Development¶

Development Workflow¶

Make Changes: Edit frontend (HTML/CSS/JS) or backend (Rust) code
Hot Reload: Frontend changes reload automatically in dev mode
Rebuild Backend: Rust changes require rebuilding (cargo tauri dev handles this)
Test: Use browser mode for faster iteration, Tauri mode for full testing

Running in Development Mode¶

cd tauri-app
cargo tauri dev

This will: - Build the Rust backend - Start the Tauri application - Enable hot reload for frontend changes - Show console output for debugging

Running Frontend in Browser (Development Mode)¶

You can run the frontend as a static site in your browser while connecting to the backend via HTTP:

# On macOS/Linux:
./run-browser-dev.sh

# On Windows:
run-browser-dev.bat

# Or manually:
# Terminal 1: Start HTTP server
cd backend
cargo run --bin http-server --release

# Terminal 2: Serve frontend
cd frontend
python3 -m http.server 8080
# Then open http://127.0.0.1:8080 in your browser

The HTTP server runs on http://127.0.0.1:1420 and the frontend is served on http://127.0.0.1:8080. The frontend automatically detects browser mode and uses HTTP instead of Tauri APIs.

Building for Production¶

cd tauri-app
cargo tauri build

The built application will be in backend/src-tauri/target/release/

Build Targets¶

Windows: .exe installer
macOS: .app bundle and .dmg installer
Linux: .deb and .AppImage packages
Android: .apk file

Code Organization¶

Frontend¶

Modular Architecture: Each major feature has its own service module
State Management: Centralized state in app-state.js
DOM Management: Centralized DOM utilities in dom-manager.js
Service Layer: Backend communication abstracted in tauri-service.js

Backend¶

Command Handlers: Tauri commands defined in main.rs
Business Logic: Feature-specific logic in separate modules (email.rs, nostr.rs, etc.)
Database Layer: SQLite operations in database.rs
Type Safety: Shared types in types.rs

Debugging¶

Frontend Debugging¶

Use browser DevTools when running in browser mode
Console logs are available in Tauri dev mode
Check tauri-service.js for backend communication issues

Backend Debugging¶

Rust compiler errors show in terminal
Use println! macros for debugging (visible in terminal)
Check Tauri console output for command execution

Database Debugging¶

Database file location: OS-specific app data directory
Use SQLite browser tools to inspect database
Database schema defined in database.rs

Testing¶

Manual Testing¶

Test each page functionality
Test email sending/receiving
Test DM sending/receiving
Test contact loading
Test settings persistence

Integration Testing¶

Test email + Nostr integration
Test encryption/decryption
Test database operations
Test relay connectivity

Contributing¶

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch
Make your changes
Test thoroughly
Submit a pull request