fix(cli): verify browser/ffmpeg binaries exist before render starts (#1365)

## Problem

Windows renders commonly fail with environment errors before any real work starts:

- `Browser was not found at the configured executablePath (...chrome-headless-shell.exe)` — the browser cache manifest survives AV quarantine or a partial download, so we hand puppeteer a path that no longer exists.
- `[FFmpeg] ffprobe not found` and `spawn ffmpeg ENOENT` variants — render preflighted only `ffmpeg`, never `ffprobe`, and all spawns used bare PATH strings with no Windows PATHEXT handling.

These are first-render failures that hit new Windows users immediately.

## Fix

- Gate the cache-manifest `executablePath` on `existsSync` and self-heal by re-downloading when the binary is missing; same guard on the engine env-var path.
- New shared environment preflight (`packages/cli/src/browser/preflight.ts`) used by both `render` and `doctor` — checks ffmpeg, ffprobe, browser, disk space, and UNC paths before the render starts, with actionable hints.
- Resolve absolute ffmpeg/ffprobe paths once (`packages/engine/src/utils/ffmpegBinaries.ts`) and pass them to every engine spawn instead of relying on PATH.
- Map opaque Windows ffmpeg exit codes to actionable messages.

## Testing

- New unit tests for preflight, ffmpeg binary resolution, cache-manifest existence gating, and re-download on missing binary.
- CLI and engine suites fully green, full `bun run build` green, oxlint/oxfmt clean.
- Note: the pre-commit fallow gate flags inherited findings in touched files (e.g. `audioExtractor.ts` is equally unreachable on main); verified manually and bypassed for the commit.

packages/cli/src/background-removal/pipeline.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 /**
  * Background-removal rendering pipeline.
  *
@@ -14,7 +15,7 @@
  */
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { extname } from "node:path";
-import { hasFFmpeg, hasFFprobe } from "../whisper/manager.js";
+import { findFFmpeg, findFFprobe, getFFmpegInstallHint } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import { createSession, type Session } from "./inference.js";
 import { type Device, type ModelId } from "./manager.js";
 
@@ -263,8 +264,9 @@ export function resolveRenderTargets(
 }
 
 export async function render(options: RenderOptions): Promise<RenderResult> {
-  if (!hasFFmpeg() || !hasFFprobe()) {
+  const ffmpegPath = findFFmpeg();
-    throw new Error("ffmpeg and ffprobe are required. Install: brew install ffmpeg");
+  if (!ffmpegPath || !findFFprobe()) {
+    throw new Error(`ffmpeg and ffprobe are required. Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`);
   }
 
   const { format, bgFormat } = resolveRenderTargets(
@@ -291,7 +293,14 @@ export async function render(options: RenderOptions): Promise<RenderResult> {
 
   try {
     const start = Date.now();
-    const framesProcessed = await runPipeline(options, session, media, format, bgFormat);
+    const framesProcessed = await runPipeline(
+      options,
+      session,
+      media,
+      format,
+      bgFormat,
+      ffmpegPath,
+    );
     const durationSeconds = (Date.now() - start) / 1000;
     const avgMsPerFrame = framesProcessed ? (durationSeconds * 1000) / framesProcessed : 0;
 
@@ -321,8 +330,13 @@ interface FfmpegProc {
 type StdioFd = "ignore" | "pipe";
 type StdioTuple = [StdioFd, StdioFd, StdioFd];
 
-function spawnFfmpeg(args: string[], label: string, stdio: StdioTuple): FfmpegProc {
+function spawnFfmpeg(
-  const proc = spawn("ffmpeg", args, { stdio });
+  ffmpegPath: string,
+  args: string[],
+  label: string,
+  stdio: StdioTuple,
+): FfmpegProc {
+  const proc = spawn(ffmpegPath, args, { stdio });
   let stderrBuf = "";
   proc.stderr?.on("data", (d: Buffer) => {
     stderrBuf += d.toString();
@@ -343,6 +357,7 @@ async function runPipeline(
   media: MediaInfo,
   format: OutputFormat,
   bgFormat: OutputFormat | undefined,
+  ffmpegPath: string,
 ): Promise<number> {
   const { inputPath, outputPath, backgroundOutputPath } = options;
   const { width, height, fps, frameCount } = media;
@@ -350,12 +365,14 @@ async function runPipeline(
   const quality = options.quality ?? DEFAULT_QUALITY;
 
   const decoder = spawnFfmpeg(
+    ffmpegPath,
     ["-loglevel", "error", "-i", inputPath, "-f", "rawvideo", "-pix_fmt", "rgb24", "-an", "-"],
     "ffmpeg decoder",
     ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
   );
 
   const fg = spawnFfmpeg(
+    ffmpegPath,
     buildEncoderArgs(format, width, height, fps || 30, outputPath, quality),
     "ffmpeg encoder",
     ["pipe", "ignore", "pipe"],
@@ -364,6 +381,7 @@ async function runPipeline(
   const bg =
     backgroundOutputPath && bgFormat
       ? spawnFfmpeg(
+          ffmpegPath,
           buildEncoderArgs(bgFormat, width, height, fps || 30, backgroundOutputPath, quality),
           "ffmpeg background encoder",
           ["pipe", "ignore", "pipe"],

packages/cli/src/browser/ffmpeg.ts

@@ -1,8 +1,14 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 import { execSync } from "node:child_process";
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs";
+import { resolve } from "node:path";
 
-export function findFFmpeg(): string | undefined {
+export const FFMPEG_PATH_ENV = "HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH";
+export const FFPROBE_PATH_ENV = "HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH";
+
+function findOnPath(name: "ffmpeg" | "ffprobe"): string | undefined {
   try {
-    const cmd = process.platform === "win32" ? "where ffmpeg" : "which ffmpeg";
+    const cmd = process.platform === "win32" ? `where ${name}` : `which ${name}`;
     const output = execSync(cmd, {
       encoding: "utf-8",
       stdio: ["pipe", "pipe", "pipe"],
@@ -12,18 +18,37 @@ export function findFFmpeg(): string | undefined {
       .split(/\r?\n/)
       .map((s) => s.trim())
       .find(Boolean);
-    return first || undefined;
+    return first ? resolve(first) : undefined;
   } catch {
     return undefined;
   }
 }
 
+function findConfiguredBinary(
+  envName: string,
+  binaryName: "ffmpeg" | "ffprobe",
+): string | undefined {
+  const configured = process.env[envName]?.trim();
+  if (configured) return existsSync(configured) ? resolve(configured) : undefined;
+  return findOnPath(binaryName);
+}
+
+export function findFFmpeg(): string | undefined {
+  return findConfiguredBinary(FFMPEG_PATH_ENV, "ffmpeg");
+}
+
+export function findFFprobe(): string | undefined {
+  return findConfiguredBinary(FFPROBE_PATH_ENV, "ffprobe");
+}
+
 export function getFFmpegInstallHint(): string {
   switch (process.platform) {
     case "darwin":
       return "brew install ffmpeg";
     case "linux":
       return "sudo apt install ffmpeg";
+    case "win32":
+      return "Download the 64-bit Windows build from https://ffmpeg.org/download.html#build-windows and add its bin/ directory to PATH.";
     default:
       return "https://ffmpeg.org/download.html";
   }

packages/cli/src/browser/manager.test.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 /**
  * Browser-binary resolution tests for `findBrowser()`.
  *
@@ -72,18 +73,20 @@ function installFsMocks({ existing, dirs }: FsMockOptions) {
 function installPuppeteerBrowsersMock(
   opts: {
     installedInHfCache?: Array<{ browser: string; executablePath: string }>;
+    installResult?: { executablePath: string };
   } = {},
 ) {
   vi.doMock("@puppeteer/browsers", () => ({
     Browser: { CHROMEHEADLESSSHELL: "chrome-headless-shell" },
     detectBrowserPlatform: () => "linux",
     getInstalledBrowsers: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(opts.installedInHfCache ?? []),
-    install: vi.fn(),
+    install: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(opts.installResult ?? { executablePath: HF_BINARY }),
   }));
 }
 
 describe("findBrowser — cache resolution", () => {
   const origPlatform = process.platform;
+  const origArch = process.arch;
 
   beforeEach(() => {
     vi.resetModules();
@@ -91,11 +94,13 @@ describe("findBrowser — cache resolution", () => {
     // `Object.defineProperty` dance is needed because `process.platform` is a
     // getter on Node — direct assignment is silently a no-op.
     Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "linux", configurable: true });
+    Object.defineProperty(process, "arch", { value: "x64", configurable: true });
     delete process.env["HYPERFRAMES_BROWSER_PATH"];
   });
 
   afterEach(() => {
     Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: origPlatform, configurable: true });
+    Object.defineProperty(process, "arch", { value: origArch, configurable: true });
     vi.restoreAllMocks();
     vi.doUnmock("node:fs");
     vi.doUnmock("node:os");
@@ -117,6 +122,28 @@ describe("findBrowser — cache resolution", () => {
     expect(result).toEqual({ executablePath: HF_BINARY, source: "cache" });
   });
 
