feat(engine): closed-GOP VP9 encoder args + concat-copy smoke test

PR 8.1 of the WebM distributed-rendering plan (v1.5 backlog #1; see
DISTRIBUTED-RENDERING-PLAN.md §7.2). Gates whether PR 8.2 ships Path A
(concat-copy) or Path B (re-encode-in-assemble) for webm distributed mode.

Two changes:

1. Extend buildEncoderArgs to lay closed-GOP args on libvpx-vp9 when
   lockGopForChunkConcat=true: -g <chunkSize>, -keyint_min <chunkSize>,
   -auto-alt-ref 0, -cpu-used 2. Mirrors the existing libx264/libx265
   branches. Alt-ref disabling is the critical bit — libvpx-vp9's default
   non-displayable alt-ref frames can reach across chunk seams and break
   concat-copy. cpu-used=2 pins the speed/quality tradeoff so chunks
   encoded on workers with different libvpx-vp9 defaults produce
   visually consistent output across seams.

2. Smoke test at packages/producer/tests/distributed/_smoke/webm-concat-copy.test.ts.
   Generates 60 PNGs via lavfi testsrc2, encodes them as 4 VP9 chunks
   of 15 frames using buildEncoderArgs with lockGopForChunkConcat=true,
   concat-copies via ffmpeg -f concat -c copy, then runs three
   independent verifications: ffprobe -show_streams, ffmpeg -f null -
   decode test, and ffprobe -count_frames. Each verification surfaces
   its failure fingerprint in the error message so PR 8.2 has the data
   it needs to pick the right architectural path.

Smoke test result locally: ALL 6 tests pass. Path A (concat-copy) works
for libvpx-vp9 with the new closed-GOP args. PR 8.2 will ship the
plan-time-error-removal path.

Also exports buildEncoderArgs from @hyperframes/engine so adapters /
tests can construct args without re-implementing the contract.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

Author: jrusso1020

packages/engine/src/index.ts

@@ -93,6 +93,7 @@ export {
 
 // ── Encoding ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 export {
+  buildEncoderArgs,
   encodeFramesFromDir,
   encodeFramesChunkedConcat,
   muxVideoWithAudio,

packages/engine/src/services/chunkEncoder.test.ts

@@ -551,7 +551,11 @@ describe("buildEncoderArgs lockGopForChunkConcat", () => {
     expect(args.indexOf("-x264-params")).toBe(-1);
   });
 
-  it("true is a no-op on VP9", () => {
+  // Closed-GOP for libvpx-vp9 is required to make `ffmpeg -f concat -c copy`
+  // stitch VP9 chunks losslessly: every chunk's first frame must be an
+  // independently-decodable keyframe with no alt-ref references reaching
+  // back across the seam.
+  it("true appends closed-GOP args for libvpx-vp9", () => {
     const args = buildEncoderArgs(
       {
         ...baseOptions,
@@ -564,9 +568,82 @@ describe("buildEncoderArgs lockGopForChunkConcat", () => {
       inputArgs,
       "out.webm",
     );
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-g") + 1]).toBe("240");
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-keyint_min") + 1]).toBe("240");
+    // Alt-ref frames are non-displayable references that break concat-copy
+    // at chunk seams; closed-GOP must disable them.
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-auto-alt-ref") + 1]).toBe("0");
+    // cpu-used is locked so workers with different libvpx-vp9 defaults
+    // produce visually consistent output across chunk boundaries.
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-cpu-used") + 1]).toBe("2");
+    // libvpx-vp9 uses `-deadline good` for non-ultrafast presets — the
+    // closed-GOP path doesn't change that.
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-deadline") + 1]).toBe("good");
+    // x264/x265-only params must not leak into the VP9 branch.
+    expect(args.indexOf("-x264-params")).toBe(-1);
+    expect(args.indexOf("-x265-params")).toBe(-1);
+    expect(args.indexOf("-sc_threshold")).toBe(-1);
+    expect(args.indexOf("-force_key_frames")).toBe(-1);
+  });
+
+  it("default (false) omits closed-GOP args for libvpx-vp9", () => {
+    const args = buildEncoderArgs(
+      { ...baseOptions, codec: "vp9", preset: "good", quality: 23 },
+      inputArgs,
+      "out.webm",
+    );
     expect(args).not.toContain("-g");
     expect(args).not.toContain("-keyint_min");
-    expect(args).not.toContain("-force_key_frames");
+    expect(args).not.toContain("-cpu-used");
+    // The non-locked, non-alpha VP9 path leaves `-auto-alt-ref` at the
+    // libvpx default. Alpha branches still emit `-auto-alt-ref 0` for an
+    // unrelated reason (alpha + alt-ref is unsupported), but that's a
+    // separate test below.
+    expect(args).not.toContain("-auto-alt-ref");
+  });
+
+  it("true with alpha pixel format keeps alpha metadata and emits -auto-alt-ref once", () => {
+    // Regression: alpha + closed-GOP must NOT double-push `-auto-alt-ref 0`.
+    // Both paths want it disabled; the encoder branch emits it exactly once.
+    const args = buildEncoderArgs(
+      {
+        ...baseOptions,
+        codec: "vp9",
+        preset: "good",
+        quality: 23,
+        pixelFormat: "yuva420p",
+        lockGopForChunkConcat: true,
+        gopSize: 240,
+      },
+      inputArgs,
+      "out.webm",
+    );
+    const autoAltRefIndices = args.reduce<number[]>((acc, a, i) => {
+      if (a === "-auto-alt-ref") acc.push(i);
+      return acc;
+    }, []);
+    expect(autoAltRefIndices.length).toBe(1);
+    expect(args[autoAltRefIndices[0] + 1]).toBe("0");
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-metadata:s:v:0") + 1]).toBe("alpha_mode=1");
+    expect(args[args.indexOf("-g") + 1]).toBe("240");
+  });
+
+  it("vp9 + lockGopForChunkConcat=true throws on missing gopSize", () => {
+    // Mirrors the libx264/libx265 branch: closed-GOP without a GOP size
+    // makes no sense — surface the caller error eagerly.
+    expect(() =>
+      buildEncoderArgs(
+        {
+          ...baseOptions,
+          codec: "vp9",
+          preset: "good",
+          quality: 23,
+          lockGopForChunkConcat: true,
+        },
+        inputArgs,
+        "out.webm",
+      ),
+    ).toThrow(/lockGopForChunkConcat=true requires a positive integer gopSize/);
   });
 
