npm package: @mjcctech/meteor-desktop
Description: Build a Meteor's desktop client with hot code push.
Author: Bartosz Wojtkowiak
Latest version: 2.2.6-MX002-5709.1

![Logo](docs/meteor-desktop.png)

# Meteor Desktop
###### aka Meteor Electron Desktop Client
> Build desktop apps with Meteor & Electron. Full integration with hot code push implementation.

[![npm version](https://img.shields.io/npm/v/meteor-desktop.svg)](https://npmjs.org/package/meteor-desktop)
<sup>Travis</sup> [![Travis Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop.svg?branch=master)](https://travis-ci.org/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop)
<sup>AppVeyor</sup> [![Build status](https://ci.appveyor.com/api/projects/status/mga230i3avit8ljv/branch/master?svg=true)](https://ci.appveyor.com/project/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop)
<sup>CircleCI</sup> [![CircleCI](https://circleci.com/gh/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop/tree/master.svg?style=svg)](https://circleci.com/gh/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop/tree/master)

[![Gitter chat](https://badges.gitter.im/gitterHQ/gitter.png)](https://gitter.im/meteor-desktop/general)

![Demo](docs/demo.gif)

## What is this?

This is a complete implementation of integration between `Meteor` and `Electron` aiming to achieve the same level of developer experience like `Meteor` gives.
To make it clear from the start, this is a **desktop client** - it is just like your mobile
clients with `Cordova` - but this is for desktops with `Electron`. It also features a full hot code
push implementation - which means you can release updates the same way you are used to.  

## Prerequisites

 - Meteor >= `1.4`
 - at least basic [Electron](http://electron.atom.io/) framework knowledge
 - mobile platform added to project<sup>__*1__</sup>  

<sup>__*1__ you can always build with `--server-only` if you do not want to have mobile clients,  you do not actually have to have android sdk or xcode to go on with your project</sup>

### Quick start
```bash
 cd /your/meteor/app
 meteor npm install --save-dev meteor-desktop
 # you need to have any mobile platform added (ios/android)
 meteor --mobile-server=127.0.0.1:3000

 # open new terminal

 npm run desktop -- init
 npm run desktop

 # or in one command `npm run desktop -- --scaffold`
```

## Usage `--help`

```
// Assumming you have a `desktop` script in npm scripts that equals to "meteor-desktop"
Usage: npm run desktop -- [command] [options]

  Commands:

    init                       scaffolds .desktop dir in the meteor app
    run [ddp_url]              (default) builds and runs desktop app
    build [ddp_url]            builds your desktop app
    build-installer [ddp_url]  creates the installer
    just-run                   alias for running `electron .` in `.meteor/desktop-build`
    package [ddp_url]          runs electron packager
    init-tests-support         prepares project for running functional tests of desktop app

  Options:

    -h, --help                            output usage information
    -b, --build-meteor                    runs meteor to obtain the mobile build, kills it after
    -t, --build-timeout <timeout_in_sec>  timeout value when waiting for meteor to build, default 600sec
    -p, --port <port>                     port on which meteor is running, when with -b this will be passed to meteor when obtaining the build
    --production                          builds meteor app with the production switch, uglifies contents of .desktop, packs app to app.asar
    -a, --android                         force adding android as a mobile platform instead of ios
    -s, --scaffold                        will scaffold .desktop if not present
    -i, --ignore-stderr [string]          only with -b, strings that when found will not terminate meteor build
    --meteor-settings <path>              only with -b, adds --settings options to meteor
    --prod-debug                          forces adding dev tools to a production build
    --ia32                                generate 32bit installer/package
    --all-archs                           generate 32bit and 64bit installers
    --win                                 generate Windows installer
    --linux                               generate Linux installer
    --mac                                 generate Mac installer
    -d, --debug                           run electron with debug switch    
    -V, --version                         output the version number


  [ddp_url] - pass a ddp url if you want to use different one than used in meteor's --mobile-server
              this will also work with -b
```
#### `--build-meteor`
If you just want to build the desktop app, package it or build installer without running the
`Meteor` project separately you can just use `-b` and all will be done automatically - this is useful when
for example building on a CI etc.