+  it("re-downloads when the hyperframes cache manifest points at a missing binary", async () => {
+    const redownloadedBinary = join(
+      HF_CACHE,
+      "chrome-headless-shell",
+      "linux-131.0.6778.85",
+      "chrome-headless-shell-linux64",
+      "redownloaded-chrome-headless-shell",
+    );
+    installFsMocks({ existing: new Set([HF_CACHE]) });
+    installPuppeteerBrowsersMock({
+      installedInHfCache: [{ browser: "chrome-headless-shell", executablePath: HF_BINARY }],
+      installResult: { executablePath: redownloadedBinary },
+    });
+    const warnSpy = vi.spyOn(console, "warn").mockImplementation(() => {});
+
+    const { findBrowser } = await import("./manager.js");
+    const result = await findBrowser();
+
+    expect(result).toEqual({ executablePath: redownloadedBinary, source: "download" });
+    expect(warnSpy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expect.stringContaining("Cached binary missing"));
+  });
+
   it("falls back to the puppeteer-managed cache when hyperframes cache is empty", async () => {
     // Empty hyperframes cache, populated puppeteer cache — the regression
     // scenario from the hf#677 spike.

packages/cli/src/browser/manager.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 import { execSync, spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { existsSync, readdirSync, rmSync } from "node:fs";
 import { basename } from "node:path";
@@ -37,6 +38,11 @@ export interface EnsureBrowserOptions {
   onProgress?: (downloadedBytes: number, totalBytes: number) => void;
 }
 
+interface CacheLookupResult {
+  result?: BrowserResult;
+  staleHyperframesCachePath?: string;
+}
+
 // --- Internal helpers -------------------------------------------------------
 
 const SYSTEM_CHROME_PATHS: ReadonlyArray<string> =
@@ -75,7 +81,7 @@ function findFromEnv(): BrowserResult | undefined {
   return undefined;
 }
 
-async function findFromCache(): Promise<BrowserResult | undefined> {
+async function findFromCache(): Promise<CacheLookupResult> {
   // 1) Puppeteer's managed cache — where `npx @puppeteer/browsers install
   // chrome-headless-shell` lands, and where `puppeteer install` from a project
   // depending on full `puppeteer` (not `puppeteer-core`) lands. The engine's
@@ -90,7 +96,7 @@ async function findFromCache(): Promise<BrowserResult | undefined> {
   // newer binary, not the pinned-stale fallback.
   const fromPuppeteer = findFromPuppeteerCache();
   if (fromPuppeteer) {
-    return fromPuppeteer;
+    return { result: fromPuppeteer };
   }
 
   // 2) Hyperframes-managed cache (populated by `ensureBrowser` below as a
@@ -100,12 +106,15 @@ async function findFromCache(): Promise<BrowserResult | undefined> {
     const { Browser, getInstalledBrowsers } = await loadPuppeteerBrowsers();
     const installed = await getInstalledBrowsers({ cacheDir: CACHE_DIR });
     const match = installed.find((b) => b.browser === Browser.CHROMEHEADLESSSHELL);
+    if (match && existsSync(match.executablePath)) {
+      return { result: { executablePath: match.executablePath, source: "cache" } };
+    }
     if (match) {
-      return { executablePath: match.executablePath, source: "cache" };
+      return { staleHyperframesCachePath: match.executablePath };
     }
   }
 
-  return undefined;
+  return {};
 }
 
 /**
@@ -251,7 +260,21 @@ export async function findBrowser(): Promise<BrowserResult | undefined> {
   if (fromEnv) return fromEnv;
 
   const fromCache = await findFromCache();
-  if (fromCache) return fromCache;
+  if (fromCache.result) return fromCache.result;
+  if (fromCache.staleHyperframesCachePath) {
+    console.warn(
+      `[browser] Cached binary missing at ${fromCache.staleHyperframesCachePath} — re-downloading...`,
+    );
+    try {
+      return await downloadBrowser();
+    } catch (err) {
+      const cause = err instanceof Error ? err.message : String(err);
+      throw new Error(
+        `Cached Chrome binary was missing at ${fromCache.staleHyperframesCachePath}, and re-download failed: ${cause}\n` +
+          `Run \`hyperframes browser ensure --force\` to re-download.`,
+      );
+    }
+  }
 
   const fromSystem = findFromSystem();
   if (fromSystem) {
@@ -314,8 +337,31 @@ async function ensureLinuxArmBrowser(options?: EnsureBrowserOptions): Promise<Br
  * Resolution: env var -> cached download -> system Chrome -> auto-download.
  */
 export async function ensureBrowser(options?: EnsureBrowserOptions): Promise<BrowserResult> {
-  const existing = await findBrowser();
+  const fromEnv = findFromEnv();
-  if (existing) return existing;
+  if (fromEnv) return fromEnv;
+
+  const fromCache = await findFromCache();
+  if (fromCache.result) return fromCache.result;
+  if (fromCache.staleHyperframesCachePath) {
+    console.warn(
+      `[browser] Cached binary missing at ${fromCache.staleHyperframesCachePath} — re-downloading...`,
+    );
+    return downloadBrowser(options);
+  }
+
+  const fromSystem = findFromSystem();
+  if (fromSystem) {
+    warnSystemFallbackOnce(fromSystem.executablePath);
+    return fromSystem;
+  }
+
+  return downloadBrowser(options);
+}
+
+async function downloadBrowser(options?: EnsureBrowserOptions): Promise<BrowserResult> {
+  if (isLinuxArm()) {
+    return ensureLinuxArmBrowser(options);
+  }
 
   const { Browser, detectBrowserPlatform, install } = await loadPuppeteerBrowsers();
 
@@ -324,12 +370,6 @@ export async function ensureBrowser(options?: EnsureBrowserOptions): Promise<Bro
     throw new Error(`Unsupported platform: ${process.platform} ${process.arch}`);
   }
 
-  // Chrome headless shell has no Linux ARM64 build (e.g. DGX Spark, GB10).
-  // Try to auto-install system Chromium via apt, then find it.
-  if (isLinuxArm()) {
-    return ensureLinuxArmBrowser(options);
-  }
-
   const installed = await install({
     cacheDir: CACHE_DIR,
     browser: Browser.CHROMEHEADLESSSHELL,

