minor bump

patch bump

.gitignore

@@ -159,3 +159,5 @@ config.toml
 vban.toml
 
 .vscode/
+
+PING_FEATURE.md

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -11,6 +11,16 @@ Before any major/minor/patch bump all unit tests will be run to verify they pass
 
 -   [x]
 
+## [2.9.0] - 2026-03-02
+
+### Added
+
+-   Recorder class, see [Recorder](https://github.com/onyx-and-iris/vban-cmd-python?tab=readme-ov-file#recorder) in README.
+-   Ping/pong implemented. If a pong is not received {VbanCmd}.login() will fail fast. This prevents the rt listener threads from starting up.
+    -   It has the added benefit of automatically detecting the type of VBAN server (Voicemeeter or Matrix).
+-   A thread lock around the framecounter to improve thread safety since it can be accessed by both the main thread and the Producer thread.
+
+
 ## [2.7.0] - 2026-03-01
 
 ### Added

pyproject.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "vban-cmd"
-version = "2.8.0"
+version = "2.9.0"
 description = "Python interface for the VBAN RT Packet Service (Sendtext)"
 authors = [{ name = "Onyx and Iris", email = "code@onyxandiris.online" }]
 license = { text = "MIT" }

vban_cmd/packet/headers.py

@@ -8,11 +8,15 @@ VBAN_PROTOCOL_SERVICE = 0x60
 
 VBAN_SERVICE_RTPACKETREGISTER = 32
 VBAN_SERVICE_RTPACKET = 33
+VBAN_SERVICE_PING = 0
+VBAN_SERVICE_PONG = 0  # PONG uses same service type as PING
 VBAN_SERVICE_MASK = 0xE0
 VBAN_PROTOCOL_MASK = 0xE0
 VBAN_SERVICE_REQUESTREPLY = 0x02
 VBAN_SERVICE_FNCT_REPLY = 0x02
 
+PINGPONG_PACKET_SIZE = 704  # Size of the PING/PONG header + payload in bytes
+
 MAX_PACKET_SIZE = 1436
 HEADER_SIZE = 4 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 16
 
@@ -207,6 +211,92 @@ class VbanMatrixResponseHeader:
         return header, payload
 
 
+@dataclass
+class VbanPingHeader:
+    """Represents the header of a PING packet"""
+
+    name: str = 'PING0'
+    format_sr: int = VBAN_PROTOCOL_SERVICE
+    format_nbs: int = 0
+    format_nbc: int = VBAN_SERVICE_PING
+    format_bit: int = 0
+    framecounter: int = 0
+
+    @property
+    def vban(self) -> bytes:
+        return b'VBAN'
+
+    @property
+    def streamname(self) -> bytes:
+        return self.name.encode('ascii')[:16].ljust(16, b'\x00')
+
+    @classmethod
+    def to_bytes(cls, framecounter: int = 0) -> bytes:
+        """Creates the PING header bytes only."""
+        header = cls(framecounter=framecounter)
+
+        data = bytearray()
+        data.extend(header.vban)
+        data.extend(header.format_sr.to_bytes(1, 'little'))
+        data.extend(header.format_nbs.to_bytes(1, 'little'))
+        data.extend(header.format_nbc.to_bytes(1, 'little'))
+        data.extend(header.format_bit.to_bytes(1, 'little'))
+        data.extend(header.streamname)
+        data.extend(header.framecounter.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        return bytes(data)
+
+
+@dataclass
+class VbanPongHeader:
+    """Represents the header of a PONG response packet"""
+
+    name: str = 'PING0'
+    format_sr: int = VBAN_PROTOCOL_SERVICE
+    format_nbs: int = 0
+    format_nbc: int = VBAN_SERVICE_PONG
+    format_bit: int = 0
+    framecounter: int = 0
+
+    @property
+    def vban(self) -> bytes:
+        return b'VBAN'
+
+    @property
+    def streamname(self) -> bytes:
+        return self.name.encode('ascii')[:16].ljust(16, b'\x00')
+
+    @classmethod
+    def from_bytes(cls, data: bytes):
+        """Parse a PONG response packet from bytes."""
+        parsed = _parse_vban_service_header(data)
+
+        # PONG responses use the same service type as PING (0x00)
+        # and are identified by having payload data
+        if parsed['format_nbc'] != VBAN_SERVICE_PONG:
+            raise ValueError(f'Not a PONG response packet: {parsed["format_nbc"]:02x}')
+
+        return cls(**parsed)
+
+    @classmethod
+    def is_pong_response(cls, data: bytes) -> bool:
+        """Check if packet is a PONG response by analyzing the actual response format."""
+        try:
+            parsed = _parse_vban_service_header(data)
+
+            # Validate this is a service protocol packet with PING/PONG service type
+            if parsed['format_nbc'] != VBAN_SERVICE_PONG:
+                return False
+
+            if parsed['name'] not in ['PING0', 'VBAN Service']:
+                return False
+
+            # PONG should have payload data (same size as PING)
+            return len(data) >= PINGPONG_PACKET_SIZE
+
+        except (ValueError, Exception):
+            return False
+
+
 @dataclass
 class VbanRequestHeader:
     """Represents the header of a request packet"""
@@ -238,7 +328,7 @@ class VbanRequestHeader:
 
