feat: Linux/KDE support, nix flake, and distro packaging (v2.4.0)#35
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Add a Linux platform module that integrates with KDE Plasma via the freedesktop StatusNotifierItem (SNI) protocol over D-Bus (trayicon's Linux backend). CPU usage is read from /proc/stat; settings persist to ~/.config/rustcat; autostart uses a freedesktop autostart .desktop file; theme detection/dialogs/system monitor use kreadconfig/kdialog/ plasma-systemmonitor with graceful fallbacks. Add a Nix flake (crane) with packages, devShells, and apps outputs, wrapping runtime helper tools onto PATH. Scope the crt-static rustflag to Windows only so Linux links dynamically against glibc (it previously forced static-glibc which most distros and Nix don't ship). Add Linux distro packaging: .deb (cargo-deb), .rpm (cargo-generate-rpm), AppImage (linuxdeploy), and a portable .tar.gz, all built in a new build-linux CI job and published on release. Bump version 2.3.0 -> 2.4.0. Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
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Code Review
This pull request introduces native Linux and KDE support to RustCat, adding a dedicated platform module, CPU usage monitoring via /proc/stat, and packaging configurations for Debian, RPM, and Nix. Feedback on the changes suggests several key improvements: utilizing libc::localtime_r to fetch the local hour efficiently instead of spawning an external date process, waiting on spawned child processes to prevent zombie processes, clamping the calculated CPU usage to ensure it stays within bounds, and installing the application icon to pixmaps/ rather than icons/ for better desktop environment compatibility.
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| [target.'cfg(target_os = "linux")'.dependencies] | ||
| dirs = "6.0" |
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Add libc dependency for Linux to enable highly efficient local time querying without spawning external processes.
[target.'cfg(target_os = "linux")'.dependencies]
dirs = "6.0"
libc = "0.2"
| fn get_local_hour() -> u32 { | ||
| let output = Command::new("date") | ||
| .arg("+%H") | ||
| .output() | ||
| .unwrap_or_else(|_| std::process::Output { | ||
| status: std::process::ExitStatus::default(), | ||
| stdout: b"0".to_vec(), | ||
| stderr: Vec::new(), | ||
| }); | ||
|
|
||
| String::from_utf8_lossy(&output.stdout) | ||
| .trim() | ||
| .parse() | ||
| .unwrap_or(0) | ||
| } |
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Spawning the external date process every second is highly inefficient and resource-intensive for a lightweight system monitor. Use libc::localtime_r instead, which is extremely fast and has zero process spawning overhead.
fn get_local_hour() -> u32 {
unsafe {
let mut now: libc::time_t = 0;
if libc::time(&mut now) != -1 {
let mut tm = std::mem::zeroed();
if !libc::localtime_r(&now, &mut tm).is_null() {
return tm.tm_hour as u32;
}
}
}
0
}| fn show_dialog(message: &str, title: &str) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> { | ||
| // Prefer KDE's kdialog, fall back to zenity, then xmessage. | ||
| if Command::new("kdialog").arg("--title").arg(title).arg("--msgbox").arg(message).spawn().is_ok() { | ||
| return Ok(()); | ||
| } | ||
| if Command::new("zenity").args(["--title", title, "--info", "--text", message]).spawn().is_ok() { | ||
| return Ok(()); | ||
| } | ||
| if Command::new("xmessage").args(["-title", title, message]).spawn().is_ok() { | ||
| return Ok(()); | ||
| } | ||
| // Last resort: just print to stderr | ||
| eprintln!("{}: {}", title, message); | ||
| Ok(()) | ||
| } |
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Spawning dialog processes and dropping the Child handle immediately without waiting/reaping causes them to become zombie processes when closed. Spawn a background thread to wait on the child process to prevent zombie accumulation.
fn show_dialog(message: &str, title: &str) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
// Prefer KDE's kdialog, fall back to zenity, then xmessage.
let mut cmd = Command::new("kdialog");
cmd.arg("--title").arg(title).arg("--msgbox").arg(message);
if let Ok(mut child) = cmd.spawn() {
std::thread::spawn(move || {
let _ = child.wait();
});
return Ok(());
}
let mut cmd = Command::new("zenity");
cmd.args(["--title", title, "--info", "--text", message]);
if let Ok(mut child) = cmd.spawn() {
std::thread::spawn(move || {
let _ = child.wait();
});
return Ok(());
}
let mut cmd = Command::new("xmessage");
cmd.args(["-title", title, message]);
if let Ok(mut child) = cmd.spawn() {
std::thread::spawn(move || {
let _ = child.wait();
});
return Ok(());
}
// Last resort: just print to stderr
eprintln!("{}: {}", title, message);
Ok(())
}| fn open_system_monitor() -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> { | ||
| // KDE system monitor (Plasma 5.21+), fall back to older ksysguard / htop. | ||
| for prog in ["plasma-systemmonitor", "ksysguard", "gnome-system-monitor"] { | ||
| if Command::new(prog).spawn().is_ok() { | ||
| return Ok(()); | ||
| } | ||
| } | ||
| if Command::new("xterm").arg("-e").arg("htop").spawn().is_ok() { | ||
| return Ok(()); | ||
| } | ||
| Err("No system monitor found (tried plasma-systemmonitor, ksysguard, gnome-system-monitor, htop)".into()) | ||
| } |
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Spawning system monitor processes and dropping the Child handle immediately without waiting/reaping causes them to become zombie processes when closed. Spawn a background thread to wait on the child process to prevent zombie accumulation.
