Universal Data Tool

A modern Avalonia-based desktop application for managing files on the UDTool cloud service. This application provides a user-friendly GUI for uploading, downloading, searching, and managing files with API key authentication.

Other Repositories

• ASP.NET API
• UDTool CLI

Features

• 🔑 API Key Management - Create new keys or validate existing ones
• 📤 File Upload - Upload files with custom names to the cloud
• 📥 File Download - Download files to your local system
• 🔍 File Search - Search for files by name pattern
• 🗑️ File Delete - Remove files from the server
• 📋 File List - View all uploaded files with refresh capability
• 💾 Persistent Storage - API key automatically saved between sessions
• 🎨 Modern UI - Professional dark theme with card-based layout
• ⚡ Async Operations - Non-blocking UI for all network operations

Installation

Download Pre-built Installers

Download the latest installer for your platform from the Releases page:

Windows

• Download UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi
• Double-click to run the installer
• Follow the installation wizard

macOS

• Download UDTool-Desktop.pkg
• Double-click to run the installer
• Follow the installation wizard

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu)

# Download the .deb file, then:
sudo dpkg -i udtool-desktop_1.0.2_amd64.deb

Linux (Fedora/RHEL/CentOS)

# Download the .rpm file, then:
sudo rpm -i udtool-desktop-1.0.2-1.x86_64.rpm

Build from Source

Prerequisites

• .NET 10.0 SDK or later
• Windows, macOS, or Linux

Clone the Repository

git clone <repository-url>
cd UDTool-Desktop

Build the Project

cd UDTool-Desktop
dotnet build

Run the Application

dotnet run

Usage

First-Time Setup

1. Launch the application
2. Create or enter an API key:
   • Option A: Click "Create New Key" to generate a new API key
   • Option B: Enter an existing API key and click "Check Key"
3. The key is automatically validated and saved for future sessions

Upload a File

1. Enter the full path to the file you want to upload

   Example: C:\Users\YourName\Documents\myfile.txt
   

2. Enter the target name (how the file should be named on the server)

   Example: myfile.txt
   

3. Click "Upload File"
4. The status message will show success and provide the file URL

Download a File

1. Enter the file name to download
2. Click "Download File"
3. The file will be saved to the current directory
4. Status message confirms successful download

Search for Files

1. Enter a search query (partial file name works)

   Example: report
   

2. Click "Search"
3. Matching files will appear in the files list below

Delete a File

1. Enter the file name to delete
2. Click "Delete File"
3. Confirmation message appears on success
4. The file list automatically refreshes

View All Files

1. Click the "↻ Refresh" button in the Files List section
2. All your files will be displayed in the list box
3. Click on any file to select it for download or deletion

Project Structure

UDTool-Desktop/
├── Assets/                      # Application resources
│   ├── logo.ico                # Application icon
│   ├── logo.png                # Logo image
│   └── Fonts/                  # Custom fonts
├── Converters/                  # Value converters for XAML
│   └── BoolToColorConverter.cs # Boolean to color conversion
├── Elements/                    # Reusable UI components
│   ├── Topbar.axaml           # Application header
│   └── Topbar.axaml.cs
├── Models/                      # Data models and business logic
│   └── UDToolClient.cs        # API client implementation
├── ViewModels/                  # MVVM ViewModels
│   ├── MainWindowViewModel.cs # Main window logic
│   └── ViewModelBase.cs       # Base ViewModel class
├── Views/                       # XAML views
│   ├── MainWindow.axaml       # Main application window
│   └── MainWindow.axaml.cs
├── App.axaml                    # Application resources and styles
├── App.axaml.cs                # Application entry point
├── AppDefaultStyles.axaml      # Global styling definitions
├── Program.cs                   # Program entry point
└── ViewLocator.cs              # View resolution logic

Architecture

UDToolClient Class

The UDToolClient class provides all API interactions:

public class UDToolClient
{
    // Constructor with optional API key
    public UDToolClient(string? apiKey = null)
    
