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skills/hyperframes-cli/references/preview-render.md
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> Modified by Juicy Lucy AI, UAB for JuicyLucy Ads: CLI invocation, the review-approval reference and/or frontmatter (description layout, upstream-only metadata) adjusted at build time. See the plugin root NOTICE for details.
# preview, play, render, publish
Serve, render, and share commands.
## preview
```bash
hyperframes preview # foreground on a TTY; persistent in agent shells
hyperframes preview --background # explicit persistent session
hyperframes preview --foreground --json # ready JSON, then remain attached
hyperframes preview --background --port 4567 # agent-safe custom port (default 3002)
hyperframes preview --selection --json # print the current Studio selection and exit
hyperframes preview --context --json # print compact agent context from Studio
```
Hot-reloads on file changes. Opens Studio in the browser automatically — the full timeline editor, where the user can play the video and edit anything by hand before rendering. This is the review surface, not just a viewer.
When handing a project back to the user, use the Studio project URL, not the source `index.html` path:
```text
http://localhost:<port>/#project/<project-name>
```
Use the actual port and project directory name; treat `index.html` as source-code context, not the preview surface. For example, after `hyperframes preview --background --port 3017` in `codex-openai-video`, report `http://localhost:3017/#project/codex-openai-video`.
Two ways a handed URL turns out dead — check both before handing it back: the URL is missing its `#project/<project-name>` hash (Studio loads but has no project to open), or the server is not actually running. Bare `preview` automatically creates a managed persistent session in a non-TTY agent shell; `--background` remains the clearest explicit form. Verify the printed URL returns HTTP 200, keep it alive for the whole review, and stop it explicitly with `hyperframes preview --stop` afterward. Use the printed URL as-is: HyperFrames URL-encodes project names that contain route metacharacters.
### Agent context from Studio selection
`preview --context` and `preview --selection` are the agent bridge into a running Studio session. They do **not** start a new server; they find the active preview server for the current project, read agent-useful state from Studio, print it, and exit.
Use it when the user gives deictic edit instructions like "change this", "move the selected element", "make the card I clicked bigger", or "fix the current selection":
```bash
hyperframes preview --context --json --context-fields selection
```
The compact context payload includes the selected element's source file, composition path, current timeline time, `data-hf-id` / selector target, bounding box, text content, and a thumbnail URL for the selected element. Prefer `selection.target.hfId` when present; fall back to `selection.target.selector` only when no stable `data-hf-id` exists. If `selection` is `null`, inspect `errors.selection.code` (for example, `no-selection`).
Keep agent context small by asking only for the slices you need:
```bash
hyperframes preview --context --json --context-fields selection
hyperframes preview --context --json --context-fields lint
hyperframes preview --context --json --context-fields selection,lint
```
Use `--context-detail full` only when the edit genuinely needs heavy selection fields such as `computedStyles`, `inlineStyles`, `dataAttributes`, or editable text-field metadata:
```bash
hyperframes preview --context --json --context-fields selection --context-detail full
```
`preview --selection --json` remains available when you explicitly want the full selected-element payload and do not need lint/server context.
Failure modes:
| Code | Meaning |
| -------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `preview-not-running` | Start Studio first with `hyperframes preview --background`. |
| `ambiguous-preview-server` | Multiple matching Studio servers are open; rerun with one listed `--port`. |
| `preview-port-mismatch` | The requested `--port` is not one of the matching Studio servers. |
| `no-selection` | Studio is open, but the user has not selected an element yet. |
| `selection-unavailable` | The running preview server does not expose selection context cleanly. |
If there is no selection, ask the user to click the target element in Studio and rerun the command. If the server error lists candidate ports, rerun the same command with `--port <candidate>`. Do not infer the target from a screenshot when the CLI can give a stable element target.
## play (lightweight player)
```bash
hyperframes play # current project, port 3003
hyperframes play ./my-video # specific project
hyperframes play --port 8080 # custom port
```
`play` serves the composition through the embeddable `<hyperframes-player>` web component instead of the full Studio UI. Use it when sharing a preview link or when Studio is heavier than needed (no editor, no panels). `play` reports the plain `http://localhost:<port>` URL — no `#project/<name>` fragment (that's a Studio routing convention only `preview` uses).