#### `--android`
When there is no mobile platform in the project and `-b` is used, mobile platform is added
automatically and removed at the end of the build process. Normally an `ios` platform is added
but you can change this to `android` through this option.

Documentation
=================
  * [Architecture](#architecture)
     * [How does this work with Meteor?](#how-does-this-work-with-meteor)
     * [How the Electron app is structured?](#how-the-electron-app-is-structured)
     * [Where is my app.on('ready')?](#where-is-my-apponready)
  * [Scaffolding your desktop app](#scaffolding-your-desktop-app)
     * [settings.json](#settingsjson)
        * [Applying different window options for different OS](#applying-different-window-options-for-different-os)
        * [Supported dependency version types](#supported-dependency-version-types)
     * [desktop.js](#desktopjs)
        * [skeletonApp](#skeletonapp)
        * [eventsBus](#eventsbus)
        * [modules](#modules)
        * [Module](#module)
  * [Writing modules](#writing-modules)
     * [extract](#extract)
  * [Hot code push support](#hot-code-push-support)
  * [Meteor.isDesktop](#meteorisdesktop)
  * [Accessing local filesystem in Meteor](#accessing-local-filesystem-in-meteor)
  * [Accessing .desktop/assets in Meteor](#accessing-desktopassets-in-meteor)
  * [<code>Desktop</code> and <code>Module</code> - communication between Meteor and Electron](#desktop-and-module)
     * [Module - desktop side](#module---desktop-side)
     * [Desktop - Meteor side](#desktop---meteor-side)
  * [desktopHCP - .desktop hot code push](#desktophcp---desktop-hot-code-push)
     * [How this works](#how-this-works)
     * [Caveats](#caveats)
  * [How to write plugins](#how-to-write-plugins)
     * [meteorDependencies in <code>package.json</code>](#meteordependencies-in-packagejson)
        * [List of known plugins:](#list-of-known-plugins)
  * [Squirrel autoupdate support](#squirrel-autoupdate-support)
  * [Native modules support](#native-modules-support)
  * [Devtron](#devtron)
  * [Testing desktop app and modules](#testing-desktop-app-and-modules)
  * [MD_LOG_LEVEL](#md_log_level)
  * [Packaging](#packaging)
  * [Building installer](#building-installer)
    * [Building for linux](#building-for-linux)
    * [Building for Windows Store (AppX)](#building-for-windows-store-appx)
  * [Roadmap](#roadmap)
  * [Contribution](#contribution)
  * [Built with meteor-desktop](#built-with-meteor-desktop)
  * [FAQ](#faq)  
  * [Changelog](CHANGELOG.md)

## Architecture

If you have ever been using any `Cordova` plugins before you will find this approach alike. In `Cordova` every plugin exposes its native code through a JS api available in some global namespace like `cordova.plugins`. The approach used here is similar.

In `Electron` app, there are two processes running along in your app. The so-called `main
process` and `renderer process`. Main process is just a JS code executed in `node`, and the
renderer is a `Chromium` process. In this integration your `Meteor` app is being run in the
`renderer` process and your desktop specific code runs in the `main` process. They are
communicating through IPC events. Basically, the desktop side publishes its API as an IPC event
listeners. In your `Meteor` code, calling it is as simple as `Desktop.send('module', 'event');`.  

Code on the desktop side is preferred to be modular - that is just for simplifying testing and
encapsulating functionalities into independent modules. However, you do not have to follow this style, there is an `import` dir in which you can structure your code however you want. The basics of an `Electron` app are already in place (reffered as `Skeleton App`) and your code is loaded like a plugin to it.

Below is a high level architecture diagram of this integration.

![High level architecture](docs/high-level-arch.png)

#### How does this work with Meteor?
> <sup>or how hacky is this?</sup>

The main goal was to provide a non hacky integration without actually submitting any desktop
oriented pull request to `Meteor`.
The whole concept is based on taking the `web.cordova` build, modifying it as little as possible
and running it in the `Electron's` renderer process. The current `cordova` integration
architecture is more or less conceptually replicated.

Currently the only modification that the mobile build is subjected to is injecting the `Meteor.isDesktop` variable.

