feat: ✨ media download with DNS query

.github/workflows/build.yml

@@ -83,7 +83,15 @@ jobs:
           DATE=$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)
           LDFLAGS="-s -w -X github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/version.Version=${VERSION} -X github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/version.Commit=${COMMIT} -X github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/version.Date=${DATE}"
           ext=""
+          BUILD_MODE=""
           if [ "${{ matrix.goos }}" = "windows" ]; then ext=".exe"; fi
+          # Modern Android requires PIE for executables launched via exec(),
+          # and several heuristic AV engines (Kaspersky Boogr.gsh,
+          # several VT vendors) flag non-PIE bundled binaries as suspicious.
+          # Force PIE for the binaries that ship inside the APK.
+          if [ "${{ matrix.goos }}" = "android" ] || [ "${{ matrix.android_arm }}" = "true" ]; then
+            BUILD_MODE="-buildmode=pie"
+          fi
           if [ "${{ matrix.goos }}" = "android" ] && [ "${{ matrix.goarch }}" = "arm64" ]; then
             out="build/thefeed-client-android-arm64"
           elif [ "${{ matrix.android_arm }}" = "true" ]; then
@@ -91,7 +99,7 @@ jobs:
           else
             out="build/thefeed-client-${VERSION}-${{ matrix.goos }}-${{ matrix.goarch }}${ext}"
           fi
-          go build -trimpath -ldflags="${LDFLAGS}" -o "$out" ./cmd/client
+          go build -trimpath -buildvcs=false $BUILD_MODE -ldflags="${LDFLAGS}" -o "$out" ./cmd/client
 
       - name: Compress with UPX
         if: (matrix.goos == 'linux' || matrix.goos == 'windows') && !matrix.android_arm
@@ -123,11 +131,11 @@ jobs:
       - name: Stage Android client binary as JNI library
         run: |
           mkdir -p android/app/src/main/jniLibs/arm64-v8a
-          # mkdir -p android/app/src/main/jniLibs/armeabi-v7a
+          mkdir -p android/app/src/main/jniLibs/armeabi-v7a
           test -f artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm64
-          # test -f artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm
+          test -f artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm
           cp artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm64 android/app/src/main/jniLibs/arm64-v8a/libthefeed.so
-          # cp artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm android/app/src/main/jniLibs/armeabi-v7a/libthefeed.so
+          cp artifacts/thefeed-client-android-arm android/app/src/main/jniLibs/armeabi-v7a/libthefeed.so
 
       - name: Decode signing keystore
         env:
@@ -164,8 +172,7 @@ jobs:
 
           APK_DIR=app/build/outputs/apk/$BT
           cp "$APK_DIR"/app-arm64-v8a-${BT}.apk    ../artifacts/thefeed-android-${VERSION}-arm64.apk
-          # cp "$APK_DIR"/app-armeabi-v7a-${BT}.apk  ../artifacts/thefeed-android-${VERSION}-arm.apk
-          # cp "$APK_DIR"/app-universal-${BT}.apk     ../artifacts/thefeed-android-${VERSION}-universal.apk
+          cp "$APK_DIR"/app-armeabi-v7a-${BT}.apk  ../artifacts/thefeed-android-${VERSION}-arm.apk
 
       - name: Upload Android APK artifacts
         uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
@@ -173,8 +180,7 @@ jobs:
           name: thefeed-android-apk
           path: |
             artifacts/thefeed-android-*-arm64.apk
-            # artifacts/thefeed-android-*-arm.apk
-            # artifacts/thefeed-android-*-universal.apk
+            artifacts/thefeed-android-*-arm.apk
 
   release:
     needs: [build, android-apk]
@@ -207,3 +213,4 @@ jobs:
             | FreeBSD | arm64 | [server-سرور](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-server-freebsd-arm64) / [client-کلاینت](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-client-${{ github.ref_name }}-freebsd-arm64) |
             | Windows | amd64 | [server-سرور](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-server-windows-amd64.exe) / [client-کلاینت](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-client-${{ github.ref_name }}-windows-amd64.exe) |
             | Android | arm64 (v8a) | [thefeed-android-${{ github.ref_name }}-arm64.apk - اندروید](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-android-${{ github.ref_name }}-arm64.apk) |
+            | Android | arm (v7a)   | [thefeed-android-${{ github.ref_name }}-arm.apk - اندروید (دستگاه‌های قدیمی‌تر)](https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ github.ref_name }}/thefeed-android-${{ github.ref_name }}-arm.apk) |

README.md

@@ -52,6 +52,30 @@ DNS-based feed reader for Telegram channels and public X accounts. Designed for
 
 All communication is encrypted with AES-256 and transmitted via standard DNS TXT queries and responses. Traffic is designed to blend with normal DNS activity. Message data is compressed before encryption.
 
+## Image and File Downloads
+
+Messages with attached photos, files, GIFs, audio, and videos can be cached on the server and downloaded over the same encrypted DNS channel.
+
+The server downloads each attached media file (deduped by upstream id and content hash), assigns it a slot in a reserved channel range (`10000`–`60000`), and splits the bytes into the same-sized blocks used elsewhere. The message text gains a small metadata header:
+
+```
+[IMAGE]<size>:<dl>:<ch>:<blk>:<crc32>
+optional caption
+```
+
+`<dl>=0` means the file exceeded the server's size cap and isn't cached. Old clients render the header as a regular caption line.
+
+Block 0 of every cached file begins with a 16-byte protocol header — 4 bytes CRC32 of the (decompressed) content, 1 byte version, 1 byte compression, 10 bytes reserved for future fields. The client checks the CRC against the expected value from the message metadata before delivering any bytes, so a stale message pointing to a slot the server has since reused for a different file is rejected after a single block. The remaining bytes are decompressed per the compression byte. Downloads are cached on the client (IndexedDB, 7 days) and on the local thefeed-client server (`<dataDir>/media-cache/`, 7 days) so multiple devices behind one client share a single DNS-tunnelled fetch. Concurrent downloads are limited to one at a time; extra clicks are queued.
+
+Server flags:
+
+- `--no-media` — disable the feature.
+- `--media-max-size` (KB, default 100) — per-file size cap.
+- `--media-cache-ttl` (minutes, default 600) — entry lifetime.
+- `--media-compression` (default `gzip`) — `none`, `gzip`, or `deflate`. The compression byte is carried in the block-0 header so the client can decompress without prior knowledge.
+
+The hourly DNS report includes `totalMediaQueries` and a `mediaCache` block (entries, bytes, hits, misses, evictions).
+
 ## Downloads
 
 [Releases](https://github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/releases)
@@ -101,6 +125,22 @@ Update:
 ```bash
 sudo bash -c "$(curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh)"
 ```
+
+Install a specific version (rollback, beta, or rc):
+```bash
+# Roll back to a known-good tag
+curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --version v0.9.2
+
+# Install the most recent pre-release (beta / rc)
+curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --pre
+
+# List recent releases (stable / pre-release labels)
+curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --list
+```
+
+Short forms: `-v <tag>` is the same as `--version <tag>`. The legacy positional form
+`sudo bash install.sh v1.0.0` still works.
+
 Re-login: `curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --login`
 Uninstall: `curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --uninstall`
 
@@ -310,6 +350,10 @@ Environment variables: `THEFEED_DOMAIN`, `THEFEED_KEY`, `THEFEED_MSG_LIMIT`, `TH
 | `--padding` | `32` | Max random padding bytes (0=disabled) |
 | `--msg-limit` | `15` | Maximum messages to fetch per Telegram channel |
 | `--allow-manage` | `false` | Allow remote send/channel management (default: disabled) |
+| `--no-media` | `false` | Disable downloading and serving image/file media |
+| `--media-max-size` | `100` | Per-file size cap for cached media in KB (0 = no cap) |
+| `--media-cache-ttl` | `600` | How long a cached media entry stays available, in minutes |
+| `--media-compression` | `gzip` | Compression for cached media: `none`, `gzip`, or `deflate` |
 | `--version` | | Show version and exit |
 
 ### Client

android/app/build.gradle

@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ android {
             enable true
             reset()
             include 'arm64-v8a', 'armeabi-v7a'
-            universalApk true
+            universalApk false
         }
     }
 

cmd/server/main.go

@@ -37,6 +37,10 @@ func main() {
 	msgLimit := flag.Int("msg-limit", 15, "Maximum messages to fetch per Telegram channel")
 	allowManage := flag.Bool("allow-manage", false, "Allow remote channel management and sending via DNS")
 	debug := flag.Bool("debug", false, "Log every decoded DNS query")
+	noMedia := flag.Bool("no-media", false, "Disable downloading and serving image/file media (clients see [TAG] only)")
+	mediaMaxSizeKB := flag.Int("media-max-size", 100, "Per-file size cap for cached media in KB (0 = no cap)")
+	mediaCacheTTLMin := flag.Int("media-cache-ttl", 600, "How long a cached media entry stays available, in minutes")
+	mediaCompression := flag.String("media-compression", "gzip", "Compression for cached media: none|gzip|deflate")
 	showVersion := flag.Bool("version", false, "Show version and exit")
 	flag.Usage = func() {
 		fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "thefeed-server %s\n\nServes Telegram/X feed content over encrypted DNS for censorship-resistant access.\n\nUsage:\n  thefeed-server [flags]\n\nFlags:\n", version.Version)
@@ -152,6 +156,10 @@ func main() {
 		NoTelegram:       *noTelegram,
 		AllowManage:      *allowManage,
 		Debug:            *debug,
+		NoMedia:          *noMedia,
+		MediaMaxSize:     int64(*mediaMaxSizeKB) * 1024,
+		MediaCacheTTL:    *mediaCacheTTLMin,
+		MediaCompression: *mediaCompression,
 		Telegram: server.TelegramConfig{
 			APIID:       id,
 			APIHash:     *apiHash,

internal/client/cache.go

@@ -238,27 +238,95 @@ func (c *Cache) Cleanup() error {
 	return nil
 }
 
-// detectGaps finds places in a sorted message list where consecutive IDs differ
-// by more than 1. Gaps larger than 500 are ignored (natural Telegram numbering).
-// Returns nil when there are fewer than 10 messages (not enough history to judge).
+// detectGaps finds runs of missing IDs between consecutive messages. Album-
+// merged canonicals cover a contiguous span of sibling IDs (counted via
+// albumSpan), so absorbed siblings don't show up as fake gaps. Diffs > 500
+// are ignored (natural Telegram numbering jumps); under 10 messages we don't
+// have enough history to judge.
 func detectGaps(msgs []protocol.Message) []Gap {
 	if len(msgs) < 10 {
 		return nil
 	}
 	var gaps []Gap
 	for i := 1; i < len(msgs); i++ {
-		prev, cur := msgs[i-1].ID, msgs[i].ID
-		if diff := cur - prev; diff > 1 && diff <= 500 {
+		prev, cur := msgs[i-1], msgs[i]
+		span := uint32(albumSpan(prev.Text))
+		if span == 0 {
+			span = 1
+		}
+		expectedNext := prev.ID + span
+		if cur.ID <= expectedNext {
+			continue
+		}
+		diff := cur.ID - expectedNext
+		if diff > 500 {
+			continue
+		}
 		gaps = append(gaps, Gap{
-				AfterID:  prev,
-				BeforeID: cur,
-				Count:    int(diff - 1),
+			AfterID:  expectedNext - 1,
+			BeforeID: cur.ID,
+			Count:    int(diff),
 		})
 	}
-	}
 	return gaps
 }
 
+// mediaHeaderTags are the leading [TAG] markers extractMessages may stack
+// at the start of a canonical message body — one per absorbed album item.
+var mediaHeaderTags = []string{
+	protocol.MediaImage,
+	protocol.MediaVideo,
+	protocol.MediaFile,
+	protocol.MediaAudio,
+	protocol.MediaSticker,
+	protocol.MediaGIF,
+	protocol.MediaLocation,
+	protocol.MediaContact,
+}
+
+// albumSpan counts the leading media-header lines in a canonical body — 0
+// for plain text, 1 for a single media item, N for an N-item album. A
+// leading [REPLY]... line is skipped first.
+func albumSpan(text string) int {
+	if strings.HasPrefix(text, protocol.MediaReply) {
+		nl := strings.IndexByte(text, '\n')
+		if nl < 0 {
+			return 0
+		}
+		text = text[nl+1:]
+	}
+	n := 0
+	for _, line := range strings.Split(text, "\n") {
+		if !isMediaHeaderLine(line) {
+			break
+		}
+		n++
+	}
+	return n
+}
+
+// isMediaHeaderLine matches both the bare [TAG] form and the downloadable
+// "[TAG]<digit>..." form. Caption text that happens to start with "[IMAGE]"
+// is rejected because rest[0] won't be a digit.
+func isMediaHeaderLine(line string) bool {
+	for _, tag := range mediaHeaderTags {
+		if line == tag {
+			return true
+		}
+		if !strings.HasPrefix(line, tag) {
+			continue
+		}
+		rest := line[len(tag):]
+		if rest == "" {
+			return true
+		}
+		if rest[0] >= '0' && rest[0] <= '9' {
+			return true
+		}
+	}
+	return false
+}
+
 // channelPath returns the file path for a channel's cache, keyed by sanitised name.
 // Only letters, digits, hyphens, and underscores are kept; everything else becomes _.
 func (c *Cache) channelPath(channelName string) string {

internal/client/cache_test.go

@@ -221,6 +221,111 @@ func TestCacheGapDetection_NoGapWhenFewMessages(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestCacheGapDetection_AlbumNoFalsePositive(t *testing.T) {
+	cache, _ := NewCache(t.TempDir())
+
+	// 10 sequential messages where ID=5 is a 2-image album: it absorbs ID 6
+	// (a real Telegram behaviour). The next message is ID 7. Without the
+	// album-aware fix, the gap detector would flag a missing ID 6.
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{
+		{ID: 1, Timestamp: 1700000000, Text: "a"},
+		{ID: 2, Timestamp: 1700000001, Text: "b"},
+		{ID: 3, Timestamp: 1700000002, Text: "c"},
+		{ID: 4, Timestamp: 1700000003, Text: "d"},
+		{ID: 5, Timestamp: 1700000004, Text: "[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:abcd1234:img1.jpg\n[IMAGE]200:0:0:0:abcd5678:img2.jpg\nalbum caption"},
+		// ID 6 is absorbed into the album above; the feed jumps to 7.
+		{ID: 7, Timestamp: 1700000005, Text: "e"},
+		{ID: 8, Timestamp: 1700000006, Text: "f"},
+		{ID: 9, Timestamp: 1700000007, Text: "g"},
+		{ID: 10, Timestamp: 1700000008, Text: "h"},
+		{ID: 11, Timestamp: 1700000009, Text: "i"},
+	}
+	result, _ := cache.MergeAndPut("albumchan", msgs)
+
+	if len(result.Gaps) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("album-absorbed sibling should not be flagged as a gap, got %+v", result.Gaps)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestCacheGapDetection_AlbumWithRealGap(t *testing.T) {
+	cache, _ := NewCache(t.TempDir())
+
+	// 3-image album at ID=5 absorbs IDs 6,7. A real gap of IDs 8,9 follows
+	// before ID=10. The detector should report a single 2-message gap.
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{
+		{ID: 1, Timestamp: 1700000000, Text: "a"},
+		{ID: 2, Timestamp: 1700000001, Text: "b"},
+		{ID: 3, Timestamp: 1700000002, Text: "c"},
+		{ID: 4, Timestamp: 1700000003, Text: "d"},
+		{ID: 5, Timestamp: 1700000004, Text: "[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:aaaaaaaa:1.jpg\n[IMAGE]200:0:0:0:bbbbbbbb:2.jpg\n[IMAGE]300:0:0:0:cccccccc:3.jpg\ncap"},
+		// IDs 6,7 absorbed; IDs 8,9 truly missing; resume at 10.
+		{ID: 10, Timestamp: 1700000010, Text: "e"},
+		{ID: 11, Timestamp: 1700000011, Text: "f"},
+		{ID: 12, Timestamp: 1700000012, Text: "g"},
+		{ID: 13, Timestamp: 1700000013, Text: "h"},
+		{ID: 14, Timestamp: 1700000014, Text: "i"},
+		{ID: 15, Timestamp: 1700000015, Text: "j"},
+	}
+	result, _ := cache.MergeAndPut("albumgap", msgs)
+
+	if len(result.Gaps) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected exactly one gap, got %+v", result.Gaps)
+	}
+	g := result.Gaps[0]
+	if g.AfterID != 7 || g.BeforeID != 10 || g.Count != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("gap = %+v, want AfterID=7 BeforeID=10 Count=2", g)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestCacheGapDetection_AlbumWithReplyPrefix(t *testing.T) {
+	cache, _ := NewCache(t.TempDir())
+
+	// [REPLY]:42 prefix before the media headers should still let albumSpan
+	// count the headers correctly.
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{
+		{ID: 1, Timestamp: 1700000000, Text: "a"},
+		{ID: 2, Timestamp: 1700000001, Text: "b"},
+		{ID: 3, Timestamp: 1700000002, Text: "c"},
+		{ID: 4, Timestamp: 1700000003, Text: "d"},
+		{ID: 5, Timestamp: 1700000004, Text: "[REPLY]:42\n[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:aaaaaaaa:1.jpg\n[IMAGE]200:0:0:0:bbbbbbbb:2.jpg\nreplied caption"},
+		// ID 6 absorbed.
+		{ID: 7, Timestamp: 1700000005, Text: "e"},
+		{ID: 8, Timestamp: 1700000006, Text: "f"},
+		{ID: 9, Timestamp: 1700000007, Text: "g"},
+		{ID: 10, Timestamp: 1700000008, Text: "h"},
+		{ID: 11, Timestamp: 1700000009, Text: "i"},
+	}
+	result, _ := cache.MergeAndPut("replychan", msgs)
+
+	if len(result.Gaps) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("album with reply prefix should not produce false gaps, got %+v", result.Gaps)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestAlbumSpan(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name string
+		text string
+		want int
+	}{
+		{"plain text", "hello world", 0},
+		{"single image legacy", "[IMAGE]\ncaption", 1},
+		{"single image downloadable", "[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:abcd1234:f.jpg\ncap", 1},
+		{"two images", "[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:aa:1.jpg\n[IMAGE]200:0:0:0:bb:2.jpg\ncap", 2},
+		{"three mixed", "[IMAGE]1:0:0:0:aa:a.jpg\n[VIDEO]2:0:0:0:bb:b.mp4\n[FILE]3:0:0:0:cc:c.pdf\nx", 3},
+		{"with reply prefix", "[REPLY]:99\n[IMAGE]100:0:0:0:aa:1.jpg\n[IMAGE]200:0:0:0:bb:2.jpg\ncap", 2},
+		{"reply only no media", "[REPLY]:99\nhello", 0},
+		{"caption that mentions a tag", "look at this [IMAGE] thing", 0},
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		t.Run(c.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			if got := albumSpan(c.text); got != c.want {
+				t.Errorf("albumSpan(%q) = %d, want %d", c.text, got, c.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestCacheGapDetection_LargeGapIgnored(t *testing.T) {
 	cache, _ := NewCache(t.TempDir())
 

internal/client/media.go

@@ -0,0 +1,239 @@
+package client
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"compress/flate"
+	"compress/gzip"
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+	"hash/crc32"
+	"io"
+	"sync"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// DecompressMediaReader wraps r per the given compression.
+func DecompressMediaReader(r io.Reader, compression protocol.MediaCompression) (io.ReadCloser, error) {
+	switch compression {
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionNone:
+		return io.NopCloser(r), nil
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionGzip:
+		return gzip.NewReader(r)
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionDeflate:
+		return flate.NewReader(r), nil
+	}
+	return nil, fmt.Errorf("unsupported media compression: %d", compression)
+}
+
+func decompressMediaBytes(body []byte, compression protocol.MediaCompression) ([]byte, error) {
+	rc, err := DecompressMediaReader(bytes.NewReader(body), compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	defer rc.Close()
+	return io.ReadAll(rc)
+}
+
+// MediaProgress reports per-block progress (completed of total). May be
+// invoked from a background goroutine.
+type MediaProgress func(completed, total int)
+
+// MediaBlockHeaderLen re-exports the protocol header length so callers in
+// the web layer don't have to import the protocol package twice.
+const MediaBlockHeaderLen = protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen
+
+// ErrMediaHashMismatch indicates the assembled bytes don't match the
+// expected CRC32. The caller must discard the returned bytes.
+var ErrMediaHashMismatch = fmt.Errorf("media content hash mismatch")
+
+// mediaBlockOuterRetries is the per-block retry budget the media path adds
+// on top of FetchBlock's own internal retries. A ~200-block file can lose
+// individual blocks repeatedly; without this, one persistent bad block
+// kills the whole download even though FetchBlock would succeed on a
+// later attempt.
+const mediaBlockOuterRetries = 5
+
+func (f *Fetcher) fetchMediaBlock(ctx context.Context, channel, block uint16) ([]byte, error) {
+	var lastErr error
+	for attempt := 0; attempt < mediaBlockOuterRetries; attempt++ {
+		if ctx.Err() != nil {
+			return nil, ctx.Err()
+		}
+		data, err := f.FetchBlock(ctx, channel, block)
+		if err == nil {
+			return data, nil
+		}
+		if ctx.Err() != nil {
+			return nil, ctx.Err()
+		}
+		lastErr = err
+	}
+	return nil, lastErr
+}
+
+// FetchMedia returns the assembled bytes of a media blob served on a media
+// channel, optionally verifying expectedCRC32.
+func (f *Fetcher) FetchMedia(ctx context.Context, channel uint16, blockCount uint16, expectedCRC32 uint32, progress MediaProgress) ([]byte, error) {
+	if !protocol.IsMediaChannel(channel) {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("channel %d is outside media range", channel)
+	}
+	if blockCount == 0 {
+		return nil, nil
+	}
+
+	type blockResult struct {
+		idx  int
+		data []byte
+		err  error
+	}
+
+	results := make(chan blockResult, blockCount)
+	sem := make(chan struct{}, 5)
+	var wg sync.WaitGroup
+	for i := 0; i < int(blockCount); i++ {
+		wg.Add(1)
+		go func(idx int) {
+			defer wg.Done()
+			select {
+			case sem <- struct{}{}:
+			case <-ctx.Done():
+				results <- blockResult{idx: idx, err: ctx.Err()}
+				return
+			}
+			defer func() { <-sem }()
+			data, err := f.fetchMediaBlock(ctx, channel, uint16(idx))
+			results <- blockResult{idx: idx, data: data, err: err}
+		}(i)
+	}
+	go func() {
+		wg.Wait()
+		close(results)
+	}()
+
+	ordered := make([][]byte, blockCount)
+	completed := 0
+	var progMu sync.Mutex
+	for r := range results {
+		if r.err != nil {
+			if r.err == ctx.Err() {
+				return nil, r.err
+			}
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("media channel %d block %d: %w", channel, r.idx, r.err)
+		}
+		ordered[r.idx] = r.data
+		completed++
+		if progress != nil {
+			progMu.Lock()
+			progress(completed, int(blockCount))
+			progMu.Unlock()
+		}
+	}
+
+	if len(ordered) == 0 || len(ordered[0]) < protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("media channel %d: malformed block 0", channel)
+	}
+	header, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(ordered[0][:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("media channel %d: %w", channel, err)
+	}
+	if expectedCRC32 != 0 && header.CRC32 != expectedCRC32 {
+		return nil, ErrMediaHashMismatch
+	}
+
+	// Concatenate all block bytes after the header.
+	total := len(ordered[0]) - protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen
+	for i := 1; i < len(ordered); i++ {
+		total += len(ordered[i])
+	}
+	body := make([]byte, 0, total)
+	body = append(body, ordered[0][protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:]...)
+	for i := 1; i < len(ordered); i++ {
+		body = append(body, ordered[i]...)
+	}
+
+	// Decompress per the header.
+	out, err := decompressMediaBytes(body, header.Compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("decompress media channel %d: %w", channel, err)
+	}
+	if expectedCRC32 != 0 {
+		if got := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(out); got != expectedCRC32 {
+			return nil, ErrMediaHashMismatch
+		}
+	}
+	return out, nil
+}
+
+// FetchMediaBlocksStream fetches blocks [startBlock, startBlock+count) and
+// writes each block's raw bytes to w in order as soon as they become
+// contiguous. No header parsing; callers slice off the protocol header
+// themselves and decompress as appropriate. Cancelling ctx aborts both
+// in-flight DNS queries and pending writes.
+func (f *Fetcher) FetchMediaBlocksStream(ctx context.Context, channel, startBlock, count uint16, w io.Writer, progress MediaProgress) error {
+	if !protocol.IsMediaChannel(channel) {
+		return fmt.Errorf("channel %d is outside media range", channel)
+	}
+	if count == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	type blockResult struct {
+		idx  int
+		data []byte
+		err  error
+	}
+	results := make(chan blockResult, count)
+	sem := make(chan struct{}, 5)
+	var wg sync.WaitGroup
+	for i := 0; i < int(count); i++ {
+		wg.Add(1)
+		go func(idx int) {
+			defer wg.Done()
+			select {
+			case sem <- struct{}{}:
+			case <-ctx.Done():
+				results <- blockResult{idx: idx, err: ctx.Err()}
+				return
+			}
+			defer func() { <-sem }()
+			data, err := f.fetchMediaBlock(ctx, channel, uint16(int(startBlock)+idx))
+			results <- blockResult{idx: idx, data: data, err: err}
+		}(i)
+	}
+	go func() { wg.Wait(); close(results) }()
+
+	pending := make(map[int][]byte)
+	next := 0
+	completed := 0
+	for r := range results {
+		if r.err != nil {
+			if r.err == ctx.Err() {
+				return r.err
+			}
+			return fmt.Errorf("media channel %d block %d: %w", channel, int(startBlock)+r.idx, r.err)
+		}
+		pending[r.idx] = r.data
+		for {
+			payload, ok := pending[next]
+			if !ok {
+				break
+			}
+			if _, werr := w.Write(payload); werr != nil {
+				return werr
+			}
+			if flusher, ok := w.(interface{ Flush() }); ok {
+				flusher.Flush()
+			}
+			next++
+		}
+		completed++
+		if progress != nil {
+			progress(completed, int(count))
+		}
+	}
+	if next != int(count) {
+		return fmt.Errorf("media channel %d: incomplete (%d / %d)", channel, next, count)
+	}
+	return nil
+}