   it("true is a no-op on ProRes (intra-only — no GOP forcing needed)", () => {

packages/engine/src/services/chunkEncoder.ts

@@ -254,8 +254,58 @@ export function buildEncoderArgs(
     args.push("-c:v", "libvpx-vp9", "-b:v", bitrate || "0", "-crf", String(quality));
     args.push("-deadline", preset === "ultrafast" ? "realtime" : "good");
     args.push("-row-mt", "1");
+
+    // Closed-GOP args for distributed chunk concat-copy. Mirrors the
+    // libx264/libx265 branch above: `lockGopForChunkConcat=true` lays a
+    // keyframe at every chunk boundary so `ffmpeg -f concat -c copy` can
+    // stitch sibling chunks losslessly.
+    //
+    // VP9-specific: `-auto-alt-ref 0` is mandatory. Alt-ref (a.k.a.
+    // "ARNR") frames are non-displayable references libvpx-vp9 inserts
+    // anywhere in the GOP for compression; they break concat-copy at
+    // chunk seams because the boundary frame is no longer the first
+    // displayable reference. The alpha branch below already disables
+    // alt-ref for an unrelated reason (alpha + alt-ref is unsupported);
+    // closed-GOP extends that to every pixel format.
+    //
+    // `-cpu-used 2` pins the libvpx-vp9 speed/quality tradeoff so chunks
+    // encoded on workers with different default cpu-used values still
+    // produce visually consistent output across seams. libvpx-vp9's
+    // default with `-deadline good` has drifted across versions
+    // historically — locking it makes the planHash round-trip
+    // deterministic.
+    const lockGopVp9 = options.lockGopForChunkConcat === true;
+    if (lockGopVp9) {
+      if (
+        typeof options.gopSize !== "number" ||
+        !Number.isFinite(options.gopSize) ||
+        options.gopSize <= 0
+      ) {
+        throw new Error(
+          `[chunkEncoder] lockGopForChunkConcat=true requires a positive integer gopSize (received ${String(options.gopSize)})`,
+        );
+      }
+      const gop = Math.floor(options.gopSize);
+      args.push(
+        "-g",
+        String(gop),
+        "-keyint_min",
+        String(gop),
+        "-auto-alt-ref",
+        "0",
+        "-cpu-used",
+        "2",
+      );
+    }
     if (pixelFormat === "yuva420p") {
-      args.push("-auto-alt-ref", "0");
+      // Alpha + alt-ref is unsupported by libvpx-vp9. The closed-GOP
+      // branch above already disables alt-ref; only push the flag for
+      // the non-locked alpha case to keep the args list clean (a second
+      // `-auto-alt-ref 0` is harmless but noisier in `ffmpeg -loglevel`
+      // diagnostics).
+      if (!lockGopVp9) {
+        args.push("-auto-alt-ref", "0");
+      }
       args.push("-metadata:s:v:0", "alpha_mode=1");
     }
   } else if (codec === "prores") {

packages/engine/src/services/chunkEncoder.types.ts

@@ -22,8 +22,15 @@ export interface EncoderOptions {
    * (open-GOP, scenecut-driven keyframes), preserving the in-process
    * renderer's byte-identical output.
    *
-   * Only honored by the SW libx264 / libx265 paths. GPU encoders, vp9, and
-   * prores ignore the flag (their concat-copy story is separate).
+   * Honored by the SW libx264 / libx265 / libvpx-vp9 paths. GPU encoders
+   * and ProRes ignore the flag — GPU concat-copy is a separate story and
+   * ProRes is intra-only (every frame is already a keyframe, so no
+   * closed-GOP forcing is needed).
+   *
+   * For libvpx-vp9, closed-GOP also forces `-auto-alt-ref 0` so the
+   * boundary frame between chunks remains independently decodable —
+   * libvpx-vp9's default alt-ref frames can land anywhere in the GOP
+   * for compression and break concat-copy seams.
    */
   lockGopForChunkConcat?: boolean;
   /**