This release adds microphone processing controls and local chat controls, expands platform packages, and synchronizes the website and guides. It also fixes native H.264 input/format handling, signaling recovery, fresh STUN discovery, and UDP ownership during overlapping connections. This is **v1.8.0**. Browser/Server v23, Native control v9 and capture v7 remain unchanged, with the existing 1440p ceiling. Additional resolutions, capability negotiation and Magicsock are separate follow-up work. ## Validation - Full local Web check: 79 files / 1,317 tests, TypeScript and production build. - Full Go checks, platform builds and Windows native capture regressions/probe. - Native H.264 Host lifecycle, Browser-to-App fanout and App-exit recovery, and Native H.264 through embedded SFU: all passed with owned process/port/profile cleanup. - Website build, documentation and repository hygiene passed. Existing UI acceptance covers narrow screens, both languages/themes, architecture downloads and all 23 film checks; final packaging and Go race checks run on the merged revision in CI. - Physical macOS/Linux capture, representative public networks and unmatched field reports retain their documented evidence limits. No claim that every blur/disconnection report is resolved. ## Release notes ### 中文 这是一次功能与兼容性更新:麦克风和聊天增加了实用的小选项,App 与 Server 支持更多设备,同时修复了原生分享和连接恢复中的若干问题。现有 1.x 协议保持不变。 #### 新增与改进 - 浏览器麦克风新增「降噪与回声消除」开关,默认开启回声消除、降噪和自动增益;分享音乐或使用虚拟音频输入时,可按需关闭。 - 可调整弹幕字号和透明度,并将当前保留的聊天记录导出为 TXT。当前会话最多保留 1,000 条文字消息,刷新页面后清空;需要保存时请先导出。 - 新增 Intel Mac、Linux ARM64 App,以及 Linux ARM64 Server 和容器镜像。官网下载区可直接选择对应架构,并显示最新版本和发布时间。 - 更新官网演示、README 截图和中英文教程,明确浏览器分享也可选择窗口或屏幕;开始分享前显示房间号占位,保持底栏控件位置稳定。 - 官网新增直达问题排查的入口,补充浏览器 WebRTC 限制、校园网和 Windows 显卡相关的排查步骤。 - App 模式选择页显示免费开源说明、作者与贡献者署名,以及官方网站和源码链接。 #### 修复 - 修正部分 H.264 原生分享的格式兼容性校验,以及 Windows 编码器输入长度和输出缓冲区对齐问题。 - 清理已失效的重连任务和 Native 接收信令,避免旧连接继续影响当前会话。 - 修复 App 重连时可能复用过期公网地址的问题;重新探测使用当前地址,并处理探测丢包和过期响应,保留其他正常连接。 - 修复 App 新旧媒体连接重叠时共用端口造成的冲突,避免准备或撤销新连接打断仍在使用的画面;关闭连接时及时取消未完成的端口映射请求。 - 无站点密码时,连接恢复不再误引导用户输入站点密码。 - 房间失效或会话终止时,开播前后的原因提示统一显示在电视状态图标中,避免额外提示条。 - 修正 Linux 原生采集的时间戳与关键帧时间基准。感谢 Pedro Antonio 在 [#449](https://github.com/TNTcraftHIM/Piik/pull/449) 的贡献。 #### 使用说明 下载对应平台的完整压缩包,退出旧 App 后解压使用。Windows 继续提供 x64;macOS 提供 Apple 芯片与 Intel 版本,原生采集需要 macOS 13 或更新版本。Linux 提供 x64 与 ARM64,原生采集还需安装[系统组件](https://github.com/TNTcraftHIM/Piik/blob/main/native/capture/linux/README.md)。macOS 和 Linux 的实机覆盖仍有限,欢迎反馈。 ### English This update adds useful microphone and chat controls, brings Piik to more devices, and fixes several native-sharing and connection-recovery issues. The existing 1.x protocols remain unchanged. #### New and improved - Browser microphones now have a “Noise & echo reduction” toggle. Echo cancellation, noise suppression and automatic gain control are on by default; turn them off when appropriate for music or virtual audio inputs. - Adjust chat-overlay text size and opacity, and export retained messages as TXT. The current session keeps up to 1,000 text messages and clears on page refresh; export first if you want to keep them. - Added Intel Mac and Linux ARM64 App packages, plus Linux ARM64 Server and container images. The website provides architecture selectors and shows the latest release and publication date. - Updated the website demonstration, README screenshots and bilingual guides, clarifying that browser capture can also select windows or screens. A room-code placeholder keeps the bottom bar stable before sharing starts. - Added direct website links to troubleshooting, with steps for browser WebRTC restrictions, campus networks and Windows graphics issues. - The App mode-selection page now shows its free and open-source status, author and contributor credit, and links to the official website and source. #### Fixes - Corrected H.264 format compatibility checks and Windows encoder input-length and output-buffer alignment handling. - Retired stale reconnect tasks and Native receive signals so they cannot continue affecting the current session. - Fixed App reconnection reusing an expired public address. Fresh discovery handles lost probes and stale responses while preserving other working connections. - Fixed UDP socket conflicts between overlapping App media connections so preparing or canceling a replacement preserves the active picture. Closing a connection now cancels unfinished gateway mapping requests. - Connection recovery on passwordless sites no longer incorrectly asks for a site passphrase. - Expired-room and session-termination reasons now use the same TV status indicator before and during sharing, without an extra notice strip. - Corrected Linux native capture timestamps and keyframe time bases. Thanks to Pedro Antonio for [#449](https://github.com/TNTcraftHIM/Piik/pull/449). #### Updating Download the complete archive for your platform, quit the old App, and extract the new package. Windows remains x64-only. macOS packages support Apple silicon and Intel; native capture requires macOS 13 or newer. Linux supports x64 and ARM64 and requires additional [system components](https://github.com/TNTcraftHIM/Piik/blob/main/native/capture/linux/README.md) for native capture. Physical-device coverage on macOS and Linux remains limited; feedback is welcome. ## Attribution Co-authored-by: Pedro Antonio <wrenchwastaken@gmail.com>
