| name | cctv-h5e-download |
| description | Download and convert CCTV/CNTV web video pages that use encrypted H5e HLS streams into playable local MP4 files. Use when the user gives a tv.cctv.cn, cntv.cn, or related CCTV VOD URL and asks to download the highest-quality video, fix garbled video, decrypt H5e TS fragments, process a local ts_temp directory, or produce a normal MP4 for local playback. |
CCTV H5e Download
Overview
Use the official CCTV browser JavaScript/WASM pipeline locally instead of trying to decode encrypted H5e TS files with ffmpeg directly. The verified path is:
- Capture the real H5e media playlist from a Chrome page running with remote debugging.
- Download all TS fragments to
ts_temp.
- Patch
vhs_drm2.min.js to expose the CCTV transmux worker factory and video wrapper codec.
- Feed local TS files to the official worker in batches, with
mediaTagID: "_video_player" and periodic worker resets.
- Remux the resulting fMP4 fragments to MP4 and validate with
ffmpeg -xerror.
Required Tools
- Node.js 20+.
- Chrome/Chromium with remote debugging on
http://127.0.0.1:9222.
ffmpeg.exe and ffprobe.exe; if the user specifies paths, use those exactly.- Network access to CCTV/CDN/player URLs.
If Chrome is not already listening on 9222, start it with a separate profile, for example:
Start-Process "chrome.exe" -WindowStyle Hidden -ArgumentList "--remote-debugging-port=9222","--user-data-dir=$PWD\chrome-cctv-profile"
Workflow
Create one clean working directory per video. Copy or reference the scripts in this skill's scripts/ directory, then run the workflow from that working directory.
- Capture the H5e playlist:
node <skill>/scripts/capture_h5e_playlist_from_browser.mjs --url "<CCTV page URL>" --out playlist_capture.json
Use the captured selectedMediaPlaylist URL. If no media playlist appears, reload the page, start playback muted, or inspect playlist_capture.json for a variant playlist under /asp/h5e/hls/main/.
- Download the highest-quality TS fragments:
node <skill>/scripts/download_h5e_segments.mjs --playlist "<media-or-master-m3u8-url>" --out-dir ts_temp
- Fetch and patch the CCTV player DRM script:
curl.exe -L --ssl-no-revoke -o vhs_drm2.min.js "https://player.cntv.cn/h5vod/vhs_drm2.min.js"
node <skill>/scripts/make_vhs_driver_patch.mjs --input vhs_drm2.min.js --output vhs_drm2.driver.js
- Convert local TS to fMP4 fragments using the official worker:
node <skill>/scripts/process_local_ts_with_worker.mjs --page-url "<CCTV page URL>" --ts-dir ts_temp --out-dir worker_out --driver vhs_drm2.driver.js --reset-every 50
Important invariants:
- Use
mediaTagID: "_video_player" unless a fresh worker-init capture proves otherwise.
- Use
remux:false, alignGopsAtEnd:false, keepOriginalTimestamps:true, loaderType:"main".
- Reset the worker periodically. A single worker can drift after many fragments and produce locally corrupted video even when early segments look correct.
--reset-every 50 is the verified default.
- Clean duplicate init segments, remux, and validate:
node <skill>/scripts/clean_worker_fragments.mjs --out-dir worker_out
& "<ffmpeg.exe>" -y -hide_banner -loglevel warning -i "worker_out\video.clean.mp4frag" -i "worker_out\audio.clean.mp4frag" -map 0:v:0 -map 1:a:0 -c copy -movflags +faststart "output.mp4"
& "<ffprobe.exe>" -v error -show_entries format=duration,size,bit_rate -show_entries stream=index,codec_name,codec_type,width,height,avg_frame_rate,bit_rate -of json "output.mp4"
& "<ffmpeg.exe>" -hide_banner -v warning -xerror -i "output.mp4" -f null -
Duplicated SDTP atom warnings during remux are acceptable for these fMP4 fragments. H.264 decode errors during validation are not acceptable.
Debugging
Read references/cctv-h5e-method.md when:
- video is still garbled,
ffmpeg -xerror fails,- the playlist capture misses the H5e URL,
- worker output gets much smaller after a certain timestamp,
- CCTV changes player script structure and the patch fails.
Prefer byte-level and decode validation over visual guessing. Always report the final MP4 path and whether full ffmpeg -xerror validation passed.
