RomM Stream Server

Part of Cartridge by MoveWeight — a self-hosted retro-gaming ecosystem. Run the whole stack, not just this piece: MoveWeight └── Cartridge play + acquire your library ├── ROMarr ───────────── request a game, it finds / grabs / files it │ └── ROM Hub + plugins backend-agnostic sources (RomM/Gaseous/Retrom) └── Apps Desktop · Xbox · Roku · Stream server Acquire: ROMarr · ROM Hub — Play: Desktop · Xbox · Roku · Stream Unofficial; not affiliated with or endorsed by RomM, Gaseous or Retrom.

The shared game-play backend for a RomM library: it runs the emulator server-side and delivers the picture to devices that can't emulate for themselves. A Roku gets a low-latency HLS stream with your phone as the gamepad; an Xbox gets ~100 ms WebRTC with the real controller. One server, both paths:

                    ┌────────────────────────────────────────────┐
   Roku channel ───►│  HLS: Xvfb + RetroArch (or Chromium+EJS)   │
   (RommForRoku)    │       → FFmpeg x264 → .m3u8/.ts            │
                    │  input: phone PWA → CDP / xdotool          │
                    │                                            │
   Xbox Edge   ───►│  WebRTC: Xvfb + RetroArch → aiortc H.264    │
   (RommForXbox)    │       ~100 ms; input over data channel     │
                    └────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Client apps that use it: RommForRoku, RommForXbox, RommForDesktop (as its fallback for platforms with no local core).

Deploy

On the RomM host (Debian):

bash deploy/deploy.sh

That installs RetroArch, xdotool, Xvfb, pulseaudio, a python venv with aiohttp/aiortc, downloads libretro cores (dolphin, flycast, mupen64plus-next, ppsspp, mednafen-saturn, mednafen-psx-hw, fbneo, pcsx2, citra) from the libretro buildbot, and installs the nginx site (deploy/nginx-xbox.conf) and the systemd unit.

Ports: 8090 API · 8091 legacy nginx (HLS/phone/roms) · 8092 Xbox front (same-origin /romm/ + /api/ proxies).

What it provides

• Tier routing — GET /api/play/route?platform=slug → local (client runs EmulatorJS itself) / stream (server RetroArch) / 404 (denylisted: Windows, installers, mobile). Source of truth: tiers.py.
• HLS sessions (Roku-compatible): POST /api/stream/start {platform, rom_name, name, client} → {stream_id, hls_url, engine}; POST /api/stream/{sid}/stop; POST /api/stream/{sid}/input {key, pressed}; GET /api/stream/status. Uses RetroArch cores when available, headless-Chromium EmulatorJS otherwise.
• WebRTC sessions — GET /api/rtc/signal?platform=&rom_name= (WebSocket): server sends {type:"ready"}, client sends an SDP offer, server answers with x11grab video + pulse audio; the input data channel carries {key, pressed} injected via xdotool.
• ROM proxy — GET /api/romfile/{platform}/{name} (traversal-safe) for in-browser EmulatorJS clients.
• Save persistence — PUT/GET /api/saves/{platform}/{rom_name} + per-session RetroArch save dirs, shared across tiers and devices — start on the Xbox, continue on the Roku.
• Phone controller — phone.html, a PWA gamepad for HLS sessions.

Tests

python -m pytest tests -q

Covers tier routing, the display/port allocator (no reuse while held), save-path traversal rejection, and the HTTP endpoints via aiohttp's test client.