Vector Watcher

Backend Packaging

The Python backend is packaged using PyInstaller.

The packaged backend is used by Tauri as an external sidecar.

Why --onedir Is Used

The backend uses PyInstaller’s --onedir mode.

Example output:

dist/

└── vector-watcher-backend/

    ├── vector-watcher-backend

    └── _internal/

        ├── libpython3.12.dylib
        ├── Python libraries
        ├── native dependencies
        └── other runtime files

The executable depends on runtime libraries inside _internal.

A sidecar executable cannot always be copied by itself when using PyInstaller --onedir.

For example:

_internal/libpython3.12.dylib

Copying only:

vector-watcher-backend

without the associated runtime files can produce errors such as:

Failed to load Python shared library

libpython3.12.dylib

Therefore, the complete PyInstaller runtime must be preserved when packaging the application.

Building the Backend

From the project root:

cd backend
./build.sh

The build script should:

Correct multi-line command:


poetry run pyinstaller \
  --onedir \
  --name "$BACKEND_NAME" \
  --clean \
  server.py

Correct single-line command:

poetry run pyinstaller --onedir --name "$BACKEND_NAME" --clean server.py

This site is open source. Improve this page.