To obtain the mobile build, this integration takes the build from either
`.meteor/local/cordova-build` (version `< 1.3.4.1`) or from `.meteor/local/build/programs/web.cordova`.
Because `index.html` is not present in the `web.cordova` directory and `program.json` lacks
`version` field, they are just downloaded from the running project.

#### How the `Electron` app is structured?

The produced `Electron` app consists barely of 4 files:

- `app.asar` - bundled `Skeleton App` and `node_modules` (including all your dependencies from
`settings.json` and modules)
- `meteor.asar` - your `Meteor` app bundled to an `.asar`
- `desktop.asar` - processed contents from `.desktop`
- `package.json` - `Electron` requires a `package.json` to be present

While developing, the `app` is not asared so you can take a closer look at the `Skeleton` that is
 produced by this integration. You will find it in the `.meteor/desktop-build` directory.

#### Where is my `app.on('ready')`?

The `app.on('ready')` is handled for you by the `Skeleton` app, but that does not mean you can
not hook into it. Basically, code that is in the constructor of `.desktop/desktop.js` and
all constructors of your modules is executed while being inside `ready`. Remember that is always
a good practice not to do time consuming tasks inside the constructors but instead delay those tasks
by hooking to `beforeDesktopJsLoad`, `desktopLoaded` or `afterInitialization` on the `eventsBus`.

## Scaffolding your desktop app

If you have not run the example from the Quick start paragraph, first you need to scaffold a
`.desktop` dir in which your `Electron's` main process code lives.
To do that run: (assuming `npm install --save-dev meteor-desktop` did add successfully a `desktop`
entry in the `package.json scripts` section)
```bash
npm run desktop -- init
```

This will generate an exemplary `.desktop` dir. Lets take a look what we can find there:
```
.desktop
├── assets                     # place all your assets here
├── import                     # all code you do not want to structure into modules  
├── modules                    # your desktop modules (check modules section for explanation)
│    └── example               # module example
│         ├── index.js         # entrypoint of the example module
│         ├── example.test.js  # functional test for the example module
│         └── module.json      # module configuration  
├── desktop.js                 # your Electron main process entry point - treated like a module
├── desktop.test.js            # functional test for you desktop app
├── settings.json              # your app settings
└── squirrelEvents.js          # handling of squirrel.windows events
```

Tak a look into the files. Most of them have meaningful comments inside.

Some files are described more in detail below..
### settings.json

This is the main configuration file for your desktop app.
Below you can find brief descriptions of the fields.

field|description
-----|-----------
`name`|just a name for your project
`version`|version of the desktop app
`projectName`|this will be used as a `name` in the generated app's package.json
`devTools`|whether to install and open `devTools`, set automatically to false when building with `--production`
`devtron`|check whether to install [`devtron`](http://electron.atom.io/devtron/), set automatically to false when building with `--production`, [more](#devtron)
`singleInstance`|sets the single instance mode - [more](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/app.md#appmakesingleinstancecallback)
`desktopHCP`|whether to use `.desktop` hot code push module - [more](#desktophcp---desktop-hot-code-push)
<sup>`desktopHCPIgnoreCompatibilityVersion`</sup>|ignore the `.desktop` compatibility version and install new versions even if they can be incompatible
`desktopHCPCompatibilityVersion`|allows to override `.desktop` compatibility version
`squirrel.autoUpdateFeedUrl`| <sup>DEPRECATED</sup> url passed to [`autoUpdater.setFeedUrl`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/auto-updater.md#autoupdatersetfeedurlurl-requestheaders), [more](#squirrel-autoupdate-support)
`squirrel.autoUpdateFeedHeaders`| <sup>DEPRECATED</sup> http headers passed to [`autoUpdater.setFeedUrl`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/auto-updater.md#autoupdatersetfeedurlurl-requestheaders)
`squirrel.autoUpdateCheckOnStart`| <sup>DEPRECATED</sup> whether to check for updates on app start
`rebuildNativeNodeModules`|turn on or off recompiling native modules, [more](#native-modules-support)
`webAppStartupTimeout`|amount of time after which the downloaded version is considered faulty if Meteor app did not start - [more](#hot-code-push-support)
`exposeLocalFilesystem`|turns on or off local filesystem exposure over url alias, [more](#accessing-local-filesystem-in-meteor)
`exposedModules`|array of module names, exposes any renderer modules in `Desktop.electron` space, i.e. list `webFrame` here to acess it via `Desktop.electron.webFrame` in Meteor project code
`showWindowOnStartupDidComplete`|normally, main window appears after Chromes `did-stop-loading` event, set this to `true` if you want to depened on Meteor's `startupDidComplete` event
`window`|production options for the main window - see [here](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/browser-window.md#new-browserwindowoptions)
`windowDev`|development options for the main window, applied on top of production options
`uglify`|whether to process the production build with uglify
`plugins`|meteor-desktop plugins list
`dependencies`|npm dependencies of your desktop app, the same like in `package.json`, only explicit versions are supported - check [here](#supported-dependency-version-types)
`linkPackages`|array of packages names you want to link (runs `npm link <packageName>` for every package listed)
`packageJsonFields`|fields to add to the generated `package.json` in your desktop app
`builderOptions`|[`electron-builder`](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder) [options](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/wiki/Options)
`builderCliOptions`|specify additional electron-builder CLI options e.g for [publishing artifacts](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/wiki/Publishing-Artifacts)
`packagerOptions`|[`electron-packager`](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-packager) [options](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-packager/blob/master/docs/api.md)
`extract`|array containing dependencies that should not be packed into asar (should not be needed as there is an automatic algorithm that will exclude all dependencies containing binary files)

