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# Gateway on macOS (external launchd)

OpenSoul.app no longer bundles Node/Bun or the Gateway runtime. The macOS app expects an external opensoul CLI install, does not spawn the Gateway as a child process, and manages a per‑user launchd service to keep the Gateway running (or attaches to an existing local Gateway if one is already running).

# Install the CLI (required for local mode)

You need Node 22+ on the Mac, then install opensoul globally:

bash
npm install -g opensoul@<version>

The macOS app’s Install CLI button runs the same flow via npm/pnpm (bun not recommended for Gateway runtime).

# Launchd (Gateway as LaunchAgent)

Label:

  • ai.opensoul.gateway (or ai.opensoul.<profile>; legacy com.opensoul.* may remain)

Plist location (per‑user):

  • ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ai.opensoul.gateway.plist (or ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ai.opensoul.<profile>.plist)

Manager:

  • The macOS app owns LaunchAgent install/update in Local mode.
  • The CLI can also install it: opensoul gateway install.

Behavior:

  • “OpenSoul Active” enables/disables the LaunchAgent.
  • App quit does not stop the gateway (launchd keeps it alive).
  • If a Gateway is already running on the configured port, the app attaches to it instead of starting a new one.

Logging:

  • launchd stdout/err: /tmp/opensoul/opensoul-gateway.log

# Version compatibility

The macOS app checks the gateway version against its own version. If they’re incompatible, update the global CLI to match the app version.

# Smoke check

bash
opensoul --version

OPENSOUL_SKIP_CHANNELS=1 \
OPENSOUL_SKIP_CANVAS_HOST=1 \
opensoul gateway --port 18999 --bind loopback

Then:

bash
opensoul gateway call health --url ws://127.0.0.1:18999 --timeout 3000

Released under the MIT License.