every.channel/evolution/proposals/ECP-0025-ytdlp-adapter-bundling.md

ECP-0025: yt-dlp adapter + bundled runtime

Status: Draft

Problem / context

We want to paste a YouTube Live (or other supported site) URL into the app and ingest it as a stream. This requires resolving the URL to an HLS playlist or direct stream URL. We also want the app to be self-contained (no external Python install).

Decision

Ship a bundled yt-dlp runtime inside the Tauri app and expose a Tauri command that resolves a URL to a stream URL via yt-dlp. The resolved URL is then treated like any other ingest source and sent through our ffmpeg-based pipeline.

Details

Bundling

• Bundle a Python runtime + yt-dlp inside the app resources directory.
• Prefer the bundled runtime at runtime; fallback to a system yt-dlp only if explicitly configured.
• Use a scripts/vendor-yt-dlp.sh helper to build the bundled environment per platform.

Tauri integration

• Add a add_ytdlp_source command that:
  • Executes python -m yt_dlp -J --no-playlist <url>.
  • Selects a suitable HLS URL from the JSON.
  • Creates a StreamDescriptor and StreamSource.
• The UI provides a URL input in the “Add source” menu.

Security / policy

• The app only resolves URLs; it does not automate login or cookie handling.
• The resolved URL is treated as untrusted; playback uses existing safeguards.

Alternatives considered

• External yt-dlp dependency: rejected (not self-contained).
• Browser-based extraction: rejected (too brittle).

Rollout / teardown plan

1. Add bundling layout and helper script.
2. Add backend command and UI input.
3. Add docs for building the bundled runtime.

Teardown: remove the command and UI input, keep HLS ingest via direct URLs.