##### Applying different window options for different OS

You can use `_windows`, `_osx`, `_linux` properties to set additional settings for different OS.
The default `settings.json` is already using that for setting a different window icon for OSX.

##### Supported dependency version types

Only explicit versions are supported to avoid potential problems with different versions being
installed. It is no different from `Meteor` because the same applies to adding `Cordova` plugins.

You can however use a local path to a npm package - and that will not be forbidden. **You need**
to keep track what has been distributed to your clients and what your current code is expecting
when releasing a HCP update.

### desktop.js

The `desktop.js` is the entrypoint of your desktop app. Let's take a look what references we
receive in the constructor.
```javascript
    /**
     * @param {Object} log         - Winston logger instance
     * @param {Object} skeletonApp - reference to the skeleton app instance
     * @param {Object} appSettings - settings.json contents
     * @param {Object} eventsBus   - event emitter for listening or emitting events
     *                               shared across skeleton app and every module/plugin
     * @param {Object} modules     - references to all loaded modules
     * @param {Object} Module      - reference to the Module class
     * @constructor
     */
    constructor({ log, skeletonApp, appSettings, eventsBus, modules, Module })
```
Some of the references are describe in detail below:

#### `skeletonApp`

This is a reference to the Skeleton App. Currently there are only two methods you can call.  
`isProduction` - whether this is a production build  
`removeUncaughtExceptionListener` - removes the default handler so you can put your own in place

#### `eventsBus`

This is just an `EventEmitter` that is an event bus meant to be used across all entities running
in the `Electron's` main process (`.desktop`). Currently there are several events emitted on the
bus by the `Skeleton App` that you may find useful:

event name|payload|description
----------|-------|------------
`unhandledException`| |emitted on any unhandled exceptions, by hooking to it you can run code before any other handler will be executed   
`beforePluginsLoad`| |emitted before plugins are loaded
`beforeModulesLoad`| |emitted before internal modules and modules from `.desktop` are loaded
`beforeDesktopJsLoad`| |emitted before `desktop.js` is loaded
`beforeLocalServerInit`| |emitted before local http server starts
`desktopLoaded`|`(desktop)`|emitted after loading `desktop.js`, carries the reference to class instance exported from it
`afterInitialization`| |emitted after initialization of internal modules like HCP and local HTTP server
`startupFailed`| |emitted when the `Skeleton App` could not start you `Meteor` app  
`beforeLoadFinish`| |emitted when the `Meteor` app finished loading, but just before the window is shown  
`loadingFinished`| |emitted when the `Meteor` app finished loading (also after HCP reload)  
`windowSettings`|`(windowSettings)`|emitted with the settings that will be passed to [`BrowserWindow`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/browser-window.md) constructor - if needed the object can be modified in the event handler to override window settings from `settings.json`  
`windowCreated`|`(window)`|emitted when the [`BrowserWindow`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/browser-window.md) (`Chrome` window with `Meteor` app) is  created, passes a reference to this window
`newVersionReady`|`(version, desktopVersion)`|emitted when a new `Meteor` bundle was downloaded and is ready to be applied  
`revertVersionReady`|`(version)`|emitted just before the `Meteor` app version will be reverted (due to faulty version fallback mechanism) be applied  
`beforfeLoadUrl`|`(port, lastPort)`|emitted before `webContents.loadURL` is invoked, in other words just before loading the Meteor app; `port` - the port on which the app is served, `lastPort` - the port on which the app was served previously (when HCP is applied)
`beforeReload`|`(pendingVersion, containsDesktopUpdate)`|emitted just before HCP reload
`moduleLoadFailed`|`(dirName, error)`|emitted if a module failed to load