internal/client/media_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,207 @@
+package client
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"compress/flate"
+	"compress/gzip"
+	"context"
+	"crypto/rand"
+	"hash/crc32"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/miekg/dns"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// withMediaHeader prepends the protocol media block header to body. The
+// CRC32 is computed over the DECOMPRESSED bytes the caller passes in, but
+// `body` itself is what the server would have produced after compressing —
+// which for compression=none is just the bytes themselves.
+func withMediaHeader(crc uint32, body []byte, compression protocol.MediaCompression) []byte {
+	hdr := protocol.EncodeMediaBlockHeader(protocol.MediaBlockHeader{
+		CRC32:       crc,
+		Version:     protocol.MediaHeaderVersion,
+		Compression: compression,
+	})
+	out := make([]byte, 0, len(hdr)+len(body))
+	out = append(out, hdr...)
+	out = append(out, body...)
+	return out
+}
+
+func gzipBytes(t *testing.T, b []byte) []byte {
+	t.Helper()
+	var buf bytes.Buffer
+	zw, _ := gzip.NewWriterLevel(&buf, gzip.BestCompression)
+	if _, err := zw.Write(b); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("gzip: %v", err)
+	}
+	if err := zw.Close(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("gzip close: %v", err)
+	}
+	return buf.Bytes()
+}
+
+// blockMockExchange wires the fetcher's exchangeFn so each (channel, block)
+// pair returns the matching slice from blocks.
+func blockMockExchange(f *Fetcher, want uint16, blocks [][]byte) func(context.Context, *dns.Msg, string) (*dns.Msg, time.Duration, error) {
+	return func(ctx context.Context, m *dns.Msg, _ string) (*dns.Msg, time.Duration, error) {
+		if err := ctx.Err(); err != nil {
+			return nil, 0, err
+		}
+		ch, blk, err := protocol.DecodeQuery(f.queryKey, m.Question[0].Name, f.domain)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, 0, err
+		}
+		if ch != want {
+			return nil, 0, errFakeNotFound{}
+		}
+		if int(blk) >= len(blocks) {
+			return nil, 0, errFakeNotFound{}
+		}
+		encoded, encErr := protocol.EncodeResponse(f.responseKey, blocks[int(blk)], 0)
+		if encErr != nil {
+			return nil, 0, encErr
+		}
+		resp := new(dns.Msg)
+		resp.SetReply(m)
+		resp.Rcode = dns.RcodeSuccess
+		resp.Answer = []dns.RR{&dns.TXT{
+			Hdr: dns.RR_Header{Name: m.Question[0].Name, Rrtype: dns.TypeTXT, Class: dns.ClassINET, Ttl: 0},
+			Txt: []string{encoded},
+		}}
+		return resp, time.Millisecond, nil
+	}
+}
+
+type errFakeNotFound struct{}
+
+func (errFakeNotFound) Error() string { return "fake nxdomain" }
+
+func TestFetchMediaUncompressed(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	original := make([]byte, 1500)
+	if _, err := rand.Read(original); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("rand: %v", err)
+	}
+	crc := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(original)
+	blocks := protocol.SplitIntoBlocks(withMediaHeader(crc, original, protocol.MediaCompressionNone))
+
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 7
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+
+	out, err := f.FetchMedia(context.Background(), channel, uint16(len(blocks)), crc, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("FetchMedia: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(out, original) {
+		t.Fatalf("decompressed output differs from original")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaDeflate(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	original := bytes.Repeat([]byte("xy "), 250)
+	crc := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(original)
+	var buf bytes.Buffer
+	zw, _ := flate.NewWriter(&buf, flate.BestCompression)
+	zw.Write(original)
+	zw.Close()
+	blocks := protocol.SplitIntoBlocks(withMediaHeader(crc, buf.Bytes(), protocol.MediaCompressionDeflate))
+
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 9
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+	out, err := f.FetchMedia(context.Background(), channel, uint16(len(blocks)), crc, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("FetchMedia: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(out, original) {
+		t.Fatalf("decompressed differs from original")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaGzip(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	original := bytes.Repeat([]byte("abc123 "), 200) // compressible
+	crc := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(original)
+	body := gzipBytes(t, original)
+	blocks := protocol.SplitIntoBlocks(withMediaHeader(crc, body, protocol.MediaCompressionGzip))
+
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 8
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+
+	out, err := f.FetchMedia(context.Background(), channel, uint16(len(blocks)), crc, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("FetchMedia: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(out, original) {
+		t.Fatalf("decompressed output differs from original")
+	}
+	if len(body) >= len(original) {
+		t.Fatalf("compressed body should be smaller than original (got %d vs %d)", len(body), len(original))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaRejectsNonMediaChannel(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	_, err := f.FetchMedia(context.Background(), 1, 1, 0, nil)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected error for non-media channel")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaRejectsBadHash(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	original := []byte("hello hash mismatch")
+	crc := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(original)
+	blocks := [][]byte{withMediaHeader(crc, original, protocol.MediaCompressionNone)}
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 1
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+
+	_, err := f.FetchMedia(context.Background(), channel, 1, 0xDEADBEEF, nil)
+	if err != ErrMediaHashMismatch {
+		t.Fatalf("err = %v, want ErrMediaHashMismatch", err)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaBlocksStreamWritesInOrder(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	blocks := [][]byte{
+		[]byte("alpha"),
+		[]byte("beta"),
+		[]byte("gamma"),
+	}
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 12
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+
+	var got bytes.Buffer
+	if err := f.FetchMediaBlocksStream(context.Background(), channel, 0, 3, &got, nil); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("FetchMediaBlocksStream: %v", err)
+	}
+	want := append(append(append([]byte{}, blocks[0]...), blocks[1]...), blocks[2]...)
+	if !bytes.Equal(got.Bytes(), want) {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want %q", got.Bytes(), want)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFetchMediaBlocksStreamPartialRange(t *testing.T) {
+	f := newTestFetcher(t, []string{"1.1.1.1:53"})
+	blocks := [][]byte{
+		[]byte("first-block"),
+		[]byte("second-block"),
+		[]byte("third-block"),
+	}
+	channel := protocol.MediaChannelStart + 13
+	f.exchangeFn = blockMockExchange(f, channel, blocks)
+
+	var got bytes.Buffer
+	if err := f.FetchMediaBlocksStream(context.Background(), channel, 1, 2, &got, nil); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("FetchMediaBlocksStream: %v", err)
+	}
+	want := append(append([]byte{}, blocks[1]...), blocks[2]...)
+	if !bytes.Equal(got.Bytes(), want) {
+		t.Fatalf("got %q, want %q", got.Bytes(), want)
+	}
+}

internal/protocol/media.go

@@ -0,0 +1,229 @@
+package protocol
+
+import (
+	"encoding/hex"
+	"fmt"
+	"hash/fnv"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+)
+
+// MediaMeta describes a downloadable media blob attached to a feed message.
+//
+// Wire format embedded in a message's text body (immediately after the media
+// tag, before any caption):
+//
+//	[IMAGE]<size>:<dl>:<ch>:<blk>:<crc32hex>[:<filename>]
+//	caption goes here on the next line(s)
+//
+// The filename field is optional; when present it carries an OS-friendly
+// suggested filename (server-sanitised: no newlines, no path separators, no
+// control characters, length-capped). Old clients that split on ':' and
+// only read parts[0..4] keep working — they just ignore the trailing field.
+type MediaMeta struct {
+	Tag          string // e.g. MediaImage, MediaVideo, MediaFile
+	Size         int64
+	Downloadable bool
+	Channel      uint16
+	Blocks       uint16
+	CRC32        uint32
+	Filename     string
+}
+
+// String renders the metadata in the wire format documented above, including
+// the leading tag and trailing newline that separates the metadata row from
+// any caption.
+func (m MediaMeta) String() string {
+	dl := 0
+	if m.Downloadable {
+		dl = 1
+	}
+	if fn := SanitiseMediaFilename(m.Filename); fn != "" {
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%s%d:%d:%d:%d:%08x:%s\n",
+			m.Tag, m.Size, dl, m.Channel, m.Blocks, m.CRC32, fn)
+	}
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%s%d:%d:%d:%d:%08x\n",
+		m.Tag, m.Size, dl, m.Channel, m.Blocks, m.CRC32)
+}
+
+// SanitiseMediaFilename returns a filename safe to embed in the wire
+// metadata line. The output uses a restricted alphabet ([A-Za-z0-9._-]) so
+// no path separator, colon, newline, or control char can ever survive.
+// When the input is too long the base name is replaced with a short
+// hash-derived id but the extension is preserved so other OSes still
+// recognise the file type.
+func SanitiseMediaFilename(s string) string {
+	s = strings.TrimSpace(s)
+	if s == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if i := strings.LastIndexAny(s, `/\`); i >= 0 {
+		s = s[i+1:]
+	}
+	cleaned := filterFilenameRunes(s)
+	if cleaned == "" || cleaned == "." || cleaned == ".." {
+		return ""
+	}
+
+	const maxBase = 24
+	const maxExt = 8
+
+	base, ext := splitFilenameExt(cleaned)
+	if len(ext) > maxExt {
+		ext = ext[:maxExt]
+	}
+	if len(base) > maxBase {
+		h := fnv.New64a()
+		_, _ = h.Write([]byte(cleaned))
+		base = "media-" + hex.EncodeToString(h.Sum(nil))[:8]
+	}
+	if base == "" || base == "." {
+		base = "media"
+	}
+	if ext != "" {
+		return base + "." + ext
+	}
+	return base
+}
+
+func filterFilenameRunes(s string) string {
+	var b strings.Builder
+	for _, r := range s {
+		switch {
+		case r >= '0' && r <= '9',
+			r >= 'A' && r <= 'Z',
+			r >= 'a' && r <= 'z',
+			r == '.', r == '_', r == '-':
+			b.WriteRune(r)
+		}
+	}
+	return b.String()
+}
+
+func splitFilenameExt(s string) (base, ext string) {
+	if i := strings.LastIndexByte(s, '.'); i >= 0 && i < len(s)-1 {
+		return s[:i], s[i+1:]
+	}
+	return s, ""
+}
+
+// EncodeMediaText prepends the metadata line to an optional caption and
+// returns the combined message text. A nil/empty caption yields just the tag
+// + metadata + trailing newline-less string (the caption split is by the
+// metadata line's trailing \n, so an empty caption simply has no extra body).
+func EncodeMediaText(meta MediaMeta, caption string) string {
+	header := meta.String()
+	if caption == "" {
+		// Drop the trailing newline so the message text doesn't end with a
+		// blank line for caption-less media.
+		return strings.TrimSuffix(header, "\n")
+	}
+	return header + caption
+}
+
+// ParseMediaText parses a message body that begins with a known media tag.
+// On success it returns the metadata and the remaining caption (which may be
+// empty). When the body uses the legacy "[TAG]\ncaption" form (no metadata
+// suffix), ParseMediaText returns ok=true with Downloadable=false and
+// Channel=0 — the caller can treat it as a non-downloadable placeholder
+// exactly like before.
+//
+// Unknown tags return ok=false. Malformed metadata for a known tag also
+// returns ok=false so the caller falls back to legacy display.
+func ParseMediaText(body string) (meta MediaMeta, caption string, ok bool) {
+	tag, rest, found := splitKnownMediaTag(body)
+	if !found {
+		return MediaMeta{}, body, false
+	}
+	meta.Tag = tag
+
+	// The bit between the tag and the first newline is the metadata payload.
+	nl := strings.IndexByte(rest, '\n')
+	var metaLine string
+	if nl < 0 {
+		metaLine = rest
+		caption = ""
+	} else {
+		metaLine = rest[:nl]
+		caption = rest[nl+1:]
+	}
+	metaLine = strings.TrimSpace(metaLine)
+
+	if metaLine == "" {
+		// Legacy [TAG]\ncaption — no per-file metadata. Treat as not-downloadable.
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, caption, true
+	}
+
+	parts := strings.Split(metaLine, ":")
+	if len(parts) < 5 {
+		// Looks like a caption line that happens to start with this tag (e.g.
+		// "[IMAGE]nice photo"). Don't claim a structured parse — return the
+		// whole `rest` as caption so the message still renders.
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+
+	size, err := strconv.ParseInt(parts[0], 10, 64)
+	if err != nil || size < 0 {
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+	dl, err := strconv.Atoi(parts[1])
+	if err != nil || (dl != 0 && dl != 1) {
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+	ch, err := strconv.ParseUint(parts[2], 10, 16)
+	if err != nil {
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+	blk, err := strconv.ParseUint(parts[3], 10, 16)
+	if err != nil {
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+	crc, err := strconv.ParseUint(parts[4], 16, 32)
+	if err != nil {
+		return MediaMeta{Tag: tag}, rest, true
+	}
+	// Reject any channel claimed inside a parseable metadata line that falls
+	// outside the reserved media range — that can only be a malformed message
+	// or a tampering attempt; refuse to surface it as downloadable.
+	channel := uint16(ch)
+	downloadable := dl == 1
+	if downloadable && (!IsMediaChannel(channel) || blk == 0) {
+		downloadable = false
+	}
+
+	meta.Size = size
+	meta.Downloadable = downloadable
+	meta.Channel = channel
+	meta.Blocks = uint16(blk)
+	meta.CRC32 = uint32(crc)
+	if len(parts) >= 6 {
+		// SanitiseMediaFilename strips the field separator, so we can't
+		// reach this point with a colon inside the filename. Take parts[5]
+		// directly and re-sanitise defensively.
+		meta.Filename = SanitiseMediaFilename(parts[5])
+	}
+	return meta, caption, true
+}
+
+// knownMediaTags are the message text prefixes that mark a downloadable media
+// attachment. Order matters only for prefix matching; longer/more-specific
+// tags are not currently aliased so the order is alphabetical for clarity.
+var knownMediaTags = []string{
+	MediaAudio,
+	MediaFile,
+	MediaGIF,
+	MediaImage,
+	MediaSticker,
+	MediaVideo,
+}
+
+// splitKnownMediaTag returns the matched tag and the remainder of the body
+// when body starts with one of knownMediaTags.
+func splitKnownMediaTag(body string) (tag, rest string, ok bool) {
+	for _, t := range knownMediaTags {
+		if strings.HasPrefix(body, t) {
+			return t, body[len(t):], true
+		}
+	}
+	return "", body, false
+}

internal/protocol/media_header.go

@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+package protocol
+
+import (
+	"encoding/binary"
+	"fmt"
+)
+
+// MediaCompression names a compression method applied to a cached media
+// file's bytes before they're split into DNS blocks.
+type MediaCompression byte
+
+const (
+	MediaCompressionNone    MediaCompression = 0
+	MediaCompressionGzip    MediaCompression = 1
+	MediaCompressionDeflate MediaCompression = 2
+)
+
+// MediaHeaderVersion is the current header version. Bumped when the layout
+// changes incompatibly; until then, the reserved bytes carry future fields.
+const MediaHeaderVersion uint8 = 1
+
+// MediaBlockHeaderLen is the fixed length of the metadata prefix that the
+// server prepends to a cached media file's bytes before splitting into
+// blocks. Block 0 of every media channel begins with these bytes.
+//
+//	Layout (big-endian where multi-byte):
+//	[0:4]   CRC32(IEEE) of the DECOMPRESSED file content
+//	[4]     header version (currently 1)
+//	[5]     compression byte (MediaCompression*)
+//	[6:16]  reserved (zero) — room for future protocol fields without
+//	        bumping the version byte
+const MediaBlockHeaderLen = 16
+
+// MediaBlockHeader is the parsed form of a media-channel block-0 header.
+type MediaBlockHeader struct {
+	CRC32       uint32
+	Version     uint8
+	Compression MediaCompression
+}
+
+// EncodeMediaBlockHeader writes the binary header into a fresh slice of
+// length MediaBlockHeaderLen. Reserved bytes are zero-padded.
+func EncodeMediaBlockHeader(h MediaBlockHeader) []byte {
+	buf := make([]byte, MediaBlockHeaderLen)
+	binary.BigEndian.PutUint32(buf[0:4], h.CRC32)
+	if h.Version == 0 {
+		h.Version = MediaHeaderVersion
+	}
+	buf[4] = h.Version
+	buf[5] = byte(h.Compression)
+	return buf
+}
+
+// DecodeMediaBlockHeader parses the first MediaBlockHeaderLen bytes of a
+// media block. Errors on truncation or unknown header version.
+func DecodeMediaBlockHeader(b []byte) (MediaBlockHeader, error) {
+	if len(b) < MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+		return MediaBlockHeader{}, fmt.Errorf("media block header truncated: have %d bytes, need %d", len(b), MediaBlockHeaderLen)
+	}
+	h := MediaBlockHeader{
+		CRC32:       binary.BigEndian.Uint32(b[0:4]),
+		Version:     b[4],
+		Compression: MediaCompression(b[5]),
+	}
+	if h.Version != MediaHeaderVersion {
+		return MediaBlockHeader{}, fmt.Errorf("media block header version %d not supported (want %d)", h.Version, MediaHeaderVersion)
+	}
+	switch h.Compression {
+	case MediaCompressionNone, MediaCompressionGzip, MediaCompressionDeflate:
+	default:
+		return MediaBlockHeader{}, fmt.Errorf("media block header: unknown compression %d", h.Compression)
+	}
+	return h, nil
+}
+
+// ParseMediaCompressionName returns the MediaCompression matching one of
+// "none", "gzip", "deflate" (case-insensitive). Used by the CLI flag to
+// translate user input.
+func ParseMediaCompressionName(s string) (MediaCompression, error) {
+	switch s {
+	case "", "none":
+		return MediaCompressionNone, nil
+	case "gzip":
+		return MediaCompressionGzip, nil
+	case "deflate":
+		return MediaCompressionDeflate, nil
+	}
+	return 0, fmt.Errorf("unknown media compression %q", s)
+}
+
+// String returns the canonical name of the compression value.
+func (c MediaCompression) String() string {
+	switch c {
+	case MediaCompressionNone:
+		return "none"
+	case MediaCompressionGzip:
+		return "gzip"
+	case MediaCompressionDeflate:
+		return "deflate"
+	}
+	return fmt.Sprintf("unknown(%d)", byte(c))
+}

internal/protocol/media_header_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+package protocol
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestEncodeDecodeMediaBlockHeader(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []MediaBlockHeader{
+		{CRC32: 0x01020304, Version: MediaHeaderVersion, Compression: MediaCompressionNone},
+		{CRC32: 0xdeadbeef, Version: MediaHeaderVersion, Compression: MediaCompressionGzip},
+		{CRC32: 0, Version: MediaHeaderVersion, Compression: MediaCompressionDeflate},
+	}
+	for _, h := range cases {
+		buf := EncodeMediaBlockHeader(h)
+		if len(buf) != MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+			t.Fatalf("encoded length = %d, want %d", len(buf), MediaBlockHeaderLen)
+		}
+		// Reserved bytes must be zero for forward compatibility.
+		if !bytes.Equal(buf[6:], make([]byte, MediaBlockHeaderLen-6)) {
+			t.Fatalf("reserved bytes not zero: %x", buf[6:])
+		}
+		got, err := DecodeMediaBlockHeader(buf)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("Decode: %v", err)
+		}
+		if got != h {
+			t.Fatalf("round-trip: got %+v, want %+v", got, h)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDecodeMediaBlockHeaderRejectsBadVersion(t *testing.T) {
+	buf := EncodeMediaBlockHeader(MediaBlockHeader{CRC32: 1, Version: MediaHeaderVersion, Compression: MediaCompressionNone})
+	buf[4] = 9 // bogus version
+	_, err := DecodeMediaBlockHeader(buf)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error for unknown version")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDecodeMediaBlockHeaderRejectsBadCompression(t *testing.T) {
+	buf := EncodeMediaBlockHeader(MediaBlockHeader{Version: MediaHeaderVersion})
+	buf[5] = 99
+	_, err := DecodeMediaBlockHeader(buf)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error for unknown compression")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDecodeMediaBlockHeaderRejectsTruncated(t *testing.T) {
+	_, err := DecodeMediaBlockHeader(make([]byte, MediaBlockHeaderLen-1))
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error for truncated header")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseMediaCompressionName(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := map[string]MediaCompression{
+		"":        MediaCompressionNone,
+		"none":    MediaCompressionNone,
+		"gzip":    MediaCompressionGzip,
+		"deflate": MediaCompressionDeflate,
+	}
+	for in, want := range cases {
+		got, err := ParseMediaCompressionName(in)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Errorf("ParseMediaCompressionName(%q): %v", in, err)
+			continue
+		}
+		if got != want {
+			t.Errorf("ParseMediaCompressionName(%q) = %v, want %v", in, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+	if _, err := ParseMediaCompressionName("brotli"); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected error for unknown compression name")
+	}
+}

