Cloudflare Media & Streaming Skill

Build media-rich applications using Cloudflare Stream for video and Images for image transformations. Includes patterns for signed URLs, adaptive bitrate streaming, and responsive images.

Service Overview

Cloudflare Stream

Feature	Description	Pricing (2026)
Storage	$5/1,000 min stored	Per minute
Encoding	Included	Free
Delivery	$1/1,000 min viewed	Per minute watched
Live	$1/1,000 min live	Per minute streamed
Signed URLs	Included	Free

Cloudflare Images

Feature	Description	Pricing (2026)
Storage	$5/100K images	Per image stored
Transformations	$0.50/1,000 unique	Per unique transform
Delivery	$1/100K images	Per image served
Variants	100 named variants	Included

Cloudflare Stream Patterns

Pattern 1: Video Upload with Signed URL

// api/videos/upload.ts - Generate upload URL
interface UploadRequest {
  userId: string;
  maxDurationSeconds?: number;
  meta?: Record<string, string>;
}

export async function createUploadUrl(
  env: Env,
  request: UploadRequest
): Promise<{ uploadUrl: string; videoId: string }> {
  const response = await fetch(
    `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/${env.CF_ACCOUNT_ID}/stream/direct_upload`,
    {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${env.CF_API_TOKEN}`,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({
        maxDurationSeconds: request.maxDurationSeconds || 3600,  // 1 hour default
        expiry: new Date(Date.now() + 30 * 60 * 1000).toISOString(),  // 30 min
        requireSignedURLs: true,
        allowedOrigins: ['https://your-app.com'],
        meta: {
          userId: request.userId,
          ...request.meta,
        },
        thumbnailTimestampPct: 0.5,
      }),
    }
  );

  const result = await response.json();

  if (!result.success) {
    throw new Error(result.errors[0]?.message || 'Upload creation failed');
  }

  return {
    uploadUrl: result.result.uploadURL,
    videoId: result.result.uid,
  };
}

Pattern 2: Signed Video Playback URL

// api/videos/playback.ts - Generate signed playback URL
import { base64url } from 'rfc4648';

interface SignedUrlOptions {
  videoId: string;
  expiresIn?: number;  // seconds
  accessRules?: AccessRule[];
}

interface AccessRule {
  type: 'ip.src' | 'ip.geoip.country' | 'any';
  action: 'allow' | 'block';
  value?: string[];
  country?: string[];
}

export async function createSignedPlaybackUrl(
  env: Env,
  options: SignedUrlOptions
): Promise<string> {
  const { videoId, expiresIn = 3600, accessRules } = options;

  // Token creation using Stream's signing key
  const expiry = Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) + expiresIn;

  // Build token payload
  const tokenPayload = {
    sub: videoId,
    kid: env.STREAM_SIGNING_KEY_ID,
    exp: expiry,
    accessRules: accessRules || [{ type: 'any', action: 'allow' }],
  };

  // Sign with RSA-256 or use Cloudflare's token endpoint
  const signedToken = await signStreamToken(env, tokenPayload);

  // Return signed URL
  return `https://customer-${env.CF_CUSTOMER_SUBDOMAIN}.cloudflarestream.com/${videoId}/manifest/video.m3u8?token=${signedToken}`;
}

// Alternative: Use Cloudflare API to generate token
async function signStreamToken(env: Env, payload: any): Promise<string> {
  const response = await fetch(
    `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/${env.CF_ACCOUNT_ID}/stream/${payload.sub}/token`,
    {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${env.CF_API_TOKEN}`,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({
        id: payload.kid,
        exp: payload.exp,
        accessRules: payload.accessRules,
      }),
    }
  );

  const result = await response.json();
  return result.result.token;
}

Pattern 3: HLS.js Player Integration

<!-- Video player with Stream -->
<video id="player" controls></video>

<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/hls.js@latest"></script>
<script>
async function loadVideo(videoId) {
  // Get signed URL from your API
  const response = await fetch(`/api/videos/${videoId}/playback`);
  const { playbackUrl } = await response.json();

  const video = document.getElementById('player');

  if (Hls.isSupported()) {
    const hls = new Hls();
    hls.loadSource(playbackUrl);
    hls.attachMedia(video);
    hls.on(Hls.Events.MANIFEST_PARSED, () => video.play());
  } else if (video.canPlayType('application/vnd.apple.mpegurl')) {
    // Safari native HLS
    video.src = playbackUrl;
    video.addEventListener('loadedmetadata', () => video.play());
  }
}
</script>

