing
- File Sharing: Attachments support with cloud blob storage integration
- Call History: Integrated call records in chat timeline with complete metadata
3.3 Multi-Tenancy & Admin
- Business Isolation: Complete data isolation using businessId with separate MongoDB collections
- Role-Based Access: Super Admin, Business Admin, and User roles with granular permissions
- Branding Customization: Logo URLs and custom color schemes (primary, secondary, accent)
- Feature Toggles: Business admins control features like external registration
- External Registration: Allow public signup with "Ext_Users" role when enabled
- Analytics Dashboard: Business performance metrics and usage statistics
- Audit Trails: Comprehensive logging of user actions for compliance
4. Security & Compliance
4.1 Authentication & Authorization
- JWT-Based Auth: Separate tokens for admin, messenger, and connect modules with configurable expiry
- Password Security: bcryptjs with salt rounds for secure password hashing
- Token Refresh: Automatic token rotation mechanisms to maintain security
- Multi-Token Support: Distinct tokens prevent cross-module access
- Session Management: Server-side session tracking with Redis persistence
4.2 Data Protection
- End-to-End Encryption: Video and audio streams encrypted via WebRTC
- HTTPS/TLS: All communications encrypted in transit
- Database Encryption: MongoDB Atlas with encryption at rest
- Secure Storage: Vercel Blob with access control and encryption
- Audit Logging: All data access logged for forensic analysis
4.3 Infrastructure Security
- Helmet Security Headers: Protection against XSS, CSRF, and clickjacking
- CORS Control: Strict cross-origin resource sharing allowlists
- Rate Limiting: Request throttling to prevent abuse and DDoS
- Input Validation: Zod schemas validate all incoming data
- Circuit Breakers: Cockatiel implementation prevents cascading failures
- Graceful Shutdown: Clean connection termination and resource cleanup
5. Performance & Scalability
5.1 Optimization Strategies
- Redis Caching: Multi-level caching for recordings, messenger data, and meeting information
- Database Indexes: Centralized index definitions prevent N+1 queries
- Aggregation Pipelines: MongoDB aggregations for complex data operations
- Connection Pooling: Efficient database connection management
- Lazy Loading: Components and features load on-demand
- Code Splitting: Next.js automatic code splitting reduces bundle size
5.2 Scalability Architecture
- Horizontal Scaling: Stateless architecture enables seamless horizontal scaling
- Redis Adapter: Socket.IO Redis adapter enables load balancing across multiple servers
- Message Queue: BullMQ background jobs prevent blocking operations
- Distributed Recording: Participants record chunks independently, reducing server load
- CDN Integration: Vercel integration provides global edge caching
- Database Sharding: MongoDB Atlas automatic sharding for massive datasets
6. Deployment & Operations
6.1 Observability
- OpenTelemetry Tracing: Distributed tracing across all services
- Structured Logging: Pino JSON logging for easy parsing and analysis
- OpenAPI/Swagger: Auto-generated API documentation
- Health Checks: Comprehensive endpoint monitoring
- Performance Metrics: Real-time monitoring of request latency and throughput
6.2 Environment Configuration
# Core Requirements
NEXT_PUBLIC_SOCKET_SERVER_URL=http://localhost:3001
NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL=http://localhost:5000
MONGODB_URI=mongodb+srv://...
VIDEOSDK_TOKEN=your-token
JWT_SECRET=secret-key
# Optional Services
BLOB_READ_WRITE_TOKEN=vercel-blob-token
REDIS_URL=redis://...
OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT=...
7. Use Cases & Industry Applications
Remote Work & Collaboration
Distributed teams conduct daily standups, workshops, and collaborative sessions with integrated chat and whiteboarding.
Customer Support
Support teams provide video consultations, screen sharing for troubleshooting, and persistent chat for context.
Sales & Presentations
Sales teams conduct product demos with screen sharing, recording for follow-up, and messaging for lead nurturing.
Training & Education
Educational institutions deliver lectures with recording, interactive whiteboarding, and participant engagement tools.
Healthcare Consultations
Telemedicine platforms provide secure video consultations with HIPAA-compliant infrastructure and audit trails.
Business Process Outsourcing
BPO firms manage client communications with multi-tenant isolation, call recording, and comprehensive analytics.
8. Conclusion
Merge Conference represents a modern approach to unified communications, combining professional-grade video conferencing with intuitive business messaging in a single, integrated platform. Built on proven technologies with enterprise-scale architecture, Merge Conference delivers reliability, security, and performance for organizations of any size.
With comprehensive feature set, flexible deployment options, and commitment to security and compliance, Merge Conference provides the foundation for organizations to communicate effectively, collaborate seamlessly, and scale confidently.
Whether you're launching a new communication initiative or replacing legacy systems, Merge Conference delivers the modern platform your organization needs.
Contact & Support
For more information about Merge Conference, technical details, or enterprise deployments:
- 📧 Email: support@mergeconference.com
- 🌐 Website: mergeconference.com
- 📚 Documentation: /docs/api
- 💻 Developer Portal: /developer