diff --git a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/cli.py b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/cli.py
index 219fcac..b24e136 100644
--- a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/cli.py
+++ b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/cli.py
@@ -12,18 +12,21 @@ warnings.filterwarnings(
     module="matplotlib",
 )
 
-import click
+import click  # noqa: E402
 
-from ria_toolkit_oss_cli.ria_toolkit_oss import commands
+from ria_toolkit_oss_cli.ria_toolkit_oss import commands  # noqa: E402
 
 
 def _git_lfs_installed() -> bool:
     """Return True if git-lfs is available on PATH."""
     try:
-        return subprocess.run(
-            ["git", "lfs", "version"],
-            capture_output=True,
-        ).returncode == 0
+        return (
+            subprocess.run(
+                ["git", "lfs", "version"],
+                capture_output=True,
+            ).returncode
+            == 0
+        )
     except FileNotFoundError:
         return False
 
diff --git a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/commands.py b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/commands.py
index 4a003f2..7587f58 100644
--- a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/commands.py
+++ b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/commands.py
@@ -16,11 +16,12 @@ from .generate import generate
 # from .generate import generate
 from .init import init
 from .serve import serve
+from .setup_repo import setup_repo
 from .split import split
 from .transform import transform
 from .transmit import transmit
+from .upload import upload
 from .view import view
-from .setup_repo import setup_repo
 
 # Aliases
 synth = generate
diff --git a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/setup_repo.py b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/setup_repo.py
index 6cbb2d8..09c8e7f 100644
--- a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/setup_repo.py
+++ b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/setup_repo.py
@@ -1,9 +1,14 @@
-"""ria setup-repo — configure a local git repo as a RIA Hub Project."""
+"""ria setup_repo — create and configure a RIA Hub Project repo."""
 
+import base64
+import json
 import os
 import re
 import subprocess
 import sys
+import urllib.error
+import urllib.parse
+import urllib.request
 
 import click
 
@@ -22,9 +27,222 @@ RIA_LFS_RULES = [
     ("*.pkl", "filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text"),
 ]
 
