diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index b18afe1b..39c09572 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -352,11 +352,21 @@ CI step will fail loudly if its symbols escape the public ABI of
 
 Tests are under `src/tests/` using Google Test:
 
-```
+```bash
+source .token_helpers/set_data_track_test_tokens.bash
 ./build.sh debug-tests
 cd build-debug && ctest
 ```
 
+Always source the test tokens before running tests, even for a targeted local
+test run. The integration and stress suites require `LIVEKIT_URL`,
+`LIVEKIT_TOKEN_A`, and `LIVEKIT_TOKEN_B`; use
+`source .token_helpers/set_data_track_test_tokens.bash` from the repository
+root so the current shell inherits them. Do not report an integration test as
+verified just because it was skipped for missing tokens. If tokens cannot be
+sourced or the LiveKit server is not available, say that the integration test
+was not actually exercised.
+
 Integration tests (`src/tests/integration/`) cover: room connections, callbacks, data tracks, RPC, logging, audio processing, and the subscription thread dispatcher. The token source HTTP/JSON wire contract (request serialization, response parsing, header passthrough, GET support, sandbox URL/header resolution) is covered by mocked unit tests in `src/tests/unit/test_token_source.cpp`, which inject a stub HTTP transport so no live server is needed. For a full end-to-end check, `TokenSourceEndpointConnectTest` connects a `Room` with a real JWT minted by the `livekit/token-server-action` token server pointed at the local dev `livekit-server`. The action exposes its `/createToken` endpoint as a `token-url` output; `tests.yml` passes that to the integration test step as `LIVEKIT_CREATE_TOKEN_URL`, which the test reads to locate the endpoint. The server is started in the `e2e-testing` jobs via the token server's reusable GitHub Action, pinned by SHA in `tests.yml`.
 
 When adding new client facing functionality, add a new test case to the existing test suite.
diff --git a/include/livekit/room_event_types.h b/include/livekit/room_event_types.h
index f688bbec..11bad343 100644
--- a/include/livekit/room_event_types.h
+++ b/include/livekit/room_event_types.h
@@ -273,6 +273,19 @@ struct AudioEncodingOptions {
   std::uint64_t max_bitrate = 0;
 };
 
+/// @brief Controls how the encoder degrades quality when bandwidth is constrained.
+enum class DegradationPreference {
+  /// Balance between framerate and resolution degradation.
+  Balanced = 0,
+  /// Degrade resolution to maintain framerate (prioritize smooth motion).
+  MaintainFramerate = 1,
+  /// Degrade framerate to maintain resolution (prioritize image clarity).
+  MaintainResolution = 2,
+  /// Maintain both framerate and resolution. Frames may be dropped before
+  /// encoding if necessary to avoid overusing network and encoder resources.
+  MaintainFramerateAndResolution = 4,
+};
+
 /// Optional frame metadata features for published video tracks.
 struct FrameMetadataFeatures {
   /// Embed a user-supplied wall-clock timestamp.
@@ -324,6 +337,10 @@ struct TrackPublishOptions {
   /// @deprecated Use frame_metadata_features instead.
   [[deprecated("TrackPublishOptions::packet_trailer_features is deprecated; use frame_metadata_features instead")]]
   FrameMetadataFeatures packet_trailer_features{};
+
+  /// Controls how the encoder trades off between resolution and framerate
+  /// when bandwidth is constrained. If not set, the server defaults apply.
+  std::optional<DegradationPreference> degradation_preference;
 };
 
 // ---------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/src/room_proto_converter.cpp b/src/room_proto_converter.cpp
index 010aa545..6e2fdcd0 100644
--- a/src/room_proto_converter.cpp
+++ b/src/room_proto_converter.cpp
@@ -526,6 +526,9 @@ proto::TrackPublishOptions toProto(const TrackPublishOptions& in) {
   for (const proto::FrameMetadataFeature feature : toProto(mergedFrameMetadataFeatures(in))) {
     msg.add_frame_metadata_features(feature);
   }
+  if (in.degradation_preference) {
+    msg.set_degradation_preference(static_cast<proto::DegradationPreference>(*in.degradation_preference));
+  }
   return msg;
 }
 
@@ -563,6 +566,9 @@ TrackPublishOptions fromProto(const proto::TrackPublishOptions& in) {
     out.frame_metadata_features = frame_metadata_features;
   }
   out.packet_trailer_features = frame_metadata_features;
+  if (in.has_degradation_preference()) {
+    out.degradation_preference = static_cast<DegradationPreference>(in.degradation_preference());
+  }
   return out;
 }
 
diff --git a/src/tests/common/test_common.h b/src/tests/common/test_common.h
index 530fdb6b..9ec0e508 100644
--- a/src/tests/common/test_common.h
+++ b/src/tests/common/test_common.h
@@ -548,7 +548,7 @@ class LiveKitTestBase : public ::testing::Test {
   /// Fail the test if the required environment variables are not set
   void failIfNotConfigured() {
     if (!config_.available) {
-      FAIL() << "LIVEKIT_URL, LIVEKIT_TOKEN_A, and LIVEKIT_TOKEN_B not set";
+      throw std::runtime_error("LIVEKIT_URL, LIVEKIT_TOKEN_A, and LIVEKIT_TOKEN_B not set");
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/src/tests/unit/test_room_event_types.cpp b/src/tests/unit/test_room_event_types.cpp
index 050e9776..c653aa10 100644
--- a/src/tests/unit/test_room_event_types.cpp
+++ b/src/tests/unit/test_room_event_types.cpp
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ TEST(RoomEventTypesTest, TrackPublishOptionsDefaults) {
   EXPECT_FALSE(options.packet_trailer_features.user_timestamp);
   EXPECT_FALSE(options.packet_trailer_features.frame_id);
   EXPECT_FALSE(options.packet_trailer_features.user_data);
+  EXPECT_FALSE(options.degradation_preference.has_value());
 }
 
 TEST(RoomEventTypesTest, UserPacketDataDefaults) {
diff --git a/src/tests/unit/test_video_frame_metadata.cpp b/src/tests/unit/test_video_frame_metadata.cpp
index b87bbdab..5c683e84 100644
--- a/src/tests/unit/test_video_frame_metadata.cpp
+++ b/src/tests/unit/test_video_frame_metadata.cpp
@@ -138,6 +138,20 @@ TEST(TrackPublishOptionsTest, FrameMetadataFeaturesRoundTrip) {
   EXPECT_TRUE(round_trip.frame_metadata_features->user_data);
 }
 
+TEST(TrackPublishOptionsTest, DegradationPreferenceRoundTrip) {
+  TrackPublishOptions options;
+  options.degradation_preference = DegradationPreference::MaintainFramerateAndResolution;
+
+  proto::TrackPublishOptions proto_options = toProto(options);
+  ASSERT_TRUE(proto_options.has_degradation_preference());
+  EXPECT_EQ(proto_options.degradation_preference(),
+            proto::DegradationPreference::DEGRADATION_PREFERENCE_MAINTAIN_FRAMERATE_AND_RESOLUTION);
+
+  TrackPublishOptions round_trip = fromProto(proto_options);
+  ASSERT_TRUE(round_trip.degradation_preference.has_value());
+  EXPECT_EQ(*round_trip.degradation_preference, DegradationPreference::MaintainFramerateAndResolution);
+}
+
 TEST(TrackPublishOptionsTest, DeprecatedPacketTrailerFeaturesAreMerged) {
   TrackPublishOptions options;