theme-factory

name	theme-factory
description	Create new AiderDesk UI themes by defining SCSS color variables, registering theme types, and adding i18n display names. Use when adding a theme, creating a color scheme, customizing appearance, or implementing dark mode and light mode variants.

Theme Factory

Use this skill when you need to add a new theme to AiderDesk.

AiderDesk themes are implemented as SCSS files that define a .theme-<name> class with a full set of CSS custom properties (variables). The UI uses Tailwind utilities mapped to these CSS variables.

Where themes live

• Theme files: src/renderer/src/themes/theme-<name>.scss
• Theme aggregator (imports all themes): src/renderer/src/themes/themes.scss
• Theme type registry: packages/common/src/types/common.ts (THEMES)
• Theme selector UI: src/renderer/src/components/settings/GeneralSettings.tsx
• Theme application: src/renderer/src/App.tsx (applies theme-<name> class to document.body)
• Theme display names (i18n):
  • packages/common/src/locales/en.json (themeOptions.<name>)
  • packages/common/src/locales/zh.json (themeOptions.<name>)

Definition format

Each theme is a class:

• Class name: .theme-<name>
• Contents: a complete set of --color-* variables.

Best workflow: copy an existing theme (e.g. theme-dark.scss) and adjust values.

Checklist: add a new theme

1) Choose a theme name

Pick a kebab-case name, e.g. sunset, nord, paper.

You will reference it consistently in:

• CSS class: .theme-<name>
• filename: theme-<name>.scss
• THEMES array value: '<name>'
• i18n key: themeOptions.<name>

2) Create the theme SCSS file

Create:

• src/renderer/src/themes/theme-<name>.scss

Start by copying a similar theme (dark -> dark-ish, light -> light-ish), then update the hex colors.

Minimum requirement: define all variables expected by the app.

Practical way to ensure completeness:

• Compare with src/renderer/src/themes/theme-dark.scss (or another full theme)
• Keep variable names identical; only change values.

3) Register the theme in the theme aggregator

Edit:

• src/renderer/src/themes/themes.scss

Add:

@use 'theme-<name>.scss';

If the file is not imported here, it won’t be included in the built CSS.

4) Register the theme in TypeScript types

Edit:

• packages/common/src/types/common.ts

Add '<name>' to the exported THEMES array.

This makes the theme selectable and type-safe.

5) Add i18n display names

Edit:

• packages/common/src/locales/en.json
• packages/common/src/locales/zh.json

Add entries under themeOptions:

{
  "themeOptions": {
    "<name>": "Your Theme Name"
  }
}

6) Verify in the UI

• Open Settings → General → Theme
• Confirm the new theme appears in the dropdown
• Switch to it and confirm the whole UI updates (no restart)

7) Quality checks

• Contrast: confirm text is readable on all backgrounds (aim for WCAG AA)
• Verify key surfaces:
  • main background panels
  • inputs
  • buttons
  • borders/dividers
  • diff viewer colors
  • code blocks
  • muted/secondary text
• Check both states:
  • normal
  • hover/active

Color Variable Reference

Each variable maps from --color-<group>-<variant> in SCSS to a Tailwind utility like bg-<group>-<variant>, text-<group>-<variant>, or border-<group>-<variant>. The mapping is defined in tailwind.config.js.

Background layer system (--color-bg-*)

The app uses a 5-tier surface hierarchy from darkest to lightest (for dark themes; reversed for light):

Variable	Usage	Where visible
bg-primary	Deepest background — app body, outer containers	body, outer page wrapper, main content areas, inline edit panels
bg-primary-light	Primary raised surface — task bars, sidebar items, file viewers, content panels	TaskBar, TaskItem (idle), file viewer scrollable area, top-bar gradient end
bg-primary-light-strong	Semi-transparent overlay — selected items, diff/file headers, notifications, tooltip arrows, reflected messages	TaskItem (selected), PierreDiffViewer header, toast notification bg
bg-secondary	Card/panel surface — input fields, dialog content, chips, selected/hovered task items	Model dialog, chip items, settings cards, hover on menu items
bg-secondary-light	Elevated input container — search/dropdown wrappers, dropdown menus, merge button popover	Tag input containers, settings dropdown focus wrappers
bg-secondary-light-strongest	Opaque elevated surface — dialogs (BaseDialog), thinking blocks, inactive tab hover	BaseDialog bg, ThinkingAnswerBlock, inactive project tab hover
bg-tertiary	Hover/highlight surface — icon button hover, menu item hover, scrollbar thumb, diff gutter omit, CodeMirror autocomplete border	All icon button hovers, menu item hovers, scrollbar thumbs
bg-tertiary-emphasis	Accent-tinted hover — uses the theme's accent color at ~25% opacity for tinted hover states	Header icon button hover, delete button hover backgrounds, task badges
bg-tertiary-strong	Stronger tinted hover — accent color at ~50% opacity	Active project tab hover
bg-fourth	Separator / small control surface — vertical dividers in TaskBar, checkbox checked state, close button bg, tab hover for active tab	TaskBar dividers, Checkbox checked bg, BaseDialog close button

Diff viewer backgrounds (--color-bg-diff-viewer-*)

Variable	Usage
diff-viewer-old-primary	Deleted line background (used in DiffViewer.scss, CompactDiffViewer)
diff-viewer-old-secondary	Deleted line character-level edit highlight
diff-viewer-new-primary	Inserted line background
diff-viewer-new-secondary	Inserted line character-level edit highlight

Text hierarchy (--color-text-*)