+DEFAULT_HUB = "http://localhost:3000"
+
+# Repo names must be safe directory names and valid git remote path components.
+_SAFE_NAME_RE = re.compile(r"^[A-Za-z0-9._-]{1,100}$")
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Credential helpers — all credential I/O goes through git's own store
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _get_stored_credentials(hub_url: str) -> tuple[str | None, str | None]:
+    """Ask git credential fill for stored creds. Returns (username, password) or (None, None)."""
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(hub_url)
+    payload = f"protocol={parsed.scheme}\nhost={parsed.netloc}\n\n"
+    try:
+        result = subprocess.run(
+            ["git", "credential", "fill"],
+            input=payload,
+            capture_output=True,
+            text=True,
+            timeout=5,
+        )
+        creds = {}
+        for line in result.stdout.splitlines():
+            # partition on the FIRST '=' only so passwords containing '=' are preserved.
+            # Only strip whitespace from the key, not the value.
+            k, sep, v = line.partition("=")
+            if sep:
+                creds[k.strip()] = v  # keep password value verbatim
+        return creds.get("username"), creds.get("password")
+    except Exception:
+        return None, None
+
+
+def _store_credentials(hub_url: str, username: str, password: str) -> None:
+    """Cache credentials via git credential approve (uses the system keychain/store)."""
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(hub_url)
+    payload = (
+        f"protocol={parsed.scheme}\n" f"host={parsed.netloc}\n" f"username={username}\n" f"password={password}\n\n"
+    )
+    try:
+        subprocess.run(
+            ["git", "credential", "approve"],
+            input=payload,
+            capture_output=True,
+            text=True,
+            timeout=5,
+        )
+    except Exception:
+        pass  # non-fatal — next push just prompts again
+
+
+def _resolve_credentials(hub: str) -> tuple[str, str]:
+    """Return (username, password), prompting interactively if not cached."""
+    username, password = _get_stored_credentials(hub)
+    if username and password:
+        return username, password
+
+    click.echo(f"No stored credentials found for {hub}.")
+    username = click.prompt("RIA Hub username")
+    password = click.prompt("Password / personal access token", hide_input=True)
+    return username, password
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# API helpers
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+class _NoRedirectHandler(urllib.request.HTTPRedirectHandler):
+    """Block redirects on API requests to prevent credential exfiltration.
+
+    urllib follows redirects by default and re-sends the Authorization header
+    on same-host redirects. A malicious server could redirect a POST to a
+    different host to harvest credentials. We refuse all redirects — API
+    clients should not encounter them in normal operation.
+    """
+
+    def redirect_request(self, req, fp, code, msg, headers, newurl):
+        raise urllib.error.URLError(f"Unexpected redirect ({code}) to {newurl} — aborting to protect credentials")
+
+
+def _api_request(
+    hub: str,
+    path: str,
+    method: str,
+    username: str,
+    password: str,
+    body: dict | None = None,
+) -> tuple[dict, int]:
+    """
+    Make an authenticated request to the RIA Hub API.
+    Returns (parsed_response_body, http_status_code).
+    Status 0 means a network/connection error.
+    Credentials are sent as HTTP Basic auth — safe over HTTPS and localhost HTTP.
+    Redirects are blocked to prevent credential exfiltration.
+    """
+    url = f"{hub.rstrip('/')}/api/v1{path}"
+    data = json.dumps(body).encode() if body is not None else None
+    req = urllib.request.Request(url, data=data, method=method)
+    req.add_header("Content-Type", "application/json")
+    # Credentials are base64-encoded (not encrypted). Callers must ensure
+    # they only call this over HTTPS or localhost — enforced in _warn_if_insecure.
+    cred = base64.b64encode(f"{username}:{password}".encode()).decode()
+    req.add_header("Authorization", f"Basic {cred}")
+
+    opener = urllib.request.build_opener(_NoRedirectHandler)
+    try:
+        with opener.open(req, timeout=15) as resp:
+            return json.loads(resp.read() or b"{}"), resp.status
+    except urllib.error.HTTPError as e:
+        try:
+            resp_body = json.loads(e.read() or b"{}")
+        except Exception:
+            resp_body = {}
+        return resp_body, e.code
+    except urllib.error.URLError as e:
+        return {"message": str(e.reason)}, 0
+
+
+def _warn_if_insecure(hub: str) -> None:
+    """Warn when sending credentials over plain HTTP to a non-localhost host."""
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(hub)
+    if parsed.scheme == "http":
+        host = parsed.hostname or ""
+        if host not in ("localhost", "127.0.0.1", "::1"):
+            click.echo(
+                f"Warning: sending credentials over plain HTTP to {host}. " "Use HTTPS in production.",
+                err=True,
+            )
+
+
+def _get_authenticated_username(hub: str, username: str, password: str) -> str | None:
+    """Return the login name of the authenticated user from GET /api/v1/user.
+
+    This is the canonical username for URL construction — it may differ from
+    git config user.name which is a display name, not a login.
+    """
+    body, status = _api_request(hub, "/user", "GET", username, password)
+    if status == 200:
+        return body.get("login")
+    return None
+
+
+def _repo_exists(hub: str, owner: str, name: str, username: str, password: str) -> bool:
+    body, status = _api_request(
+        hub,
+        f"/repos/{urllib.parse.quote(owner, safe='')}/{urllib.parse.quote(name, safe='')}",
+        "GET",
+        username,
+        password,
+    )
+    return status == 200
+
+
+def _create_repo_on_hub(hub: str, name: str, username: str, password: str, private: bool) -> bool:
+    """Create an RIA Hub Project repo via API.
+
+    Returns True if the repo was freshly created (server seeded README.md and
+    .gitattributes via auto_init + is_ria), False if the hub was unreachable
+    (local fallback needed). Exits on fatal errors (auth, quota, name taken).
+    """
+    body, status = _api_request(
+        hub,
+        "/user/repos",
+        "POST",
+        username,
+        password,
+        {
+            "name": name,
+            "auto_init": True,
+            "is_ria": True,
+            "private": private,
+            "default_branch": "main",
+        },
+    )
+
+    if status == 201:
+        click.echo(f"Repository '{name}' created on RIA Hub.")
+        return True
+
+    if status == 0:
+        click.echo(
+            f"Warning: could not reach RIA Hub at {hub}: {body.get('message', 'connection failed')}",
+            err=True,
+        )
+        click.echo("Continuing with local setup only — create the repo manually on RIA Hub.", err=True)
+        return False
+
+    msg = body.get("message", "")
+
+    if status == 401:
+        click.echo("Error: authentication failed — check your username/password.", err=True)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    if status in (403, 413) or "quota" in msg.lower() or "limit" in msg.lower():
+        click.echo("Error: cannot create repository — storage quota or account limit reached.", err=True)
+        if msg:
+            click.echo(f"  Server message: {msg}", err=True)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    if status == 422 or "already exist" in msg.lower():
+        click.echo(f"Repository '{name}' already exists on RIA Hub.")
+        return False
+
+    click.echo(f"Error creating repository (HTTP {status}): {msg}", err=True)
+    sys.exit(1)
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Local git helpers
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
 
 def _tracked_patterns(ga_path: str) -> set:
-    """Return the set of glob patterns already in .gitattributes."""
     if not os.path.exists(ga_path):
         return set()
     patterns = set()
@@ -39,91 +257,226 @@ def _tracked_patterns(ga_path: str) -> set:
     return patterns
 
