Electron Skill

🤖 AI Integration Guide: Send this page link to AI for automatic integration guidance

Quick Information

• Application Type: Electron
• Skill Version: 2.0.0
• Integration Difficulty: ⭐⭐ (Easy)
• Estimated Time: 15-30 minutes

📖 Integration Scenarios

Choose the appropriate integration method based on your project type:

Scenario	Suitable For	Features	Estimated Time
Scenario 1	Non-open source, Private projects	Manual build & upload, Data reporting	15 minutes
Scenario 2	Open source projects	GitHub Actions automated build & release	30 minutes

---

Scenario 1: Non-Open Source Project Integration

Suitable for private projects or projects that don't require GitHub Actions automated deployment.

1. Install Dependencies

npm install electron-updater

2. Create dev-update.yml

Create dev-update.yml in your project root:

provider: generic
updaterCacheDirName: your-app-updater

3. Add Main Process Code

import { autoUpdater } from 'electron-updater';
import { app } from 'electron';

async function checkForUpdates() {
  const FeedURL = `https://api.upgrade.toolsetlink.com/v1/electron/upgrade?electronKey=YOUR_ELECTRON_KEY&versionName=${app.getVersion()}&appointVersionName=&devModelKey=&devKey=&platform=${process.platform}&arch=${process.arch}`;
  
  autoUpdater.setFeedURL({
    url: FeedURL,
    provider: 'generic',
  });
  
  autoUpdater.requestHeaders = {
    'X-AccessKey': 'YOUR_ACCESS_KEY',
  };
  
  const result = await autoUpdater.checkForUpdates();
  return result;
}

async function downloadUpdate() {
  const result = await checkForUpdates();
  if (result?.updateInfo) {
    autoUpdater.setFeedURL({
      url: result.updateInfo.path,
      provider: 'generic',
    });
    await autoUpdater.downloadUpdate();
  }
}

⚠️ Note: Replace YOUR_ELECTRON_KEY and YOUR_ACCESS_KEY with your actual keys

4. Data Reporting Integration

During the upgrade process, call the data reporting API to record upgrade status for data statistics and analysis.

Reporting Utility Function

import crypto from 'crypto';

function generateSignature(timestamp: string, nonce: string, body: string, accessSecret: string): string {
  const signStr = `timestamp=${timestamp}&nonce=${nonce}&body=${body}&accessSecret=${accessSecret}`;
  return crypto.createHash('md5').update(signStr).digest('hex');
}

function generateNonce(length: number = 16): string {
  return crypto.randomBytes(Math.ceil(length / 2)).toString('hex').slice(0, length);
}

async function reportEvent(
  eventType: string,
  appKey: string,
  eventData: Record<string, any>,
  accessKey: string,
  accessSecret: string
): Promise<void> {
  const timestamp = new Date().toISOString();
  const nonce = generateNonce();
  const body = JSON.stringify({
    eventType,
    timestamp,
    appKey,
    eventData,
  });
  
  const signature = generateSignature(timestamp, nonce, body, accessSecret);
  
  try {
    const response = await fetch('https://api.upgrade.toolsetlink.com/v1/app/report', {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
        'X-Timestamp': timestamp,
        'X-Nonce': nonce,
        'X-AccessKey': accessKey,
        'X-Signature': signature,
      },
      body,
    });
    
    const result = await response.json();
    console.log('Report result:', result);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Report failed:', error);
  }
}

Download Event Reporting

function reportDownload(downloadVersionCode: number, code: number) {
  reportEvent(
    'app_upgrade_download',
    'YOUR_ELECTRON_KEY',
    {
      versionCode: parseInt(app.getVersion().split('.').join('')),
      downloadVersionCode,
      code,
      target: process.platform,
      arch: process.arch,
    },
    'YOUR_ACCESS_KEY',
    'YOUR_ACCESS_SECRET'
  );
}

Upgrade Complete Event Reporting

function reportUpgrade(upgradeVersionCode: number, code: number) {
  reportEvent(
    'app_upgrade_upgrade',
    'YOUR_ELECTRON_KEY',
    {
      versionCode: parseInt(app.getVersion().split('.').join('')),
      upgradeVersionCode,
      code,
      target: process.platform,
      arch: process.arch,
    },
    'YOUR_ACCESS_KEY',
    'YOUR_ACCESS_SECRET'
  );
}

