https://mhbxyz.github.io/en/tags/distributed-systems/Recent content in Distributed Systems on mhbxyz.meHugoenMon, 19 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://mhbxyz.github.io/en/articles/openwatchparty-synchronize-playback-despite-latency/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://mhbxyz.github.io/en/articles/openwatchparty-synchronize-playback-despite-latency/<p>In my <a href="https://mhbxyz.github.io/en/articles/openwatchparty-synchronized-watch-parties-for-jellyfin/">first OpenWatchParty article</a>, I introduced the Jellyfin plugin and its Rust session server. The harder question remained: how do you make the same scene play at the same time on several machines when their clocks, networks, and players behave differently?</p> <h2 id="establish-a-shared-clock">Establish a shared clock</h2> <p>The server cannot assume that two computers display the same time. The client therefore sends a timestamped ping. When the response arrives, it measures the round-trip time and estimates the offset between its clock and the server&rsquo;s. Several measurements are smoothed so that a latency spike does not cause a sudden jump.</p>