 
-@click.command("setup_repo")
-@click.option(
-    "--path",
-    default=".",
-    show_default=True,
-    help="Path to the git repository (default: current directory).",
-)
-@click.option(
-    "--remote",
-    default=None,
-    metavar="URL",
-    help="RIA Hub remote URL to add as 'origin'.",
-)
-def setup_repo(path: str, remote: str | None) -> None:
-    """Configure a local directory as a RIA Hub Project repo.
+def _write_local_ria_files(repo_path: str, repo_name: str) -> None:
+    """Seed README.md and .gitattributes locally (used when hub is unreachable or --no-remote)."""
+    # README
+    for candidate in ("README.md", "README.rst", "README.txt", "README"):
+        if os.path.exists(os.path.join(repo_path, candidate)):
+            click.echo(f"README: {candidate} already exists, skipping")
+            break
+    else:
+        with open(os.path.join(repo_path, "README.md"), "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
+            f.write(
+                f"# {repo_name}\n"
+                "\n"
+                "A RIA Hub project.\n"
+                "\n"
+                "## Description\n"
+                "\n"
+                "<!-- Add your project description here -->\n"
+                "\n"
+                "## Contents\n"
+                "\n"
+                "<!-- Describe the signals, models, or datasets in this repository -->\n"
+            )
+        click.echo("README.md: created")
 
-    Installs git-lfs locally and writes .gitattributes with the RIA Hub
-    LFS tracking rules. Run this once after cloning or initialising a repo.
-    """
-    repo_path = os.path.abspath(path)
-
-    # 1. Verify this is a git repository.
-    if not os.path.isdir(os.path.join(repo_path, ".git")):
-        click.echo(
-            f"Error: '{repo_path}' is not a git repository.\n"
-            "Run 'git init' first, or use --path to point at an existing repo.",
-            err=True,
-        )
-        sys.exit(1)
-
-    # 2. Verify git-lfs is installed.
-    if subprocess.run(["git", "lfs", "version"], capture_output=True).returncode != 0:
-        click.echo(
-            "Error: git-lfs is not installed.\n"
-            "Get it at: https://git-lfs.com",
-            err=True,
-        )
-        sys.exit(1)
-
-    # 3. Install git-lfs hooks for this repo.
-    subprocess.run(
-        ["git", "-C", repo_path, "lfs", "install", "--local"],
-        check=True,
-        capture_output=True,
-    )
-    click.echo("git lfs install --local: done")
-
-    # 4. Write .gitattributes (append only new rules).
+    # .gitattributes
     ga_path = os.path.join(repo_path, ".gitattributes")
     existing = _tracked_patterns(ga_path)
     new_rules = [(p, a) for p, a in RIA_LFS_RULES if p not in existing]
 
     if new_rules:
+        existing_content = ""
+        if os.path.exists(ga_path):
+            with open(ga_path, encoding="utf-8") as f:
+                existing_content = f.read()
+
+        separator = "" if (not existing_content or existing_content.endswith("\n")) else "\n"
+        addition = separator + "".join(f"{pattern} {attrs}\n" for pattern, attrs in new_rules)
+
         with open(ga_path, "a", encoding="utf-8") as f:
-            # Ensure we start on a fresh line.
-            if os.path.exists(ga_path) and os.path.getsize(ga_path) > 0:
-                with open(ga_path, encoding="utf-8") as rf:
-                    content = rf.read()
-                if content and not content.endswith("\n"):
-                    f.write("\n")
-            for pattern, attrs in new_rules:
-                f.write(f"{pattern} {attrs}\n")
+            f.write(addition)
         click.echo(f".gitattributes: {len(new_rules)} rule(s) added")
     else:
-        click.echo(".gitattributes: all RIA Hub rules are already present, nothing added")
+        click.echo(".gitattributes: all RIA Hub rules are already present")
 
-    # 5. Optionally set the remote origin.
-    if remote:
-        result = subprocess.run(
-            ["git", "-C", repo_path, "remote", "add", "origin", remote],
-            capture_output=True,
-            text=True,
-        )
-        if result.returncode != 0:
-            if "already exists" in result.stderr:
-                click.echo(f"remote 'origin' already exists, skipping (use git remote set-url to change it)")
-            else:
-                click.echo(f"Warning: could not add remote: {result.stderr.strip()}", err=True)
-        else:
-            click.echo(f"remote origin: {remote}")
 