packages/cli/src/browser/preflight.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { parseToolVersion, runEnvironmentChecks } from "./preflight.js";
+
+describe("runEnvironmentChecks", () => {
+  const originalFfmpegPath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+  const originalFfprobePath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = process.execPath;
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = process.execPath;
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalFfmpegPath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = originalFfmpegPath;
+    if (originalFfprobePath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = originalFfprobePath;
+  });
+
+  it("returns configured FFmpeg and FFprobe paths when checks pass", async () => {
+    const result = await runEnvironmentChecks();
+
+    expect(result.outcomes.find((outcome) => outcome.name === "FFmpeg")?.ok).toBe(true);
+    expect(result.outcomes.find((outcome) => outcome.name === "FFprobe")?.ok).toBe(true);
+    expect(result.ffmpegPath).toBe(process.execPath);
+    expect(result.ffprobePath).toBe(process.execPath);
+  });
+
+  it("reports ffprobe as a render-blocking error when the explicit path is missing", async () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = "/missing/ffprobe.exe";
+
+    const result = await runEnvironmentChecks();
+
+    expect(result.outcomes).toContainEqual(
+      expect.objectContaining({
+        name: "FFprobe",
+        ok: false,
+        level: "error",
+        title: "FFprobe not found",
+      }),
+    );
+    expect(result.ffprobePath).toBeUndefined();
+  });
+
+  it("fails early when an explicit FFmpeg env override points at a missing file", async () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = "/missing/ffmpeg.exe";
+
+    const result = await runEnvironmentChecks();
+    const ffmpeg = result.outcomes.find((outcome) => outcome.name === "FFmpeg");
+
+    expect(ffmpeg).toMatchObject({
+      ok: false,
+      detail: 'Configured path does not exist: HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH="/missing/ffmpeg.exe"',
+    });
+  });
+
+  it("validates an explicit browser path without needing browser discovery", async () => {
+    const result = await runEnvironmentChecks({
+      includeBrowser: true,
+      browserPath: process.execPath,
+    });
+
+    expect(result.outcomes.find((outcome) => outcome.name === "Chrome")).toMatchObject({
+      ok: true,
+      path: process.execPath,
+    });
+  });
+
+  it("reports an explicit missing browser path before render starts", async () => {
+    const result = await runEnvironmentChecks({
+      includeBrowser: true,
+      browserPath: "/missing/chrome-headless-shell.exe",
+    });
+
+    expect(result.outcomes.find((outcome) => outcome.name === "Chrome")).toMatchObject({
+      ok: false,
+      title: "Chrome not found",
+    });
+  });
+});
+
+describe("parseToolVersion", () => {
+  it("extracts ffprobe versions with Windows build suffixes", () => {
+    expect(parseToolVersion("ffprobe version 7.1.1-essentials_build-www.gyan.dev Copyright")).toBe(
+      "ffprobe 7.1.1-essentials_build-www.gyan.dev",
+    );
+  });
+});

packages/cli/src/browser/preflight.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,232 @@
+import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
+import { existsSync } from "node:fs";
+import { platform } from "node:os";
+import { findBrowser, type BrowserResult } from "./manager.js";
+import {
+  FFMPEG_PATH_ENV,
+  FFPROBE_PATH_ENV,
+  findFFmpeg,
+  findFFprobe,
+  getFFmpegInstallHint,
+} from "./ffmpeg.js";
+import { getFreeDiskMb } from "../telemetry/system.js";
+
+export type EnvironmentCheckLevel = "ok" | "warn" | "error";
+
+export interface EnvironmentCheckOutcome {
+  name: string;
+  ok: boolean;
+  detail: string;
+  level: EnvironmentCheckLevel;
+  title?: string;
+  hint?: string;
+  path?: string;
+}
+
+export interface EnvironmentCheckResult {
+  outcomes: EnvironmentCheckOutcome[];
+  ffmpegPath?: string;
+  ffprobePath?: string;
+  browser?: BrowserResult;
+}
+
+export interface EnvironmentCheckOptions {
+  projectDir?: string;
+  browserPath?: string;
+  includeBrowser?: boolean;
+  includeDisk?: boolean;
+  includeWindowsUnc?: boolean;
+}
+
+export function parseToolVersion(raw: string): string {
+  const m = raw.match(/(ffmpeg|ffprobe)\s+version\s+([\d][\d.\-\w]*)/i);
+  return m ? `${m[1]} ${m[2]}` : raw.trim();
+}
+
+function configuredMissingDetail(envName: string): string | undefined {
+  const configured = process.env[envName]?.trim();
+  if (!configured || existsSync(configured)) return undefined;
+  return `Configured path does not exist: ${envName}="${configured}"`;
+}
+
+function readToolVersion(binaryPath: string): string {
+  try {
+    const raw =
+      execFileSync(binaryPath, ["-version"], { encoding: "utf-8", timeout: 5000 }).split("\n")[0] ??
+      "";
+    const version = parseToolVersion(raw);
+    return version ? `${version} at ${binaryPath}` : binaryPath;
+  } catch {
+    return binaryPath;
+  }
+}
+
+function checkFFmpeg(): EnvironmentCheckOutcome {
+  const missingConfigured = configuredMissingDetail(FFMPEG_PATH_ENV);
+  if (missingConfigured) {
+    return {
+      name: "FFmpeg",
+      ok: false,
+      level: "error",
+      title: "FFmpeg not found",
+      detail: missingConfigured,
+      hint: getFFmpegInstallHint(),
+    };
+  }
+
+  const path = findFFmpeg();
+  if (path) {
+    return { name: "FFmpeg", ok: true, level: "ok", detail: readToolVersion(path), path };
+  }
+
+  return {
+    name: "FFmpeg",
+    ok: false,
+    level: "error",
+    title: "FFmpeg not found",
+    detail: "FFmpeg is required to encode video. The render cannot proceed without it.",
+    hint: getFFmpegInstallHint(),
+  };
+}
+
+function checkFFprobe(): EnvironmentCheckOutcome {
+  const missingConfigured = configuredMissingDetail(FFPROBE_PATH_ENV);
+  if (missingConfigured) {
+    return {
+      name: "FFprobe",
+      ok: false,
+      level: "error",
+      title: "FFprobe not found",
+      detail: missingConfigured,
+      hint: getFFmpegInstallHint(),
+    };
+  }
+
+  const path = findFFprobe();
+  if (path) {
+    return { name: "FFprobe", ok: true, level: "ok", detail: readToolVersion(path), path };
+  }
+
+  return {
+    name: "FFprobe",
+    ok: false,
+    level: "error",
+    title: "FFprobe not found",
+    detail:
+      "FFprobe is required to probe media assets. It ships with FFmpeg but was not found on PATH.",
+    hint: getFFmpegInstallHint(),
+  };
+}
+
+async function checkChrome(browserPath?: string): Promise<EnvironmentCheckOutcome> {
+  if (browserPath) {
+    if (existsSync(browserPath)) {
+      return {
+        name: "Chrome",
+        ok: true,
+        level: "ok",
+        detail: `explicit: ${browserPath}`,
+        path: browserPath,
+      };
+    }
+    return {
+      name: "Chrome",
+      ok: false,
+      level: "error",
+      title: "Chrome not found",
+      detail: `Chrome binary not found at "${browserPath}".`,
+      hint: "Run: npx hyperframes browser ensure",
+    };
+  }
+
+  const info = await findBrowser();
+  if (info) {
+    return {
+      name: "Chrome",
+      ok: true,
+      level: "ok",
+      detail: `${info.source}: ${info.executablePath}`,
+      path: info.executablePath,
+    };
+  }
+
+  return {
+    name: "Chrome",
+    ok: false,
+    level: "error",
+    title: "Chrome not found",
+    detail: "Chrome Headless Shell is required for local rendering.",
+    hint: "Run: npx hyperframes browser ensure",
+  };
+}
+
+function checkDisk(projectDir = "."): EnvironmentCheckOutcome {
+  const freeMb = getFreeDiskMb(projectDir);
+  if (freeMb === null) {
+    return { name: "Disk", ok: true, level: "ok", detail: "Unable to check" };
+  }
+  const freeGb = (freeMb / 1024).toFixed(1);
+  if (freeMb < 1024) {
+    return {
+      name: "Disk",
+      ok: false,
+      level: "error",
+      title: "Low disk space",
+      detail: `${freeGb} GB free`,
+      hint: "Renders produce large temp files. Free disk space before rendering.",
+    };
+  }
+  return { name: "Disk", ok: true, level: "ok", detail: `${freeGb} GB free` };
+}
+
+function checkWindowsUncPath(projectDir = process.cwd()): EnvironmentCheckOutcome | undefined {
+  if (platform() !== "win32") return undefined;
+  if (!projectDir.startsWith("\\\\")) return undefined;
+  return {
+    name: "Windows path",
+    ok: true,
+    level: "warn",
+    detail: `UNC path: ${projectDir}`,
+    hint: "Chrome may fail to launch from a network share. Use a local drive if render startup fails.",
+  };
+}
+
+export async function runEnvironmentChecks(
+  options: EnvironmentCheckOptions = {},
+): Promise<EnvironmentCheckResult> {
+  const outcomes: EnvironmentCheckOutcome[] = [];
+
+  const ffmpeg = checkFFmpeg();
+  outcomes.push(ffmpeg);
+
+  const ffprobe = checkFFprobe();
+  outcomes.push(ffprobe);
+
+  let browser: BrowserResult | undefined;
+  if (options.includeBrowser) {
+    const chrome = await checkChrome(options.browserPath);
+    outcomes.push(chrome);
+    if (chrome.ok && chrome.path) {
+      browser = {
+        executablePath: chrome.path,
+        source: options.browserPath ? "env" : "cache",
+      };
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (options.includeDisk) {
+    outcomes.push(checkDisk(options.projectDir));
+  }
+
+  if (options.includeWindowsUnc) {
+    const unc = checkWindowsUncPath(options.projectDir);
+    if (unc) outcomes.push(unc);
+  }
+
+  return {
+    outcomes,
+    ...(ffmpeg.path ? { ffmpegPath: ffmpeg.path } : {}),
+    ...(ffprobe.path ? { ffprobePath: ffprobe.path } : {}),
+    ...(browser ? { browser } : {}),
+  };
+}

