diff --git a/internal/engine/stream_server.go b/internal/engine/stream_server.go
index 35bf613..492bf7a 100644
--- a/internal/engine/stream_server.go
+++ b/internal/engine/stream_server.go
@@ -53,8 +53,12 @@ type StreamServer struct {
 	disableUPnP bool
 
 	lastActivity  atomic.Int64
-	maxByteOffset atomic.Int64
+	maxByteOffset atomic.Int64 // highest sequential read position (main playback connection)
 	totalFileSize atomic.Int64
+	bitrateBps    atomic.Int64 // video bitrate in bits/sec (from ffprobe, 0 = unknown)
+	durationSec   atomic.Int64 // video duration in seconds (from ffprobe, 0 = unknown)
+	topReaderID   atomic.Int64 // ID of the reader that set maxByteOffset (only it can advance it)
+	readerCounter atomic.Int64 // monotonic counter for assigning reader IDs
 }
 
 // NewStreamServer creates a stream server bound to the given port.
@@ -153,6 +157,23 @@ func (ss *StreamServer) SetFile(provider FileProvider, taskID string) {
 	ss.totalFileSize.Store(provider.FileSize())
 	ss.lastActivity.Store(time.Now().UnixNano())
 	ss.maxByteOffset.Store(0)
+	ss.topReaderID.Store(0)
+	ss.bitrateBps.Store(0)
+	ss.durationSec.Store(0)
+
+	// Probe bitrate + duration synchronously so rate-limiting and duration
+	// are available before the first HTTP request arrives.
+	if dp, ok := provider.(*diskFileProvider); ok {
+		pm := probeMediaInfo(dp.path)
+		if pm.bitrateBps > 0 {
+			ss.bitrateBps.Store(pm.bitrateBps)
+			log.Printf("[stream] detected bitrate: %.1f Mbps → throttle at %.1f Mbps",
+				float64(pm.bitrateBps)/1e6, float64(pm.bitrateBps)*2/1e6)
+		}
+		if pm.durationSec > 0 {
+			ss.durationSec.Store(pm.durationSec)
+		}
+	}
 }
 
 // ClearFile stops serving any file. Subsequent requests return 404.
@@ -163,6 +184,9 @@ func (ss *StreamServer) ClearFile() {
 	ss.mu.Unlock()
 	ss.totalFileSize.Store(0)
 	ss.maxByteOffset.Store(0)
+	ss.topReaderID.Store(0)
+	ss.bitrateBps.Store(0)
+	ss.durationSec.Store(0)
 }
 
 // CurrentTaskID returns the task ID of the file currently being served.
@@ -213,18 +237,6 @@ func (ss *StreamServer) Shutdown(ctx context.Context) error {
 func (ss *StreamServer) handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	ss.lastActivity.Store(time.Now().UnixNano())
 
-	// Track Range header for watch progress estimation
-	if rangeHeader := r.Header.Get("Range"); rangeHeader != "" {
-		if start := parseRangeStart(rangeHeader); start >= 0 {
-			for {
-				cur := ss.maxByteOffset.Load()
-				if start <= cur || ss.maxByteOffset.CompareAndSwap(cur, start) {
-					break
-				}
-			}
-		}
-	}
-
 	// Get current provider (may be nil if no file is being served)
 	ss.mu.RLock()
 	provider := ss.provider
@@ -248,12 +260,34 @@ func (ss *StreamServer) handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		}
 	}
 
-	reader := provider.NewFileReader(r.Context())
-	if reader == nil {
+	rawReader := provider.NewFileReader(r.Context())
+	if rawReader == nil {
 		http.Error(w, "file not found", http.StatusNotFound)
 		return
 	}
-	defer reader.Close()
+	defer rawReader.Close()
+
+	// Wrap reader to track bytes read for progress estimation + rate limit.
+	// Rate limiting at ~2x bitrate ensures VLC can't download far ahead of
+	// playback, so bytes-read ≈ playback position (like Netflix/YouTube).
+	bps := ss.bitrateBps.Load()
+	var bytesPerSec int64
+	if bps > 0 {
+		bytesPerSec = bps / 8 * 2 // 2x bitrate in bytes/sec
+	}
+	var burstSize int64
+	if bytesPerSec > 0 {
+		burstSize = bytesPerSec * 30
+	}
+	reader := &trackingReader{
+		inner:       rawReader,
+		server:      ss,
+		id:          ss.readerCounter.Add(1),
+		bytesPerSec: bytesPerSec,
+		burstSize:   burstSize,
+		tokens:      burstSize,
+		lastFill:    time.Now(),
+	}
 
 	w.Header().Set("Content-Type", mimeTypeFromExt(provider.FileName()))
 	// "inline" for play requests (VLC/mpv), "attachment" for download requests.
@@ -272,35 +306,19 @@ func (ss *StreamServer) handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	http.ServeContent(w, r, provider.FileName(), time.Time{}, reader)
 }
 
