v0.20.5: NFS-aware writeback + bounded sync_file_range timeout

Targets the recurring mux hang on NFS dest where the consumer thread
sits indefinitely inside libc::sync_file_range(SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WAIT_AFTER)
because the NFS server never returns a commit ack. The whole rip
wedges; halt is cooperative and can't reach inside a kernel syscall.

A. NFS detection at WritebackPipeline construction (fstatfs f_type ==
NFS_SUPER_MAGIC 0x6969). When NFS:
- Skip SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WAIT_AFTER entirely.
- Skip posix_fadvise(DONTNEED) — NFS client handles its own buffering.
- Still issue async SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WRITE (harmless hint).
Cannot hang on a syscall not made. fstatfs failure fails open (assume
local). Logged at info on construction so operators see which strategy
is active. The whole hang vector is removed for NFS deployments.

B. Hard timeout on WAIT_AFTER for non-NFS (defense in depth, since
even a degraded local disk could in principle hang the syscall).
Each WAIT_AFTER runs on a worker thread; main thread waits on a
sync_channel rendezvous with 30s deadline. On timeout: log error,
set per-pipeline 'degraded' Arc<AtomicBool>, downgrade to NFS-style
skip for the rest of the pipeline's life. Worker thread leaks
intentionally — it'll unwind when the syscall eventually returns or
the process exits. Converts indefinite freeze into 'log loud +
downgrade + keep ripping'.

C. Diagnostic logging for the 73%-of-this-movie reproduction:
- WritebackFile::seek logs every non-trivial seek (from, to, signed
  delta) at target=mux so we can see if MkvMuxer seeks back before
  a stall.
- WritebackPipeline::finalize logs the chunk being finalised before
  any WAIT_AFTER call, so a hung chunk is identifiable by offset.

No new dependencies. macOS / Windows noop stubs unchanged. Net
+198 LOC libfreemkv (mostly writeback/linux.rs).

Cargo.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [package]
 name = "libfreemkv"
-version = "0.20.2"
+version = "0.20.5"
 edition = "2024"
 rust-version = "1.86"
 license = "AGPL-3.0-only"

src/disc/patch.rs

@@ -895,6 +895,18 @@ impl Disc {
                                 );
                                 let mut bt_pos = backtrack_start;
                                 while bt_pos < backtrack_end {
+                                    // Honor cancellation inside the
+                                    // backtrack inner loop. A long
+                                    // backtrack span can run minutes
+                                    // of single-sector reads; without
+                                    // this check the outer halt only
+                                    // takes effect when control
+                                    // returns to the per-range loop.
+                                    if let Some(h) = &opts.halt {
+                                        if h.load(std::sync::atomic::Ordering::Relaxed) {
+                                            return Err(crate::error::Error::Halted);
+                                        }
+                                    }
                                     let span =
                                         // Backtrack always at count=1: this path
                                         // fills a gap that the main loop's damage-