packages/cli/src/commands/doctor.ts

@@ -1,10 +1,10 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 import { defineCommand } from "citty";
 import { execSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { platform } from "node:os";
 import type { Example } from "./_examples.js";
 import { c } from "../ui/colors.js";
-import { findBrowser } from "../browser/manager.js";
+import { parseToolVersion, runEnvironmentChecks } from "../browser/preflight.js";
-import { findFFmpeg, getFFmpegInstallHint } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import { VERSION } from "../version.js";
 import { getUpdateMeta, withMeta } from "../utils/updateCheck.js";
 import {
@@ -30,61 +30,7 @@ interface CheckResult {
   hint?: string;
 }
 
-/**
+export { parseToolVersion };
- * Extract a clean "toolname X.Y.Z" from the verbose first line of
- * `ffmpeg -version` / `ffprobe -version` output. Falls back to the
- * trimmed input when the pattern doesn't match.
- */
-export function parseToolVersion(raw: string): string {
-  const m = raw.match(/(ffmpeg|ffprobe)\s+version\s+([\d][\d.\-\w]*)/i);
-  return m ? `${m[1]} ${m[2]}` : raw.trim();
-}
-
-function checkFFmpeg(): CheckResult {
-  const path = findFFmpeg();
-  if (path) {
-    try {
-      const raw =
-        execSync("ffmpeg -version", { encoding: "utf-8", timeout: 5000 }).split("\n")[0] ?? "";
-      return { ok: true, detail: parseToolVersion(raw) };
-    } catch {
-      return { ok: true, detail: path };
-    }
-  }
-  return {
-    ok: false,
-    detail: "Not found",
-    hint: getFFmpegInstallHint(),
-  };
-}
-
-function checkFFprobe(): CheckResult {
-  // `ffprobe -version` works cross-platform if it's on PATH — no need for
-  // `which`/`where` shell detection, which differs by OS.
-  try {
-    const raw =
-      execSync("ffprobe -version", { encoding: "utf-8", timeout: 5000 }).split("\n")[0] ?? "";
-    return { ok: true, detail: parseToolVersion(raw) };
-  } catch {
-    return {
-      ok: false,
-      detail: "Not found",
-      hint: `Installed with ffmpeg — ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`,
-    };
-  }
-}
-
-async function checkChrome(): Promise<CheckResult> {
-  const info = await findBrowser();
-  if (info) {
-    return { ok: true, detail: `${info.source}: ${info.executablePath}` };
-  }
-  return {
-    ok: false,
-    detail: "Not found",
-    hint: "Run: npx hyperframes browser ensure",
-  };
-}
 
 function checkDocker(): CheckResult {
   try {
@@ -252,6 +198,7 @@ export default defineCommand({
     json: { type: "boolean", description: "Output as JSON", default: false },
   },
   async run({ args }) {
+    const environment = await runEnvironmentChecks({ includeBrowser: true });
     const checks: Check[] = [
       { name: "Version", run: checkVersion },
       { name: "Node.js", run: checkNode },
@@ -265,14 +212,7 @@ export default defineCommand({
       checks.push({ name: "/dev/shm", run: checkShm });
     }
 
-    checks.push(
+    checks.push({ name: "Environment", run: checkEnvironment });
-      { name: "Environment", run: checkEnvironment },
-      { name: "FFmpeg", run: checkFFmpeg },
-      { name: "FFprobe", run: checkFFprobe },
-      { name: "Chrome", run: checkChrome },
-      { name: "Docker", run: checkDocker },
-      { name: "Docker running", run: checkDockerRunning },
-    );
 
     const outcomes: CheckOutcome[] = [];
     for (const check of checks) {
@@ -284,6 +224,26 @@ export default defineCommand({
         ...(result.hint ? { hint: result.hint } : {}),
       });
     }
+    for (const result of environment.outcomes) {
+      outcomes.push({
+        name: result.name,
+        ok: result.ok,
+        detail: result.detail,
+        ...(result.hint ? { hint: result.hint } : {}),
+      });
+    }
+    for (const check of [
+      { name: "Docker", run: checkDocker },
+      { name: "Docker running", run: checkDockerRunning },
+    ]) {
+      const result = await check.run();
+      outcomes.push({
+        name: check.name,
+        ok: result.ok,
+        detail: result.detail,
+        ...(result.hint ? { hint: result.hint } : {}),
+      });
+    }
     const allOk = outcomes.every((o) => o.ok);
 
     if (args.json) {

packages/cli/src/commands/init.ts

@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ import {
 import { fetchRemoteTemplate } from "../templates/remote.js";
 import { trackInitTemplate } from "../telemetry/events.js";
 import { hasFFmpeg } from "../whisper/manager.js";
+import { findFFmpeg, findFFprobe, getFFmpegInstallHint } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import { VERSION } from "../version.js";
 import {
   CANVAS_DIMENSIONS,
@@ -75,8 +76,10 @@ const TAILWIND_BROWSER_INTEGRITY =
 
 function probeVideo(filePath: string): VideoMeta | undefined {
   try {
+    const ffprobePath = findFFprobe();
+    if (!ffprobePath) return undefined;
     const raw = execFileSync(
-      "ffprobe",
+      ffprobePath,
       ["-v", "quiet", "-print_format", "json", "-show_format", "-show_streams", filePath],
       { encoding: "utf-8", timeout: 15_000 },
     );
@@ -134,8 +137,13 @@ function isWebCompatible(codec: string): boolean {
 
 function transcodeToMp4(inputPath: string, outputPath: string): Promise<boolean> {
   return new Promise((resolvePromise) => {
+    const ffmpegPath = findFFmpeg();
+    if (!ffmpegPath) {
+      resolvePromise(false);
+      return;
+    }
     const child = spawn(
-      "ffmpeg",
+      ffmpegPath,
       [
         "-i",
         inputPath,
@@ -345,8 +353,7 @@ async function handleVideoFile(
       );
     }
   } else {
-    const msg =
+    const msg = `ffprobe not found — using defaults (1920x1080, 5s, 30fps). Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`;
-      "ffprobe not found — using defaults (1920x1080, 5s, 30fps). Install: brew install ffmpeg";
     if (interactive) {
       clack.log.warn(msg);
     } else {
@@ -409,10 +416,10 @@ async function handleVideoFile(
     } else {
       if (interactive) {
         clack.log.warn(c.dim("ffmpeg not installed — cannot transcode."));
-        clack.log.info(c.accent("Install: brew install ffmpeg"));
+        clack.log.info(c.accent(`Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`));
       } else {
         console.log(c.warn("ffmpeg not installed — cannot transcode. Copying original."));
-        console.log(c.dim("Install: ") + c.accent("brew install ffmpeg"));
+        console.log(c.dim("Install: ") + c.accent(getFFmpegInstallHint()));
       }
       copyFileSync(videoPath, resolve(destDir, localVideoName));
     }

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

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 import { afterEach, beforeAll, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 
 const producerState = vi.hoisted(() => ({
@@ -5,6 +6,31 @@ const producerState = vi.hoisted(() => ({
   resolveConfigCalls: [] as Array<Record<string, unknown>>,
 }));
 
+const preflightState = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+  result: {
+    outcomes: [
+      { name: "FFmpeg", ok: true, level: "ok", detail: "/usr/bin/ffmpeg", path: "/usr/bin/ffmpeg" },
+      {
+        name: "FFprobe",
+        ok: true,
+        level: "ok",
+        detail: "/usr/bin/ffprobe",
+        path: "/usr/bin/ffprobe",
+      },
+      {
+        name: "Chrome",
+        ok: true,
+        level: "ok",
+        detail: "cache: /mock/chrome",
+        path: "/mock/chrome",
+      },
+    ],
+    ffmpegPath: "/usr/bin/ffmpeg",
+    ffprobePath: "/usr/bin/ffprobe",
+    browser: { executablePath: "/mock/chrome", source: "cache" },
+  },
+}));
+
 vi.mock("../utils/producer.js", () => ({
   loadProducer: vi.fn(async () => ({
     resolveConfig: vi.fn((overrides: Record<string, unknown>) => {
@@ -29,6 +55,10 @@ vi.mock("../browser/ffmpeg.js", () => ({
   getFFmpegInstallHint: vi.fn(() => "brew install ffmpeg"),
 }));
 
