[PR #539] [MERGED] feat: embed backend server in Electron desktop app #335

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opened 2026-05-06 12:38:12 +02:00 by BreizhHardware · 0 comments

BreizhHardware commented

2026-05-06 12:38:12 +02:00

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📋 Pull Request Information

Original PR: https://github.com/Termix-SSH/Termix/pull/539
Author: @ZacharyZcR
Created: 1/28/2026
Status: ✅ Merged
Merged: 2/20/2026
Merged by: @LukeGus

Base: dev-1.11.2 ← Head: feat/electron-embedded-server

📝 Commits (3)

14c64f7 feat: embed backend server in Electron desktop app
9c5048e fix: improve electron embedded server reliability
45d520c feat: system tray minimize and runtime server switching

📊 Changes

5 files changed (+314 additions, -117 deletions)

View changed files

📝 electron-builder.json (+6 -1)
📝 electron/main.cjs (+249 -116)
📝 src/backend/database/database.ts (+31 -0)
📝 src/backend/starter.ts (+11 -0)
📝 src/ui/desktop/navigation/LeftSidebar.tsx (+17 -0)

📄 Description

Summary

Fork an embedded backend process on Electron app startup, enabling a zero-deployment desktop experience
Store backend data in userData/server-data; unpack native modules (better-sqlite3, ssh2) and dist from asar for the forked process
Add frontend static file serving and SPA fallback in Express backend for iframe auth flow
Use IPC message for graceful shutdown (SIGTERM doesn't work on Windows)
Wait for backend ready signal before creating the main window (15s timeout fallback)
Extract shared httpFetch utility to eliminate duplicate fetch polyfill

Files Changed

electron/main.cjs — Backend lifecycle management (start/stop/ready wait), shared httpFetch, IPC shutdown
electron-builder.json — Add better-sqlite3, ssh2, dist to asarUnpack
src/backend/database/database.ts — Add frontend static file serving and SPA fallback for embedded mode
src/backend/starter.ts — Add IPC shutdown message handler

Test Plan

Fresh install and launch Electron — verify backend auto-starts and listens on port
Register a new user on first run — verify login flow works
Close the app — verify backend process is cleaned up (no orphan processes)
Verify remote server connection functionality is unaffected
Test on Windows — verify graceful shutdown via IPC works correctly

_{🔄 This issue represents a GitHub Pull Request. It cannot be merged through Gitea due to API limitations.}

## 📋 Pull Request Information **Original PR:** https://github.com/Termix-SSH/Termix/pull/539 **Author:** [@ZacharyZcR](https://github.com/ZacharyZcR) **Created:** 1/28/2026 **Status:** ✅ Merged **Merged:** 2/20/2026 **Merged by:** [@LukeGus](https://github.com/LukeGus) **Base:** `dev-1.11.2` ← **Head:** `feat/electron-embedded-server` --- ### 📝 Commits (3) - [`14c64f7`](https://github.com/Termix-SSH/Termix/commit/14c64f763c82dcb2f5df5ec396d98336a60c4f2b) feat: embed backend server in Electron desktop app - [`9c5048e`](https://github.com/Termix-SSH/Termix/commit/9c5048edc9ef559b8b8dda0d0fb9397c061bd6df) fix: improve electron embedded server reliability - [`45d520c`](https://github.com/Termix-SSH/Termix/commit/45d520cdaa17f867be5fd7bea18bfce064872da4) feat: system tray minimize and runtime server switching ### 📊 Changes **5 files changed** (+314 additions, -117 deletions) <details> <summary>View changed files</summary> 📝 `electron-builder.json` (+6 -1) 📝 `electron/main.cjs` (+249 -116) 📝 `src/backend/database/database.ts` (+31 -0) 📝 `src/backend/starter.ts` (+11 -0) 📝 `src/ui/desktop/navigation/LeftSidebar.tsx` (+17 -0) </details> ### 📄 Description ## Summary - Fork an embedded backend process on Electron app startup, enabling a zero-deployment desktop experience - Store backend data in `userData/server-data`; unpack native modules (better-sqlite3, ssh2) and dist from asar for the forked process - Add frontend static file serving and SPA fallback in Express backend for iframe auth flow - Use IPC message for graceful shutdown (SIGTERM doesn't work on Windows) - Wait for backend ready signal before creating the main window (15s timeout fallback) - Extract shared `httpFetch` utility to eliminate duplicate fetch polyfill ## Files Changed - `electron/main.cjs` — Backend lifecycle management (start/stop/ready wait), shared httpFetch, IPC shutdown - `electron-builder.json` — Add better-sqlite3, ssh2, dist to asarUnpack - `src/backend/database/database.ts` — Add frontend static file serving and SPA fallback for embedded mode - `src/backend/starter.ts` — Add IPC shutdown message handler ## Test Plan - [ ] Fresh install and launch Electron — verify backend auto-starts and listens on port - [ ] Register a new user on first run — verify login flow works - [ ] Close the app — verify backend process is cleaned up (no orphan processes) - [ ] Verify remote server connection functionality is unaffected - [ ] Test on Windows — verify graceful shutdown via IPC works correctly --- <sub>🔄 This issue represents a GitHub Pull Request. It cannot be merged through Gitea due to API limitations.</sub>

BreizhHardware

2026-05-06 12:38:12 +02:00

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