SnapSurf (CEF Desktop Browser Bootstrap)

SnapSurf is a macOS-first CEF browser starter focused on maximum Chromium compatibility.

What is implemented now

• CEF browser process + renderer process wiring (BrowserApp)
• Desktop app bundle build via CMake (SnapSurf.app)
• Browser shell orchestration (BrowserWindow)
• Core modules
  • TabManager
  • NavigationController
  • DownloadService
  • BookmarkStore (persistent local storage)
• Public contracts implemented in code
  • openUrl(url), goBack(tabId), goForward(tabId), reload(tabId)
  • createTab(url?), closeTab(tabId), activateTab(tabId)
  • startDownload(url, suggestedFilename?), cancelDownload(downloadId)
  • addBookmark(url, title), removeBookmark(id), listBookmarks()

Prerequisites

1. macOS 12+
2. CMake 3.24+
3. Xcode command line tools
4. CEF binary distribution extracted locally

Configure and build

cmake -S . -B build -G Xcode -DSNAPSURF_CEF_ROOT=/absolute/path/to/cef_binary_XXX_macosx64
cmake --build build --config Release

The app bundle is produced under:

build/Release/SnapSurf.app

Run

open build/Release/SnapSurf.app

Optional start URL:

build/Release/SnapSurf.app/Contents/MacOS/SnapSurf --start-url=https://www.chromium.org

State paths

• Browser state and logs: ~/Library/Application Support/SnapSurf
• Downloads target dir: ~/Downloads
• Bookmarks file: ~/Library/Application Support/SnapSurf/bookmarks.tsv

Notes

• Sandbox is enabled when cef_sandbox is available; otherwise no-sandbox is used.
• User-Agent stays Chromium default for compatibility.
• Popup requests are handled with a tab-policy baseline in BrowserClient.
• UI shell is intentionally minimal in this bootstrap; service APIs are ready for attaching tab/address toolbar UI next.