fix(r5): address the /code-review high round — 10 findings

- HLS sweep only deletes directories matching the session-name shape; the root
  is admin-configurable and may be a shared path
- playlist unwrap picks the first entry that actually downloaded, not entries[0]
- concat quoting keeps backslashes literal (ffmpeg treats them so inside '')
- ArrowUp/Down defer while the focused element can still scroll that way
- the staging fallback skips yt-dlp working files (.part-Frag/.ytdl/.temp/.fNNN)
- the boot HLS sweep runs off the event loop
- volume persistence is debounced (was a setItem per wheel notch) and a spin no
  longer loses notches to the iframe's lagging getVolume
- _Breaker.run owns the whole open/call/record protocol; four call sites shrink
- should_prune extracted and unit-tested, plus RSS error-vs-empty tests
- the worker exits non-zero when the schema never lands

backend/app/downloads/edit.py

@@ -184,11 +184,12 @@ def build_edit_cmd(src: Path, dest: Path, spec: dict, out_ext: str) -> list[str]
 def _concat_quote(path: Path) -> str:
     """Escape a path for a single-quoted `file '…'` line of an ffmpeg concat list.
 
-    The demuxer's own rule: inside single quotes a literal `'` is written `'\\''` (close, escaped
+    ffmpeg's quoting rule: inside single quotes EVERY character is literal except `'` itself, which
-    quote, reopen) and a `\\` must be doubled. On-disk names have been ASCII-slugged since 0.51.0,
+    is written `'\\''` (close the quote, emit an escaped quote, reopen). Backslashes are literal
-    but that change is FORWARD-ONLY — a pre-0.51.0 file still on disk can be named `Don't_….mp4`,
+    there — doubling them would corrupt a path that contains one. On-disk names have been
-    and an unescaped apostrophe there makes the whole list unparseable."""
+    ASCII-slugged since 0.51.0, but that change is FORWARD-ONLY: a pre-0.51.0 file still on disk can
-    return path.as_posix().replace("\\", "\\\\").replace("'", "'\\''")
+    be named `Don't_….mp4`, and an unescaped apostrophe makes the whole list unparseable."""
+    return path.as_posix().replace("'", "'\\''")
 
 
 def build_concat_plan(src: Path, dest: Path, spec: dict, out_ext: str, staging: Path):

backend/app/main.py

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import asyncio
 import logging
 import sys
 from contextlib import asynccontextmanager
@@ -69,8 +70,10 @@ async def lifespan(app: FastAPI):
                 url,
             )
     # No HLS session survives a restart (they live in this process), so anything still on disk is
-    # a crashed run's segments — sweep them or they accumulate forever.
+    # a crashed run's segments — sweep them or they accumulate forever. Off the event loop: the
-    swept = plex_stream.sweep_orphans()
+    # first sweep after a long uptime can be gigabytes of `.ts` files, and blocking here delays
+    # serving (a 502 + a failed post-deploy health probe).
+    swept = await asyncio.to_thread(plex_stream.sweep_orphans)
     if swept:
         log.info("swept %d orphaned HLS segment directories", swept)
     start_scheduler()

backend/app/plex/stream.py

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ segments. The remux is CPU-light (video copy + a tiny audio transcode), so it ru
 CPU-only prod host; only P3's full transcode is CPU-heavy.
 """
 import logging
+import re
 import shutil
 import subprocess
 import threading
@@ -33,6 +34,11 @@ log = logging.getLogger("siftlode.plex")
 _HLS_ROOT = Path(settings.plex_hls_dir) if settings.plex_hls_dir else Path(settings.download_root) / ".plex-hls"
 _SEG_SECONDS = 6
 _SESSION_IDLE_S = 600  # reap a session with no access for this long
+# A session directory is named `{rating_key}_{int(start_s)}_{tag}_{aoff:+.2f}` (see start_session).
+# `sweep_orphans` deletes ONLY names matching this shape: `_HLS_ROOT` is admin-configurable
+# (PLEX_HLS_DIR), so it may legitimately point at a shared scratch path we do not own — a blanket
+# "delete every directory under the root" would take the neighbours with it.
+_SESSION_DIR_RE = re.compile(r"^.+_\d+_[^_]+_[+-]\d+\.\d{2}$")
 
 _lock = threading.Lock()
 _sessions: dict[str, "HlsSession"] = {}
@@ -255,12 +261,16 @@ def wait_for(path: Path, timeout: float = 20.0) -> bool:
 
 
 def sweep_orphans() -> int:
-    """Delete segment directories no live session owns.
+    """Delete OUR segment directories that no live session owns.
 