    // API Key Management
    public async Task<KeyCheckResult> CheckKeyAsync(string key)
    public async Task<NewKeyResult> CreateNewKeyAsync()
    public void SetApiKey(string apiKey)
    
    // File Operations
    public async Task<OperationResult> UploadAsync(string filePath, string targetName)
    public async Task<OperationResult> DownloadAsync(string fileName, string? savePath = null)
    public async Task<SearchResult> SearchAsync(string query)
    public async Task<OperationResult> DeleteAsync(string fileName)
    public async Task<SearchResult> ListAsync()
}

API Endpoints

The application communicates with the following endpoints:

• POST /key/new - Create a new API key
• GET /key/check/{key} - Validate an API key
• POST /{fileName} - Upload a file (requires API-Key header)
• GET /{fileName} - Download a file (requires API-Key header)
• GET /search/{query} - Search for files (requires API-Key header)
• DELETE /{fileName} - Delete a file (requires API-Key header)
• GET /list - List all files (requires API-Key header)

All authenticated requests include the API-Key header.

MVVM Pattern

The application follows the Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) pattern:

• Models: UDToolClient and result classes
• ViewModels: MainWindowViewModel with observable properties and relay commands
• Views: XAML files defining the UI structure

Uses CommunityToolkit.Mvvm for:

• [ObservableProperty] - Auto-generates property changed notifications
• [RelayCommand] - Auto-generates ICommand implementations

Configuration

API Key Storage

The API key is automatically saved to:

Windows: %AppData%\UDTool\apikey.txt
macOS: ~/.config/UDTool/apikey.txt
Linux: ~/.config/UDTool/apikey.txt

API Base URL

The default API base URL is:

https://UDTool.delphigamerz.xyz

To change this, modify the BaseUrl constant in Models/UDToolClient.cs:

private const string BaseUrl = "https://your-api-url.com";

Dependencies

<PackageReference Include="Avalonia" Version="11.3.12"/>
<PackageReference Include="Avalonia.Desktop" Version="11.3.12"/>
<PackageReference Include="Avalonia.Themes.Fluent" Version="11.3.12"/>
<PackageReference Include="Avalonia.Fonts.Inter" Version="11.3.12"/>
<PackageReference Include="CommunityToolkit.Mvvm" Version="8.2.1"/>

Building for Production

Building Installers

The project includes installers for all major platforms: Windows MSI, macOS PKG, Linux DEB, and Linux RPM.

Quick Start - Build Windows MSI Locally

# Run the build script from project root
.\build-msi.ps1

# Output: installer-output\UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi

Requirements:

• .NET 10.0 SDK
• WiX Toolset v5 (installed automatically by script)

Test the installer:

# Install
msiexec /i installer-output\UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi

# Uninstall
msiexec /x installer-output\UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi

# Install with logging (for debugging)
msiexec /i installer-output\UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi /l*v install.log

Manual Windows MSI Build

# 1. Publish the application
dotnet publish UDTool-Desktop/UDTool-Desktop.csproj `
    -c Release `
    -r win-x64 `
    --self-contained true `
    -p:PublishSingleFile=true `
    -p:IncludeNativeLibrariesForSelfExtract=true `
    -o publish/win-x64

# 2. Install WiX (if not installed)
dotnet tool install --global wix --version 5.0.1

# 3. Build the MSI
wix build UDTool-Desktop/Installer.wxs `
    -d PublishDir=publish/win-x64 `
    -o UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi `
    -arch x64

Automated Release with GitHub Actions

The project includes a complete CI/CD workflow that builds installers for all platforms automatically.

