Helping with macOS and Windows

Skwir 0.1 is released for Linux only. Its code for macOS and Windows compiles (just check-cross) and the Windows build's tests pass under Wine, but none of it has run on a real Mac or Windows machine: nobody working on Skwir has one. If you do, you can help.

Below are the steps each release needs, best done in order. Details are in docs/PORTING.md ("PORTING"); ADR-035 explains the split.

• try: no programming. Run Skwir and report what happened.
• code: needs someone who writes Rust on that system.

Before you start

Build. Install Rust with rustup; in the repository it uses the version rust-toolchain.toml pins (Skwir builds with 1.96 or later). On a Mac, install Xcode's command line tools (xcode-select --install); on Windows, the MSVC build tools. Then:

The helpers that link native libraries (Poppler, MuPDF, GStreamer, libarchive) are not needed to start.

Test.

nextest first runs tools/test/isolate-xdg.sh, so tests never touch your Trash, settings or cache; on Windows Git's sh runs it, as in CI. A failing test is a finding: report which and what it printed.

Report in the issue tracker: open a new issue with its "macOS or Windows" form, naming the step (for example "macOS 3, Files"). Include:

• the system's version and the machine (processor, GPU);
• what you did, what you expected, what happened;
• the log: run with RUST_LOG=skwir=debug (PowerShell: $env:RUST_LOG="skwir=debug" first).

Rename anything personal in paths and screenshots before sharing: a folder called taxes 2026 can be folder a.

macOS

1. It opens (try). The window draws, a folder lists, the sidebar shows the home folder's places and the volumes under /Volumes, scrolling a large folder stays smooth, and idle CPU returns to about 0% (Activity Monitor). PORTING sections 1, 6.
2. Tests (try). The tests above pass natively. PORTING "Tests that run on Linux alone" lists what is skipped and why.
3. Files (try). Copy, move, rename, swap two names (rename each to the other's), move to Trash, and undo each; Finder's tags survive a copy. These use renameatx_np, clonefile and trashItemAtURL, which have never run (PORTING sections 3, 4, 5). Nothing may be lost: compare the files before and after.
4. Types and pictures (try). Files show the right kind and icon (UTType, NSWorkspace); thumbnails come from Quick Look (PORTING sections 7, 8). Report which files look wrong.
5. Keys (try). Cmd is the standard modifier; Ctrl where macOS keeps Cmd for itself (PORTING "10–15"). Report shortcuts that do the wrong thing. A drag's copy modifier should be Option (not done).
6. Isolation (code). Converters (LibreOffice, Pandoc, ImageMagick) and plugins from outside run under sandbox-exec with Skwir's profile (platform/src/sandbox.rs, ADR-039). Find what the profile must let through for each to start; without it they are refused.
7. What is not written (code): ejecting a volume (DiskArbitration); audio and video through AVFoundation (a helper of its own, ADR-041); the trash's listing (~/.Trash records no origin); Finder's favorites as bookmarks; media keys (Now Playing). PORTING sections 4, 6, 8, "10–15".
8. The package (code). tools/package/macos.sh builds skwir.app and a disk image; it has never run. It must also carry the crates' notices (tools/package/notices.py, as the Linux packages do) in Contents/Resources/licenses. Signing and notarization need an Apple developer identity: the project decides that with you.
9. CI (code). The native job in .github/workflows/ci.yml builds, lints and tests on macos-latest. It does not block merging until it passes.

Windows

1. It opens (try). The window draws, a folder lists, the drives are in the sidebar, scrolling stays smooth, and idle CPU returns to about 0% (Task Manager). PORTING sections 1, 6.
2. Tests (try). The tests pass natively, not only under Wine. Those that need what Wine lacks (the shell's Recycle Bin, alternate streams) run only here: PORTING sections 1, 3, 4.
3. Files (try). Copy (with progress and Cancel), move, rename, Recycle Bin, and undo each; a downloaded file keeps its mark of origin (an alternate stream). A swap is refused by design; a bulk rename parks a name instead (PORTING section 3).
4. The terminal (try). The terminal panel (ConPTY) starts, takes keys, and follows the folder shown (PORTING section 9).
5. Control channel security (code). Agents and scripts reach the window through a named pipe with Windows' default security, which lets other accounts open it, and the client does not check the server's account. Before Control can be turned on there, the pipe needs a DACL of the user alone and the client a check of the server (plugins/control/src/channel.rs, PORTING "10–15").
6. Isolation (code). Windows has none yet (ADR-039): converters that need it are refused, and plugins from outside that run as programs do not run. The plan is an AppContainer (platform/src/sandbox.rs).
7. What is not written (code): ejecting a drive; drives plugged in appearing at once (WM_DEVICECHANGE); audio and video through Media Foundation (a helper of its own); owners by SID; Quick Access as bookmarks; Windows Search for hints; media keys (SMTC). PORTING sections 6, 7, 8, "10–15".
8. The package (code). tools/package/windows.ps1 builds what ships and an installer from tools/package/windows/skwir.wxs (WiX); it has never run. It must also carry the crates' notices (tools/package/notices.py). Signing needs a code-signing certificate: the project decides that with you.
9. CI (code). The native job runs on windows-latest too.

When a system is ready

A release on a system needs:

• every step done, or stated as not needed;
• its tests passing in CI;
• a package that installs and runs on a fresh machine;
• docs/PLAN.md saying what is left there.

The model is the Linux release's checklist (docs/PLAN.md, "Release 0.1").