Setup

Install camera-remote-web-api TypeScript Client SDK, configure platform binaries (macOS, Linux, Windows), CLI commands (camera-server) to start/stop/monitor the camera server, MCP server install, auth login

1. Initialize your project

Create a new project directory and initialize it:

mkdir my-camera-app && cd my-camera-app
npm init -y
npm pkg set type=module

camera-remote-web-api is an ESM-only package. Setting "type": "module" in your package.json enables ES module syntax (import/export) which is required to use the SDK.

2. Install the SDK

npm install camera-remote-web-api

During installation, you’ll be prompted to accept the Sony Camera Remote SDK license agreement. The native binary for your current OS is downloaded automatically.

3. Install additional platform binaries

If you need to target platforms other than your current machine (e.g., deploying to Linux from macOS):

npx camera-server platforms                      # List available platforms
npx camera-server install --platform linux-x64   # Install a specific platform
npx camera-server install --platform linux-arm64
npx camera-server install --platform win32-x64

Supported platforms

Platform	Architecture	Package
macOS	Apple Silicon (ARM64)	@alpha-sdk/darwin-arm64
Linux	x64	@alpha-sdk/linux-x64
Linux	ARM64	@alpha-sdk/linux-arm64
Windows	x64	@alpha-sdk/win32-x64

4. Check dependencies

Run the doctor command to verify your environment has all required dependencies:

npx camera-server doctor

Requirements

• Node.js 18+
• Camera: Sony camera with Remote SDK support (USB or network)
• Windows: libusbK 3.0 driver required for USB connections
• macOS: macOS 14+ (Sonoma)
• Linux: Ubuntu 20.04+ or equivalent

5. Install MCP servers (optional)

Configure AI-powered SDK documentation search for Claude Code, VS Code, or Cursor:

npx camera-server mcp

This walks you through installing the AI SDK Assistant and AI Camera Assistant MCP servers. See the MCP Server quickstart for details.

6. Verify setup

Check that everything is installed correctly:

npx camera-server info

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Running the camera server

Once the package is installed, use the CLI to run the camera server in the background. Your app (Node.js, browser, or anything that speaks HTTP) then connects to it as a pure client.

Start the server

npx camera-server start                      # Start on default port 8080
npx camera-server start --port 9090          # Start on a specific port
npx camera-server start 9090                 # Shorthand for --port 9090

start spawns CameraWebApp as a detached background process — it keeps running after the CLI exits. You can close your terminal and the server stays up.

• Without --port, it defaults to 8080 and auto-increments (8081, 8082, …) if the port is taken.
• With an explicit --port N, it uses exactly that port and errors if it’s already in use.

Check status

npx camera-server status                     # Discover ALL running camera servers
npx camera-server status --port 9090         # Status of a specific server

status (with no port) discovers every running CameraWebApp instance regardless of port, queries each one, and reports SDK version, uptime, and connected camera count. Useful when you’re running multiple instances or aren’t sure which port a server is on.

Stop the server

npx camera-server stop                       # Stop ALL running servers
npx camera-server stop --port 9090           # Stop a specific server

stop first tries a graceful shutdown via the /api/server/shutdown endpoint, then falls back to SIGTERM/SIGKILL if needed. It only kills the actual listening process — browser tabs connected to the server are left untouched.

Interactive TUI

Run npx camera-server with no arguments to launch an interactive terminal UI:

npx camera-server

Inside the TUI you can type commands (start, stop, status, etc.) with Tab autocomplete, press / to browse the command list, or Esc to exit.

Typical workflow

npm install camera-remote-web-api    # Install package (binary auto-downloads)
npx camera-server start              # Start the server in the background
npx camera-server status             # Verify it's running
# ... your app connects to http://localhost:8080 ...
npx camera-server stop               # Stop the server when done

Don’t manage the server lifecycle from both the CLI and code at the same time. If you use npx camera-server start, don’t also call ServerManager.start() from your application — otherwise the two will fight each other (one respawning what the other kills). Pick one: CLI for interactive / deployment, ServerManager for fully programmatic control.

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CLI Reference

All available camera-server commands:

# Server management
npx camera-server start [--port <number>]                 # Start the camera server
npx camera-server stop [--port <number>]                  # Stop (all by default, or a specific port)
npx camera-server status [--port <number>]                # Show running server(s)

# Setup and diagnostics
npx camera-server info                                    # Version and binary info
npx camera-server install [--platform <name>]             # Install platform binary
npx camera-server uninstall [--platform <name>]           # Remove platform binary
npx camera-server doctor                                  # Check system prerequisites
npx camera-server platforms                               # List available platforms
npx camera-server docs                                    # Open API docs in browser

# MCP and authentication
npx camera-server mcp                                     # Interactive MCP setup
npx camera-server mcp status                              # Show configured MCP servers
npx camera-server mcp install <agent> <scope> [server]    # Install MCP server config
npx camera-server auth login                              # Authenticate with Athena
npx camera-server auth status                             # Check auth status
npx camera-server auth logout                             # Sign out
npx camera-server athena-bridge install <agent> <scope>   # Install AthenaBridge MCP

MCP install arguments

Argument	Values
agent	claude-code, vscode, cursor
scope	user, project
server	CameraRemoteSDK, CameraWebAPI, CameraHelp, or --all

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Package Exports

The npm package has two entry points:

Import	Environment	Includes
camera-remote-web-api	Browser + Node.js	CameraManager, CameraClient, EventStream, all types
camera-remote-web-api/server	Node.js only	CameraManager (server), ServerManager, LiveViewStream, CameraServer

// Browser-safe (no Node.js dependencies)
import { CameraManager, CameraClient, EventStream } from 'camera-remote-web-api';

// Node.js only (spawns binary, uses WebSocket)
import { CameraManager, ServerManager, LiveViewStream } from 'camera-remote-web-api/server';

The CameraManager exported from camera-remote-web-api/server is a different class than the one from camera-remote-web-api. The server variant includes binary management (start() is async, getPort(), getPid(), etc.).