Your can also emit events on this bus as well. A good practice is to namespace them using dots,
like for instance `myModule.initalized`.

#### `modules`

Object with references to other modules and plugins. Plugins can be found under their names i.e.,
`modules['meteor-desktop-splash-screen]`.  
Any module can be found under the name from `module.json`.
Internal modules such as `autoupdate` and `localServer` are also there. You can also get reference to the `desktop.js` from `modules['desktop']` (note that the reference is also passed in
the `desktopLoaded` event).

#### `Module`

Class that provides a way of defining API reachable by `Meteor` app - [more](#module---desktop-side).

## Writing modules

Module is just an encapsulated piece of code. Usually you would just provide certain type of
grouped functionality in it. You can treat it like a plugin to your desktop app.  
One important rule is that you should not import files from the outside of your module directory
as this will cause you problems when writing tests.  
You can always reach to other modules through `modules` and you can as well add a module with
 some common code or utils.
Every module lives in its own directory and has to have a `module.json` file. Currently there are
 only four fields there supported:
- `name` - name of your module, will be used as a key in `modules` object
- `dependencies` - list of npm deps
- `extract` - list of files that should be excluded from packing into `.asar` (e.g. executables,
files meant to be changed etc)
- `settings` - this object is passed as `settings` field in the object passed to module constructor

#### `extract`
A little bit more about this. Files should be listed in a form of relative path to the module
directory without any leading slashes, for example `extract: [ "dir/something.exe" ]` will be
matched to `.desktop/modules/myModule/dir/something.exe`.

To path to your extracted files is added to your module `settings` as `extractedFilesPath`
. So your module constructor can look like this:
```javascript
import path from 'path';
export default class Desktop {
    constructor({ log, skeletonApp, appSettings, eventsBus, modules, settings, Module }) {
        this.pathToExe = path.join(settings.extractedFilesPath, 'dir/something.exe');
    }
}
```
**WARNING:** currently the path of the file is not reconstructed meaning `extract: [ "dir1/something.exe", "dir2/something.exe' ]` will try to put both `something.exe` files to the same dir and that may fail or produce inconsistent result. So the bare file names without the path must be unique.

## Hot code push support

Applications produced by this integration are fully compatible with `Meteor`'s hot code push
mechanism.  
The faulty version recovery is also in place - [more about it here](https://guide.meteor.com/mobile.html#recovering-from-faulty-versions). You can configure the timeout via
`webAppStartupTimeout` field in `settings.json`.  

Versions are downloaded and served from [`userData`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/app.md#appgetpathname) directory.
There you can find `autoupdate.json` and `versions` dir. If you want to return to first
bundled version just delete them.

You can also analyze `autoupdate.log` if you are experiencing any issues.

## `Meteor.isDesktop`

In your `Meteor` app to run a part of the code only in the desktop context you can use `Meteor.isDesktop`. Use it the same way you would use `Meteor.isClient` or `Meteor.isCordova`.

## Accessing local filesystem in Meteor

Local filesystem is exposed under and url alias (similarly to [Cordova integration](https://guide.meteor.com/mobile.html#accessing-local-files)).
This feature is disabled by default so you need to enable it first by setting
`exposeLocalFilesystem` in your `settings.json` to `true`. Files are exposed under
`/local-filesystem/<absolute-path>` url.