-// EstimatedProgress returns an estimated watch progress based on HTTP Range requests.
-func (ss *StreamServer) EstimatedProgress() (position int, duration int) {
+// EstimatedProgress returns estimated watch progress percentage (0-100)
+// and the total duration in seconds (0 if unknown).
+func (ss *StreamServer) EstimatedProgress() (pct int, durationSec int) {
 	total := ss.totalFileSize.Load()
 	if total <= 0 {
 		return 0, 0
 	}
 	maxOffset := ss.maxByteOffset.Load()
-	pct := int(float64(maxOffset) / float64(total) * 100)
-	if pct > 100 {
-		pct = 100
+	p := int(float64(maxOffset) / float64(total) * 100)
+	if p > 100 {
+		p = 100
 	}
-	return pct, 100
-}
-
-// parseRangeStart extracts the start byte from a "Range: bytes=START-" header.
-func parseRangeStart(rangeHeader string) int64 {
-	after, found := strings.CutPrefix(rangeHeader, "bytes=")
-	if !found {
-		return -1
-	}
-	dashIdx := strings.IndexByte(after, '-')
-	if dashIdx < 0 {
-		return -1
-	}
-	start, err := strconv.ParseInt(after[:dashIdx], 10, 64)
-	if err != nil {
-		return -1
-	}
-	return start
+	return p, int(ss.durationSec.Load())
 }
 
 // --- File Providers ---
@@ -322,7 +340,7 @@ type diskFileProvider struct {
 func (p *diskFileProvider) NewFileReader(_ context.Context) io.ReadSeekCloser {
 	f, err := os.Open(p.path)
 	if err != nil {
-		log.Printf("stream: failed to open %q: %v", p.path, err)
+		log.Printf("[stream] failed to open %q: %v", p.path, err)
 		return nil
 	}
 	return f
@@ -333,7 +351,7 @@ func (p *diskFileProvider) FileName() string { return p.name }
 func (p *diskFileProvider) FileSize() int64 {
 	fi, err := os.Stat(p.path)
 	if err != nil {
-		log.Printf("stream: failed to stat %q: %v", p.path, err)
+		log.Printf("[stream] failed to stat %q: %v", p.path, err)
 		return 0
 	}
 	return fi.Size()
@@ -416,6 +434,174 @@ func TailscaleIP() string {
 	return ip
 }
 