-    Sessions live only in THIS process, so at startup every directory under `_HLS_ROOT` is a
+    Sessions live only in THIS process, so at startup every session directory under `_HLS_ROOT` is
-    leftover from a crashed or killed run — and nothing else ever reaps them (the download GC
+    a leftover from a crashed or killed run — and nothing else ever reaps them (the download GC
     deliberately skips `.plex-hls` as a system tree), so a few restarts mid-playback leave
-    gigabytes of `.ts` segments behind forever."""
+    gigabytes of `.ts` segments behind forever.
+
+    Only entries whose name matches `_SESSION_DIR_RE` are touched: the root is admin-configurable,
+    so anything else under it belongs to someone else and is left alone. Blocking (rmtree) — call
+    it off the event loop."""
     with _lock:
         live = {s.dir for s in _sessions.values()}
     dropped = 0
@@ -269,7 +279,7 @@ def sweep_orphans() -> int:
     except OSError:  # the root doesn't exist yet — nothing to sweep
         return 0
     for p in entries:
-        if p.is_dir() and p not in live:
+        if p.is_dir() and p not in live and _SESSION_DIR_RE.match(p.name):
             shutil.rmtree(p, ignore_errors=True)
             dropped += 1
     return dropped

backend/app/sync/playlists.py

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ never synced. Videos in a playlist that aren't in our shared catalog yet are fet
 ingested (with a stub channel) so the mirror is faithful."""
 import hashlib
 import logging
+from collections.abc import Callable
 from datetime import datetime, timezone
 
 from sqlalchemy import delete, select
@@ -271,8 +272,16 @@ def plan_push(db: Session, user: User, pl: Playlist, *, live=None) -> dict:
 _MAX_CONSECUTIVE_FAILURES = 5
 
 
+#: Returned by `_Breaker.run` when the write did not happen (refused or failed).
+FAILED = object()
+
+
 class _Breaker:
-    """Consecutive-failure circuit breaker for a single push run. Any success re-arms it."""
+    """Consecutive-failure circuit breaker for a single push run. Any success re-arms it.
+
+    Drive it with `run()` — it owns the whole open-check / call / record-outcome sequence, so a
+    write site can't accidentally implement two thirds of the protocol (forgetting to record a
+    failure would silently disable the breaker for that operation)."""
 
     def __init__(self, limit: int = _MAX_CONSECUTIVE_FAILURES) -> None:
         self.limit = limit
@@ -296,6 +305,22 @@ class _Breaker:
                 self.limit,
             )
 
+    def run(self, op: Callable[[], object], on_fail: Callable[[], None]) -> object:
+        """Attempt one YouTube write. Returns the op's result, or `FAILED` when the breaker is
+        already tripped (op not called) or the op raised YouTubeError. `on_fail` records the item
+        in the caller's failure list either way."""
+        if self.tripped:
+            on_fail()
+            return FAILED
+        try:
+            out = op()
+        except YouTubeError:
+            on_fail()
+            self.hit(False)
+            return FAILED
+        self.hit(True)
+        return out
+
 