src/io/writeback/linux.rs

@@ -14,9 +14,65 @@
 //! a full chunk's worth of work to flush — the wait is near-instant.
 //! Dirty cache stays bounded at ~2 × `chunk_bytes` and writes drain
 //! continuously instead of in bursts.
+//!
+//! The chunk size is adaptive: we measure the elapsed time of the
+//! `WAIT_AFTER` call over a rolling window of the last 16 chunks and
+//! resize the chunk based on the p95. Slow storage (NFS, network
+//! shares, HDD) sees larger chunks to amortise per-chunk overhead;
+//! fast storage (NVMe) sees smaller chunks to keep cache pressure
+//! tight. Bounds: [4 MiB, 256 MiB].
+//!
+//! ## NFS escape hatch
+//!
+//! `sync_file_range(WAIT_AFTER)` on an NFS-mounted file can block
+//! indefinitely waiting for the server's commit ack. If the server
+//! never acks (network partition, server-side hang, slow commit), the
+//! syscall never returns and the consumer thread is stuck inside the
+//! kernel — `/api/stop` can't reach it because halt is cooperative.
+//!
+//! When `fstatfs` reports the file lives on an NFS mount
+//! (`f_type == NFS_SUPER_MAGIC`), the pipeline skips the WAIT_AFTER +
+//! `posix_fadvise(DONTNEED)` dance entirely. NFS clients have their
+//! own buffering and commit semantics that handle dirty-page bounds
+//! without us forcing the issue. The async `SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WRITE`
+//! kickoff still runs (non-blocking by spec) so writeback still gets
+//! a nudge.
+//!
+//! ## Defence in depth: WAIT_AFTER timeout
+//!
+//! Even on local storage, a degraded disk or odd filesystem driver
+//! could in principle wedge inside WAIT_AFTER. Each WAIT_AFTER call
+//! runs on a worker thread with a 30s recv_timeout on its result
+//! channel. On timeout we log a loud error, set a `degraded` flag,
+//! and from then on skip WAIT_AFTER + DONTNEED for the rest of the
+//! pipeline's life (same shape as the NFS path). The worker thread
+//! is intentionally leaked — it unwinds whenever the syscall
+//! eventually returns or the process exits. The mux continues; the
+//! original dirty-burst pathology re-emerges but the rip can still
+//! finish instead of freezing.
 
+use std::collections::VecDeque;
 use std::fs::File;
 use std::os::unix::io::{AsRawFd, RawFd};
+use std::sync::Arc;
+use std::sync::atomic::{AtomicBool, Ordering};
+use std::sync::mpsc::{RecvTimeoutError, sync_channel};
+use std::thread;
+use std::time::{Duration, Instant};
+
+const ADAPTIVE_WINDOW: usize = 16;
+const CHUNK_BYTES_MIN: u64 = 4 * 1024 * 1024;
+const CHUNK_BYTES_MAX: u64 = 256 * 1024 * 1024;
+const ADAPTIVE_GROW_MS: u64 = 200;
+const ADAPTIVE_SHRINK_MS: u64 = 20;
+/// Every N chunks, emit a `debug!` snapshot of the current chunk
+/// size so operators tailing the log can see where the autoscaler
+/// settled.
+const SIZE_LOG_INTERVAL: u64 = 32;
+/// Hard upper bound on a single `sync_file_range(WAIT_AFTER)` call.
+/// Beyond this we declare the pipeline degraded and stop calling
+/// WAIT_AFTER for the rest of its life.
+const WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(30);
 
 pub(crate) struct WritebackPipeline {
     /// Aliases the wrapping `WritebackFile::file`. Only valid for the
@@ -28,6 +84,25 @@ pub(crate) struct WritebackPipeline {
     chunk_bytes: u64,
     last_flush_pos: u64,
     pending: Option<(u64, u64)>,
+    /// Rolling window of recent `WAIT_AFTER` elapsed_ms measurements.
+    wait_after_window: VecDeque<u64>,
+    /// Count of chunks emitted (used to space out periodic
+    /// `debug!` size snapshots).
+    chunk_count: u64,
+    /// True when the underlying file is on an NFS mount. NFS makes
+    /// WAIT_AFTER unsafe (can block forever on missing server ack), so
+    /// we skip it entirely and let the NFS client handle commit on
+    /// close.
+    is_nfs: bool,
+    /// Set the first time WAIT_AFTER exceeds [`WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT`].
+    /// Once set, behaviour matches the NFS path for the rest of the
+    /// pipeline's life. Wrapped in `Arc` only because both this
+    /// struct and the spawned worker thread (which itself doesn't
+    /// touch the flag) share-via-fd patterns might one day need it;
+    /// today it's effectively a single-owner cell — the `Arc` shape
+    /// keeps the door open for moving the read side into a worker
+    /// without re-plumbing types.
+    degraded: Arc<AtomicBool>,
 }
 
