Merge pull request #98 from heygen-com/feat/cli-smart-worker-default

feat(cli): smart default worker count based on CPU cores

Author: jrusso1020

docs/guides/rendering.mdx

@@ -116,19 +116,64 @@ Render your Hyperframes [compositions](/concepts/compositions) to MP4 with the [
 | `--output` | path | `renders/<name>.mp4` | Output file path |
 | `--fps` | 24, 30, 60 | 30 | Frames per second |
 | `--quality` | draft, standard, high | standard | Encoding quality preset |
-| `--workers` | 1-8 | 4 | Parallel render workers |
+| `--workers` | 1-8 or `auto` | auto | Parallel render workers (see [Workers](#workers) below) |
 | `--gpu` | — | off | GPU encoding (NVENC, VideoToolbox, VAAPI) |
 | `--docker` | — | off | Use Docker for [deterministic rendering](/concepts/determinism) |
 | `--quiet` | — | off | Suppress verbose output |
 
+## Workers
+
+Each render worker launches a **separate Chrome browser process** to capture frames in parallel. More workers can speed up rendering, but each one consumes ~256 MB of RAM and significant CPU.
+
+### Default behavior
+
+By default, Hyperframes uses **half of your CPU cores, capped at 4**:
+
+| Machine | CPU cores | Default workers |
+|---------|-----------|----------------|
+| MacBook Air (M1) | 8 | 4 |
+| MacBook Pro (M3) | 12 | 4 (capped) |
+| 4-core laptop | 4 | 2 |
+| 2-core VM | 2 | 1 |
+
+This is intentionally conservative. Each worker spawns its own Chrome process, so the per-worker overhead is significant. Fewer workers avoids resource contention with FFmpeg encoding and your other applications.
+
+### Choosing a worker count
+
+```bash Terminal
+# Explicit worker count
+npx hyperframes render --workers 1 --output output.mp4
+
+# Let Hyperframes pick based on your CPU
+npx hyperframes render --workers auto --output output.mp4
+
+# Maximum parallelism (use with caution on laptops)
+npx hyperframes render --workers 8 --output output.mp4
+```
+
+<Tip>
+  Start with the default. If renders feel slow and your system has headroom (check Activity Monitor / `htop`), try increasing `--workers`. If you see high memory pressure or fan noise, reduce it.
+</Tip>
+
+### When to use 1 worker
+
+- Short compositions (under 2 seconds / 60 frames) — parallelism overhead exceeds the benefit
+- Low-memory machines (4 GB or less)
+- Running renders alongside other heavy processes (video editing, large builds)
+
+### When to increase workers
+
+- Long compositions (30+ seconds) on a machine with 8+ cores and 16+ GB RAM
+- Dedicated render machines or CI runners
+- Docker mode on a well-provisioned host
+
 ## Tips
 
 <Tip>
   Use `draft` quality during development for fast previews. Switch to `standard` or `high` for final output.
 </Tip>
 
 - Use `npx hyperframes benchmark` to find optimal settings for your system
-- 4 workers is usually the sweet spot for most compositions
 - Docker mode is slower but guarantees [identical output](/concepts/determinism) across platforms
 - For compositions with many frames, `--gpu` can significantly speed up local encoding
 

packages/cli/src/commands/render.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { defineCommand } from "citty";
 import { existsSync, mkdirSync, statSync } from "node:fs";
+import { cpus } from "node:os";
 import { resolve, dirname, join } from "node:path";
 import { resolveProject } from "../utils/project.js";
 import { loadProducer } from "../utils/producer.js";
@@ -12,6 +13,13 @@ const VALID_FPS = new Set([24, 30, 60]);
 const VALID_QUALITY = new Set(["draft", "standard", "high"]);
 const VALID_FORMAT = new Set(["mp4", "webm"]);
 
+const CPU_CORE_COUNT = cpus().length;
+
+/** Half of CPU cores, capped at 4. Each worker spawns a Chrome process (~256 MB). */
+function defaultWorkerCount(): number {
+  return Math.max(1, Math.min(Math.floor(CPU_CORE_COUNT / 2), 4));
+}
+
 export default defineCommand({
   meta: {
     name: "render",
@@ -24,19 +32,47 @@ Examples:
   hyperframes render --docker --output deterministic.mp4`,
   },
   args: {
-    dir: { type: "positional", description: "Project directory", required: false },
-    output: { type: "string", description: "Output path (default: renders/<name>.mp4)" },
-    fps: { type: "string", description: "Frame rate: 24, 30, 60", default: "30" },
-    quality: { type: "string", description: "Quality: draft, standard, high", default: "standard" },
+    dir: {
+      type: "positional",
+      description: "Project directory",
+      required: false,
+    },
+    output: {
+      type: "string",
+      description: "Output path (default: renders/<name>.mp4)",
+    },
+    fps: {
+      type: "string",
+      description: "Frame rate: 24, 30, 60",
+      default: "30",
+    },
+    quality: {
+      type: "string",
+      description: "Quality: draft, standard, high",
+      default: "standard",
+    },
     format: {
       type: "string",
       description: "Output format: mp4, webm (WebM renders with transparency)",
       default: "mp4",
     },
-    workers: { type: "string", description: "Parallel workers 1-8" },
-    docker: { type: "boolean", description: "Use Docker for deterministic render", default: false },
+    workers: {
+      type: "string",
+      description:
+        "Parallel render workers (1-8 or 'auto'). Default: half your CPU cores, max 4. " +
+        "Each worker launches a separate Chrome process.",
+    },
+    docker: {
+      type: "boolean",
+      description: "Use Docker for deterministic render",
+      default: false,
+    },
     gpu: { type: "boolean", description: "Use GPU encoding", default: false },
-    quiet: { type: "boolean", description: "Suppress verbose output", default: false },
+    quiet: {
+      type: "boolean",
+      description: "Suppress verbose output",
+      default: false,
+    },
   },
   async run({ args }) {
     // ── Resolve project ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -68,10 +104,10 @@ Examples:
 
