Problem

Chrome sessions spawned by the container were experiencing memory leaks whose severity varied depending on the webpage loaded. Over long streaming sessions, this could lead to out-of-control memory consumption, potentially causing system instability or forcing container restarts.

Solution

This PR implements a comprehensive two-pronged approach to Chrome memory management:

1. Memory-Limiting Chrome Flags

Added several Chrome flags to reduce baseline memory consumption:

• --memory-pressure-off - Disables memory pressure signals
• --max_old_space_size=2048 - Limits V8 JavaScript heap to 2GB
• --disable-background-timer-throttling - Prevents background process throttling
• --disable-renderer-backgrounding - Keeps renderer processes active for streaming
• --aggressive-cache-discard - More aggressive cache cleanup

2. Periodic Chrome Restart System

Implemented a configurable Chrome restart mechanism that:

• Restarts Chrome contexts periodically without interrupting the FFmpeg stream
• Uses a new CHROME_RESTART_INTERVAL environment variable (default: 60 minutes)
• Can be disabled by setting the interval to 0
• Includes proper error handling and fallback to the previous session if restart fails
• Uses thread-safe implementation with mutex protection

Key Features

• Zero Stream Interruption: FFmpeg captures from X11 display, so Chrome restarts don't affect the ongoing stream
• Fully Configurable: Users can customize restart intervals based on their specific webpage memory characteristics
• Backwards Compatible: All new features are optional; existing deployments continue working unchanged
• Production Ready: Comprehensive error handling, logging, and test coverage

Usage

# Default: 60-minute Chrome restarts
docker run -e WEBPAGE_URL=... -e RTMP_URL=... ghcr.io/zozman/stream-webpage-container

# Custom: 30-minute restarts for memory-intensive pages  
docker run -e CHROME_RESTART_INTERVAL=30 -e WEBPAGE_URL=... -e RTMP_URL=... ghcr.io/zozman/stream-webpage-container

# Disable restarts (not recommended for long streams)
docker run -e CHROME_RESTART_INTERVAL=0 -e WEBPAGE_URL=... -e RTMP_URL=... ghcr.io/zozman/stream-webpage-container

Testing

• All existing tests continue to pass
• Added comprehensive test suite for Chrome restart configuration validation
• Includes tests for invalid input handling and default value behavior
• Manual testing confirms environment variable handling works correctly

Files Changed

• cmd/main.go - Core implementation of memory management features
• cmd/main_test.go - New test cases for configuration validation
• .env.example - Added documentation for new environment variable
• README.md - Updated documentation with new environment variable details

This implementation provides a robust solution to Chrome memory leaks while maintaining the application's reliability and ease of use.

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