CLI & Command Line
Command-line arguments, flags, and usage examples
CineWindows supports a set of command-line arguments for controlling the runtime behaviour, enabling IPC, and opening media files directly.
CineWindows.exe Qt QCommandLineParserArguments Reference
| Argument | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
--cli, -c |
Enable interactive CLI mode. Reads newline-delimited JSON IPC or raw mpv commands from stdin. On Windows, opens a terminal window if no parent console is attached. | Disabled |
--ipc-server=<port> |
Enable the localhost TCP IPC server on the given port. Binds to 127.0.0.1 only. Valid range: 1–65535. |
Disabled |
--help, -h |
Display help information and exit. | — |
--version, -v |
Display version information and exit. | — |
file-or-url |
Any positional arguments (file paths or URLs) are passed to the application for opening. These are handled by QGuiApplication and forwarded to the QML shell. |
— |
Examples
.\CineWindows.exe.\CineWindows.exe --cli.\CineWindows.exe --ipc-server=32322.\CineWindows.exe --cli --ipc-server=32321.\CineWindows.exe --help.\CineWindows.exe --versionmpv Flag Compatibility
CineWindows does not pass command-line flags directly to mpv. The application intercepts all arguments through QCommandLineParser. To configure mpv behaviour at startup, use an mpv.conf file in the mpv configuration directory (see the Configuration reference).
--cli mode
--ipc-server mode
Port validation
Environment
CineWindows reads one environment variable:
| Variable | Purpose |
|---|---|
QSG_RHI_BACKEND |
Forced to opengl at startup for mpv renderer compatibility |
PathUtils::setupMpvEnvironment() configures mpv-specific paths at startup, setting the mpv configuration directory and ensuring yt-dlp is discovered correctly.