     @property
     def streamname(self) -> bytes:
-        return self.name.encode() + bytes(16 - len(self.name))
+        return self.name.encode()[:16].ljust(16, b'\x00')
 
     @classmethod
     def to_bytes(

vban_cmd/packet/ping0.py

@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+from dataclasses import dataclass
+from enum import Enum
+
+from .headers import VbanPingHeader
+
+# VBAN PING bitType constants
+VBANPING_TYPE_RECEPTOR = 0x00000001  # Simple receptor
+VBANPING_TYPE_TRANSMITTER = 0x00000002  # Simple Transmitter
+VBANPING_TYPE_RECEPTORSPOT = 0x00000004  # SPOT receptor
+VBANPING_TYPE_TRANSMITTERSPOT = 0x00000008  # SPOT transmitter
+VBANPING_TYPE_VIRTUALDEVICE = 0x00000010  # Virtual Device
+VBANPING_TYPE_VIRTUALMIXER = 0x00000020  # Virtual Mixer
+VBANPING_TYPE_MATRIX = 0x00000040  # MATRIX
+VBANPING_TYPE_DAW = 0x00000080  # Workstation
+VBANPING_TYPE_SERVER = 0x01000000  # VBAN SERVER
+
+# VBAN PING bitfeature constants
+VBANPING_FEATURE_AUDIO = 0x00000001
+VBANPING_FEATURE_AOIP = 0x00000002
+VBANPING_FEATURE_VOIP = 0x00000004
+VBANPING_FEATURE_SERIAL = 0x00000100
+VBANPING_FEATURE_MIDI = 0x00000300
+VBANPING_FEATURE_FRAME = 0x00001000
+VBANPING_FEATURE_TXT = 0x00010000
+
+
+class VbanServerType(Enum):
+    """VBAN server types detected from PONG responses"""
+
+    UNKNOWN = 0
+    VOICEMEETER = VBANPING_TYPE_VIRTUALMIXER
+    MATRIX = VBANPING_TYPE_MATRIX
+
+
+@dataclass
+class VbanPing0Payload:
+    """Represents the VBAN PING0 payload structure as defined in the VBAN protocol documentation."""
+
+    def __init__(self):
+        self.bit_type = VBANPING_TYPE_RECEPTOR
+        self.bit_feature = VBANPING_FEATURE_TXT
+        self.bit_feature_ex = 0x00000000
+        self.preferred_rate = 48000
+        self.min_rate = 8000
+        self.max_rate = 192000
+        self.color_rgb = 0x00FF0000
+        self.version = b'\x01\x02\x03\x04'
+        self.gps_position = b'\x00' * 8
+        self.user_position = b'\x00' * 8
+        self.lang_code = b'EN\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00'
+        self.reserved = b'\x00' * 8
+        self.reserved_ex = b'\x00' * 64
+        self.distant_ip = b'\x00' * 32
+        self.distant_port = 0
+        self.distant_reserved = 0
+        self.device_name = b'VBAN-CMD-Python\x00'.ljust(64, b'\x00')
+        self.manufacturer_name = b'Python-VBAN\x00'.ljust(64, b'\x00')
+        self.application_name = b'vban-cmd\x00'.ljust(64, b'\x00')
+        self.host_name = b'localhost\x00'.ljust(64, b'\x00')
+        self.user_name = b'Python User\x00'.ljust(128, b'\x00')
+        self.user_comment = b'VBAN CMD Python Client\x00'.ljust(128, b'\x00')
+
+    @classmethod
+    def to_bytes(cls) -> bytes:
+        """Convert payload to bytes"""
+        payload = cls()
+
+        data = bytearray()
+        data.extend(payload.bit_type.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.bit_feature.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.bit_feature_ex.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.preferred_rate.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.min_rate.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.max_rate.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.color_rgb.to_bytes(4, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.version)
+        data.extend(payload.gps_position)
+        data.extend(payload.user_position)
+        data.extend(payload.lang_code)
+        data.extend(payload.reserved)
+        data.extend(payload.reserved_ex)
+        data.extend(payload.distant_ip)
+        data.extend(payload.distant_port.to_bytes(2, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.distant_reserved.to_bytes(2, 'little'))
+        data.extend(payload.device_name)
+        data.extend(payload.manufacturer_name)
+        data.extend(payload.application_name)
+        data.extend(payload.host_name)
+        data.extend(payload.user_name)
+        data.extend(payload.user_comment)
+        return bytes(data)
+
+    @classmethod
+    def create_packet(cls, framecounter: int) -> bytes:
+        """Creates a complete PING packet with header and payload."""
+        data = bytearray()
+        data.extend(VbanPingHeader.to_bytes(framecounter))
+        data.extend(cls.to_bytes())
+        return bytes(data)
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def detect_server_type(pong_data: bytes) -> VbanServerType:
+        """Detect server type from PONG response packet.
+
+        Args:
+            pong_data: Raw bytes from PONG response packet
+
+        Returns:
+            VbanServerType enum indicating the detected server type
+        """
+        try:
+            if len(pong_data) >= 32:
+                frame_counter_bytes = pong_data[28:32]
+                frame_counter = int.from_bytes(frame_counter_bytes, 'little')
+
+                if frame_counter == VbanServerType.MATRIX.value:
+                    return VbanServerType.MATRIX
+                elif frame_counter == VbanServerType.VOICEMEETER.value:
+                    return VbanServerType.VOICEMEETER
+
+            return VbanServerType.UNKNOWN
+
+        except Exception:
+            return VbanServerType.UNKNOWN