 def push_playlist(db: Session, user: User, pl: Playlist, *, live=None) -> dict:
     """Push a local playlist to YouTube: create it if needed, then reconcile membership
@@ -313,16 +338,11 @@ def push_playlist(db: Session, user: User, pl: Playlist, *, live=None) -> dict:
             created = 1
             # Brand-new playlist: just append every video in order.
             for vid in desired:
-                if not breaker.open():
+                if breaker.run(
-                    failures.append(vid)
+                    lambda v=vid: yt.add_playlist_item(pl.yt_playlist_id, v),
-                    continue
+                    lambda v=vid: failures.append(v),
-                try:
+                ) is not FAILED:
-                    yt.add_playlist_item(pl.yt_playlist_id, vid)
                     inserted += 1
-                    breaker.hit(True)
-                except YouTubeError:
-                    failures.append(vid)
-                    breaker.hit(False)
             if not failures:
                 pl.synced_fingerprint = fingerprint(pl.name, desired)
                 pl.dirty = False
@@ -354,30 +374,22 @@ def push_playlist(db: Session, user: User, pl: Playlist, *, live=None) -> dict:
         # Delete extras (local is authoritative).
         for it in current:
             if it["video_id"] not in desired_set:
-                if not breaker.open():
+                if breaker.run(
-                    failures.append(it["video_id"])
+                    lambda i=it: yt.delete_playlist_item(i["item_id"]),
-                    continue
+                    lambda i=it: failures.append(i["video_id"]),
-                try:
+                ) is not FAILED:
-                    yt.delete_playlist_item(it["item_id"])
                     deleted += 1
-                    breaker.hit(True)
-                except YouTubeError:
-                    failures.append(it["video_id"])
-                    breaker.hit(False)
         # Insert missing (append; the reorder pass below fixes positions).
         cur_set = set(cur_vids)
         for vid in desired:
             if vid not in cur_set:
-                if not breaker.open():
+                item_id = breaker.run(
-                    failures.append(vid)
+                    lambda v=vid: yt.add_playlist_item(pl.yt_playlist_id, v),
-                    continue
+                    lambda v=vid: failures.append(v),
-                try:
+                )
-                    item_id_by_vid[vid] = yt.add_playlist_item(pl.yt_playlist_id, vid)
+                if item_id is not FAILED:
+                    item_id_by_vid[vid] = item_id
                     inserted += 1
-                    breaker.hit(True)
-                except YouTubeError:
-                    failures.append(vid)
-                    breaker.hit(False)
         # Reorder to match `desired` via insertion-sort moves over a local model.
         model = [v for v in cur_vids if v in desired_set] + [
             v for v in desired if v not in cur_set and v in item_id_by_vid
@@ -387,17 +399,14 @@ def push_playlist(db: Session, user: User, pl: Playlist, *, live=None) -> dict:
                 continue  # failed insert; skip
             if i < len(model) and model[i] == want:
                 continue
-            if not breaker.open():
+            if breaker.run(
-                failures.append(want)
+                lambda w=want, pos=i: yt.move_playlist_item(
-                continue
+                    item_id_by_vid[w], pl.yt_playlist_id, w, pos
-            try:
+                ),
-                yt.move_playlist_item(item_id_by_vid[want], pl.yt_playlist_id, want, i)
+                lambda w=want: failures.append(w),
-                reordered += 1
+            ) is FAILED:
-                breaker.hit(True)
-            except YouTubeError:
-                failures.append(want)
-                breaker.hit(False)
                 continue
+            reordered += 1
             j = model.index(want)
             model.pop(j)
             model.insert(i, want)

backend/app/sync/subscriptions.py

@@ -73,6 +73,18 @@ def apply_channel_details(db: Session, items: list[dict]) -> None:
         channel.details_synced_at = now
 
 
+def should_prune(fetched_count: int, existing_count: int) -> bool:
+    """Whether an import may delete the local subscriptions missing from this fetch.
+
+    NEVER on an empty fetch that contradicts local state: the API can answer 200 with no items (a
+    transient blip, a scope/token edge), and pruning against that wipes every subscription the user
+    has — taking each row's `deep_requested` flag with it — in a single run. Someone who genuinely
+    unsubscribed from everything simply keeps their rows until a sync that returns something.
+
+    Pure so it can be tested without a database; `import_subscriptions` is the only caller."""
+    return fetched_count > 0 or existing_count == 0
+
+
 def import_subscriptions(db: Session, user: User) -> dict:
     """Pull all subscriptions for `user`, upsert channels + subscription links, prune
     channels the user has unsubscribed from on YouTube, and fetch channel details for
@@ -108,18 +120,15 @@ def import_subscriptions(db: Session, user: User) -> dict:
             sub_row.yt_subscription_id = sub.get("yt_subscription_id")
         db.flush()
 