-    # 6. Print next steps.
-    click.echo(
-        "\nRepo is ready. Commit the updated .gitattributes and push:\n"
-        "  git add .gitattributes\n"
-        "  git commit -m 'chore: add RIA Hub LFS rules'\n"
-        "  git push -u origin main"
+def _git(repo_path: str, *args: str, check: bool = True) -> subprocess.CompletedProcess:
+    return subprocess.run(
+        ["git", "-C", repo_path, *args],
+        capture_output=True,
+        text=True,
+        check=check,
     )
+
+
+def _resolve_path_and_name(name: str | None, local_path: str | None) -> tuple[str, str]:
+    if local_path:
+        repo_path = os.path.abspath(local_path)
+        repo_name = name or os.path.basename(repo_path)
+    elif name:
+        repo_path = os.path.abspath(name)
+        repo_name = name
+    else:
+        repo_path = os.path.abspath(".")
+        repo_name = os.path.basename(repo_path)
+    return repo_path, repo_name
+
+
+def _resolve_owner(hub: str, username: str | None, password: str | None, owner: str | None) -> str:
+    if not owner and username and password:
+        api_login = _get_authenticated_username(hub, username, password)
+        owner = api_login or username
+    return owner or "unknown"
+
+
+def _git_init(repo_path: str) -> None:
+    if os.path.isdir(os.path.join(repo_path, ".git")):
+        return
+    result = _git(repo_path, "init", "-b", "main", check=False)
+    if result.returncode != 0:
+        # Older git (< 2.28) doesn't support -b; fall back and rename.
+        _git(repo_path, "init")
+        _git(repo_path, "symbolic-ref", "HEAD", "refs/heads/main")
+    click.echo("git init: done (branch: main)")
+
+
+def _configure_remote(
+    repo_path: str, hub: str, resolved_owner: str, repo_name: str, username: str | None, no_remote: bool
+) -> None:
+    if no_remote or not username:
+        click.echo(
+            f"Skipped remote setup. Add it manually:\n"
+            f"  git -C {repo_path} remote add origin "
+            f"{hub.rstrip('/')}/<owner>/{repo_name}.git"
+        )
+        return
+    remote_url = f"{hub.rstrip('/')}/{resolved_owner}/{repo_name}.git"
+    existing = _git(repo_path, "remote", "get-url", "origin", check=False)
+    if existing.returncode == 0:
+        existing_url = existing.stdout.strip()
+        if existing_url == remote_url:
+            click.echo(f"remote origin: {remote_url} (already set)")
+        else:
+            click.echo(
+                f"remote 'origin' already points to {existing_url}.\n"
+                f"  To update: git remote set-url origin {remote_url}"
+            )
+    else:
+        _git(repo_path, "remote", "add", "origin", remote_url)
+        click.echo(f"remote origin: {remote_url}")
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Command
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+@click.command("setup_repo")
+@click.argument("name", required=False)
+@click.option(
+    "--path", "local_path", default=None, help="Local directory (default: current dir, or created from NAME)."
+)
+@click.option("--hub", default=DEFAULT_HUB, show_default=True, metavar="URL", help="RIA Hub base URL.")
+@click.option(
+    "--owner",
+    default=None,
+    metavar="USER",
+    help="RIA Hub login username (default: looked up from the API using your credentials).",
+)
+@click.option("--private", is_flag=True, default=False, help="Create the repository as private.")
+@click.option(
+    "--no-remote", is_flag=True, default=False, help="Skip creating the repository on RIA Hub (local setup only)."
+)
+def setup_repo(
+    name: str | None,
+    local_path: str | None,
+    hub: str,
+    owner: str | None,
+    private: bool,
+    no_remote: bool,
+) -> None:
+    """Create and configure a RIA Hub Project repo.
+
+    NAME is the repository name. If the local directory does not exist or is
+    not a git repo, it will be initialised automatically. Credentials are
+    retrieved from git's credential store — no token setup required if you
+    have used RIA Hub with git before.
+
+    \b
+    Examples:
+      ria setup_repo my-dataset
+      ria setup_repo my-dataset --hub https://riahub.example.com
+      ria setup_repo --path ./existing-dir
+      ria setup_repo my-dataset --private
+    """
+    repo_path, repo_name = _resolve_path_and_name(name, local_path)
+
+    if not _SAFE_NAME_RE.match(repo_name):
+        click.echo(
+            f"Error: '{repo_name}' is not a valid repository name.\n"
+            "Use only letters, numbers, hyphens, underscores, and dots (max 100 chars).",
+            err=True,
+        )
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    if not no_remote:
+        _warn_if_insecure(hub)
+
