Installation

This guide will help you set up your development environment for building Orbis applications and plugins.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

Required Tools

Platform-Specific Requirements

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update
sudo apt install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev build-essential curl wget file libxdo-dev libssl-dev libayatana-appindicator3-dev librsvg2-dev

# Fedora
sudo dnf check-update
sudo dnf install webkit2gtk4.1-devel openssl-devel curl wget file libappindicator-gtk3-devel librsvg2-devel libxdo-devel
sudo dnf group install "c-development"

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -Syu
sudo pacman -S --needed webkit2gtk-4.1 base-devel curl wget file openssl appmenu-gtk-module libappindicator-gtk3 librsvg xdotool

# Install Xcode Command Line Tools
xcode-select --install

Install Rust

If you don’t have Rust installed:

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh
source $HOME/.cargo/env

Add the WASM target for plugin development:

rustup target add wasm32-unknown-unknown

Install Node.js and Bun

We recommend using Bun for faster package management:

# Install Bun
curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash

# Or use npm if preferred
npm install -g bun

Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/cyberpath-HQ/orbis.git
cd orbis

Install Dependencies

Backend Dependencies

Rust dependencies are managed via Cargo and automatically installed as soon as you build or check the project. There’s no need for a separate installation step.

Frontend Dependencies

Run the following to install dependencies for the frontend and plugin development:

# you should be in the project root directory
cd orbis
bun install

Documentation Dependencies (optional)

Run the following to install dependencies for the documentation website and local docs preview:

# you should be in the project root directory
cd docs
bun install

Verify Installation

We provide a comprehensive verification script that checks if your entire development environment is properly configured.

Run the verification script from the project root:

# Make sure you're in the project root directory
# Run the verification script
bash ./scripts/verify-setup.sh

Or use the one-liner from any directory (requires curl and bash):

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cyberpath-HQ/orbis/main/scripts/verify-setup.sh | bash

The script will provide a detailed report with color-coded output showing what’s installed, what’s missing, and actionable steps to complete your setup.

Development Setup

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root (or copy from .env.example) and configure as needed:

# Database configuration (optional, defaults to SQLite)
ORBIS_DATABASE_URL=sqlite://./orbis.db

# Logging
RUST_LOG=info,orbis=debug

# Plugin directory
ORBIS_PLUGINS_DIR=./plugins

# Server mode (standalone or client-server)
ORBIS_MODE=standalone

IDE Setup

VS Code (Recommended)

Install the recommended extensions:

• rust-analyzer - Rust language support
• Tauri - Tauri development tools
• ESLint - JavaScript/TypeScript linting

JetBrains IDEs

• Install the Rust plugin
• Enable TypeScript support

Next Steps

You’re all set! Continue to:

• Quickstart - Build your first plugin
• Project Structure - Understand the codebase

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

”cannot find crate for core”

This usually means the WASM target isn’t installed:

rustup target add wasm32-unknown-unknown

Webkit2gtk not found (Linux)

Install the GTK WebKit bindings:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev

Tauri build fails on macOS

Ensure Xcode Command Line Tools are installed:

xcode-select --install

For more help, check our GitHub Issues or join our Discord.