You can use some convenience methods:
- **`Desktop.getFileUrl(absolutePath)`** - returns an url to a file
- **`Desktop.fetchFile(absolutePath)`** - invokes `fetch` on a file's url and returns it's
`Promise`

## Accessing `.desktop/assets` in Meteor

Assets are exposed over an url alias `\___desktop\<asset-path>`.
So to display an image named `test.png` from `.desktop/assets` you should use a
`\___desktop\test.png` url.

You can use some convenience methods:
- **`Desktop.getAssetUrl(assetPath)`** - returns an asset's url
- **`Desktop.fetchAsset(assetPath)`** - invokes `fetch` on an asset's url and returns it's
`Promise`

## `Desktop` and `Module` - communication between Meteor and Electron

### `Module` - desktop side
Use it to declare your API on the desktop side which you can later call from Meteor project.
```javascript
    this.module = new Module('myModuleName');
```
[Documentation of the Module API](docs/api/module.md) - basically, it reflects [`ipcMain`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/ipc-main.md).  

The only two additions are the `fetch` and `respond` methods:
 - **fetch```(event, timeout = 2000, ...args)```** - like send but returns a `Promise` that resolves to a response, timeouts after 2000ms by default
 - **call```(module, ...args)```** - `fetch` but without the need specify timeout
 - **setDefaultFetchTimeout```(timeout)```** - set the default timeout for `fetch` within this module
 - **respond```(event, fetchId, ...data)```** is a convenient method of sending response to `Desktop.fetch`. The `fetchId` is always the second argument received in `on`.  
Here is an [usage example](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-localstorage/blob/master/src/index.js#L31).

### `Desktop` - Meteor side
[Documentation of the Desktop API](docs/api/desktop.md) - reflects partially [`ipcRenderer`](https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/ipc-renderer.md)<sup>*</sup>.    

<sup>* `sendSync` and `sendToHost` are not available</sup>

Use it to call and listen for events from the desktop side.

The only difference is that you always need to precede arguments with module name.
There are two extra methods:  
- **fetch```(module, event, timeout = 2000, ...args)```** - like send but returns a `Promise` that resolves to a response, timeouts after 2000ms by default
- **call```(module, event, ...args)```** - `fetch` but without the need specify timeout
- **setDefaultFetchTimeout```(timeout)```** - set the default timeout for `fetch`
- **respond```(module, event, fetchId, ...data)```** is a convenient method of sending response to `Module.fetch`. The `fetchId` is always the second argument received in `on`.  
- **sendGlobal** - alias for `ipcRenderer.send` - if you need to send an IPC that is not namespaced

Example of `send` and `fetch` usage - [here](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-localstorage/blob/master/plugins/localstorage/localstorage.js#L9).  

## desktopHCP - `.desktop` hot code push
> #### experimental!

There is an experimental support for hot code push of the `.desktop` directory.  
It works similarly to the `Meteor`'s builtin one. It also produces a `version` and
`compatibilityVersion` to detect whether the update can be made.  
In `Meteor` whenever you change any of your `Cordova` dependencies (add/remove/change version)
you will make an incompatible change meaning that a new version will not be hot code pushed.  
The same applies here. In this case your desktop dependencies are npm packages.   
To make it clear, **npm packages are not hot code pushed** - only contents of `.desktop` are.

The `compatibilityVersion` is calculated from combined list of:
 - dependencies from `settings.json`
 - plugins from `settings.json`
 - dependencies from all modules in `.desktop/modules`
 - major version of `meteor-desktop` (X.Y.Z - only X is taken)
 - major version from `settings.json` (X.Y.Z - only X is taken).

Be aware that when it comes to linked packages (via `linkPackages` in `settings.json`) the
explicitly declared version (the one in `settings.json` or modules) is taken into account, not the
actual one from package's package.json. The same applies to packages added from local paths.  
Generally, it is a bad idea to build production app with linked/local packages. Changes in those will not trigger a compatibility version change so you migh accidentally push a new version with `desktopHCP` that will not work.


#### How this works
Two Meteor plugins are added to your project - bundler and watcher. Bundler prepares the `desktop.asar` which is then added to you project as an asset.   
Watcher just watches for file changes and triggers project rebuilds.   

