SoftwareCenter

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A lightweight, cross-platform desktop organizer for managing software shortcuts with tab-based categorization.

Note

LLM / AI Integration & Machine-Readable Index: SoftwareCenter provides structured machine-readable metadata in llms.txt and supports profile migrations via versioned JSON (softwarecenter-profile-v1.json).

Quick Navigation

• Quick Reference
• Features
• System Architecture
• Lifecycle Sequence Flow
• Core Capabilities & Safety Invariants
• Sibling Ecosystem & Sister Products
• Discovery Context
• Requirements
• Installation
• Run
• Usage
• Build Executable
• Quality Checks
• Headless Launcher Catalog Care
• Exchange Format
• Sister-product boundary
• Windows Store Assets
• Tech Stack
• Security Policy
• License
• Liability

Quick Reference

Attribute	Details
Tech Stack	Python 3.10+ / PySide6 (Qt) / QSettings
License	MIT (PySide6 dynamically linked under LGPLv3)
Exchange Format	softwarecenter-profile-v1.json (see EXPORTFORMAT.md)
Last Checked	2026-09-09 (local: 196 tests, platform smokes, compileall, Ruff, dependency audit, file manager context menu integration; WACK remains dry-run only)

Features

• Tab Organization - Group programs into renamable, movable tabs
• Drag & Drop - Add files via drag and drop
• Two View Modes - Tiles (large icons) and list
• Auto Save - Tabs, contents, and window position are persisted
• Context Menu - Right-click to open or remove
• Cross-Platform - Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Native Icons - Automatic display of system application icons
• Windows Shortcut Resolution - Dropped .lnk files pointing to .exe or folder targets are stored as the original target
• macOS App Bundles - Drag and drop .app applications directly into the organizer
• Linux Desktop Launchers - .desktop entries show their app name and launch via their desktop command
• Profile Export/Import - Versioned softwarecenter-profile-v1.json format for migrations and backups
• Multi-Selection - Delete multiple entries at once
• Offline-First - No telemetry, no accounts, no cloud connection

System Architecture

graph TD
    A["User / Drag & Drop Input"] --> B["PySide6 Application Window (SoftwareCenter.py)"]
    B --> C["Tab & Board Manager"]
    B --> D["Tiles & List Views"]
    
    C --> E["Platform Resolvers"]
    E --> E1["Windows (.lnk / .exe / Folders)"]
    E --> E2["macOS (.app Bundles)"]
    E --> E3["Linux (.desktop Launchers)"]
    
    C --> F["State Persistence (QSettings / Registry)"]
    C --> G["JSON Profile Importer/Exporter (softwarecenter-profile-v1.json)"]
    
    B --> H["Windows Store & Build Pipeline"]
    H --> H1["PyInstaller EXE Build"]
    H --> H2["WACK Dry-Run / MSIX Packaging"]
    H --> H3["Reproducible Store Screenshot Generator"]

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Lifecycle Sequence Flow

sequenceDiagram
    autonumber
    actor User as Desktop User
    participant SC as SoftwareCenter UI (PySide6)
    participant Res as Platform Resolver (.lnk / .app / .desktop)
    participant Tab as Tab & Board Manager
    participant Set as QSettings Persistence (Registry / INI)
    participant Exp as Profile Exporter (softwarecenter-profile-v1.json)

    User->>SC: Drag & drop file / shortcut into tab
    SC->>Res: Resolve path (e.g. .lnk -> original target EXE / folder)
    Res-->>SC: Validated target path & system icon
    SC->>Tab: Check duplicate & register item
    Tab->>SC: Render item tile / list row
    Tab->>Set: Persist tabs, order & geometry atomically
    Set-->>SC: State saved locally
    User->>SC: Double-click item or trigger "Export Profile"
    alt Launch item
        SC->>User: Execute target binary via standard unprivileged launch
    else Export profile
        SC->>Exp: Serialize boards, tabs, and items
        Exp-->>User: Write redacted softwarecenter-profile-v1.json (Zero secrets)
    end

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Core Capabilities & Safety Invariants

Invariant / Capability	Architecture Guarantee	Verification Mechanism
100% Local-First & Zero Egress	Runs entirely on the local machine; zero telemetry, zero cloud tracking, zero remote network calls	Source audit, offline runtime check, test suite
Non-Elevation (Least Privilege)	Operates strictly with unprivileged standard user rights; never requests UAC administrative elevation	Process security descriptor verification
Non-Destructive Shortcut Operations	Removing an entry only untracks shortcut metadata; never touches or deletes target executables or filesystem files	UI delete action isolation tests
Safe Path & Link Resolution	Resolves Windows .lnk, macOS .app, and Linux .desktop targets without invoking shell scripting	Static target resolution contract tests
Atomic State Persistence	QSettings safely flushes window geometry, tab order, and active view states to local OS storage	Atomic roundtrip persistence test suite
Portable & Redacted Profile Exchange	Schema-validated JSON (softwarecenter-profile-v1.json) export containing only paths and labels; zero credential extraction	tests/test_export_contract.py regression tests
Sister-Product Isolation	Separate QSettings namespace, mutex endpoint, and store identity between SoftwareCenter and LaunchBoards	scripts/verify_product_boundaries.py
Multi-OS CI Matrix Verification	Validated across Python 3.10-3.12 on Windows, macOS, and Linux runners	GitHub Actions workflows and smoke checks

Sibling Ecosystem & Sister Products

SoftwareCenter is part of the broader file-bricks desktop tools collection and the umbrella open-bricks open-source initiative:

