fix(cli): propagate live capture budget

packages/cli/src/capture/contentExtractor.test.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,11 @@ import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import { mkdtempSync, mkdirSync, writeFileSync, rmSync } from "node:fs";
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
-import { captionImagesWithGemini } from "./contentExtractor.js";
+import {
+  captionImagesWithGemini,
+  resolveVisionPhaseCompletion,
+  type VisionCaptionOutcome,
+} from "./contentExtractor.js";
 
 const { generateContentMock } = vi.hoisted(() => ({
   generateContentMock: vi.fn(),
@@ -151,9 +155,20 @@ describe("captionImagesWithGemini — OpenRouter provider", () => {
     );
 
     const warnings: string[] = [];
-    const captions = await captionImagesWithGemini(dir, () => {}, warnings);
+    let outcome: VisionCaptionOutcome | undefined;
+    const captions = await captionImagesWithGemini(dir, () => {}, warnings, {
+      onOutcome: (value) => {
+        outcome = value;
+      },
+    });
 
     expect(captions).toEqual({ "success.png": "Successful image." });
+    expect(outcome).toEqual({ timedOutRequests: 1, budgetExhausted: false });
+    if (!outcome) throw new Error("Expected vision caption outcome");
+    expect(resolveVisionPhaseCompletion(outcome, 10_000)).toEqual({
+      status: "degraded",
+      reason: "request-timeout",
+    });
   });
 
   it("does not call a configured provider when vision is skipped", async () => {

packages/cli/src/capture/contentExtractor.ts

@@ -17,9 +17,30 @@ import type { DesignTokens } from "./types.js";
 
 const DEFAULT_VISION_REQUEST_TIMEOUT_MS = 30_000;
 
+export interface VisionCaptionOutcome {
+  timedOutRequests: number;
+  budgetExhausted: boolean;
+}
+
 interface VisionCaptionOptions {
   skipVision?: boolean;
   remainingMs?: () => number;
+  onOutcome?: (outcome: VisionCaptionOutcome) => void;
+}
+
+export function resolveVisionPhaseCompletion(
+  outcome: VisionCaptionOutcome,
+  remainingMs: number,
+):
+  | { status: "completed" }
+  | { status: "degraded"; reason: "budget-exhausted" | "request-timeout" } {
+  if (outcome.budgetExhausted || remainingMs <= 0) {
+    return { status: "degraded", reason: "budget-exhausted" };
+  }
+  if (outcome.timedOutRequests > 0) {
+    return { status: "degraded", reason: "request-timeout" };
+  }
+  return { status: "completed" };
 }
 
 class VisionRequestTimeoutError extends Error {
@@ -214,10 +235,21 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
   options: VisionCaptionOptions = {},
 ): Promise<Record<string, string>> {
   const geminiCaptions: Record<string, string> = {};
-  if (options.skipVision) return geminiCaptions;
+  let timedOutCount = 0;
+  let budgetExhausted = false;
+  const reportOutcome = (): void => {
+    options.onOutcome?.({ timedOutRequests: timedOutCount, budgetExhausted });
+  };
+  if (options.skipVision) {
+    reportOutcome();
+    return geminiCaptions;
+  }
   const openRouterKey = process.env.OPENROUTER_API_KEY;
   const geminiKey = process.env.GEMINI_API_KEY || process.env.GOOGLE_API_KEY;
-  if (!openRouterKey && !geminiKey) return geminiCaptions;
+  if (!openRouterKey && !geminiKey) {
+    reportOutcome();
+    return geminiCaptions;
+  }
 