fn open_system_monitor() -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
// KDE system monitor (Plasma 5.21+), fall back to older ksysguard / htop.
for prog in ["plasma-systemmonitor", "ksysguard", "gnome-system-monitor"] {
let mut cmd = Command::new(prog);
if let Ok(mut child) = cmd.spawn() {
std::thread::spawn(move || {
let _ = child.wait();
});
return Ok(());
}
}
let mut cmd = Command::new("xterm");
cmd.arg("-e").arg("htop");
if let Ok(mut child) = cmd.spawn() {
std::thread::spawn(move || {
let _ = child.wait();
});
return Ok(());
}
Err("No system monitor found (tried plasma-systemmonitor, ksysguard, gnome-system-monitor, htop)".into())
}| if total_diff > 0.0 { | ||
| 100.0 - (idle_diff / total_diff * 100.0) | ||
| } else { | ||
| 0.0 | ||
| } |
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Clamp the calculated CPU usage between 0.0 and 100.0 to prevent negative or >100 values in virtualized or unstable environments.
| if total_diff > 0.0 { | |
| 100.0 - (idle_diff / total_diff * 100.0) | |
| } else { | |
| 0.0 | |
| } | |
| if total_diff > 0.0 { | |
| (100.0 - (idle_diff / total_diff * 100.0)).clamp(0.0, 100.0) | |
| } else { | |
| 0.0 | |
| } |
| assets = [ | ||
| ["target/release/rust_cat", "usr/bin/", "755"], | ||
| ["assets/rustcat.desktop", "usr/share/applications/", "644"], | ||
| ["assets/appIcon.ico", "usr/share/icons/rustcat.ico", "644"], |
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Installing the icon directly to usr/share/icons/ is non-standard and prevents desktop environments from finding it. Move it to usr/share/pixmaps/ so the desktop entry can resolve it correctly.
["assets/appIcon.ico", "usr/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico", "644"],
| assets = [ | ||
| { source = "target/release/rust_cat", dest = "/usr/bin/rust_cat", mode = "755" }, | ||
| { source = "assets/rustcat.desktop", dest = "/usr/share/applications/rustcat.desktop", mode = "644" }, | ||
| { source = "assets/appIcon.ico", dest = "/usr/share/icons/rustcat.ico", mode = "644" }, |
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Installing the icon directly to /usr/share/icons/ is non-standard and prevents desktop environments from finding it. Move it to /usr/share/pixmaps/ so the desktop entry can resolve it correctly.
{ source = "assets/appIcon.ico", dest = "/usr/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico", mode = "644" },
| rm -rf "${PKG_DIR}" | ||
| mkdir -p "${PKG_DIR}/bin" "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications" "${PKG_DIR}/share/icons" | ||
|
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||
| cp target/release/${BIN_NAME} "${PKG_DIR}/bin/" | ||
| cp assets/rustcat.desktop "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications/" | ||
| cp assets/appIcon.ico "${PKG_DIR}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" |
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Installing the icon directly to share/icons/ is non-standard and prevents desktop environments from finding it. Move it to share/pixmaps/ so the desktop entry can resolve it correctly.
| rm -rf "${PKG_DIR}" | |
| mkdir -p "${PKG_DIR}/bin" "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications" "${PKG_DIR}/share/icons" | |
| cp target/release/${BIN_NAME} "${PKG_DIR}/bin/" | |
| cp assets/rustcat.desktop "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications/" | |
| cp assets/appIcon.ico "${PKG_DIR}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" | |
| rm -rf "${PKG_DIR}" | |
| mkdir -p "${PKG_DIR}/bin" "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications" "${PKG_DIR}/share/pixmaps" | |
| cp target/release/${BIN_NAME} "${PKG_DIR}/bin/" | |
| cp assets/rustcat.desktop "${PKG_DIR}/share/applications/" | |
| cp assets/appIcon.ico "${PKG_DIR}/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico" |
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||
| install -Dm755 "${SCRIPT_DIR}/bin/rust_cat" "${PREFIX}/bin/rust_cat" | ||
| install -Dm644 "${SCRIPT_DIR}/share/applications/rustcat.desktop" "${PREFIX}/share/applications/rustcat.desktop" | ||
| install -Dm644 "${SCRIPT_DIR}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" "${PREFIX}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" |
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Installing the icon directly to share/icons/ is non-standard and prevents desktop environments from finding it. Move it to share/pixmaps/ so the desktop entry can resolve it correctly.
