webdrop-bridge/PHASE_3_BUILD_SUMMARY.md

Phase 3: Build & Distribution - Completion Summary

Status: ✅ WINDOWS BUILD COMPLETE | ✅ MACOS BUILD SCRIPT COMPLETE | ✅ DISTRIBUTION COMPLETE (untested on macOS)

---

What Was Implemented

1. PyInstaller Specification File

File: build/webdrop_bridge.spec

• Cross-platform spec supporting Windows and macOS
• Uses SPECPATH variable for proper path resolution
• Bundles all dependencies: PySide6, Qt6 libraries, Chromium
• Includes data files: webapp/, resources/
• Configured for GUI mode (no console window)
• Status: ✅ Functional

2. Windows Build Script

File: build/scripts/build_windows.py (315 lines)

• Encapsulated in WindowsBuilder class
• Methods:
  • clean() - Remove previous builds
  • build_executable() - Run PyInstaller
  • create_msi() - WiX Toolset integration (optional)
  • sign_executable() - Code signing (optional)
• CLI Arguments:
  • --msi - Create MSI installer
  • --sign - Sign executable
• Unicode emoji support (UTF-8 encoding for Windows console)
• Status: ✅ Tested & Working

3. macOS Build Script

File: build/scripts/build_macos.sh (240+ lines)

• Creates .app bundle and DMG image
• Functions:
  • check_prerequisites() - Verify required tools
  • clean_builds() - Remove previous builds
  • build_executable() - PyInstaller compilation
  • create_dmg() - DMG image generation (professional or fallback)
  • sign_app() - Code signing support
  • notarize_app() - Apple notarization support
• Color-coded output for visibility
• Comprehensive error handling
• Status: ✅ Implemented (untested - requires macOS)

4. Forgejo Release Scripts

Files:

• build/scripts/create_release.ps1 - Windows release creation
• build/scripts/create_release.sh - macOS release creation
• FORGEJO_PACKAGES_SETUP.md - Distribution documentation

Features:

• Automatic release creation via Forgejo Releases API
• HTTP Basic Auth (reuses git credentials)
• Interactive credential prompts with session persistence
• Automatic SHA256 checksum upload as release assets
• Cross-platform (Windows PowerShell 5.1 + macOS Bash)
• Curl-based file uploads (compatible with all environments)

Status: ✅ Implemented & Tested

• First release (v0.0.2) successfully created and deployed
• Both remotes (Bitbucket + Forgejo) synchronized
• Ready for production use

5. Documentation

Files:

• resources/icons/README.md - Icon requirements and specifications

• FORGEJO_PACKAGES_SETUP.md - Distribution workflow and integration

• PHASE_3_BUILD_SUMMARY.md - This file

• Status: ✅ Complete

---

Build Results

Windows Executable (✅ Complete)

Build Output Directory: build/dist/windows/
├── WebDropBridge.exe (195.66 MB) - Main executable
├── WebDropBridge.exe.sha256 - SHA256 checksum
└── WebDropBridge/                 - Dependency directory
    ├── PySide6/ (Qt6 libraries)
    ├── python3.13.zip (Python runtime)
    └── [other dependencies]

Characteristics:

• Standalone executable (no Python installation required on user's machine)
• Includes Chromium WebEngine (explains large file size)
• All dependencies bundled
• GUI application (runs without console window)
• Automatic SHA256 checksum generation
• Ready for distribution via Forgejo Releases

Verification:

# File size
PS> Get-Item "build\dist\windows\WebDropBridge.exe" | 
    Select-Object Name, @{N='SizeMB';E={[math]::Round($_.Length/1MB,2)}}
# Result: WebDropBridge.exe (195.66 MB)

# Checksum verification
PS> Get-Content "build\dist\windows\WebDropBridge.exe.sha256"
# Result: 2ddc507108209c70677db38a54bba82ef81d19d9890f8a0cb96270829dd5b6fa

