desktop: fix packaged app crash on startup (bundle the bearer helpers, not the server)

[RhysSullivan]

The bug

The packaged desktop app crashed on startup:

Error [ERR_MODULE_NOT_FOUND]: Cannot find package 'ws' imported from
.../resources/app.asar/out/main/index.js

The Electron main process imports loadOrMintLocalAuthToken /
rotateLocalAuthToken from the @executor-js/local barrel (./src/index.ts),
which also exports the full local server (startServer). That pulls the entire
server module graph — including ws — into the main bundle. electron-vite's
externalizeDepsPlugin externalizes ws, but ws isn't a declared desktop
dependency, so electron-builder never bundles it into the asar. Dev electron
hides this because it resolves ws from the monorepo node_modules; only the
packaged artifact hits it.

The fix

The token helpers in apps/local/src/auth.ts are pure node:fs / node:crypto
— no server, no ws, no Effect. Expose them via a dedicated
@executor-js/local/auth subpath and import from it in the desktop main.
The sidecar process (src/sidecar/server.ts) keeps the full barrel because it
actually runs the server.

ws references in the built main bundle drop 547 → 0.

Proof

The packaged Linux bundle, launched headless under Xvfb in a VM, now boots
and logs attaching to supervised daemon at http://127.0.0.1:4789 (pid …), and
the server manifest stays kind: cli-daemon with the daemon's pid — i.e. the
packaged app attached to the supervised daemon rather than spawning its own
sidecar. The harness is e2e/scripts/verify-linux-desktop-attach.ts (manual;
Xvfb sidesteps the macOS Aqua-session limitation that gates the
desktop-packaged vitest project).

[cloudflare-workers-and-pages]

Deploying with    Cloudflare Workers

The latest updates on your project. Learn more about integrating Git with Workers.

Status	Name	Latest Commit	Preview URL	Updated (UTC)
✅ Deployment successful! View logs	executor-marketing	b1211f4	Commit Preview URL Branch Preview URL	Jun 14 2026, 05:08 PM

[cloudflare-workers-and-pages]

Deploying with    Cloudflare Workers

The latest updates on your project. Learn more about integrating Git with Workers.

Status	Name	Latest Commit	Updated (UTC)
✅ Deployment successful! View logs	executor-cloud	b1211f4	Jun 14 2026, 05:08 PM

[github-actions]

Cloudflare preview

Torn down — the PR is closed.

[greptile-apps]

Greptile Summary

This PR fixes a packaged-app crash by introducing a @executor-js/local/auth subpath export that exposes only the pure Node built-in bearer-token helpers (loadOrMintLocalAuthToken, rotateLocalAuthToken), and updates the Electron main-process imports to use it instead of the full barrel that dragged in ws (and the entire server module graph) into the bundled main.

• apps/local/package.json adds "./auth": "./src/auth.ts" to the export map; auth.ts has zero non-built-in dependencies, so electron-vite's externalize plugin no longer touches any of its imports.
• settings.ts / sidecar.ts (Electron main) are each updated with a single import-path change; a grep confirms no remaining @executor-js/local barrel imports exist in the main-process bundle.
• e2e/scripts/verify-linux-desktop-attach.ts is a new manual Linux/Xvfb harness (not in the vitest matrix) that proves the packaged app attaches to a supervised daemon end-to-end.

Confidence Score: 4/5

Safe to merge; the fix is minimal and targeted, the desktop main no longer pulls in any server-side dependencies.

The three production-code changes are each a single import-path swap, and auth.ts is demonstrably dependency-free (only Node built-ins). The one rough edge is in the manual e2e harness: the daemon-manifest polling loop exits silently on timeout, which would surface as a confusing SyntaxError rather than a clear diagnostic — but this is a test-script quality issue, not a regression in the shipped code.

e2e/scripts/verify-linux-desktop-attach.ts — the daemon-readiness polling loop could be more defensive on timeout.

Important Files Changed

Filename	Overview
apps/local/package.json	Adds a new ./auth subpath export pointing directly to src/auth.ts (pure Node built-ins only), cleanly severing the ws/Effect dependency chain for consumers that only need the bearer-token helpers.
apps/desktop/src/main/settings.ts	Single import swap: rotateLocalAuthToken now comes from @executor-js/local/auth instead of the full barrel. No @executor-js/local imports remain in the Electron main bundle after this change.
apps/desktop/src/main/sidecar.ts	Single import swap: loadOrMintLocalAuthToken now comes from @executor-js/local/auth. All remaining logic is unchanged; the full @executor-js/local barrel is still used by the separate sidecar binary (correct).
e2e/scripts/verify-linux-desktop-attach.ts	New manual Linux/Xvfb verification harness that proves the packaged app attaches to a supervised daemon. The daemon-manifest polling loop exits silently on timeout, surfacing later as a cryptic JSON.parse error rather than an explicit failure message.

Flowchart

%%{init: {'theme': 'neutral'}}%%
flowchart TD
    A[Electron main process] -->|was: import from @executor-js/local| B[Full barrel index.ts]
    B -->|re-exports| C[startServer imports ws]
    C -->|electron-vite externalizes ws| D[ws missing from asar - crash]

    A2[Electron main process] -->|now: import from @executor-js/local/auth| E[auth.ts subpath]
    E -->|only node:fs and node:crypto| F[no ws, no Effect, no crash]

    G[Sidecar binary - separate process] -->|still imports from @executor-js/local| B
    B -->|ws is a dependency of sidecar binary| H[ws bundled in sidecar binary]

Loading

_{Reviews (1): Last reviewed commit: "desktop: import the local bearer helpers..." | Re-trigger Greptile}

[greptile-apps]

Silent timeout before manifest parse

If the daemon never writes server.json within the 30-second poll window the loop exits silently, and the subsequent JSON.parse(before) on line 92 will throw a SyntaxError (empty string) rather than a clear diagnostic. The intent check on line 95 (if (beforeManifest.kind !== "cli-daemon") throw …) only helps if the file exists with wrong content. Adding a throw after the loop on timeout would surface the actual failure condition immediately.

[pkg-pr-new]

Open in StackBlitz

@executor-js/cli

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/cli@1018

@executor-js/config

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/config@1018

@executor-js/execution

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/execution@1018

@executor-js/sdk

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/sdk@1018

@executor-js/codemode-core

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/codemode-core@1018

@executor-js/runtime-quickjs

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/runtime-quickjs@1018

@executor-js/plugin-file-secrets

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-file-secrets@1018

@executor-js/plugin-graphql

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-graphql@1018

@executor-js/plugin-keychain

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-keychain@1018

@executor-js/plugin-mcp

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-mcp@1018

@executor-js/plugin-onepassword

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-onepassword@1018

@executor-js/plugin-openapi

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/@executor-js/plugin-openapi@1018

executor

npm i https://pkg.pr.new/executor@1018

commit: b1211f4