Roku Dev Studio README
The full upstream README, mirrored here for reference. Install config, tool schemas, adoption signals, and an original overview live on the Roku Dev Studio listing page.
Roku Dev Studio
Roku Developer Tools for macOS, Windows, and Linux — Remote Control, App Side-loading, ECP automation, RALE / App Connector, Network Inspector, Action Scripts, MCP server for AI agents (Cursor, Claude, VS Code), and a rds CLI. Supports both local network and internet-bridged devices.
A comprehensive cross-platform desktop application for controlling and developing on Roku devices over your local network or via remote server using the External Control Protocol (ECP).
Why Roku Dev Studio? (vs. official Roku tools)
Roku development is normally split across a pile of separate, single-purpose official tools — the Roku Remote Tool, the browser-based sideload installer, raw telnet, RALE, sca-cmd — that don't talk to each other. Roku Dev Studio doesn't replace Roku's own protocols (ECP, RALE, telnet, sca-cmd) — it wraps all of them in one GUI, one CLI (rds), and one MCP server:
| Task | Without Roku Dev Studio | With Roku Dev Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Remote control | The official Roku Remote Tool, or raw ECP keypress calls via curl/Postman | One tab: full D-Pad, keyboard remote, and a floating mini-remote |
| Sideloading | The device's browser-based installer or a VS Code extension — one IP at a time | Sideload Relay — one push from your IDE installs, launches, and captures console on every targeted device |
| Debug console | telnet <ip> 8085 in a raw terminal or through an IDE — no search/filter/save either way | A structured console with search, filtering, and saved logs |
| BrightScript debugging | The socket debug protocol, usable mainly through a single IDE's extension | A standalone debugger: breakpoints, step execution, call stack, variables, watch |
| App inspection (RALE) | RALE alone only inspects SceneGraph nodes — no way to call into a channel or exchange data with it | App Connector — extends RALE with the ability to call your channel's own functions and pass data back and forth (GET/POST-style), unlocking automation that didn't exist before |
| Network traffic | A separately configured MITM proxy (Charles/mitmproxy/Fiddler) with manual device setup | Built-in local MITM proxy + optional hotspot packet capture |
| Static analysis | sca-cmd output cross-referenced by hand against Roku's cert docs | Runs sca-cmd for you, with cert-requirement links straight to Roku's docs |
| Remote locations / labs | Physical presence required — ECP only works on the local network | A bundled remote server bridges ECP over the internet |
| Repeatable testing | Hand-rolled scripts around ECP and RALE | Action Scripts — build a flow (keypresses, queries, conditionals, waits) from a GUI, or run it headless via rds |
| AI-agent access | Nothing official | A bundled MCP server lets Cursor, Claude Desktop, or VS Code drive a real device |
Why have I built Roku Dev Studio?
This repository is an npm workspace monorepo. Run npm install and npm start from the repository root so workspaces link correctly. Installing runs a postinstall (npm run build:libs) that compiles the shared roku-dev-studio-platform and roku-dev-studio-api packages to their dist/ outputs, which the app and remote server import. Use npm run typecheck for a full TypeScript check across every workspace and npm test to run unit tests. CI runs these plus per-package build/syntax smoke checks on each push and pull request. Setup, scripts, and distributable builds are documented in INSTALLATION.md.
Repository layout
| Location | What it is |
|---|---|
apps/roku-dev-studio/ | Electron desktop app (main process, renderer, packaging). Dev and distributable builds: INSTALLATION.md. |
packages/roku-dev-studio-api/ | Shared Node library + rds CLI: discovery, ECP, screenshots, sideload, RALE, action-script runner, headless validator — package README. |
packages/roku-dev-studio-mcp/ | MCP server that lets AI agents (Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code) drive a Roku through this app — package README. |
packages/roku-dev-studio-network-inspector/ | Network Inspector engine: hotspot packet capture (DNS/SNI/HTTP) + local MITM proxy, transport-agnostic so it runs in both the desktop app and the remote server — package README. |
packages/roku-dev-studio-remote-server/ | HTTP/WebSocket relay to control Rokus over the internet — package README. |
packages/roku-dev-studio-platform/ | Shared host-platform helpers (OS identity, modifier keys, path-safe, node-only filesystem helpers) used by the app and other packages so platform logic lives in one place. Built to dist/ on npm install — package README. |
roku-components/ | BrightScript-side artifacts: TrackerTask.xml (drop into your channel for App Connector / RALE) and the fiddle/ SceneGraph scaffold — components README. |
Author: Hareendra Donapati
Glossary
| Term | One-line meaning |
|---|---|
| ECP | External Control Protocol — Roku's HTTP API on port 8060 (KeyPress, Launch, Query, Deep-Link). |
