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desktop: start offline, download yt-dlp in the background #37

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Merged
10k11 merged 1 commit into from
Nov 8, 2026
Merged

desktop: start offline, download yt-dlp in the background #37

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2 changes: 1 addition & 1 deletion desktop/README.md
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@

An Electron wrapper that runs the regular Flux server on `127.0.0.1` and shows it in a window. No Node, Docker or setup needed for users. The server code is unchanged; the app only sets environment variables (`FLUX_LOCAL_MODE=1`, data in the OS app-data folder).

- The **media engine** is downloaded (checksum-verified) on first launch into the app-data folder and self-updates on later launches.
- The **media engine** is downloaded (checksum-verified) in the background on first launch into the app-data folder and self-updates on later launches. The app opens even when offline; downloads start working once the engine has arrived.
- **FFmpeg / FFprobe** are bundled through `ffmpeg-static` and `ffprobe-static`.
- **Local mode** (`FLUX_LOCAL_MODE=1`) treats the person running the app as signed in, so full-length downloads work without Google sign-in. It is ignored unless the server listens on `127.0.0.1`.

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18 changes: 13 additions & 5 deletions desktop/ytdlp.mjs
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
// Keeps a standalone yt-dlp in the app's data folder: downloaded and verified on
// first launch, then self-updated in the background (sites change often).
import { mkdir, writeFile, chmod, access } from "node:fs/promises";
import { mkdir, writeFile, chmod, access, rename } from "node:fs/promises";
import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
import path from "node:path";
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -59,11 +59,17 @@ async function download(target) {
createHash("sha256").update(bytes).digest("hex") !== expected.toLowerCase()
)
throw new Error("Checksum verification failed for yt-dlp.");
await writeFile(target, bytes);
if (process.platform !== "win32") await chmod(target, 0o755);
// Write to a temp name first so an interrupted download is never mistaken for a working binary.
const tmp = `${target}.part`;
await writeFile(tmp, bytes);
if (process.platform !== "win32") await chmod(tmp, 0o755);
await rename(tmp, target);
}

/** Returns the path to yt-dlp, downloading it on first run. Updates run in the background. */
/**
* Returns the path to yt-dlp right away. On first run the download happens in the background,
* so the app still opens when offline; downloads work once yt-dlp has arrived.
*/
export async function ensureYtDlp(binDir) {
await mkdir(binDir, { recursive: true });
const target = path.join(
Expand All @@ -75,7 +81,9 @@ export async function ensureYtDlp(binDir) {
() => false,
);
if (!exists) {
await download(target);
download(target).catch((error) =>
console.error(`Could not fetch yt-dlp yet: ${error.message}`),
);
return target;
}
// Best effort: the standalone binary can update itself in place.
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