Pattern 4: Stream Webhook Handler

// api/webhooks/stream.ts - Handle video processing events
export async function handleStreamWebhook(
  request: Request,
  env: Env
): Promise<Response> {
  // Verify webhook signature
  const signature = request.headers.get('Webhook-Signature');
  const body = await request.text();

  if (!verifySignature(body, signature, env.STREAM_WEBHOOK_SECRET)) {
    return new Response('Invalid signature', { status: 401 });
  }

  const event = JSON.parse(body);

  switch (event.type) {
    case 'ready':
      // Video is ready for playback
      await handleVideoReady(env, event.payload);
      break;

    case 'error':
      // Video processing failed
      await handleVideoError(env, event.payload);
      break;

    case 'live_input.connected':
      // Live stream started
      await handleLiveStart(env, event.payload);
      break;

    case 'live_input.disconnected':
      // Live stream ended
      await handleLiveEnd(env, event.payload);
      break;
  }

  return new Response('OK');
}

async function handleVideoReady(env: Env, payload: any) {
  const { uid, duration, meta, thumbnail } = payload;

  await env.DB.prepare(
    `UPDATE videos SET status = 'ready', duration = ?, thumbnail_url = ?
     WHERE stream_id = ?`
  ).bind(duration, thumbnail, uid).run();

  // Notify user
  if (meta?.userId) {
    await sendNotification(env, meta.userId, 'Your video is ready!');
  }
}

Cloudflare Images Patterns

Pattern 1: Image Upload API

// api/images/upload.ts
export async function uploadImage(
  env: Env,
  file: File,
  metadata: Record<string, string>
): Promise<{ imageId: string; url: string }> {
  const formData = new FormData();
  formData.append('file', file);
  formData.append('metadata', JSON.stringify(metadata));
  formData.append('requireSignedURLs', 'false');

  const response = await fetch(
    `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/${env.CF_ACCOUNT_ID}/images/v1`,
    {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${env.CF_API_TOKEN}`,
      },
      body: formData,
    }
  );

  const result = await response.json();

  if (!result.success) {
    throw new Error(result.errors[0]?.message || 'Upload failed');
  }

  return {
    imageId: result.result.id,
    url: result.result.variants[0],
  };
}

Pattern 2: Image URL Transformations

// utils/images.ts - Build transformation URLs

type ImageFit = 'scale-down' | 'contain' | 'cover' | 'crop' | 'pad';
type ImageFormat = 'webp' | 'avif' | 'jpeg' | 'png' | 'gif';
type ImageGravity = 'auto' | 'face' | 'top' | 'bottom' | 'left' | 'right' | 'center';

interface ImageTransformOptions {
  width?: number;
  height?: number;
  fit?: ImageFit;
  format?: ImageFormat;
  quality?: number;
  gravity?: ImageGravity;
  blur?: number;  // 1-250
  sharpen?: number;  // 0-10
  brightness?: number;  // -1 to 1
  contrast?: number;  // -1 to 1
  dpr?: number;  // Device pixel ratio
  background?: string;  // For 'pad' fit
}

export function buildImageUrl(
  accountHash: string,
  imageId: string,
  options: ImageTransformOptions
): string {
  const transforms: string[] = [];

  if (options.width) transforms.push(`w=${options.width}`);
  if (options.height) transforms.push(`h=${options.height}`);
  if (options.fit) transforms.push(`fit=${options.fit}`);
  if (options.format) transforms.push(`f=${options.format}`);
  if (options.quality) transforms.push(`q=${options.quality}`);
  if (options.gravity) transforms.push(`g=${options.gravity}`);
  if (options.blur) transforms.push(`blur=${options.blur}`);
  if (options.sharpen) transforms.push(`sharpen=${options.sharpen}`);
  if (options.brightness) transforms.push(`brightness=${options.brightness}`);
  if (options.contrast) transforms.push(`contrast=${options.contrast}`);
  if (options.dpr) transforms.push(`dpr=${options.dpr}`);
  if (options.background) transforms.push(`background=${options.background}`);

  const transformString = transforms.join(',');

  return `https://imagedelivery.net/${accountHash}/${imageId}/${transformString || 'public'}`;
}