vban_cmd/recorder.py

@@ -102,7 +102,9 @@ class Recorder(IRemote):
 
     def load(self, file: os.PathLike):
         try:
-            self.setter('load', str(file))
+            # Convert to string, use forward slashes, and wrap in quotes for spaces
+            file_path = f'"{os.fspath(file).replace(chr(92), "/")}"'
+            self.setter('load', file_path)
         except UnicodeError:
             raise VBANCMDError('File full directory must be a raw string')
 

vban_cmd/vbancmd.py

@@ -8,9 +8,14 @@ from queue import Queue
 from typing import Union
 
 from .enums import NBS
-from .error import VBANCMDError
+from .error import VBANCMDConnectionError, VBANCMDError
 from .event import Event
-from .packet.headers import VbanMatrixResponseHeader, VbanRequestHeader
+from .packet.headers import (
+    VbanMatrixResponseHeader,
+    VbanPongHeader,
+    VbanRequestHeader,
+)
+from .packet.ping0 import VbanPing0Payload, VbanServerType
 from .subject import Subject
 from .util import bump_framecounter, deep_merge
 from .worker import Producer, Subscriber, Updater
@@ -39,8 +44,10 @@ class VbanCmd(abc.ABC):
             setattr(self, attr, val)
 
         self._framecounter = 0
+        self._framecounter_lock = threading.Lock()
         self.sock = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_DGRAM)
         self.sock.setsockopt(socket.SOL_SOCKET, socket.SO_REUSEADDR, 1)
+        self.sock.settimeout(self.timeout)
         self.subject = self.observer = Subject()
         self.cache = {}
         self._pdirty = False
@@ -86,7 +93,11 @@ class VbanCmd(abc.ABC):
         self.logout()
 
     def login(self) -> None:
-        """Starts the subscriber and updater threads (unless disable_rt_listeners is True) and logs into Voicemeeter."""
+        """Sends a PING packet to the VBAN server to verify connectivity and detect server type.
+        If the server is detected as Matrix, RT listeners will be disabled for compatibility.
+        """
+        self._ping()
+
         if not self.disable_rt_listeners:
             self.event.info()
 
