Install App

This module provides utilities for installing applications. It handles creating the necessary directory structure, moving the executable, copying the icon, and creating a .desktop file for Linux systems (or appropriate shortcuts on other OSes). It also includes functionality for listing and uninstalling installed applications, and initializing a new project.

Usage:

Installation:

deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app install <executable>

Where <executable> is the compiled executable of your application.

You can also add this as a task to deno.json which can be more convenient:

{
  "tasks": {
    "compile": "deno compile --output my-app src/main.ts",
    "install": "deno task compile && deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app install my-app"
  }
}

Listing Installed Applications:

deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app list

Uninstalling an Application:

deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app uninstall <app_name>

Where <app_name> is the name of the application as specified in its install.json file.

Initializing a new project:

deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app init <app_name>

Where <app_name> is desired name for your application. This command will:

1. Create an assets directory in the current working directory.
2. Create a default install.json file inside the assets directory, pre-populated with the provided <app_name>.
3. Create a placeholder icon.svg file inside the assets directory.
4. Print instructions for next steps (creating your application's entrypoint, compiling, customizing the icon and install.json, and running the install command).

Project Structure:

Your project should have the following structure:

my-app/
├── assets/
│   ├── install.json  (Installation metadata)
│   └── <icon_name>.svg (Your application's icon, referenced in install.json)
├── src/
│   └── <entrypoint>.ts  (Your application's main entry point)
└── ... other files ...

install.json Format:

Create a file named install.json within the assets directory. This file contains metadata about your application:

{
  "name": "<app_name>", // The user-visible name of your application
  "id": "<app_id>", // Optional: Linux Application ID (e.g., com.example.MyApp), The id is important for the icon to work correctly.
  "version": "<version_string>", // The version of your application (informational)
  "description": "<description>", // A short description of your application (informational)
  "icon": "<icon_name>.svg" // The filename of your application's icon (within the assets directory)
}

• name: The user-visible name of your application (e.g., "My Awesome App"). This is used in the .desktop file. The executable file itself will be named based on a sanitized version of this name (or the sanitized id if provided).
• id (Optional): A unique identifier for your application, typically in reverse domain name notation (e.g., com.example.MyApp). Required for standard Linux integration. If provided:
  • The icon file (must be .svg) will be installed to the standard system icon location (~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/<id>.svg).
  • The .desktop file will be named <id>.desktop in ~/.local/share/applications/.
  • The Icon= field in the .desktop file will use the id.
  • The internal installation directory will still use the sanitized name.
• version: The version of your application (e.g., "1.0.0").
• description: A short description of your application.
• icon: The filename of your application's icon file (e.g., "my-app-icon.svg"). This file must be located in the assets directory. If id is provided, this icon file must be an SVG.

Installation Process (Linux):

1. Directory Creation: A base directory deno-installed-apps is created within the user's data directory (~/.local/share/deno-installed-apps). Inside this, a directory for the application is created using the sanitized name from install.json (e.g., ~/.local/share/deno-installed-apps/my_awesome_app). Standard directories like ~/.local/share/applications and ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps are ensured to exist.
2. File Placement:
   • The compiled executable is moved into the application's specific directory (deno-installed-apps/<sanitized_name>/<sanitized_name>).
   • A metadata.json file (containing the contents of install.json) is saved in the application's specific directory.
   • Icon:
     • If id is provided in install.json, the SVG icon is copied to ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/<id>.svg.
     • If id is not provided, the icon (any format) is copied into the application's specific directory (deno-installed-apps/<sanitized_name>/<icon_name>).
3. Shortcut Creation (.desktop file):
   • A .desktop file is created in ~/.local/share/applications/.
   • Filename: Named <id>.desktop if id is provided, otherwise <sanitized_name>.desktop.
   • Contents: Includes Name, Exec (pointing to the executable in deno-installed-apps), Type, Categories, and Icon.
     • If id is provided, Icon=<id>.
     • If id is not provided, Icon=<full_path_to_icon_in_deno-installed-apps>.

Other OSes: Installation currently only supports Linux. A warning is printed on other operating systems.

Example:

Given install.json:

{
  "name": "My App",
  "id": "com.example.my_app",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "My awesome app",
  "icon": "icon.svg"
}

And executable my-app-bin.

Running deno run -A jsr:@sigmasd/install-app install my-app-bin on Linux will:

1. Create ~/.local/share/deno-installed-apps/My_App/.
2. Move my-app-bin to ~/.local/share/deno-installed-apps/My_App/My_App.
3. Copy assets/icon.svg to ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/com.example.my_app.svg.
4. Create ~/.local/share/applications/com.example.my_app.desktop with Name=My App, Exec=.../My_App/My_App, and Icon=com.example.my_app.
5. You might need to log out and log back to see the icon correctly in your application menu.