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The Client SDK ships two CameraManager implementations. Both share the same camera control API (manager.client), but differ in how they connect to the native server binary.

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Server Implementation

Import: camera-remote-web-api/server Manages the native binary process and camera lifecycle. start() is async — it boots the binary, waits for HTTP readiness, then begins polling and SSE. 
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api/server';

const manager = new CameraManager({ port: 8080 });
await manager.start();  // Async — spawns binary, waits for ready
Server-only methods: getPort(), isRunning(), getPid(), getStdout(), getStderr() Use case: Node.js backends, API routes, CLI tools, Electron main process.

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Browser Implementation

Import: camera-remote-web-api Connects to an already-running server via baseUrl. start() is synchronous — it immediately begins polling and SSE against the given URL. No binary management. 
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api';

const manager = new CameraManager({
  baseUrl: 'http://localhost:8080',
});
manager.start();  // Synchronous — begins polling + SSE
Use case: React components, vanilla JS, Electron renderer, any browser context.

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Framework Patterns

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Next.js / Electron (bundled apps)

Use both variants: server in the backend, browser in the frontend. 
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api/server';

let manager: CameraManager | null = null;

export async function POST() {
  if (!manager) {
    manager = new CameraManager({
      port: 8080,
      autoPort: true,
      binaryPath: '/path/to/CameraWebApp',
    });
    await manager.start();
  }
  return Response.json({ port: manager.getPort() });
}
Next.js bundler strips native createRequire — always pass an explicit binaryPath in API routes.
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api/server';

const manager = new CameraManager({ port: 8080 });
await manager.start();

// Expose port to renderer via IPC
ipcMain.handle('get-port', () => manager.getPort());

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Plain React / Vanilla JS (browser only)

Browser variant connects to a server already running elsewhere (started manually, by another process, or on a remote machine). 
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api';

const manager = new CameraManager({
  baseUrl: 'http://192.168.1.100:8080',  // Server running elsewhere
});

manager.on('camera-ready', ({ cameraId, camera }) => {
  console.log(`${camera.model} ready`);
});

manager.start();

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Node.js (server only)

Server variant handles everything — binary, discovery, connection, and control. 
import { CameraManager } from 'camera-remote-web-api/server';

const manager = new CameraManager({
  port: 8080,
  connectionMode: 'remote-transfer',
});

manager.on('camera-ready', async ({ cameraId }) => {
  await manager.client.setPriorityKey(cameraId, { setting: 'pc-remote' });
  await manager.client.triggerShutter(cameraId);
});

await manager.start();