MRC - MPV Remote Control

MRC is a fast, robust JSON IPC wrapper for the mpv video player. It provides:

• Type-safe MPV IPC communication
• Command-line interface with interactive mode
• Secure remote control over HTTPS
• Async Support with Tokio for high performance

Features

• Complete MPV Control: Play, pause, seek, playlist management, and property access
• Interactive CLI: Real-time command interface with help system
• Secure Remote Access: TLS-encrypted server with token authentication
• Flexible Configuration: Custom socket paths and environment-based setup

Quick Start

Prerequisites

1. Install MPV with IPC support enabled
2. Install Rust (edition 2024+)

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/notashelf/mrc.git
cd mrc

# Build the project
cargo build --release

# Or install directly
cargo install --path .

Basic Usage

1. Start MPV with IPC socket:

   mpv --idle --input-ipc-server=/tmp/mpvsocket

2. Use the CLI:

   # Basic playback control
   cargo run --bin cli play
   cargo run --bin cli pause
   cargo run --bin cli next
   
   # Load files
   cargo run --bin cli add ~/Music/song.mp3 ~/Videos/movie.mkv
   
   # Interactive mode
   cargo run --bin cli interactive

Usage Guide

CLI Commands

Command	Description	Example
play [index]	Start/resume playback	mrc play or mrc play 2
pause	Pause playback	mrc pause
stop	Stop and quit MPV	mrc stop
next	Skip to next playlist item	mrc next
prev	Skip to previous item	mrc prev
seek <seconds>	Seek to position	mrc seek 120
add <files...>	Add files to playlist	mrc add song1.mp3 song2.mp3
remove [index]	Remove playlist item	mrc remove 0
move <from> <to>	Move playlist item	mrc move 0 3
clear	Clear playlist	mrc clear
list	Show playlist	mrc list
prop <properties...>	Get properties	mrc prop volume duration
interactive	Enter interactive mode	mrc interactive

Interactive Mode

Enter interactive mode for real-time control:

$ cargo run --bin cli interactive
Entering interactive mode. Type 'exit' to quit.
mpv> play
mpv> seek 60
mpv> set volume 80
mpv> get filename
mpv> help
mpv> exit

Library Usage

Basic example:

use mrc::{playlist_next, set_property, get_property};
use serde_json::json;

#[tokio::main]
async fn main() -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
    // Set volume to 50%
    set_property("volume", &json!(50), None).await?;

    // Get current filename
    if let Some(filename) = get_property("filename", None).await? {
        println!("Playing: {}", filename);
    }

    // Skip to next track
    playlist_next(None).await?;

    Ok(())
}

Server Mode

For remote control over HTTPS:

1. Generate TLS certificates:

   # Create self-signed certificate
   openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:4096 -keyout private_key.pem -out certificate.pem -days 365 -nodes
   
   # Convert to PKCS#12 format
   openssl pkcs12 -export -out identity.pfx -inkey private_key.pem -in certificate.pem

2. Set environment variables:

   export TLS_PFX_PATH="./identity.pfx"
   export TLS_PASSWORD="your_pfx_password"
   export AUTH_TOKEN="your_secure_token"

3. Start the server:

   cargo run --bin server
   # Server starts on https://127.0.0.1:8080

4. Make requests:

   # Using curl
   curl -k -H "Authorization: Bearer your_secure_token" \
        -d "pause" https://127.0.0.1:8080/
   
   # Using any HTTP client
   POST https://127.0.0.1:8080/
   Authorization: Bearer your_secure_token
   Content-Type: text/plain
   
   play

Configuration

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default	Required
TLS_PFX_PATH	Path to PKCS#12 certificate file	-	Server only
TLS_PASSWORD	Password for PKCS#12 file	-	Server only
AUTH_TOKEN	Authentication token for server	-	Server only

Socket Path

By default, MRC uses /tmp/mpvsocket. You can customize this:

// In your code
use mrc::set_property;

set_property("volume", &json!(50), Some("/your/socket/path")).await?;

Development

Building

# Development build
cargo build

# Release build
cargo build --release

# Run tests
cargo test

# Check linting
cargo clippy

Testing MPV IPC

Test IPC communication manually:

# Send raw command to MPV socket
echo '{ "command": ["get_property", "volume"] }' | socat - /tmp/mpvsocket

# Expected response
{"data":50,"error":"success","request_id":0}

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Socket not found error:

• Ensure MPV is running: mpv --idle --input-ipc-server=/tmp/mpvsocket
• Check socket exists: ls -la /tmp/mpvsocket

Server certificate errors:

• Verify certificate files exist and are readable
• Check environment variables are set correctly
• Test certificate: openssl pkcs12 -info -in identity.pfx

Permission denied:

• Check socket permissions: ls -la /tmp/mpvsocket
• Run MPV with appropriate user permissions

Debug Mode

Enable debug logging:

RUST_LOG=debug cargo run --bin cli interactive

License

This project is licensed under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

• MPV Media Player for the excellent IPC interface