+    username, password = (None, None) if no_remote else _resolve_credentials(hub)
+    resolved_owner = _resolve_owner(hub, username, password, owner)
+
+    # newly_created=True means the server ran auto_init+is_ria and seeded
+    # README.md + .gitattributes in the initial commit; local setup pulls
+    # those files via fetch rather than writing them from scratch.
+    newly_created = False
+    if not no_remote and username and password:
+        if _repo_exists(hub, resolved_owner, repo_name, username, password):
+            click.echo(f"Repository '{resolved_owner}/{repo_name}' already exists on RIA Hub.")
+        else:
+            newly_created = _create_repo_on_hub(hub, repo_name, username, password, private)
+        _store_credentials(hub, username, password)
+
+    if not os.path.exists(repo_path):
+        os.makedirs(repo_path)
+        click.echo(f"Created directory: {repo_path}")
+
+    _git_init(repo_path)
+
+    if subprocess.run(["git", "lfs", "version"], capture_output=True).returncode != 0:
+        click.echo(
+            "Error: git-lfs is not installed.\n"
+            "  Linux:           sudo apt-get install git-lfs\n"
+            "  macOS:           brew install git-lfs\n"
+            "  Other platforms: https://git-lfs.com",
+            err=True,
+        )
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    _git(repo_path, "lfs", "install", "--local")
+    click.echo("git lfs install --local: done")
+
+    _configure_remote(repo_path, hub, resolved_owner, repo_name, username, no_remote)
+
+    if newly_created:
+        fetch = _git(repo_path, "fetch", "origin", check=False)
+        if fetch.returncode == 0:
+            _git(repo_path, "reset", "--hard", "origin/main")
+            click.echo("Pulled initial commit from RIA Hub (README.md + .gitattributes)")
+        else:
+            click.echo("Warning: fetch failed — falling back to local file setup.", err=True)
+            _write_local_ria_files(repo_path, repo_name)
+    else:
+        _write_local_ria_files(repo_path, repo_name)
+
+    if newly_created:
+        click.echo(f"\nRepo is ready. Push your work:\n  cd {repo_path}\n  git push -u origin main")
+    else:
+        click.echo(
+            f"\nRepo is ready. Commit and push:\n"
+            f"  cd {repo_path}\n"
+            f"  git add README.md .gitattributes\n"
+            f"  git commit -m 'chore: initialise RIA Hub project'\n"
+            f"  git push -u origin main"
+        )
diff --git a/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/upload.py b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/upload.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e750f38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/ria_toolkit_oss_cli/ria_toolkit_oss/upload.py
@@ -0,0 +1,472 @@
+"""ria upload — stream large files to a RIA Hub Project via the LFS API.
+
+How it works
+------------
+1. The file is hashed locally (SHA-256 + size) — this is the LFS object ID.
+2. A single POST to the repo's LFS batch endpoint returns an upload URL
+   (and headers) for any object the server does not already have.
+3. The file is streamed to that URL in fixed-size chunks — nothing is ever
+   fully loaded into memory, so files of any size work.
+4. A commit is created via the Gitea contents API that records the LFS
+   pointer (a small text file) so the file appears in the repo tree.
+
+No server-side changes are required — this uses the same authenticated LFS
+protocol that `git lfs push` uses internally.
+"""
+
+import base64
+import hashlib
+import http.client
+import json
+import math
+import os
+import sys
+import urllib.error
+import urllib.parse
+import urllib.request
+
+import click
+
+# Read buffer for hashing and streaming — 8 MB keeps memory use flat
+# for arbitrarily large files.
+_CHUNK = 8 * 1024 * 1024
+
+LFS_MEDIA_TYPE = "application/vnd.git-lfs+json"
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Credential helpers (reused from setup_repo pattern)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _get_stored_credentials(hub_url: str) -> tuple[str | None, str | None]:
+    import subprocess
+
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(hub_url)
+    payload = f"protocol={parsed.scheme}\nhost={parsed.netloc}\n\n"
+    try:
+        result = subprocess.run(
+            ["git", "credential", "fill"],
+            input=payload,
+            capture_output=True,
+            text=True,
+            timeout=5,
+        )
+        creds = {}
+        for line in result.stdout.splitlines():
+            k, sep, v = line.partition("=")
+            if sep:
+                creds[k.strip()] = v
+        return creds.get("username"), creds.get("password")