 impl WritebackPipeline {
@@ -36,14 +111,33 @@ impl WritebackPipeline {
     /// itself, or kept inside the same struct that owns `file` — the
     /// alias is unchecked.
     pub(crate) fn new(file: &File, start_pos: u64, chunk_bytes: u64) -> Self {
+        let fd = file.as_raw_fd();
+        let is_nfs = detect_nfs(fd);
+        tracing::info!(
+            target: "mux",
+            "WritebackPipeline fd={fd} is_nfs={is_nfs} chunk_bytes={chunk_bytes} strategy={}",
+            if is_nfs { "nfs-skip-wait" } else { "wait+dontneed" }
+        );
         Self {
-            fd: file.as_raw_fd(),
+            fd,
             chunk_bytes,
             last_flush_pos: start_pos,
             pending: None,
+            wait_after_window: VecDeque::with_capacity(ADAPTIVE_WINDOW),
+            chunk_count: 0,
+            is_nfs,
+            degraded: Arc::new(AtomicBool::new(false)),
         }
     }
 
+    /// True if we should bypass the WAIT_AFTER + DONTNEED finalisation
+    /// step. NFS always bypasses; local storage bypasses once the
+    /// pipeline has flipped to degraded after a WAIT_AFTER timeout.
+    #[inline]
+    fn skip_wait(&self) -> bool {
+        self.is_nfs || self.degraded.load(Ordering::Relaxed)
+    }
+
     /// Caller advanced the file position to `pos`. If a chunk boundary
     /// was crossed, kick async writeback for the just-completed chunk
     /// and finalise the previous one.
@@ -51,27 +145,115 @@ impl WritebackPipeline {
         if pos < self.last_flush_pos.saturating_add(self.chunk_bytes) {
             return;
         }
+        let chunk_off = self.last_flush_pos as i64;
+        let chunk_len = (pos - self.last_flush_pos) as i64;
+        let mut wait_ms: u64 = 0;
+        let mut fadvise_ms: u64 = 0;
+        // Async kickoff for the just-completed chunk runs on every
+        // path (NFS, degraded, normal) — it's nominally non-blocking
+        // by spec and gives the kernel an early hint that this range
+        // is ready to flush.
         unsafe {
-            let chunk_off = self.last_flush_pos as i64;
-            let chunk_len = (pos - self.last_flush_pos) as i64;
             libc::sync_file_range(self.fd, chunk_off, chunk_len, libc::SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WRITE);
-            if let Some((prev_off, prev_len)) = self.pending.take() {
-                libc::sync_file_range(
-                    self.fd,
-                    prev_off as i64,
-                    prev_len as i64,
-                    libc::SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WAIT_AFTER,
-                );
-                libc::posix_fadvise(
-                    self.fd,
-                    prev_off as i64,
-                    prev_len as i64,
-                    libc::POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED,
-                );
-            }
-            self.pending = Some((chunk_off as u64, chunk_len as u64));
         }
+        if let Some((prev_off, prev_len)) = self.pending.take() {
+            if self.skip_wait() {
+                // NFS branch (or degraded fallback after a prior
+                // timeout): the WAIT_AFTER + DONTNEED dance is what
+                // hangs on NFS — skip it. We still advance `pending`
+                // so the next call has a stable cycle.
+            } else {
+                // Normal local-storage branch with belt-and-braces
+                // timeout. If WAIT_AFTER hangs > WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT
+                // we mark the pipeline degraded, log a loud error,
+                // and fall through to the skip path on subsequent
+                // calls.
+                match wait_after_with_timeout(self.fd, prev_off, prev_len) {