-        # Prune subscriptions removed on YouTube — but NEVER on an empty fetch. The API can answer
+        # Prune subscriptions removed on YouTube — but only when this fetch is trustworthy
-        # 200 with no items (a transient blip, a scope/token edge), and pruning against that wipes
+        # (see `should_prune`).
-        # every subscription the user has, taking each row's `deep_requested` flag with it, in one
-        # run. Someone who genuinely unsubscribed from everything simply keeps their rows until a
-        # sync that returns something.
         removed = 0
         existing = (
             db.execute(select(Subscription).where(Subscription.user_id == user.id))
             .scalars()
             .all()
         )
-        prune_skipped = bool(existing) and not fetched
+        prune_skipped = not should_prune(len(fetched), len(existing))
         if prune_skipped:
             log.warning(
                 "Subscription import (user %s): YouTube returned 0 subscriptions while %d exist "

backend/app/worker.py

@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ Design:
   * Crash-safe: on startup, orphaned `running` jobs are requeued and `downloading` assets reset.
 """
 import logging
+import re
 import shutil
 import signal
 import threading
@@ -351,6 +352,17 @@ def _staging_dir(asset_id: int) -> Path:
 
 
 _THUMB_SUFFIXES = (".jpg", ".jpeg", ".png", ".webp")
+# yt-dlp's working files in the staging dir. None of them is ever the finished media, but several
+# CAN be the biggest file there (a video-only per-format stream, an abandoned fragment run), so the
+# staging fallback must exclude them by name — picking one would store e.g. a silent video-only
+# stream as a ready asset.
+_YTDLP_TEMP_RE = re.compile(
+    r"\.part(-Frag\d+)?$"  # in-flight download / fragment
+    r"|\.ytdl$"  # resume state
+    r"|\.temp\.[^.]+$"  # merge/postprocess temp
+    r"|\.f\d+\.[^.]+$",  # per-format stream kept before the merge
+    re.IGNORECASE,
+)
 
 
 def _find_thumbnail(staging: Path, media: Path) -> Path | None:
@@ -367,7 +379,8 @@ def _produced_file(info: dict, staging: Path) -> Path:
     extractor may not fill it in at all — and `Path("")` is `Path(".")`, which *passes* `.exists()`,
     so a missing value used to sail past the fallback and blow up two steps later (`with_name` on an
     empty name: the BBC-news failure). Anything that isn't a real file counts as absent; then fall
-    back to the largest non-thumbnail file left in staging."""
+    back to the largest file left in staging that is neither a thumbnail nor one of yt-dlp's own
+    working files (see `_YTDLP_TEMP_RE`)."""
     req = (info.get("requested_downloads") or [{}])[0]
     fp = req.get("filepath") or req.get("_filename") or info.get("filepath") or info.get("_filename")
     if fp:
@@ -377,7 +390,9 @@ def _produced_file(info: dict, staging: Path) -> Path:
     cands = [
         p
         for p in staging.iterdir()
-        if p.is_file() and p.suffix.lower() not in _THUMB_SUFFIXES and not p.name.endswith(".part")
+        if p.is_file()
+        and p.suffix.lower() not in _THUMB_SUFFIXES
+        and not _YTDLP_TEMP_RE.search(p.name)
     ]
     if not cands:
         raise RuntimeError("yt-dlp produced no output file")
@@ -388,11 +403,15 @@ def _media_info(info: dict) -> dict:
     """Unwrap a playlist/multi_video extraction to the entry that carries the download.
 