+    except Exception:
+        return None, None
+
+
+def _resolve_credentials(hub: str) -> tuple[str, str]:
+    username, password = _get_stored_credentials(hub)
+    if username and password:
+        return username, password
+    click.echo(f"No stored credentials found for {hub}.")
+    username = click.prompt("RIA Hub username")
+    password = click.prompt("Password / personal access token", hide_input=True)
+    return username, password
+
+
+def _basic_auth(username: str, password: str) -> str:
+    return "Basic " + base64.b64encode(f"{username}:{password}".encode()).decode()
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# File helpers
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _hash_file(path: str) -> tuple[str, int]:
+    """Return (sha256_hex, byte_size) by streaming the file."""
+    h = hashlib.sha256()
+    size = 0
+    with open(path, "rb") as f:
+        while True:
+            chunk = f.read(_CHUNK)
+            if not chunk:
+                break
+            h.update(chunk)
+            size += len(chunk)
+    return h.hexdigest(), size
+
+
+def _lfs_pointer_text(oid: str, size: int) -> str:
+    return f"version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1\noid sha256:{oid}\nsize {size}\n"
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# LFS batch API
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _lfs_batch(
+    hub: str,
+    owner: str,
+    repo: str,
+    objects: list[dict],
+    username: str,
+    password: str,
+) -> dict:
+    """
+    POST to /{owner}/{repo}.git/info/lfs/objects/batch.
+    Returns the parsed JSON response.
+    Raises on HTTP error or JSON decode failure.
+    """
+    url = (
+        f"{hub.rstrip('/')}"
+        f"/{urllib.parse.quote(owner, safe='')}"
+        f"/{urllib.parse.quote(repo, safe='')}"
+        f".git/info/lfs/objects/batch"
+    )
+    body = json.dumps(
+        {
+            "operation": "upload",
+            "transfers": ["basic"],
+            "objects": objects,
+        }
+    ).encode()
+
+    req = urllib.request.Request(url, data=body, method="POST")
+    req.add_header("Content-Type", LFS_MEDIA_TYPE)
+    req.add_header("Accept", LFS_MEDIA_TYPE)
+    req.add_header("Authorization", _basic_auth(username, password))
+
+    try:
+        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=30) as resp:
+            return json.loads(resp.read())
+    except urllib.error.HTTPError as e:
+        body_text = e.read().decode(errors="replace")
+        raise RuntimeError(f"LFS batch request failed (HTTP {e.code}): {body_text}") from e
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Streaming PUT upload
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _stream_upload(href: str, headers: dict, file_path: str, size: int) -> None:
+    """
+    PUT file_path content to href, streaming in _CHUNK-sized pieces.
+    Uses http.client directly so Content-Length is set without buffering
+    the whole file in memory. Works for files of any size.
+    """
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(href)
+    host = parsed.netloc
+    path = parsed.path
+    if parsed.query:
+        path += "?" + parsed.query
+
+    if parsed.scheme == "https":
+        conn = http.client.HTTPSConnection(host, timeout=300)
+    else:
+        conn = http.client.HTTPConnection(host, timeout=300)
+
+    all_headers = dict(headers or {})
+    all_headers.setdefault("Content-Type", "application/octet-stream")
+    all_headers["Content-Length"] = str(size)
+
+    try:
+        conn.connect()
+        conn.putrequest("PUT", path)
+        for k, v in all_headers.items():
+            conn.putheader(k, v)
+        conn.endheaders()
+
+        with open(file_path, "rb") as f:
+            while True:
+                chunk = f.read(_CHUNK)
+                if not chunk:
+                    break
+                conn.send(chunk)
+
+        resp = conn.getresponse()
+        resp.read()  # drain
+        if resp.status not in (200, 201):
+            raise RuntimeError(f"LFS object upload failed: HTTP {resp.status}")
+    finally:
+        conn.close()
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Gitea contents API — create / update a file to record the LFS pointer
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _get_file_sha(
+    hub: str,
+    owner: str,
+    repo: str,
+    path: str,
+    branch: str,
+    username: str,
+    password: str,
+) -> str | None:
+    """Return the blob SHA of an existing file, or None if it doesn't exist."""
+    url = (
+        f"{hub.rstrip('/')}/api/v1"
+        f"/repos/{urllib.parse.quote(owner, safe='')}/{urllib.parse.quote(repo, safe='')}"
