> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://ugfugl-io.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://ugfugl-io.gitbook.io/docs/guides/features/streaming.md).

# Streaming and display modes

Choose stream quality, Mac presentation, iPad windows and connected displays.

Play from your PC on Mac, iPhone or iPad. Fullscreen, windowed playback and Mini Player are Mac choices; iPad also supports Split View and Stage Manager.

## Start and stop

1. Select a launcher app.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Save before stopping. On Mac, ⌃Q (Control-Q), closing the window and quitting Glimmer quit the PC app by default. On iPhone and iPad, “Disconnect” does the same; a stream also disconnects after its short background grace period. To keep a game running, turn on “Leave games running when you disconnect” in Settings › General before streaming. Use this only with games and PCs that handle a change in screen size.
{% endhint %}

## Continue a running game

1. Select the PC.
2. Choose “Resume” or “Continue here” beside the running game.

“Resume” appears when this device has a previous stream for that game; otherwise, Glimmer offers “Continue here”. Continuation starts with the previous stream size when Glimmer knows it. The Mac fits the picture to your screen; iPhone and iPad fill the window and may crop the edges. Another device may still be connected.

With “Leave games running when you disconnect” on, choose “Use this screen's size…” to try a different size. Save your progress first. If that change failed before, “Restart at this screen's size…” offers a restart instead.

Select another app, then confirm “Quit {game} and start {app}” to replace the running game. Glimmer fills in both names. “Quit {game}…” remains available when you only want to stop it, even with the disconnect setting on. Quitting can lose unsaved progress and stops other streams from that PC.

## Leave the picture running

On Mac:

| Action                | Control           |
| --------------------- | ----------------- |
| Switch Mac apps       | Command-Tab.      |
| Toggle Mini Player    | Control-M.        |
| Restore hidden stream | “Back to stream”. |

{% hint style="info" %}
Mini Player keeps background controller input. Keyboard/mouse follow focus.
{% endhint %}

## Choose a display mode

On Mac:

1. Open Settings › Quality.
2. Choose your next stream's mode.

| Mode          | Picture                                |
| ------------- | -------------------------------------- |
| Native        | Every pixel of the display.            |
| Retina scaled | The Mac's default Retina size.         |
| Custom        | Resolution, frame rate, window choice. |

Under Network, “Bandwidth” offers Automatic, Maximum and Saver. Maximum uses more detail within connection limits.

{% hint style="info" %}
Fullscreen fills the panel around the camera by default, without creating a separate desktop. To swipe away and back, set “Full screen” to “Use a Space” in Settings › Quality. The next stream opens in its own macOS Space. On a Mac with a notch, the picture stays below the camera. Glimmer remembers the choice separately for a built-in display with a notch and for other displays.
{% endhint %}

## Play on iPhone or iPad

1. Open Settings › Quality.
2. Choose “Stream format” for the next stream.

| Choice           | Picture                                                               |
| ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Native · 120 fps | Closest listed size to the window, up to the display's refresh limit. |
| 1080p · 60 fps   | 1920 × 1080, up to 60 fps.                                            |
| 1080p · 120 fps  | 1920 × 1080, up to 120 fps and the display's refresh limit.           |

iPhone streams stay in landscape. iPad streams fill portrait, Split View and Stage Manager windows. The picture keeps its proportions and crops edges when its shape differs from the window. Native follows the window's size; once a resize settles, Glimmer requests the closest listed size while keeping the game running. The 1080p choices stay 16:9, so narrow windows may crop heavily.

{% hint style="info" %}
Install the [iPhone and iPad sample](/docs/introduction/getting_started/host_setup.md#pick-your-file) on the PC. Glimmer chooses from that sample's listed modes, rather than requesting every possible window size. The older mixed-client sample omits the iPad window modes. See the [mode reference](https://github.com/Se7enbrc/glimmer/tree/main/docs/VIRTUAL_DISPLAY_MODES.md#ipad-window-targets) for the sizes. Some games need 16:9; choose “1080p · 60 fps” if Native looks wrong.
{% endhint %}

### Use a connected display

Connect an external display to your iPhone or iPad. When iOS makes it available to Glimmer, the picture moves there and the controls stay on the device. The device says “Playing on the connected display”. Disconnect the display to bring the picture back. The mobile sample includes 1080p and 4K at 60 Hz for external displays; it does not include 4K at 120 Hz.

## Check video support

{% hint style="info" %}
⌃Z (Control-Z) shows stream stats on Mac and with a hardware keyboard on iPhone and iPad. On iPhone and iPad, you can also choose “Show stream stats” from the stream menu. Settings › Quality chooses the initial visibility and overlay detail. Change the shortcut in Settings › Input.

H.264, HEVC, supported AV1 and HDR10 require compatible hardware. Mac Custom: 640–7680 × 480–4320, 30–240 fps. PC menu: codec preference. [Shortcuts](/docs/automation/automation/shortcuts.md): Game Mode.
{% endhint %}

On iPhone and iPad, Glimmer checks hardware decoding support for HEVC and AV1, with H.264 as a fallback. It requests 10-bit HDR on an HDR-capable display when the PC also supports it. Format selection is automatic; there is no iOS codec or HDR switch.

With [Bandwidth set to Automatic](/docs/guides/features/wifi.md#bandwidth-automatic-maximum-and-saver), Glimmer lowers the bitrate when the connection struggles and raises it as it recovers. A longer change says “Adjusting stream quality…”. The game keeps running on the PC during the adjustment.

Next: [match the PC display](/docs/introduction/getting_started/host_setup.md) or [automate launching](/docs/automation/automation.md).