Linux

Linux Client #

Status: Draft. Phase: 1–3 (MVP). Linux is the first platform and the reference platform for the sync engine. Common client requirements are on the Clients page.

Distributions and filesystems #

  • LNX-1 (MVP, proposed): Fedora (the current release) is the primary, tested distribution. Other distributions are expected to work but are not tested in the MVP.
  • LNX-2 (MVP): Roots on ext4, btrfs, and xfs are supported.
  • LNX-3 (MVP, proposed): Roots on network filesystems (NFS, SMB) are allowed, but get rescan only: inotify does not report changes made by other machines. The client says so when the root is mounted.
  • LNX-4 (MVP, proposed): Works with SELinux in enforcing mode, without policy changes.

Agent #

  • LNX-5 (MVP): The background agent runs as a systemd user service, starting at login.
  • LNX-6 (MVP, proposed): Optional “keep running while logged out”, via systemd lingering, for always-on machines.

Change detection #

  • LNX-7 (MVP): inotify for live changes, plus periodic full rescans as a safety net (PERF-1).
  • LNX-8 (MVP, proposed): When the inotify watch limit (max_user_watches) is too low for a root, the client says so, explains the fix, and falls back to rescans. It never silently misses changes.

Keys and secrets #

  • LNX-9 (MVP, proposed): The device private key is protected by one of: the Secret Service (GNOME Keyring / KWallet), a TPM 2.0, or a passphrase-encrypted key file for headless machines.

Packaging #

  • LNX-10 (MVP, proposed): Distributed as an RPM for Fedora, plus a standalone binary tarball.
  • LNX-11 (Non-goal, proposed): Flatpak and Snap. Their sandboxes restrict filesystem access, which conflicts with “any folder can be a root”.

Desktop integration (Phase 4) #

  • LNX-12 (Phase 4): The tray app uses the StatusNotifierItem standard. On GNOME this needs the AppIndicator extension, which should be documented.
  • LNX-13 (Phase 4): Notifications use the freedesktop notification standard.

Open Questions #

  1. Other distributions: is Fedora-only testing right for the MVP, or does Debian/Ubuntu also matter early?
  2. Headless/server machines: should a machine without a desktop session (e.g. a Deevnet VM) be a supported device?
October 15, 2026