@@ -120,6 +131,95 @@ class VbanCmd(abc.ABC):
     def stopped(self):
         return self.stop_event is None or self.stop_event.is_set()
 
+    def _get_next_framecounter(self) -> int:
+        """Thread-safe method to get and increment framecounter."""
+        with self._framecounter_lock:
+            current = self._framecounter
+            self._framecounter = bump_framecounter(self._framecounter)
+            return current
+
+    def _ping(self, timeout: float = None) -> None:
+        """Send a PING packet and wait for PONG response to verify connectivity."""
+        if timeout is None:
+            timeout = min(self.timeout, 3.0)
+
+        ping_packet = VbanPing0Payload.create_packet(self._get_next_framecounter())
+
+        original_timeout = self.sock.gettimeout()
+        self.sock.settimeout(0.5)
+
+        try:
+            self.sock.sendto(ping_packet, (socket.gethostbyname(self.ip), self.port))
+            self.logger.debug(f'PING sent to {self.ip}:{self.port}')
+
+            start_time = time.time()
+            response_count = 0
+            while time.time() - start_time < timeout:
+                try:
+                    data, addr = self.sock.recvfrom(2048)
+                    response_count += 1
+
+                    self.logger.debug(
+                        f'Received packet #{response_count} from {addr}: {len(data)} bytes'
+                    )
+                    self.logger.debug(
+                        f'Response header: {data[: min(32, len(data))].hex()}'
+                    )
+
+                    if VbanPongHeader.is_pong_response(data):
+                        self.logger.debug(
+                            f'PONG received from {addr}, connectivity confirmed'
+                        )
+
+                        server_type = VbanPing0Payload.detect_server_type(data)
+                        self._handle_server_type(server_type)
+
+                        return  # Exit after successful PONG response
+                    else:
+                        if len(data) >= 8:
+                            if data[:4] == b'VBAN':
+                                protocol = data[4] & 0xE0
+                                nbc = data[6]
+                                self.logger.debug(
+                                    f'Non-PONG VBAN packet: protocol=0x{protocol:02x}, nbc=0x{nbc:02x}'
+                                )
+                            else:
+                                self.logger.debug('Non-VBAN packet received')
+
+                except socket.timeout:
+                    continue
+
+            self.logger.debug(
+                f'PING timeout after {timeout}s, received {response_count} non-PONG packets'
+            )
+            raise VBANCMDConnectionError(
+                f'PING timeout: No response from {self.ip}:{self.port} after {timeout}s'
+            )
+
+        except socket.gaierror as e:
+            raise VBANCMDConnectionError(f'Unable to resolve hostname {self.ip}') from e
+        except Exception as e:
+            raise VBANCMDConnectionError(f'PING failed: {e}') from e
+        finally:
+            self.sock.settimeout(original_timeout)
+
+    def _handle_server_type(self, server_type: VbanServerType) -> None:
+        """Handle the detected server type by adjusting settings accordingly."""
+        match server_type:
+            case VbanServerType.VOICEMEETER:
+                self.logger.debug(
+                    'Detected Voicemeeter VBAN server - RT listeners supported'
+                )
+            case VbanServerType.MATRIX:
+                self.logger.info(
+                    'Detected Matrix VBAN server - disabling RT listeners for compatibility'
+                )
+                self.disable_rt_listeners = True
+            case _:
+                self.logger.debug(
+                    f'Unknown server type ({server_type}) - using default settings'
+                )
+
     def _send_request(self, payload: str) -> None:
         """Sends a request packet over the network and bumps the framecounter."""
         self.sock.sendto(
@@ -127,12 +227,11 @@ class VbanCmd(abc.ABC):
                 name=self.streamname,
                 bps_index=self.BPS_OPTS.index(self.bps),
                 channel=self.channel,
-                framecounter=self._framecounter,
+                framecounter=self._get_next_framecounter(),
                 payload=payload,
             ),
             (socket.gethostbyname(self.ip), self.port),
         )
-        self._framecounter = bump_framecounter(self._framecounter)
 