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245 lines
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Markdown
# Cross-Platform App Runtime Research
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- Reviewed: 2026-09-04
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- Scope: loopback control and self-contained packaging boundary
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- Status: App and Local composition implemented; Windows native Host video
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and a cross-NAT media gate proved
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## Reusable Evidence
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| Project | Observed boundary | Applicable lesson |
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| --- | --- | --- |
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| Discord RPC | Bounded local endpoints and an explicit handshake | Discovery and session negotiation can stay small |
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| OBS WebSocket | Versioned `Hello`/`Identify` before commands | Reject unknown protocol shapes instead of adding compatibility readers |
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| Syncthing | Go process with a loopback Browser GUI by default | A native entry and system-Browser UI are a practical cross-platform pair |
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| Sunshine | Native streaming host configured through a localhost Browser UI | Native media does not require a second desktop UI |
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| LocalSend | One peer exposes a local HTTP service without an external server | LAN operation can be self-contained, while network reachability remains physical |
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These are architecture references only. No implementation or copyleft source is
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copied.
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A read-only inventory of locally installed streaming clients adds one practical
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constraint. GameViewer separates its UI, supervised media service, codec
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capability detector, streamer, health process, and updater. Discord keeps its
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Chromium UI separate from a native voice/media module and updater. Oopz ships
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Flutter, a second WebView, FFmpeg, Agora RTC, and Tencent LiteAV together; that
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stack is substantially larger and duplicates media ownership. Piik follows
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the first two products' process separation but not their UI runtimes, and avoids
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Oopz's parallel RTC stacks: one Go process, one Pion media core, and one thin
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system capture sidecar per platform remain sufficient. No binary code or private
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application data was copied or inspected.
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## Current Control Boundary
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The App binds IPv4 loopback on a bounded range (`39721`-`39730`). `/health`
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returns the protocol version, service identity, selected port, and an
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`instanceToken`. `/control` admits one WebSocket session whose subprotocol
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contains that same value. The first frame must be `hello`; subsequent requests
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are limited to capability discovery, source preview, and one generation-fenced
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share's media controls.