+                    Some(ms) => {
+                        wait_ms = ms;
+                        let t_fadv = Instant::now();
+                        unsafe {
+                            libc::posix_fadvise(
+                                self.fd,
+                                prev_off as i64,
+                                prev_len as i64,
+                                libc::POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED,
+                            );
+                        }
+                        fadvise_ms = t_fadv.elapsed().as_millis() as u64;
+                        self.record_wait(wait_ms);
+                    }
+                    None => {
+                        // Timeout branch: switch to NFS-style skip
+                        // for the rest of the pipeline's life. Do
+                        // NOT call DONTNEED — if WAIT_AFTER hasn't
+                        // returned, the pages aren't safely flushed.
+                        self.degraded.store(true, Ordering::Relaxed);
+                        tracing::error!(
+                            target: "mux",
+                            "WritebackPipeline WAIT_AFTER timed out after {}s on chunk off={} len={}, marking writeback degraded (subsequent chunks will skip WAIT_AFTER + DONTNEED)",
+                            WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT.as_secs(),
+                            prev_off,
+                            prev_len
+                        );
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        self.pending = Some((chunk_off as u64, chunk_len as u64));
         self.last_flush_pos = pos;
+        self.chunk_count += 1;
+        tracing::trace!(
+            target: "mux",
+            "WritebackPipeline chunk off={} len={} sync_file_range_ms={wait_ms} fadvise_ms={fadvise_ms} chunk_bytes={} skip_wait={}",
+            chunk_off,
+            chunk_len,
+            self.chunk_bytes,
+            self.skip_wait(),
+        );
+        if self.chunk_count % SIZE_LOG_INTERVAL == 0 {
+            tracing::debug!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackPipeline chunk_bytes={} after {} chunks is_nfs={} degraded={}",
+                self.chunk_bytes,
+                self.chunk_count,
+                self.is_nfs,
+                self.degraded.load(Ordering::Relaxed),
+            );
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Push a new `WAIT_AFTER` measurement into the rolling window
+    /// and, if the window is full, adapt `chunk_bytes` based on p95.
+    fn record_wait(&mut self, wait_ms: u64) {
+        if self.wait_after_window.len() == ADAPTIVE_WINDOW {
+            self.wait_after_window.pop_front();
+        }
+        self.wait_after_window.push_back(wait_ms);
+        if self.wait_after_window.len() < ADAPTIVE_WINDOW {
+            return;
+        }
+        // p95 of 16 samples ≈ sorted[14] (5 % of 16 = 0.8 ≈ 1 above).
+        let mut sorted: Vec<u64> = self.wait_after_window.iter().copied().collect();
+        sorted.sort_unstable();
+        let p95 = sorted[14];
+        let old = self.chunk_bytes;
+        let new = if p95 > ADAPTIVE_GROW_MS && self.chunk_bytes < CHUNK_BYTES_MAX {
+            (self.chunk_bytes * 2).min(CHUNK_BYTES_MAX)
+        } else if p95 < ADAPTIVE_SHRINK_MS && self.chunk_bytes > CHUNK_BYTES_MIN {
+            (self.chunk_bytes / 2).max(CHUNK_BYTES_MIN)
+        } else {
+            self.chunk_bytes
+        };
+        if new != old {
+            self.chunk_bytes = new;
+            tracing::info!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackPipeline adaptive chunk_bytes {} -> {} p95_ms={p95}",
+                old,
+                new
+            );
+        }
     }
 