     A single non-YouTube page (a news article's video, a multi-rendition embed) can extract as a
-    wrapper whose own dict has no `requested_downloads` — the media lives on the first entry."""
+    wrapper whose own dict has no `requested_downloads` — the media lives on an entry. Pick the
+    FIRST entry that actually downloaded something: on a page with a skipped teaser in front of the
+    real video, entries[0] carries no file, and taking it blindly would label the produced file
+    with the wrong id/title/duration."""
     entries = [e for e in (info.get("entries") or []) if e]
-    if entries and not info.get("requested_downloads"):
+    if not entries or info.get("requested_downloads"):
-        return {**info, **entries[0]}
+        return info
-    return info
+    chosen = next((e for e in entries if e.get("requested_downloads")), entries[0])
+    return {**info, **chosen}
 
 
 # Errors worth retrying with a different player-client set (YouTube per-client flakiness).
@@ -729,9 +748,13 @@ def main() -> None:
         return
 
     # The API may still be applying migrations when we boot. If they never arrive, exit instead of
-    # pressing on into a guaranteed crash — the container's restart policy retries the whole wait.
+    # pressing on into a guaranteed crash — with a FAILURE status, so the container comes back under
+    # any restart policy (`on-failure` too, not just the `unless-stopped` our composes ship) and the
+    # exit code doesn't claim success for a worker that never started working.
     if not _wait_for_schema():
-        return
+        if _stop.is_set():
+            return  # asked to shut down while waiting — that IS a clean exit
+        raise SystemExit(1)
     _recover_orphans()
     n = max(1, settings.download_worker_concurrency)
     log.info("Download worker started (concurrency=%d, root=%s).", n, settings.download_root)

backend/tests/test_download_output.py

@@ -38,6 +38,22 @@ class TestProducedFile:
         (tmp_path / "huge.mp4.part").write_bytes(b"x" * 999)
         assert _produced_file({}, staging) == tmp_path / "big.mp4"
 
+    @pytest.mark.parametrize(
+        "leftover",
+        ["vid.f137.mp4", "vid.mp4.part-Frag12", "vid.ytdl", "vid.temp.mp4", "vid.mp4.part"],
+    )
+    def test_ytdlp_working_files_never_win(self, tmp_path, leftover):
+        # Each of these can legitimately be the BIGGEST file in staging (a video-only per-format
+        # stream especially) — storing one would serve a silent or truncated "download".
+        (tmp_path / leftover).write_bytes(b"x" * 5000)
+        (tmp_path / "vid.mp4").write_bytes(b"x" * 10)
+        assert _produced_file({}, tmp_path) == tmp_path / "vid.mp4"
+
+    def test_only_leftovers_is_treated_as_no_output(self, tmp_path):
+        (tmp_path / "vid.f251.webm").write_bytes(b"x" * 5000)
+        with pytest.raises(RuntimeError):
+            _produced_file({}, tmp_path)
+
     def test_no_output_at_all_raises(self, tmp_path):
         staging = _staging(tmp_path, "only.jpg")
         with pytest.raises(RuntimeError):
@@ -53,6 +69,22 @@ class TestMediaInfo:
         info = {"id": "vid", "requested_downloads": [{"filepath": "/x.mp4"}]}
         assert _media_info(info) is info
 
+    def test_picks_the_entry_that_actually_downloaded(self):
+        # A page whose first entry was skipped: taking entries[0] would label the produced file
+        # with the teaser's id/title.
+        info = {
+            "id": "page",
+            "entries": [
+                {"id": "teaser", "title": "Teaser"},
+                {"id": "main", "title": "Main", "requested_downloads": [{"filepath": "/x.mp4"}]},
+            ],
+        }
+        assert _media_info(info)["id"] == "main"
+
+    def test_falls_back_to_the_first_entry_when_none_downloaded(self):
+        info = {"id": "page", "entries": [{"id": "a"}, {"id": "b"}]}
+        assert _media_info(info)["id"] == "a"
+
     def test_wrapper_that_downloaded_itself_wins_over_its_entries(self):
         info = {"id": "vid", "requested_downloads": [{"filepath": "/x.mp4"}], "entries": [{"id": "other"}]}
         assert _media_info(info)["id"] == "vid"
@@ -98,8 +130,10 @@ class TestConcatQuote:
         # A pre-0.51.0 file can still be named with an apostrophe; unescaped it breaks the list.
         assert _concat_quote(PurePosixPath("/m/Don't_Look.mp4")) == "/m/Don'\\''t_Look.mp4"
 
