Native installer builder roadmap

Why not web tech for installers

Installers need small binaries, elevated trust boundaries, and predictable Linux targets. Chromium/WebView2 stacks add hundreds of megabytes and fragile GTK/WebKit dependencies. DevCentr targets a native D stack: dlangui + vello-d for the builder UI, and a minimal stub runtime for end users.

Split architecture

flowchart TB
  subgraph builder [Installer Builder - DlangUI + Vello]
    UI[Visual designer]
    Spec[Universal product spec]
  end
  subgraph output [Published artifacts]
    MSI[MSI via msidb-d]
    MSIX[MSIX ZIP+XML]
    Stub[Tiny native bootstrap]
  end
  UI --> Spec
  Spec --> MSI
  Spec --> MSIX
  Spec --> Stub

  • Builder: dlang-supplemental/dlangui with vello-windows and dlangui-tokens (solid-ui–aligned semantics from devcentr.org).

  • Packaging: msi-generator — JSON spec, cross-platform MSIX today; MSI tables in progress.

  • MSIX reference: Microsoft’s packaging tooling (Open Packaging Conventions, manifest, capabilities, sparse packages). Map those concepts into the shared spec, not into a WiX-only path.

MSIX / MSI feature parity (target)

| Capability | MSIX / modern packaging | msi-generator direction | |===|===|=== | Files & folders | AppxManifest + payload | rootFolder, components | | Registry | Manifest extensions / VFS | registryEntries in spec | | Shortcuts | App Installer / manifest | planned | | Signing | SignTool / CI | see code-signing doc | | Updates | .msix / .msixbundle | bundle + version rules | | Linux | N/A (use Flatpak/AppImage separately) | future non-MSI channel |

UI groundwork (in progress)

  • vello-d — GPU vector backdrop on Windows (dlangui configuration vello-windows).

  • dlangui-tokens — semantic colors from solid-ui / devcentr.org; system light/dark sync planned.

  • FLUIDSYNC_PLAN.adoc in dlangui — threaded resize and display-list rendering.

Publishing discipline

Path/git dependencies in CI until vello-d and dlangui-tokens are on the DUB registry. Tag and dub publish when APIs stabilize.