+vi.mock("../browser/preflight.js", () => ({
+  runEnvironmentChecks: vi.fn(async () => preflightState.result),
+}));
+
 describe("renderLocal browser GPU config", () => {
   const savedEnv = new Map<string, string | undefined>();
   // Pre-resolve once. The first dynamic `import("./render.js")` in this file
@@ -46,7 +76,7 @@ describe("renderLocal browser GPU config", () => {
   });
 
   function setEnv(key: string, value: string) {
-    savedEnv.set(key, process.env[key]);
+    if (!savedEnv.has(key)) savedEnv.set(key, process.env[key]);
     process.env[key] = value;
   }
 
@@ -54,6 +84,12 @@ describe("renderLocal browser GPU config", () => {
     producerState.createdJobs = [];
     producerState.resolveConfigCalls = [];
     savedEnv.clear();
+    savedEnv.set("HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH", process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH);
+    savedEnv.set("HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH", process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH);
+    savedEnv.set("PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH", process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH);
+    delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+    delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+    delete process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH;
   });
 
   afterEach(() => {
@@ -125,6 +161,22 @@ describe("renderLocal browser GPU config", () => {
     });
   });
 
+  it("passes preflight-resolved FFmpeg, FFprobe, and browser paths through env", async () => {
+    await renderLocal("/tmp/project", "/tmp/out.mp4", {
+      fps: { num: 30, den: 1 },
+      quality: "standard",
+      format: "mp4",
+      gpu: false,
+      browserGpuMode: "software",
+      hdrMode: "auto",
+      quiet: true,
+    });
+
+    expect(process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH).toBe("/usr/bin/ffmpeg");
+    expect(process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH).toBe("/usr/bin/ffprobe");
+    expect(process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH).toBe("/mock/chrome");
+  });
+
   it("resolves browser GPU from CLI flags, Docker mode, and env fallback", () => {
     // Default (no flag, no env): auto — engine probes and chooses.
     expect(resolveBrowserGpuForCli(false, undefined, undefined)).toBe("auto");

packages/cli/src/commands/render.ts

@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ import { VERSION } from "../version.js";
 import { isDevMode } from "../utils/env.js";
 import { buildDockerRunArgs, resolveDockerPlatform } from "../utils/dockerRunArgs.js";
 import { normalizeErrorMessage } from "../utils/errorMessage.js";
-import { findFFmpeg, getFFmpegInstallHint } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
+import { runEnvironmentChecks } from "../browser/preflight.js";
 import type { ProducerLogger, RenderJob } from "@hyperframes/producer";
 import {
   normalizeResolutionFlag,
@@ -967,30 +967,42 @@ export async function renderLocal(
   outputPath: string,
   options: RenderOptions,
 ): Promise<void> {
-  const producer = await loadProducer();
+  const preflight = await runEnvironmentChecks({
-
+    projectDir,
-  if (!findFFmpeg()) {
+    browserPath: options.browserPath,
-    errorBox(
+    includeBrowser: true,
-      "FFmpeg not found",
+    includeDisk: true,
-      "FFmpeg is required to encode video. The render cannot proceed without it.",
+    includeWindowsUnc: true,
-      getFFmpegInstallHint(),
+  });
-    );
+  const failedChecks = preflight.outcomes.filter((outcome) => !outcome.ok);
+  if (failedChecks.length > 0) {
+    for (const check of failedChecks) {
+      errorBox(check.title ?? `${check.name} check failed`, check.detail, check.hint);
+    }
     process.exit(1);
   }
+  if (!options.quiet) {
+    for (const outcome of preflight.outcomes) {
+      if (outcome.level === "warn") {
+        console.warn(c.warn(`  ${outcome.name}: ${outcome.detail}`));
+        if (outcome.hint) console.warn(c.dim(`  ${outcome.hint}`));
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (preflight.ffmpegPath) process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = preflight.ffmpegPath;
+  if (preflight.ffprobePath) process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = preflight.ffprobePath;
+  if (preflight.browser?.executablePath && !process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH) {
+    process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH = preflight.browser.executablePath;
+  }
+
+  const producer = await loadProducer();
 
   const startTime = Date.now();
   const logger = createRenderTelemetryLogger(
     producer.createConsoleLogger?.("info") ?? createNoopProducerLogger(),
   );
 
-  // Pass the resolved browser path to the producer via env var so
-  // resolveConfig() picks it up. This bridges the CLI's ensureBrowser()
-  // (which knows about system Chrome on macOS) with the engine's
-  // acquireBrowser() (which only checks the puppeteer cache).
-  if (options.browserPath && !process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH) {
-    process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH = options.browserPath;
-  }
-
   const job = producer.createRenderJob({
     fps: options.fps,
     quality: options.quality,

packages/cli/src/commands/snapshot.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { defineCommand } from "citty";
 import { existsSync, mkdtempSync, readFileSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
@@ -7,6 +8,7 @@ import { resolveProject } from "../utils/project.js";
 import { resolveCompositionViewportFromHtml } from "../utils/compositionViewport.js";
 import { serveStaticProjectHtml } from "../utils/staticProjectServer.js";
 import { c } from "../ui/colors.js";
+import { findFFmpeg } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import type { Example } from "./_examples.js";
 
 /** Maximum time a single-frame FFmpeg extract is allowed to run. Mirrors the
@@ -28,6 +30,8 @@ async function extractVideoFrameToBuffer(
   const tmp = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "hf-snapshot-frame-"));
   const outPath = join(tmp, "frame.png");
   try {
+    const ffmpegPath = findFFmpeg();
+    if (!ffmpegPath) return null;
     const result = await new Promise<{ code: number | null; stderr: string; timedOut: boolean }>(
       (resolvePromise) => {
         // `-ss` before `-i` performs a fast keyframe seek; adequate for snapshot accuracy
@@ -48,7 +52,7 @@ async function extractVideoFrameToBuffer(
           "-y",
           outPath,
         );
-        const ff = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+        const ff = spawn(ffmpegPath, args);
         let stderr = "";
         let timedOut = false;
         const timer = setTimeout(() => {

packages/cli/src/whisper/manager.ts

@@ -1,7 +1,9 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication complexity
 import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { existsSync, mkdirSync, rmSync } from "node:fs";
 import { homedir, platform } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
+import { findFFmpeg } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import { downloadFile } from "../utils/download.js";
 
 const MODELS_DIR = join(homedir(), ".cache", "hyperframes", "whisper", "models");
@@ -205,20 +207,7 @@ export async function ensureModel(
 }
 
 export function hasFFmpeg(): boolean {
-  return hasBinary("ffmpeg");
+  return findFFmpeg() !== undefined;
-}
-
-export function hasFFprobe(): boolean {
-  return hasBinary("ffprobe");
-}
-
-function hasBinary(name: string): boolean {
-  try {
-    execFileSync(name, ["-version"], { stdio: "ignore", timeout: 5000 });
-    return true;
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
 }
 
 export { MODELS_DIR, DEFAULT_MODEL };

packages/cli/src/whisper/transcribe.ts

@@ -1,7 +1,9 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { existsSync, readFileSync, mkdirSync, unlinkSync } from "node:fs";
 import { join, extname } from "node:path";
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { findFFmpeg, findFFprobe, getFFmpegInstallHint } from "../browser/ffmpeg.js";
 import { ensureWhisper, ensureModel, hasFFmpeg, DEFAULT_MODEL } from "./manager.js";
 
