Pigway Frame Flow is a lightweight, self-hosted platform for programmable smart-frame automation. It runs independently on a NAS or server, with its own Web UI, image library, rendering, scheduler and REST API. KoKonna is a supported device integration; external applications do not need its credentials or SDK.
Open `http://127.0.0.1:6005` and sign in with the account you created. The browser uses an HttpOnly session cookie; it does not require an API token. Remembered sessions last 30 days. Change the password or sign out in Settings. `FRAME_FLOW_TOKEN` authenticates external API clients and is separate from the KoKonna API key.
The published interface defaults to loopback. For LAN access, explicitly set `WEB_BIND` to your NAS LAN address and choose an available `WEB_PORT`. See [Synology deployment](docs/NAS.md), [build mirrors and caching](docs/BUILDING.md), and [Gitea deployment/rollback](docs/deployment/GITEA_CD.md). No firewall, router or reverse-proxy settings are changed automatically.
- Chinese and English Web UI, light/dark themes, account login, device dashboard and image previews.
- Local staging and KoKonna cloud gallery, uploads, image switching, stars, source/task filters and batch actions.
- Aspect-ratio-preserving contain/cover/smart conversion, color/grayscale profiles and orientation selection for photo sources.
- Seven templates: Daily Dashboard, Weather, Calendar, Quote, Photo + Text, Daily Poetry and System Alert.
- Layout Studio for collages/posters with 1–12 images; optional OpenAI-compatible layout planning and source-driven automatic collages.
- Device-bound schedules, ordered/random playlists, temporary priority overrides, restore and persistent operation history.
- Read-only NAS folders, Synology Photos person filtering, WebDAV and optional cloud-drive connectors. Each source has its own configuration and authorization.
- Optional weather, calendar, monitoring, AI, MQTT and webhook integrations. Provider configuration is required; an unconnected provider is not a working connection.
Templates **render images**, including text-only templates. Choose a template, edit its data, generate a preview, then display it. Preview generation and saving template settings do not update the frame. Photo + Text and Daily Dashboard can include a selected local photo; other templates do not automatically choose one. Scheduled template jobs render afresh on each run. See [photo sources](docs/PHOTO_SOURCES.md), [automatic collages](docs/AUTOMATIC_COLLAGE.md) and [integration setup/limits](docs/EXTENSIONS.md).
Real weather uses the configured provider/location and is refreshed when rendered; it does not update an already displayed image by itself. Official KoKonna widgets are separate from Frame Flow templates and require optional vendor-account authorization. API-key access remains independent.
Configure the device key privately through `.env` or a secret file. Start with `KOKONNA_MOCK=true` and `KOKONNA_WRITE_ENABLED=false`; after mock verification, connect read-only before explicitly enabling writes. Multi-device definitions use `config/devices.yml` and device-specific key references. Vendor code stays in `drivers/kokonna`; other applications use the same service API as the Web UI.
The public API is `/api/v1`, with OpenAPI at `/openapi.json` and Swagger UI at `/docs`. Display/render/upload operations return HTTP 202 and an operation ID; poll `/api/v1/operations/{id}` for the outcome. `Idempotency-Key` prevents duplicate dispatch, and `X-Request-ID` links requests to history. An uncertain write blocks subsequent mutations until read-only reconciliation or explicit administrator acknowledgement; it is never automatically replayed.
Ticktar integration is optional. Frame Flow has no runtime dependency on Ticktar and never accesses its database. See the [external integration contract](docs/integrations/TICKTAR.md).
Docker persists `/data/frameflow.db`, images/generated/cache under `/data`, and private configuration/session files under `/config`. It runs as UID/GID 10333 with a read-only root filesystem, its own bridge network, `unless-stopped` restart policy and bounded stdout/stderr logs. No privileged mode, host network or Docker socket is required.
Passwords are hashed; browser mutations require CSRF protection. API keys and provider credentials stay server-side and must never enter Git or logs. CORS is disabled unless origins are explicitly configured. `/health` checks the service; `/ready` checks local dependencies without making cloud availability a restart trigger. See [public repository privacy](docs/PUBLICATION.md), [LICENSE](LICENSE) and [NOTICE](NOTICE.md).
Tests mock cloud/device calls. CI also verifies an isolated Docker build, readiness, smoke tests, restart and cleanup. External fork PRs do not execute on the production-capable NAS runner.
Cloud synchronization does not prove the physical pixels refreshed. KoKonna cloud uploads activate immediately, so upload-only uses local staging. Native slideshow membership editing is unavailable; avoid running native and Frame Flow playback simultaneously. Smart cropping is a saliency heuristic, not guaranteed face detection. The service uses one worker and is not designed for multiple replicas. Browser OAuth, AI daily-art scheduling, additional calendar recurrence features and more device drivers remain roadmap items.