internal/protocol/media_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,232 @@
+package protocol
+
+import (
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestEncodeMediaTextRoundTrip(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name    string
+		meta    MediaMeta
+		caption string
+	}{
+		{
+			name: "image with caption",
+			meta: MediaMeta{
+				Tag:          MediaImage,
+				Size:         123456,
+				Downloadable: true,
+				Channel:      12345,
+				Blocks:       42,
+				CRC32:        0xabcdef01,
+			},
+			caption: "hello world\nmulti-line",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "file with filename",
+			meta: MediaMeta{
+				Tag:          MediaFile,
+				Size:         800,
+				Downloadable: true,
+				Channel:      MediaChannelStart,
+				Blocks:       2,
+				CRC32:        0,
+				Filename:     "report.zip",
+			},
+			caption: "",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "filename strips path traversal",
+			meta: MediaMeta{
+				Tag:          MediaFile,
+				Size:         100,
+				Downloadable: true,
+				Channel:      MediaChannelStart + 1,
+				Blocks:       1,
+				CRC32:        0xdeadbeef,
+				// Server-side sanitisation strips dirs, control chars, and ":"
+				// before the metadata reaches the wire — so a parsed filename
+				// is never going to contain any of those.
+				Filename: "/tmp/../etc/passwd:bad\nname",
+			},
+			caption: "",
+		},
+		{
+			name: "non-downloadable image",
+			meta: MediaMeta{
+				Tag:          MediaImage,
+				Size:         50_000_000,
+				Downloadable: false,
+				Channel:      0,
+				Blocks:       0,
+				CRC32:        0xdeadbeef,
+			},
+			caption: "too big",
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			body := EncodeMediaText(tc.meta, tc.caption)
+			meta, caption, ok := ParseMediaText(body)
+			if !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText returned ok=false for body %q", body)
+			}
+			if caption != tc.caption {
+				t.Fatalf("caption = %q, want %q", caption, tc.caption)
+			}
+			if meta.Tag != tc.meta.Tag {
+				t.Fatalf("Tag = %q, want %q", meta.Tag, tc.meta.Tag)
+			}
+			if meta.Size != tc.meta.Size {
+				t.Fatalf("Size = %d, want %d", meta.Size, tc.meta.Size)
+			}
+			if meta.Downloadable != tc.meta.Downloadable {
+				t.Fatalf("Downloadable = %v, want %v", meta.Downloadable, tc.meta.Downloadable)
+			}
+			if meta.Channel != tc.meta.Channel {
+				t.Fatalf("Channel = %d, want %d", meta.Channel, tc.meta.Channel)
+			}
+			if meta.Blocks != tc.meta.Blocks {
+				t.Fatalf("Blocks = %d, want %d", meta.Blocks, tc.meta.Blocks)
+			}
+			if meta.CRC32 != tc.meta.CRC32 {
+				t.Fatalf("CRC32 = %x, want %x", meta.CRC32, tc.meta.CRC32)
+			}
+			wantFilename := SanitiseMediaFilename(tc.meta.Filename)
+			if meta.Filename != wantFilename {
+				t.Fatalf("Filename = %q, want %q", meta.Filename, wantFilename)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSanitiseMediaFilename(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := map[string]string{
+		"":                     "",
+		"report.zip":           "report.zip",
+		"path/to/report.zip":   "report.zip",
+		"..":                   "",
+		"a:b\nc.txt":           "abc.txt",
+		"hello":                "hello",
+		"WeIrD-Name_v2.tar.gz": "WeIrD-Name_v2.tar.gz",
+		"\xff\xfe.txt":         "media.txt",
+		"\u062d\u0645\u0644\u0647.zip":             "media.zip",
+	}
+	for in, want := range cases {
+		if got := SanitiseMediaFilename(in); got != want {
+			t.Errorf("SanitiseMediaFilename(%q) = %q, want %q", in, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSanitiseMediaFilenameLongName(t *testing.T) {
+	long := strings.Repeat("abc", 50) + ".zip"
+	got := SanitiseMediaFilename(long)
+	if !strings.HasPrefix(got, "media-") || !strings.HasSuffix(got, ".zip") {
+		t.Fatalf("long filename = %q, want media-<hash>.zip", got)
+	}
+	if len(got) > 6+8+1+3 {
+		t.Fatalf("long filename too long: %q", got)
+	}
+	if again := SanitiseMediaFilename(long); again != got {
+		t.Fatalf("non-deterministic: %q vs %q", got, again)
+	}
+}
+
+// Backward compat: legacy "[IMAGE]\ncaption" must still parse cleanly with
+// caption preserved and Downloadable=false.
+func TestParseMediaTextLegacy(t *testing.T) {
+	body := "[IMAGE]\nlook at this"
+	meta, caption, ok := ParseMediaText(body)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText ok=false on legacy body")
+	}
+	if meta.Tag != MediaImage {
+		t.Fatalf("Tag = %q, want %q", meta.Tag, MediaImage)
+	}
+	if meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("Downloadable should be false on legacy body")
+	}
+	if caption != "look at this" {
+		t.Fatalf("caption = %q, want %q", caption, "look at this")
+	}
+}
+
+// Backward compat: legacy [IMAGE] with no caption.
+func TestParseMediaTextLegacyNoCaption(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, body := range []string{"[IMAGE]", "[IMAGE]\n"} {
+		meta, caption, ok := ParseMediaText(body)
+		if !ok {
+			t.Fatalf("ok=false on %q", body)
+		}
+		if meta.Tag != MediaImage {
+			t.Fatalf("Tag = %q, want [IMAGE]", meta.Tag)
+		}
+		if meta.Downloadable {
+			t.Fatalf("legacy body should not be downloadable")
+		}
+		if caption != "" {
+			t.Fatalf("caption = %q, want empty", caption)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// A normal caption that happens to lead with a media tag should not be
+// misparsed as downloadable metadata.
+func TestParseMediaTextHumanCaption(t *testing.T) {
+	body := "[IMAGE]nice picture\nrest of post"
+	meta, caption, ok := ParseMediaText(body)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ok=false on caption-leading body")
+	}
+	if meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("downloadable should be false for a human caption")
+	}
+	if meta.Channel != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("channel should be 0 for non-metadata body, got %d", meta.Channel)
+	}
+	want := "nice picture\nrest of post"
+	if caption != want {
+		t.Fatalf("caption = %q, want %q", caption, want)
+	}
+}
+
+// Unknown tag → ok=false.
+func TestParseMediaTextUnknownTag(t *testing.T) {
+	_, _, ok := ParseMediaText("not a tag")
+	if ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ok=true for non-tag body")
+	}
+}
+
+// A metadata line that names a channel outside the media range must NOT be
+// surfaced as downloadable.
+func TestParseMediaTextRejectsOutOfRangeChannel(t *testing.T) {
+	body := "[IMAGE]100:1:5:200:00000000\ncaption"
+	meta, _, ok := ParseMediaText(body)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ok=false on otherwise-valid metadata")
+	}
+	if meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("Downloadable should be false for channel %d outside media range", meta.Channel)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestIsMediaChannel(t *testing.T) {
+	checks := map[uint16]bool{
+		0:                       false,
+		1:                       false,
+		MediaChannelStart - 1:   false,
+		MediaChannelStart:       true,
+		MediaChannelStart + 100: true,
+		MediaChannelEnd:         true,
+		MediaChannelEnd + 1:     false,
+		65535:                   false,
+	}
+	for ch, want := range checks {
+		if got := IsMediaChannel(ch); got != want {
+			t.Errorf("IsMediaChannel(%d) = %v, want %v", ch, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+}

internal/protocol/protocol.go

@@ -20,6 +20,12 @@ const (
 	// DefaultBlockPayload is kept for compatibility; equals MaxBlockPayload.
 	DefaultBlockPayload = MaxBlockPayload
 
+	// MediaBlockPayload is the fixed payload size used for media (image/file)
+	// blocks. Media blocks are raw binary, and using a fixed size simplifies
+	// both server-side block boundaries and client-side range/resume math.
+	// Tuned for safe DNS UDP response after AES-GCM + base64 + padding.
+	MediaBlockPayload = MaxBlockPayload
+
 	// DefaultMaxPadding is the default random padding added to responses to vary DNS response size.
 	DefaultMaxPadding = 32
 
@@ -29,6 +35,14 @@ const (
 	// MetadataChannel is the special channel number for server metadata.
 	MetadataChannel = 0
 
+	// MediaChannelStart and MediaChannelEnd bound the channel-number range
+	// reserved for cached binary media (images, files, ...). Each cached file
+	// occupies one channel; bytes are split into raw blocks served via the
+	// usual DNS TXT path. The range is well above typical feed channel counts
+	// and well below the special control channels at the top of uint16 space.
+	MediaChannelStart uint16 = 10000
+	MediaChannelEnd   uint16 = 60000 // inclusive
+
 	// MarkerSize is the random marker in metadata to verify data freshness.
 	MarkerSize = 3
 
@@ -46,6 +60,14 @@ const (
 	MsgContentHashSize = 4
 )
 
+// IsMediaChannel reports whether ch falls inside the reserved media-blob
+// channel range. Media channels are not enumerated in Metadata; the client
+// learns each (channel, blocks, hash) tuple from the corresponding feed
+// message text via [TAG]<size>:<dl>:<ch>:<blk>:<crc32hex>.
+func IsMediaChannel(ch uint16) bool {
+	return ch >= MediaChannelStart && ch <= MediaChannelEnd
+}
+
 // Media placeholder strings for non-text content.
 const (
 	MediaImage    = "[IMAGE]"

internal/server/dns.go

@@ -58,6 +58,7 @@ type hourlyFetchReport struct {
 	totalQueries    int64
 	metadataQueries int64
 	versionQueries  int64
+	mediaQueries    int64 // queries that landed in the media-blob channel range
 	perChannel      map[uint16]*channelFetchStats
 	perResolver     map[string]int64
 }
@@ -696,6 +697,13 @@ func recordReportQuery(rep *hourlyFetchReport, event reportEvent) {
 		rep.versionQueries++
 		return
 	}
+	if protocol.IsMediaChannel(channel) {
+		// We don't fan out per-media-channel stats — the channel-id is just
+		// a transient slot, and 50K possible ids would explode the report.
+		// Total media-query volume is enough for the operator's purposes.
+		rep.mediaQueries++
+		return
+	}
 
 	stats := rep.perChannel[channel]
 	if stats == nil {
@@ -769,10 +777,14 @@ func (s *DNSServer) emitHourlyReport(rep *hourlyFetchReport, final bool) {
 		"totalDnsQueries":      rep.totalQueries,
 		"totalMetadataQueries": rep.metadataQueries,
 		"totalVersionQueries":  rep.versionQueries,
+		"totalMediaQueries":    rep.mediaQueries,
 		"channels":             entries,
 		"topResolvers":         resolvers,
 		"finalFlush":           final,
 	}
+	if mediaCache := s.feed.MediaCache(); mediaCache != nil {
+		payload["mediaCache"] = mediaCache.Stats()
+	}
 	b, err := json.Marshal(payload)
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Printf("[dns_hourly] marshal error: %v", err)

internal/server/feed.go

@@ -27,6 +27,13 @@ type Feed struct {
 	telegramLoggedIn bool
 	nextFetch        uint32
 	latestVersion    string
+
+	// media holds binary blobs (images, files, ...) on a separate set of
+	// channel numbers in the [MediaChannelStart, MediaChannelEnd] range. It
+	// may be nil when media downloads are disabled — Feed.GetBlock then
+	// rejects queries to media channels with a not-found error, mirroring
+	// pre-feature behaviour.
+	media *MediaCache
 }
 
 // NewFeed creates a new Feed with the given channel names.
@@ -88,6 +95,16 @@ func (f *Feed) GetBlock(channel, block int) ([]byte, error) {
 	if channel == int(protocol.TitlesChannel) {
 		return f.getTitlesBlock(block)
 	}
+	// Channel sits in the binary media range — delegate to MediaCache. We
+	// drop the read lock first because MediaCache uses its own lock and we
+	// don't want to hold f.mu across that path.
+	if channel >= 0 && channel <= 0xFFFF && protocol.IsMediaChannel(uint16(channel)) {
+		media := f.media
+		if media == nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("media channel %d not configured", channel)
+		}
+		return media.GetBlock(uint16(channel), uint16(block))
+	}
 
 	ch, ok := f.blocks[channel]
 	if !ok {
@@ -99,6 +116,22 @@ func (f *Feed) GetBlock(channel, block int) ([]byte, error) {
 	return ch[block], nil
 }
 
+// SetMediaCache attaches a MediaCache to this Feed. Pass nil to disable
+// media serving (the default for backward compat). Safe to call once at
+// startup before any DNS query is served.
+func (f *Feed) SetMediaCache(c *MediaCache) {
+	f.mu.Lock()
+	defer f.mu.Unlock()
+	f.media = c
+}
+
+// MediaCache returns the configured MediaCache or nil.
+func (f *Feed) MediaCache() *MediaCache {
+	f.mu.RLock()
+	defer f.mu.RUnlock()
+	return f.media
+}
+
 func (f *Feed) getVersionBlock(block int) ([]byte, error) {
 	blocks := f.versionBlocks
 	if len(blocks) == 0 {

internal/server/media.go

@@ -0,0 +1,524 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"compress/flate"
+	"compress/gzip"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"hash/crc32"
+	"io"
+	"sync"
+	"sync/atomic"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// MediaCache stores binary media blobs (images, files, ...) keyed by an
+// upstream-stable identifier (Telegram file_id, image URL, ...). Each entry
+// occupies one channel number drawn from the [MediaChannelStart, MediaChannelEnd]
+// range, plus a precomputed list of fixed-size raw blocks served via the
+// regular DNS TXT path.
+//
+// The cache is safe for concurrent use. Hot-path operations (Store, GetBlock)
+// are O(log n) at worst and typically O(1) with the help of two side maps.
+type MediaCache struct {
+	maxFileBytes int64
+	ttl          time.Duration
+	compression  protocol.MediaCompression
+
+	// Logger receives an info line per cache event when set (Store hits/misses,
+	// evictions). The default is a silent no-op so tests don't print noise.
+	logf func(format string, args ...interface{})
+
+	mu          sync.RWMutex
+	byKey       map[string]*mediaEntry // upstream key (file_id / URL) → entry
+	byChannel   map[uint16]*mediaEntry // assigned channel → entry
+	byHash      map[uint32]*mediaEntry // CRC32(content) → entry, for cross-key dedup
+	nextChannel uint16                 // round-robin allocation hint
+
+	// Counters surfaced via Stats(); written with atomics so reads from the
+	// hourly reporter don't have to acquire mu.
+	storeHits      uint64
+	storeMisses    uint64
+	storeRejected  uint64 // file too large
+	queryCount     uint64 // total media block queries served
+	evictionCount  uint64
+	currentEntries int64 // live entry count
+	currentBytes   int64 // sum of file sizes currently cached
+}
+
+type mediaEntry struct {
+	channel   uint16
+	cacheKey  string   // primary upstream id this entry was first stored under
+	aliases   []string // additional keys (different upstream ids, same content)
+	mimeType  string
+	filename  string
+	tag       string // protocol media tag (MediaImage, MediaFile, ...)
+	size      int64
+	crc32     uint32
+	blocks    [][]byte
+	expiresAt time.Time
+	// inflight prevents the eviction sweep from reaping an entry that is
+	// currently being downloaded by a goroutine that hasn't installed it yet.
+	inflight bool
+}
+
+// MediaCacheConfig configures a new MediaCache.
+type MediaCacheConfig struct {
+	// MaxFileBytes is the largest individual file the cache will accept.
+	// Files larger than this are rejected by Store with ErrTooLarge.
+	MaxFileBytes int64
+	// TTL is how long an entry stays cached after its last refresh.
+	TTL time.Duration
+	// Compression is the wire-format compression used for media blocks.
+	// Defaults to MediaCompressionNone when zero.
+	Compression protocol.MediaCompression
+	// Logf receives info-level cache events. Optional.
+	Logf func(format string, args ...interface{})
+}
+
+// ErrTooLarge is returned by Store when content exceeds MaxFileBytes.
+var ErrTooLarge = errors.New("media file exceeds configured max-size")
+
+// ErrCacheFull is returned by Store when no media channel slot is available.
+// In practice this requires either MediaChannelEnd-Start+1 simultaneously
+// pinned files or a TTL too generous for the workload.
+var ErrCacheFull = errors.New("no free media channel slot")
+
+// NewMediaCache constructs a cache with the given configuration. A zero
+// MaxFileBytes disables the size cap; a zero TTL means entries never expire
+// (not recommended in production).
+func NewMediaCache(cfg MediaCacheConfig) *MediaCache {
+	logf := cfg.Logf
+	if logf == nil {
+		logf = func(string, ...interface{}) {}
+	}
+	return &MediaCache{
+		maxFileBytes: cfg.MaxFileBytes,
+		ttl:          cfg.TTL,
+		compression:  cfg.Compression,
+		logf:         logf,
+		byKey:        make(map[string]*mediaEntry),
+		byChannel:    make(map[uint16]*mediaEntry),
+		byHash:       make(map[uint32]*mediaEntry),
+		nextChannel:  protocol.MediaChannelStart,
+	}
+}
+
+// Store inserts (or refreshes) a media blob into the cache and returns
+// metadata that the caller can embed in a feed message.
+//
+// cacheKey is an upstream-stable identifier (e.g. Telegram file_id, image
+// URL). When the same key is stored again, the existing entry's TTL is
+// refreshed and the same channel/blocks are returned without copying the
+// contents — callers should rely on this for the "fetch every 10 min"
+// duplicate-handling case described in the design.
+//
+// tag is the protocol media tag (MediaImage, MediaFile, ...); mimeType and
+// filename are optional and stored for the HTTP layer to surface to the
+// client. content is the raw file bytes; the caller may pass a slice it
+// continues to use after the call (Store copies into block-sized chunks).
+func (c *MediaCache) Store(cacheKey, tag string, content []byte, mimeType, filename string) (protocol.MediaMeta, error) {
+	if cacheKey == "" {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, errors.New("media: empty cache key")
+	}
+	if tag == "" {
+		tag = protocol.MediaFile
+	}
+	size := int64(len(content))
+	if c.maxFileBytes > 0 && size > c.maxFileBytes {
+		atomic.AddUint64(&c.storeRejected, 1)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{
+			Tag:          tag,
+			Size:         size,
+			Downloadable: false,
+		}, ErrTooLarge
+	}
+
+	now := time.Now()
+	hash := crc32.ChecksumIEEE(content)
+
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+
+	if existing, ok := c.byKey[cacheKey]; ok && existing.crc32 == hash {
+		// Same upstream id and same content — just refresh the TTL.
+		existing.expiresAt = c.expiry(now)
+		atomic.AddUint64(&c.storeHits, 1)
+		c.logf("media: refresh tag=%s key=%s ch=%d size=%d", tag, cacheKey, existing.channel, existing.size)
+		return c.metaForLocked(existing), nil
+	}
+
+	// Cross-key content match: a different upstream id pointed at exactly
+	// the same bytes. Bind the new cache key to the existing entry so any
+	// future Lookup under either key works, and refresh the TTL. This is
+	// the case the spec asks for: "same media → just reset TTL, don't take
+	// a new channel slot".
+	if existing, ok := c.byHash[hash]; ok {
+		existing.expiresAt = c.expiry(now)
+		if cacheKey != existing.cacheKey {
+			alreadyAliased := false
+			for _, a := range existing.aliases {
+				if a == cacheKey {
+					alreadyAliased = true
+					break
+				}
+			}
+			if !alreadyAliased {
+				existing.aliases = append(existing.aliases, cacheKey)
+			}
+		}
+		c.byKey[cacheKey] = existing
+		atomic.AddUint64(&c.storeHits, 1)
+		c.logf("media: dedup tag=%s key=%s ch=%d size=%d (hash match)", tag, cacheKey, existing.channel, existing.size)
+		return c.metaForLocked(existing), nil
+	}
+
+	// Either a new key, or the same key carries different bytes (a Telegram
+	// edit, a re-upload). Allocate a fresh channel and replace.
+	if existing, ok := c.byKey[cacheKey]; ok {
+		c.dropEntryLocked(existing)
+	}
+
+	// Opportunistic sweep before we allocate. Without this, expired entries
+	// that don't sit on the allocator's linear-scan path (i.e. ones below
+	// nextChannel) accumulate until the periodic sweep runs. That breaks
+	// the "TTL is the upper bound on how long a slot stays cached" promise
+	// across burst-store workloads with small TTLs. The cost is O(n) over
+	// active entries; n is capped by the media-channel range.
+	c.sweepExpiredLocked(now)
+
+	channel, err := c.allocateChannelLocked(now)
+	if err != nil {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, err
+	}
+
+	blocks, encErr := splitMediaBlocks(hash, content, c.compression)
+	if encErr != nil {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, encErr
+	}
+	if size > 0 {
+		var compressedBody int
+		for _, b := range blocks {
+			compressedBody += len(b)
+		}
+		compressedBody -= protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen
+		if compressedBody < 0 {
+			compressedBody = 0
+		}
+		var savedPct int
+		if c.compression != protocol.MediaCompressionNone && size > 0 {
+			savedPct = int((size - int64(compressedBody)) * 100 / size)
+		}
+		c.logf("media: compress=%s key=%s orig=%d body=%d saved=%d%%", c.compression, cacheKey, size, compressedBody, savedPct)
+	}
+	entry := &mediaEntry{
+		channel:   channel,
+		cacheKey:  cacheKey,
+		mimeType:  mimeType,
+		filename:  protocol.SanitiseMediaFilename(filename),
+		tag:       tag,
+		size:      size,
+		crc32:     hash,
+		blocks:    blocks,
+		expiresAt: c.expiry(now),
+	}
+	c.byKey[cacheKey] = entry
+	c.byChannel[channel] = entry
+	c.byHash[hash] = entry
+	atomic.AddUint64(&c.storeMisses, 1)
+	atomic.AddInt64(&c.currentEntries, 1)
+	atomic.AddInt64(&c.currentBytes, size)
+	c.logf("media: store tag=%s key=%s ch=%d size=%d blocks=%d", tag, cacheKey, channel, size, len(blocks))
+
+	return c.metaForLocked(entry), nil
+}
+
+// LookupByChannel returns the cached entry's transport metadata (mime,
+// filename) for a serving channel. Returns ok=false if no entry is mapped.
+// Used by the HTTP layer to pick a sensible Content-Type/Content-Disposition
+// for clients that didn't provide one in the query string.
+func (c *MediaCache) LookupByChannel(channel uint16) (mime, filename string, ok bool) {
+	c.mu.RLock()
+	defer c.mu.RUnlock()
+	entry, found := c.byChannel[channel]
+	if !found {
+		return "", "", false
+	}
+	return entry.mimeType, entry.filename, true
+}
+
+// Lookup returns the metadata for an entry by cache key, refreshing TTL on
+// hit. Returns ok=false if not present.
+func (c *MediaCache) Lookup(cacheKey string) (protocol.MediaMeta, bool) {
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+	entry, ok := c.byKey[cacheKey]
+	if !ok {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	entry.expiresAt = c.expiry(time.Now())
+	return c.metaForLocked(entry), true
+}
+
+// GetBlock returns one block of cached media for serving over DNS. Returns an
+// error if the channel isn't a media channel, the entry has expired, or the
+// block index is out of range. Increments the served-query counter.
+func (c *MediaCache) GetBlock(channel, block uint16) ([]byte, error) {
+	if !protocol.IsMediaChannel(channel) {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("channel %d is outside media range", channel)
+	}
+	atomic.AddUint64(&c.queryCount, 1)
+
+	c.mu.RLock()
+	entry, ok := c.byChannel[channel]
+	c.mu.RUnlock()
+	if !ok {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("media channel %d not found", channel)
+	}
+	if int(block) >= len(entry.blocks) {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("media block %d out of range (%d blocks)", block, len(entry.blocks))
+	}
+	// Reading a block extends the entry lifetime — clients in the middle of
+	// downloading shouldn't have the cache rug pulled mid-transfer.
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	entry.expiresAt = c.expiry(time.Now())
+	c.mu.Unlock()
+	return entry.blocks[block], nil
+}
+
+// Sweep evicts entries whose TTL has elapsed. Returns the number evicted.
+// Safe to call from a periodic goroutine.
+func (c *MediaCache) Sweep() int {
+	if c.ttl <= 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	now := time.Now()
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+	n := c.sweepExpiredLocked(now)
+	if n > 0 {
+		c.logf("media: sweep evicted=%d remaining=%d", n, len(c.byChannel))
+	}
+	return n
+}
+
+// sweepExpiredLocked is the shared implementation behind both the periodic
+// Sweep and the opportunistic per-Store sweep. Caller must hold c.mu.
+// It returns the number of entries evicted.
+func (c *MediaCache) sweepExpiredLocked(now time.Time) int {
+	if c.ttl <= 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	var expired []*mediaEntry
+	for _, entry := range c.byChannel {
+		if entry.inflight {
+			continue
+		}
+		if now.After(entry.expiresAt) {
+			expired = append(expired, entry)
+		}
+	}
+	for _, entry := range expired {
+		c.dropEntryLocked(entry)
+	}
+	return len(expired)
+}
+
+// MediaCacheStats is a snapshot of cache counters.
+type MediaCacheStats struct {
+	Entries        int64  `json:"entries"`
+	Bytes          int64  `json:"bytes"`
+	Queries        uint64 `json:"queries"`
+	StoreHits      uint64 `json:"storeHits"`
+	StoreMisses    uint64 `json:"storeMisses"`
+	StoreRejected  uint64 `json:"storeRejected"`
+	Evictions      uint64 `json:"evictions"`
+	MaxFileBytes   int64  `json:"maxFileBytes"`
+	TTLSeconds     int64  `json:"ttlSeconds"`
+}
+
+// Stats returns a snapshot of cache counters. Lock-free for the per-counter
+// fields; Entries and Bytes are also atomic.
+func (c *MediaCache) Stats() MediaCacheStats {
+	return MediaCacheStats{
+		Entries:       atomic.LoadInt64(&c.currentEntries),
+		Bytes:         atomic.LoadInt64(&c.currentBytes),
+		Queries:       atomic.LoadUint64(&c.queryCount),
+		StoreHits:     atomic.LoadUint64(&c.storeHits),
+		StoreMisses:   atomic.LoadUint64(&c.storeMisses),
+		StoreRejected: atomic.LoadUint64(&c.storeRejected),
+		Evictions:     atomic.LoadUint64(&c.evictionCount),
+		MaxFileBytes:  c.maxFileBytes,
+		TTLSeconds:    int64(c.ttl / time.Second),
+	}
+}
+
+// allocateChannelLocked finds a free channel in the media range, evicting
+// expired entries on the way. Caller must hold c.mu.
+func (c *MediaCache) allocateChannelLocked(now time.Time) (uint16, error) {
+	rangeSize := int(protocol.MediaChannelEnd) - int(protocol.MediaChannelStart) + 1
+	start := c.nextChannel
+	if start < protocol.MediaChannelStart || start > protocol.MediaChannelEnd {
+		start = protocol.MediaChannelStart
+	}
+	cur := start
+	for i := 0; i < rangeSize; i++ {
+		entry, taken := c.byChannel[cur]
+		if !taken {
+			c.advanceNextLocked(cur)
+			return cur, nil
+		}
+		if !entry.inflight && c.ttl > 0 && now.After(entry.expiresAt) {
+			c.dropEntryLocked(entry)
+			c.advanceNextLocked(cur)
+			return cur, nil
+		}
+		// Step to next slot, wrap when we hit the end of the range.
+		if cur == protocol.MediaChannelEnd {
+			cur = protocol.MediaChannelStart
+		} else {
+			cur++
+		}
+	}
+	// Range fully occupied with non-expired entries — evict the oldest one as
+	// a last resort, so the cache never hard-fails under steady-state
+	// pressure with reasonable configs.
+	var oldest *mediaEntry
+	for _, entry := range c.byChannel {
+		if entry.inflight {
+			continue
+		}
+		if oldest == nil || entry.expiresAt.Before(oldest.expiresAt) {
+			oldest = entry
+		}
+	}
+	if oldest == nil {
+		return 0, ErrCacheFull
+	}
+	freed := oldest.channel
+	c.dropEntryLocked(oldest)
+	c.advanceNextLocked(freed)
+	return freed, nil
+}
+
+func (c *MediaCache) advanceNextLocked(used uint16) {
+	if used == protocol.MediaChannelEnd {
+		c.nextChannel = protocol.MediaChannelStart
+	} else {
+		c.nextChannel = used + 1
+	}
+}
+
+func (c *MediaCache) dropEntryLocked(entry *mediaEntry) {
+	delete(c.byChannel, entry.channel)
+	delete(c.byKey, entry.cacheKey)
+	for _, alias := range entry.aliases {
+		// Only delete an alias if it still resolves to this entry; a later
+		// store under the same key may have rebound it elsewhere.
+		if c.byKey[alias] == entry {
+			delete(c.byKey, alias)
+		}
+	}
+	if c.byHash[entry.crc32] == entry {
+		delete(c.byHash, entry.crc32)
+	}
+	atomic.AddInt64(&c.currentEntries, -1)
+	atomic.AddInt64(&c.currentBytes, -entry.size)
+	atomic.AddUint64(&c.evictionCount, 1)
+}
+
+func (c *MediaCache) expiry(now time.Time) time.Time {
+	if c.ttl <= 0 {
+		// "Never" — represented as far future so all comparisons act as expected.
+		return time.Unix(1<<62, 0)
+	}
+	return now.Add(c.ttl)
+}
+
+func (c *MediaCache) metaForLocked(entry *mediaEntry) protocol.MediaMeta {
+	return protocol.MediaMeta{
+		Tag:          entry.tag,
+		Size:         entry.size,
+		Downloadable: true,
+		Channel:      entry.channel,
+		Blocks:       uint16(len(entry.blocks)),
+		CRC32:        entry.crc32,
+		Filename:     entry.filename,
+	}
+}
+
+// splitMediaBlocks compresses the content (when compression != none),
+// prepends the protocol media header, then splits the result into
+// randomly-sized blocks. The CRC32 carried in the header is over the
+// DECOMPRESSED bytes so the client can verify integrity after
+// decompression. Uniform sizing is avoided to match the anti-DPI strategy
+// used for feed-message blocks.
+func splitMediaBlocks(crc32Hash uint32, content []byte, compression protocol.MediaCompression) ([][]byte, error) {
+	body, err := compressMediaBytes(content, compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	header := protocol.EncodeMediaBlockHeader(protocol.MediaBlockHeader{
+		CRC32:       crc32Hash,
+		Version:     protocol.MediaHeaderVersion,
+		Compression: compression,
+	})
+	full := make([]byte, 0, len(header)+len(body))
+	full = append(full, header...)
+	full = append(full, body...)
+	return protocol.SplitIntoBlocks(full), nil
+}
+
+func compressMediaBytes(content []byte, compression protocol.MediaCompression) ([]byte, error) {
+	switch compression {
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionNone:
+		return content, nil
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionGzip:
+		var buf bytes.Buffer
+		zw, err := gzip.NewWriterLevel(&buf, gzip.BestCompression)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if _, err := zw.Write(content); err != nil {
+			zw.Close()
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if err := zw.Close(); err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		return buf.Bytes(), nil
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionDeflate:
+		var buf bytes.Buffer
+		zw, err := flate.NewWriter(&buf, flate.BestCompression)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if _, err := zw.Write(content); err != nil {
+			zw.Close()
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		if err := zw.Close(); err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+		return buf.Bytes(), nil
+	}
+	return nil, fmt.Errorf("unsupported media compression: %d", compression)
+}
+
+// DecompressMediaBytes is the inverse of compressMediaBytes; exposed for
+// the HTTP layer (which receives a stream of compressed bytes after the
+// header is stripped) and tests.
+func DecompressMediaBytes(r io.Reader, compression protocol.MediaCompression) (io.ReadCloser, error) {
+	switch compression {
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionNone:
+		return io.NopCloser(r), nil
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionGzip:
+		return gzip.NewReader(r)
+	case protocol.MediaCompressionDeflate:
+		return flate.NewReader(r), nil
+	}
+	return nil, fmt.Errorf("unsupported media compression: %d", compression)
+}

