Tauri Build for Windows and AUR

Building Tauri Apps for Windows and Publishing to AUR

Tauri apps on Windows use WebView2, based on Chromium from Microsoft Edge. This ensures consistent interface rendering without embedding a full browser, unlike Electron. WebView2 is installed with the system or embedded in the app (Evergreen/Fixed modes).

On Linux, WebKitGTK is used, with behavior depending on the version in the distribution. The lack of centralized updates leads to display differences between systems. Windows offers a more predictable environment: stable WebView2 minimizes variables during testing.

Supported formats on Windows:

• .exe — portable or installer;
• .msi — for enterprise deployment;
• .msix — integration with Windows Store.

Setting Up the Environment on Windows 11

Clone the repository:

git clone <repo_name>

Install Node.js (v25.8.1 tested), npm (v11.11.0). Install Rust (rustc 1.94.0, cargo 1.94.0) via the official installer.

Installing tauri-cli requires C++ build tools:

cargo install tauri-cli

Compilation error for proc-macro2 indicates missing MSVC toolchain. Install via Visual Studio Installer (C++ build tools) or MinGW. On Linux, equivalents (build-essential) are pre-installed.

Navigate to client/ and run:

cd client/ && npm install

Building the Executable File

In the desktop/ directory, run:

cd desktop/ && cargo tauri build

The build completes in ~14 minutes, generating kawai-focus.exe (11 MB). The file is portable and does not require installation. The first launch initializes the database.

Testing:

• Windows 11: launches without errors;
• Windows 10: compatibility confirmed (Edge/WebView2 present).

Size is smaller than AppImage due to external dependencies.

Publishing PKGBUILD to AUR

AUR is a community repository for Arch Linux for PKGBUILD scripts. It allows installing packages via yay with a single command.

Registering an Account

Register at aur.archlinux.org/register. Key fields:

• Username — login;
• PGP Key Fingerprint — key fingerprint for signing packages (obtain on Arch: gpg --list-secret-keys --keyid-format LONG).

Signing ensures trust: packages are verified for authenticity.

Creating and Uploading a Package

• Prepare PKGBUILD from the previous deb package build;
• Upload to AUR via the web interface;
• The community will review and approve.

Users install with: yay -S kawai-focus.

Key Takeaways

• WebView2 on Windows ensures predictability, WebKitGTK on Linux depends on the distribution;
• Installing C++ build tools is essential for Rust/Tauri on Windows;
• .exe from Tauri weighs 11 MB, portable for Win10/11;
• AUR simplifies distribution for Arch: PKGBUILD + yay;
• Test cross-versions: Win10/11 work identically.

— Editorial Team