🌱 Sprout

Go CLI/Daemon app template with atomic state, modern UI, built-in updates, and release plumbing.

Sprout handles the entire lifecycle of a CLI application: compiling → packaging → publishing → installing → running (as a daemon) → and safely updating itself. Infrastructure that would take months to build from scratch, battle-tested and ready to use.

Why Sprout?

Built with love and unhealthy amounts of caffeine. Sprout is a low-compromise solution for CLI/Daemon applications. Check this shit out:

• How does the binary update without corrupting state?: PID-tracked migration guards with cross-process file locking ensure safe, atomic updates even with multiple instances running.
• How do multiple CLI instances + daemon share state?: LMDB provides ACID-compliant, multi-process concurrent access that doubles as language-agnostic IPC.
• How is releasing automated?: Changelog-driven CI/CD. Push a version entry, and Github Actions handles the rest.
• How does a systemd service update itself?: Detached child process spawns a shell script that stops the service, downloads the new binary, and restarts it.
• How do you style the frontend?: TailwindCSS + DaisyUI, all standalone (no npm needed) with compile-time cache busting... You'll be the belle of the ball.

Workflow

Edit Project	Create Release	Publish	Install	Update
Develop your app	Add a changelog entry	CI builds & uploads	One-liner install	Click-to-update in browser

Get Started

1. Use this Template - Fork, configure, and build your own app
2. Installation Guide - Template for end-user install docs

Platform Support

Sprout is Linux-first. It targets amd64 and arm64, and its daemon model depends on systemd --user.

Platform	Status	Notes
Linux	Production	Primary target. Full CLI, daemon, install, and update flow.
Windows	Experimental	Includes a PowerShell installer that bootstraps WSL, installs Sprout inside it, and creates a Windows CLI shim. Service management still depends on WSL + systemd --user.
macOS/BSD	Unsupported	Lacks the systemd model Sprout is built around.

Architecture

Sprout uses unified dependency injection: the App struct holds all services (DB, Logger, Config, Server) and manages resource cleanup via a stack. For the full deep-dive, see ARCHITECTURE.md.

graph TD
    subgraph "User Space"
        CLI[CLI Instances]
        WebUI[Web UI / Browser]
    end

    subgraph "System Space"
        Daemon[Daemon Service]
    end

    LMDB[(LMDB Database)]

    CLI -->|Read/Write| LMDB
    Daemon -->|Read/Write| LMDB
    CLI -.->|Control| Daemon
    WebUI <-->|HTTP| Daemon

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Philosophy

• Complexity is the enemy. If it's hard to understand, it will break, be hard to maintain, hard to debug, hard to update, etc.
• Dependencies should earn their keep. Every external package is a liability. I try to only use them when they solve a non-trivial problem.
• Tackle the hard parts first. Can't say this repo doesn't do that lmao.
• Write for humans. Code is read more than it's written. In 6 months, you'll be the uninformed reader of your own code. Be kind to future you.
• Discipline. Stop chasing hyperscale fantasies. Most software should remain small enough for individuals to understand, own, and repair.

This repo delivers a full CLI/Daemon lifecycle in under 3k LOC with only ~5 direct dependencies. The ones that usually require npm (tailwindcss, daisyui) are automatically installed via their standalone methods by the build script, no npm required. All your users need is Linux or Windows, and a 64 bit machine.

_{🩵 xoxo :3 <- that last bit is a cat, his name is sebastian and he is ultra fancy. Like, i'm not kidding, more than you initially imagined while reading that. Pinky up, drinks tea... you have no idea. Crazy.}