internal/server/media_http.go

@@ -0,0 +1,148 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/url"
+	"path"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// httpMediaClient is a small shared client for fetching media URLs the
+// public-Telegram and X readers extract. It deliberately uses a relatively
+// short timeout — media downloads must not stall the rest of a fetch cycle.
+var httpMediaClient = &http.Client{
+	Timeout: 60 * time.Second,
+	// Disallow redirects to non-http(s) schemes; Telegram CDN sometimes
+	// redirects through 301/302 to a regional host which is fine.
+	CheckRedirect: func(req *http.Request, via []*http.Request) error {
+		if len(via) > 5 {
+			return errors.New("too many redirects")
+		}
+		if req.URL.Scheme != "http" && req.URL.Scheme != "https" {
+			return fmt.Errorf("disallowed redirect scheme %q", req.URL.Scheme)
+		}
+		return nil
+	},
+}
+
+// allowedMediaSchemes is the set of URL schemes downloadHTTPMedia will load.
+var allowedMediaSchemes = map[string]bool{
+	"http":  true,
+	"https": true,
+}
+
+// downloadHTTPMedia fetches the bytes at rawURL and stores them in cache,
+// using the URL itself as the cache key (so refreshing the same channel
+// every 10 min just bumps TTL on hit).
+//
+// It enforces the configured max-size both up-front (Content-Length) and on
+// the wire (LimitReader) so a server lying about size can't blow past the
+// limit. URLs are validated against allowedMediaSchemes; private-network
+// targets are not blocked here because callers (PublicReader, XPublicReader)
+// only pass URLs scraped from Telegram/Nitter responses.
+func downloadHTTPMedia(ctx context.Context, cache *MediaCache, tag, rawURL string) (protocol.MediaMeta, bool) {
+	if cache == nil || rawURL == "" {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	parsed, err := url.Parse(rawURL)
+	if err != nil || !allowedMediaSchemes[parsed.Scheme] {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	// Cache key is the canonical URL — image-link rotation on the upstream
+	// side will create a fresh entry, but identical URLs across fetches will
+	// just refresh TTL.
+	cacheKey := tag + ":url:" + parsed.String()
+	if meta, ok := cache.Lookup(cacheKey); ok {
+		return meta, true
+	}
+
+	req, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(ctx, http.MethodGet, parsed.String(), nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	req.Header.Set("User-Agent", "Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; thefeed/1.0)")
+	req.Header.Set("Accept", "image/*, application/octet-stream;q=0.9, */*;q=0.5")
+
+	resp, err := httpMediaClient.Do(req)
+	if err != nil {
+		logfMedia("[media-http] %s: request failed: %v", parsed.String(), err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	defer resp.Body.Close()
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusOK {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	// Defense in depth: reject HTML/XHTML responses outright. Telegram's
+	// public web view sometimes redirects "file" links to the channel page
+	// itself; without this check we'd happily cache the channel's HTML as
+	// the user's downloadable file.
+	ctype := strings.ToLower(strings.TrimSpace(strings.Split(resp.Header.Get("Content-Type"), ";")[0]))
+	if ctype == "text/html" || ctype == "application/xhtml+xml" {
+		logfMedia("[media-http] %s: refusing HTML response (got %s)", parsed.String(), ctype)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	maxBytes := cache.maxFileBytes
+	if maxBytes > 0 && resp.ContentLength > 0 && resp.ContentLength > maxBytes {
+		size := resp.ContentLength
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{
+			Tag:          tag,
+			Size:         size,
+			Downloadable: false,
+		}, true
+	}
+
+	limit := int64(-1)
+	if maxBytes > 0 {
+		limit = maxBytes + 1 // +1 to detect overflow vs exact match
+	}
+	var body io.Reader = resp.Body
+	if limit > 0 {
+		body = io.LimitReader(resp.Body, limit)
+	}
+	bytes, err := io.ReadAll(body)
+	if err != nil {
+		logfMedia("[media-http] %s: read failed: %v", parsed.String(), err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	if maxBytes > 0 && int64(len(bytes)) > maxBytes {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{
+			Tag:          tag,
+			Size:         int64(len(bytes)),
+			Downloadable: false,
+		}, true
+	}
+
+	meta, err := cache.Store(cacheKey, tag, bytes, resp.Header.Get("Content-Type"), urlBaseName(parsed))
+	if err != nil {
+		if errors.Is(err, ErrTooLarge) {
+			return meta, true
+		}
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	return meta, true
+}
+
+// urlBaseName returns the trailing path segment, stripped of its query, as a
+// best-effort filename for HTTP layer Content-Disposition headers.
+func urlBaseName(u *url.URL) string {
+	if u == nil {
+		return ""
+	}
+	base := path.Base(u.Path)
+	if base == "" || base == "/" || base == "." {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if i := strings.IndexByte(base, '?'); i >= 0 {
+		base = base[:i]
+	}
+	return base
+}

internal/server/media_integration_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,298 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"context"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesEndToEnd wires a fake upstream HTTP image server,
+// runs applyHTTPMediaSources against it, and verifies the message body now
+// carries downloadable metadata that ParseMediaText can read back. Then it
+// fetches a block out of the resulting MediaCache to confirm the bytes were
+// stored correctly.
+func TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesEndToEnd(t *testing.T) {
+	imageBytes := []byte("fake-image-bytes-payload-1234567890")
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "image/png")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		w.Write(imageBytes)
+	}))
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{MaxFileBytes: 1 << 20, TTL: time.Hour})
+
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{
+		{ID: 100, Timestamp: 1, Text: protocol.MediaImage + "\nhello"},
+	}
+	sources := []mediaSource{{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: srv.URL + "/photo.png"}}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+	applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+
+	meta, caption, ok := protocol.ParseMediaText(msgs[0].Text)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText ok=false on rewritten message: %q", msgs[0].Text)
+	}
+	if !meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("expected downloadable meta, got %+v (text=%q)", meta, msgs[0].Text)
+	}
+	if meta.Tag != protocol.MediaImage {
+		t.Fatalf("Tag = %q, want %q", meta.Tag, protocol.MediaImage)
+	}
+	if meta.Size != int64(len(imageBytes)) {
+		t.Fatalf("Size = %d, want %d", meta.Size, len(imageBytes))
+	}
+	if caption != "hello" {
+		t.Fatalf("caption = %q, want %q", caption, "hello")
+	}
+
+	// Block 0 starts with the 4-byte CRC32 prefix; subsequent blocks are
+	// raw content.
+	var got []byte
+	for blk := uint16(0); blk < meta.Blocks; blk++ {
+		b, err := cache.GetBlock(meta.Channel, blk)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("GetBlock(%d, %d): %v", meta.Channel, blk, err)
+		}
+		got = append(got, b...)
+	}
+	if len(got) < protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+		t.Fatalf("block 0 too short: %d", len(got))
+	}
+	hdr, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(got[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("DecodeMediaBlockHeader: %v", err)
+	}
+	if hdr.CRC32 != meta.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("header CRC = %x, want %x", hdr.CRC32, meta.CRC32)
+	}
+	if string(got[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:]) != string(imageBytes) {
+		t.Fatalf("reassembled bytes differ:\n  got:  %q\n  want: %q", got[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:], imageBytes)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesGzipRoundTrip: with --media-compression=gzip,
+// a successful upstream fetch lands compressed blocks in the cache. A
+// client decompressing the assembled blocks recovers the original bytes
+// verbatim and the embedded CRC32 matches.
+func TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesGzipRoundTrip(t *testing.T) {
+	imageBytes := bytes.Repeat([]byte("compressible-stripe "), 300)
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "image/png")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		w.Write(imageBytes)
+	}))
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{
+		MaxFileBytes: 1 << 20,
+		TTL:          time.Hour,
+		Compression:  protocol.MediaCompressionGzip,
+	})
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{{ID: 100, Timestamp: 1, Text: protocol.MediaImage + "\n"}}
+	sources := []mediaSource{{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: srv.URL + "/big.png"}}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+	applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+
+	meta, _, ok := protocol.ParseMediaText(msgs[0].Text)
+	if !ok || !meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("expected downloadable meta, got %+v", meta)
+	}
+
+	var got []byte
+	for blk := uint16(0); blk < meta.Blocks; blk++ {
+		b, err := cache.GetBlock(meta.Channel, blk)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("GetBlock: %v", err)
+		}
+		got = append(got, b...)
+	}
+	hdr, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(got[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("DecodeMediaBlockHeader: %v", err)
+	}
+	if hdr.Compression != protocol.MediaCompressionGzip {
+		t.Fatalf("compression = %v, want gzip", hdr.Compression)
+	}
+	if hdr.CRC32 != meta.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("header CRC = %x, want %x", hdr.CRC32, meta.CRC32)
+	}
+	rc, err := DecompressMediaBytes(bytes.NewReader(got[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:]), hdr.Compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decompress: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer rc.Close()
+	out, err := io.ReadAll(rc)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read all: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(out, imageBytes) {
+		t.Fatalf("decompressed differs from upstream")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesAlbum: when src.extraURLs is populated (public-mode
+// album), every URL is fetched and the canonical body is rebuilt with N
+// stacked downloadable headers + the original caption. The frontend then
+// renders an N-card album.
+func TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesAlbum(t *testing.T) {
+	images := [][]byte{
+		[]byte("first-image-bytes-XXXXXX"),
+		[]byte("second-image-bytes-YYYYY"),
+		[]byte("third-image-bytes-ZZZZZZ"),
+	}
+	served := 0
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "image/jpeg")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		// Path looks like /img-N.jpg → pick the matching slice.
+		switch r.URL.Path {
+		case "/img1.jpg":
+			w.Write(images[0])
+		case "/img2.jpg":
+			w.Write(images[1])
+		case "/img3.jpg":
+			w.Write(images[2])
+		}
+		served++
+	}))
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{MaxFileBytes: 1 << 20, TTL: time.Hour})
+
+	// Mirror what parsePublicMessagesWithMedia produces for a 3-image album:
+	// stacked [IMAGE] headers + caption, plus an extraURLs slice on the source.
+	body := protocol.MediaImage + "\n" + protocol.MediaImage + "\n" + protocol.MediaImage + "\nalbum caption"
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{{ID: 5, Timestamp: 1, Text: body}}
+	sources := []mediaSource{{
+		tag:       protocol.MediaImage,
+		url:       srv.URL + "/img1.jpg",
+		extraURLs: []string{srv.URL + "/img2.jpg", srv.URL + "/img3.jpg"},
+	}}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+	applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+
+	if served != 3 {
+		t.Errorf("served = %d, want 3 upstream fetches", served)
+	}
+
+	// Rewritten body must have exactly 3 [IMAGE]<size>:1:... headers and
+	// the original caption preserved on the trailing line.
+	got := msgs[0].Text
+	headerCount := strings.Count(got, protocol.MediaImage)
+	if headerCount != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("header count = %d, want 3 (text=%q)", headerCount, got)
+	}
+	if !strings.HasSuffix(got, "\nalbum caption") {
+		t.Errorf("caption not preserved: %q", got)
+	}
+
+	// Each header must round-trip through ParseMediaText with downloadable=true.
+	rest := got
+	for i := 0; i < 3; i++ {
+		meta, c, ok := protocol.ParseMediaText(rest)
+		if !ok {
+			t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText #%d ok=false on %q", i, rest)
+		}
+		if !meta.Downloadable {
+			t.Errorf("header #%d not downloadable: %+v", i, meta)
+		}
+		if int(meta.Size) != len(images[i]) {
+			t.Errorf("header #%d size = %d, want %d", i, meta.Size, len(images[i]))
+		}
+		rest = c
+	}
+	if rest != "album caption" {
+		t.Errorf("trailing caption = %q, want %q", rest, "album caption")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesAlbumPartialFailure: when one upstream fetch
+// fails we still emit a placeholder [TAG] for that slot so the album's
+// ID-span (= number of leading headers) is preserved. The remaining items
+// stay downloadable.
+func TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesAlbumPartialFailure(t *testing.T) {
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		if r.URL.Path == "/broken.jpg" {
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusInternalServerError)
+			return
+		}
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "image/jpeg")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		w.Write([]byte("ok-image"))
+	}))
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{MaxFileBytes: 1 << 20, TTL: time.Hour})
+
+	body := protocol.MediaImage + "\n" + protocol.MediaImage + "\ncap"
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{{ID: 5, Timestamp: 1, Text: body}}
+	sources := []mediaSource{{
+		tag:       protocol.MediaImage,
+		url:       srv.URL + "/ok.jpg",
+		extraURLs: []string{srv.URL + "/broken.jpg"},
+	}}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+	applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+
+	got := msgs[0].Text
+	if c := strings.Count(got, protocol.MediaImage); c != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("header count = %d, want 2 (text=%q)", c, got)
+	}
+	// First should be downloadable; last line is the broken-fallback bare tag
+	// followed by the caption.
+	if !strings.HasSuffix(got, "\n"+protocol.MediaImage+"\ncap") {
+		t.Errorf("expected placeholder + caption tail, got %q", got)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesRejectsOversize: a too-large file leaves the
+// message text untouched but still records the entry as "metadata only" with
+// downloadable=false so the UI can show the size without offering the button.
+func TestApplyHTTPMediaSourcesRejectsOversize(t *testing.T) {
+	bigBody := strings.Repeat("X", 1024)
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Length", "1024")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		w.Write([]byte(bigBody))
+	}))
+	defer srv.Close()
+
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{MaxFileBytes: 100, TTL: time.Hour})
+	msgs := []protocol.Message{{ID: 1, Timestamp: 1, Text: protocol.MediaImage + "\ncap"}}
+	sources := []mediaSource{{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: srv.URL + "/big.jpg"}}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 5*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+	applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+
+	meta, _, ok := protocol.ParseMediaText(msgs[0].Text)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText ok=false")
+	}
+	if meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("oversized file should not be downloadable; got meta=%+v", meta)
+	}
+	if meta.Size != int64(len(bigBody)) {
+		t.Fatalf("Size = %d, want %d (server should still surface the size)", meta.Size, len(bigBody))
+	}
+	stats := cache.Stats()
+	if stats.Entries != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("oversized file should not occupy a cache slot, got entries=%d", stats.Entries)
+	}
+}

internal/server/media_log.go

@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"log"
+	"sync/atomic"
+)
+
+// mediaDebugLogs gates verbose media-cache log output. Server.Run flips it
+// based on the --debug flag at startup. Atomic so other goroutines reading
+// the value while logging don't need a mutex.
+var mediaDebugLogs atomic.Bool
+
+// SetMediaDebugLogs enables or disables the media debug log channel.
+func SetMediaDebugLogs(enabled bool) {
+	mediaDebugLogs.Store(enabled)
+}
+
+// logfMedia prints a media-feature log line only when debug logging is on.
+// Errors that operators should always see go through plain log.Printf
+// directly; logfMedia is reserved for the chatty per-store / per-cache-hit
+// chatter.
+func logfMedia(format string, args ...interface{}) {
+	if !mediaDebugLogs.Load() {
+		return
+	}
+	log.Printf("[media-debug] "+format, args...)
+}