   // OpenRouter takes priority when both keys are set — it's the explicit opt-in
   // for users without Google access. Both providers satisfy the same
@@ -321,7 +353,6 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
     // on Promise.allSettled so a rate-limited image degrades to "" rather than
     // failing the batch.
     const BATCH_SIZE = 20;
-    let timedOutCount = 0;
     const collectCaptionResults = (
       results: PromiseSettledResult<{ file: string; caption: string }>[],
     ): number => {
@@ -340,7 +371,10 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
     };
     for (let i = 0; i < imageFiles.length; i += BATCH_SIZE) {
       const remainingMs = options.remainingMs?.() ?? Number.POSITIVE_INFINITY;
-      if (remainingMs <= 0) break;
+      if (remainingMs <= 0) {
+        budgetExhausted = true;
+        break;
+      }
       const timeoutMs = Math.max(1, Math.min(requestTimeoutMs, remainingMs));
       const batch = imageFiles.slice(i, i + BATCH_SIZE);
       const results = await Promise.allSettled(
@@ -404,6 +438,7 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
           `Skipped ${svgFiles.length} SVG caption(s): sharp could not load (${(err as Error).message}). ` +
             `Reinstall with optional dependencies enabled (e.g. \`npm i sharp\`) to caption SVG assets.`,
         );
+        reportOutcome();
         return geminiCaptions;
       }
       progress("design", `Rasterizing + captioning ${svgFiles.length} SVGs via vision API...`);
@@ -412,7 +447,10 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
       let svgsSkipped = 0;
       for (let i = 0; i < svgFiles.length; i += SVG_BATCH) {
         const remainingMs = options.remainingMs?.() ?? Number.POSITIVE_INFINITY;
-        if (remainingMs <= 0) break;
+        if (remainingMs <= 0) {
+          budgetExhausted = true;
+          break;
+        }
         const timeoutMs = Math.max(1, Math.min(requestTimeoutMs, remainingMs));
         const batch = svgFiles.slice(i, i + SVG_BATCH);
         const results = await Promise.allSettled(
@@ -489,6 +527,7 @@ export async function captionImagesWithGemini(
     warnings.push(`${providerName} captioning failed: ${err}`);
   }
 
+  reportOutcome();
   return geminiCaptions;
 }
 

packages/cli/src/capture/index.ts

@@ -37,7 +37,9 @@ import {
   extractVisibleText,
   captionImagesWithGemini,
   generateAssetDescriptions,
+  resolveVisionPhaseCompletion,
 } from "./contentExtractor.js";
+import type { VisionCaptionOutcome } from "./contentExtractor.js";
 import { loadEnvFile, generateProjectScaffold } from "./scaffolding.js";
 import type { CaptureOptions, CapturePhase, CapturePhaseProgress, CaptureResult } from "./types.js";
 
@@ -343,10 +345,11 @@ export async function captureWebsite(
     if (discoveredLotties.length > 0 && remainingMs() > 0) {
       const lottieDir = join(outputDir, "assets", "lottie");
       mkdirSync(lottieDir, { recursive: true });
-      const savedCount = await saveLottieAnimations(discoveredLotties, lottieDir);
+      const lottieBudget = { remainingMs };
+      const savedCount = await saveLottieAnimations(discoveredLotties, lottieDir, lottieBudget);
       // Generate manifest + preview thumbnails so the agent can SEE what each animation is
       if (savedCount > 0 && remainingMs() > 0) {
-        await renderLottiePreviews(chromeBrowser, lottieDir, outputDir);
+        await renderLottiePreviews(chromeBrowser, lottieDir, outputDir, lottieBudget);
         progress("lottie", `${savedCount} Lottie animation(s) saved`);
       }
     }
@@ -494,6 +497,7 @@ export async function captureWebsite(
           networkVideoUrls: discoveredVideoUrls, // Layer 1 (live Set, read after sampling)
           sampleMs: Math.min(12000, videoBudgetMs), // Layer 2: poll DOM within the shared budget
           downloadBudgetMs: videoBudgetMs,
+          remainingMs,
         });
       }
     } catch {
@@ -670,13 +674,21 @@ export async function captureWebsite(
       phase("vision", "degraded", "budget-exhausted");
     } else {
       phase("vision", "started");
+      let visionOutcome: VisionCaptionOutcome = {
+        timedOutRequests: 0,
+        budgetExhausted: false,
+      };
       geminiCaptions = await captionImagesWithGemini(outputDir, progress, warnings, {
         remainingMs,
+        onOutcome: (outcome) => {
+          visionOutcome = outcome;
+        },
       });
+      const completion = resolveVisionPhaseCompletion(visionOutcome, remainingMs());
       phase(
         "vision",
-        remainingMs() > 0 ? "completed" : "degraded",
+        completion.status,
-        remainingMs() > 0 ? undefined : "budget-exhausted",
+        completion.status === "degraded" ? completion.reason : undefined,
       );
     }
 