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The instance token distinguishes a newly discovered process from a stale or
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unrelated listener. It is visible through health and stdout and is not an
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authentication secret. Host and Origin checks plus Chromium's Local Network
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Access permission form the Browser boundary.
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The current protocol advertises only the native capabilities and
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generation-fenced media commands that have consumers. It carries no room
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credentials or route policy; those stay in the Browser/server protocol.
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## App Composition
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The App and Hosted Piik run the same server core, so the local package is
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one executable carrying the built Browser assets plus the optional capture and
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tunnel sidecars; [the App README](../../cmd/piik-app/README.md) owns
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that layout. In Local mode the App runs the server in its own process with
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explicit local configuration. In Site mode it starts no server, and the system
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Browser opens the saved Site while the same process remains its loopback
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native-media owner. The system Browser remains the UI.
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Official Go process APIs require every started child to be waited and provide a
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bounded `WaitDelay` for cancellation and stuck I/O. That guidance now covers the
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capture and cloudflared sidecars only: the room authority is no longer a child
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process, and Local shutdown is one bounded in-process sequence that ends rooms
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before closing signaling and HTTP. Windows is physically exercised; macOS and
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Linux remain package gates.
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## Local And Hosted Reachability
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A local page completed discovery and the full control exchange in Chromium
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151.0.7922.138. The hosted Piik origin completed it after Chromium received
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its `loopback-network` permission; without that permission the cross-origin
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request was blocked. The gate checks both expected outcomes.
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Run `npm run probe:app-loopback` with `PIIK_CLIENT_LOOPBACK_GATE=true`,
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`CHROME_PATH`, `PIIK_CLIENT_EXE`, and `PIIK_CLIENT_GATE_SITE_URL` pointing to
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the reachable HTTPS Site being tested. Use `PIIK_CLIENT_GATE_GRANT_LOOPBACK=true`
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for the permission-granted run; omit it for the permission-blocked run. The gate
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uses an isolated App configuration and Browser profile, and rejects navigation
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failures or redirects to another origin as acceptance evidence.
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A self-contained LAN room uses a localhost Host URL and a selected LAN IPv4
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Viewer URL backed by the same local App process. The App persists an
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optional user-chosen access password and passes it only to its Host page in a
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consumed fragment; a blank value leaves the Local site open. Explicit `--link`
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mode launches the packaged Cloudflare Quick
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Tunnel against that same local HTTP server and supplies its random HTTPS origin
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to the local server configuration before it starts listening. The public path
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therefore reuses the exact frontend,
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WebSocket signaling, RoomStore, and Viewer grant instead of adding a rendezvous
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or second client protocol. Cloudflare carries control traffic; WebRTC media uses
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public STUN and remains P2P-only.
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## UI Runtime Boundary
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The current App opens the system Browser rather than embedding another Web
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runtime. A lightweight launcher chooses the authority mode, then navigates to
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the same Host page, where an App-launched Host can select an exact native
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window. This keeps the existing UI, Site cookies, WebRTC behavior, Browser
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updates, and permission model intact. Syncthing and Sunshine establish this as a
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practical native-process plus Browser-UI deployment shape.
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An embedded shell remains a decision gate rather than a rejected category.
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Current WebView2 exposes `getDisplayMedia` screen-capture events and its
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Evergreen runtime updates independently; WebKitGTK exposes display capture and
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uses GStreamer for WebRTC. Electron instead bundles one Chromium and Node but
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makes the App responsible for shipping those updates and adds substantial
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package size. These facts do not prove equivalent Piik media behavior.
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Only a reproduced Browser-launch failure should open a comparative physical
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gate for Electron, Tauri, Wails, Neutralino, or another shell. That gate must
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compare actual capture, audio, H.264/VP8 sender implementation, 1080p cadence,
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relay, background behavior, and resource use on every target platform. The
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result selects one UI runtime; it does not create parallel products.
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## Current Evidence
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The runs below are pre-port evidence: they exercised the package that bundled a
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Node runtime and an extracted application tree. Their capture, discovery, media,
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and network results still apply; every package composition, startup, and
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shutdown claim must be re-verified on the single-binary App before that build
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is accepted.
