Desktop Development

Build and run the Reeve Desktop App from source for development and testing.

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+
npm 9+
Xcode Command Line Tools (macOS)
Local clones of reeve (gateway) and reeve-frontend repos

Repository Structure

reeve-desktop/
  ├── src/
  │   └── main/
  │       ├── index.js        ← Electron main process
  │       ├── gateway.js      ← Gateway child process manager
  │       ├── frontend.js     ← Frontend child process manager
  │       └── updater.js      ← Auto-update logic
  ├── gateway/                ← Packed gateway (gitignored)
  ├── frontend/               ← Packed frontend (gitignored)
  ├── resources/
  │   ├── icon.icns           ← App icon
  │   └── tray-iconTemplate.png ← Menubar icon
  ├── scripts/
  │   ├── pack-gateway.js     ← Copies gateway dist
  │   └── pack-frontend.js    ← Builds Next.js standalone
  └── package.json

Dev Mode

Run the app in development mode with hot-reload:

# Terminal 1: Start the gateway (from reeve repo)
cd ~/Coding_MM/reeve
reeve start --port 18789

# Terminal 2: Start the frontend (from reeve-frontend repo)
cd ~/Coding_MM/reeve-frontend
npm run dev

# Terminal 3: Start the desktop app in dev mode
cd ~/Coding_MM/reeve-desktop
npm run dev

In dev mode:

Gateway uses the local reeve repo (not bundled)
Frontend uses Next.js dev server on port 3000 (hot reload)
Changes to gateway or frontend are reflected immediately

Building for Distribution

1. Pack dependencies

# Copy gateway dist files
npm run pack:gateway

# Build Next.js standalone and copy
npm run pack:frontend

# Or do both
npm run pack:all

2. Build the app

# Build .dmg for macOS
npm run build:dmg

# Build unpacked directory (for testing)
npm run build:dir

The output goes to dist/:

dist/Reeve-2026.2.27-arm64.dmg — Apple Silicon installer
dist/Reeve-2026.2.27-x64.dmg — Intel installer

3. Code signing

For distribution, set these environment variables:

export CSC_LINK=path/to/certificate.p12
export CSC_KEY_PASSWORD=your-password
export APPLE_ID=your@apple.id
export APPLE_APP_SPECIFIC_PASSWORD=xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx

electron-builder handles signing and notarization automatically.

Pack Scripts

`pack-gateway.js`

Copies the gateway's dist/ directory, node_modules, package.json, config files, and templates:

// Simplified
const gatewayRepo = path.resolve(__dirname, "../../reeve");
const target = path.resolve(__dirname, "../gateway");

// Copy dist/, node_modules, package.json, docs/reference/templates/
fs.cpSync(path.join(gatewayRepo, "dist"), path.join(target, "dist"), { recursive: true });
fs.cpSync(path.join(gatewayRepo, "node_modules"), path.join(target, "node_modules"), { recursive: true });

`pack-frontend.js`

Builds the Next.js frontend in standalone mode and copies the output:

// Build standalone
execSync("npm run build", { cwd: frontendRepo });

// Copy .next/standalone/ and .next/static/
fs.cpSync(standalone, target, { recursive: true });

Version Bumping

The version in package.json determines the update version:

{
  "version": "2026.2.27b"
}

Version format: YYYY.M.DD with optional suffix letter for same-day releases.

The desktop app doesn't have its own test suite — it's tested manually. The gateway and frontend have their own test suites that run independently.

Development

On this page