| install -Dm644 "${SCRIPT_DIR}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" "${PREFIX}/share/icons/rustcat.ico" | |
| install -Dm644 "${SCRIPT_DIR}/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico" "${PREFIX}/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico" |
|
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||
| # Desktop entry + icon for application launchers. | ||
| install -Dm644 ${self}/assets/rustcat.desktop $out/share/applications/rustcat.desktop | ||
| install -Dm644 ${self}/assets/appIcon.ico $out/share/icons/rustcat.ico |
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Installing the icon directly to share/icons/ is non-standard and prevents desktop environments from finding it. Move it to share/pixmaps/ so the desktop entry can resolve it correctly.
install -Dm644 ${self}/assets/appIcon.ico $out/share/pixmaps/rustcat.ico
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| rustCat = craneLib.buildPackage { | ||
| inherit src cargoArtifacts nativeBuildInputs; | ||
| pname = "rustcat"; | ||
| version = "2.3.0"; |
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When users run nix build .#default for this 2.4.0 release, the derivation is still named/versioned as 2.3.0 even though Cargo.toml, Cargo.lock, and the changelog were bumped to 2.4.0. This produces stale Nix output metadata such as rustcat-2.3.0, which is especially confusing for release artifacts and binary caches; please derive this from the Cargo package version or bump it alongside the release.
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| Type=Application\n\ | ||
| Name=RustCat\n\ | ||
| Comment=CPU usage monitor tray cat\n\ | ||
| Exec={exe_str}\n\ |
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When Run on Start is enabled from a binary installed under a path containing spaces or other desktop Exec metacharacters, this writes the raw absolute path into the autostart file (for example Exec=/home/me/Rust Cat/rust_cat). Freedesktop autostart parses Exec as a command line, so login will try to execute the first token instead of the actual binary and RustCat will not start; quote/escape the path before writing it.
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- Install the icon to share/pixmaps/ (freedesktop location for non-themed icons) instead of share/icons/ across deb, rpm, the tarball, its install.sh, and the nix flake — bare share/icons/rustcat.ico isn't found by most desktop environments. - Derive the nix package version from Cargo.toml (was hardcoded 2.3.0, out of sync after the 2.4.0 bump). - Reap spawned helper processes (kdialog, zenity, xmessage, system monitor) on a background thread so they don't accumulate as zombies during RustCat's long lifetime. - Escape the autostart Exec= value per the desktop entry spec so paths containing spaces or other reserved chars still launch at login. - Clamp /proc/stat-derived CPU usage to [0, 100] to guard against non-monotonic counters (VMs, after suspend). Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
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Reviewed commit: c4a0cab48c
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| if let Ok(exe_path) = std::env::current_exe() { | ||
| let exe_str = exe_path.to_string_lossy().to_string(); |
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When RustCat is launched from the AppImage produced by this PR, current_exe() resolves to the binary inside AppImage's temporary mount (for example /tmp/.mount_.../usr/bin/rust_cat), so enabling Run on Start writes an Exec= path that disappears as soon as the AppImage exits or the user logs out. In that context the autostart entry is left pointing at a non-existent file; prefer the stable AppImage path exposed by the runtime (e.g. $APPIMAGE) before falling back to current_exe().
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Summary
Ports RustCat to Linux/KDE and adds Nix flake + distro packaging (.deb / .rpm / AppImage) in CI. Bumps version to 2.4.0.
Linux/KDE port
src/platform/linux/module mirroring the Windows/macOS architecture:/proc/stat~/.config/rustcat/settings.conf~/.config/autostart/rustcat.desktopkreadconfig6/kreadconfig5(+kdeglobalsfallback)kdialog(→ zenity → xmessage), system monitor viaplasma-systemmonitor(→ ksysguard → gnome-system-monitor → htop), graceful degradation if a tool is missing.icoassets work as-is (backend picks the largest entry).Nix flake
flake.nix(crane) exposingpackages/devShells/apps; runtime helper tools wrapped ontoPATH.Distro packaging (CI)
build-linuxjob produces: portable.tar.gz,.deb(cargo-deb),.rpm(cargo-generate-rpm), and AppImage (linuxdeploy) — uploaded as artifacts and published on release.Cargo.tomlgains[package.metadata.deb]and[package.metadata.generate-rpm]+ standard crates.io metadata.Build fix
.cargo/config.toml'scrt-staticrustflag was global; it was meant for MSVC static linking but forced static-glibc linking on Linux, which most distros (and Nix) don't ship. Scoped it to#[cfg(windows)]; Linux now links dynamically and builds cleanly.Verification
cargo check --target x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu— clean, no warnings.nix build .#default— produces a 1.8 MB dynamically-linked ELF + desktop/icon; binary smoke-tested (loads icons, reads/proc/stat, detects dark theme, builds tray menu).cargo deb— produces a well-formedrustcat_2.4.0_amd64.debwith/usr/bin/rust_cat, desktop entry, icon, andRecommends: kdialog, plasma-systemmonitor.nix flake check --no-build— all checks pass.See
CHANGELOG.mdfor the full 2.4.0 entry.🤖 Generated with Claude Code