+        f"/contents/{urllib.parse.quote(path)}"
+        f"?ref={urllib.parse.quote(branch)}"
+    )
+    req = urllib.request.Request(url)
+    req.add_header("Authorization", _basic_auth(username, password))
+    try:
+        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=15) as resp:
+            return json.loads(resp.read()).get("sha")
+    except urllib.error.HTTPError as e:
+        if e.code == 404:
+            return None
+        raise
+
+
+def _commit_lfs_pointer(
+    hub: str,
+    owner: str,
+    repo: str,
+    remote_path: str,
+    pointer_text: str,
+    branch: str,
+    message: str,
+    username: str,
+    password: str,
+) -> None:
+    """Create or update a file in the repo containing the LFS pointer."""
+    url = (
+        f"{hub.rstrip('/')}/api/v1"
+        f"/repos/{urllib.parse.quote(owner, safe='')}/{urllib.parse.quote(repo, safe='')}"
+        f"/contents/{urllib.parse.quote(remote_path)}"
+    )
+
+    existing_sha = _get_file_sha(hub, owner, repo, remote_path, branch, username, password)
+
+    body: dict = {
+        "message": message,
+        "content": base64.b64encode(pointer_text.encode()).decode(),
+        "branch": branch,
+    }
+    if existing_sha:
+        body["sha"] = existing_sha
+
+    method = "PUT" if existing_sha else "POST"
+    req = urllib.request.Request(url, data=json.dumps(body).encode(), method=method)
+    req.add_header("Content-Type", "application/json")
+    req.add_header("Authorization", _basic_auth(username, password))
+
+    try:
+        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=30) as resp:
+            resp.read()
+    except urllib.error.HTTPError as e:
+        body_text = e.read().decode(errors="replace")
+        raise RuntimeError(f"Failed to commit LFS pointer for '{remote_path}' (HTTP {e.code}): {body_text}") from e
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Per-file upload logic
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+def _upload_single_file(
+    hub: str,
+    owner: str,
+    repo_name: str,
+    username: str,
+    password: str,
+    file_path: str,
+    remote_dir: str,
+    message: str | None,
+    branch: str,
+) -> None:
+    """Hash, upload (if needed), and commit the LFS pointer for one file."""
+    filename = os.path.basename(file_path)
+    file_size = os.path.getsize(file_path)
+    size_mb = file_size / (1024 * 1024)
+
+    click.echo(f"\n  {filename} ({size_mb:.1f} MB)")
+
+    click.echo("    Hashing...", nl=False)
+    oid, size = _hash_file(file_path)
+    click.echo(f" sha256:{oid[:12]}...")
+
+    try:
+        batch = _lfs_batch(hub, owner, repo_name, [{"oid": oid, "size": size}], username, password)
+    except RuntimeError as e:
+        click.echo(f"\n    Error: {e}", err=True)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+    objects = batch.get("objects", [])
+    if not objects:
+        click.echo("    Already in LFS — skipping upload.")
+    else:
+        obj = objects[0]
+        if "error" in obj:
+            err_msg = obj["error"].get("message", "unknown error")
+            err_code = obj["error"].get("code", 0)
+            if err_code == 413 or "quota" in err_msg.lower() or "limit" in err_msg.lower():
+                click.echo(
+                    f"\n    Error: storage quota exceeded for this repo.\n    Server: {err_msg}",
+                    err=True,
+                )
+            else:
+                click.echo(f"\n    Error from server: {err_msg}", err=True)
+            sys.exit(1)
+
+        upload_action = obj.get("actions", {}).get("upload")
+        if not upload_action:
+            click.echo("    Already in LFS — skipping upload.")
+        else:
+            href = upload_action["href"]
+            up_headers = upload_action.get("header", {})
+            chunks = math.ceil(size / _CHUNK)
+            click.echo(f"    Uploading ({size_mb:.1f} MB, {chunks} chunk{'s' if chunks != 1 else ''})...")
+            try:
+                _stream_upload_progress(href, up_headers, file_path, size)
+            except RuntimeError as e:
+                click.echo(f"\n    Upload failed: {e}", err=True)
+                sys.exit(1)
+            click.echo("    Upload complete.")
+
+            verify_action = obj.get("actions", {}).get("verify")
+            if verify_action:
+                try:
+                    vreq = urllib.request.Request(
+                        verify_action["href"],
+                        data=json.dumps({"oid": oid, "size": size}).encode(),
+                        method="POST",
+                    )
+                    vreq.add_header("Content-Type", LFS_MEDIA_TYPE)
+                    vreq.add_header("Accept", LFS_MEDIA_TYPE)