internal/server/media_telegram.go

@@ -0,0 +1,321 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"strconv"
+
+	"github.com/gotd/td/tg"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// telegramMediaDownloadChunk is the per-RPC chunk size used by UploadGetFile.
+// MTProto requires Limit to be a multiple of 4KB and ≤ 1MB; 256KB is a good
+// trade-off between API call overhead and memory pressure for tiny files.
+const telegramMediaDownloadChunk = 256 * 1024
+
+// telegramMediaPhotoSizeOrder lists Telegram photo size codes from smallest
+// to largest. The downloader picks the smallest *usable* size — for a
+// DNS-tunnelled feed, bandwidth is precious and a thumbnail is usually
+// enough for the user to decide whether to look at the original. The
+// "stripped" placeholder type is filtered out separately because it is not
+// a real renderable image.
+//
+//	a / b — tiny (≤ 100px)
+//	c     — small chat preview
+//	m     — medium
+//	s     — small (legacy)
+//	x     — high-quality
+//	y / w — original / largest
+var telegramMediaPhotoSizeOrder = []string{"a", "b", "c", "m", "s", "x", "y", "w"}
+
+// downloadTelegramMedia fetches and caches media for a Telegram message. It
+// returns the metadata that should be embedded in the message body, or an
+// empty MediaMeta with ok=false to fall through to the legacy [TAG] path.
+//
+// The function is best-effort: any error (download failure, oversized file,
+// missing download API) is logged once and the message is returned without
+// downloadable metadata so the rest of the feed isn't blocked. The caller
+// is responsible for substituting EncodeMediaText into the message body.
+func (tr *TelegramReader) downloadTelegramMedia(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, msg *tg.Message) (protocol.MediaMeta, bool) {
+	if api == nil || msg == nil || msg.Media == nil {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	cache := tr.feed.MediaCache()
+	if cache == nil {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	switch m := msg.Media.(type) {
+	case *tg.MessageMediaPhoto:
+		photo, ok := m.Photo.(*tg.Photo)
+		if !ok {
+			return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+		}
+		return tr.downloadTelegramPhoto(ctx, api, cache, photo)
+	case *tg.MessageMediaDocument:
+		doc, ok := m.Document.(*tg.Document)
+		if !ok {
+			return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+		}
+		return tr.downloadTelegramDocument(ctx, api, cache, doc)
+	}
+	return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+}
+
+func (tr *TelegramReader) downloadTelegramPhoto(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, cache *MediaCache, photo *tg.Photo) (protocol.MediaMeta, bool) {
+	cacheKey := "tg-photo:" + strconv.FormatInt(photo.ID, 10)
+
+	// Hit the cache before doing any I/O — exact dedup, no bytes transferred.
+	if meta, ok := cache.Lookup(cacheKey); ok {
+		return meta, true
+	}
+
+	bestType, bestBytes := pickSmallestPhotoSize(photo.Sizes)
+	if bestType == "" {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	// Honour the configured max-size early so we don't even open the RPC for
+	// objects we'll just throw away.
+	if maxBytes := cache.maxFileBytes; maxBytes > 0 && bestBytes > maxBytes {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{
+			Tag:          protocol.MediaImage,
+			Size:         bestBytes,
+			Downloadable: false,
+		}, true
+	}
+
+	loc := &tg.InputPhotoFileLocation{
+		ID:            photo.ID,
+		AccessHash:    photo.AccessHash,
+		FileReference: photo.FileReference,
+		ThumbSize:     bestType,
+	}
+	bytes, err := tr.downloadTelegramFile(ctx, api, loc, bestBytes)
+	if err != nil {
+		// Transient fetch error (network, FILE_REFERENCE_EXPIRED, etc.).
+		// We don't mark the message as non-downloadable in that case —
+		// "non-downloadable" means "the file exists but the server chose
+		// not to cache it" (i.e. oversized). Falling through to legacy
+		// keeps the UI honest, and the next 10-min refresh cycle re-tries.
+		tr.logMediaError("photo", photo.ID, err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	meta, err := cache.Store(cacheKey, protocol.MediaImage, bytes, "image/jpeg", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		// ErrTooLarge is reported as non-downloadable; any other store error
+		// is just dropped to legacy.
+		if errors.Is(err, ErrTooLarge) {
+			return meta, true
+		}
+		tr.logMediaError("photo", photo.ID, err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	return meta, true
+}
+
+func (tr *TelegramReader) downloadTelegramDocument(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, cache *MediaCache, doc *tg.Document) (protocol.MediaMeta, bool) {
+	cacheKey := "tg-doc:" + strconv.FormatInt(doc.ID, 10)
+	if meta, ok := cache.Lookup(cacheKey); ok {
+		return meta, true
+	}
+
+	tag, filename := classifyDocumentTagAndName(doc)
+	if tag == protocol.MediaSticker {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	if maxBytes := cache.maxFileBytes; maxBytes > 0 && doc.Size > maxBytes {
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{
+			Tag:          tag,
+			Size:         doc.Size,
+			Downloadable: false,
+		}, true
+	}
+
+	loc := &tg.InputDocumentFileLocation{
+		ID:            doc.ID,
+		AccessHash:    doc.AccessHash,
+		FileReference: doc.FileReference,
+		ThumbSize:     "",
+	}
+	bytes, err := tr.downloadTelegramFile(ctx, api, loc, doc.Size)
+	if err != nil {
+		// See note in downloadTelegramPhoto: transient fetch errors should
+		// not be surfaced as "non-downloadable", they should fall through
+		// to legacy [TAG]\ncaption rendering and let the next refresh retry.
+		tr.logMediaError("doc", doc.ID, err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+
+	meta, err := cache.Store(cacheKey, tag, bytes, doc.MimeType, filename)
+	if err != nil {
+		if errors.Is(err, ErrTooLarge) {
+			return meta, true
+		}
+		tr.logMediaError("doc", doc.ID, err)
+		return protocol.MediaMeta{}, false
+	}
+	return meta, true
+}
+
+// downloadTelegramFile downloads `expectedSize` bytes (or all available bytes
+// when expectedSize <= 0) from the given Telegram file location. It enforces
+// the configured max-size cap defensively so a file that lies about its size
+// still can't blow past the limit on the wire.
+func (tr *TelegramReader) downloadTelegramFile(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, loc tg.InputFileLocationClass, expectedSize int64) ([]byte, error) {
+	cache := tr.feed.MediaCache()
+	maxBytes := int64(0)
+	if cache != nil {
+		maxBytes = cache.maxFileBytes
+	}
+
+	var (
+		out    []byte
+		offset int64
+	)
+	for {
+		if ctx.Err() != nil {
+			return nil, ctx.Err()
+		}
+		req := &tg.UploadGetFileRequest{
+			Location: loc,
+			Offset:   offset,
+			Limit:    telegramMediaDownloadChunk,
+		}
+		res, err := api.UploadGetFile(ctx, req)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("upload.getFile offset=%d: %w", offset, err)
+		}
+		fileRes, ok := res.(*tg.UploadFile)
+		if !ok {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("unexpected upload response type %T", res)
+		}
+		if len(fileRes.Bytes) == 0 {
+			break
+		}
+		out = append(out, fileRes.Bytes...)
+		offset += int64(len(fileRes.Bytes))
+
+		// Hard guard against runaway downloads.
+		if maxBytes > 0 && int64(len(out)) > maxBytes {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("download exceeded configured max-size (%d > %d)", len(out), maxBytes)
+		}
+
+		// We consider the transfer complete when the server returned less than
+		// the requested chunk (canonical EOF) or we've reached the expected size.
+		if len(fileRes.Bytes) < telegramMediaDownloadChunk {
+			break
+		}
+		if expectedSize > 0 && int64(len(out)) >= expectedSize {
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	return out, nil
+}
+
+// pickSmallestPhotoSize returns the smallest usable size in a Telegram
+// Photo as (type-code, byte-size). DNS-tunnelled bandwidth is precious, so
+// we prefer a small chat-preview thumbnail over the full-resolution
+// original whenever Telegram offers both. Returns empty type when no usable
+// size is available (e.g. only stripped placeholder thumbs).
+func pickSmallestPhotoSize(sizes []tg.PhotoSizeClass) (string, int64) {
+	type candidate struct {
+		typ  string
+		size int64
+	}
+	var pool []candidate
+	add := func(typ string, size int64) {
+		if typ == "" {
+			return
+		}
+		pool = append(pool, candidate{typ: typ, size: size})
+	}
+	for _, s := range sizes {
+		switch v := s.(type) {
+		case *tg.PhotoSize:
+			add(v.Type, int64(v.Size))
+		case *tg.PhotoCachedSize:
+			add(v.Type, int64(len(v.Bytes)))
+		case *tg.PhotoSizeProgressive:
+			// Progressive carries a slice of progressive sizes; the FIRST
+			// element is the smallest progressive prefix the server can
+			// stream, which suits "smallest usable" perfectly.
+			if len(v.Sizes) > 0 {
+				add(v.Type, int64(v.Sizes[0]))
+			} else {
+				add(v.Type, 0)
+			}
+		case *tg.PhotoStrippedSize:
+			// Stripped sizes are tiny placeholder thumbs — skip.
+		}
+	}
+	if len(pool) == 0 {
+		return "", 0
+	}
+
+	// Prefer the entry with the smallest declared byte size; break ties
+	// using the type-code preference order (smallest first). When the
+	// declared size is 0 (unknown), the type code alone decides the order.
+	rank := make(map[string]int, len(telegramMediaPhotoSizeOrder))
+	for i, t := range telegramMediaPhotoSizeOrder {
+		rank[t] = i
+	}
+	bestIdx := -1
+	for i, c := range pool {
+		if bestIdx < 0 {
+			bestIdx = i
+			continue
+		}
+		b := pool[bestIdx]
+		// Prefer a strictly smaller known size.
+		if c.size > 0 && b.size > 0 {
+			if c.size < b.size {
+				bestIdx = i
+				continue
+			}
+			if c.size == b.size && rank[c.typ] < rank[b.typ] {
+				bestIdx = i
+			}
+			continue
+		}
+		// One of them has unknown size — fall back to type-code rank.
+		if rank[c.typ] < rank[b.typ] {
+			bestIdx = i
+		}
+	}
+	chosen := pool[bestIdx]
+	return chosen.typ, chosen.size
+}
+
+// classifyDocumentTagAndName returns the protocol media tag and best-effort
+// filename for a Telegram Document. The tag mirrors classifyDocument's logic
+// but also exposes the filename attribute so the HTTP layer can offer a
+// reasonable Content-Disposition.
+func classifyDocumentTagAndName(doc *tg.Document) (string, string) {
+	tag := protocol.MediaFile
+	filename := ""
+	for _, attr := range doc.Attributes {
+		switch a := attr.(type) {
+		case *tg.DocumentAttributeVideo:
+			tag = protocol.MediaVideo
+		case *tg.DocumentAttributeAudio:
+			tag = protocol.MediaAudio
+		case *tg.DocumentAttributeSticker:
+			tag = protocol.MediaSticker
+		case *tg.DocumentAttributeAnimated:
+			tag = protocol.MediaGIF
+		case *tg.DocumentAttributeFilename:
+			filename = a.FileName
+		}
+	}
+	return tag, filename
+}
+
+func (tr *TelegramReader) logMediaError(kind string, id int64, err error) {
+	// Best-effort log; the receiver's package log is fine for now.
+	logfMedia("[telegram] media %s id=%d download failed: %v", kind, id, err)
+}

internal/server/media_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,307 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"errors"
+	"hash/crc32"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+func newTestCache(maxBytes int64, ttl time.Duration) *MediaCache {
+	return NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{MaxFileBytes: maxBytes, TTL: ttl})
+}
+
+func TestMediaCacheStoreAndGetBlock(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(1<<20, time.Hour)
+	content := bytes.Repeat([]byte("ab"), 1000) // 2000 bytes — multiple blocks
+
+	meta, err := cache.Store("key1", protocol.MediaImage, content, "image/jpeg", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !meta.Downloadable {
+		t.Fatalf("Downloadable = false, want true")
+	}
+	if !protocol.IsMediaChannel(meta.Channel) {
+		t.Fatalf("Channel %d not in media range", meta.Channel)
+	}
+	if meta.Size != int64(len(content)) {
+		t.Fatalf("Size = %d, want %d", meta.Size, len(content))
+	}
+	if meta.CRC32 != crc32.ChecksumIEEE(content) {
+		t.Fatalf("CRC32 mismatch")
+	}
+	if meta.Blocks == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("Blocks should be > 0")
+	}
+
+	// Reassemble: block 0 begins with the protocol media header, then comes
+	// the (compression-default = none) bytes which equal the original.
+	var got []byte
+	for blk := uint16(0); blk < meta.Blocks; blk++ {
+		b, err := cache.GetBlock(meta.Channel, blk)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("GetBlock(%d, %d): %v", meta.Channel, blk, err)
+		}
+		got = append(got, b...)
+	}
+	if len(got) < protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+		t.Fatalf("assembled bytes too short: %d", len(got))
+	}
+	hdr, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(got[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("DecodeMediaBlockHeader: %v", err)
+	}
+	if hdr.CRC32 != meta.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("header CRC = %x, want %x", hdr.CRC32, meta.CRC32)
+	}
+	if hdr.Compression != protocol.MediaCompressionNone {
+		t.Fatalf("header compression = %v, want none", hdr.Compression)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(got[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:], content) {
+		t.Fatalf("reassembled bytes differ: got %d, want %d", len(got)-protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen, len(content))
+	}
+}
+
+// TestMediaCacheStoreGzip exercises the compressed wire path: bytes after
+// the header are gzip-compressed and DecompressMediaBytes reproduces the
+// original.
+func TestMediaCacheStoreGzip(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{
+		MaxFileBytes: 1 << 20,
+		TTL:          time.Hour,
+		Compression:  protocol.MediaCompressionGzip,
+	})
+	content := bytes.Repeat([]byte("compress-me "), 200)
+
+	meta, err := cache.Store("gz", protocol.MediaFile, content, "text/plain", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	var got []byte
+	for blk := uint16(0); blk < meta.Blocks; blk++ {
+		b, err := cache.GetBlock(meta.Channel, blk)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("GetBlock(%d, %d): %v", meta.Channel, blk, err)
+		}
+		got = append(got, b...)
+	}
+	hdr, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(got[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("DecodeMediaBlockHeader: %v", err)
+	}
+	if hdr.Compression != protocol.MediaCompressionGzip {
+		t.Fatalf("compression = %v, want gzip", hdr.Compression)
+	}
+	body, err := DecompressMediaBytes(bytes.NewReader(got[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:]), hdr.Compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("decompress: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer body.Close()
+	decompressed := new(bytes.Buffer)
+	if _, err := decompressed.ReadFrom(body); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read decompressed: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !bytes.Equal(decompressed.Bytes(), content) {
+		t.Fatalf("decompressed differs from original")
+	}
+	if crc32.ChecksumIEEE(decompressed.Bytes()) != hdr.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("header CRC %x doesn't match decompressed CRC %x", hdr.CRC32, crc32.ChecksumIEEE(decompressed.Bytes()))
+	}
+}
+
+// Storing the same key with the same content should refresh TTL but reuse
+// the existing channel — this is the "every 10 min refresh" deduplication
+// path called out in the spec.
+func TestMediaCacheDedup(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, time.Hour)
+	content := []byte("hello")
+	meta1, err := cache.Store("dup", protocol.MediaImage, content, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("first Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	stats1 := cache.Stats()
+	meta2, err := cache.Store("dup", protocol.MediaImage, content, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("second Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	if meta1.Channel != meta2.Channel {
+		t.Fatalf("dedup: channel changed (%d → %d)", meta1.Channel, meta2.Channel)
+	}
+	stats2 := cache.Stats()
+	if stats2.StoreHits != stats1.StoreHits+1 {
+		t.Fatalf("StoreHits did not increment: %d → %d", stats1.StoreHits, stats2.StoreHits)
+	}
+	if stats2.StoreMisses != stats1.StoreMisses {
+		t.Fatalf("StoreMisses changed unexpectedly")
+	}
+}
+
+// Cross-key dedup: identical bytes arriving under a different upstream id
+// must reuse the existing cache slot, refresh the TTL, and not consume a
+// fresh channel — this is the behaviour the spec calls out.
+func TestMediaCacheCrossKeyDedup(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, time.Hour)
+	content := []byte("the same bytes under different keys")
+	m1, err := cache.Store("key-A", protocol.MediaImage, content, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("first Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	statsBefore := cache.Stats()
+
+	m2, err := cache.Store("key-B-different", protocol.MediaImage, content, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("second Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	if m1.Channel != m2.Channel {
+		t.Fatalf("cross-key dedup: channel changed (%d -> %d)", m1.Channel, m2.Channel)
+	}
+	statsAfter := cache.Stats()
+	if statsAfter.Entries != statsBefore.Entries {
+		t.Fatalf("cross-key dedup: entries grew %d -> %d (should reuse slot)", statsBefore.Entries, statsAfter.Entries)
+	}
+	if statsAfter.StoreHits != statsBefore.StoreHits+1 {
+		t.Fatalf("StoreHits should have incremented")
+	}
+
+	// Lookup under either key returns the same entry.
+	if meta, ok := cache.Lookup("key-A"); !ok || meta.Channel != m1.Channel {
+		t.Fatalf("Lookup(key-A) failed: ok=%v meta=%+v", ok, meta)
+	}
+	if meta, ok := cache.Lookup("key-B-different"); !ok || meta.Channel != m1.Channel {
+		t.Fatalf("Lookup(key-B-different) failed: ok=%v meta=%+v", ok, meta)
+	}
+}
+
+// Same key with different bytes (e.g. a Telegram edit) must replace the
+// stored content and produce a new channel.
+func TestMediaCacheKeyReplaceOnContentChange(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, time.Hour)
+	first := []byte("first content")
+	second := []byte("second content (different)")
+
+	m1, err := cache.Store("k", protocol.MediaImage, first, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("first Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	m2, err := cache.Store("k", protocol.MediaImage, second, "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("second Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	if m1.CRC32 == m2.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("CRC32 should differ for different content")
+	}
+	// Verify GetBlock on m1.Channel either succeeds with NEW bytes (channel
+	// reuse) or fails entirely — never returns the OLD bytes. Block 0
+	// begins with the protocol header whose CRC field identifies which
+	// content the slot is currently serving.
+	if blk, err := cache.GetBlock(m1.Channel, 0); err == nil {
+		if len(blk) >= protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+			if hdr, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(blk[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen]); err == nil && hdr.CRC32 == m1.CRC32 {
+				t.Fatalf("GetBlock returned stale (first) bytes after content change")
+			}
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMediaCacheRejectsOversizeFile(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(100, time.Hour)
+	_, err := cache.Store("big", protocol.MediaFile, bytes.Repeat([]byte("x"), 200), "", "")
+	if !errors.Is(err, ErrTooLarge) {
+		t.Fatalf("err = %v, want ErrTooLarge", err)
+	}
+	stats := cache.Stats()
+	if stats.StoreRejected != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("StoreRejected = %d, want 1", stats.StoreRejected)
+	}
+	if stats.Entries != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("Entries = %d, want 0", stats.Entries)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMediaCacheGetBlockOutOfRange(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, time.Hour)
+	_, err := cache.GetBlock(protocol.MediaChannelStart, 0)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected error for unknown channel")
+	}
+	_, err = cache.GetBlock(0, 0)
+	if err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "outside media range") {
+		t.Fatalf("expected media-range error, got %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMediaCacheSweepEvictsExpired(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, 10*time.Millisecond)
+	_, err := cache.Store("k", protocol.MediaFile, []byte("data"), "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	if cache.Stats().Entries != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("Entries = %d, want 1", cache.Stats().Entries)
+	}
+	time.Sleep(20 * time.Millisecond)
+	if n := cache.Sweep(); n != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("Sweep evicted %d, want 1", n)
+	}
+	if cache.Stats().Entries != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("Entries after sweep = %d, want 0", cache.Stats().Entries)
+	}
+}
+
+// Allocator: when the next-hint slot is taken but expired, that slot is
+// reclaimed instead of skipped.
+func TestMediaCacheReclaimsExpiredSlot(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, 10*time.Millisecond)
+	m1, err := cache.Store("a", protocol.MediaFile, []byte("aaa"), "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store a: %v", err)
+	}
+	time.Sleep(20 * time.Millisecond)
+	// Force the allocator's nextChannel back to m1.Channel by storing keys
+	// until we wrap is impractical, but we know the next hint is m1.Channel+1.
+	// Triggering a Store with the expired slot in the way of the linear scan
+	// proves it's reclaimed and the new entry fits.
+	m2, err := cache.Store("b", protocol.MediaFile, []byte("bbb"), "", "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store b: %v", err)
+	}
+	if m2.Channel == m1.Channel {
+		t.Logf("note: reused expired slot at ch %d (expected when nextChannel wraps)", m2.Channel)
+	}
+	stats := cache.Stats()
+	if stats.Entries != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("Entries = %d, want 1 (the old expired entry should be gone)", stats.Entries)
+	}
+}
+
+// Round-trip with the wire-format encoder: a cache entry's metadata, when
+// embedded in a message, can be parsed back to recover the same channel and
+// hash a client would download.
+func TestMediaCacheMetadataRoundTrip(t *testing.T) {
+	cache := newTestCache(0, time.Hour)
+	content := []byte("round trip content")
+	meta, err := cache.Store("rt", protocol.MediaImage, content, "image/png", "pic.png")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Store: %v", err)
+	}
+	body := protocol.EncodeMediaText(meta, "look at this")
+	parsed, caption, ok := protocol.ParseMediaText(body)
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("ParseMediaText ok=false")
+	}
+	if parsed.Channel != meta.Channel {
+		t.Fatalf("Channel: parsed %d, stored %d", parsed.Channel, meta.Channel)
+	}
+	if parsed.CRC32 != meta.CRC32 {
+		t.Fatalf("CRC32 mismatch")
+	}
+	if caption != "look at this" {
+		t.Fatalf("caption = %q", caption)
+	}
+}

internal/server/public.go

@@ -172,13 +172,79 @@ func (pr *PublicReader) fetchChannel(ctx context.Context, username string) ([]pr
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, "", err
 	}
-	msgs, err := parsePublicMessages(body)
+	msgs, sources, err := parsePublicMessagesWithMedia(body)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, "", err
 	}
+	// If the server has a configured media cache, fetch each scraped image
+	// URL and rewrite the corresponding message text to embed downloadable
+	// metadata. Failures here are best-effort: messages keep their legacy
+	// "[IMAGE]\ncaption" body when downloads don't succeed.
+	if cache := pr.feed.MediaCache(); cache != nil {
+		applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, msgs, sources)
+	}
 	return msgs, extractChannelTitle(body), nil
 }
 
+// applyHTTPMediaSources downloads each src.url (+ extraURLs for albums) and
+// rewrites the matching message body with N stacked downloadable metadata
+// lines. Failed downloads emit a bare [TAG] so the album's ID span is
+// preserved.
+func applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx context.Context, cache *MediaCache, msgs []protocol.Message, sources []mediaSource) {
+	for i := range msgs {
+		if i >= len(sources) {
+			break
+		}
+		src := sources[i]
+		if src.url == "" || src.tag == "" {
+			continue
+		}
+		// Strip every leading [TAG] header so we can re-emit clean metadata
+		// (ParseMediaText only peels one tag per call).
+		body := msgs[i].Text
+		for {
+			_, rest, parsed := protocol.ParseMediaText(body)
+			if !parsed {
+				break
+			}
+			body = rest
+		}
+		caption := body
+
+		urls := append([]string{src.url}, src.extraURLs...)
+		var encoded strings.Builder
+		downloaded := 0
+		for j, u := range urls {
+			meta, ok := downloadHTTPMedia(ctx, cache, src.tag, u)
+			if j > 0 {
+				encoded.WriteByte('\n')
+			}
+			if !ok {
+				encoded.WriteString(src.tag)
+				continue
+			}
+			downloaded++
+			encoded.WriteString(strings.TrimSuffix(meta.String(), "\n"))
+		}
+		if downloaded == 0 {
+			continue
+		}
+		newText := encoded.String()
+		if caption != "" {
+			newText += "\n" + caption
+		}
+		msgs[i].Text = newText
+	}
+}
+
+// mediaSource is the per-message media descriptor returned by the public
+// scraper. extraURLs holds additional album siblings; url is the first one.
+type mediaSource struct {
+	tag       string
+	url       string
+	extraURLs []string
+}
+
 // extractChannelTitle parses the channel display name from the Telegram public page.
 func extractChannelTitle(body []byte) string {
 	doc, err := html.Parse(strings.NewReader(string(body)))
@@ -219,12 +285,27 @@ func mergeMessages(old, new []protocol.Message) []protocol.Message {
 }
 
 func parsePublicMessages(body []byte) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
+	msgs, _, err := parsePublicMessagesWithMedia(body)
+	return msgs, err
+}
+
+// parsePublicMessagesWithMedia is identical to parsePublicMessages but also
+// returns a per-message media descriptor — same length and ordering as the
+// returned messages — that callers can use to fetch the underlying photo or
+// document over HTTP and rewrite the message body. The legacy behaviour
+// (returning just messages) is preserved by parsePublicMessages above for
+// existing tests and pre-feature callers.
+func parsePublicMessagesWithMedia(body []byte) ([]protocol.Message, []mediaSource, error) {
 	doc, err := html.Parse(strings.NewReader(string(body)))
 	if err != nil {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("parse html: %w", err)
+		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("parse html: %w", err)
 	}
 