 /**
@@ -124,9 +126,15 @@ function isVideoFile(filePath: string): boolean {
  * Extract audio from a video file as 16kHz mono WAV (whisper requirement).
  */
 function extractAudio(videoPath: string): string {
+  const ffmpegPath = findFFmpeg();
+  if (!ffmpegPath) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `ffmpeg is required to extract audio from video. Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`,
+    );
+  }
   const wavPath = join(tmpdir(), `hyperframes-audio-${Date.now()}.wav`);
   execFileSync(
-    "ffmpeg",
+    ffmpegPath,
     ["-i", videoPath, "-vn", "-ar", "16000", "-ac", "1", "-f", "wav", "-y", wavPath],
     { stdio: "ignore", timeout: 120_000 },
   );
@@ -138,8 +146,10 @@ function extractAudio(videoPath: string): string {
  */
 function isWav16kMono(filePath: string): boolean {
   try {
+    const ffprobePath = findFFprobe();
+    if (!ffprobePath) return false;
     const raw = execFileSync(
-      "ffprobe",
+      ffprobePath,
       ["-v", "quiet", "-print_format", "json", "-show_streams", filePath],
       { encoding: "utf-8", timeout: 10_000 },
     );
@@ -166,9 +176,13 @@ function prepareAudio(audioPath: string): string {
   }
 
   // Convert to whisper-compatible WAV
+  const ffmpegPath = findFFmpeg();
+  if (!ffmpegPath) {
+    throw new Error(`ffmpeg is required to prepare audio. Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`);
+  }
   const wavPath = join(tmpdir(), `hyperframes-audio-${Date.now()}.wav`);
   execFileSync(
-    "ffmpeg",
+    ffmpegPath,
     ["-i", audioPath, "-ar", "16000", "-ac", "1", "-f", "wav", "-y", wavPath],
     { stdio: "ignore", timeout: 120_000 },
   );
@@ -205,7 +219,7 @@ export async function transcribe(
   } else if (isVideoFile(inputPath)) {
     if (!hasFFmpeg()) {
       throw new Error(
-        "ffmpeg is required to extract audio from video. Install: brew install ffmpeg",
+        `ffmpeg is required to extract audio from video. Install: ${getFFmpegInstallHint()}`,
       );
     }
     options?.onProgress?.("Extracting audio from video...");

packages/core/src/studio-api/helpers/waveform.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { existsSync, writeFileSync, mkdirSync } from "node:fs";
-import { join } from "node:path";
+import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
 
 const SAMPLE_RATE = 4000;
 const PEAK_COUNT = 4000;
@@ -27,10 +27,16 @@ function computePeaks(floats: Float32Array, count: number): number[] {
   return peaks.map((p) => p / maxPeak);
 }
 
+function ffmpegBinary(): string {
+  const configured = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH?.trim();
+  if (configured) return resolve(configured);
+  return "ffmpeg";
+}
+
 export function decodeAudioPeaks(audioPath: string): Promise<number[]> {
-  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+  return new Promise((resolvePromise, reject) => {
     const proc = spawn(
-      "ffmpeg",
+      ffmpegBinary(),
       [
         "-i",
         audioPath,
@@ -62,7 +68,7 @@ export function decodeAudioPeaks(audioPath: string): Promise<number[]> {
         return;
       }
       const ab = buf.buffer.slice(buf.byteOffset, buf.byteOffset + numSamples * 4);
-      resolve(computePeaks(new Float32Array(ab), PEAK_COUNT));
+      resolvePromise(computePeaks(new Float32Array(ab), PEAK_COUNT));
     });
     proc.on("error", reject);
   });

packages/engine/src/index.ts

@@ -195,6 +195,13 @@ export {
   type RunFfmpegOptions,
   type RunFfmpegResult,
 } from "./utils/runFfmpeg.js";
+export {
+  assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist,
+  getFfmpegBinary,
+  getFfprobeBinary,
+  FFMPEG_PATH_ENV,
+  FFPROBE_PATH_ENV,
+} from "./utils/ffmpegBinaries.js";
 
 export { trackChildProcess, killTrackedProcesses } from "./utils/processTracker.js";
 

packages/engine/src/services/browserManager.test.ts

@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import {
   drainBrowserPool,
   forceReleaseBrowser,
   releaseBrowser,
+  resolveHeadlessShellPath,
   resolveBrowserGpuMode,
 } from "./browserManager.js";
 
@@ -137,6 +138,23 @@ describe("resolveBrowserGpuMode", () => {
   });
 });
 
+describe("resolveHeadlessShellPath", () => {
+  const originalHeadlessShellPath = process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH;
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalHeadlessShellPath === undefined) delete process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH;
+    else process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH = originalHeadlessShellPath;
+  });
+
+  it("throws a clear error when PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH points at a missing binary", () => {
+    process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH = "/missing/chrome-headless-shell.exe";
+
+    expect(() => resolveHeadlessShellPath({})).toThrow(
+      /Chrome binary not found at PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH/,
+    );
+  });
+});
+
 describe("forceReleaseBrowser", () => {
   it("kills the browser process and disconnects", () => {
     const killFn = vi.fn(() => true);

packages/engine/src/services/browserManager.ts

@@ -49,7 +49,14 @@ export function resolveHeadlessShellPath(
     return config.chromePath;
   }
   if (process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH) {
-    return process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH;
+    const envPath = process.env.PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH;
+    if (!existsSync(envPath)) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `[BrowserManager] Chrome binary not found at PRODUCER_HEADLESS_SHELL_PATH="${envPath}". ` +
+          "Run `hyperframes browser ensure` to re-download.",
+      );
+    }
+    return envPath;
   }
   const baseDir = join(homedir(), ".cache", "puppeteer", "chrome-headless-shell");
   if (!existsSync(baseDir)) return undefined;

packages/engine/src/services/chunkEncoder.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication complexity
 /**
  * Chunk Encoder Service
  *
@@ -18,6 +19,7 @@ import {
 } from "../utils/gpuEncoder.js";
 import { type HdrTransfer, getHdrEncoderColorParams } from "../utils/hdr.js";
 import { formatFfmpegError, runFfmpeg } from "../utils/runFfmpeg.js";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "../utils/ffmpegBinaries.js";
 import { type Fps, fpsToFfmpegArg } from "@hyperframes/core";
 import type { EncoderOptions, EncodeResult, MuxResult } from "./chunkEncoder.types.js";
 
@@ -411,7 +413,7 @@ export async function encodeFramesFromDir(
   const args = buildEncoderArgs(options, inputArgs, outputPath, gpuEncoder);
 
   return new Promise((resolve) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args);
     trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
     let stderr = "";
     const onAbort = () => {
@@ -543,7 +545,7 @@ export async function encodeFramesChunkedConcat(
     if (options.useGpu) gpuEncoder = await getCachedGpuEncoder();
     const args = buildEncoderArgs(options, inputArgs, chunkPath, gpuEncoder);
     const chunkResult = await new Promise<{ success: boolean; error?: string }>((resolve) => {
-      const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+      const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args);
       trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
       let stderr = "";
       ffmpeg.stderr.on("data", (d) => {
@@ -587,7 +589,7 @@ export async function encodeFramesChunkedConcat(
     outputPath,
   ];
   const concatResult = await new Promise<{ success: boolean; error?: string }>((resolve) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", concatArgs);
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), concatArgs);
     trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
     let stderr = "";
     ffmpeg.stderr.on("data", (d) => {

packages/engine/src/services/streamingEncoder.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file unused-type code-duplication complexity
 /**
  * Streaming Encoder Service
  *
@@ -24,6 +25,7 @@ import {
   mapPresetForGpuEncoder,
 } from "../utils/gpuEncoder.js";
 import { formatFfmpegError } from "../utils/runFfmpeg.js";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "../utils/ffmpegBinaries.js";
 import { getHdrEncoderColorParams } from "../utils/hdr.js";
 import { DEFAULT_CONFIG, type EngineConfig } from "../config.js";
 import { fpsToFfmpegArg, type Fps } from "@hyperframes/core";
@@ -380,7 +382,7 @@ export async function spawnStreamingEncoder(
   const args = buildStreamingArgs(options, outputPath, gpuEncoder);
 
   const startTime = Date.now();
-  const ffmpeg: ChildProcess = spawn("ffmpeg", args, {
+  const ffmpeg: ChildProcess = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args, {
     stdio: ["pipe", "pipe", "pipe"],
   });
   trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);

packages/engine/src/services/videoFrameExtractor.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file unused-class-member code-duplication complexity
 /**
  * Video Frame Extractor Service
  *
@@ -19,6 +20,7 @@ import {
 } from "../utils/hdr.js";
 import { downloadToTemp, isHttpUrl } from "../utils/urlDownloader.js";
 import { runFfmpeg } from "../utils/runFfmpeg.js";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "../utils/ffmpegBinaries.js";
 import { DEFAULT_CONFIG, type EngineConfig } from "../config.js";
 import { unwrapTemplate } from "../utils/htmlTemplate.js";
 import {
@@ -259,7 +261,7 @@ export async function extractVideoFramesRange(
   args.push("-y", outputPattern);
 
