p0gdog/vcompress

Purpose and Entry Point

vcompress is a Rust command-line utility that compresses MP4 video files toward a user-selected size budget, with configurable audio bitrate or complete audio removal. The sole application entry point is src/main.rs; Cargo defines the buildable/installable binary through Cargo.toml.

CLI Boundary

src/main.rs owns command-line argument parsing and user-facing behavior: input video selection, output path override, target size in MB, audio bitrate, and no-audio mode. It derives a default output name such as example-compressed.mp4, separating invocation parameters from media-processing execution.

Paths: src/main.rs, Cargo.toml

Compression Planning

The application converts the requested target file size and audio settings into an FFmpeg encoding plan. The key architectural responsibility is allocating the file-size budget between audio and video, including the no-audio path, then selecting video encoding parameters that aim to meet the target.

Paths: src/main.rs

External Media Execution

Actual probing and transcoding are delegated to the system-installed FFmpeg executable rather than embedded Rust codecs. vcompress constructs and executes FFmpeg commands against local input/output files; FFmpeg availability on PATH is therefore a runtime prerequisite and an important failure boundary.

Paths: src/main.rs, README.md

Runtime and Platform Model

The binary runs locally as a native Rust CLI on supported desktop platforms, including Linux and Windows per the release/install guidance. It operates on local MP4 paths and has no server, database, browser, or persistent application state. Rust provides process orchestration; FFmpeg provides media codec/container handling.

Paths: Cargo.toml, src/main.rs, README.md

Distribution and Release

Cargo supports crates.io installation, while GitHub Actions provides CI and release automation. Release artifacts are intended for direct download, and Arch Linux packaging is maintained separately through a PKGBUILD. The release script likely coordinates the repository’s publishing/release workflow.

Paths: .github/workflows/ci.yml, .github/workflows/release.yml, scripts/release.sh, packaging/arch/PKGBUILD

Control Flow

Execution is linear: parse CLI input → resolve output filename and encoding settings → calculate bitrate/size targets → invoke FFmpeg on the local source → report command outcome. The principal boundary is process execution: invalid inputs, missing FFmpeg, unsupported media, or FFmpeg failures must be surfaced back through the CLI.

Paths: src/main.rs