Iwacu

Desktop App and Devices

The Electron desktop app, linking a browser or desktop as a full device, and using your iwacu identity in abantu.

This is the summer 2026 guide.

Some of it has changed since. A new guide (v1) is being written.

Desktop App and Devices

Desktop app (Electron)

Iwacu is delivered as an Electron desktop application for Windows, macOS, and Linux. The Electron shell wraps the Nuxt app — the full experience (tree canvas, terminal, script editor, manage page) runs natively on the desktop without a browser.

Build the desktop app:

pnpm build:electron

This runs nuxt build first, then packages with Electron Builder. Output lands in dist-electron/.

Platform	Output
Windows	NSIS installer (`.exe`)
macOS	DMG (`.dmg`)
Linux	AppImage (`.AppImage`)

The desktop app stores its SQLite database in the system user-data directory, separate from any browser instance. Device sync, the relay, and all features work identically on desktop and mobile.

On Windows, the first build may be blocked by Windows Defender scanning the Electron binary as it is extracted. Add the project folder as a Defender exclusion before building. See the Relays guide for CI-based builds that avoid this.

Linking a browser or desktop as a device

Building your own desktop install (or just opening iwacu in a new browser) gives you a blank app with no tree. Instead of exporting and re-importing, you can link it live from a device where you're already set up — this brings your full identity and tree, the same as adding a new phone.

Device linking moves your private key; sign-in only ever moves a one-time signed proof. Know which one you're doing before you scan anything.

Open iwacu on the new browser or desktop install. It shows "Link this browser as a device" with a QR code and manual code, and waits for approval.
On a device you're already using, open the approve screen and scan the code (or type the manual code).
Review the request and tap Approve.
The new device finishes linking on its own.

Right after linking, if your browser supports it, you'll be offered "Protect with Touch ID / Windows Hello." Take it — a browser tab holds your real private key exactly like a phone does, but without a phone's OS keychain protecting it by default. A platform authenticator closes that gap.

This is different from the device sync pairing on the Manage page — that pairs an already-set-up second device to the same tree. Linking is for bringing your identity somewhere with no tree yet at all.

Using your identity with abantu

Your iwacu identity — an Ed25519 keypair with a did:iwacu: identifier — is the same identity used by abantu, the community governance app. You do not need two accounts. Import once, use everywhere.

Export from iwacu

Open Settings (⚙ in the toolbar).
Tap Show identity QR — or Copy bundle text for the clipboard method.

The QR encodes a base64 bundle containing your DID, display name, and keypair. Only share it with your own devices.

Import into abantu

Open abantu. On the welcome screen, choose Import from iwacu.
Point the camera at the QR shown in iwacu.

Your display name and keys are imported in one scan. You can now join abantu communities using the same identity that your family members already know from iwacu.

No camera? Use the clipboard method:

In iwacu: Settings → Show identity QR → Copy bundle text
In abantu: choose Paste identity bundle and paste

Your private key never travels through the relay. The bundle only moves between devices when you physically copy it — QR scan, clipboard, or AirDrop. The relay cannot see your private key.

See the Abantu documentation for what you can do once your identity is imported — including signing in to a third app without handing over your key at all.

Reference — touch, storage, side panel

Inviting and Connecting

Bringing a family member into your tree, and connecting two separate trees maintained by different people.

Reference

Touch and pointer interactions, how data is stored, and what's in the side panel — quick lookups, not a tutorial.