-    def test_backslash_is_doubled(self):
+    def test_backslash_stays_literal(self):
-        assert _concat_quote(PurePosixPath("/m/a\\b.mp4")) == "/m/a\\\\b.mp4"
+        # Inside single quotes ffmpeg treats `\` literally — doubling it would point at a
+        # different (non-existent) path.
+        assert _concat_quote(PurePosixPath("/m/a\\b.mp4")) == "/m/a\\b.mp4"
 
     def test_ordinary_path_is_unchanged(self):
         assert _concat_quote(PurePosixPath("/m/clip.mp4")) == "/m/clip.mp4"

backend/tests/test_sync_guards.py

@@ -1,5 +1,28 @@
-"""Guards that stop one bad YouTube answer from cascading: the playlist-push circuit breaker."""
+"""Guards that stop one bad YouTube answer from cascading: the subscription prune guard, the
-from app.sync.playlists import _Breaker
+playlist-push circuit breaker, and RSS telling a failure apart from an empty feed."""
+import httpx
+import pytest
+
+from app.sync.playlists import FAILED, _Breaker
+from app.sync.subscriptions import should_prune
+from app.youtube import rss
+from app.youtube.client import YouTubeError
+
+
+class TestShouldPrune:
+    def test_a_normal_fetch_prunes(self):
+        assert should_prune(fetched_count=12, existing_count=15) is True
+
+    def test_an_empty_fetch_against_existing_rows_never_prunes(self):
+        # The data-loss case: one anomalous empty-but-200 response must not wipe 15 rows.
+        assert should_prune(fetched_count=0, existing_count=15) is False
+
+    def test_an_empty_fetch_with_nothing_local_is_fine(self):
+        # A brand-new account: nothing to lose, so the (no-op) prune may run.
+        assert should_prune(fetched_count=0, existing_count=0) is True
+
+    def test_a_single_remaining_subscription_still_prunes(self):
+        assert should_prune(fetched_count=1, existing_count=200) is True
 
 
 class TestBreaker:
@@ -26,3 +49,72 @@ class TestBreaker:
         b.hit(False)
         b.hit(True)
         assert not b.open()
+
+
+class TestBreakerRun:
+    def test_returns_the_ops_result_and_leaves_failures_alone(self):
+        b, failed = _Breaker(), []
+        assert b.run(lambda: "item-1", lambda: failed.append("v1")) == "item-1"
+        assert failed == []
+
+    def test_a_youtube_error_records_the_failure_and_counts_towards_the_trip(self):
+        b, failed = _Breaker(limit=2), []
+        assert b.run(lambda: (_ for _ in ()).throw(YouTubeError("quota")), lambda: failed.append("v1")) is FAILED
+        assert failed == ["v1"] and b.open()
+        b.run(lambda: (_ for _ in ()).throw(YouTubeError("quota")), lambda: failed.append("v2"))
+        assert not b.open()
+
+    def test_a_tripped_breaker_never_calls_the_op(self):
+        b, failed, calls = _Breaker(limit=1), [], []
+        b.run(lambda: (_ for _ in ()).throw(YouTubeError("quota")), lambda: failed.append("v1"))
+        assert b.run(lambda: calls.append("called"), lambda: failed.append("v2")) is FAILED
+        assert calls == []  # the whole point: no more quota spent
+        assert failed == ["v1", "v2"]  # …but the item is still reported
+
+    def test_other_exceptions_are_not_swallowed(self):
+        # Only YouTubeError is a "write failed" signal; a bug must still surface.
+        with pytest.raises(ValueError):
+            _Breaker().run(lambda: (_ for _ in ()).throw(ValueError("bug")), lambda: None)
+
+
+class TestRssErrorVsEmpty:
+    """A failed poll must RAISE (so the caller leaves `last_rss_at` alone); only a genuinely
+    empty feed may return []."""
+
+    def _patch(self, monkeypatch, **kwargs):
+        def fake_get(url, **_):
+            if "exc" in kwargs:
+                raise kwargs["exc"]
+            return httpx.Response(
+                kwargs["status"],
+                content=kwargs.get("body", b""),
+                request=httpx.Request("GET", url),
+            )
+
+        monkeypatch.setattr(rss.httpx, "get", fake_get)
+
+    def test_non_200_raises(self, monkeypatch):
+        self._patch(monkeypatch, status=404)
+        with pytest.raises(rss.RssError):
+            rss.fetch_channel_feed("UC_dead")
+
+    def test_transport_error_raises(self, monkeypatch):
+        self._patch(monkeypatch, exc=httpx.ConnectError("no route"))
+        with pytest.raises(rss.RssError):
+            rss.fetch_channel_feed("UC_offline")
+
+    def test_an_empty_but_valid_feed_returns_empty(self, monkeypatch):
+        feed = b"""<?xml version="1.0"?><feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"></feed>"""
+        self._patch(monkeypatch, status=200, body=feed)
+        assert rss.fetch_channel_feed("UC_quiet") == []
+
+    def test_entries_are_parsed(self, monkeypatch):
+        feed = b"""<?xml version="1.0"?>
+        <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:yt="http://www.youtube.com/xml/schemas/2015">
+          <entry><yt:videoId>abc123</yt:videoId><title>Hello</title>
+          <published>2026-07-23T10:00:00+00:00</published></entry>
+        </feed>"""
+        self._patch(monkeypatch, status=200, body=feed)
+        out = rss.fetch_channel_feed("UC_live")
+        assert [e["id"] for e in out] == ["abc123"]
+        assert out[0]["channel_id"] == "UC_live"