packages/cli/src/capture/indexBudget.test.ts

@@ -1,12 +0,0 @@
-import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
-import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
-
-const source = readFileSync(new URL("./index.ts", import.meta.url), "utf-8");
-
-describe("website capture post-navigation budget", () => {
-  it("bounds the lazy-load scroll loop by the shared remaining budget", () => {
-    expect(source).toContain("const lazyLoadBudgetMs = Math.min(15_000, remainingMs());");
-    expect(source).toContain("var lazyLoadDeadline = Date.now() + ${lazyLoadBudgetMs};");
-    expect(source).toContain("if (Date.now() >= lazyLoadDeadline) break;");
-  });
-});

packages/cli/src/capture/mediaCapture.test.ts

@@ -1,8 +1,127 @@
-import { readFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
-import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
-import { remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs } from "./mediaCapture.js";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+import type { Browser, Page } from "puppeteer-core";
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import {
+  captureVideoManifest,
+  remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs,
+  renderLottiePreviews,
+  saveLottieAnimations,
+} from "./mediaCapture.js";
 
-const source = readFileSync(new URL("./mediaCapture.ts", import.meta.url), "utf-8");
+const tempDirs: string[] = [];
+
+function tempDir(): string {
+  const dir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "hf-media-budget-"));
+  tempDirs.push(dir);
+  return dir;
+}
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  vi.useRealTimers();
+  vi.unstubAllGlobals();
+  for (const dir of tempDirs) rmSync(dir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  tempDirs.length = 0;
+});
+
+describe("Lottie capture budget", () => {
+  it("does not start another Lottie fetch after the live budget expires", async () => {
+    const dir = tempDir();
+    let remainingMs = 10_000;
+    const fetchMock = vi.fn(async () => {
+      remainingMs = 0;
+      return new Response(JSON.stringify({ w: 100, h: 100, layers: [] }), { status: 200 });
+    });
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", fetchMock);
+
+    const saved = await saveLottieAnimations(
+      [{ url: "https://one.example/a.json" }, { url: "https://two.example/b.json" }],
+      dir,
+      { remainingMs: () => remainingMs },
+    );
+
+    expect(saved).toBe(1);
+    expect(fetchMock).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+  });
+
+  it("does not open another Lottie preview page after the live budget expires", async () => {
+    const dir = tempDir();
+    const lottieDir = join(dir, "assets", "lottie");
+    mkdirSync(join(dir, "extracted"), { recursive: true });
+    mkdirSync(lottieDir, { recursive: true });
+    const lottie = JSON.stringify({ w: 100, h: 100, fr: 30, ip: 0, op: 30, layers: [] });
+    writeFileSync(join(lottieDir, "a.json"), lottie);
+    writeFileSync(join(lottieDir, "b.json"), lottie);
+
+    let remainingMs = 10_000;
+    const previewPage = {
+      setViewport: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+      setContent: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+      evaluate: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+      waitForFunction: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+      screenshot: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+      close: vi.fn(async () => undefined),
+    };
+    const newPage = vi.fn(async () => {
+      remainingMs = 0;
+      return previewPage;
+    });
+    const browser = { newPage } as unknown as Browser;
+
+    await renderLottiePreviews(browser, lottieDir, dir, { remainingMs: () => remainingMs });
+
+    expect(newPage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+    expect(previewPage.setViewport).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(previewPage.screenshot).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+});
+
+describe("video capture live budget", () => {
+  it("does not preview or download when the budget expires during DOM sampling", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(0);
+    const dir = tempDir();
+    mkdirSync(join(dir, "extracted"), { recursive: true });
+    const descriptor = {
+      src: "https://video.example/hero.mp4",
+      filename: "hero.mp4",
+      width: 640,
+      height: 360,
+      sourceWidth: 640,
+      sourceHeight: 360,
+      top: 0,
+      left: 0,
+      heading: "Hero",
+      caption: "Demo",
+      ariaLabel: "",
+    };
+    const screenshot = vi.fn(async () => Buffer.from("preview"));
+    const evaluate = vi.fn(async (expression: unknown) =>
+      typeof expression === "function" ? { x: 0, y: 0, width: 640, height: 360 } : [descriptor],
+    );
+    const page = { evaluate, screenshot } as unknown as Page;
+    const fetchMock = vi.fn(
+      async () =>
+        new Response(Buffer.alloc(2048), {
+          status: 200,
+          headers: { "content-type": "video/mp4" },
+        }),
+    );
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", fetchMock);
+
+    const capture = captureVideoManifest(page, dir, () => {}, {
+      sampleMs: 10_000,
+      downloadBudgetMs: 10_000,
+      remainingMs: () => Math.max(0, 1_000 - Date.now()),
+    });
+    await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
+    await capture;
+
+    expect(screenshot).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    expect(fetchMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+});
 