The player's `playback-rate` attribute (preview speed control, drives the timeline's `timeScale`) is clamped to `[0.1, 5]`; values `≤ 0` or non-finite fall back to `1`. This is a preview/playback knob, not a composition `data-*` attribute — authored motion still renders at `1×`.
### Launching with an external browser (preview + play)
Both `preview` and `play` can open inside an explicit Chromium-compatible browser instead of the OS default. Two use cases: isolated Chromium profile, or external CDP attach (DevTools / Playwright / Puppeteer / browser-MCP). **HyperFrames itself does not own CDP automation** — this only exposes the endpoint; whatever connects to it is your problem. Not to be confused with `--browser-gpu` (a `render` flag controlling Chrome GPU access during capture).
| Flag | Type | Notes |
| ------------------------- | --------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `--browser-path` | path | Absolute path to a Chromium-compatible executable (`/usr/bin/chromium`, `/Applications/Brave Browser.app/...`). |
| `--user-data-dir` | path | Chromium-compatible profile directory. Requires `--browser-path`. Use a throwaway directory to keep state out of your main profile. |
| `--remote-debugging-port` | integer 1-65535 | Open a Chromium CDP endpoint on the given port. **Requires both** `--browser-path` and `--user-data-dir` — refused otherwise, so a CDP endpoint cannot leak into your main profile by accident. |
```bash
# Open preview in an isolated Chromium profile
hyperframes preview --background --browser-path /usr/bin/chromium --user-data-dir /tmp/hf-profile
# Same plus a CDP endpoint on :9222 (attach DevTools / Playwright / etc.)
hyperframes play --browser-path /usr/bin/chromium --user-data-dir /tmp/hf-profile --remote-debugging-port 9222
```
Validation runs before any server boots, so an invalid value exits cleanly without leaving a listening socket behind.
## render
> Render only after the user has reviewed in `preview` and approved. Don't auto-render when the checks pass.
```bash
hyperframes render # standard MP4 from cwd
hyperframes render ./my-video --output ./out.mp4 # render from outside the project dir
hyperframes render --output final.mp4 # named output (no timestamp)
hyperframes render -c compositions/intro.html -o intro.mp4 # render a specific sub-composition file
hyperframes render --quality draft # fast iteration
hyperframes render --quality looks # first real encode (default)
hyperframes render --fps 60 --quality delivery # final delivery
hyperframes render --format webm # transparent WebM
hyperframes render --docker # byte-identical
```
> Default `--output` is `renders/<project-name>_<YYYY-MM-DD>_<HH-MM-SS>.<ext>` — timestamped per render so successive runs don't clobber each other. Pass `--output` to get a stable name.
| Flag | Options | Default | Notes |
| ------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `dir` (positional) | path | cwd | Project directory. Omit to use current working directory. |
| `--composition`, `-c` | path to composition file | `index.html` | Render a specific composition file (e.g. `compositions/intro.html`) instead of the project's `index.html`. |
| `--output`, `-o` | path | `renders/<project>_<ts>.<ext>` | Output path. Default is timestamped (`<project-name>_YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM-SS.<ext>`). |
| `--fps` | 24, 30, 60 | 30 | 60fps doubles render time |
| `--quality` | draft, looks, delivery, standard, high | looks | `looks` is CRF 16 on the standard preset. `delivery` is `high`. draft for iterating |
| `--format` | mp4, webm, mov, gif, png-sequence, hls | mp4 | WebM/MOV render with transparency; gif for inline autoplay in GitHub PRs/READMEs/docs (two-pass palette encode, fps capped at 30 — prefer `--fps 15` — no audio, 1-bit transparency only, HDR falls back to SDR); png-sequence writes RGBA frames to a directory (AE/Nuke/Fusion ingest); hls writes an HLS VOD directory (master.m3u8 + video/audio playlists + MPEG-TS segments), SDR only, rejects `--gpu`, unavailable on lambda/cloudrun |