# Execution test
PS> .\build\dist\windows\WebDropBridge.exe --version
# Exit code: 0 ✅

macOS Application (✅ Build Script Complete)

Build Output Directory: build/dist/macos/
├── WebDropBridge.app/               - Application bundle
│   └── Contents/
│       ├── MacOS/WebDropBridge     - Executable
│       ├── Resources/              - Assets & libraries
│       └── Info.plist             - Bundle metadata
└── WebDropBridge.dmg               - Distributable image

Characteristics:

• Native macOS .app bundle
• DMG image for distribution
• Checksum generation support
• Code signing support (requires developer certificate)
• Notarization support (requires Apple ID)
• Status: Script complete, untested (no macOS machine available)

Forgejo Releases (✅ Deployed)

Latest Release: https://git.him-tools.de/HIM-public/webdrop-bridge/releases

v0.0.2 (Successfully created and deployed)
├── WebDropBridge.exe (195.66 MB)
├── WebDropBridge.exe.sha256
└── [Additional assets for macOS when tested]

Release Method:

1. Build locally: python build/scripts/build_windows.py
2. Create release: .\build\scripts\create_release.ps1 -Version 0.0.2
3. Assets auto-uploaded: exe + checksum
4. Release visible on Forgejo within seconds

---

Next Steps

Immediate (Phase 3 Completion)

1. ✅ Windows Release Workflow - COMPLETE

   • Build executable with checksum
   • Create release on Forgejo
   • Upload assets (exe + checksum)
   • Tested with v0.0.2 release

2. ⏳ macOS Release Workflow - Script ready, untested

   • Requires macOS machine to test
   • Script create_release.sh ready to use
   • Same workflow as Windows version

3. ⏳ Push Release Tags (Optional but recommended)

   git tag -a v0.0.2 -m "Release 0.0.2"
   git push upstream v0.0.2
   

Phase 4.1: Auto-Update System (Next Phase)

The release infrastructure is now ready for Phase 4.1 implementation:

1. UpdateManager Design

   • Query Forgejo Releases API: GET /api/v1/repos/HIM-public/webdrop-bridge/releases/latest
   • Parse release assets (exe + checksum)
   • Download latest executable
   • Verify SHA256 checksum
   • Replace current executable
   • Restart application

2. Example Integration Code

   from src.webdrop_bridge.core.update_manager import UpdateManager
   
   manager = UpdateManager(
       repo_url="https://git.him-tools.de/HIM-public/webdrop-bridge",
       current_version="0.0.2"
   )
   
   if manager.update_available():
       manager.download_and_install()
       manager.restart_app()
   

3. Forgejo API Endpoint

   GET https://git.him-tools.de/api/v1/repos/HIM-public/webdrop-bridge/releases/latest
   
   Response:
   {
       "id": 1,
       "tag_name": "v0.0.2",
       "name": "Release 0.0.2",
       "body": "...",
       "assets": [
           {
               "id": 1,
               "name": "WebDropBridge.exe",
               "browser_download_url": "https://git.him-tools.de/..."
           },
           {
               "id": 2,
               "name": "WebDropBridge.exe.sha256",
               "browser_download_url": "https://git.him-tools.de/..."
           }
       ]
   }
   

   - Settings accessible

   - Drag-and-drop works

4. macOS Build Testing (requires macOS machine)

   bash build/scripts/build_macos.sh
   # Should create: build/dist/macos/WebDropBridge.dmg
   

5. Optional: Create MSI Installer

   # Install WiX Toolset first
   python build/scripts/build_windows.py --msi
   # Output: WebDropBridge-Setup.exe
   

Deferred Tasks

4. GitHub Actions CI/CD Pipeline (.github/workflows/build.yml)

   • Automated Windows builds on release tag
   • macOS builds on release tag
   • Checksum generation
   • Upload to releases

5. Code Signing & Notarization

   • Windows: Requires code signing certificate
   • macOS: Requires Apple Developer ID and notarization credentials

---

Configuration Files Added

For Windows Builds

# build/scripts/build_windows.py
class WindowsBuilder:
    def __init__(self, project_root: Path):
        self.project_root = project_root
        self.build_dir = project_root / "build"
        ...

