Fix a bad stream with Doctor
When a game feels wrong, keep the stream open and let Doctor measure it. Doctor separates network, host, and client evidence, tells you what is actually confirmed, and offers the safest next step it can perform. You should not need to translate graphs before getting back to the game.
Open Command Center in Nova or Mission Control in the Polaris web UI while the affected stream is still running.
Read the verdict
Section titled “Read the verdict”Doctor reports one of four plain outcomes:
| Verdict | What it means |
|---|---|
| Network | Fresh media-loss or round-trip evidence points to the connection. Control-channel observations alone do not prove a media problem. |
| Host | Capture cadence, frame pacing, encode time, or the host render path is missing the stream target. |
| Client | Received, decoded, or rendered evidence points to the playback device when those measurements are available. |
| No confirmed issue | The available evidence does not support blaming one stage. Unavailable measurements stay unknown instead of becoming a guess. |
Static menus and repeated frames do not by themselves prove a pacing fault. Doctor collects six complete video telemetry windows after startup and requires a warning threshold in two consecutive windows before grading frame pacing. While that window is still filling, pacing evidence stays Unknown instead of briefly blaming startup work. Confirmed warning evidence remains visible instead of appearing beside a contradictory stable verdict.
SHM or system-memory capture is capability context, not a failure by itself. Doctor keeps the path visible in Advanced evidence, but leaves the overall verdict healthy when delivered cadence, capture latency, and encoder time remain inside the active stream’s real FPS budget. It warns only when those measurements show pressure; it does not lower a healthy 120 FPS stream merely because its compatibility path is CPU-backed.
On a Linux host configured for gamescope_stream, Doctor & Support also shows a Gamescope Session
Helper card. It names the polaris-gamescope-session launcher this Polaris will run, warns when a
stale copy under ~/.local/bin or /usr/local/bin sits ahead of it on PATH, and fails when the
launcher or its runtime library was installed from a different checkout than the running build,
which is the state that makes already-fixed session bugs reappear. Reinstall the helpers from this
Polaris version, or install the distro package, and the card turns green.
Pick the offered action
Section titled “Pick the offered action”Doctor uses a small action vocabulary so the button says what will happen:
- Auto Fix changes one reversible setting in the current stream. In this release that means one guarded bitrate step backed by fresh network evidence. Doctor verifies the encoder and the next evidence window, then restores the previous live target if verification fails.
- Recheck gathers a fresh read-only measurement. It does not change the stream.
- Manual explains the next check when Polaris cannot safely act for you.
- Undo restores the previous live bitrate while the same stream generation still owns it.
A change that needs a new stream is not an Auto Fix. Fresh-launch experiments are a separate future Run a trial workflow and are not enabled in this release.
Follow the result
Section titled “Follow the result”After Auto Fix, Doctor keeps the outcome visible:
| State | What to do |
|---|---|
| Watching | Keep playing for a few seconds while Doctor measures the changed stream. |
| Verified | The target metric improved without a guardrail regression. Keep playing. |
| Restored | Verification failed and the previous live target was restored. Review the next guidance. |
| Needs attention | Polaris stopped rather than stacking another guess. Reconnect if encoder restoration could not be confirmed, then follow the manual guidance. |
Auto Fix is scoped to the active owner, app, and stream generation. A reconnect, second controller, or newer manual bitrate choice retires the old receipt instead of letting it mutate a different stream.
Launch preset is separate
Section titled “Launch preset is separate”Auto, Quality, High FPS, and Stability are deterministic launch presets. They resolve the next launch from your explicit choice, paired-client settings, and current host capabilities. Doctor history and AI output do not silently rewrite them, and Doctor never changes Private Stream, Host Virtual Display, or Mirror Desktop topology.
Optional AI explanation
Section titled “Optional AI explanation”AI is optional. When configured, it can turn Doctor’s structured evidence into a shorter plain- language explanation. The AI response is informational: it cannot define the action, target bitrate, confidence used by Doctor, or next-launch policy. Deterministic Polaris code remains the only authority for the button and its settings.
If the verdict still does not match what you see, copy the diagnostics from Command Center or export a redacted support bundle from Polaris before ending the stream. That preserves the measurements needed to investigate the real bottleneck.