Variable	Usage	Visible on
text-primary	Primary text — labels, headings, button text, body text	Most text throughout the app
text-secondary	Secondary text — icons in header, model subtitles, status text	Header icons (notebook, chart, settings), model provider text
text-tertiary	Tertiary text — hover state for muted items, diff modified markers, toolbar button hover	Hover state text, diff line numbers, expanded toolbar buttons
text-muted-light	Dimmed text — reflected messages, placeholder labels	ReflectedMessageBlock, disabled-state labels
text-muted	Muted text — description paragraphs, log viewer text, empty states	Settings descriptions, log output, chip empty labels
text-muted-dark	Dark muted — input placeholders, section dividers	PromptField placeholder, TaskSectionHeader
text-dark	Darkest text — very deep background text, decorative	Rarely used, deepest layer text

Border hierarchy (--color-border-*)

Variable	Usage	Visible on
border-dark	Subtlest border — outer container edges, sticky headers	Home page outer border, UpdatedFilesDiffModal header, bash blocks
border-dark-light	Light subtle border — code blocks, sidebar section separators, task item borders	CodeBlock border, TaskSectionHeader top border, TaskItem border
border-dark-light-strong	Semi-transparent subtle border — reflected messages, code block <hr>	ReflectedMessageBlock, CodeBlock horizontal rules
border-default-dark	Medium border — prompt input borders (unfocused), diff comment panel	PromptField unfocused border
border-default	Standard border — inputs, cards, dividers, containers (most common)	Settings inputs, Home container, inline edit panels, TaskItem
border-accent	Accent border — focused inputs, checked checkboxes/radios, diff headers, badge borders	PromptField focus, Checkbox checked, PierreDiffViewer header
border-light	Lightest border — selected/focused inputs, active tab indicators	Settings active option border, input focus state

Accent colors (--color-accent-*)

Variable	Usage
accent-primary	Brand accent — AI sparkle icon, welcome message bullets, commit badges, voice recording indicator
accent-secondary	Secondary accent — selected answer highlights, decorative accents
accent-light	Highlight accent — token usage bar fill, hover text for commit links

Status colors (--color-success-*, --color-warning-*, --color-error-*, --color-info-*)

Each has up to 7 variants with consistent suffix semantics:

• (base) — solid color for icons, text, badges
• -light — lighter shade for hover states
• -lighter / -lightest — progressively lighter for gradient effects (error, info only)
• -subtle — ~10% opacity for very faint backgrounds
• -muted — ~20% opacity for muted backgrounds
• -emphasis — ~30% opacity for medium-strength backgrounds
• -strong — ~50% opacity for strong backgrounds (error only)
• -dark — darker variant for darkened states (error only)
• -text — text color to use on top of the base color (warning, buttons)

Button colors (--color-button-*)

Three button palettes (primary, secondary, danger) each with 5 variants. See Button.tsx for the full mapping:

Variant	Usage in contained	Usage in text	Usage in outline
(base)	Background	—	Border color
-light	Hover background	—	—
-subtle	—	Hover background	Hover background
-emphasis	Hover background (danger)	—	—
-text	Text color	Text color	Text color

The tertiary button color uses bg-primary/bg-secondary + text-primary instead of dedicated button tokens.

Disabled buttons use: bg-bg-tertiary-strong background + text-text-muted text.

Input colors (--color-input-*)

Currently not directly used in TSX components — inputs use bg-bg-secondary + border-border-default + text-text-primary instead. These are defined for potential future use or custom components.

Agent colors (--color-agent-*)

Semantic colors for tool/badge indicators in the AgentSelector and related UI:

• agent-auto-approve — auto-approve toggle indicator
• agent-aider-tools — aider tools icon
• agent-power-tools — power tools icon
• agent-todo-tools — todo tool badge
• agent-tasks-tools — tasks tool badge
• agent-memory-tools — memory tool badge
• agent-skills-tools — skills tool badge
• agent-subagents-tools — subagents tool badge
• agent-context-files — context file indicator
• agent-repo-map — repo map indicator
• agent-ai-request — AI request indicator
• agent-sub-agent — sub-agent indicator

Dark theme registration

Dark themes (those that need a dark code editor) must also be added to the isCodeEditorDarkTheme array in packages/common/src/types/common.ts.

Color opacity suffix convention

Many variables include an inline hex alpha suffix (e.g. #D4A05440 = accent at ~25% opacity). The convention is:

• 1a ≈ 10% — subtle
• 19 ≈ 10% — subtle (alternate)
• 26 ≈ 15% — muted
• 33 ≈ 20% — muted
• 4c ≈ 30% — emphasis
• 4d ≈ 30% — emphasis (alternate)
• 50 ≈ 31% — selection
• 60 ≈ 38% — strong
• 7f ≈ 50% — strong (alternate)
• 80 ≈ 50% — semi-transparent
• f2 ≈ 95% — almost opaque

Global color applications (non-Tailwind)

Some components use CSS variables directly via var(--color-*) instead of Tailwind utilities:

• main.css: body background/text, CodeMirror editor styling, resize handle
• DiffViewer.scss / PierreDiffViewer.scss: diff line backgrounds, gutters
• notifications.ts: toast background/text styling
• PromptField.tsx: text selection color

Troubleshooting

• Theme not showing up:

  • missing @use import in src/renderer/src/themes/themes.scss
  • missing entry in THEMES array in packages/common/src/types/common.ts
  • typo mismatch between .theme-<name> and the <name> stored in settings

• Some UI areas look "unstyled":

  • you likely missed one or more --color-* variables; compare against a known-good theme and fill in the missing ones.

• Input fields don't match theme:

  • Components use bg-bg-secondary + border-border-default for inputs, not the input-* tokens. Focus on the bg/border/text hierarchies instead.