#### Caveats
- desktop app needs to be restarted when a new bundle is applied
- the bundled desktop app goes over normal HCP mechanism meaning that a `desktop.asar` file will
also be
distributed to your mobile clients and cause unnecessary updates in case you only made changes in
 `.desktop`
- files that are excluded from `desktop.asar` (via `extract` settings in a desktop module) are
not updated, nor checked for changes!
- if you had errors (i.e. syntax) in `.desktop` which prevented startup, watcher might not work correctly and further changes
 in `.desktop` will not trigger rebuilds, in that case you need to make any
change in `version` field in the `desktop.version` to trigger rebuild (this file is in the root of
your project) - this can be any change like just adding random char to the hash
- if your run a production build of your desktop app it will not receive updates from project run
 from `meteor` command unless you run it with `--production` - that is because development build
 has `devtron` added and therefore the `compatibilityVersion` is different  
- after reload logs will no longer be shown in the console

## How to write plugins

Plugin is basically a module exported to a npm package. `module.json` is not needed and not taken
 into account because `name` and `dependencies` are already in `package.json`. Also you can not use
 the `extract` functionality as that only works in modules. Plugin `settings` are set and taken
 from the `plugins` section of `settings.json`. [Here](scaffold/settings.json#L26) is an example of passing settings to splash
 screen plugin.

 While developing you will probably need to make use of `linkPackages` in `settings.json`, so that
 your npm-packaged plugin would be linked instead of downloaded. However the advised approach is
 to make the development test driven - meaning that you should make your tests the main way of
 verifying whether the plugin does what it should.
#### `meteorDependencies` in `package.json`
One extra feature is that you can also depend on Meteor packages through `meteorDependencies`
field in `package.json`. Check out [`meteor-desktop-localstorage`](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-localstorage/blob/master/package.json#L52) for example.  
A good practice when your plugin contains a meteor plugin is to publish both at the same version.
You can then use `@version` in the `meteorDependecies` to indicate that the Meteor plugin's
version should be equal to npm package version.

If you made a plugin, please let us know so that it can be listed here.
##### List of known plugins:
[`meteor-desktop-system-notifications`](https://github.com/tzapu/meteor-desktop-system-notifications)  
[`meteor-desktop-splashscreen`](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-splash-screen)  
[`meteor-desktop-localstorage`](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-localstorage) (deprecated, do not use from `1.0.0`)  

## Squirrel autoupdate support (DEPRECATED)

Squirrel Window and OSX autoupdates are supported. So far the only tested server is
[`electron-release-server`](https://github.com/ArekSredzki/electron-release-server) and the
default url `http://127.0.0.1/update/:platform/:version` provided in `settings.json` assumes you
will be using it.  
The `:platform` and `:version` tags are automatically replaced by correct values.   
You can hook into Squirrel Windows events in `squirrelEvents.js` in `.desktop`.

More:  
https://github.com/electron/electron/blob/master/docs/api/auto-updater.md  
https://github.com/ArekSredzki/electron-release-server

## Native modules support

This integration fully supports rebuilding native modules (npm packages with native node modules)
 against `Electron's` `node` version. The mechanism is enabled by default.

## Devtron

[`Devtron`](http://electron.atom.io/devtron/) is installed and activated by default. It is
automatically removed when building with `--production`. As the communication between your Meteor
 app and the desktop side goes through IPC, this tool can be very handy because it can sniff on
 IPC messages.
<kbd>![devtron IPC sniff](docs/devtron_ipc.gif)</kbd>

## Testing desktop app and modules

For unit tests you should not have problems with using [electron-mocha](https://github.com/jprichardson/electron-mocha).  
For functional testing [Spectron](http://electron.atom.io/spectron) should be used.

There are two exemplary tests present in the default scaffold. Check them out as they have some
comments in them.  
To run them you need to init functional test support by invoking:
```
npm run desktop -- init-tests-support
```
Two tasks should be added to your `scripts` section: `test-desktop` and `test-desktop-watch`.
Feel free to run the tests with: `npm run test-desktop`.

For testing modules there is a [test suite](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop-test-suite) available.
It is used extensively in the plugins (splash screen & localstorage) tests so you can check there
for more examples.

