Electron vs. Tauri
13 days ago
- #Dolt Workbench
- #Desktop App Development
- #Electron vs Tauri
- Dolt Workbench is an open-source SQL workbench supporting MySQL, Postgres, Dolt, and Doltgres databases.
- Built using Electron, the workbench shares architecture with DoltHub and Hosted Dolt, using Next.js for the frontend and a GraphQL layer for database interactions.
- Electron has significant drawbacks, leading to exploration of Tauri as an alternative framework.
- Next.js doesn't translate cleanly to desktop apps due to server-side rendering and API routing, requiring workarounds like Nextron for Electron.
- Tauri is frontend-framework agnostic and simplifies Next.js integration by relying on static-site generation.
- Electron bundles a full Chromium browser engine, ensuring compatibility but adding bloat, while Tauri uses the system's native webview for a more lightweight solution.
- Electron's main process runs in Node.js, making it accessible to web developers, whereas Tauri uses Rust, requiring minimal Rust code for some functionalities.
- Tauri's APIs integrate more naturally with application code compared to Electron's inter-process communication.
- Electron's Node.js runtime allows direct spinning up of sidecar processes like the GraphQL server, while Tauri requires compiling such processes into binaries.
- Tauri significantly reduces app size compared to Electron.
- Current limitations preventing full transition to Tauri include lack of support for .appx and .msix bundles on Windows and issues with MacOS universal binaries.
- Despite limitations, Tauri is impressive for reducing bloat and integrating well with existing codebases.