     /// Caller is about to seek away from the current write region.
@@ -85,20 +267,104 @@ impl WritebackPipeline {
     /// or when discarding the pipeline.
     pub(crate) fn finalize(&mut self) {
         if let Some((prev_off, prev_len)) = self.pending.take() {
-            unsafe {
-                libc::sync_file_range(
-                    self.fd,
-                    prev_off as i64,
-                    prev_len as i64,
-                    libc::SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WAIT_AFTER,
-                );
-                libc::posix_fadvise(
-                    self.fd,
-                    prev_off as i64,
-                    prev_len as i64,
-                    libc::POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED,
-                );
+            tracing::debug!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackPipeline finalize chunk off={prev_off} len={prev_len} skip_wait={} is_nfs={} degraded={}",
+                self.skip_wait(),
+                self.is_nfs,
+                self.degraded.load(Ordering::Relaxed),
+            );
+            if self.skip_wait() {
+                // NFS / degraded: skip WAIT_AFTER + DONTNEED. close()
+                // / sync_all() handle commit through their normal
+                // paths.
+                return;
+            }
+            match wait_after_with_timeout(self.fd, prev_off, prev_len) {
+                Some(_ms) => unsafe {
+                    libc::posix_fadvise(
+                        self.fd,
+                        prev_off as i64,
+                        prev_len as i64,
+                        libc::POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED,
+                    );
+                },
+                None => {
+                    self.degraded.store(true, Ordering::Relaxed);
+                    tracing::error!(
+                        target: "mux",
+                        "WritebackPipeline finalize WAIT_AFTER timed out after {}s on chunk off={prev_off} len={prev_len}, marking writeback degraded",
+                        WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT.as_secs(),
+                    );
+                }
             }
         }
     }
 }
+
+/// Probe whether `fd` lives on an NFS mount via `fstatfs`. Returns
+/// `false` on any error — we fail open, not closed: better to run the
+/// normal local-storage path on a misdetected NFS mount (and surface
+/// the freeze loudly via the timeout) than to needlessly disable
+/// writeback bounding on every local file because of a transient
+/// stat error.
+fn detect_nfs(fd: RawFd) -> bool {
+    // `libc::statfs` is repr(C) with a fixed layout; zeroing is the
+    // documented init pattern for the kernel uapi struct.
+    let mut buf: libc::statfs = unsafe { std::mem::zeroed() };
+    let rc = unsafe { libc::fstatfs(fd, &mut buf) };
+    if rc != 0 {
+        let errno = std::io::Error::last_os_error();
+        tracing::warn!(
+            target: "mux",
+            "WritebackPipeline fstatfs(fd={fd}) failed: {errno} — defaulting is_nfs=false",
+        );
+        return false;
+    }
+    // `f_type` is signed (`__fsword_t`) on glibc and unsigned
+    // (`c_ulong`) on musl. Cast both sides to i64 for a portable
+    // comparison.
+    let f_type = buf.f_type as i64;
+    let nfs_magic = libc::NFS_SUPER_MAGIC as i64;
+    f_type == nfs_magic
+}
+
+/// Run `sync_file_range(WAIT_AFTER)` on a worker thread and wait up
+/// to [`WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT`] for it to return. `Some(elapsed_ms)` on
+/// success; `None` on timeout. On timeout the worker thread is
+/// intentionally leaked — it'll unwind whenever the syscall
+/// eventually returns or the process exits.
+///
+/// Channel capacity is 0 (rendezvous). The worker sends `()` once
+/// the syscall returns; if we time out first, the send blocks
+/// forever inside the leaked worker — fine, the receiver is gone
+/// and the OS reaps the thread at process exit.
+fn wait_after_with_timeout(fd: RawFd, off: u64, len: u64) -> Option<u64> {
+    let (tx, rx) = sync_channel::<()>(0);
+    let started = Instant::now();
+    // `RawFd` is `Copy` + `Send`; `off`/`len` are `u64`. Nothing
+    // borrows from the caller — the worker can safely outlive this
+    // function on timeout.
+    let _ = thread::Builder::new()
+        .name("freemkv-writeback-wait".into())
+        .spawn(move || {
+            unsafe {
+                libc::sync_file_range(fd, off as i64, len as i64, libc::SYNC_FILE_RANGE_WAIT_AFTER);
+            }
+            // If the receiver is gone (we timed out) this send
+            // returns Err — fine, we just drop and the worker
+            // exits.
+            let _ = tx.send(());
+        });
+    match rx.recv_timeout(WAIT_AFTER_TIMEOUT) {
+        Ok(()) => Some(started.elapsed().as_millis() as u64),
+        Err(RecvTimeoutError::Timeout) => None,
+        Err(RecvTimeoutError::Disconnected) => {
+            // Worker thread spawn failed or panicked before sending.
+            // Treat as a benign success (no syscall ran) rather than
+            // a degrade trigger — falling through with elapsed_ms=0
+            // matches the no-op behaviour.
+            Some(0)
+        }
+    }
+}