     // ── Validate workers ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
     let workers: number | undefined;
-    if (args.workers != null) {
+    if (args.workers != null && args.workers !== "auto") {
       const parsed = parseInt(args.workers, 10);
       if (isNaN(parsed) || parsed < 1 || parsed > 8) {
-        errorBox("Invalid workers", `Got "${args.workers}". Must be between 1 and 8.`);
+        errorBox("Invalid workers", `Got "${args.workers}". Must be 1-8 or "auto".`);
         process.exit(1);
       }
       workers = parsed;
@@ -85,28 +121,27 @@ Examples:
       : join(rendersDir, `${project.name}${ext}`);
 
     // Ensure output directory exists
-    const outputDir = dirname(outputPath);
-    if (!existsSync(outputDir)) {
-      mkdirSync(outputDir, { recursive: true });
-    }
+    mkdirSync(dirname(outputPath), { recursive: true });
 
     const useDocker = args.docker ?? false;
     const useGpu = args.gpu ?? false;
     const quiet = args.quiet ?? false;
 
     // ── Print render plan ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
-    const workerCount = workers ?? 4;
+    const workerCount = workers ?? defaultWorkerCount();
     if (!quiet) {
+      const workerLabel =
+        args.workers != null
+          ? `${workerCount} workers`
+          : `${workerCount} workers (auto \u2014 half of ${CPU_CORE_COUNT} cores)`;
       console.log("");
       console.log(
         c.accent("\u25C6") +
           "  Rendering " +
           c.accent(project.name) +
           c.dim(" \u2192 " + outputPath),
       );
-      console.log(
-        c.dim("   " + fps + "fps \u00B7 " + quality + " \u00B7 " + workerCount + " workers"),
-      );
+      console.log(c.dim("   " + fps + "fps \u00B7 " + quality + " \u00B7 " + workerLabel));
       console.log("");
     }
 
@@ -159,7 +194,7 @@ Examples:
         fps,
         quality,
         format,
-        workers,
+        workers: workerCount,
         gpu: useGpu,
         quiet,
       });
@@ -168,7 +203,7 @@ Examples:
         fps,
         quality,
         format,
-        workers,
+        workers: workerCount,
         gpu: useGpu,
         quiet,
         browserPath,
@@ -181,7 +216,7 @@ interface RenderOptions {
   fps: 24 | 30 | 60;
   quality: "draft" | "standard" | "high";
   format: "mp4" | "webm";
-  workers?: number;
+  workers: number;
   gpu: boolean;
   quiet: boolean;
   browserPath?: string;
@@ -205,7 +240,11 @@ async function renderDocker(
     });
     await producer.executeRenderJob(job, projectDir, outputPath);
   } catch (error: unknown) {
-    trackRenderError({ fps: options.fps, quality: options.quality, docker: true });
+    trackRenderError({
+      fps: options.fps,
+      quality: options.quality,
+      docker: true,
+    });
     const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error);
     errorBox("Render failed", message, "Check Docker is running: docker info");
     process.exit(1);
@@ -216,7 +255,7 @@ async function renderDocker(
     durationMs: elapsed,
     fps: options.fps,
     quality: options.quality,
-    workers: options.workers ?? 4,
+    workers: options.workers,
     docker: true,
     gpu: options.gpu,
   });
@@ -256,7 +295,11 @@ async function renderLocal(
   try {
     await producer.executeRenderJob(job, projectDir, outputPath, onProgress);
   } catch (error: unknown) {
-    trackRenderError({ fps: options.fps, quality: options.quality, docker: false });
+    trackRenderError({
+      fps: options.fps,
+      quality: options.quality,
+      docker: false,
+    });
     const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error);
     errorBox("Render failed", message, "Try --docker for containerized rendering");
     process.exit(1);
@@ -267,7 +310,7 @@ async function renderLocal(
     durationMs: elapsed,
     fps: options.fps,
     quality: options.quality,
-    workers: options.workers ?? 4,
+    workers: options.workers,
     docker: false,
     gpu: options.gpu,
   });