Creating a Release

Option 1: Tag-based Release (Recommended)

# Create and push a version tag
git tag v1.0.2
git push origin v1.0.2

# GitHub Actions automatically:
# 1. Builds installers for all platforms
# 2. Creates a GitHub release
# 3. Attaches all installer files

Option 2: Manual Trigger

1. Go to GitHub → "Actions" tab
2. Select "Build and Release Installers" workflow
3. Click "Run workflow" button
4. Select branch and run

What Gets Built

Each release includes:

• Windows: UDTool-Desktop-Setup.msi

  • Professional MSI installer
  • Start Menu shortcuts (app + uninstaller)
  • Program Files installation
  • All dependencies bundled

• macOS: UDTool-Desktop.pkg

  • Native PKG installer
  • Installs to /Applications
  • Proper app bundle structure

• Linux Debian/Ubuntu: udtool-desktop_1.0.2_amd64.deb

  • DEB package for apt
  • Desktop entry included
  • Installs to /usr/local/bin

• Linux Fedora/RHEL/CentOS: udtool-desktop-1.0.2-1.x86_64.rpm

  • RPM package for yum/dnf
  • Desktop entry included
  • Installs to /usr/local/bin

Workflow Triggers

The GitHub Actions workflow runs on:

• Push with tag: Any tag starting with 'v' (e.g., v1.0.0, v2.1.3)
• Manual dispatch: Via GitHub Actions UI

Building Single-File Executables

If you prefer a single executable without an installer:

Windows

dotnet publish -c Release -r win-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

macOS

dotnet publish -c Release -r osx-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

Linux

dotnet publish -c Release -r linux-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

The published executable will be in bin/Release/net10.0/{runtime}/publish/

Version Management

To release a new version:

1. Update MSI version in UDTool-Desktop/Installer.wxs:

<Package Name="UDTool Desktop"
         Version="1.1.0.0"  <!-- Update this -->
         ...>

2. Update package versions in .github/workflows/release.yml (DEB/RPM version strings)

3. Commit and tag:

git add .
git commit -m "Bump version to 1.1.0"
git tag v1.1.0
git push origin v1.1.0

Installer Customization

Windows MSI

Edit UDTool-Desktop/Installer.wxs to customize:

• Installation directory
• Start Menu shortcuts
• Registry keys
• Files included
• Product metadata

macOS/Linux

Edit .github/workflows/release.yml to modify:

• Installation paths
• Desktop entry details
• Package metadata
• Build configurations

Theme Customization

The application uses a modern red/dark theme defined in App.axaml:

Color Scheme

<SolidColorBrush x:Key="PrimaryRed">#E63946</SolidColorBrush>
<SolidColorBrush x:Key="DarkRed">#A8202A</SolidColorBrush>
<SolidColorBrush x:Key="BackgroundBrush">#0F172A</SolidColorBrush>
<SolidColorBrush x:Key="CardBackgroundBrush">#1E293B</SolidColorBrush>
<SolidColorBrush x:Key="PrimaryForeground">#F8FAFC</SolidColorBrush>

To customize colors, edit the resource definitions in App.axaml.

Troubleshooting

Application Won't Start

1. Ensure .NET 10.0 SDK is installed:

   dotnet --version

2. Clean and rebuild:

   dotnet clean
   dotnet build

API Key Not Saving

Check that the application has write permissions to the AppData directory.

Upload/Download Fails

1. Verify your API key is valid using "Check Key"
2. Ensure the file paths are correct
3. Check your internet connection
4. Verify the API server is accessible

Build Errors

If you encounter build errors about locked files:

1. Close all running instances of the application
2. Clean the build:

   dotnet clean

3. Delete bin and obj directories manually
4. Rebuild the project

Development

Adding New Features

1. Add API method in Models/UDToolClient.cs
2. Add ViewModel properties/commands in ViewModels/MainWindowViewModel.cs
3. Add UI elements in Views/MainWindow.axaml
4. Update bindings to connect UI to ViewModel

Code Style

• Follow C# naming conventions
• Use async/await for all network operations
• Use MVVM pattern for all UI logic
• Add XML documentation comments to public methods

License

[Add your license information here]

Contributing

[Add contribution guidelines here]

Support

For issues, questions, or contributions, please [add contact/repository information here].

Acknowledgments

• Built with Avalonia UI
• Uses CommunityToolkit.Mvvm
• Integrates with UDTool API service

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Version: 1.0.2
Last Updated: February 18, 2026
Author: Ari Cummings