-	var collected []publicMessage
+	type collectedMsg struct {
+		msg publicMessage
+		src mediaSource
+	}
+	var collected []collectedMsg
 	visitNodes(doc, func(n *html.Node) {
 		post := attrValue(n, "data-post")
 		if post == "" {
@@ -235,17 +316,42 @@ func parsePublicMessages(body []byte) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
 			return
 		}
 		text := strings.TrimSpace(extractMessageText(findMessageBodyNode(n)))
+		var src mediaSource
 		mediaPrefix := ""
 		switch {
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap") != nil:
+			// Albums share one data-post block with N nested photo wraps.
+			// Stack N [IMAGE] headers so the client-side gap detector
+			// (albumSpan) doesn't flag the absorbed sibling IDs as missing.
+			photoWraps := findAllByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap")
+			if len(photoWraps) > 1 {
+				headers := make([]string, len(photoWraps))
+				for i := range headers {
+					headers[i] = protocol.MediaImage
+				}
+				mediaPrefix = strings.Join(headers, "\n")
+			} else {
 				mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaImage
+			}
+			src = mediaSource{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: extractBackgroundImageURL(photoWraps[0])}
+			for i := 1; i < len(photoWraps); i++ {
+				if u := extractBackgroundImageURL(photoWraps[i]); u != "" {
+					src.extraURLs = append(src.extraURLs, u)
+				}
+			}
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_video_player") != nil ||
 			findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_roundvideo_player") != nil:
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaVideo
+			// t.me/s/ does not serve real video bytes — the player anchor links
+			// to the channel page itself. Don't try to download.
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_sticker_wrap") != nil:
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaSticker
+			// Stickers are emitted as the legacy tag only; we don't cache or
+			// serve their bytes (animated/.tgs variants don't render inline
+			// in the browser anyway).
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_voice") != nil:
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaAudio
+			// Public web view doesn't expose voice file bytes either.
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_poll") != nil:
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaPoll
 			pollBody := extractPollData(n)
@@ -264,6 +370,10 @@ func parsePublicMessages(body []byte) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaContact
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "tgme_widget_message_document_wrap") != nil:
 			mediaPrefix = protocol.MediaFile
+			// In t.me/s/ the document link is a "view in Telegram" page link,
+			// not the file CDN — fetching it would download the channel HTML.
+			// Skip; documents are downloadable only when the server runs with
+			// a Telegram login (gotd UploadGetFile path).
 		case findFirstByClass(n, "message_media_not_supported") != nil:
 			// Telegram shows "Please open Telegram to view this post" for
 			// content the public web view can't render: polls/quizzes, but
@@ -294,26 +404,31 @@ func parsePublicMessages(body []byte) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
 				text = protocol.MediaReply + "\n" + text
 			}
 		}
-		collected = append(collected, publicMessage{
+		collected = append(collected, collectedMsg{
+			msg: publicMessage{
 				id:        id,
 				timestamp: extractMessageTimestamp(n),
 				text:      text,
+			},
+			src: src,
 		})
 	})
 
 	if len(collected) == 0 {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("no public messages found")
+		return nil, nil, fmt.Errorf("no public messages found")
 	}
 
 	sort.Slice(collected, func(i, j int) bool {
-		return collected[i].id > collected[j].id
+		return collected[i].msg.id > collected[j].msg.id
 	})
 
 	msgs := make([]protocol.Message, 0, len(collected))
-	for _, msg := range collected {
-		msgs = append(msgs, protocol.Message{ID: msg.id, Timestamp: msg.timestamp, Text: msg.text})
+	sources := make([]mediaSource, 0, len(collected))
+	for _, c := range collected {
+		msgs = append(msgs, protocol.Message{ID: c.msg.id, Timestamp: c.msg.timestamp, Text: c.msg.text})
+		sources = append(sources, c.src)
 	}
-	return msgs, nil
+	return msgs, sources, nil
 }
 
 func visitNodes(n *html.Node, fn func(*html.Node)) {
@@ -339,6 +454,17 @@ func findFirstByClass(n *html.Node, class string) *html.Node {
 	return found
 }
 
+// findAllByClass returns every descendant of n that carries the given class.
+func findAllByClass(n *html.Node, class string) []*html.Node {
+	var found []*html.Node
+	visitNodes(n, func(cur *html.Node) {
+		if hasClass(cur, class) {
+			found = append(found, cur)
+		}
+	})
+	return found
+}
+
 func hasClass(n *html.Node, class string) bool {
 	if n == nil || n.Type != html.ElementNode {
 		return false
@@ -578,3 +704,40 @@ func extractReplyID(replyNode *html.Node) uint32 {
 	}
 	return id
 }
+
+// extractBackgroundImageURL pulls the URL out of an inline
+// `style="background-image:url('...')"` attribute. Telegram's public photo
+// widget uses this pattern to render thumbnails — the URL points to the
+// CDN-hosted image and is the source we want to download. Returns an empty
+// string when the pattern is not present.
+func extractBackgroundImageURL(n *html.Node) string {
+	if n == nil {
+		return ""
+	}
+	style := attrValue(n, "style")
+	if style == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	idx := strings.Index(style, "background-image")
+	if idx < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	// Find url(...) after the property name.
+	rest := style[idx:]
+	open := strings.Index(rest, "url(")
+	if open < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	rest = rest[open+len("url("):]
+	close := strings.IndexByte(rest, ')')
+	if close < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	raw := strings.TrimSpace(rest[:close])
+	raw = strings.TrimPrefix(raw, "'")
+	raw = strings.TrimSuffix(raw, "'")
+	raw = strings.TrimPrefix(raw, "\"")
+	raw = strings.TrimSuffix(raw, "\"")
+	return raw
+}
+

internal/server/public_test.go

@@ -104,6 +104,76 @@ func TestMergeMessages(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestParsePublicMessagesAlbumStacksHeaders(t *testing.T) {
+	// Album = one data-post with N nested photo wraps. We must emit N
+	// stacked [IMAGE] headers so albumSpan suppresses the absorbed-sibling
+	// "1 missed" gap.
+	body := []byte(`
+		<html><body>
+		<div class="tgme_widget_message" data-post="testchan/210">
+			<a class="tgme_widget_message_date"><time datetime="2026-04-10T12:00:00+00:00"></time></a>
+			<a class="tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap" style="background-image:url('https://cdn.telegram.org/img1.jpg')"></a>
+			<a class="tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap" style="background-image:url('https://cdn.telegram.org/img2.jpg')"></a>
+			<a class="tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap" style="background-image:url('https://cdn.telegram.org/img3.jpg')"></a>
+			<div class="tgme_widget_message_text">album caption</div>
+		</div>
+		</body></html>
+	`)
+
+	msgs, sources, err := parsePublicMessagesWithMedia(body)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parsePublicMessagesWithMedia: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(msgs) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("len(msgs) = %d, want 1", len(msgs))
+	}
+	wantText := "[IMAGE]\n[IMAGE]\n[IMAGE]\nalbum caption"
+	if msgs[0].Text != wantText {
+		t.Fatalf("msgs[0].Text = %q, want %q", msgs[0].Text, wantText)
+	}
+	if len(sources) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("len(sources) = %d, want 1", len(sources))
+	}
+	src := sources[0]
+	if src.tag != protocol.MediaImage {
+		t.Errorf("src.tag = %q, want %q", src.tag, protocol.MediaImage)
+	}
+	if src.url != "https://cdn.telegram.org/img1.jpg" {
+		t.Errorf("src.url = %q, want first photo URL", src.url)
+	}
+	if len(src.extraURLs) != 2 ||
+		src.extraURLs[0] != "https://cdn.telegram.org/img2.jpg" ||
+		src.extraURLs[1] != "https://cdn.telegram.org/img3.jpg" {
+		t.Errorf("src.extraURLs = %v, want [img2, img3]", src.extraURLs)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParsePublicMessagesSinglePhotoUnchanged(t *testing.T) {
+	// Single photo: one [IMAGE] header, no extraURLs.
+	body := []byte(`
+		<html><body>
+		<div class="tgme_widget_message" data-post="testchan/220">
+			<a class="tgme_widget_message_photo_wrap" style="background-image:url('https://cdn.telegram.org/single.jpg')"></a>
+			<div class="tgme_widget_message_text">just one</div>
+		</div>
+		</body></html>
+	`)
+	msgs, sources, err := parsePublicMessagesWithMedia(body)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parsePublicMessagesWithMedia: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(msgs) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("len(msgs) = %d, want 1", len(msgs))
+	}
+	wantText := "[IMAGE]\njust one"
+	if msgs[0].Text != wantText {
+		t.Fatalf("msgs[0].Text = %q, want %q", msgs[0].Text, wantText)
+	}
+	if sources[0].url != "https://cdn.telegram.org/single.jpg" || len(sources[0].extraURLs) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("source = %+v, want url=single, extraURLs empty", sources[0])
+	}
+}
+
 func TestParsePublicMessagesReplyPreviewUsesMainBody(t *testing.T) {
 	body := []byte(`
 		<html><body>

internal/server/server.go

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"log"
 	"os"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
 )
@@ -24,6 +25,20 @@ type Config struct {
 	NoTelegram    bool // if true, fetch public channels without Telegram login
 	AllowManage   bool // if true, remote channel management and sending via DNS is allowed
 	Debug         bool // if true, log every decoded DNS query
+	// NoMedia disables downloading and serving image/file media. When set, the
+	// server emits the legacy [TAG]\ncaption form for media messages so old
+	// clients keep working unchanged.
+	NoMedia bool
+	// MediaMaxSize is the per-file cap in bytes for cached media. 0 means no
+	// cap (not recommended in production).
+	MediaMaxSize int64
+	// MediaCacheTTL is the cache lifetime in minutes for a single entry. The
+	// effective TTL is reset whenever the same upstream id is fetched again.
+	MediaCacheTTL int
+	// MediaCompression names the compression applied to cached media bytes
+	// before they're split into DNS blocks. One of "none", "gzip",
+	// "deflate". Empty defaults to "gzip".
+	MediaCompression string
 	Telegram         TelegramConfig
 }
 
@@ -64,6 +79,39 @@ func (s *Server) Run(ctx context.Context) error {
 		return fmt.Errorf("derive keys: %w", err)
 	}
 
+	SetMediaDebugLogs(s.cfg.Debug)
+
+	// Configure media cache before any reader starts so the very first fetch
+	// cycle can populate it. When --no-media is set we leave Feed.media as
+	// nil; the readers fall through to the legacy [TAG]\ncaption form, and
+	// Feed.GetBlock rejects media-channel queries with not-found.
+	if !s.cfg.NoMedia {
+		ttlMin := s.cfg.MediaCacheTTL
+		if ttlMin <= 0 {
+			ttlMin = 600
+		}
+		ttl := time.Duration(ttlMin) * time.Minute
+		compName := s.cfg.MediaCompression
+		if compName == "" {
+			compName = "gzip"
+		}
+		compression, err := protocol.ParseMediaCompressionName(compName)
+		if err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("--media-compression: %w", err)
+		}
+		mediaCache := NewMediaCache(MediaCacheConfig{
+			MaxFileBytes: s.cfg.MediaMaxSize,
+			TTL:          ttl,
+			Compression:  compression,
+			Logf:         logfMedia,
+		})
+		s.feed.SetMediaCache(mediaCache)
+		log.Printf("[server] media cache enabled: max-size=%d bytes, ttl=%s, compression=%s", s.cfg.MediaMaxSize, ttl, compression)
+		go s.runMediaSweep(ctx, mediaCache, ttl)
+	} else {
+		log.Println("[server] media cache disabled (--no-media)")
+	}
+
 	go startLatestVersionTracker(ctx, s.feed)
 	var channelCtl channelRefresher
 
@@ -180,3 +228,29 @@ func prefixXAccounts(accounts []string) []string {
 	}
 	return out
 }
+
+// runMediaSweep periodically evicts expired entries from the cache. The
+// interval is min(ttl/4, 5min) so we don't waste cycles on long-TTL configs
+// while still reclaiming slots in time under steady-state churn.
+func (s *Server) runMediaSweep(ctx context.Context, cache *MediaCache, ttl time.Duration) {
+	if cache == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	interval := ttl / 4
+	if interval <= 0 || interval > 5*time.Minute {
+		interval = 5 * time.Minute
+	}
+	if interval < 30*time.Second {
+		interval = 30 * time.Second
+	}
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(interval)
+	defer ticker.Stop()
+	for {
+		select {
+		case <-ctx.Done():
+			return
+		case <-ticker.C:
+			cache.Sweep()
+		}
+	}
+}

internal/server/telegram.go

@@ -253,7 +253,7 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) fetchAll(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client) {
 		}
 
 		userNames := buildUserMap(hist)
-		msgs, err := tr.extractMessages(hist, rp.chatType, userNames)
+		msgs, err := tr.extractMessages(ctx, api, hist, rp.chatType, userNames)
 		if err != nil {
 			log.Printf("[telegram] fetch %s: extract messages failed: %v", username, err)
 			failed++
@@ -334,7 +334,7 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) fetchChannel(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, user
 	}
 
 	userNames := buildUserMap(hist)
-	return tr.extractMessages(hist, protocol.ChatTypeChannel, userNames)
+	return tr.extractMessages(ctx, api, hist, protocol.ChatTypeChannel, userNames)
 }
 
 // buildUserMap extracts a user ID → display name map from a history response.
@@ -366,7 +366,7 @@ func buildUserMap(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass) map[int64]string {
 	return m
 }
 
-func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatType protocol.ChatType, userNames map[int64]string) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
+func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatType protocol.ChatType, userNames map[int64]string) ([]protocol.Message, error) {
 	var tgMsgs []tg.MessageClass
 
 	switch h := hist.(type) {
@@ -380,21 +380,67 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatTyp
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("unexpected messages type: %T", hist)
 	}
 
-	var msgs []protocol.Message
+	// Album-aware grouping: Telegram delivers an album as N separate
+	// messages sharing the same GroupedID. We merge them into one feed
+	// message that carries every album item's media header and the album's
+	// single caption, with the lowest message ID as the canonical post id.
+	type album struct {
+		canonical *tg.Message
+		headers   []string
+		caption   string
+	}
+	groups := map[int64]*album{}
+	var order []int64
+	var nextSingleID int64 = -1 // sentinel keys for non-grouped messages
+
 	for _, raw := range tgMsgs {
 		msg, ok := raw.(*tg.Message)
 		if !ok {
 			continue
 		}
+		header, caption := tr.extractMediaHeaderAndCaption(ctx, api, msg)
+		if header == "" && caption == "" {
+			continue
+		}
+		gid := msg.GroupedID
+		if gid == 0 {
+			gid = nextSingleID
+			nextSingleID--
+		}
+		g, exists := groups[gid]
+		if !exists {
+			g = &album{canonical: msg}
+			groups[gid] = g
+			order = append(order, gid)
+		}
+		if header != "" {
+			g.headers = append(g.headers, header)
+		}
+		if caption != "" && g.caption == "" {
+			g.caption = caption
+		}
+		// Keep the canonical pointer at the lowest-id message so reply,
+		// timestamp, and ordering stay stable across album items.
+		if msg.ID < g.canonical.ID {
+			g.canonical = msg
+		}
+	}
 
-		text := tr.extractText(msg)
+	msgs := make([]protocol.Message, 0, len(order))
+	for _, gid := range order {
+		g := groups[gid]
+		text := strings.Join(g.headers, "\n")
+		if text != "" && g.caption != "" {
+			text += "\n" + g.caption
+		} else if text == "" {
+			text = g.caption
+		}
 		if text == "" {
 			continue
 		}
 
-		// For private chats, prefix with the sender's name.
 		if chatType == protocol.ChatTypePrivate {
-			if fromID, ok := msg.GetFromID(); ok {
+			if fromID, ok := g.canonical.GetFromID(); ok {
 				if pu, ok := fromID.(*tg.PeerUser); ok {
 					if name, ok := userNames[pu.UserID]; ok {
 						text = name + ": " + text
@@ -403,8 +449,7 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatTyp
 			}
 		}
 
-		// Mark messages that are replies (include reply-to message ID).
-		if replyTo, hasReply := msg.GetReplyTo(); hasReply {
+		if replyTo, hasReply := g.canonical.GetReplyTo(); hasReply {
 			if rh, ok := replyTo.(*tg.MessageReplyHeader); ok {
 				if rid, hasID := rh.GetReplyToMsgID(); hasID {
 					text = fmt.Sprintf("%s:%d\n%s", protocol.MediaReply, rid, text)
@@ -417,8 +462,8 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatTyp
 		}
 
 		msgs = append(msgs, protocol.Message{
-			ID:        uint32(msg.ID),
-			Timestamp: uint32(msg.Date),
+			ID:        uint32(g.canonical.ID),
+			Timestamp: uint32(g.canonical.Date),
 			Text:      text,
 		})
 	}
@@ -426,6 +471,41 @@ func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMessages(hist tg.MessagesMessagesClass, chatTyp
 	return msgs, nil
 }
 
+// extractMediaHeaderAndCaption returns the [TAG]<meta> header line (if any)
+// and the human caption for a single Telegram message. Used by the album
+// merger to combine N messages into one feed message with multiple headers.
+// Polls remain inline because they're never grouped into albums.
+func (tr *TelegramReader) extractMediaHeaderAndCaption(ctx context.Context, api *tg.Client, msg *tg.Message) (header, caption string) {
+	caption = applyTextURLEntities(msg.Message, msg.Entities)
+	if msg.Media == nil {
+		return "", caption
+	}
+	switch m := msg.Media.(type) {
+	case *tg.MessageMediaPhoto, *tg.MessageMediaDocument:
+		if meta, ok := tr.downloadTelegramMedia(ctx, api, msg); ok {
+			header = strings.TrimSuffix(meta.String(), "\n")
+			return header, caption
+		}
+		// Non-downloadable image/doc: fall back to legacy [TAG] tag only.
+		if _, ok := m.(*tg.MessageMediaPhoto); ok {
+			return protocol.MediaImage, caption
+		}
+		if d, ok := m.(*tg.MessageMediaDocument); ok {
+			return tr.classifyDocument(d), caption
+		}
+	case *tg.MessageMediaGeo, *tg.MessageMediaGeoLive, *tg.MessageMediaVenue:
+		return protocol.MediaLocation, caption
+	case *tg.MessageMediaContact:
+		return protocol.MediaContact, caption
+	case *tg.MessageMediaPoll:
+		// Polls render with a synthesised body that's not a normal caption;
+		// keep the legacy single-message behaviour by returning the whole
+		// payload as the "caption" with no header.
+		return "", tr.extractText(msg)
+	}
+	return "", caption
+}
+
 func (tr *TelegramReader) extractText(msg *tg.Message) string {
 	text := applyTextURLEntities(msg.Message, msg.Entities)
 

internal/server/xpublic.go

@@ -247,7 +247,7 @@ func (xr *XPublicReader) fetchAccount(ctx context.Context, username string) ([]p
 			continue
 		}
 
-		msgs, title, err := parseXRSSMessages(body, username)
+		msgs, sources, title, err := parseXRSSMessagesWithMedia(body, username)
 		if err != nil {
 			log.Printf("[x] @%s: instance %s: parse error: %v", username, instance, err)
 			lastErr = fmt.Errorf("%s: %w", instance, err)
@@ -255,9 +255,15 @@ func (xr *XPublicReader) fetchAccount(ctx context.Context, username string) ([]p
 		}
 		// Filter out garbled messages (invalid UTF-8 or mostly non-printable).
 		cleaned := msgs[:0]
-		for _, m := range msgs {
+		cleanedSources := sources[:0]
+		for i, m := range msgs {
 			if isReadableText(m.Text) {
 				cleaned = append(cleaned, m)
+				if i < len(sources) {
+					cleanedSources = append(cleanedSources, sources[i])
+				} else {
+					cleanedSources = append(cleanedSources, mediaSource{})
+				}
 			} else {
 				log.Printf("[x] @%s: skipping garbled message ID=%d (len=%d)", username, m.ID, len(m.Text))
 			}
@@ -266,6 +272,14 @@ func (xr *XPublicReader) fetchAccount(ctx context.Context, username string) ([]p
 			lastErr = fmt.Errorf("%s: all %d messages were garbled", instance, len(msgs))
 			continue
 		}
+		// Run image downloads when a media cache is attached. Each Nitter
+		// item carries an image URL we extracted from the description; for
+		// non-image media types we have no public URL to fetch on X, so the
+		// downstream rendering simply falls back to the legacy [TAG]\ncaption
+		// form for those.
+		if cache := xr.feed.MediaCache(); cache != nil && len(cleanedSources) > 0 {
+			applyHTTPMediaSources(ctx, cache, cleaned, cleanedSources)
+		}
 		return cleaned, title, nil
 	}
 	if lastErr == nil {
@@ -291,19 +305,32 @@ type xRSSItem struct {
 }
 
 func parseXRSSMessages(body []byte, feedUser string) ([]protocol.Message, string, error) {
+	msgs, _, title, err := parseXRSSMessagesWithMedia(body, feedUser)
+	return msgs, title, err
+}
+
+// parseXRSSMessagesWithMedia parses a Nitter RSS feed and additionally
+// returns one mediaSource per parsed message — same length and order — so
+// the caller can run HTTP downloads against the extracted image URLs and
+// rewrite messages to use the [IMAGE]<size>:<dl>:<ch>:<blk>:<crc32> form.
+// X posts on Nitter can contain multiple images per status; we only surface
+// the *first* one for now, which keeps the download pipeline simple and
+// matches what the legacy text rendering shows.
+func parseXRSSMessagesWithMedia(body []byte, feedUser string) ([]protocol.Message, []mediaSource, string, error) {
 	body = sanitizeUTF8(body)
 	var feed xRSS
 	if err := xml.Unmarshal(body, &feed); err != nil {
-		return nil, "", fmt.Errorf("parse rss: %w", err)
+		return nil, nil, "", fmt.Errorf("parse rss: %w", err)
 	}
 	if len(feed.Channel.Items) == 0 {
-		return nil, "", fmt.Errorf("empty rss feed")
+		return nil, nil, "", fmt.Errorf("empty rss feed")
 	}
 
 	title := strings.TrimSpace(feed.Channel.Title)
 
 	feedUserLower := strings.ToLower(strings.TrimPrefix(feedUser, "@"))
 	msgs := make([]protocol.Message, 0, len(feed.Channel.Items))
+	sources := make([]mediaSource, 0, len(feed.Channel.Items))
 	for _, item := range feed.Channel.Items {
 		id, err := extractXStatusID(item.GUID, item.Link)
 		if err != nil {
@@ -329,12 +356,60 @@ func parseXRSSMessages(body []byte, feedUser string) ([]protocol.Message, string
 			}
 		}
 
+		// Best-effort image extraction from the description / encoded HTML.
+		src := mediaSource{}
+		if u := extractFirstImgSrc(item.Description); u != "" {
+			src = mediaSource{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: u}
+		} else if u := extractFirstImgSrc(item.Encoded); u != "" {
+			src = mediaSource{tag: protocol.MediaImage, url: u}
+		}
+
 		msgs = append(msgs, protocol.Message{ID: id, Timestamp: ts, Text: text})
+		sources = append(sources, src)
 	}
 	if len(msgs) == 0 {
-		return nil, "", fmt.Errorf("no parseable posts")
+		return nil, nil, "", fmt.Errorf("no parseable posts")
 	}
-	return msgs, title, nil
+	return msgs, sources, title, nil
+}
+
+// extractFirstImgSrc scans an HTML fragment for the first <img src="..."> and
+// returns the URL value. Returns "" when no img is present. We avoid pulling
+// in golang.org/x/net/html for this single-purpose lookup; the regex only
+// needs to handle the simple cases Nitter generates.
+func extractFirstImgSrc(htmlFrag string) string {
+	if htmlFrag == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	low := strings.ToLower(htmlFrag)
+	idx := strings.Index(low, "<img ")
+	if idx < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	tail := htmlFrag[idx:]
+	srcIdx := strings.Index(strings.ToLower(tail), "src=")
+	if srcIdx < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	tail = tail[srcIdx+len("src="):]
+	if len(tail) == 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	quote := tail[0]
+	if quote != '"' && quote != '\'' {
+		// Bare attribute value — read until whitespace or '>'.
+		end := strings.IndexAny(tail, " >")
+		if end < 0 {
+			return ""
+		}
+		return strings.TrimSpace(tail[:end])
+	}
+	tail = tail[1:]
+	end := strings.IndexByte(tail, quote)
+	if end < 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+	return tail[:end]
 }
 
 // extractLinkUsername extracts the username from a Nitter/X status URL.

