feat(start): replace start page with Silo web app webview #117

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forbes · 2026-02-09T15:50:48Z

forbes commented

2026-02-09 15:50:48 +00:00

Summary

Replace the native Qt Widgets start page with a Python-based dual-mode view:

Online: QWebEngineView loading the Silo web app for immediate access to projects, items, and part management
Offline: Native Qt fallback showing recent local files and Silo connectivity status

Architecture

Python module using a QStackedWidget with two pages:

Page 1: Silo Web View (online)

QWebEngineView pointed at the Silo base URL (http://localhost:8080 by default)
Override acceptNavigationRequest to keep navigation within Silo
Shown when the Silo server is reachable

Page 2: Offline Fallback (native Qt)

Silo connectivity panel: status indicator (connected/disconnected), server URL, retry button, error details
Recent files list: locally saved .FCStd files from FreeCAD preferences (reuse existing RecentFilesModel pattern)
File cards: thumbnail, filename, path, last modified — click to open
Styled with Catppuccin Mocha to match the rest of Create

Connectivity Logic

QTimer-based polling (e.g. every 5s) hitting the Silo API URL
On connection success → switch stack to web view, load/refresh if needed
On connection failure → switch stack to offline fallback, update status display
Immediate check on startup before showing either view

Implementation Details

Module location: src/Mod/Start/StartGui.py or similar, following the Help module pattern (src/Mod/Help/Help.py)
MDI integration: register as Gui::MDIView subclass, added via mw.addWindow()
Command: replace or wrap Start_Start command to instantiate the new view
URL configuration: read from FreeCAD.ParamGet('User parameter:BaseApp/Preferences/Mod/Silo').GetString('ApiUrl'), strip /api suffix for web UI root, fall back to SILO_API_URL env var then http://localhost:8080
Auto-launch: preserve existing StartLauncher behavior that shows the page on startup
Re-adds QtWebEngine dependency: intentional — the online mode requires it, but the offline fallback works without it

Fallback Behavior

If QtWebEngine is not available at all (import fails):

Permanently show the offline fallback page
Log a warning, don't crash
Silo status shows 'WebEngine not available' instead of polling

Silo web app: mods/silo/ (Go backend, server-rendered HTML templates at /, API at /api)
Help module webview pattern: src/Mod/Help/Help.py
Current start page: src/Mod/Start/Gui/StartView.cpp
Silo URL config: mods/silo/pkg/freecad/silo_commands.py → _get_api_url()

## Summary Replace the native Qt Widgets start page with a Python-based dual-mode view: - **Online**: QWebEngineView loading the Silo web app for immediate access to projects, items, and part management - **Offline**: Native Qt fallback showing recent local files and Silo connectivity status ## Architecture Python module using a `QStackedWidget` with two pages: ### Page 1: Silo Web View (online) - `QWebEngineView` pointed at the Silo base URL (`http://localhost:8080` by default) - Override `acceptNavigationRequest` to keep navigation within Silo - Shown when the Silo server is reachable ### Page 2: Offline Fallback (native Qt) - **Silo connectivity panel**: status indicator (connected/disconnected), server URL, retry button, error details - **Recent files list**: locally saved `.FCStd` files from FreeCAD preferences (reuse existing `RecentFilesModel` pattern) - **File cards**: thumbnail, filename, path, last modified — click to open - Styled with Catppuccin Mocha to match the rest of Create ### Connectivity Logic - `QTimer`-based polling (e.g. every 5s) hitting the Silo API URL - On connection success → switch stack to web view, load/refresh if needed - On connection failure → switch stack to offline fallback, update status display - Immediate check on startup before showing either view ## Implementation Details - **Module location**: `src/Mod/Start/StartGui.py` or similar, following the Help module pattern (`src/Mod/Help/Help.py`) - **MDI integration**: register as `Gui::MDIView` subclass, added via `mw.addWindow()` - **Command**: replace or wrap `Start_Start` command to instantiate the new view - **URL configuration**: read from `FreeCAD.ParamGet('User parameter:BaseApp/Preferences/Mod/Silo').GetString('ApiUrl')`, strip `/api` suffix for web UI root, fall back to `SILO_API_URL` env var then `http://localhost:8080` - **Auto-launch**: preserve existing `StartLauncher` behavior that shows the page on startup - **Re-adds QtWebEngine dependency**: intentional — the online mode requires it, but the offline fallback works without it ## Fallback Behavior If QtWebEngine is not available at all (import fails): - Permanently show the offline fallback page - Log a warning, don't crash - Silo status shows 'WebEngine not available' instead of polling ## Related - Silo web app: `mods/silo/` (Go backend, server-rendered HTML templates at `/`, API at `/api`) - Help module webview pattern: `src/Mod/Help/Help.py` - Current start page: `src/Mod/Start/Gui/StartView.cpp` - Silo URL config: `mods/silo/pkg/freecad/silo_commands.py` → `_get_api_url()`

forbes added the enhancement label 2026-02-09 15:50:48 +00:00

forbes referenced this issue from a commit

2026-02-09 16:03:29 +00:00

feat(freecad): add Silo-aware start page with webview and offline fallback

forbes referenced this issue from a commit

2026-02-09 16:03:40 +00:00

feat(start): replace start page with Silo webview (#117)

forbes referenced a pull request that will close this issue

2026-02-09 16:03:56 +00:00

feat(start): replace start page with Silo webview (#117) #118

forbes closed this issue

2026-02-09 16:07:34 +00:00