     def _set_rt(self, cmd: str, val: Union[str, float]):
         """Sends a string request command over a network."""
@@ -146,12 +245,16 @@ class VbanCmd(abc.ABC):
 
         if self.disable_rt_listeners and script.endswith(('?', '?;')):
             try:
-                response = VbanMatrixResponseHeader.extract_payload(
+                data, _ = self.sock.recvfrom(2048)
-                    self.sock.recv(1024)
+                payload = VbanMatrixResponseHeader.extract_payload(data)
-                )
-                return response
             except ValueError as e:
                 self.logger.warning(f'Error extracting matrix response: {e}')
+            except TimeoutError as e:
+                self.logger.exception(f'Timeout waiting for matrix response: {e}')
+                raise VBANCMDConnectionError(
+                    f'Timeout waiting for response from {self.ip}:{self.port}'
+                ) from e
+            return payload
 
         time.sleep(self.DELAY)
 

vban_cmd/worker.py

@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
 import logging
-import socket
 import threading
 import time
 
@@ -13,7 +12,6 @@ from .packet.headers import (
 )
 from .packet.nbs0 import VbanPacketNBS0
 from .packet.nbs1 import VbanPacketNBS1
-from .util import bump_framecounter
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -26,24 +24,24 @@ class Subscriber(threading.Thread):
         self._remote = remote
         self.stop_event = stop_event
         self.logger = logger.getChild(self.__class__.__name__)
-        self._framecounter = 0
 
     def run(self):
         while not self.stopped():
             try:
                 for nbs in NBS:
-                    sub_packet = VbanSubscribeHeader().to_bytes(nbs, self._framecounter)
+                    sub_packet = VbanSubscribeHeader().to_bytes(
+                        nbs, self._remote._get_next_framecounter()
+                    )
                     self._remote.sock.sendto(
                         sub_packet, (self._remote.ip, self._remote.port)
                     )
-                    self._framecounter = bump_framecounter(self._framecounter)
+            except TimeoutError as e:
-
-                self.wait_until_stopped(10)
-            except socket.gaierror as e:
                 self.logger.exception(f'{type(e).__name__}: {e}')
                 raise VBANCMDConnectionError(
-                    f'unable to resolve hostname {self._remote.ip}'
+                    f'timeout sending subscription to {self._remote.ip}:{self._remote.port}'
                 ) from e
+
+            self.wait_until_stopped(10)
         self.logger.debug(f'terminating {self.name} thread')
 
     def stopped(self):
@@ -66,7 +64,6 @@ class Producer(threading.Thread):
         self.queue = queue
         self.stop_event = stop_event
         self.logger = logger.getChild(self.__class__.__name__)
-        self._remote.sock.settimeout(self._remote.timeout)
         self._remote._public_packets = [None] * (max(NBS) + 1)
         _pp = self._get_rt()
         self._remote._public_packets[_pp.nbs] = _pp
@@ -77,16 +74,11 @@ class Producer(threading.Thread):
 
     def _get_rt(self) -> VbanPacket:
         """Attempt to fetch data packet until a valid one found"""
-
         while True:
-            if resp := self._fetch_rt_packet():
-                return resp
-
-    def _fetch_rt_packet(self) -> VbanPacket | None:
             try:
                 data, _ = self._remote.sock.recvfrom(2048)
                 if len(data) < HEADER_SIZE:
-                return
+                    continue
             except TimeoutError as e:
                 self.logger.exception(f'{type(e).__name__}: {e}')
                 raise VBANCMDConnectionError(
@@ -97,7 +89,7 @@ class Producer(threading.Thread):
                 header = VbanResponseHeader.from_bytes(data[:HEADER_SIZE])
             except ValueError as e:
                 self.logger.debug(f'Error parsing response packet: {e}')
-            return None
+                continue
 
             match header.format_nbs:
                 case NBS.zero:
@@ -110,8 +102,6 @@ class Producer(threading.Thread):
                         nbs=NBS.one, kind=self._remote.kind, data=data
                     )
 
-        return None
-
     def stopped(self):
         return self.stop_event.is_set()