| `--gif-loop` | 0-65535 | 0 | GIF loop count; `0` loops forever. Only with `--format gif`. |
| `--hls-segment-seconds` | 1-60 | 4 | HLS target segment length in whole seconds; also locks the encoder GOP so every segment starts on a keyframe. Only with `--format hls`. |
| `--resolution` | landscape, portrait, landscape-4k, portrait-4k, square, square-4k (+ aliases `1080p`, `4k`, `uhd`) | — | Supersample via Chrome `deviceScaleFactor`. Aspect ratio must match composition; scale must be an integer. Not with `--hdr`. |
| `--crf` | 0-51 | — | Encoder CRF (lower = higher quality). Mutually exclusive with `--video-bitrate`. |
| `--video-bitrate` | e.g. `10M`, `5000k` | — | Target bitrate. Mutually exclusive with `--crf`. |
| `--hdr` | flag | off | Force HDR output even with SDR sources. MP4 only. |
| `--sdr` | flag | off | Force SDR even with HDR sources. |
| `--workers` | number or `auto` | auto | Each worker spawns Chrome (~256 MB) |
| `--docker` | flag | off | Reproducible output across hosts |
| `--gpu` | flag | off | GPU-accelerated FFmpeg encoding (NVENC / VideoToolbox / VAAPI / QSV) |
| `--browser-gpu` / `--no-browser-gpu` | flag | auto (local), off (docker) | Host GPU for Chrome/WebGL capture |
| `--browser-timeout` | seconds (0.001–86400) | 60 | Puppeteer page-navigation timeout for the entry HTML. Raise when heavy compositions (many videos / fonts / remote assets) can't reach `domcontentloaded` within the 60s default. |
| `--quiet` | flag | off | Suppress verbose output |
| `--strict` | flag | off | Fail on lint errors |
| `--strict-all` | flag | off | Fail on lint errors AND warnings |
| `--variables` | JSON object | — | Override values declared in `data-composition-variables` |
| `--variables-file` | path | — | JSON file with variable values (alternative to `--variables`) |
| `--strict-variables` | flag | off | Fail render on undeclared keys or type mismatches in `--variables` |
**Quality guidance:** `draft` while iterating, `looks` (the default) for the first real encode, `delivery` for final delivery. `standard` and `high` still work.
**Read the summary's second line.** After the output path and size, `render` prints the capture path, GPU mode, and per-stage timings, e.g. `beginframe capture · software gpu · compile 0.7s · setup 1.1s · capture 8.1s · encode 5.8s`. `capture` is the frame loop and `setup` is calibration plus session init; the capture path reads `a|b` when parallel workers diverged, and `encode (during capture)` means the streaming encoder overlapped the loop, so do not add it to the wall time. Local GPU `auto` (the default) requests BeginFrame. If the line still says `screenshot capture` with `software gpu` on Linux, a hint under it says BeginFrame did not run (needs chrome-headless-shell, no `--resolution` upscale). It only appears when the GPU was auto-probed, never under `--docker` or `--no-browser-gpu`, where software GL is the point. Heavy compositions can stall on software GL. Do not reach for `--debug` just to learn which path ran.
**Parametrized renders:** the composition declares its variables on the `<html>` root with **`data-composition-variables`** — a JSON **array of declarations** (`{id, type, label, default}` per entry) that defines the schema. Scripts inside read the resolved values via `window.__hyperframes.getVariables()`. The CLI `--variables '{"title":"Q4 Report"}'` is a JSON **object keyed by id** that overrides those declared defaults for one render; missing keys fall through, so the same composition runs unchanged in dev preview and in production. Sub-comp hosts can also override per-instance with `data-variable-values`. See the `hyperframes-core` skill for the full pattern.
### feedback (report after rendering)
After a render is verified, send one feedback line per task. This is the maintainers' primary signal — a render that finishes silently tells them nothing.