src/io/writeback_file.rs

@@ -54,11 +54,57 @@ impl WritebackFile {
     /// and wrap it. Convenience for the common
     /// `File::create(path)` + `WritebackFile::new(file)` pair so callers
     /// don't have to assemble a `File` first.
+    ///
+    /// Callers that know the target output size should prefer
+    /// [`Self::create_with_size_hint`] so the kernel can pre-reserve
+    /// extents.
+    #[allow(dead_code)]
     pub(crate) fn create(path: &Path) -> io::Result<Self> {
         let file = File::create(path)?;
         Self::new(file)
     }
 
+    /// Like [`Self::create`] but pre-reserves `size_bytes` of disk
+    /// space via `fallocate(FALLOC_FL_KEEP_SIZE)` on Linux. The
+    /// reported file size is unchanged (writes still grow the file
+    /// naturally) — only the on-disk extent allocation is preallocated,
+    /// which reduces extent fragmentation on large sequential writes
+    /// (mux output, especially on slow storage / NFS).
+    ///
+    /// On macOS / Windows the size hint is ignored and this is
+    /// equivalent to `create`.
+    pub(crate) fn create_with_size_hint(path: &Path, size_bytes: u64) -> io::Result<Self> {
+        let file = File::create(path)?;
+        #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+        {
+            use std::os::unix::io::AsRawFd;
+            // FALLOC_FL_KEEP_SIZE = 0x01 — keep the reported file
+            // size at 0 (writes grow it normally) while still
+            // pre-reserving the extents.
+            let rc = unsafe {
+                libc::fallocate(
+                    file.as_raw_fd(),
+                    libc::FALLOC_FL_KEEP_SIZE,
+                    0,
+                    size_bytes as i64,
+                )
+            };
+            tracing::debug!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackFile fallocate size_hint={size_bytes} rc={rc} ok={}",
+                rc == 0
+            );
+        }
+        #[cfg(not(target_os = "linux"))]
+        {
+            tracing::debug!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackFile fallocate size_hint={size_bytes} skipped (non-linux)"
+            );
+        }
+        Self::new(file)
+    }
+
     /// Open an existing file at `path` for writing (no truncation) and
     /// wrap it. Mirrors `File::open` semantics for the writable case
     /// — used by patch / resume paths that mutate an existing ISO in
@@ -104,6 +150,20 @@ impl Seek for WritebackFile {
         // before every write, and we don't want that to drain the
         // pipeline on every iteration.
         if p != self.pos {
+            // Diagnostic for the NFS 73 % mux hang: the MKV format
+            // requires the muxer to seek back occasionally (cluster
+            // size patching, Cues index write, Segment header
+            // backpatch). Each such seek invalidates the writeback
+            // chunk tracking and forces a finalize → WAIT_AFTER on
+            // the in-flight chunk. Logging the seek delta lets us
+            // correlate hang offsets with specific muxer operations.
+            let from_pos = self.pos;
+            let to_pos = p;
+            let delta: i64 = (to_pos as i64).wrapping_sub(from_pos as i64);
+            tracing::debug!(
+                target: "mux",
+                "WritebackFile seek from={from_pos} to={to_pos} delta={delta}"
+            );
             self.pipeline.handle_seek(p);
             self.pos = p;
         }

src/mux/resolve.rs

@@ -250,11 +250,13 @@ pub fn output(
             // writeback) so a UHD-scale MKV mux to slow / network-attached
             // staging doesn't hit the dirty-page burst pathology that
             // sweep already side-steps. BufWriter sits on top to coalesce
-            // mux's many small EBML element writes.
+            // mux's many small EBML element writes. Pre-reserve the
+            // target's worth of extents on Linux via fallocate(KEEP_SIZE)
+            // to reduce extent fragmentation during the mux.
             let writer: Box<dyn super::WriteSeek + Send> =
                 Box::new(std::io::BufWriter::with_capacity(
                     IO_BUF_SIZE,
-                    crate::io::WritebackFile::create(path)?,
+                    crate::io::WritebackFile::create_with_size_hint(path, title.size_bytes)?,
                 ));
             Ok(Box::new(MkvStream::create(writer, title)?))
         }
@@ -262,7 +264,7 @@ pub fn output(
             validate_file_path(path, "m2ts")?;
             let writer = std::io::BufWriter::with_capacity(
                 IO_BUF_SIZE,
-                crate::io::WritebackFile::create(path)?,
+                crate::io::WritebackFile::create_with_size_hint(path, title.size_bytes)?,
             );
             Ok(Box::new(M2tsStream::create(writer, title)?))
         }

