Perplexity

Native Linux wrapper

Native desktop wrapper for Perplexity on Linux
Electron-based launcher with Arch/AUR packaging

---

Features

• Native Linux packaging (no Wine/emulation).
• System Electron runtime with launcher-based configuration.
• AUR-first distribution with automated CI pipeline.
• Desktop integration: menu entry, icons, URI handler.
• DevTools disabled by default (DEV_TOOLS=0).

---

Project Structure

perplexity/
├── src/                        # Application sources (Electron)
│   ├── main.js                 # Electron main process
│   ├── preload.js              # Preload script
│   ├── package.json            # Dependencies (v1.5.1)
│   └── icons/                  # Application icons
├── aur/                        # AUR package assets
│   ├── PKGBUILD               # AUR build script (CI-injected commit pin)
│   ├── launcher.sh            # Runtime launcher (/usr/bin/perplexity)
│   ├── perplexity.desktop     # Desktop entry
│   └── default.conf           # Default runtime config
├── .github/workflows/          # CI/CD automation
│   ├── ci.yml                 # Validation and package build checks
│   ├── release.yml            # Tag-driven GitHub Release + AUR publish
│   ├── build_and_publish.yml  # Legacy manual fallback workflow
│   └── cleanup-artifacts.yml  # Artifact retention cleanup
├── native-build/               # Portable native test bundle builder
└── usr/                        # Linux system files
    ├── bin/perplexity         # Executable file
    └── share/                 # Resources (icons, desktop files)

---

Installation

Arch Linux / AUR (Recommended)

Use an AUR helper:

yay -S perplexity
paru -S perplexity

Running the Application

# From terminal
perplexity

# Or through application menu
# Applications → Internet → Perplexity

System Requirements

• OS: Arch Linux (or compatible distributions)
• Runtime dependencies: electron, desktop-file-utils, xdg-utils
• Optional: libappindicator-gtk3 (tray icon support)
• Architecture: x86_64
• Memory: Minimum 512 MB RAM

---

Configuration

Configuration File

All settings are stored at: $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/Perplexity/perplexity.conf (falls back to $HOME/.config/Perplexity/perplexity.conf). You can override via the PERPLEXITY_CONFIG environment variable.

On first run, the launcher copies /etc/perplexity/default.conf to the user configuration path.

Configuration Example

# Perplexity Configuration File
# Created automatically on first run

# Path to custom Electron binary (optional)
ELECTRON_CUSTOM_BIN="/usr/bin/electron"

# Tray is managed by ToDesktop runtime; not configurable via config file

# Enable developer tools (0/1, false/true)
DEV_TOOLS=0

# Additional Electron flags
ELECTRON_ARGS="--disable-web-security --disable-features=VizDisplayCompositor"

Available Parameters

Parameter	Description	Values
ELECTRON_CUSTOM_BIN	Path to custom Electron	File path
DEV_TOOLS	Developer tools	0/1 or false/true
ELECTRON_ARGS	Additional flags	Electron Flags

Launch Flow

perplexity.desktop -> /usr/bin/perplexity (aur/launcher.sh) -> /usr/lib/perplexity

---

Runtime Notes

System Tray

• Managed by ToDesktop runtime and not configurable via default.conf.

Privacy and Security

• Auto-updates are disabled in the wrapper.
• Configuration is local ($XDG_CONFIG_HOME or $HOME/.config).
• Network traffic comes from the upstream Perplexity web application runtime.

Desktop Integration

• Native icons (freedesktop.org layout)
• Desktop entry and URI handler integration
• XDG-compatible config path behavior

---

CI/CD

Active workflows:

• ci.yml: validates .SRCINFO, runs namcap PKGBUILD, and builds the Arch package on pull_request and push to main
• release.yml: runs only on version tags, creates the GitHub Release, and then syncs the full aur/ bundle to AUR
• build_and_publish.yml: legacy manual-only placeholder kept during the migration

Release Flow

The release version always comes from aur/PKGBUILD (pkgver + pkgrel).

Create the tag with the local preflight script:

./release.sh
git push origin main --follow-tags

release.sh checks that the working tree is clean, HEAD matches origin/main, .SRCINFO is current, and the tag v<pkgver>-<pkgrel> does not already exist.

release.yml then validates the tag, builds the package in an Arch container, publishes the GitHub release with generated notes, injects the tagged commit SHA into aur/PKGBUILD, regenerates .SRCINFO, and pushes the updated AUR files.

If you create the tag locally and need to abort before pushing it, delete it with git tag -d v<pkgver>-<pkgrel>.

Native Test Build

For local testing, native-build/build.sh creates a portable bundle that includes the app sources, production dependencies, the locally installed Electron runtime, and an isolated state/ directory for config/cache/data.

./native-build/build.sh
./native-build/dist/perplexity-native-1.5.1-2.run --target /tmp/perplexity-test

The generated .run installer extracts a self-contained test build and keeps Perplexity settings inside the installed bundle by default.

Technical Specifications

Component	Version	Description
Electron	System package	Uses system-provided Electron (Arch package)
Target Electron	38.2.0	Version used in upstream development
ToDesktop Runtime	^2.1.2	Additional capabilities
Package Version	1.5.1	Current application version

Note: You can use a specific Electron version by setting ELECTRON_CUSTOM_BIN in the configuration file.

---

Contributing

Contributions are welcome

How to Help the Project

• Report bugs with reproducible steps
• Suggest improvements in discussions
• Submit pull requests with focused changes
• Star the project

---

License

Mixed licensing (important)

• Upstream Perplexity application files synced from AppImage: UNLICENSED (upstream terms).
• Repository-authored wrapper/integration files (AUR packaging, launcher, CI): Apache-2.0.

See full scope details in the LICENSE file.

---

Perplexity Native for Linux
Maintained by mazixs • 2026