Development

Want to contribute or build DownKingo yourself? Here’s everything you need to get started.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

Go 1.21+ — Download Go
Bun — Fast JavaScript runtime (Install Bun)
Wails v2 — Desktop app framework

Installing Wails

go install github.com/wailsapp/wails/v2/cmd/wails@latest

Verify the installation:

wails doctor

Quick Start

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/down-kingo/downkingo.git
cd downkingo

2. Install Frontend Dependencies

cd frontend && bun install && cd ..

3. Run in Development Mode

wails dev

This will start the app in development mode with hot-reload enabled.

Project Structure

downkingo/
├── internal/              # Backend logic (Go)
│   ├── auth/              # OAuth2 Device Flow
│   ├── downloader/        # Queue manager and yt-dlp wrapper
│   ├── roadmap/           # "Build in Public" integration
│   └── storage/           # SQLite layer
├── frontend/              # UI (React + Tailwind)
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/    # React components
│   │   ├── pages/         # Page views
│   │   ├── hooks/         # Custom hooks
│   │   └── i18n/          # Translations
│   └── package.json
└── build/                 # Build resources

Building for Production

All Platforms

wails build

Platform-Specific

# Windows
wails build -platform windows/amd64

# macOS (Universal Binary)
wails build -platform darwin/universal

# Linux
wails build -platform linux/amd64

Development Tips

Hot Reload

Wails includes hot-reload by default in dev mode. Frontend changes reload instantly, and Go changes trigger a rebuild.

Debugging

Frontend: Use browser DevTools (F12 in the app window)
Backend: Use standard Go debugging tools or add log statements

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the root for local configuration:

GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
DOWNKINGO_DEV_MODE=true