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This was an animated TV show that was broadcast in Canada in the 2000s. It was a cartoon, not live action.

What I remember about the show is that there was teenagers who could physically go into a virtual world (maybe a video game), similar to the show Sword Art Online. There was a central area where all the players met in the virtual world, with dangerous outskirts. I think the plot included the characters having separate lives in the video game and at school, in real life and they would transition back and forth between them. It was a teen/kids show.

It was not ReBoot.

Could also be Code Lyoko

It ran from 2003 to 2007.

Jeremy Belpois, a 12-year-old prodigy attending boarding school at
Kadic Academy, discovers a quantum supercomputer in an abandoned
factory near his school. Upon activating it, he discovers a virtual
world called Lyoko with an artificially intelligent girl named Aelita
trapped inside it. Jeremy learns of X.A.N.A., a fully autonomous,
malevolent, and highly intelligent multi-agent system, that also
dwells within the Supercomputer. Using Lyoko's power, X.A.N.A is able
to possess electronics and machinery (and later, people) in the real
world to wreak havoc. X.A.N.A.'s primary objective is to eliminate
anyone who's aware of the supercomputer's existence, so that it will
be free to conquer the real world and enslave all human beings.

Jeremy works tirelessly to materialize Aelita into the real world and
stop attacks caused by X.A.N.A. Jeremy is aided by his three friends
Odd Della Robbia, Ulrich Stern, and Yumi Ishiyama, who are virtualized
into Lyoko in order to save both worlds from the sinister virtual
entity. They achieve this by escorting Aelita to various towers on
Lyoko, which serve as interface terminals between Lyoko and Earth, and
having her deactivate the one that X.A.N.A. is using to access the
real world. Once the tower is deactivated, Jeremy is able to launch a
"Return to the Past" program, which sends anyone scanned into the
Supercomputer's memory back in time, whilst retaining memory of the
other timeline, to undo any damage caused by X.A.N.A. (the only
exception of this are any deaths caused by the attack, which would
carry over even with the time reversion). In "Code: Earth," Aelita is
finally materialized, but the group discovers that X.A.N.A. had
planted a virus inside of her that will kill her if the Supercomputer
is deactivated. They realize that they cannot destroy X.A.N.A.
completely, or Aelita will be destroyed along with it.

See here if it rings any bells:

The other possible answer "The real adventures of Johny Quest" but it ran from August 26, 1996 to
April 16, 1997.

You didn't say it was Anime specifically (might want to edit your post if it is). This may be a long shot, but if it was public broadcast then it sounds a tad bit like Cyber Chase. The characters got pulled into the cyber world and at the end of each episode you would see the real life characters doing stuff at school, work, etc.

Like I said, seems unlikely, but it matched you description.

It might be the Anime show .hack//Sign (2002, 26 episodes), or possibly one of the other shows in the dot-hack franchise.

From Wikipedia's page on .hack//Sign:

The series is set in a fictional 2009, introducing a computer virus called Pluto's Kiss as the cause of a massive Internet shutdown. [...] Two years later free access to the networks recovers, bringing with it the release of The World: the first online game since Pluto's Kiss, developed for Altimit OS. The World is portrayed as a fantasy setting wherein player characters can be different classes, adventure by themselves to go searching through dungeons or join with others and form parties, fight monsters and level up, collect new items and participate in special events. At the center of each server is a Root Town, which contain shops, a save point, and the Chaos Gate that players use to travel between servers in the game.

I'm thinking that Root Town may be the "central area where all the players met in the virtual world" that you describe.

The main protagonist is a boy names Tsusaka:

Tsukasa is mind-trapped into the game. Despite being a "fantasy quest type adventure", it does not rely on action sequences. The series is driven by mystery, slowly revealing secrets to viewers while hearing to individual characters Questions for Tsukasa in the real world serve as deriving actions Tsukasa hears Morganna and discovers Aura in the form of a girl. One of the characters plan to help and have ulterior motives. More questions arise for anyone what will happen in the game. All the while he is seen struggling with his increasingly dire situation, and his own social and emotional shortcomings. Although Tsukasa is isolated, he begins a relationship with Subaru, a kind and thoughtful female Heavy Axeman. The series follows the Key of the Twilight (黄昏の鍵 Tasogare no Kagi), a legendary item rumored to have the ability to bypass the system in The World. Some characters take it to gain the power it confers. Others believe it, even Tsukasa finds a way to log out. Despite their reasons for seeking it, everyone agrees that it is related to him in some way, as he is also a factor bypassing the system in the game. His catatonic state adds a sense of urgency.

Could it be Chaotic?

Chaotic tells the tale of a teenage boy named Tom and his friend Kaz. They both play the Chaotic Trading Card/Online Game. Kaz always tries to tell Tom about a secret code to play for real which Tom refuses to believe. While playing online Tom receives the special password. When he enters the password into his game scanner he is transported to a place called Chaotic that is able to take him to another world where the characters, locations and items in the card game came to life.

There are two parts to the Chaotic world, Chaotic itself and Perim. Chaotic is where the people play an advanced version of the card/online game where they transform into the creatures. The games can be watched via monitor by other players.

The second part is Perim. In Perim the creatures, locations and items from the game are real. Players from the Chaotic game can teleport into Perim and scan the locations, creatures and items with their scanners, gaining the ability to use them in their game. There are four tribes in Perim. Two tribes, the Overworld and the Underworld, have been at war over a great power called the Cothica. Despite their names, there is no definite Good and evil tribe, as both have different stories and interpretations of how the war began, with each tribe seeing the other as being evil. The Danians and Mipedians have since joined the war, turning it into a four-way conflict over the Cothica. It is said that the Mipedians were once united with the Overworlders and the Danians united with the Underworlders. It is still unknown why they separated

It is one of the features on Orlando Kids. It has two other worlds, which are accessible by a device that the main character acquires from his friend (well, he already had the device, but got the code from Kaz). They are teenagers. Chaotic has a teleporter to Perim. There are robots on the Chaotic.

And, indeed, their bodies stay on Earth:

When the players are in Chaotic/Perim they exist simultaneously on Earth. When a Chaotic player leaves Chaotic they become one person again and the Earth version of the player gains the memories of anything they experienced in the Chaotic/Perim world. This is awkward the first time they transport, as their online deck is blocked so that their Chaotic self can use it and their scanner becomes non functional, causing many people to believe they have broken their scanners until they are re-united with their Chaotic self.

First episode:

Kinda sounds like it could be Digimon Adventure.

Wikipedia:

On August 1, 1999, seven children are transported into the Digital
World by Digivices that appeared before them at summer camp, where
they befriend several Digimon (Digital Monsters). The kids'
Digivices allow their partner Digimon to Digivolve into stronger
forms and combat enemies. As the kids explore to find a way home, they
learn that they are "DigiDestined", children chosen to save the
Digital World.