ZTools

ZTools

A High-Performance, Extensible Application Launcher and Plugin Platform

Open Source Implementation of uTools | Supports macOS and Windows

English | 简体中文

✨ Features

• 🚀 Quick Launch - Pinyin search, regex matching, history tracking, pinned apps
• 🧩 Plugin System - Support for UI plugins and headless plugins with complete API support
• 📋 Clipboard Management - History tracking, search, image support, cross-platform native implementation
• 🎨 Theme Customization - System/light/dark mode with 6 theme colors to choose from
• ⚡ High Performance - LMDB database, WebContentsView architecture, ultra-fast response
• 🌍 Cross-Platform - Native support for macOS and Windows with unified experience
• 🔒 Data Isolation - Independent plugin data storage, secure and reliable
• 🛠️ Developer Friendly - Complete TypeScript type support, hot reload development
• ⚙️ Modern Tech Stack - Electron 41 + Node 24.15 + Chrome 146

📸 Preview

Quick launch and search functionality demo

Interface Showcase

Main Interface - Light Theme	Main Interface - Dark Theme
Settings - Theme Customization and General Settings	Plugin Market - Online Installation and Management

🚀 Quick Start

Installation

Method 1: Download Pre-built Version (Recommended)

Download the latest version from Releases:

• macOS: ztools-x.x.x.dmg or ZTools-x.x.x-arm64-mac.zip
• Windows: ztools-x.x.x-setup.exe or ztools-x.x.x-win.zip

Method 2: Build from Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/ZToolsCenter/ZTools.git
cd ZTools

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Development mode
pnpm dev

# Build
pnpm build:mac    # macOS
pnpm build:win    # Windows
pnpm build:linux  # Linux (Default Arch)
pnpm build:linux:x64 # Linux (amd64/x64)
pnpm build:linux:arm64 # Linux (arm64)

Usage

1. After launching the app, use the shortcut Option+Z (macOS) or Alt+Z (Windows) to open the main interface
2. Enter application name or command to search
3. Use ↑ ↓ ← → to navigate, Enter to confirm, Esc to exit

🧩 Plugin Development

ZTools is a powerful and extensible plugin platform that enhances your productivity with custom plugins. With simple configuration, rich APIs, and cross-platform support, you can easily develop powerful plugins.

Plugin System Features:

• 📝 Simple Configuration - Easily define plugins through standard plugin.json files, no complex setup required
• 🔌 Rich APIs - Access system capabilities through the global ztools object, including notifications, simulated input, and persistent storage
• 🎯 Flexible Commands - Trigger your plugins using text, regex, or global hooks to adapt to any workflow
• 🌍 Cross-Platform - Build once, run on Windows, macOS, and Linux with a consistent experience across all devices

📖 Full Documentation: Visit ZTools Developer Documentation for more details

🛠️ Tech Stack

• Framework: Electron 41 + Vue 3 + TypeScript
• Build: Vite + electron-vite
• Database: LMDB (high-performance key-value storage)
• State Management: Pinia
• Search Engine: Fuse.js (with Pinyin support)
• Native Modules: C++ (Node-API)
  • Clipboard monitoring
  • Window management
  • Region screenshot (Windows)

📁 Project Structure

ztools/
├── src/
│   ├── main/              # Main process
│   │   ├── api/          # IPC API modules
│   │   ├── core/         # Core functionality (database, native modules)
│   │   ├── windowManager.ts
│   │   └── pluginManager.ts
│   ├── preload/          # Preload scripts
│   └── renderer/         # Renderer process (Vue)
│       ├── components/
│       ├── stores/       # Pinia state management
│       └── App.vue
├── resources/            # Resource files
│   ├── lib/             # Native modules (.node)
│   └── preload.js       # Plugin preload
└── CLAUDE.md            # Complete technical documentation

📚 Documentation

• CLAUDE.md - Complete technical documentation and architecture description
• Development Commands - Common command reference
• Plugin Development - Plugin development guide

💻 Development

Requirements

• Node.js >= 18
• npm >= 9
• macOS or Windows development environment

Development Commands

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Development mode (hot reload)
pnpm dev

# Type checking
pnpm typecheck          # All
pnpm typecheck:node     # Main process + preload
pnpm typecheck:web      # Renderer process

# Code formatting
pnpm format             # Prettier formatting
pnpm lint               # ESLint check

# Build
pnpm build              # Compile source code only
pnpm build:mac          # Package macOS app
pnpm build:win          # Package Windows app
pnpm build:linux        # Package Linux app (Default Arch)
pnpm build:linux:x64    # Package Linux app (amd64/x64)
pnpm build:linux:arm64  # Package Linux app (arm64)
pnpm build:unpack       # Package without installer (for debugging)

Debugging

• Main process: Press F5 in VS Code, or use pnpm dev to view terminal logs
• Renderer process: Press Cmd+Option+I (macOS) or Ctrl+Shift+I (Windows) to open developer tools
• Plugins: Click “Open DevTools” button on the plugin page

🗺️ Roadmap

Completed ✅

• Quick app launch and search
• Plugin system (UI + headless)
• Clipboard history management
• Cross-platform support (macOS + Windows)
• LMDB database migration
• Theme customization
• Data isolation
• Plugin market
• Custom global shortcuts
• Separate plugins into independent windows
• Plugin auto-update
• Cloud sync (optional)
• Linux support
• MCP toolkit

🐛 Issue Reporting

Having issues? Please report them in Issues.

When submitting an issue, please include:

• Operating system version
• ZTools version
• Steps to reproduce
• Error logs (if any)

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.

💝 Acknowledgments

• uTools - Source of inspiration
• Electron - Cross-platform desktop app framework
• Vue.js - Progressive JavaScript framework
• LMDB - High-performance embedded database