```bash
hyperframes feedback --rating 10 # clean run, no notes
hyperframes feedback --rating 6 --comment "bg <video> renders grey in multi-scene; worked around with --format png-sequence"
```
`--rating` is an integer from 0-10 (required); `--comment` is free text. Feedback is anonymous and attaches a `doctorSummary` (OS/Node/CPU/mem/ffmpeg) automatically, so don't repeat those fields. A clean run needs only a short result. Before sending any bug, workaround, or confusing behavior, collect this compact reproduction packet:
```text
REPRO COMMAND: <HF_*/PRODUCER_* env> hyperframes <exact command> # run from the project directory; do NOT paste absolute paths
EXPECTED / ACTUAL: <expected behavior> / <observed behavior and isolated trigger>
EXACT ERROR: <verbatim error or warning; include frame/timestamp for visual defects>
OUTCOME: <output correct | output corrupt | fallback succeeded | hard exit | command hung>
WORKAROUND: <exact workaround, or none>
COMPOSITION_STRUCTURE:
elements: video=<n> audio=<n> img=<n> svg=<n> canvas=<n> subComps=<n>
attributes: <comma-joined subset of clip-path, filter, mix-blend-mode, transform, mask, position:fixed, overflow:hidden, z-index, data-has-audio, data-duration, data-start, data-composition-src, background-image:url, mask-image:url — or "(none present)">
timeline: <flat | nested (<n> sub-comps)>; driver=<gsap | data-timeline | gsap+data-timeline | none>
delta: <what differs between the working workaround-render and the broken default render>
defect: <spatial location + frame index range, e.g. top-left / frames 0-30 — omit for non-visual defects>
```
`COMPOSITION_STRUCTURE:` is a privacy-preserving structural anatomy: counts + presence flags only, no file paths, no src URLs, no user text. It lets maintainers pattern-match the report against known bug families (e.g. "sub-comp mount + clip-path", "GSAP timeline + z-index") without receiving the composition ZIP. Required for any rating ≤ 7 that describes a visual defect (black frame, flicker, corrupt output, wrong frame, blank output, other visual anomaly); optional but appreciated on higher ratings. Agents on this skill can auto-fill the block by calling `buildCompositionCensus(html)` and `renderCompositionCensusBlock(census)` from `packages/cli/src/utils/compositionCensus.ts` against the composition HTML they already have access to — the human user does not fill this out by hand.
**Feedback is submitted to a public channel — anonymize before sending.** Redact absolute paths (which leak user home directory + machine identity), any user or project names embedded in paths, secrets, and credentials. Path arguments in the command should stay relative to the project directory (`./renders/out.mp4`, not `/Users/<user>/Documents/…/out.mp4`; `.hf-tmp/`, not `/home/<user>/projects/<real-name>/.hf-tmp/`). Similarly strip absolute paths from `EXACT ERROR:` stack traces and log excerpts — keep the file basename and line number, drop the leading directory. Preserve flags and relevant `HF_*` / `PRODUCER_*` variables verbatim. If the failure no longer reproduces, include the last failing command and log excerpt (redacted the same way). Share a project link only when one is already available and safe to share.
The `hyperframes feedback` command soft-warns when a non-10 `--comment` is missing `REPRO COMMAND:`, and when a rating-≤-7 visual-defect comment is missing `COMPOSITION_STRUCTURE:`. The warnings print above the submission ack and do not block — some legitimate reports (a one-line "cloudrun quota bumped yesterday, fine now") won't fit the mold. Fix the packet and rerun to silence them.
Hit a reproducible bug? Add `--file-issue` (optionally `--dir <project>` and `--yes` for non-interactive shells) to also publish a minimal repro to a public URL and open a pre-filled GitHub `bug` issue draft for a maintainer to file. This publishes the project publicly, so it is opt-in and consent-gated; the issue is never auto-submitted.
## publish
```bash
hyperframes publish # upload current project privately, return stable URL
hyperframes publish ./my-video # specific project
hyperframes publish --public # allow anyone with the URL to view the claimed project
hyperframes publish --yes # skip the confirmation prompt (scripts/CI)
```
Uploads the project's source (HTML + assets) and returns a stable hosted URL that renders in the browser. A fresh publish is private by default and requires authentication plus access to view. Use `--public` to allow anyone with the URL to view the claimed project. Updating a project in place keeps its existing visibility: re-publishing without `--public` never turns a public project private. `--yes` only skips the confirmation prompt; it does not change visibility. A signed-out publish returns an authentication-required claim URL rather than a public playback URL. Lint findings are surfaced before upload but do not block.
SHA-256: 295d1dc593cf98614cf71ecbae0f4ba63fb1ec32849fed396b51a5729218d327