+                    for k, v in verify_action.get("header", {}).items():
+                        vreq.add_header(k, v)
+                    with urllib.request.urlopen(vreq, timeout=15):
+                        pass
+                except Exception:
+                    pass  # verify is optional; non-fatal on failure
+
+    pointer = _lfs_pointer_text(oid, size)
+    remote_path = (f"{remote_dir.rstrip('/')}/{filename}").lstrip("/") if remote_dir else filename
+    commit_msg = message or f"chore: upload {filename} via ria"
+
+    click.echo(f"    Committing pointer → {remote_path}...", nl=False)
+    try:
+        _commit_lfs_pointer(hub, owner, repo_name, remote_path, pointer, branch, commit_msg, username, password)
+        click.echo(" done.")
+    except RuntimeError as e:
+        click.echo(f"\n    Error: {e}", err=True)
+        sys.exit(1)
+
+
+def _stream_upload_progress(href: str, headers: dict, file_path: str, size: int) -> None:
+    """Stream file_path to href with a click progress bar."""
+    parsed = urllib.parse.urlparse(href)
+    host = parsed.netloc
+    path_q = parsed.path + (f"?{parsed.query}" if parsed.query else "")
+
+    if parsed.scheme == "https":
+        conn = http.client.HTTPSConnection(host, timeout=300)
+    else:
+        conn = http.client.HTTPConnection(host, timeout=300)
+
+    all_headers = dict(headers)
+    all_headers.setdefault("Content-Type", "application/octet-stream")
+    all_headers["Content-Length"] = str(size)
+
+    with click.progressbar(
+        length=size,
+        label="    ",
+        width=40,
+        show_eta=True,
+        show_percent=True,
+        fill_char="█",
+        empty_char="░",
+    ) as bar:
+        conn.connect()
+        conn.putrequest("PUT", path_q)
+        for k, v in all_headers.items():
+            conn.putheader(k, v)
+        conn.endheaders()
+
+        with open(file_path, "rb") as f:
+            while True:
+                chunk = f.read(_CHUNK)
+                if not chunk:
+                    break
+                conn.send(chunk)
+                bar.update(len(chunk))
+
+        resp = conn.getresponse()
+        resp.read()
+        conn.close()
+
+    if resp.status not in (200, 201):
+        raise RuntimeError(f"HTTP {resp.status}")
+
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Command
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+
+@click.command("upload")
+@click.argument("files", nargs=-1, required=True)
+@click.option(
+    "--repo", required=True, metavar="OWNER/NAME", help="Target repository on RIA Hub (e.g. benchinnery/my-dataset)."
+)
+@click.option("--hub", default="http://localhost:3000", show_default=True, metavar="URL", help="RIA Hub base URL.")
+@click.option("--branch", default="main", show_default=True, help="Branch to commit the files to.")
+@click.option(
+    "--path",
+    "remote_dir",
+    default="",
+    metavar="DIR",
+    help="Remote directory path inside the repo (default: repo root).",
+)
+@click.option("--message", "-m", default=None, help="Commit message (default: 'chore: upload <filename> via ria').")
+def upload(
+    files: tuple[str],
+    repo: str,
+    hub: str,
+    branch: str,
+    remote_dir: str,
+    message: str | None,
+) -> None:
+    """Upload large files to a RIA Hub Project via Git LFS.
+
+    Files are streamed directly to the repo's LFS object store — nothing is
+    buffered into memory, so files of any size work. Each file creates one
+    commit recording the LFS pointer.
+
+    \b
+    Examples:
+      ria upload recording.sigmf-data --repo benchinnery/my-recordings
+      ria upload *.npy --repo benchinnery/my-recordings --branch main
+      ria upload big.pt --repo benchinnery/models --path weights/
+    """
+    # Validate repo argument
+    if "/" not in repo:
+        click.echo("Error: --repo must be in the form OWNER/NAME.", err=True)
+        sys.exit(1)
+    owner, repo_name = repo.split("/", 1)
+
+    # Expand and validate files
+    resolved = []
+    for pattern in files:
+        if not os.path.isfile(pattern):
+            click.echo(f"Error: '{pattern}' is not a file or does not exist.", err=True)
+            sys.exit(1)
+        resolved.append(os.path.abspath(pattern))
+
+    # Credentials
+    hub = hub.rstrip("/")
+    username, password = _resolve_credentials(hub)
+
+    click.echo(f"Uploading {len(resolved)} file(s) to {owner}/{repo_name} on {hub}...")
+
+    for file_path in resolved:
+        _upload_single_file(hub, owner, repo_name, username, password, file_path, remote_dir, message, branch)
+
+    click.echo(f"\nAll done. {len(resolved)} file(s) uploaded to {owner}/{repo_name}.")