GitHub Desktop for Paseo

A GitHub Desktop-style Git panel for Paseo workspaces: browse uncommitted changes and commit history, read diffs, and leave line comments for your agent, without leaving Paseo.

Not affiliated with GitHub. The name describes the layout it borrows.

Comment on any line	Review queued comments
File actions	History

Features

• Changes: every uncommitted file (modified, added, deleted, renamed, untracked) with its diff against HEAD, refreshed every couple of seconds.
• History: the branch's commits, paged, marked when they are unpushed or not yet on the base branch. Select a commit to see its files and per-file diffs.
• Line comments for agents: click any diff line to comment on it.
  • Comment queues it; Submit comments (N) at the top right sends the batch with an optional note.
  • Send now delivers just that comment straight away.
  • Agents receive Paseo's own review attachment (file, line, side, and surrounding diff), the same as built-in diff comments.
  • Comments sent while an agent is working are added to its current turn instead of interrupting it.
• File actions: right-click (desktop), long-press (mobile) or ⋯ on a file:
  • Open in editor, jumping to the line you are commenting on
  • Copy path
  • Discard changes, with a confirmation. Discarded content goes to the Trash / Recycle Bin, so mistakes are recoverable.
• Open in GitHub Desktop from the toolbar or ⌘K, when GitHub Desktop is installed.
• Built for large repositories: virtualized lists and diffs, diffs over 1 MB or 5,000 lines load only on request, and the Changes list caps at 2,000 files while still showing the real total.

Install

Requires Paseo 0.11 or later, with plugins enabled (Settings → Plugins → Enable plugins) on the host where you install it.

Install it on the daemon host from GitHub:

paseo plugin install github:MACscr/paseo-github-desktop

Or paste github:MACscr/paseo-github-desktop into Settings → Plugins → Plugin source.

From a local checkout, for development:

git clone https://github.com/MACscr/paseo-github-desktop.git
cd paseo-github-desktop
npm install
paseo plugin install "$(pwd)"

Then open a workspace on that host and either open the Git tab or press ⌘K and choose Open Git view.

Plugins are installed per daemon, so the panel appears only for workspaces on hosts that have it installed.

Settings

Settings → Plugins → GitHub Desktop → Editor chooses what Open in editor uses:

Option	Behaviour
Automatic	The first installed of VS Code, Cursor, Zed and Sublime Text
VS Code, Cursor, Zed, Sublime Text	That editor; marked "(not found)" if its command is missing
Custom command	Any program, with your own arguments

For Custom command:

• Command: a name on the daemon's PATH, an absolute path, or a macOS .app bundle. A .app opens the file but cannot jump to a line, so point at the app's command-line tool if you want line numbers.
• Arguments: use {file} for the absolute path and {line} for the line number (1 when there is none). Quote arguments that contain spaces. If {file} is missing, the file is added at the end.

PhpStorm example:

Command:   /Applications/PhpStorm.app/Contents/MacOS/phpstorm
Arguments: --line {line} "{file}"

Settings are stored on the host, so every client connected to it shares them.

Platforms

	macOS	Linux	Windows
Changes, History, comments	Yes	Yes	Yes
Discard to Trash	/usr/bin/trash	gio, trash-put or KDE kioclient	Recycle Bin via PowerShell
Open in editor	Yes	Yes	Yes (.exe / .cmd commands)
Open in GitHub Desktop	Yes	Community build (github-desktop)	Yes (github command)

The panel works in the desktop app, the web UI, and on mobile. Windows support is implemented but has not been tested on a Windows machine yet.

Limitations

• Editors and GitHub Desktop open on the daemon's machine, not on the device you are viewing Paseo from.
• Paseo has no API for plugins to add to its chat box, so comments go to the agent as a message instead of a draft chip.
• Plugins cannot open files in Paseo's own Files panel or add entries to its Open in menu.
• Queued comments last until the app is closed; they are not saved across restarts.
• With no Trash available (for example a bare Linux server), discarding deletes permanently. The confirmation says so first.
• Windows support has not been tested on a Windows machine yet.

Development

npm install
npm run typecheck
npm test
paseo plugin reload github-desktop   # after each change
paseo plugin logs github-desktop     # daemon-side output

Code is split by runtime, as Paseo requires:

Path	Runs in
index.client.tsx, client/	The Paseo app (React Native, so it also works on mobile)
index.server.ts, server/	A daemon subprocess (git, editors, Trash)
shared/	Both: RPC contracts and settings schema

Git runs with GIT_OPTIONAL_LOCKS=0, so the panel's background polling never blocks an agent's own git commands.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.