Complete Upgrade Flow Example

import { autoUpdater } from 'electron-updater';
import { app, BrowserWindow } from 'electron';

let upgradeVersionCode = 0;

autoUpdater.on('download-progress', (progressObj) => {
  console.log(`Download progress: ${progressObj.percent}%`);
});

autoUpdater.on('update-downloaded', (info) => {
  console.log('Download complete:', info.version);
  upgradeVersionCode = parseInt(info.version.split('.').join(''));
  
  reportDownload(upgradeVersionCode, 0);
  
  const win = BrowserWindow.getFocusedWindow();
  if (win) {
    win.webContents.send('update-downloaded', info);
  }
});

autoUpdater.on('error', (error) => {
  console.error('Update error:', error);
  
  if (upgradeVersionCode > 0) {
    reportDownload(upgradeVersionCode, 1);
  }
});

function reportAppStart() {
  reportEvent(
    'app_start',
    'YOUR_ELECTRON_KEY',
    {
      versionCode: parseInt(app.getVersion().split('.').join('')),
      launchTime: new Date().toISOString(),
      target: process.platform,
      arch: process.arch,
    },
    'YOUR_ACCESS_KEY',
    'YOUR_ACCESS_SECRET'
  );
}

app.whenReady().then(() => {
  reportAppStart();
});

Status Code Reference

Download event code:

Status Code	Description
0	Download successful
1	Download failed (general)
1001	HTTP error
1002	Insufficient space
1003	File operation error
1004	MD5 verification failed

Upgrade event code:

Status Code	Description
0	Upgrade successful
1	Upgrade failed

📖 Detailed API Documentation: Event Reporting API

5. Manual Build and Upload

Build Application

npm run build

Generated Files

Platform	Files
macOS	.dmg, .zip, latest-mac.yml
Windows	.exe, .msi, latest.yml
Linux	.AppImage, .deb, latest-linux.yml

Upload to UpgradeLink

1. Log in to UpgradeLink dashboard
2. Go to Application Management page
3. Create a new version, upload the corresponding installation package and yml files
4. Configure upgrade strategy

---

Scenario 2: Open Source Project Integration

Suitable for open source projects that require GitHub Actions automated build, release, and update.

1. Complete Basic Integration

First complete all steps (1-4) in Scenario 1.

2. Configure GitHub Secrets

Add the following encrypted environment variables in your GitHub repository's Settings > Security > Secrets and variables > Actions:

Secret Name	Description	How to Get
UPGRADE_LINK_ACCESS_KEY	UpgradeLink access key	UpgradeLink dashboard > Key Management
UPGRADE_LINK_ELECTRON_KEY	Electron application unique identifier	UpgradeLink dashboard > Application Info

3. Configure GitHub Actions Workflow

Create .github/workflows/publish.yml in your project root:

name: 'publish'

on:
  push:
    branches:
      - main
    tags:
      - '*.*.*'

jobs:
  electron-build:
    outputs:
      appVersion: ${{ steps.extract-version.outputs.appVersion }}
    permissions:
      contents: write
    strategy:
      fail-fast: false
      matrix:
        include:
          - platform: ubuntu-22.04
            target: x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu
            artifact-name: ubuntu-x86_64
            arch-suffix: x64
            build-command: "yarn electron-builder --linux --x64 --publish always --config.publish.channel=latest-linux"

          - platform: ubuntu-22.04
            target: aarch64-unknown-linux-gnu
            artifact-name: ubuntu-aarch64
            arch-suffix: arm64
            build-command: "yarn electron-builder --linux --arm64 --publish always --config.publish.channel=latest-linux"

          - platform: macos-latest
            target: aarch64-apple-darwin
            artifact-name: macos-arm64
            arch-suffix: arm64
            build-command: "yarn electron-builder --mac --arm64 --publish always --config.publish.channel=latest-mac"

          - platform: macos-latest
            target: x86_64-apple-darwin
            artifact-name: macos-x64
            arch-suffix: x64
            build-command: "yarn electron-builder --mac --x64 --publish always --config.publish.channel=latest-mac"

          - platform: windows-latest
            target: x86_64-pc-windows-msvc
            artifact-name: windows-x64
            arch-suffix: x64
            build-command: "yarn electron-builder --win --x64 --publish always --config.publish.channel=latest-win"

    runs-on: ${{ matrix.platform }}
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: setup node
        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: lts/*
          cache: 'yarn'

      - name: Install dependencies
        run: yarn install

      - name: Build Electron App
        run: ${{ matrix.build-command }}
        env:
          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

      - name: Extract version
        id: extract-version
        run: |
          if [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
            VERSION=${{ github.ref_name }}
          else
            VERSION=$(node -p "require('./package.json').version")
          fi
          echo "appVersion=$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
          echo "Extracted version: $VERSION"
        shell: bash

      - name: Upload artifacts
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4.0.0
        with:
          name: ${{ matrix.artifact-name }}
          path: dist/*
          if-no-files-found: error

  electron-release:
    needs: electron-build
    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
    permissions:
      contents: write
    steps:
      - name: Download all artifacts
        uses: actions/download-artifact@v4
        with:
          path: artifacts
          merge-multiple: false

      - name: Prepare release files
        run: |
          mkdir -p release-files
          find artifacts -type f -exec cp {} release-files/ \;
          echo "Files to release:"
          ls -l release-files