internal/web/auto_update_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+package web
+
+import (
+	"reflect"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestNormaliseAutoUpdateList(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := []struct {
+		name string
+		in   []string
+		want []string
+	}{
+		{"nil", nil, []string{}},
+		{"empty", []string{}, []string{}},
+		{"strip @", []string{"@one", "two"}, []string{"one", "two"}},
+		{"trim whitespace", []string{"  one  ", "\ttwo\n"}, []string{"one", "two"}},
+		{"drop empties", []string{"one", "", "  ", "@", "two"}, []string{"one", "two"}},
+		{"dedupe preserves order", []string{"a", "b", "@a", "c", "b"}, []string{"a", "b", "c"}},
+		{"dedupe across @ form", []string{"@chan", "chan"}, []string{"chan"}},
+	}
+	for _, c := range cases {
+		t.Run(c.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := normaliseAutoUpdateList(c.in)
+			if got == nil {
+				got = []string{}
+			}
+			if !reflect.DeepEqual(got, c.want) {
+				t.Errorf("normaliseAutoUpdateList(%v) = %v, want %v", c.in, got, c.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}

internal/web/media.go

@@ -0,0 +1,356 @@
+package web
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+	"sync/atomic"
+	"unicode"
+
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/client"
+	"github.com/sartoopjj/thefeed/internal/protocol"
+)
+
+// mediaDLProgress tracks how many blocks of a single in-flight download have
+// been fetched. The frontend polls /api/media/progress to drive a smooth
+// per-block counter while the xhr is still reading the response body.
+type mediaDLProgress struct {
+	completed int32
+	total     int32
+}
+
+// mediaProgressKey is the join of (channel, blockCount, crc) the frontend
+// uses to look up its own download. It matches the params on the GET URL so
+// no extra bookkeeping leaks into the JSON response.
+func mediaProgressKey(channel uint16, blocks uint16, crc uint32) string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%d:%d:%08x", channel, blocks, crc)
+}
+
+func (s *Server) handleMediaProgress(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	q := r.URL.Query()
+	ch64, _ := strconv.ParseUint(q.Get("ch"), 10, 16)
+	blk64, _ := strconv.ParseUint(q.Get("blk"), 10, 16)
+	crc64, _ := strconv.ParseUint(strings.TrimSpace(q.Get("crc")), 16, 32)
+	key := mediaProgressKey(uint16(ch64), uint16(blk64), uint32(crc64))
+
+	s.dlMu.Lock()
+	prog := s.dlProgress[key]
+	s.dlMu.Unlock()
+	if prog == nil {
+		writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"active": false, "completed": 0, "total": int(blk64)})
+		return
+	}
+	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{
+		"active":    true,
+		"completed": int(atomic.LoadInt32(&prog.completed)),
+		"total":     int(atomic.LoadInt32(&prog.total)),
+	})
+}
+
+// handleMediaGet streams a media blob assembled from the
+// (channel, blocks, crc) tuple embedded in a message's text.
+//
+// Query string:
+//
+//	ch=<uint16>      media channel number (10000..60000)
+//	blk=<uint16>     total block count
+//	size=<bytes>     expected file size (Content-Length)
+//	crc=<hex8>       expected CRC32 of full body
+//	name=<filename>  optional filename for Content-Disposition
+//	type=<mime>      optional mime type override; sanitized
+func (s *Server) handleMediaGet(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	if r.Method != http.MethodGet {
+		http.Error(w, "method not allowed", http.StatusMethodNotAllowed)
+		return
+	}
+
+	q := r.URL.Query()
+	ch64, err := strconv.ParseUint(q.Get("ch"), 10, 16)
+	if err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, "bad ch", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		return
+	}
+	channel := uint16(ch64)
+	if !protocol.IsMediaChannel(channel) {
+		http.Error(w, "ch out of media range", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		return
+	}
+	blk64, err := strconv.ParseUint(q.Get("blk"), 10, 16)
+	if err != nil || blk64 == 0 {
+		http.Error(w, "bad blk", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		return
+	}
+	blockCount := uint16(blk64)
+
+	const maxClaimedSize = 100 * 1024 * 1024
+	expectedSize, _ := strconv.ParseInt(q.Get("size"), 10, 64)
+	if expectedSize < 0 || expectedSize > maxClaimedSize {
+		http.Error(w, "bad size", http.StatusBadRequest)
+		return
+	}
+
+	expectedCRC := uint32(0)
+	if v := strings.TrimSpace(q.Get("crc")); v != "" {
+		c, err := strconv.ParseUint(v, 16, 32)
+		if err != nil {
+			http.Error(w, "bad crc", http.StatusBadRequest)
+			return
+		}
+		expectedCRC = uint32(c)
+	}
+
+	s.mu.RLock()
+	fetcher := s.fetcher
+	s.mu.RUnlock()
+	if fetcher == nil {
+		http.Error(w, "fetcher not configured", http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+		return
+	}
+
+	ctx := r.Context()
+
+	// Disk-cache hit: serve directly without ever talking to DNS.
+	if s.mediaCache != nil && expectedCRC != 0 && expectedSize > 0 {
+		if body, mime, ok := s.mediaCache.Get(expectedSize, expectedCRC); ok {
+			servedMime := sanitizeMime(q.Get("type"))
+			if servedMime == "application/octet-stream" {
+				if mime != "" {
+					servedMime = sanitizeMime(mime)
+				} else if sniffed := http.DetectContentType(body); sniffed != "" {
+					servedMime = sanitizeMime(sniffed)
+				}
+			}
+			w.Header().Set("Content-Type", servedMime)
+			w.Header().Set("Content-Length", strconv.Itoa(len(body)))
+			w.Header().Set("Cache-Control", "private, max-age=86400")
+			w.Header().Set("X-Total-Blocks", strconv.Itoa(int(blockCount)))
+			w.Header().Set("X-Cache", "HIT")
+			if filename := sanitizeFilename(q.Get("name")); filename != "" {
+				w.Header().Set("Content-Disposition", "inline; filename=\""+filename+"\"")
+			}
+			if _, err := w.Write(body); err != nil {
+				s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media disk-cache write failed: %v", err))
+			}
+			return
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Fetch block 0 synchronously: it carries the protocol header (CRC32,
+	// version, compression). We need that before we can decompress and
+	// before we can sniff Content-Type from the decompressed body.
+	firstBlock, err := fetcher.FetchBlock(ctx, channel, 0)
+	if err != nil {
+		if ctx.Err() != nil {
+			http.Error(w, "fetch cancelled", 499)
+			return
+		}
+		http.Error(w, fmt.Sprintf("fetch media: %v", err), http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	if len(firstBlock) < protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen {
+		http.Error(w, "malformed block 0", http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	header, err := protocol.DecodeMediaBlockHeader(firstBlock[:protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen])
+	if err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, "malformed block 0", http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	if expectedCRC != 0 && header.CRC32 != expectedCRC {
+		http.Error(w, "content hash mismatch", http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	firstCompressed := firstBlock[protocol.MediaBlockHeaderLen:]
+
+	// Register this download so /api/media/progress can report block
+	// progress as the client polls. Block 0 is already fetched.
+	progKey := mediaProgressKey(channel, blockCount, expectedCRC)
+	prog := &mediaDLProgress{total: int32(blockCount), completed: 1}
+	s.dlMu.Lock()
+	s.dlProgress[progKey] = prog
+	s.dlMu.Unlock()
+	defer func() {
+		s.dlMu.Lock()
+		delete(s.dlProgress, progKey)
+		s.dlMu.Unlock()
+	}()
+
+	// Pipe compressed bytes (block-0 payload + later blocks) into a
+	// decompressor reader. Fed by a goroutine; consumed below for sniffing
+	// and for streaming to the HTTP response.
+	pipeR, pipeW := io.Pipe()
+	go func() {
+		var pipeErr error
+		defer func() { pipeW.CloseWithError(pipeErr) }()
+		if _, err := pipeW.Write(firstCompressed); err != nil {
+			pipeErr = err
+			return
+		}
+		if blockCount > 1 {
+			progressCB := func(done, _ int) {
+				// done counts blocks 1..N-1; add 1 for block 0 already fetched.
+				atomic.StoreInt32(&prog.completed, int32(done+1))
+			}
+			pipeErr = fetcher.FetchMediaBlocksStream(ctx, channel, 1, blockCount-1, pipeW, progressCB)
+		}
+	}()
+
+	body, err := client.DecompressMediaReader(pipeR, header.Compression)
+	if err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, fmt.Sprintf("decompress: %v", err), http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	defer body.Close()
+
+	// Tee decompressed bytes into a buffer so we can persist them to the
+	// disk cache after a successful response.
+	var teeBuf *bytes.Buffer
+	if s.mediaCache != nil && expectedCRC != 0 && expectedSize > 0 && expectedSize <= mediaCacheMaxFileExt {
+		teeBuf = bytes.NewBuffer(make([]byte, 0, expectedSize))
+	}
+
+	// Sniff Content-Type from the first decompressed bytes before flushing
+	// headers — once Content-Type goes out we can't change it.
+	const sniffSize = 512
+	sniff := make([]byte, sniffSize)
+	n, err := io.ReadFull(body, sniff)
+	if err != nil && err != io.ErrUnexpectedEOF && err != io.EOF {
+		http.Error(w, fmt.Sprintf("read media: %v", err), http.StatusBadGateway)
+		return
+	}
+	sniff = sniff[:n]
+
+	mime := sanitizeMime(q.Get("type"))
+	if mime == "application/octet-stream" {
+		if got := http.DetectContentType(sniff); got != "" {
+			mime = sanitizeMime(got)
+		}
+	}
+	filename := sanitizeFilename(q.Get("name"))
+
+	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", mime)
+	if expectedSize > 0 {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Length", strconv.FormatInt(expectedSize, 10))
+	}
+	w.Header().Set("Cache-Control", "private, max-age=86400")
+	w.Header().Set("X-Total-Blocks", strconv.Itoa(int(blockCount)))
+	w.Header().Set("X-Cache", "MISS")
+	w.Header().Set("X-Media-Compression", header.Compression.String())
+	if filename != "" {
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Disposition", "inline; filename=\""+filename+"\"")
+	}
+	flusher, _ := w.(http.Flusher)
+
+	if teeBuf != nil {
+		teeBuf.Write(sniff)
+	}
+	if _, err := w.Write(sniff); err != nil {
+		s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media write head failed: %v", err))
+		return
+	}
+	if flusher != nil {
+		flusher.Flush()
+	}
+
+	dst := io.Writer(&flushAfterEachWriter{w: w, flusher: flusher})
+	if teeBuf != nil {
+		dst = io.MultiWriter(dst, teeBuf)
+	}
+	// Small buffer so the browser sees many small chunks instead of one big
+	// one — the xhr onprogress event fires per chunk, which is what drives
+	// the smooth K/N block counter on the client.
+	buf := make([]byte, 2048)
+	if _, err := io.CopyBuffer(dst, body, buf); err != nil {
+		s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media stream failed: %v", err))
+		return
+	}
+
+	if teeBuf == nil {
+		s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media disk-cache skipped: size=%d crc=%x mediaCache=%v", expectedSize, expectedCRC, s.mediaCache != nil))
+	} else if expectedSize > 0 && int64(teeBuf.Len()) != expectedSize {
+		s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media disk-cache skipped: tee=%d expected=%d (truncated stream)", teeBuf.Len(), expectedSize))
+	} else {
+		if err := s.mediaCache.Put(int64(teeBuf.Len()), expectedCRC, teeBuf.Bytes(), mime); err != nil {
+			s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media disk-cache put failed: %v", err))
+		} else {
+			s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("media cached: %d bytes, crc=%08x, mime=%s", teeBuf.Len(), expectedCRC, mime))
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+type flushAfterEachWriter struct {
+	w       http.ResponseWriter
+	flusher http.Flusher
+}
+
+func (fw *flushAfterEachWriter) Write(p []byte) (int, error) {
+	n, err := fw.w.Write(p)
+	if err == nil && fw.flusher != nil {
+		fw.flusher.Flush()
+	}
+	return n, err
+}
+
+func (fw *flushAfterEachWriter) Flush() {
+	if fw.flusher != nil {
+		fw.flusher.Flush()
+	}
+}
+
+// sanitizeMime returns a "type/subtype" MIME string built from safe
+// characters. HTML/SVG variants are rejected.
+func sanitizeMime(s string) string {
+	s = strings.TrimSpace(s)
+	if s == "" {
+		return "application/octet-stream"
+	}
+	if i := strings.IndexByte(s, ';'); i >= 0 {
+		s = strings.TrimSpace(s[:i])
+	}
+	slash := strings.IndexByte(s, '/')
+	if slash <= 0 || slash == len(s)-1 {
+		return "application/octet-stream"
+	}
+	for _, r := range s {
+		if r == '/' || r == '-' || r == '+' || r == '.' {
+			continue
+		}
+		if !unicode.IsLetter(r) && !unicode.IsDigit(r) {
+			return "application/octet-stream"
+		}
+	}
+	switch strings.ToLower(s) {
+	case "text/html", "application/xhtml+xml", "image/svg+xml":
+		return "application/octet-stream"
+	}
+	return s
+}
+
+// sanitizeFilename strips path components and control characters.
+func sanitizeFilename(s string) string {
+	s = strings.TrimSpace(s)
+	if s == "" {
+		return ""
+	}
+	if i := strings.LastIndexAny(s, `/\`); i >= 0 {
+		s = s[i+1:]
+	}
+	if s == "" || s == ".." {
+		return ""
+	}
+	var b strings.Builder
+	for _, r := range s {
+		if r < 0x20 || r == 0x7F || r == '"' || r == '\\' {
+			continue
+		}
+		b.WriteRune(r)
+	}
+	out := b.String()
+	if len(out) > 200 {
+		out = out[:200]
+	}
+	return out
+}

internal/web/media_cache.go

@@ -0,0 +1,179 @@
+package web
+
+import (
+	"encoding/binary"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+	"time"
+)
+
+const (
+	mediaCacheFileExt    = ".cache"
+	mediaCacheMaxMime    = 200
+	mediaCacheMaxFileExt = 1 << 26 // 64 MiB hard cap per cached file
+)
+
+// mediaDiskCache stores downloaded media blobs on disk so multiple devices
+// connected to the same client/server share the cost of one DNS-tunnelled
+// fetch. Entries are content-addressed by (size, crc32) and reaped after
+// ttl based on file mtime.
+//
+// File format: each entry is a single file
+//
+//	<size>_<crc8hex>.cache
+//
+// containing:
+//
+//	2 bytes BE  — mime length
+//	N bytes     — mime utf8
+//	rest        — raw file bytes
+type mediaDiskCache struct {
+	dir string
+	ttl time.Duration
+	mu  sync.Mutex
+}
+
+func newMediaDiskCache(dir string, ttl time.Duration) (*mediaDiskCache, error) {
+	if dir == "" {
+		return nil, errors.New("media cache dir is empty")
+	}
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0o700); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	return &mediaDiskCache{dir: dir, ttl: ttl}, nil
+}
+
+func (c *mediaDiskCache) keyFile(size int64, crc uint32) string {
+	return filepath.Join(c.dir, fmt.Sprintf("%d_%08x%s", size, crc, mediaCacheFileExt))
+}
+
+// Get returns the cached body and mime type if present and not expired.
+// Touching mtime on hit so the entry stays alive while it's in use.
+func (c *mediaDiskCache) Get(size int64, crc uint32) (body []byte, mime string, ok bool) {
+	if size <= 0 || crc == 0 {
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	path := c.keyFile(size, crc)
+	info, err := os.Stat(path)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	if c.ttl > 0 && time.Since(info.ModTime()) > c.ttl {
+		_ = os.Remove(path)
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	data, err := os.ReadFile(path)
+	if err != nil || len(data) < 2 {
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	mimeLen := int(binary.BigEndian.Uint16(data[:2]))
+	if mimeLen > mediaCacheMaxMime || 2+mimeLen > len(data) {
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	mime = string(data[2 : 2+mimeLen])
+	body = data[2+mimeLen:]
+	if int64(len(body)) != size {
+		// Corrupt or partial write — treat as miss.
+		return nil, "", false
+	}
+	_ = os.Chtimes(path, time.Now(), time.Now())
+	return body, mime, true
+}
+
+// Put writes the body+mime atomically to the cache.
+func (c *mediaDiskCache) Put(size int64, crc uint32, body []byte, mime string) error {
+	if size <= 0 || crc == 0 || int64(len(body)) != size {
+		return errors.New("media cache: invalid put")
+	}
+	if len(body) > mediaCacheMaxFileExt {
+		return errors.New("media cache: body too large")
+	}
+	if len(mime) > mediaCacheMaxMime {
+		mime = mime[:mediaCacheMaxMime]
+	}
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+
+	path := c.keyFile(size, crc)
+	tmp := path + ".tmp"
+	f, err := os.Create(tmp)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	header := make([]byte, 2)
+	binary.BigEndian.PutUint16(header, uint16(len(mime)))
+	if _, err := f.Write(header); err != nil {
+		f.Close()
+		os.Remove(tmp)
+		return err
+	}
+	if _, err := f.Write([]byte(mime)); err != nil {
+		f.Close()
+		os.Remove(tmp)
+		return err
+	}
+	if _, err := f.Write(body); err != nil {
+		f.Close()
+		os.Remove(tmp)
+		return err
+	}
+	if err := f.Close(); err != nil {
+		os.Remove(tmp)
+		return err
+	}
+	return os.Rename(tmp, path)
+}
+
+// Cleanup removes entries older than ttl. Returns the count removed.
+func (c *mediaDiskCache) Cleanup() int {
+	if c.ttl <= 0 {
+		return 0
+	}
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+	entries, err := os.ReadDir(c.dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0
+	}
+	now := time.Now()
+	removed := 0
+	for _, e := range entries {
+		if e.IsDir() || !strings.HasSuffix(e.Name(), mediaCacheFileExt) {
+			continue
+		}
+		info, err := e.Info()
+		if err != nil {
+			continue
+		}
+		if now.Sub(info.ModTime()) > c.ttl {
+			if os.Remove(filepath.Join(c.dir, e.Name())) == nil {
+				removed++
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return removed
+}
+
+// Clear deletes every cached entry. Returns the count removed.
+func (c *mediaDiskCache) Clear() int {
+	c.mu.Lock()
+	defer c.mu.Unlock()
+	entries, err := os.ReadDir(c.dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0
+	}
+	removed := 0
+	for _, e := range entries {
+		if e.IsDir() || !strings.HasSuffix(e.Name(), mediaCacheFileExt) {
+			continue
+		}
+		if os.Remove(filepath.Join(c.dir, e.Name())) == nil {
+			removed++
+		}
+	}
+	return removed
+}

internal/web/media_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+package web
+
+import "testing"
+
+func TestSanitizeMime(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := map[string]string{
+		"":                          "application/octet-stream",
+		"image/jpeg":                "image/jpeg",
+		"image/png; charset=utf-8":  "image/png",
+		"text/html":                 "application/octet-stream", // blocked
+		"application/xhtml+xml":     "application/octet-stream", // blocked
+		"image/svg+xml":             "application/octet-stream", // blocked (XSS via SVG)
+		"image/jpeg<script>":        "application/octet-stream", // bad chars
+		"weird":                     "application/octet-stream", // no slash
+		"/leading":                  "application/octet-stream",
+		"trailing/":                 "application/octet-stream",
+		"application/vnd.api+json":  "application/vnd.api+json",
+		"image/webp":                "image/webp",
+	}
+	for in, want := range cases {
+		if got := sanitizeMime(in); got != want {
+			t.Errorf("sanitizeMime(%q) = %q, want %q", in, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSanitizeFilename(t *testing.T) {
+	cases := map[string]string{
+		"":                  "",
+		"foo.png":           "foo.png",
+		"../../etc/passwd":  "passwd",
+		"foo/bar/baz.txt":   "baz.txt",
+		"weird\nname.txt":   "weirdname.txt",
+		`bad"quote"name`:    "badquotename",
+		"..":                "",
+	}
+	for in, want := range cases {
+		if got := sanitizeFilename(in); got != want {
+			t.Errorf("sanitizeFilename(%q) = %q, want %q", in, got, want)
+		}
+	}
+}

internal/web/web.go

@@ -49,12 +49,31 @@ type Config struct {
 }
 
 // Profile wraps a Config with a user-chosen nickname and a unique ID.
+// AutoUpdate is the per-profile list of channel usernames the auto-update
+// goroutine should refresh; AutoUpdateInterval (seconds, 0 → default) sets
+// the cadence.
 type Profile struct {
 	ID                 string   `json:"id"`
 	Nickname           string   `json:"nickname"`
 	Config             Config   `json:"config"`
+	AutoUpdate         []string `json:"autoUpdate,omitempty"`
+	AutoUpdateInterval int      `json:"autoUpdateInterval,omitempty"`
 }
 
+const (
+	// minAutoUpdateInterval is the floor — never tick faster than once per
+	// minute, even if the user sets something silly. The DNS path is
+	// expensive and the server's own fetch cycle is much longer.
+	minAutoUpdateInterval = 60 * time.Second
+	// serverFetchSettleDelay is how long after nextFetch we wait before
+	// asking the server for fresh data — gives it time to process the
+	// upstream Telegram fetch and have a coherent metadata snapshot.
+	serverFetchSettleDelay = 30 * time.Second
+	// autoUpdateStartupDelay defers the first tick so the initial metadata
+	// + resolver checks have a chance to land before we start polling.
+	autoUpdateStartupDelay = 30 * time.Second
+)
+
 // SavedResolverScore stores persistent resolver performance data.
 type SavedResolverScore struct {
 	Success int64 `json:"success"`
@@ -137,6 +156,17 @@ type Server struct {
 	titlesMu           sync.Mutex
 	titlesLoading      bool
 	titlesBackoffUntil time.Time
+
+	// dlMu guards dlProgress. Active media downloads register their block
+	// counter here so the frontend can poll /api/media/progress and show
+	// per-block updates instead of waiting for byte chunks.
+	dlMu       sync.Mutex
+	dlProgress map[string]*mediaDLProgress
+
+	// mediaCache is a disk-backed store for downloaded media bytes so that
+	// multiple devices on the same network share a single DNS-tunnelled
+	// fetch. Entries expire after 7 days.
+	mediaCache *mediaDiskCache
 }
 
 // New creates a new web server.
@@ -154,6 +184,11 @@ func New(dataDir string, port int, host string, password string) (*Server, error
 
 	scanner := client.NewResolverScanner()
 
+	mediaCache, mcErr := newMediaDiskCache(filepath.Join(dataDir, "media-cache"), 7*24*time.Hour)
+	if mcErr != nil {
+		log.Printf("Warning: media disk cache disabled: %v", mcErr)
+	}
+
 	s := &Server{
 		dataDir:        dataDir,
 		port:           port,
@@ -165,6 +200,13 @@ func New(dataDir string, port int, host string, password string) (*Server, error
 		lastMsgIDs:     make(map[int]uint32),
 		lastHashes:     make(map[int]uint32),
 		scanner:        scanner,
+		mediaCache:     mediaCache,
+		dlProgress:     make(map[string]*mediaDLProgress),
+	}
+
+	if mediaCache != nil {
+		go mediaCache.Cleanup()
+		go s.runMediaCacheSweep()
 	}
 
 	// Migrate per-profile resolvers into the shared bank on first run.
@@ -213,6 +255,8 @@ func (s *Server) Run() error {
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/events", s.handleSSE)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/profiles", s.handleProfiles)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/profiles/switch", s.handleProfileSwitch)
+	mux.HandleFunc("/api/auto-update", s.handleAutoUpdate)
+	mux.HandleFunc("/api/auto-update/toggle", s.handleAutoUpdateToggle)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/settings", s.handleSettings)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/version-check", s.handleVersionCheck)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/cache/clear", s.handleClearCache)
@@ -230,6 +274,11 @@ func (s *Server) Run() error {
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/scanner/progress", s.handleScannerProgress)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/scanner/apply", s.handleScannerApply)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/api/scanner/presets", s.handleScannerPresets)
+	// Media (image/file) downloader: assembles a binary blob from a media
+	// channel and streams it back. See internal/web/media.go for the param
+	// contract.
+	mux.HandleFunc("/api/media/get", s.handleMediaGet)
+	mux.HandleFunc("/api/media/progress", s.handleMediaProgress)
 	mux.HandleFunc("/", s.handleIndex)
 
 	// Listen on the specified host (default 127.0.0.1)
@@ -782,9 +831,140 @@ func (s *Server) initFetcher() error {
 	s.fetcher = fetcher
 	s.cache = cache
 	go cache.Cleanup() // remove channel files not updated in 7 days
+
+	// Goroutine dies with fetcherCtx, so a profile switch / config change
+	// stops it cleanly.
+	go s.runAutoUpdateLoop(ctx)
 	return nil
 }
 