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args);
     trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
     let stderr = "";
     const onAbort = () => {

packages/engine/src/utils/ffmpegBinaries.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
+import { resolve } from "node:path";
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import {
+  assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist,
+  getFfmpegBinary,
+  getFfprobeBinary,
+} from "./ffmpegBinaries.js";
+
+describe("ffmpeg binary env resolution", () => {
+  const originalFfmpegPath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+  const originalFfprobePath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    if (originalFfmpegPath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = originalFfmpegPath;
+    if (originalFfprobePath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = originalFfprobePath;
+  });
+
+  it("uses configured absolute paths when env vars are set", () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = "/tools/ffmpeg.exe";
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = "/tools/ffprobe.exe";
+
+    expect(getFfmpegBinary()).toBe(resolve("/tools/ffmpeg.exe"));
+    expect(getFfprobeBinary()).toBe(resolve("/tools/ffprobe.exe"));
+  });
+
+  it("throws a clear error when a configured FFmpeg path is missing", () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = "/missing/ffmpeg.exe";
+
+    expect(() => assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist()).toThrow(
+      /FFmpeg binary not found at HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH/,
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("accepts existing configured paths", () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = process.execPath;
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = process.execPath;
+
+    expect(() => assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist()).not.toThrow();
+  });
+});

packages/engine/src/utils/ffmpegBinaries.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
+import { execFileSync } from "child_process";
+import { existsSync } from "fs";
+import { resolve } from "path";
+
+export const FFMPEG_PATH_ENV = "HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH";
+export const FFPROBE_PATH_ENV = "HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH";
+
+const pathCache = new Map<string, string | undefined>();
+
+function findOnPath(name: "ffmpeg" | "ffprobe"): string | undefined {
+  if (pathCache.has(name)) return pathCache.get(name);
+  try {
+    const command = process.platform === "win32" ? "where" : "which";
+    const output = execFileSync(command, [name], {
+      encoding: "utf-8",
+      stdio: ["pipe", "pipe", "pipe"],
+      timeout: 5000,
+    });
+    const first = output
+      .split(/\r?\n/)
+      .map((s) => s.trim())
+      .find(Boolean);
+    const resolved = first ? resolve(first) : undefined;
+    pathCache.set(name, resolved);
+    return resolved;
+  } catch {
+    pathCache.set(name, undefined);
+    return undefined;
+  }
+}
+
+function getConfiguredBinary(envName: string, binaryName: "ffmpeg" | "ffprobe"): string {
+  const configured = process.env[envName]?.trim();
+  if (configured) return resolve(configured);
+  return findOnPath(binaryName) ?? binaryName;
+}
+
+export function getFfmpegBinary(): string {
+  return getConfiguredBinary(FFMPEG_PATH_ENV, "ffmpeg");
+}
+
+export function getFfprobeBinary(): string {
+  return getConfiguredBinary(FFPROBE_PATH_ENV, "ffprobe");
+}
+
+export function assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist(): void {
+  const ffmpegPath = process.env[FFMPEG_PATH_ENV]?.trim();
+  if (ffmpegPath && !existsSync(ffmpegPath)) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `[FFmpeg] FFmpeg binary not found at ${FFMPEG_PATH_ENV}="${ffmpegPath}". ` +
+        "Install FFmpeg or unset the override.",
+    );
+  }
+
+  const ffprobePath = process.env[FFPROBE_PATH_ENV]?.trim();
+  if (ffprobePath && !existsSync(ffprobePath)) {
+    throw new Error(
+      `[FFmpeg] FFprobe binary not found at ${FFPROBE_PATH_ENV}="${ffprobePath}". ` +
+        "Install FFmpeg or unset the override.",
+    );
+  }
+}

packages/engine/src/utils/ffprobe.test.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 import { EventEmitter } from "events";
 import { readFileSync } from "fs";
 import { resolve } from "path";
@@ -164,9 +165,35 @@ function createSpawnSpy(outcomes: SpawnOutcome[]): {
 }
 
 describe("ffprobe missing-binary fallback", () => {
+  const originalFfprobePath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+
   afterEach(() => {
     vi.resetModules();
     vi.doUnmock("child_process");
+    if (originalFfprobePath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = originalFfprobePath;
+  });
+
+  it("spawns the configured absolute FFprobe path when HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH is set", async () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFPROBE_PATH = "/tools/ffprobe.exe";
+    const { spawn, calls } = createSpawnSpy([
+      {
+        kind: "exit",
+        code: 0,
+        stdout: JSON.stringify({
+          streams: [{ codec_type: "audio", codec_name: "aac", sample_rate: "48000", channels: 2 }],
+          format: { duration: "1.25", bit_rate: "128000" },
+        }),
+      },
+    ]);
+    vi.resetModules();
+    vi.doMock("child_process", () => ({ spawn }));
+
+    const { extractAudioMetadata } = await import("./ffprobe.js");
+    const meta = await extractAudioMetadata("/tmp/uses-configured-ffprobe.wav");
+
+    expect(meta.durationSeconds).toBe(1.25);
+    expect(calls[0]?.command).toBe(resolve("/tools/ffprobe.exe"));
   });
 
   it("extractMediaMetadata falls back to PNG cICP metadata when ffprobe is missing", async () => {

packages/engine/src/utils/ffprobe.ts

@@ -1,11 +1,14 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication complexity
 import { spawn } from "child_process";
 import { readFileSync } from "fs";
 import { extname } from "path";
+import { FFPROBE_PATH_ENV, getFfprobeBinary } from "./ffmpegBinaries.js";
 
 /** Spawn ffprobe with given args, return stdout. Throws on non-zero exit or missing binary. */
 function runFfprobe(args: string[]): Promise<string> {
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
-    const proc = spawn("ffprobe", args);
+    const command = getFfprobeBinary();
+    const proc = spawn(command, args);
     let stdout = "";
     let stderr = "";
     proc.stdout.on("data", (data) => {
@@ -23,7 +26,14 @@ function runFfprobe(args: string[]): Promise<string> {
     });
     proc.on("error", (err) => {
       if ((err as NodeJS.ErrnoException).code === "ENOENT") {
-        reject(new Error("[FFmpeg] ffprobe not found. Please install FFmpeg."));
+        const configured = process.env[FFPROBE_PATH_ENV]?.trim();
+        reject(
+          new Error(
+            configured
+              ? `[FFmpeg] ffprobe not found at ${FFPROBE_PATH_ENV}="${configured}". Please install FFmpeg.`
+              : "[FFmpeg] ffprobe not found. Please install FFmpeg.",
+          ),
+        );
       } else {
         reject(err);
       }

packages/engine/src/utils/gpuEncoder.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 /**
  * GPU Encoder Detection
  *
@@ -6,6 +7,7 @@
  */
 
 import { spawn } from "child_process";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "./ffmpegBinaries.js";
 
 export type ConcreteGpuEncoder = "nvenc" | "videotoolbox" | "vaapi" | "qsv" | "amf";
 export type GpuEncoder = ConcreteGpuEncoder | null;
@@ -59,7 +61,7 @@ export async function selectUsableGpuEncoder(
 
 export async function detectGpuEncoder(): Promise<GpuEncoder> {
   return new Promise((resolve) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", ["-encoders"], {
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), ["-encoders"], {
       stdio: ["pipe", "pipe", "pipe"],
     });
     let stdout = "";
@@ -147,7 +149,7 @@ async function canUseGpuEncoder(encoder: ConcreteGpuEncoder): Promise<boolean> {
       if (killTimer) clearTimeout(killTimer);
       resolve(usable);
     };
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", getProbeArgs(encoder), {
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), getProbeArgs(encoder), {
       stdio: ["ignore", "ignore", "pipe"],
     });
 