src/sector/file.rs

@@ -15,6 +15,12 @@ use crate::error::{Error, Result};
 
 use super::{SectorSink, SectorSource};
 
+/// Bytes-read threshold per `posix_fadvise(DONTNEED)` drop on the
+/// read side. Mirrors the writeback chunk size so the read-side
+/// page cache stays bounded the same way the write side does.
+#[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+const READ_DROP_CHUNK_BYTES: u64 = 32 * 1024 * 1024;
+
 /// SectorSource backed by a file (ISO image).
 ///
 /// Seeks to `lba * 2048`, reads `count * 2048` bytes per call. The
@@ -27,6 +33,14 @@ use super::{SectorSink, SectorSource};
 pub struct FileSectorSource {
     file: File,
     capacity: u32,
+    /// Bytes read since the last `posix_fadvise(DONTNEED)` drop.
+    /// Only updated on Linux; on other targets it stays at 0.
+    #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+    bytes_read_since_drop: u64,
+    /// Byte offset at which the current drop window starts (the
+    /// next `posix_fadvise(DONTNEED)` call drops from here).
+    #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+    drop_window_start: u64,
 }
 
 impl FileSectorSource {
@@ -45,7 +59,26 @@ impl FileSectorSource {
             .into());
         }
         let capacity = sectors as u32;
-        Ok(Self { file, capacity })
+
+        // Hint sequential access on Linux so the kernel's readahead
+        // window widens for the ISO sweep. Best-effort: return value
+        // is ignored. On macOS / Windows this is a no-op.
+        #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+        {
+            use std::os::unix::io::AsRawFd;
+            unsafe {
+                libc::posix_fadvise(file.as_raw_fd(), 0, 0, libc::POSIX_FADV_SEQUENTIAL);
+            }
+        }
+
+        Ok(Self {
+            file,
+            capacity,
+            #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+            bytes_read_since_drop: 0,
+            #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+            drop_window_start: 0,
+        })
     }
 }
 
@@ -75,6 +108,38 @@ impl SectorSource for FileSectorSource {
         self.file
             .read_exact(&mut buf[..bytes])
             .map_err(|e| Error::IoError { source: e })?;
+
+        // On Linux, periodically drop the just-read region from the
+        // page cache to keep cache pressure bounded during multi-GB
+        // sequential ISO reads. Mirrors the write-side pipeline.
+        #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+        {
+            use std::os::unix::io::AsRawFd;
+            self.bytes_read_since_drop += bytes as u64;
+            if self.bytes_read_since_drop >= READ_DROP_CHUNK_BYTES {
+                let drop_start = self.drop_window_start;
+                let drop_len = self.bytes_read_since_drop;
+                let t0 = std::time::Instant::now();
+                unsafe {
+                    libc::posix_fadvise(
+                        self.file.as_raw_fd(),
+                        drop_start as i64,
+                        drop_len as i64,
+                        libc::POSIX_FADV_DONTNEED,
+                    );
+                }
+                let elapsed_ms = t0.elapsed().as_millis();
+                let start_lba = drop_start / 2048;
+                let end_lba = (drop_start + drop_len) / 2048;
+                tracing::trace!(
+                    target: "mux",
+                    "FileSectorSource fadvise DONTNEED lba=[{start_lba}..{end_lba}) bytes={drop_len} elapsed_ms={elapsed_ms}"
+                );
+                self.drop_window_start = drop_start + drop_len;
+                self.bytes_read_since_drop = 0;
+            }
+        }
+
         Ok(bytes)
     }
 }