app-build

name	app-build
description	Build the Meadow Electron app and launch it in test mode to verify it starts cleanly

App Build

Build the Meadow desktop app from source and launch the built app in test mode so you can verify it starts and runs correctly.

Important: The shell working directory persists between Bash tool calls, so relative cd commands cause doubled-path errors. As the very first Bash command, resolve the repo root and store it in a variable:

REPO_ROOT=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)

Then use $REPO_ROOT in all subsequent commands. Never use bare relative paths like cd app/electron_app.

Step 1: Check for a running Meadow app

The build launches a freshly-built Meadow app in test mode. If an existing Meadow app is already running, macOS's single-instance behavior kills the newly launched instance before it finishes starting, and the verification step fails with a confusing startup timeout.

pgrep -f "Meadow.app/Contents/MacOS/Meadow" || true

If this returns any PIDs, stop immediately and tell the user:

"app-build aborted: a Meadow app is already running. Please quit Meadow (cmd+Q) before running /app-build again."

Do not attempt to kill it yourself — the user may have unsaved state.

Step 2: Build and launch

cd "$REPO_ROOT/app/electron_app" && ./build-and-test.sh

This builds all components (rust binaries, backend, frontend, electron main), packages the app, mounts the result, and launches Meadow with --test-mode. The script waits for === STARTUP_COMPLETE === in the test log and then blocks so you can interact with the running app. Press Ctrl+C to stop — the script unmounts the volume and kills the launched process on exit.

Step 3: Summary

When the user stops the session, report:

• Whether backend, frontend, and main-window startup markers all appeared in the test log
• The built app location under app/electron_app/build/