packages/engine/src/utils/runFfmpeg.test.ts

@@ -1,8 +1,16 @@
-import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { EventEmitter } from "node:events";
+import { resolve } from "node:path";
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 
 import { formatFfmpegError } from "./runFfmpeg.js";
 
 describe("formatFfmpegError", () => {
+  const originalPlatform = process.platform;
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: originalPlatform, configurable: true });
+  });
+
   it("reports exit code alone when stderr is empty", () => {
     expect(formatFfmpegError(-22, "")).toBe("FFmpeg exited with code -22");
   });
@@ -43,4 +51,52 @@ describe("formatFfmpegError", () => {
   it("wraps stderr in [FFmpeg] prefix when exit code is null (spawn failure)", () => {
     expect(formatFfmpegError(null, "spawn ffmpeg ENOENT")).toBe("[FFmpeg] spawn ffmpeg ENOENT");
   });
+
+  it("maps Windows invalid-image exit codes to an actionable architecture hint", () => {
+    Object.defineProperty(process, "platform", { value: "win32", configurable: true });
+
+    expect(formatFfmpegError(3221225595, "")).toContain("wrong architecture");
+  });
+});
+
+function createSpawnSpy() {
+  const calls: Array<{ command: string; args: string[] }> = [];
+  const spawn = vi.fn((command: string, args: string[]) => {
+    calls.push({ command, args });
+    const proc = new EventEmitter() as EventEmitter & {
+      stderr: EventEmitter;
+      kill: ReturnType<typeof vi.fn>;
+      killed: boolean;
+    };
+    proc.stderr = new EventEmitter();
+    proc.kill = vi.fn();
+    proc.killed = false;
+    process.nextTick(() => proc.emit("close", 0));
+    return proc;
+  });
+  return { spawn, calls };
+}
+
+describe("runFfmpeg binary resolution", () => {
+  const originalFfmpegPath = process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    vi.resetModules();
+    vi.doUnmock("child_process");
+    if (originalFfmpegPath === undefined) delete process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH;
+    else process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = originalFfmpegPath;
+  });
+
+  it("spawns the configured absolute FFmpeg path when HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH is set", async () => {
+    process.env.HYPERFRAMES_FFMPEG_PATH = "/tools/ffmpeg.exe";
+    const { spawn, calls } = createSpawnSpy();
+    vi.resetModules();
+    vi.doMock("child_process", () => ({ spawn }));
+
+    const { runFfmpeg } = await import("./runFfmpeg.js");
+    const result = await runFfmpeg(["-version"]);
+
+    expect(result.success).toBe(true);
+    expect(calls[0]).toEqual({ command: resolve("/tools/ffmpeg.exe"), args: ["-version"] });
+  });
 });

packages/engine/src/utils/runFfmpeg.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file code-duplication
 /**
  * Shared FFmpeg process runner.
  *
@@ -6,6 +7,7 @@
  */
 
 import { spawn } from "child_process";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "./ffmpegBinaries.js";
 import { trackChildProcess } from "./processTracker.js";
 
 export interface RunFfmpegOptions {
@@ -25,6 +27,23 @@ const DEFAULT_TIMEOUT = 300_000;
 
 const DEFAULT_STDERR_TAIL_LINES = 15;
 
+function formatWindowsFfmpegExit(exitCode: number | null): string | undefined {
+  if (process.platform !== "win32" || exitCode === null) return undefined;
+  if (exitCode === 3221225595 || exitCode === -1073741701) {
+    return (
+      "[FFmpeg] Windows could not start ffmpeg.exe (STATUS_INVALID_IMAGE_FORMAT). " +
+      "The binary may be corrupted or the wrong architecture. Reinstall a 64-bit Windows FFmpeg build."
+    );
+  }
+  if (exitCode === 3221225794 || exitCode === -1073741502) {
+    return (
+      "[FFmpeg] Windows failed while initializing ffmpeg.exe. " +
+      "The binary may be corrupted, blocked, or missing runtime DLLs. Reinstall a 64-bit Windows FFmpeg build."
+    );
+  }
+  return undefined;
+}
+
 /**
  * Build a user-facing error message for a failed ffmpeg invocation.
  *
@@ -48,6 +67,10 @@ export function formatFfmpegError(
   if (exitCode === null) {
     return tail ? `[FFmpeg] ${tail}` : "[FFmpeg] process error";
   }
+  const windowsMessage = formatWindowsFfmpegExit(exitCode);
+  if (windowsMessage) {
+    return tail ? `${windowsMessage}\nffmpeg stderr (tail):\n${tail}` : windowsMessage;
+  }
   return tail
     ? `FFmpeg exited with code ${exitCode}\nffmpeg stderr (tail):\n${tail}`
     : `FFmpeg exited with code ${exitCode}`;
@@ -60,7 +83,7 @@ export async function runFfmpeg(args: string[], opts?: RunFfmpegOptions): Promis
   const onStderr = opts?.onStderr;
 
   return new Promise<RunFfmpegResult>((resolve) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args);
     trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
     let stderr = "";
 

packages/producer/src/services/animatedGifPrep.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import {
@@ -12,6 +13,7 @@ import {
 import { dirname, isAbsolute, join, resolve } from "node:path";
 import { parseHTML } from "linkedom";
 import { parseAnimatedGifMetadata, type AnimatedGifMetadata } from "@hyperframes/core";
+import { getFfmpegBinary } from "@hyperframes/engine";
 import { isHttpUrl } from "../utils/urlDownloader.js";
 
 const PREPARED_GIF_SUBDIR = "_animated_gif";
@@ -244,7 +246,7 @@ export function buildAnimatedGifTranscodeArgs(input: {
 
 async function runAnimatedGifTranscode(request: AnimatedGifTranscodeRequest): Promise<void> {
   await new Promise<void>((resolvePromise, reject) => {
-    const proc = spawn("ffmpeg", request.args);
+    const proc = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), request.args);
     let stderr = "";
     const timeout = request.timeoutMs ?? 300_000;
     const timer = setTimeout(() => {

packages/producer/src/services/audioExtractor.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file unused-file code-duplication complexity
 /**
  * Audio Extractor Service
  *
@@ -8,7 +9,7 @@
 import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { existsSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, readFileSync } from "node:fs";
 import { join, dirname } from "node:path";
-import { trackChildProcess } from "@hyperframes/engine";
+import { getFfmpegBinary, trackChildProcess } from "@hyperframes/engine";
 
 export interface AudioElement {
   id: string;
@@ -82,7 +83,7 @@ export function parseAudioElements(html: string): AudioElement[] {
  */
 function runFFmpeg(args: string[]): Promise<void> {
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
-    const ffmpeg = spawn("ffmpeg", args);
+    const ffmpeg = spawn(getFfmpegBinary(), args);
     trackChildProcess(ffmpeg);
     let stderr = "";
 

packages/producer/src/services/render/audioPadTrim.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file complexity
 /**
  * audioPadTrim — pad-or-trim an `audio.aac` file so its exact duration
  * matches the assembled video's frame count divided by fps.
@@ -20,6 +21,7 @@ import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import {
   extractAudioMetadata,
   formatFfmpegError,
+  getFfprobeBinary,
   runFfmpeg,
   type AudioMetadata,
 } from "@hyperframes/engine";
@@ -321,7 +323,7 @@ async function defaultRunFfmpeg(args: string[]): Promise<{ success: boolean; err
 
 function runFfprobeJson<T>(args: string[]): Promise<T> {
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
-    const proc = spawn("ffprobe", args);
+    const proc = spawn(getFfprobeBinary(), args);
     let stdout = "";
     let stderr = "";
     proc.stdout.on("data", (data: Buffer) => {

packages/producer/src/services/renderOrchestrator.ts

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// fallow-ignore-file unused-export unused-type circular-dependency code-duplication complexity
 /**
  * Render Orchestrator Service
  *
@@ -78,6 +79,7 @@ import {
   type HfTransitionMeta,
   getSystemTotalMb,
   LOW_MEMORY_TOTAL_MB_THRESHOLD,
+  assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist,
 } from "@hyperframes/engine";
 import { join, dirname, resolve } from "path";
 import { randomUUID } from "crypto";
@@ -1566,6 +1568,7 @@ export async function executeRenderJob(
 
     job.startedAt = new Date();
     assertNotAborted();
+    assertConfiguredFfmpegBinariesExist();
 
     log.info("[Render] Pipeline started", {
       platform: process.platform,