Craftdesk

Craftdesk is a Linux-first desktop-like web IDE for managing projects, tasks, files, terminal sessions, and Git from a single local app.

The npm package name is craftdeskide. The installed CLI command is craftdesk.

Requirements

• Linux only
• Node.js >=22.12.0
• npm

Some systems may also need native build prerequisites during npm install -g craftdeskide because the package depends on node-pty:

• python3
• make
• g++

Install From npm

npm install -g craftdeskide

After the package is installed, prepare the local runtime:

craftdesk install

This command:

1. Checks required Linux tools such as bash and git
2. Installs missing Linux packages with apt, dnf, or pacman when possible
3. Prepares Craftdesk data and runtime directories under your home directory
4. Migrates older installs from ~/.local/share/craftdesk/runtime/data when possible

Start The App

craftdesk start

By default, Craftdesk runs on:

http://127.0.0.1:4000

You can choose a different port:

craftdesk start --port=4010

Stop Or Remove The App

Stop the running app:

craftdesk stop

Delete Craftdesk runtime data and local state:

craftdesk delete

This removes files under ~/.local/share/craftdesk. It does not uninstall the global npm package itself.

To remove the CLI package too:

npm uninstall -g craftdeskide

Runtime Paths

Craftdesk uses these paths:

• Package runtime: global npm install location
• Data: ~/.local/share/craftdesk/data
• Runtime files: ~/.local/share/craftdesk/runtime
• Logs: ~/.local/share/craftdesk/logs/server.log
• PID file: ~/.local/share/craftdesk/run/craftdesk.pid

Common Commands

craftdesk help
craftdesk install
craftdesk start
craftdesk stop
craftdesk delete

Troubleshooting

If npm install -g craftdeskide fails while building node-pty, install native build tools first.

Ubuntu or Debian:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y python3 make g++

If craftdesk install reports missing Linux tools, let it install them or install them manually and retry.

If the server exits immediately after craftdesk start, check:

~/.local/share/craftdesk/logs/server.log