+// runAutoUpdateLoop refreshes the active profile's AutoUpdate channels on a
+// schedule that follows the server's own fetch cycle — there's no point
+// polling more often than the server actually pulls fresh data from
+// Telegram. User-set Profile.AutoUpdateInterval is honoured if it's >= the
+// 60s floor; otherwise we align with nextFetch + settle delay.
+func (s *Server) runAutoUpdateLoop(ctx context.Context) {
+	select {
+	case <-time.After(autoUpdateStartupDelay):
+	case <-ctx.Done():
+		return
+	}
+
+	var lastTick time.Time
+	for {
+		wait := s.nextAutoUpdateWait(lastTick)
+		select {
+		case <-ctx.Done():
+			return
+		case <-time.After(wait):
+		}
+		if !s.canAutoUpdate() {
+			continue
+		}
+		s.tickAutoUpdate()
+		lastTick = time.Now()
+	}
+}
+
+// nextAutoUpdateWait returns how long to sleep before the next tick. Honours
+// user override when set sensibly; otherwise sleeps until just after the
+// server's next Telegram fetch so we always pull just-refreshed data.
+func (s *Server) nextAutoUpdateWait(lastTick time.Time) time.Duration {
+	pl, _ := s.loadProfiles()
+	if pl != nil && pl.Active != "" {
+		for _, p := range pl.Profiles {
+			if p.ID != pl.Active {
+				continue
+			}
+			if p.AutoUpdateInterval > 0 {
+				user := time.Duration(p.AutoUpdateInterval) * time.Second
+				if user < minAutoUpdateInterval {
+					user = minAutoUpdateInterval
+				}
+				return user
+			}
+			break
+		}
+	}
+
+	s.mu.RLock()
+	nf := s.nextFetch
+	s.mu.RUnlock()
+	if nf == 0 {
+		return minAutoUpdateInterval
+	}
+	target := time.Unix(int64(nf), 0).Add(serverFetchSettleDelay)
+	delay := time.Until(target)
+	if delay < minAutoUpdateInterval {
+		delay = minAutoUpdateInterval
+	}
+	if !lastTick.IsZero() {
+		if since := time.Since(lastTick); since < minAutoUpdateInterval {
+			if rem := minAutoUpdateInterval - since; rem > delay {
+				delay = rem
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return delay
+}
+
+// canAutoUpdate returns false when we should skip a tick: server hasn't
+// produced metadata yet (channel list empty), or the resolver scanner is
+// busy (it'd race with our DNS fetches), or there's no fetcher.
+func (s *Server) canAutoUpdate() bool {
+	s.mu.RLock()
+	channels := s.channels
+	fetcher := s.fetcher
+	scanner := s.scanner
+	s.mu.RUnlock()
+	if fetcher == nil || len(channels) == 0 {
+		return false
+	}
+	if scanner != nil {
+		switch scanner.State() {
+		case client.ScannerRunning, client.ScannerPaused:
+			return false
+		}
+	}
+	return true
+}
+
+func (s *Server) tickAutoUpdate() {
+	pl, err := s.loadProfiles()
+	if err != nil || pl == nil || pl.Active == "" {
+		return
+	}
+	var watch []string
+	for _, p := range pl.Profiles {
+		if p.ID == pl.Active {
+			watch = p.AutoUpdate
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if len(watch) == 0 {
+		return
+	}
+
+	s.mu.RLock()
+	channels := s.channels
+	s.mu.RUnlock()
+	if len(channels) == 0 {
+		return
+	}
+
+	wantSet := make(map[string]bool, len(watch))
+	for _, name := range watch {
+		wantSet[strings.TrimPrefix(strings.TrimSpace(name), "@")] = true
+	}
+
+	for i, ch := range channels {
+		if !wantSet[ch.Name] {
+			continue
+		}
+		go s.refreshChannel(i + 1) // 1-indexed
+	}
+}
+
 func (s *Server) checkLatestVersion(ctx context.Context) (string, error) {
 	s.mu.RLock()
 	cfg := s.config
@@ -1961,6 +2141,10 @@ func (s *Server) handleProfiles(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 						addToBank(pl, req.Profile.Config.Resolvers)
 						req.Profile.Config.Resolvers = nil
 					}
+					// Carry over fields the edit-profile UI doesn't manage so
+					// they don't get wiped on save (auto-update list etc.).
+					req.Profile.AutoUpdate = p.AutoUpdate
+					req.Profile.AutoUpdateInterval = p.AutoUpdateInterval
 					pl.Profiles[i] = req.Profile
 					if p.ID == pl.Active {
 						needsReinit = true
@@ -2097,6 +2281,164 @@ func (s *Server) handleProfileSwitch(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"ok": true})
 }
 
+// handleAutoUpdate exposes the active profile's auto-update channel list.
+// GET → {channels, intervalSeconds, defaultIntervalSeconds}.
+// POST {channels, intervalSeconds?} replaces both. Names are stripped and
+// dedup'd before saving.
+func (s *Server) handleAutoUpdate(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	switch r.Method {
+	case http.MethodGet:
+		pl, _ := s.loadProfiles()
+		channels := []string{}
+		interval := 0
+		if pl != nil && pl.Active != "" {
+			for _, p := range pl.Profiles {
+				if p.ID == pl.Active {
+					if p.AutoUpdate != nil {
+						channels = p.AutoUpdate
+					}
+					interval = p.AutoUpdateInterval
+					break
+				}
+			}
+		}
+		writeJSON(w, map[string]any{
+			"channels":               channels,
+			"intervalSeconds":        interval,
+			"defaultIntervalSeconds": int(minAutoUpdateInterval / time.Second),
+		})
+
+	case http.MethodPost:
+		var req struct {
+			Channels        []string `json:"channels"`
+			IntervalSeconds *int     `json:"intervalSeconds,omitempty"`
+		}
+		if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&req); err != nil {
+			http.Error(w, "invalid JSON", 400)
+			return
+		}
+		pl, err := s.loadProfiles()
+		if err != nil || pl == nil || pl.Active == "" {
+			http.Error(w, "no active profile", 400)
+			return
+		}
+		idx := -1
+		for i, p := range pl.Profiles {
+			if p.ID == pl.Active {
+				idx = i
+				break
+			}
+		}
+		if idx < 0 {
+			http.Error(w, "active profile not found", 400)
+			return
+		}
+		pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdate = normaliseAutoUpdateList(req.Channels)
+		if req.IntervalSeconds != nil {
+			v := *req.IntervalSeconds
+			if v < 0 {
+				v = 0
+			}
+			minSec := int(minAutoUpdateInterval / time.Second)
+			if v > 0 && v < minSec {
+				v = minSec // floor: never poll faster than the server fetches
+			}
+			pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdateInterval = v
+		}
+		if err := s.saveProfiles(pl); err != nil {
+			http.Error(w, fmt.Sprintf("save: %v", err), 500)
+			return
+		}
+		writeJSON(w, map[string]any{
+			"ok":              true,
+			"channels":        pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdate,
+			"intervalSeconds": pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdateInterval,
+		})
+
+	default:
+		http.Error(w, "method not allowed", 405)
+	}
+}
+
+// handleAutoUpdateToggle flips one channel's membership. Body {channel}.
+// Returns {enabled, channels}.
+func (s *Server) handleAutoUpdateToggle(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	if r.Method != http.MethodPost {
+		http.Error(w, "method not allowed", 405)
+		return
+	}
+	var req struct {
+		Channel string `json:"channel"`
+	}
+	if err := json.NewDecoder(r.Body).Decode(&req); err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, "invalid JSON", 400)
+		return
+	}
+	name := strings.TrimPrefix(strings.TrimSpace(req.Channel), "@")
+	if name == "" {
+		http.Error(w, "channel required", 400)
+		return
+	}
+	pl, err := s.loadProfiles()
+	if err != nil || pl == nil || pl.Active == "" {
+		http.Error(w, "no active profile", 400)
+		return
+	}
+	idx := -1
+	for i, p := range pl.Profiles {
+		if p.ID == pl.Active {
+			idx = i
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if idx < 0 {
+		http.Error(w, "active profile not found", 400)
+		return
+	}
+	current := pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdate
+	on := false
+	hit := -1
+	for i, n := range current {
+		if strings.TrimPrefix(strings.TrimSpace(n), "@") == name {
+			hit = i
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if hit >= 0 {
+		current = append(current[:hit], current[hit+1:]...)
+	} else {
+		current = append(current, name)
+		on = true
+	}
+	pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdate = normaliseAutoUpdateList(current)
+	if err := s.saveProfiles(pl); err != nil {
+		http.Error(w, fmt.Sprintf("save: %v", err), 500)
+		return
+	}
+	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{
+		"ok":       true,
+		"channel":  name,
+		"enabled":  on,
+		"channels": pl.Profiles[idx].AutoUpdate,
+	})
+}
+
+// normaliseAutoUpdateList strips @ + whitespace, drops empties, dedupes
+// while preserving order.
+func normaliseAutoUpdateList(in []string) []string {
+	seen := make(map[string]bool, len(in))
+	out := make([]string, 0, len(in))
+	for _, raw := range in {
+		name := strings.TrimPrefix(strings.TrimSpace(raw), "@")
+		if name == "" || seen[name] {
+			continue
+		}
+		seen[name] = true
+		out = append(out, name)
+	}
+	return out
+}
+
 // handleSettings manages user preferences (font size etc.).
 func (s *Server) handleSettings(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	switch r.Method {
@@ -2223,26 +2565,42 @@ func (s *Server) handleVersionCheck(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"ok": true, "latestVersion": v})
 }
 
-// handleClearCache deletes all files in the cache directory.
+// runMediaCacheSweep evicts expired media-cache entries every hour for the
+// lifetime of the process.
+func (s *Server) runMediaCacheSweep() {
+	ticker := time.NewTicker(1 * time.Hour)
+	defer ticker.Stop()
+	for range ticker.C {
+		if s.mediaCache == nil {
+			return
+		}
+		s.mediaCache.Cleanup()
+	}
+}
+
+// handleClearCache wipes both the per-channel message cache and the
+// downloaded-media disk cache.
 func (s *Server) handleClearCache(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	if r.Method != http.MethodPost {
 		http.Error(w, "method not allowed", 405)
 		return
 	}
-	cacheDir := filepath.Join(s.dataDir, "cache")
-	entries, err := os.ReadDir(cacheDir)
-	if err != nil {
-		writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"ok": true, "deleted": 0})
-		return
-	}
 	deleted := 0
+	cacheDir := filepath.Join(s.dataDir, "cache")
+	if entries, err := os.ReadDir(cacheDir); err == nil {
 		for _, e := range entries {
-		if !e.IsDir() {
+			if e.IsDir() {
+				continue
+			}
 			if os.Remove(filepath.Join(cacheDir, e.Name())) == nil {
 				deleted++
 			}
 		}
 	}
-	s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("Cache cleared: %d files deleted", deleted))
-	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"ok": true, "deleted": deleted})
+	mediaDeleted := 0
+	if s.mediaCache != nil {
+		mediaDeleted = s.mediaCache.Clear()
+	}
+	s.addLog(fmt.Sprintf("Cache cleared: %d message files, %d media files", deleted, mediaDeleted))
+	writeJSON(w, map[string]any{"ok": true, "deleted": deleted, "mediaDeleted": mediaDeleted})
 }

scripts/install.sh

@@ -75,6 +75,48 @@ get_latest_version() {
     echo "$version"
 }
 
+_fetch_releases() {
+    local body
+    body=$(curl -Ls "https://api.github.com/repos/${GITHUB_REPO}/releases?per_page=20")
+    if [[ -z "$body" ]]; then
+        body=$(curl -4 -Ls "https://api.github.com/repos/${GITHUB_REPO}/releases?per_page=20")
+    fi
+    echo "$body"
+}
+
+# Normalise GitHub JSON (pretty or minified) to one release object per line.
+_split_releases() {
+    _fetch_releases | tr -d '\n' | sed 's/{/\n{/g'
+}
+
+get_latest_prerelease() {
+    _split_releases \
+        | grep -F '"prerelease":true' \
+        | head -1 \
+        | sed -E 's/.*"tag_name":[[:space:]]*"([^"]+)".*/\1/'
+}
+
+list_versions() {
+    echo -e "${green}Recent thefeed releases (most recent first):${plain}"
+    local line tag label
+    while IFS= read -r line; do
+        case "$line" in
+            *'"tag_name"'*) ;;
+            *) continue ;;
+        esac
+        tag=$(echo "$line" | sed -E 's/.*"tag_name":[[:space:]]*"([^"]+)".*/\1/')
+        if echo "$line" | grep -qF '"prerelease":true'; then
+            label="[pre-release]"
+        else
+            label="[stable]"
+        fi
+        printf "  %-15s %s\n" "$tag" "$label"
+    done < <(_split_releases)
+    echo ""
+    echo -e "Install one with: ${blue}sudo bash install.sh --version <tag>${plain}"
+    echo -e "Or:               ${blue}sudo bash install.sh <tag>${plain} (positional)"
+}
+
 download_binary() {
     local version="$1"
     local arch_name
@@ -484,16 +526,29 @@ show_usage() {
 
 install_thefeed() {
     local version="$1"
+    local channel="${2:-stable}"  # "stable" or "pre"
 
-    # Get version
     if [[ -z "$version" ]]; then
+        if [[ "$channel" == "pre" ]]; then
+            version=$(get_latest_prerelease)
+            if [[ -z "$version" ]]; then
+                echo -e "${red}No pre-release found on GitHub${plain}"
+                echo -e "${yellow}Run: bash install.sh --list  to see available versions${plain}"
+                exit 1
+            fi
+            echo -e "${yellow}Channel:${plain} ${blue}pre-release${plain}"
+        else
             version=$(get_latest_version)
             if [[ -z "$version" ]]; then
                 echo -e "${red}Failed to fetch latest version from GitHub${plain}"
-            echo -e "${yellow}Please check your network or specify a version: bash install.sh v1.0.0${plain}"
+                echo -e "${yellow}Please check your network or specify a version: bash install.sh --version v1.0.0${plain}"
                 exit 1
             fi
         fi
+    fi
+    if [[ "$version" =~ ^[0-9] ]]; then
+        version="v${version}"
+    fi
     echo -e "Version: ${green}${version}${plain}"
 
     # Check current version
@@ -586,36 +641,88 @@ show_help() {
     echo -e "Usage: bash $0 [OPTION]"
     echo ""
     echo -e "Options:"
-    echo -e "  ${green}(no args)${plain}       Install or update to latest version"
-    echo -e "  ${green}v1.0.0${plain}          Install specific version"
+    echo -e "  ${green}(no args)${plain}              Install or update to latest stable version"
+    echo -e "  ${green}--version <tag>${plain}        Install a specific version (rollback, beta, rc)"
+    echo -e "  ${green}-v <tag>${plain}               Short form of --version"
+    echo -e "  ${green}<tag>${plain}                  Positional form, e.g.  bash install.sh v1.0.0"
+    echo -e "  ${green}--pre${plain}                  Install the latest pre-release (beta/rc)"
+    echo -e "  ${green}--list${plain}                 List recent releases with stable/pre labels"
     echo -e "  ${green}--login${plain}                Re-authenticate with Telegram"
     echo -e "  ${green}--uninstall${plain}            Remove thefeed"
     echo -e "  ${green}--help${plain}                 Show this help"
     echo ""
+    echo -e "Examples:"
+    echo -e "  Roll back:       ${blue}sudo bash install.sh --version v0.9.2${plain}"
+    echo -e "  Install beta:    ${blue}sudo bash install.sh --pre${plain}"
+    echo -e "  Specific tag:    ${blue}sudo bash install.sh --version v1.2.0-rc1${plain}"
+    echo -e "  See available:   ${blue}sudo bash install.sh --list${plain}"
+    echo ""
     echo -e "No-Telegram mode (recommended for most users):"
     echo -e "  Reads public Telegram channels without needing Telegram credentials."
     echo -e "  Safer because no phone number or API keys are stored on the server."
     echo ""
     echo -e "Quick commands:"
     echo -e "  Install/Update:  ${blue}curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/${GITHUB_REPO}/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash${plain}"
+    echo -e "  Install beta:    ${blue}curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/${GITHUB_REPO}/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --pre${plain}"
+    echo -e "  Roll back:       ${blue}curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/${GITHUB_REPO}/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --version v0.9.2${plain}"
     echo -e "  Uninstall:       ${blue}curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/${GITHUB_REPO}/main/scripts/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- --uninstall${plain}"
 }
 
 # Main
 echo -e "${green}Running thefeed installer...${plain}"
 
-case "${1:-}" in
-    --help | -h)
-        show_help
-        ;;
+# Flags: --version <tag> / -v <tag> / positional <tag>, --pre, --list,
+# --login, --uninstall, --help. No args = latest stable.
+REQUEST_VERSION=""
+REQUEST_CHANNEL="stable"
+ACTION="install"
+
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+    case "$1" in
+        --help|-h)
+            ACTION="help"; shift ;;
         --login)
-        login_only
-        ;;
+            ACTION="login"; shift ;;
         --uninstall)
-        uninstall_thefeed
-        ;;
+            ACTION="uninstall"; shift ;;
+        --list)
+            ACTION="list"; shift ;;
+        --pre|--prerelease|--beta)
+            REQUEST_CHANNEL="pre"; shift ;;
+        --version|-v)
+            shift
+            if [[ -z "${1:-}" ]]; then
+                echo -e "${red}--version requires a tag argument (e.g. --version v1.0.0)${plain}"
+                exit 1
+            fi
+            REQUEST_VERSION="$1"; shift ;;
+        --version=*)
+            REQUEST_VERSION="${1#*=}"; shift ;;
+        --)
+            shift; break ;;
+        -*)
+            echo -e "${red}Unknown flag: $1${plain}"
+            echo -e "Run ${blue}bash $0 --help${plain} for usage"
+            exit 1 ;;
         *)
+            # Positional tag, e.g. bash install.sh v1.0.0
+            if [[ -z "$REQUEST_VERSION" ]]; then
+                REQUEST_VERSION="$1"
+            fi
+            shift ;;
+    esac
+done
+
+case "$ACTION" in
+    help)
+        show_help ;;
+    login)
+        login_only ;;
+    uninstall)
+        uninstall_thefeed ;;
+    list)
+        list_versions ;;
+    install)
         install_base
-        install_thefeed "$1"
-        ;;
+        install_thefeed "$REQUEST_VERSION" "$REQUEST_CHANNEL" ;;
 esac

test/e2e/auto_update_e2e_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+package e2e_test
+
+import (
+	"io"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// createDefaultProfile spins up a dummy "active" profile so the auto-update
+// endpoints have somewhere to write. Returns the resulting profile id.
+func createDefaultProfile(t *testing.T, base string) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	body := `{"action":"create","profile":{"id":"","nickname":"AU","config":{"domain":"au.example","key":"k","resolvers":["127.0.0.1:9999"],"queryMode":"single","rateLimit":0}}}`
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/profiles", body)
+	resp.Body.Close()
+	m := decodeJSON(t, getJSON(t, base+"/api/profiles"))
+	profs, ok := m["profiles"].([]any)
+	if !ok || len(profs) == 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("profile not created, got %v", m["profiles"])
+	}
+	return profs[0].(map[string]any)["id"].(string)
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_GetEmpty(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	resp := getJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update")
+	if resp.StatusCode != 200 {
+		body, _ := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+		t.Fatalf("expected 200, got %d body=%s", resp.StatusCode, body)
+	}
+	m := decodeJSON(t, resp)
+	chans, _ := m["channels"].([]any)
+	if len(chans) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("expected empty channels, got %v", chans)
+	}
+	if d, _ := m["defaultIntervalSeconds"].(float64); int(d) != 60 {
+		t.Errorf("defaultIntervalSeconds = %v, want 60", m["defaultIntervalSeconds"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_ToggleAddsAndRemoves(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	// First toggle: add.
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update/toggle", `{"channel":"thefeed1"}`)
+	if resp.StatusCode != 200 {
+		body, _ := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+		t.Fatalf("toggle add: %d body=%s", resp.StatusCode, body)
+	}
+	m := decodeJSON(t, resp)
+	if m["enabled"] != true {
+		t.Errorf("first toggle should set enabled=true, got %v", m["enabled"])
+	}
+	chans := m["channels"].([]any)
+	if len(chans) != 1 || chans[0] != "thefeed1" {
+		t.Errorf("channels after add = %v, want [thefeed1]", chans)
+	}
+
+	// Second toggle: remove.
+	resp2 := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update/toggle", `{"channel":"thefeed1"}`)
+	m2 := decodeJSON(t, resp2)
+	if m2["enabled"] != false {
+		t.Errorf("second toggle should set enabled=false, got %v", m2["enabled"])
+	}
+	chans2 := m2["channels"]
+	if list, ok := chans2.([]any); !ok || len(list) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("channels after remove = %v, want []", chans2)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_TogglesAtSign(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	// Add with "@chan" — server must store stripped form.
+	postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update/toggle", `{"channel":"@chan"}`).Body.Close()
+
+	m := decodeJSON(t, getJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update"))
+	chans := m["channels"].([]any)
+	if len(chans) != 1 || chans[0] != "chan" {
+		t.Errorf("channels = %v, want [chan]", chans)
+	}
+
+	// Toggle with bare form should remove the same entry.
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update/toggle", `{"channel":"chan"}`)
+	m2 := decodeJSON(t, resp)
+	if m2["enabled"] != false {
+		t.Errorf("expected enabled=false, got %v", m2["enabled"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_PostReplacesList(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	// POST with normalisation cases: leading @, dupes, whitespace.
+	body := `{"channels":["@a","b","@a","  c  ",""],"intervalSeconds":120}`
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update", body)
+	if resp.StatusCode != 200 {
+		body, _ := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+		t.Fatalf("POST: %d body=%s", resp.StatusCode, body)
+	}
+	m := decodeJSON(t, resp)
+	chans := m["channels"].([]any)
+	want := []string{"a", "b", "c"}
+	if len(chans) != len(want) {
+		t.Fatalf("channels len = %d, want %d (%v)", len(chans), len(want), chans)
+	}
+	for i, w := range want {
+		if chans[i] != w {
+			t.Errorf("channels[%d] = %v, want %q", i, chans[i], w)
+		}
+	}
+	if iv, _ := m["intervalSeconds"].(float64); int(iv) != 120 {
+		t.Errorf("intervalSeconds = %v, want 120", m["intervalSeconds"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_IntervalFloor(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	// Anything <60s gets bumped to the 60s floor; 0 stays 0 (means
+	// "follow the server's nextFetch cadence with the built-in default").
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update", `{"channels":["x"],"intervalSeconds":5}`)
+	m := decodeJSON(t, resp)
+	if iv, _ := m["intervalSeconds"].(float64); int(iv) != 60 {
+		t.Errorf("intervalSeconds floor = %v, want 60", m["intervalSeconds"])
+	}
+
+	resp2 := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update", `{"channels":["x"],"intervalSeconds":0}`)
+	m2 := decodeJSON(t, resp2)
+	if iv, _ := m2["intervalSeconds"].(float64); int(iv) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("intervalSeconds zero = %v, want 0 (default)", m2["intervalSeconds"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_NoActiveProfile(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+
+	// No profile created → no active profile → POST should fail with 400.
+	resp := postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update/toggle", `{"channel":"x"}`)
+	if resp.StatusCode != 400 {
+		t.Fatalf("toggle without profile: expected 400, got %d", resp.StatusCode)
+	}
+	resp.Body.Close()
+
+	// GET should succeed and return empty channels.
+	resp2 := getJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update")
+	if resp2.StatusCode != 200 {
+		t.Fatalf("GET without profile: expected 200, got %d", resp2.StatusCode)
+	}
+	m := decodeJSON(t, resp2)
+	chans, _ := m["channels"].([]any)
+	if len(chans) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("expected empty channels with no profile, got %v", chans)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestE2E_AutoUpdate_PersistsAcrossGets(t *testing.T) {
+	base, _ := startWebServer(t)
+	createDefaultProfile(t, base)
+
+	postJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update", `{"channels":["alpha","beta"]}`).Body.Close()
+
+	// Fresh GET should return the same list.
+	m := decodeJSON(t, getJSON(t, base+"/api/auto-update"))
+	chans := m["channels"].([]any)
+	if len(chans) != 2 || chans[0] != "alpha" || chans[1] != "beta" {
+		t.Errorf("channels persisted = %v, want [alpha beta]", chans)
+	}
+}