desktop

Mochi Desktop

The Electron runtime for Mochi. It powers the native window, settings UI, chat overlay, and local providers (OpenRouter/Ollama/OpenClaw).

Build

1. cd desktop
2. npm install
3. bash scripts/build.sh to open the platform menu (defaults to building all targets in parallel). The script writes dist/build.log plus a dedicated dist/build-<target>.log for Windows/macOS/Linux.
4. If you only need one platform, choose the corresponding option (Windows, macOS, Linux) when the menu appears.
5. Manual alternatives are still available (npx electron-builder --win, --mac, or --linux) if a scripted build is preferred.

Linux/WSL prerequisites

• wine64/wine32 (and their 32-bit libc dependencies) so rcedit.exe can run when building Windows binaries. Example for Ubuntu/WSL:

  sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
  sudo apt update
  sudo apt install wine64 wine32 p7zip-full libwine libwine:i386 winbind

• curl or wget (needed when the dmg-license fallback downloads pre-built assets).
• npm (already required) so the build script can install dmg-license and its dependencies before running electron-builder. These packages make the Windows and macOS pipelines work reliably on Linux hosts. Without them the console/logs will show missing executables (rcedit, wine, crc, etc.).

When the run finishes, confirm the artifacts and log files under desktop/dist/ before continuing.

Set MOCHI_BUILD_TARGET (all, windows, macos, or linux) or pass the desired key (./scripts/build.sh linux) to run a specific workflow without the prompt.

Release

Use ./scripts/publish_release_assets.sh from the repository root to upload the Windows portable exe, Linux AppImage, and extension zips to GitHub Releases. Make sure gh is authenticated first.

Testing

• Run npm start locally to preview the app in development mode.
• Copy the portable exe to a Windows machine (or run via Wine) to confirm the mascots appear, settings open, and chat works.

Notes

• Canonical shared assets now live in ../runtime-core/; run npm run sync-runtime-core (or use ./build.sh ...) to refresh renderer/{characters,personalities,assets} before building.
• Desktop binaries should never be committed to git; the release script handles uploads.
• Use the new Start Mochi on system login toggle in settings to keep the desktop client running automatically across Windows, macOS, and Linux logins.