## `MD_LOG_LEVEL`
`MD_LOG_LEVEL` env var is used to set the logger verbosity. It is set to
`ALL` by default but you can change it to any of `INFO, WARN, ERROR, DEBUG, VERBOSE, TRACE`. You can also
select multiple levels joining them with a comma, for example: `INFO,WARN`.

## Packaging

`npm run desktop -- package <ddp-url>`

This produces a package using [`electron-packager`](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-packager).  
Package is produced and saved in `.desktop-package` directory. You can pass options via `packagerOptions` in
`settings.json`.

## Building installer

`npm run desktop -- build-installer <ddp-url>`

This packages and builds installer using [`electron-builder`](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder).  
Installer is produced and saved in `.desktop-installer` directory. You can pass options via
`builderOptions` in `settings.json`.  
If you do not pass any target platforms via `--win`, `--linux` or `--mac` it will build for your
current platform. If at least one the platform is specified, the current platform will not be
added automatically. So if you want to build Windows and Mac at the same time, being on Mac,
you need to pass `--win --mac`, not only `--win`. To check what targets you can build on certain platform and what does it require
check [Multi-Platform-Build](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/wiki/Multi-Platform-Build)

Please note that `electron-builder` does not use `electron-packager` to create a package. So the
options from `packagerOptions` are not taken into account.

##### Building for linux
Currently there are some defaults provided only for `Windows` and `Mac`. If you want to build for
 `Linux` you need to add a [`linux`](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/wiki/Options#LinuxBuildOptions) section in your `builderOptions` and comply to these
 [requirements](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder/wiki/Multi-Platform-Build#linux).

##### Building for Windows Store (AppX)
Change `target: ["appx"]` in `win` section of `builderOptions`. In case of problems please refer to
[electron-builder](https://github.com/electron-userland/electron-builder) documentation.

## Roadmap
This project recently hit `1.0.0` however you should still expect many breaking changes in the upcoming versions.
Any feedback/feature requests/PR is highly welcomed and highly anticipated.  

If you want to check what is planned and what I am working on, first you can check accepted
issues on github [here](https://github.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3Aaccepted).
You can see the backlog and roadmap in form of epics on Taiga
[here](https://tree.taiga.io/project/wojtkowiak-meteor-desktop/kanban). The project is public so
you can also comment and vote there.

## Contribution

PRs are always welcome and encouraged. If you need help at any stage of preparing a PR, just
file an issue. It is also good, to file a feature request issue before you start working to
discuss the need and implementation approach.

If you want, you can always contribute by donating:

<a href='https://pledgie.com/campaigns/33341'><img alt='Click here to lend your support to: meteor-desktop and make a donation at pledgie.com !' src='https://pledgie.com/campaigns/33341.png?skin_name=chrome' border='0' ></a>

##### ! devEnvSetup.js !
To help you contribute, there is a development environment setup script. If you have this repo
cloned and already did a `npm install`, you can just run it with `node devEnvSetup.js`.
However if you did not yet clone this repo just do:
```
mkdir tmp
cd tmp
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wojtkowiak/meteor-desktop/master/devEnvSetup.js
npm install cross-spawn shelljs npm
node devEnvSetup.js
```
This script assumes you have `npm`, `git` and `meteor` available from the command line.

Currently this package does not work when linked with `npm link`. To set up your dev environment
it is best to create a clean `Meteor` project, add `meteor-desktop` to dependencies with a relative
 path to the place where you have cloned this repo and in scripts add `desktop` with `node
 ./path/to/meteor-desktop/dist/bin/cli.js`.  
 Also to make changes in the desktop HCP plugins run `Meteor` project with `METEOR_PACKAGE_DIRS`
 set to `/absolute/path/to/meteor-desktop/plugins` so that they will be taken from the cloned repo.

## Built with `meteor-desktop`

Built an app using meteor-desktop? File an issue or PR to list it here.

* [Coygo](https://www.coygo.app) - Multi-exchange cryptocurrency and digital asset trading tool

## FAQ

> How to disable `zip` building when using `build-installer` on OSX.

Add `target: ["dmg"]` to `mac` section of `builderOptions`.

## Changelog

is [here](CHANGELOG.md)