Project	Ecosystem	Primary Focus	Integration / Synergy
ProFiler	file-bricks	Document & media inspection	Companion app for file sorting and forensic document profiling
ExplorerPro	file-bricks	Multi-tab filesystem explorer	Complementary dual-pane file management for SoftwareCenter shortcuts
CloudLockFixer	file-bricks	Cloud lock unlock & repair	Unlocks frozen sync placeholders and OneDrive files referenced by shortcuts
knowledgedigest	file-bricks	Markdown & document knowledge base	Local-first document digest organizer for research workflows
FormularErstellen	doc-bricks	Form creation & templating	Desktop document generator launchable via SoftwareCenter tiles
USR_PDFunlock	doc-bricks	PDF password & unlock tool	Non-destructive local PDF unlocking utility
safe-start-for-codex	dev-bricks	Automation startup gate	Protects desktop workstation environments from startup surges
MethodenAnalyser	dev-bricks	AST source code analyzer	Static analysis for Python desktop tools and modules
connectors	ellmos-ai	Agent communication bridge	Zero-dependency messaging and transport adapters
open-bricks	open-bricks	Desktop open-source umbrella	Standards, governance, and packaging umbrella

Discovery Context

SoftwareCenter is easiest to find as a local-first PySide6 app launcher or desktop shortcut organizer. It sits between the Windows Start menu, desktop shortcut folders, and full software inventory systems: it launches what is already on your machine, groups shortcuts into tabs, and exports/imports portable profiles.

Useful search phrases:

• SoftwareCenter PySide6 desktop organizer
• local-first app launcher Python PySide6
• desktop shortcut organizer with tabs
• softwarecenter-profile-v1.json
• offline software launcher no cloud no telemetry

It is not Microsoft Configuration Manager Software Center, an app store, a package manager, or a remote deployment portal.

Requirements

• Python 3.10+
• PySide6

Installation

pip install -r requirements.txt

Run

python SoftwareCenter.py

On Windows, you can also use START.bat or the prebuilt SoftwareCenter.exe from the Releases.

Usage

Action	Instructions
Add programs	Drag files, folders, shortcuts, .app bundles on macOS, or .desktop launchers on Linux into the window; Windows .lnk files pointing to .exe files or folders are resolved to the original target
Organize tabs	Toolbar > "New Tab", double-click to rename
Switch view	Toolbar > Tiles / List
Launch programs	Double-click or right-click > Open/Start
Remove entries	Right-click > Delete (removes shortcut only)
Export profile	File > Export Profile or the toolbar action
Import profile	File > Import Profile or the toolbar action; replaces the current profile

Build Executable

pip install pyinstaller
python -m PyInstaller --noconfirm --clean SoftwareCenter.spec

The EXE will be in dist/SoftwareCenter.exe. On Windows, build_exe.bat also copies it to the project root for local use.

Quality Checks

python -m compileall -q SoftwareCenter.py manage_translations.py translator.py
python -m json.tool locales/translations.json
python -m json.tool store_package.json
python -m pytest -q
python tests/macos_platform_smoke.py
python tests/linux_platform_smoke.py
python scripts/verify_product_boundaries.py

The hosted workflow and its explicit optional-web boundary are documented in CI_CONTRACT.md.

GitHub Actions runs these smoke checks. The macOS smoke validates .app import, open launching, QSettings persistence, and profile export on macos-latest; the Linux smoke covers .desktop import, Exec/xdg-open launching, QSettings persistence, and profile export on ubuntu-latest. Build artifacts and local task/test files are ignored and should not be committed.

For the Windows Store path, python scripts/run_windows_wack.py --dry-run checks the local MSIX/AppCert paths and prints the reproducible WACK command. The real certification run should be executed from an elevated PowerShell against a fresh signed MSIX before submission. python generate_store_screenshots.py creates the reproducible Store screenshot set under README/screenshots/store/.

Headless Launcher Catalog Care

The optional catalog reconciler is provided as Plan-D runtime code in scripts/softwarecenter_sync.py. Synchronized catalog and registry files are explicit CLI inputs; the command is read-only unless --apply is supplied. The pinned-runtime scheduler payload, apply gates, native readback, and rollback procedure are documented in RUNTIME_DAILY_CARE.md.

Exchange Format

Profiles can be exported as softwarecenter-profile-v1.json and imported again later. The format carries tabs, view modes, and entries with label, path, kind, and optional notes, but does not copy local files or credentials. Missing paths remain visible as references. See EXPORTFORMAT.md for details.

Sister-product boundary

LaunchBoards shares the implementation but has its own QSettings namespace, single-instance endpoint, icon, executable, Store identity, and release path. The reproducible static, isolated parallel-process, and artifact checks are documented in PRODUCT_BOUNDARIES.md.

Windows Store Assets

The Windows Store track now includes a reproducible screenshot generator for the current desktop UI. Run python generate_store_screenshots.py to refresh README/screenshots/store/ with four redacted Store images and summary.json.

Tech Stack

Component	Technology
Language	Python 3.10+
GUI Framework	PySide6 (Qt for Python)
Storage	QSettings (Windows Registry / INI)
Code Size	~690 lines

Security Policy

Security and privacy are core architectural priorities. See SECURITY.md for our full vulnerability disclosure guidelines, 48-hour response SLA, and local-first invariants.

License

MIT

Note: This application uses PySide6, licensed under LGPLv3. PySide6 is dynamically linked.

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Liability

This project is an unpaid open-source donation. Liability is limited to intent and gross negligence (§ 521 German Civil Code). Use at your own risk. No warranty, no maintenance guarantee, no fitness-for-purpose assumed.