 describe("remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs", () => {
   it("caps a video request to the remaining capture budget", () => {
@@ -16,10 +135,4 @@ describe("remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs", () => {
   it("retains the existing per-request ceiling when more budget remains", () => {
     expect(remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(1_000, 300_000, 2_000)).toBe(120_000);
   });
-
-  it("checks the aggregate budget before starting each preview/download iteration", () => {
-    expect(source).toContain(
-      "if (remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(dlStart, downloadBudgetMs) <= 0) break;",
-    );
-  });
 });

packages/cli/src/capture/mediaCapture.ts

@@ -20,6 +20,14 @@ export interface DiscoveredLottie {
   frameRate?: number;
 }
 
+interface RemainingBudget {
+  remainingMs?: () => number;
+}
+
+function liveRemainingMs(budget: RemainingBudget, fallbackMs: number): number {
+  return budget.remainingMs?.() ?? fallbackMs;
+}
+
 /**
  * Download and save discovered Lottie animations to disk.
  *
@@ -30,11 +38,13 @@ export interface DiscoveredLottie {
 export async function saveLottieAnimations(
   discoveredLotties: DiscoveredLottie[],
   lottieDir: string,
+  budget: RemainingBudget = {},
 ): Promise<number> {
   let savedCount = 0;
   const savedHashes = new Set<string>(); // Deduplicate by content
 
   for (let li = 0; li < discoveredLotties.length && li < 10; li++) {
+    if (liveRemainingMs(budget, 10_000) <= 0) break;
     const lottieItem = discoveredLotties[li]!;
     try {
       let jsonData: string | undefined;
@@ -43,9 +53,11 @@ export async function saveLottieAnimations(
         // Already have the JSON data from network interception
         jsonData = JSON.stringify(lottieItem.data);
       } else if (lottieItem.url) {
+        const requestTimeoutMs = Math.min(10_000, liveRemainingMs(budget, 10_000));
+        if (requestTimeoutMs <= 0) break;
         // SSRF guard — safeFetch re-checks the denylist on every redirect hop
         const res = await safeFetch(lottieItem.url, {
-          signal: AbortSignal.timeout(10000),
+          signal: AbortSignal.timeout(requestTimeoutMs),
           headers: { "User-Agent": "HyperFrames/1.0" },
         });
         if (!res || !res.ok) continue;
@@ -117,6 +129,7 @@ export async function renderLottiePreviews(
   chromeBrowser: Browser,
   lottieDir: string,
   outputDir: string,
+  budget: RemainingBudget = {},
 ): Promise<void> {
   const manifest: Array<{
     file: string;
@@ -133,6 +146,7 @@ export async function renderLottiePreviews(
 
   for (const file of readdirSync(lottieDir)) {
     if (!file.endsWith(".json")) continue;
+    if (liveRemainingMs(budget, 1) <= 0) break;
     try {
       const raw = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(lottieDir, file), "utf-8"));
       const fr = raw.fr || 30;
@@ -146,7 +160,9 @@ export async function renderLottiePreviews(
 