+// trackingReader wraps an io.ReadSeekCloser with:
+//   - Progress tracking: atomically updates maxByteOffset on Read (not Seek).
+//   - Rate limiting: token bucket throttle at ~2x video bitrate so that
+//     bytes-read ≈ playback position. Without this, local/NAS files get
+//     downloaded instantly and progress jumps to 100%.
+//
+// Rate limiting happens AFTER each Read (sleep to pace), never before.
+// This ensures the client always receives data and never times out.
+type trackingReader struct {
+	inner       io.ReadSeekCloser
+	server      *StreamServer
+	id          int64 // unique ID for this reader
+	pos         int64 // current read position
+	bytesRead   int64 // total bytes read by THIS connection (measures sequential progress)
+	bytesPerSec int64 // 0 = unlimited (remote/torrent), >0 = throttled (local disk)
+
+	// Token bucket state
+	tokens    int64     // available bytes to serve (can go negative = we're ahead)
+	lastFill  time.Time // last time tokens were replenished
+	burstSize int64     // max token accumulation (caps how far ahead VLC can buffer)
+}
+
+func (t *trackingReader) Read(p []byte) (int, error) {
+	// Always read immediately — never block before serving data to the client.
+	n, err := t.inner.Read(p)
+	if n > 0 {
+		t.pos += int64(n)
+		t.bytesRead += int64(n)
+
+		// Only the reader that has read the most bytes can update progress.
+		// This prevents VLC's metadata/index requests (which read near EOF)
+		// from inflating progress to 100%.
+		if t.server.topReaderID.Load() == t.id {
+			// We own the progress — advance it (never regress)
+			for {
+				cur := t.server.maxByteOffset.Load()
+				if t.pos <= cur || t.server.maxByteOffset.CompareAndSwap(cur, t.pos) {
+					break
+				}
+			}
+		} else {
+			// Try to take over if we've read more than the current progress.
+			// CAS loop prevents two goroutines from interleaving their stores.
+			for {
+				cur := t.server.maxByteOffset.Load()
+				if t.bytesRead <= cur {
+					break
+				}
+				if t.server.maxByteOffset.CompareAndSwap(cur, t.pos) {
+					t.server.topReaderID.Store(t.id)
+					break
+				}
+			}
+		}
+
+		// Rate limit: sleep AFTER read to pace throughput.
+		if t.bytesPerSec > 0 {
+			t.fillTokens()
+			t.tokens -= int64(n)
+			if t.tokens < 0 {
+				deficit := -t.tokens
+				sleepNs := (deficit * int64(time.Second)) / t.bytesPerSec
+				if sleepNs > int64(time.Second) {
+					sleepNs = int64(time.Second)
+				}
+				time.Sleep(time.Duration(sleepNs))
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return n, err
+}
+
+func (t *trackingReader) Seek(offset int64, whence int) (int64, error) {
+	newPos, err := t.inner.Seek(offset, whence)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.pos = newPos
+		// Don't update maxByteOffset on Seek — http.ServeContent seeks to EOF
+		// to determine size, which would instantly mark progress as 100%.
+		// Don't reset tokens — prevents clients from bypassing rate limiting
+		// by issuing repeated seeks to refill the token bucket.
+	}
+	return newPos, err
+}
+
+func (t *trackingReader) Close() error { return t.inner.Close() }
+
+func (t *trackingReader) fillTokens() {
+	now := time.Now()
+	elapsed := now.Sub(t.lastFill)
+	if elapsed <= 0 {
+		return
+	}
+	newTokens := int64(elapsed.Seconds() * float64(t.bytesPerSec))
+	t.tokens += newTokens
+	if t.tokens > t.burstSize {
+		t.tokens = t.burstSize
+	}
+	t.lastFill = now
+}
+
+// probeMedia holds bitrate and duration extracted by ffprobe.
+type probeMedia struct {
+	bitrateBps  int64 // bits per second
+	durationSec int64 // seconds
+}
+
+// probeBitrate uses ffprobe to detect the video bitrate and duration.
+// Returns zero values if ffprobe is not available or the file can't be probed.
+func probeMediaInfo(filePath string) probeMedia {
+	// Defense-in-depth: only probe regular files (not FIFOs, devices, etc.)
+	if fi, err := os.Stat(filePath); err != nil || !fi.Mode().IsRegular() {
+		return probeMedia{}
+	}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.Background(), 3*time.Second)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	out, err := exec.CommandContext(ctx, "ffprobe",
+		"-v", "quiet",
+		"-print_format", "json",
+		"-show_format",
+		filePath,
+	).Output()
+	if err != nil {
+		return probeMedia{}
+	}
+
+	var result struct {
+		Format struct {
+			BitRate  string `json:"bit_rate"`
+			Duration string `json:"duration"`
+			Size     string `json:"size"`
+		} `json:"format"`
+	}
+	if err := json.Unmarshal(out, &result); err != nil {
+		return probeMedia{}
+	}
+
+	var pm probeMedia
+
+	// Parse duration
+	if result.Format.Duration != "" {
+		dur, _ := strconv.ParseFloat(result.Format.Duration, 64)
+		if dur > 0 {
+			pm.durationSec = int64(dur)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Prefer explicit bit_rate from ffprobe
+	if result.Format.BitRate != "" {
+		bps, _ := strconv.ParseInt(result.Format.BitRate, 10, 64)
+		if bps > 0 {
+			pm.bitrateBps = bps
+			return pm
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Fallback: estimate bitrate from size / duration
+	if result.Format.Size != "" && pm.durationSec > 0 {
+		size, _ := strconv.ParseInt(result.Format.Size, 10, 64)
+		if size > 0 {
+			pm.bitrateBps = int64(float64(size) * 8 / float64(pm.durationSec))
+		}
+	}
+
+	return pm
+}
+
 func mimeTypeFromExt(filename string) string {
 	ext := strings.ToLower(filepath.Ext(filename))
 	switch ext {