Tauri: A New Player in the Desktop Application Framework Market

What is Tauri?

Tauri is a relatively new framework that allows you to create cross-platform applications using web technologies and the Rust programming language. It’s built on Rust, making it secure and performant by design. Tauri is compatible with any front-end framework and can create executable applications for all major desktop platforms.

How Tauri Works

Each Tauri app contains a core process that serves as the application’s entry point. This core process launches subprocesses that use WebView libraries provided by the operating system, making it possible to build Tauri apps with web technologies.

fn main() {
    // Create a new Tauri app
    let app = tauri::Builder::default()
       .invoke_handler(tauri::generate_handler![my_handler])
       .build()
       .expect("Failed to build Tauri app");

    // Run the app
    app.run(|_app_handle, event| {
        // Handle events
    });
}

Unlike Electron, which packages and renders applications using the Chromium engine, Tauri uses the operating system’s WebView libraries. This approach reduces the size and performance of the bundled app.

Tauri Pros

• Lighter than Electron: Tauri apps are much smaller than Electron apps due to their webview approach.
• Better performance: Tauri apps outperform Electron apps in terms of performance, launch time, and memory consumption.
• Self-updater: Tauri includes a self-updater feature that can be easily integrated into your application.
• Cross-platform: Tauri can generate executables for all major desktop operating systems.

Tauri Drawbacks

• Browser compatibility: You’ll need to worry about browser compatibility issues, such as web APIs working differently across operating systems.
• Resources and ecosystem: Tauri’s resources and ecosystem are still developing and may not be as extensive as Electron’s.
• Rust knowledge: While not necessary for most tasks, you may need to learn Rust for more advanced features.

Creating Tauri Apps

To get started with Tauri, you’ll need to install some prerequisite dependencies, including:

• Microsoft Visual Studio C++ build tools and WebView 2 on Windows
• CLang and Xcode development dependencies on macOS
• Rust regardless of OS

After installing these dependencies, you can create a new Tauri app using the command line:

cargo new --bin my_app
cd my_app
cargo add tauri
cargo tauri init

Migrating from Electron

Migrating from Electron to Tauri should be relatively straightforward, especially when it comes to basic user interfaces. However, you may encounter complications when working with desktop APIs, windows, and menus.

Learn more about migrating from Electron to Tauri