       let previewPage;
       try {
+        if (liveRemainingMs(budget, 1) <= 0) break;
         previewPage = await chromeBrowser.newPage();
+        if (liveRemainingMs(budget, 1) <= 0) break;
         await previewPage.setViewport({ width: 400, height: 400 });
         const animData = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(lottieDir, file), "utf-8"));
         const midFrame = Math.floor(((raw.op || 0) - (raw.ip || 0)) * 0.3);
@@ -180,11 +196,13 @@ export async function renderLottiePreviews(
         await previewPage
           .waitForFunction(() => (window as any).__READY === true, { timeout: 5000 })
           .catch(() => {});
-        await previewPage.screenshot({
+        if (liveRemainingMs(budget, 1) > 0) {
-          path: join(previewDir, previewName),
+          await previewPage.screenshot({
-          type: "png",
+            path: join(previewDir, previewName),
-          omitBackground: true,
+            type: "png",
-        });
+            omitBackground: true,
+          });
+        }
       } catch {
         /* preview rendering failed — non-critical */
       } finally {
@@ -362,11 +380,12 @@ async function sampleVideoDom(
   page: Page,
   budgetMs: number,
   netSet: Set<string>,
+  budget: RemainingBudget,
 ): Promise<VideoDescriptor[]> {
   const seen = new Map<string, VideoDescriptor>();
   const start = Date.now();
   let stale = 0;
-  while (Date.now() - start < budgetMs && stale < 3) {
+  while (Date.now() - start < budgetMs && stale < 3 && liveRemainingMs(budget, 1) > 0) {
     let grew = false;
     const netBefore = netSet.size;
     for (const d of await scanVideoDom(page)) {
@@ -377,7 +396,12 @@ async function sampleVideoDom(
     }
     if (netSet.size > netBefore) grew = true;
     stale = grew ? 0 : stale + 1;
-    await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 2000));
+    const waitMs = Math.min(
+      2000,
+      Math.max(0, budgetMs - (Date.now() - start)),
+      Math.max(0, liveRemainingMs(budget, 2000)),
+    );
+    if (waitMs > 0) await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, waitMs));
   }
   return [...seen.values()];
 }
@@ -407,7 +431,12 @@ export async function captureVideoManifest(
   page: Page,
   outputDir: string,
   progress: (stage: string, detail?: string) => void,
-  opts?: { networkVideoUrls?: Set<string>; sampleMs?: number; downloadBudgetMs?: number },
+  opts?: {
+    networkVideoUrls?: Set<string>;
+    sampleMs?: number;
+    downloadBudgetMs?: number;
+    remainingMs?: () => number;
+  },
 ): Promise<void> {
   const netSet = opts?.networkVideoUrls ?? new Set<string>();
   const sampleMs = opts?.sampleMs ?? 0;
@@ -416,7 +445,9 @@ export async function captureVideoManifest(
   // DOM scan, optionally sampled over time (Layer 2) when videos are present.
   const initial = await scanVideoDom(page);
   const domVideos =
-    initial.length > 0 && sampleMs > 0 ? await sampleVideoDom(page, sampleMs, netSet) : initial;
+    initial.length > 0 && sampleMs > 0
+      ? await sampleVideoDom(page, sampleMs, netSet, opts ?? {})
+      : initial;
 
   // Merge DOM (rich) + network-only (thin, Layer 1), deduped by download
   // filename so a clip seen in both lands once. netSet is read here — AFTER
@@ -472,7 +503,11 @@ export async function captureVideoManifest(
 
   const dlStart = Date.now();
   for (let vi = 0; vi < merged.length && vi < 20; vi++) {
-    if (remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(dlStart, downloadBudgetMs) <= 0) break;
+    const iterationRemainingMs = liveRemainingMs(
+      opts ?? {},
+      remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(dlStart, downloadBudgetMs),
+    );
+    if (iterationRemainingMs <= 0) break;
     const v = merged[vi]!;
     let preview: string | undefined;
 
@@ -496,16 +531,18 @@ export async function captureVideoManifest(
         }, v.filename)) as { x: number; y: number; width: number; height: number } | null;
         if (rect && rect.width >= 10) {
           await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 200)); // let decoder settle
-          await page.screenshot({
+          if (liveRemainingMs(opts ?? {}, 1) > 0) {
-            path: join(previewDir, previewName),
+            await page.screenshot({
-            clip: {
+              path: join(previewDir, previewName),
-              x: Math.max(0, rect.x),
+              clip: {
-              y: Math.max(0, rect.y),
+                x: Math.max(0, rect.x),
-              width: Math.min(rect.width, 1920),
+                y: Math.max(0, rect.y),
-              height: Math.min(rect.height, 1080),
+                width: Math.min(rect.width, 1920),
-            },
+                height: Math.min(rect.height, 1080),
-          });
+              },
-          preview = `assets/videos/previews/${previewName}`;
+            });
+            preview = `assets/videos/previews/${previewName}`;
+          }
         }
       } catch {
         /* preview failed — non-critical */
@@ -516,7 +553,10 @@ export async function captureVideoManifest(
     // direct file. Cumulative budget caps total download time so a throttled
     // host or many large clips can't stall capture — over budget, keep the
     // preview (if any) and stop fetching bodies.
-    const downloadTimeoutMs = remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(dlStart, downloadBudgetMs);
+    const downloadTimeoutMs = Math.min(
+      remainingVideoDownloadTimeoutMs(dlStart, downloadBudgetMs),
+      liveRemainingMs(opts ?? {}, VIDEO_DOWNLOAD_TIMEOUT_MS),
+    );
     const savedPath =
       downloadTimeoutMs > 0
         ? await downloadVideoBody(v.src, v.filename, videoManifestDir, downloadTimeoutMs)