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On Windows with Chrome for Testing 151.0.7922.138:
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- the Local App started its built static application and reached `/healthz`;
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- the Host fragment was removed, existing SiteAccess became authenticated, and
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the ordinary Host page loaded;
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- the room API generated an invitation from the selected LAN origin;
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- one synthetic Host and three Viewers formed a P2P-only tree with one relay,
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every Viewer advanced decoded frames, and no SFU publication appeared; and
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- Enter-driven App shutdown released the Browser, App, Node, loopback and
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application ports, and disposable profile.
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- the immutable App release was assembled with Node 24.19.0 and the Go App
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from the same full revision; that packaged directory passed the Local and Site
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gates, while a deliberately mismatched `app/REVISION` was rejected before a
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listener started.
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- the explicit target assembler produced Windows amd64, Linux amd64, and macOS
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arm64 outputs from one clean revision. The Linux package ran its bundled Node
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Local authority on Ubuntu, and its full package exposed and then closed a
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public link reachable from another network. The macOS App and Node inputs
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are both Mach-O arm64; execution there remains unproved.
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- the native Host path created a Local room and a remote Pion Viewer received
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30 packets over a selected `srflx`-to-`srflx` pair; the reverse SSH link in
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that gate carried signaling only.
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- a Windows App created an accountless Quick Tunnel, generated its ordinary
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invitation on that origin, and served the Viewer page plus `/signal` WebSocket
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upgrade to an independent Linux host; a native Host then repeatedly delivered
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30+ H.264 RTP packets to a Linux Pion Viewer over selected direct paths using
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a reflexive candidate. Stopping the App closed the URL.
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The one-link gate used the official Windows amd64 `cloudflared` 2026.8.3 asset
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with SHA-256 `83e726ed18ea78c5ad5213c4c3a3a27051393950d2bc8ed4de69bec12d14eaae`.
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The sidecar remains an explicit package input rather than a linked App
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dependency.
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The peer topology gate now treats native `getStats()` RTP identity and frame
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totals as its portable core proof. Detailed Piik quality metrics enrich a
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development run when its source module is served, but their absence on a static
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deployment no longer erases valid native RTCStats.
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### Public Invitation Startup
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The pinned cloudflared Quick Tunnel defaults to explicit QUIC, which disables
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its HTTP/2 fallback. Piik requests `--protocol auto` and
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`--max-edge-addr-retries 0`: try QUIC once, then let cloudflared fall back within
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the existing 30-second startup budget. This affects HTTP/WebSocket control only;
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media routes, tunnel identity and ordered shutdown keep their existing owners.
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DNS failures, API rejection and networks blocking both transports can still fail.
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The preceding Quick Tunnel allocation is a single HTTPS request with a 15-second
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dependency timeout; failure exits before transport fallback applies. The App's
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pre-readiness exit message and exit code do not identify that cause. Match the
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same run's `public-tunnel` dependency diagnostics before classifying a report.
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Piik retries a child that exits before readiness, up to four starts with a
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one-second pause between starts, all within the same 30-second acquisition
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deadline. The previous child, output readers and temporary config retire before
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the next start. Cancellation and local setup errors stop acquisition; a ready
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tunnel retains its original identity and explicit ordered-close owner.
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A 2026-09-21 Windows check used the packaged binary with an isolated UDP sink and
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TCP forwarder. The previous arguments timed out at 30 seconds without trying TCP.
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The candidate connected in about 11 seconds, served the public page and echoed a
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WebSocket message, then joined the child on close. The ordinary-network App link
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gate also serves the invitation page and upgrades its WebSocket from an external
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US host, then confirms App exit and link retirement. These bounded checks do not
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establish regional reachability, uninterrupted connector availability or the
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cause of reports without matching diagnostics. Upstream
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[Quick Tunnel setup](https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/blob/2026.8.3/cmd/cloudflared/tunnel/quick_tunnel.go)
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and [protocol fallback](https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/blob/2026.8.3/supervisor/tunnel.go)
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own the dependency behavior. An early-exit fixture confirms fourth-start recovery
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and bounded exhaustion; these checks do not identify a reporter's API or network
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failure or guarantee four starts when earlier attempts consume the deadline.