// Usage examples
const thumbnailUrl = buildImageUrl(ACCOUNT_HASH, imageId, {
  width: 300,
  height: 200,
  fit: 'cover',
  format: 'webp',
  quality: 80,
});

const avatarUrl = buildImageUrl(ACCOUNT_HASH, imageId, {
  width: 128,
  height: 128,
  fit: 'cover',
  gravity: 'face',
  format: 'webp',
});

Pattern 3: Named Variants

Define reusable transformation presets via Cloudflare Dashboard or API:

// Create named variants via API
const variants = [
  { id: 'thumbnail', fit: 'cover', width: 300, height: 200 },
  { id: 'avatar', fit: 'cover', width: 128, height: 128 },
  { id: 'hero', fit: 'cover', width: 1920, height: 1080 },
  { id: 'og', fit: 'cover', width: 1200, height: 630 },  // Open Graph
];

// Usage with named variant
const url = `https://imagedelivery.net/${ACCOUNT_HASH}/${imageId}/thumbnail`;

Pattern 4: Responsive Images with srcset

// components/ResponsiveImage.tsx
interface ResponsiveImageProps {
  imageId: string;
  alt: string;
  sizes: string;
  className?: string;
}

export function ResponsiveImage({ imageId, alt, sizes, className }: ResponsiveImageProps) {
  const accountHash = process.env.CF_IMAGES_HASH;

  const srcset = [320, 640, 960, 1280, 1920]
    .map(w => `https://imagedelivery.net/${accountHash}/${imageId}/w=${w},f=auto ${w}w`)
    .join(', ');

  return (
    <img
      src={`https://imagedelivery.net/${accountHash}/${imageId}/w=960,f=auto`}
      srcSet={srcset}
      sizes={sizes}
      alt={alt}
      className={className}
      loading="lazy"
      decoding="async"
    />
  );
}

// Usage
<ResponsiveImage
  imageId="abc123"
  alt="Product image"
  sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 50vw"
/>

Pattern 5: Image Transform via Worker

Use R2 + Image Resizing for on-the-fly transforms:

// workers/image-transform.ts
export default {
  async fetch(request: Request, env: Env): Promise<Response> {
    const url = new URL(request.url);
    const path = url.pathname;

    // Parse transform options from URL
    // Format: /transform/w=300,h=200,fit=cover/{imagePath}
    const match = path.match(/^\/transform\/([^/]+)\/(.+)$/);
    if (!match) {
      return new Response('Not found', { status: 404 });
    }

    const [, optionsStr, imagePath] = match;
    const options = parseTransformOptions(optionsStr);

    // Fetch original from R2
    const object = await env.R2_IMAGES.get(imagePath);
    if (!object) {
      return new Response('Image not found', { status: 404 });
    }

    // Apply transformations via cf.image
    return fetch(request.url, {
      cf: {
        image: {
          width: options.width,
          height: options.height,
          fit: options.fit || 'cover',
          format: 'auto',  // Auto-detect WebP/AVIF support
          quality: options.quality || 85,
        },
      },
    });
  },
};

function parseTransformOptions(str: string): Record<string, any> {
  const options: Record<string, any> = {};
  str.split(',').forEach(part => {
    const [key, value] = part.split('=');
    options[key] = isNaN(Number(value)) ? value : Number(value);
  });
  return options;
}

Live Streaming Architecture

graph LR
    subgraph "Broadcaster"
        OBS[OBS/Encoder]
    end
    subgraph "Cloudflare Stream"
        RTMPS[RTMPS Ingest]
        Encode[Real-time Encoding]
        HLS[HLS/DASH Output]
    end
    subgraph "Viewers"
        P1[Player 1]
        P2[Player 2]
        PN[Player N]
    end