frontend/src/components/PlayerModal.tsx

@@ -55,6 +55,21 @@ type LoopMode = "off" | "one" | "all";
 const AUTO_MODES: AutoMode[] = ["off", "next", "prev", "random"];
 const LOOP_MODES: LoopMode[] = ["off", "one", "all"];
 
+/** Can `el` (or an ancestor inside the modal) still scroll vertically in `dir` (-1 up, 1 down)?
+ * Used to leave ArrowUp/ArrowDown alone while there is content to scroll — the volume shortcut
+ * must not eat the only keyboard way to read a long description. Stops at `<body>`: the page
+ * behind the modal is `overflow:hidden` anyway. */
+function canScrollBy(el: HTMLElement | null, dir: -1 | 1): boolean {
+  for (let node = el; node && node !== document.body; node = node.parentElement) {
+    const style = getComputedStyle(node);
+    if (!/(auto|scroll|overlay)/.test(style.overflowY)) continue;
+    const room =
+      dir < 0 ? node.scrollTop > 0 : node.scrollTop + node.clientHeight < node.scrollHeight - 1; // -1: sub-pixel heights
+    if (room) return true;
+  }
+  return false;
+}
+
 // --- IFrame Player API loader (singleton) ---
 let apiPromise: Promise<any> | null = null;
 function loadYouTubeApi(): Promise<any> {
@@ -168,9 +183,15 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
   const [playerPrefs, patchPlayerPrefs] = useAccountPersistedObject(LS.ytPlayerPrefs, {
     volume: 100,
   });
-  // The window/wheel listeners below are bound once, so they must read the LIVE prefs.
+  // The live volume: updated on every notch, while the localStorage write behind it is debounced
-  const prefsRef = useRef(playerPrefs);
+  // (a wheel spin fires ~16 events a second, and each patch is a synchronous setItem on the frame
-  prefsRef.current = playerPrefs;
+  // the player is decoding on). Everything that READS the level reads this ref, so it never sees
+  // the stale persisted value mid-spin. The window/wheel listeners are bound once, so a ref — not
+  // state — is what they can safely close over.
+  const volumeRef = useRef(playerPrefs.volume);
+  const volSaveTimerRef = useRef<number | undefined>(undefined);
+  // When the last volume gesture happened — see nudgeVolume (a spin must not re-read the player).
+  const lastNudgeAtRef = useRef(0);
 