packages/cli/src/capture/screenshotCapture.test.ts

@@ -122,6 +122,61 @@ describe("captureScrollScreenshots — capture budget", () => {
     expect(evaluate).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
     expect(screenshot).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
   });
+
+  it("re-checks the budget after settling and before each viewport screenshot", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(0);
+    const dir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "hf-scroll-expiring-budget-"));
+    const evaluate = vi.fn(async (expression: unknown) => {
+      const source = String(expression);
+      if (source.includes("Math.max(document.body.scrollHeight")) return 1080;
+      if (source === "window.innerHeight") return 1080;
+      return undefined;
+    });
+    const screenshot = vi.fn(async () => pngBuffer(1080));
+    const page = { evaluate, screenshot } as unknown as Page;
+
+    try {
+      const capture = captureScrollScreenshots(page, dir, {
+        remainingMs: () => Math.max(0, 600 - Date.now()),
+      });
+      await vi.runAllTimersAsync();
+      const files = await capture;
+
+      expect(files).toEqual([]);
+      expect(screenshot).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
+});
+
+describe("captureFullPagePlate — capture budget", () => {
+  it("re-checks the budget immediately before the full-page screenshot", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(0);
+    const dir = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "hf-plate-expiring-budget-"));
+    const screenshot = vi.fn(async () => pngBuffer(8000));
+    const evaluate = vi.fn(async (expression: unknown) => {
+      if (String(expression).includes("scrollHeight")) {
+        vi.setSystemTime(100);
+        return 8000;
+      }
+      return undefined;
+    });
+    const page = { evaluate, screenshot } as unknown as Page;
+
+    try {
+      const plate = await captureFullPagePlate(page, dir, {
+        remainingMs: () => Math.max(0, 50 - Date.now()),
+      });
+
+      expect(plate).toBeNull();
+      expect(screenshot).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
 });
 
 describe("captureFullPagePlate — guards against a silently clipped plate", () => {

packages/cli/src/capture/screenshotCapture.ts

@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ export function pngHeight(buf: Uint8Array): number | null {
 export async function captureFullPagePlate(
   page: Page,
   screenshotsDir: string,
+  budget: { remainingMs?: () => number } = {},
 ): Promise<string | null> {
   // Record the inline value before overwriting so the page is handed back unchanged — the
   // caller keeps using it (asset extraction, DOM reads) after this returns.
@@ -81,6 +82,7 @@ export async function captureFullPagePlate(
       `Math.max(document.body.scrollHeight, document.documentElement.scrollHeight)`,
     )) as number;
     if (docHeight > MAX_PLATE_HEIGHT_PX) return null;
+    if ((budget.remainingMs?.() ?? 1) <= 0) return null;
 
     const buffer = await page.screenshot({ type: "png", fullPage: true });
     // Confirm what Chrome produced instead of trusting the measurement: the capture itself can
@@ -236,6 +238,7 @@ export async function captureScrollScreenshots(
       );
       const filename = `scroll-${String(Math.min(pct, 100)).padStart(3, "0")}.png`;
       const filePath = join(screenshotsDir, filename);
+      if ((budget.remainingMs?.() ?? 1) <= 0) break;
       const buffer = await page.screenshot({ type: "png" });
       writeFileSync(filePath, buffer);
       filePaths.push(`screenshots/${filename}`);
@@ -251,7 +254,7 @@ export async function captureScrollScreenshots(
     // was about it as a *comprehension* artifact. The scroll shot is a different consumer: it
     // needs one continuous plate, which no set of viewport tiles can substitute for.)
     if ((budget.remainingMs?.() ?? 1) > 0) {
-      const plate = await captureFullPagePlate(page, screenshotsDir);
+      const plate = await captureFullPagePlate(page, screenshotsDir, budget);
       if (plate) filePaths.push(plate);
     }
   } catch {

packages/cli/src/capture/types.ts

@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ export interface CapturePhaseProgress {
   status: "started" | "completed" | "degraded";
   /** Null before the post-navigation budget begins. */
   remainingMs: number | null;
-  reason?: "budget-exhausted" | "disabled";
+  reason?: "budget-exhausted" | "disabled" | "request-timeout";
 }
 