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[HTTP 1033](https://developers.cloudflare.com/support/troubleshooting/http-status-codes/cloudflare-1xxx-errors/error-1033/)
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means Cloudflare cannot find a healthy tunnel connector. App readiness requires
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both the assigned origin and a registered connection; later reconnection belongs
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to cloudflared, while process exit ends that App's public-link runtime. This
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HTTP failure precedes WebRTC candidate exchange and is distinct from media-route
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exhaustion on an already reachable site.
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The pinned [supervisor](https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/blob/2026.8.3/supervisor/supervisor.go)
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uses [indefinite retries with bounded exponential backoff](https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/blob/2026.8.3/retry/backoffhandler.go)
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for recoverable edge disconnects. Piik's four-start acquisition limit is not a
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four-reconnect limit after readiness. Restarting the Quick Tunnel process would
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allocate a new public address rather than repair the old invitation.
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## Remaining Gates
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- Run the exact clean-revision package on macOS; Linux amd64 is proved.
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- Prove a physical second-device LAN Viewer on desktop, Android, and iOS.
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- Prove first-run Browser local-network permission outside CDP automation.
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- Record no-STUN mDNS behavior on ordinary and AP-isolated LANs.
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- Exercise the native Host on a configured Site and representative Browsers;
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the local SFU bridge is proved in isolation, while full Site recovery,
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representative audio, and non-Windows capture remain undefined.
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- Exercise one-link Browser media on a physical second device; the current gate
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proves the complete public control path and independent Pion media, not
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decoded Browser frames.
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## Sources
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- [Go `os/exec`](https://pkg.go.dev/os/exec)
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- [WebRTC peer connections](https://webrtc.org/getting-started/peer-connections)
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- [Cloudflare public STUN endpoint](https://developers.cloudflare.com/realtime/turn/)
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- [Cloudflare Quick Tunnels](https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/networks/connectors/cloudflare-tunnel/do-more-with-tunnels/trycloudflare/)
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- [Cloudflare Tunnel WebSockets](https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/faq/cloudflare-tunnels-faq/)
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- [cloudflared releases](https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/releases/tag/2026.8.3)
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- [RFC 6455](https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc6455.html)
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- [W3C Screen Capture](https://www.w3.org/TR/screen-capture/)
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- [Microsoft Windows Graphics Capture](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/apps/develop/media-authoring-processing/screen-capture)
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- [Apple SCContentSharingPicker](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/screencapturekit/sccontentsharingpicker)
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- [XDG ScreenCast portal](https://flatpak.github.io/xdg-desktop-portal/docs/doc-org.freedesktop.portal.ScreenCast.html)
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- [OBS window-capture source](https://github.com/obsproject/obs-studio/blob/master/plugins/win-capture/window-capture.c)
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- [Chrome Local Network Access](https://developer.chrome.com/blog/local-network-access)
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- [Discord RPC](https://docs.discord.com/developers/topics/rpc)
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- [OBS WebSocket](https://github.com/obsproject/obs-websocket/blob/master/docs/generated/protocol.md)
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- [LocalSend protocol](https://github.com/localsend/protocol/blob/main/README.md)
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- [Sunshine](https://docs.lizardbyte.dev/projects/sunshine/latest/)
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- [Syncthing GUI configuration](https://docs.syncthing.net/users/config.html)
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- [GameViewer product](https://uuyc.163.com/)
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- [Discord desktop architecture](https://discord.com/blog/how-discord-maintains-performance-while-adding-features)
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- [WebView2 Evergreen runtime](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/webview2/concepts/evergreen-vs-fixed-version)
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- [WebView2 screen capture](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/webview2/reference/win32/icorewebview2screencapturestartingeventargs)
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- [WebKitGTK multimedia](https://docs.webkit.org/Ports/WebKitGTK%20and%20WPE%20WebKit/Multimedia.html)
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- [WebKitGTK display capture](https://webkitgtk.org/reference/webkit2gtk/stable/class.WebView.html)
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- [Electron architecture](https://www.electronjs.org/docs/latest/why-electron)
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