For macOS Builds

# build/scripts/build_macos.sh
PROJECT_ROOT="$(dirname "$(dirname "$( cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd )")")"
APP_NAME="WebDropBridge"
DMG_NAME="WebDropBridge.dmg"

PyInstaller Configuration

# build/webdrop_bridge.spec
SPECPATH = os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(spec_file))
project_root = os.path.dirname(SPECPATH)

a = Analysis(
    [os.path.join(project_root, 'src/webdrop_bridge/main.py')],
    ...
    datas=[
        (os.path.join(project_root, 'webapp'), 'webapp'),
        (os.path.join(project_root, 'resources'), 'resources'),
    ],
)

---

Technical Decisions & Rationale

1. PyInstaller Spec File (Not CLI Arguments)

• Decision: Use .spec file instead of CLI args
• Rationale: Better cross-platform compatibility, easier to maintain, supports complex bundling
• Result: Unified spec works for both Windows and macOS

2. Separate Build Scripts (Windows Python, macOS Bash)

• Decision: Python for Windows, Bash for macOS
• Rationale: Windows Python is most portable, macOS scripts integrate better with shell tools
• Result: Platform-native experience, easier CI/CD integration

3. Large Executable Size (195.66 MB)

• Expected: Yes, includes:
  • Python runtime (~50 MB)
  • PySide6/Qt6 libraries (~80 MB)
  • Embedded Chromium browser (~50 MB)
  • Application code and resources (~15 MB)
• Mitigation: Users get single-file download, no external dependencies

4. Cross-Platform Data File Bundling

• Decision: Include webapp/ and resources/ in executables
• Rationale: Self-contained distribution, no external file dependencies
• Result: Users can place executable anywhere, always works

---

Known Limitations & Future Work

Windows

• MSI installer requires WiX Toolset installation on build machine
• Code signing requires code signing certificate
• No automatic updater yet (Phase 4.1)

macOS

• build_macos.sh script is implemented but untested (no macOS machine in workflow)
• Code signing requires macOS machine and certificate
• Notarization requires Apple Developer account
• Professional DMG requires create-dmg tool installation

General

• CI/CD pipeline not yet implemented
• Auto-update system not yet implemented (Phase 4.1)
• Icon files not yet created (resources/icons/app.ico, app.icns)

---

How to Use These Build Scripts

Quick Start

# Windows only - build executable
cd "c:\Development\VS Code Projects\webdrop_bridge"
python build/scripts/build_windows.py

# Windows - create MSI (requires WiX)
python build/scripts/build_windows.py --msi

# macOS only - create .app and DMG
bash build/scripts/build_macos.sh

# macOS - with code signing
bash build/scripts/build_macos.sh --sign

Output Locations

Windows:

• Executable: build/dist/windows/WebDropBridge.exe
• MSI: build/dist/windows/WebDropBridge-Setup.exe (if --msi used)

macOS:

• App Bundle: build/dist/macos/WebDropBridge.app
• DMG: build/dist/macos/WebDropBridge.dmg

---

Environment Setup

Windows Build Machine

# Install PyInstaller (already in requirements-dev.txt)
pip install pyinstaller

# Optional: Install WiX for MSI creation
# Download from: https://github.com/wixtoolset/wix3/releases
# Or: choco install wixtoolset

macOS Build Machine

# PyInstaller is in requirements-dev.txt
pip install pyinstaller

# Optional: Install create-dmg for professional DMG
brew install create-dmg

# For code signing and notarization:
# - macOS Developer Certificate (in Keychain)
# - Apple ID + app-specific password
# - Team ID

---

Version: 1.0.0

Build Date: January 2026
Built With: PyInstaller 6.18.0, PySide6 6.10.1, Python 3.13.11