 export interface CaptureOptions {

packages/cli/src/commands/capture.test.ts

@@ -52,6 +52,15 @@ describe("capture command — vision control", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it("declares --capture-budget separately from navigation --timeout", () => {
+    const captureBudgetArg = captureCommand.args
+      ? Reflect.get(captureCommand.args, "capture-budget")
+      : undefined;
+    expect(captureBudgetArg).toMatchObject({ type: "string" });
+    expect(captureBudgetArg?.description.toLowerCase()).toContain("post-navigation");
+    expect(captureBudgetArg?.description).toContain("--timeout");
+  });
+
   it("plumbs --skip-vision into capture options", async () => {
     vi.spyOn(console, "log").mockImplementation(() => {});
     vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {});
@@ -72,6 +81,50 @@ describe("capture command — vision control", () => {
     );
   });
 
+  it("plumbs a positive --capture-budget into the post-navigation budget", async () => {
+    vi.spyOn(console, "log").mockImplementation(() => {});
+    vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {});
+
+    await captureCommand.run!({
+      args: {
+        url: "https://example.com",
+        output: "/tmp/hf-capture-budget-test",
+        "skip-assets": false,
+        "skip-vision": false,
+        "capture-budget": "45000",
+        json: true,
+      },
+    } as never);
+
+    expect(captureWebsiteMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      expect.objectContaining({ postNavigationBudgetMs: 45_000 }),
+      undefined,
+    );
+  });
+
+  it.each(["0", "-1", "Infinity", "not-a-number"])(
+    "rejects invalid --capture-budget %s before capture starts",
+    async (captureBudget) => {
+      vi.spyOn(console, "log").mockImplementation(() => {});
+      vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {});
+
+      await expect(
+        captureCommand.run!({
+          args: {
+            url: "https://example.com",
+            output: "/tmp/hf-invalid-capture-budget-test",
+            "skip-assets": false,
+            "skip-vision": false,
+            "capture-budget": captureBudget,
+            json: true,
+          },
+        } as never),
+      ).rejects.toBeInstanceOf(CliRuntimeError);
+
+      expect(captureWebsiteMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    },
+  );
+
   it("emits a versioned phase record without the captured URL", async () => {
     vi.spyOn(console, "log").mockImplementation(() => {});
     const error = vi.spyOn(console, "error").mockImplementation(() => {});

packages/cli/src/commands/capture.ts

@@ -12,6 +12,16 @@ function emitCapturePhase(event: CapturePhaseProgress): void {
   diag.notice(`${CAPTURE_PHASE_PREFIX}${JSON.stringify(event)}`);
 }
 
+function parseCaptureBudget(raw: string | undefined): number | undefined {
+  if (raw === undefined) return undefined;
+  const parsed = Number(raw);
+  if (!Number.isFinite(parsed) || parsed <= 0) {
+    console.error("--capture-budget must be a positive finite number of milliseconds.");
+    failCommand();
+  }
+  return parsed;
+}
+
 export const examples: Example[] = [
   ["Capture a website into ./capture/", "hyperframes capture https://stripe.com"],
   ["Capture to a different directory", "hyperframes capture https://linear.app -o linear-video"],
@@ -60,6 +70,11 @@ export default defineCommand({
       type: "string",
       description: "Page load timeout in ms (default: 120000)",
     },
+    "capture-budget": {
+      type: "string",
+      description:
+        "Post-navigation capture budget in ms (default: 120000); separate from page-load --timeout",
+    },
     json: {
       type: "boolean",
       description: "Output JSON (for AI agents / programmatic use)",
@@ -112,6 +127,8 @@ export default defineCommand({
       failCommand();
     }
 
+    const captureBudgetMs = parseCaptureBudget(args["capture-budget"] as string | undefined);
+
     const isDefaultOutput = !args.output;
     let outputName = (args.output as string | undefined) ?? "capture";
     let outputDir = resolve(outputName);
@@ -157,6 +174,7 @@ export default defineCommand({
             ? parseInt(args["max-screenshots"] as string)
             : undefined,
           timeout: args.timeout ? parseInt(args.timeout as string) : undefined,
+          postNavigationBudgetMs: captureBudgetMs,
           json: isJson,
           onPhase: emitCapturePhase,
         },