Behind FRAME
Your tools.
On your computer.
FRAME brings your production tools together on a computer you control. Use your browser for the controls and OBS for your show.
See how it fitsA familiar setup. A few new pieces.
01 What runs where
Start with a familiar setup.
You open the tools in a browser. Behind those pages, FRAME’s services do the work.
One new name: Docker
A place for each tool
to do its job.
Install Docker, then set up FRAME. Docker runs FRAME’s services in containers: organized packages with the software each service needs.
You still use a browser to upload a photo or choose what to show. OBS receives a viewer or overlay through a Browser Source.
Start at the Portal to find your enabled tools and check their status.
Is each container a separate computer?
No. A container runs a packaged service; it is not a complete separate virtual computer. Docker provides the environment for those containers. FRAME setup starts the services your chosen tools need, including shared routing and login services.
02 Your tools and your files
The tools run.
The files have a home.
Running software and saved files are different parts of your setup. FRAME stores photos and saved tool data in folders on your computer, outside the containers.
With the same persistent storage configured, you can replace a container without replacing the files it uses.
Keep a separate backup. Persistent storage keeps files between container replacements. A backup gives you another copy to restore after deletion or disk failure.
Published photos · Camera details · Saved tool data
A little more about storage and updates
FRAME connects a folder on your computer to the containers that need it. Docker calls this a bind mount. Services use paths such as /data inside the container, while the files live in your configured FRAME data folder.
Keep the same storage paths and preserve your installation’s configuration files when replacing containers. Temporary controls, such as Photo Stage’s playback state, can reset when a service restarts. Saved files and a running session are different things.
Original-upload archives have their own retention setting: the default is 14 days. A persistent folder does not override deletion or retention rules.
03 Local and Hybrid
Same computer.
A longer reach.
Local keeps access on your network. Hybrid adds a configured route to selected FRAME web pages from outside it.
Local
FRAME stays here.
Use a phone or another computer that can reach FRAME.
Access stays on your local network.
Devices on the same network can use the pages they can reach, with login where required.
Hybrid
FRAME stays here.
Use a phone or another computer that can reach FRAME.
Opens an enabled upload, gallery, or viewer link.
Your computer, Docker, and the internet connection must stay running for remote access to work.
The tools stay with you.
Hybrid adds a tunnel and a gateway alongside the local tools. It does not move the containers to a cloud server.
Access is selective.
Protected controls still need login. Local-only management pages stay local; enabling Hybrid does not publish every page.
Web access has a specific job.
Camera FTP and SRT/SRTLA video use separate network routes. They do not travel through this web tunnel.
What does Hybrid add behind the scenes?
A local Cloudflare Tunnel connector gives selected HTTP and WebSocket routes a public address. FRAME’s public gateway forwards only the allowed routes for the enabled tools; the full local routing service is not the public entry point.
Setup includes a Cloudflare hostname, a configured tunnel, and FRAME login credentials. Hybrid does not automatically configure every access policy. Follow the setup documentation and check the routes you intend to share.
Local mode describes where you can connect, not a promise that every feature works offline. Installation downloads and internet-dependent services still need connectivity.
Read the Hybrid setup notes04 Follow one photo
One photo.
Two ways to share the moment.
Follow the same photo from your browser to the places people see it.
- 01 / UPLOAD
Photo Upload
Send a photo from your phone or computer browser.
- 02 / PREPARE
Photo Pipeline
Check the image, prepare a JPG, and save available camera details.
- 03 / SAVE
Your data folder
Keep the prepared photo and its details on your computer.
- 04 / USE EITHER, OR BOTH
Photo Gallery
Browse the prepared collection.
Photo Stage
Choose what appears in OBS.
Illustrative workflow using the same sample photo at each step. A compatible camera can also send photos through Camera FTP Upload.
Do I need to open Gallery before using Stage?
No. Gallery and Stage are parallel ways to use the published photo collection. Photo Stage currently requires the Gallery service for parts of its operation, including its thumbnail picker, but you do not have to open or browse Gallery first.
After processing, Photo Pipeline writes the published JPG and details to the shared gallery folder. It writes a completion marker last, so the other tools can use a finished photo.