      - name: Create GitHub Release
        uses: softprops/action-gh-release@v1
        with:
          tag_name: ${{ needs.electron-build.outputs.appVersion }}
          name: Release ${{ needs.electron-build.outputs.appVersion }}
          files: release-files/*
          draft: false
          prerelease: false
        env:
          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}

  upgradeLink-upload:
    needs: [electron-build, electron-release]
    permissions:
      contents: write
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Send a request to UpgradeLink
        uses: toolsetlink/upgradelink-action-electron@v1.0.1
        with:
          source-url: 'https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/releases/download/${{ needs.electron-build.outputs.appVersion }}'
          access-key: ${{ secrets.UPGRADE_LINK_ACCESS_KEY }}
          electron-key: ${{ secrets.UPGRADE_LINK_ELECTRON_KEY }}
          github-token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
          version: ${{ needs.electron-build.outputs.appVersion }}
          prompt-upgrade-content: 'New version available, please upgrade'

4. Workflow Details

electron-build Job

Function: Cross-platform build of Electron application

Step	Description
Checkout code	actions/checkout@v4
Setup Node.js	Set Node.js LTS version
Install dependencies	yarn install
Build application	Build using electron-builder
Extract version	Extract from tag or package.json
Upload artifacts	Upload build artifacts for later use

Multi-platform Build Strategy:

Platform	Runner	Architecture
Linux (x64)	ubuntu-22.04	x64
Linux (ARM)	ubuntu-22.04	arm64
macOS (M1+)	macos-latest	arm64
macOS (Intel)	macos-latest	x64
Windows	windows-latest	x64

electron-release Job

Function: Create GitHub Release and upload installation packages

Step	Description
Download artifacts	Download all build artifacts from electron-build
Prepare files	Organize release files
Create Release	Create release using softprops/action-gh-release

upgradeLink-upload Job

Function: Sync update information to UpgradeLink platform

Step	Description
Wait for build	Depends on electron-build and electron-release completion
Get version	Retrieve from electron-build output
Upload info	Sync using upgradelink-action-electron

UpgradeLink Action Parameters:

Parameter	Description
source-url	GitHub Releases address
access-key	UpgradeLink access key
electron-key	Electron application unique identifier
github-token	GitHub Token
version	Application version number
prompt-upgrade-content	Upgrade prompt content

5. UpgradeLink Platform Configuration

Configure the GitHub repository address in UpgradeLink dashboard:

1. Log in to UpgradeLink dashboard
2. Go to Application Management > Electron Application Details
3. Fill in the repository address in the "GitHub Repository Address" field, e.g.: https://github.com/username/repo-name
4. Save configuration

6. Automated Process Description

When code is pushed to the main branch, the automated process is as follows:

Code Push
    │
    ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│         electron-build Job               │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────┐    │
│  │ Parallel build for 5 platforms   │    │
│  │ - Linux (x64)                   │    │
│  │ - Linux (ARM)                   │    │
│  │ - macOS (M1)                    │    │
│  │ - macOS (Intel)                 │    │
│  │ - Windows                       │    │
│  └─────────────────────────────────┘    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│        electron-release Job              │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────┐    │
│  │ Create GitHub Release            │    │
│  │ Upload packages & yml files      │    │
│  └─────────────────────────────────┘    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│       upgradeLink-upload Job             │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────┐    │
│  │ Read GitHub Releases             │    │
│  │ Call UpgradeLink API             │    │
│  │ Auto-create version & strategy   │    │
│  └─────────────────────────────────┘    │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
    │
    ▼
Users receive update notification

---

🤖 AI Integration

Send this page link to AI:

Please help me integrate Electron application upgrade, here's the Skill link:
https://www.toolsetlink.com/en/upgrade/skill/electron

AI will automatically:

1. Identify the application type as Electron
2. Determine project type (open source/non-open source)
3. Retrieve configuration information and code examples
4. Guide you to replace placeholders
5. Verify configuration correctness
6. Complete integration testing

---

📋 Complete Example

View complete example project: electron-demo

---

❓ FAQ

Q: How to get Electron Key?

A: Log in to UpgradeLink dashboard, create an Electron application to obtain it.

Q: How to get Access Key and Access Secret?

A: Log in to UpgradeLink dashboard, obtain them from the key management page.

Q: What if update fails?

A: Check network connection and configuration, or contact AI for help.

Q: Will data reporting failure affect the upgrade process?

A: No. Data reporting is an asynchronous operation, failure will not affect the normal upgrade process. It is recommended to retry during off-peak hours.

Q: macOS application signing issues?

A: macOS applications must be signed for auto-update to work. Please refer to Electron Builder Documentation.

Q: What if GitHub Actions build fails?

A:

1. Check GitHub Actions logs for specific error information
2. Confirm all dependencies are correctly installed
3. Ensure Node.js version is compatible
4. Check if GitHub Secrets are configured correctly

---

📚 Reference Resources

• Electron Builder Documentation
• electron-updater Documentation
• UpgradeLink Electron Integration Example
• UpgradeLink GitHub Actions Integration Example
• Event Reporting API Documentation