| Telnet 8085 / 8080 | The BrightScript debug console (8085) and dev system commands (8080) on a Developer-Mode Roku. |
| RALE | Roku Advanced Layout Editor — Roku's SceneGraph inspection protocol over a TCP socket (default port 49200), spoken by the TrackerTask component. |
| TrackerTask | The BrightScript component channel developers add to their app to make it reachable from RALE / App Connector — see roku-components/README.md. |
| App Connector | The Dev Studio tab that talks RALE: list / call your channel's GetExternalControlFunctions, plus built-ins (node lookup, registry editor, update node). |
| Network Inspector | The Dev Studio tab / engine that inspects a dev channel's HTTP(S) traffic through a local MITM proxy, with optional hotspot packet capture. |
| Sideload | Uploading and installing a .zip / .pkg dev channel onto a Developer-Mode Roku via its Dev Password. |
| Sideload Relay | RDS advertising itself as a Roku so one sideload from your IDE / browser fans out (install → launch → console) to many targeted devices. |
| Action Script | JSON-described automation that chains keypresses, queries, sideload, App Connector calls, screenshots, conditionals, waits, and variables. Built and run from the Action Scripts tab; also runnable headless via rds. |
| MCP server | Roku Dev Studio's Model Context Protocol server — lets Cursor / Claude Desktop / VS Code drive a real device through this app while it's open. Toggle clients in Settings → MCP Server. |
| Fiddle | The BrightScript scratch editor (Monaco + brighterscript lint) that wraps your snippet into a temporary channel and runs it on a selected device. |
rds | The terminal CLI shipped by roku-dev-studio-api (rds discover, rds keypress, rds script run, rds rale repl, …). |
Supported Platforms
Roku Dev Studio is available for:
| Platform | Options |
|---|---|
| macOS | DMG installer, Portable ZIP archive |
| Windows | NSIS installer, Portable executable |
| Linux | DEB package, AppImage |
| Home |
|---|
 |
| Remote + Device Performance | App Connector (RALE) | Action Scripts Builder |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
| BrightScript Fiddle | MCP Server Settings | Dev App / Sideload |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
More screenshots for every feature: FEATURES.md.
Features
See FEATURES.md for the full tour with screenshots. Quick index:
Remote Control (Floating Remote) · Device Performance · Device Discovery · App Launcher & Management · Device Queries · Dev App Management · Try Demo App · Sideload Relay · Console & Debugging · Console Monitor · BrightScript Debugger · App Connector (RALE) · Network Inspector · Network Session Viewer · Action Scripts · AI Agents (MCP Server) · BrightScript Fiddle · Log File Viewer · Static Channel Analysis · rds CLI · Remote Server Support · Settings · Language Switching · Crash Reporting · Developer Features
Remote Server Setup
Roku Dev Studio can control devices over the internet using a remote server bridge, so you can manage devices in Remote Locations without being on the same network as the desktop app. Run the relay (npm run remote-server from this repo, or npm install -g roku-dev-studio-remote-server), then add its URL via Add Remote Location in the device selector.
Full setup (running the server as a service, network/firewall configuration, the HTTP/WebSocket API, and Swagger docs) lives in the remote server package README.
Project structure
The Electron app’s own tree (TypeScript main.ts / preload.ts bundled to main.bundled.cjs / preload.bundled.cjs, renderer/, build assets) lives under apps/roku-dev-studio/.
Requirements
For Running the App:
- Node.js 24.17+
- npm (bundled with Node.js)
- Roku device on local network (or remote server for remote access)
For Building:
- All of the above
- Platform-specific build tools:
- macOS: Xcode Command Line Tools
- Windows: Windows SDK (for NSIS installer)
- Linux: Standard build tools (gcc, make, etc.)
See Installation for setup and build instructions.
License
This project is licensed under the MIT License.
Third-party components used in this software and their licences:
| Library | Purpose | Licence |
|---|---|---|
| @tanstack/virtual-core | Virtualized list rendering (telnet console, large script results) | MIT |
| archiver | Building sideload .zip packages | MIT |
| brighterscript | BrightScript linting in the Fiddle editor | MIT |
| commander | rds CLI argument parsing | MIT |
| electron | Desktop app runtime | MIT |
| electron-builder | Packaging & installers | MIT |
| form-data | HTTP multipart uploads | MIT |
| modern-screenshot | DOM-to-image capture for chart cards / PDF export | MIT |
| monaco-editor | Code editor (Fiddle, action-script step editors) | MIT |
| pdf-lib | PDF generation | MIT |
| sharp | Image processing (icons/build) | Apache-2.0 |
| solid-js | Reactive framework powering the new renderer | MIT |
| ws | WebSocket client | MIT |
Their dependencies are used under the terms declared in package-lock.json and each package’s repository.