    OBS -->|RTMPS| RTMPS --> Encode --> HLS
    HLS --> P1
    HLS --> P2
    HLS --> PN

Live Input Configuration

// Create live input
async function createLiveInput(env: Env, name: string): Promise<LiveInput> {
  const response = await fetch(
    `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/${env.CF_ACCOUNT_ID}/stream/live_inputs`,
    {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Authorization': `Bearer ${env.CF_API_TOKEN}`,
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({
        meta: { name },
        recording: {
          mode: 'automatic',  // or 'off'
          timeoutSeconds: 0,  // No timeout
          requireSignedURLs: true,
        },
      }),
    }
  );

  const result = await response.json();

  return {
    uid: result.result.uid,
    rtmps: result.result.rtmps,
    srt: result.result.srt,
    webRTC: result.result.webRTC,
  };
}

// RTMPS URL format:
// rtmps://live.cloudflare.com:443/live/{streamKey}

Security Best Practices

Signed URL Requirements

Use Case	Signed URL	Expiration	Notes
Paid content	Required	1-4 hours	Short expiry for VOD
User uploads	Required	30 minutes	For upload URL only
Live streams	Recommended	Per-session	Regenerate on refresh
Public content	Optional	N/A	For analytics tracking

Access Control Rules

const accessRules = [
  // Allow from specific countries
  {
    type: 'ip.geoip.country',
    action: 'allow',
    country: ['US', 'CA', 'GB'],
  },
  // Block specific IPs (abuse prevention)
  {
    type: 'ip.src',
    action: 'block',
    value: ['192.168.1.1'],
  },
  // Require referrer (hotlink protection)
  {
    type: 'any',
    action: 'allow',
    // Combined with allowedOrigins in upload config
  },
];

Wrangler Configuration

{
  "name": "media-platform",
  "main": "src/index.ts",
  "compatibility_date": "2025-01-01",

  "d1_databases": [
    { "binding": "DB", "database_name": "media-db", "database_id": "..." }
  ],

  "r2_buckets": [
    { "binding": "R2_IMAGES", "bucket_name": "images" },
    { "binding": "R2_VIDEOS", "bucket_name": "videos-raw" }
  ],

  "vars": {
    "CF_ACCOUNT_ID": "your-account-id",
    "CF_IMAGES_HASH": "your-images-hash",
    "STREAM_SIGNING_KEY_ID": "key-id"
  }
}

Cost Optimization

Stream

• Encode once, deliver many: Re-encode only when quality issues
• Set max duration: Prevent infinite uploads
• Use signed URLs: Prevent bandwidth abuse
• Monitor viewer minutes: Primary cost driver

Images

• Use format=auto: Let Cloudflare choose optimal format
• Cache transforms: Same transform = 1 unique transform charge
• Batch uploads: Reduce API calls
• Clean up unused: Delete orphaned images monthly

Output Format

# Media Delivery Report

## Stream Statistics

| Metric | Value | Cost Estimate |
|--------|-------|---------------|
| Videos stored | 1,500 min | $7.50/month |
| Minutes viewed (30d) | 50,000 min | $50/month |
| Unique videos | 45 | - |

## Images Statistics

| Metric | Value | Cost Estimate |
|--------|-------|---------------|
| Images stored | 25,000 | $1.25/month |
| Unique transforms | 75,000 | $37.50/month |
| Images delivered | 2M | $20/month |

## Optimization Opportunities

| Issue | Current | Optimized | Savings |
|-------|---------|-----------|---------|
| Unused transforms | 500 variants | 50 variants | ~$22/mo |
| Oversized images | avg 2000px | max 1920px | ~$5/mo |

Tips

• Auto-detect format: Always use

  format=auto

  for best compression
• Lazy loading: Add

  loading="lazy"

  to images below fold
• Preload critical: Use

  <link rel="preload">

  for hero images
• Stream analytics: Use webhooks to track engagement
• Thumbnail timing: Set

  thumbnailTimestampPct

  for better previews
• Regional delivery: Stream uses Cloudflare's global network automatically