   const focusModal = () => cardRef.current?.focus();
   const togglePlay = () => {
@@ -193,6 +214,11 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
   };
   /** Push a level (0–100) to the player and remember it; 0 also mutes (a player left at zero
    * volume but unmuted shows YouTube's speaker icon as ON, which reads as broken). */
+  const persistVolume = () => {
+    window.clearTimeout(volSaveTimerRef.current);
+    volSaveTimerRef.current = undefined;
+    patchPlayerPrefs({ volume: volumeRef.current });
+  };
   const applyVolume = (level: number, flash = true) => {
     const next = Math.max(0, Math.min(100, Math.round(level)));
     const p = playerRef.current;
@@ -201,15 +227,29 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
       p.setVolume(next);
       if (next === 0) p.mute?.();
     }
-    patchPlayerPrefs({ volume: next });
+    volumeRef.current = next;
+    // Debounced: one write when the spin settles, not one per notch. The unmount cleanup flushes
+    // a pending write, so the last change is never lost.
+    window.clearTimeout(volSaveTimerRef.current);
+    volSaveTimerRef.current = window.setTimeout(persistVolume, 400);
     if (flash) flashVolume(next);
   };
   const nudgeVolume = (delta: number) => {
     const p = playerRef.current;
     if (!p || typeof p.getVolume !== "function") return;
-    // Read the live player (the user may have used YouTube's own slider), falling back to the
+    // Whose level do we step from? Our own ref, EXCEPT when the gesture starts fresh — then read
-    // stored level when the player can't answer yet.
+    // the player, because the user may have moved YouTube's own slider in the meantime.
-    const cur = p.isMuted?.() ? 0 : (p.getVolume?.() ?? prefsRef.current.volume);
+    // `getVolume()` is answered across the iframe boundary and lags our `setVolume` by a beat, so
+    // re-reading it mid-spin resurrects a stale level and silently drops notches (measured: five
+    // wheel notches moved 100 → 90 instead of 75).
+    const now = Date.now();
+    const continuing = now - lastNudgeAtRef.current < 1000;
+    lastNudgeAtRef.current = now;
+    const cur = continuing
+      ? volumeRef.current
+      : p.isMuted?.()
+        ? 0
+        : (p.getVolume?.() ?? volumeRef.current);
     applyVolume(cur + delta);
   };
 
@@ -425,10 +465,14 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
         togglePlay();
       } else if (e.key === "ArrowUp" || e.key === "ArrowDown") {
         // Volume by keyboard (YouTube/Plex-style ±5). The only volume control that survives
-        // fullscreen, where the wheel goes to YouTube's own iframe.
+        // fullscreen, where the wheel goes to YouTube's own iframe. But the modal card scrolls
-        if (typing) return;
+        // (a long description) and Up/Down is how you scroll it from the keyboard — so defer
+        // whenever the focused element can still scroll that way, exactly like Space defers to a
+        // focused button.
+        const up = e.key === "ArrowUp";
+        if (typing || canScrollBy(el, up ? -1 : 1)) return;
         e.preventDefault();
-        nudgeVolume(e.key === "ArrowUp" ? 5 : -5);
+        nudgeVolume(up ? 5 : -5);
       } else if (e.key === "ArrowLeft" || e.key === "ArrowRight") {
         // Plain arrows seek within the video (YouTube-style ±5s); Shift+arrow steps to the
         // previous/next video in the queue (the feed's order or a playlist).
@@ -453,6 +497,9 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
       window.clearTimeout(closeTimer.current);
       window.clearTimeout(openTimer.current);
       window.clearTimeout(volTimerRef.current);
+      // Flush a debounced volume write — closing the player right after a wheel spin (the normal
+      // way to leave) must not drop the level the user just set.
+      if (volSaveTimerRef.current != null) persistVolume();
     };
   }, [onClose]);
 
@@ -582,7 +629,7 @@ export default function PlayerModal({
           // restore the remembered volume — a fresh player always starts at 100.
           onReady: () => {
             focusModal();
-            applyVolume(prefsRef.current.volume, false);
+            applyVolume(volumeRef.current, false);
           },
           onStateChange: (e: any) => {
             // 1 === playing → sync the navigated-to video's title/author for display.