Links

Links is a Qt 6 desktop client for real-time audio/video meetings. The project combines a QML-based UI, a C++ conference core, LiveKit-based media transport, device capture, chat, screen sharing, and local recording support.

Current Scope

The repository currently contains:

• A Qt Quick desktop client under active development
• Core conference/media control logic in C++
• Cross-platform build scripts for Windows, Linux, and macOS
• GitHub Actions workflows for build validation and packaging
• GoogleTest-based unit and integration-style tests for core modules

The repository also contains a server/ directory in the project layout notes, but the main actively built target in the current top-level CMake project is the desktop client application.

Main Capabilities

• Email/password login and meeting join/start flows
• Real-time conferencing with LiveKit
• Microphone and camera device control
• Screen sharing
• In-meeting chat and participant state updates
• Local recording pipeline
• Theme, appearance, audio, video, and network settings

Repository Layout

Key directories:

• core: conference control, capture, media pipeline, desktop capture, recording core
• ui: QML pages/components and Qt backend bridge classes
• utils: logging, settings, shared helpers
• tests: GoogleTest targets and test registration
• cmake: SDK fetch/config helpers
• res: icons and packaged resources
• tools: packaging assets and scripts
• third_party: vendored dependencies and downloaded SDKs

Build Requirements

Minimum tooling reflected by the current build files:

• CMake 3.21+ for presets
• C++17 compiler
• Ninja
• Qt 6.8.x or 6.10.x with at least:
  • Core
  • Gui
  • Network
  • Multimedia
  • Quick
  • QuickControls2
  • Qml
  • Concurrent
• Git
• vcpkg

Additional platform tools currently used by the repository:

• Windows:
  • Visual Studio C++ toolchain
  • windeployqt
  • Inno Setup for installer packaging
• Linux:
  • patchelf
  • X11 and Pulse/ALSA development libraries
  • linuxdeploy + linuxdeploy-plugin-qt during packaging
• macOS:
  • Xcode toolchain
  • macdeployqt

Third-Party SDKs

The project uses platform-specific prebuilt SDKs that are resolved by CMake fetch modules:

• LiveKit C++ SDK
• WebRTC Audio Processing

Architecture is selected through LINKS_SDK_ARCH:

• x64
• arm64

The current CI and packaging configuration uses:

• Windows: x64
• Linux: x64
• macOS: x64

Build Commands

CMake presets

cmake --preset release
cmake --build --preset release
ctest --preset release

Helper scripts

Windows:

build.cmd release
build.cmd test
build.cmd clean

Linux / macOS:

./build.sh release
./build.sh test
./build.sh clean

Important Build Variables

The current scripts and workflows support these inputs:

• LINKS_SDK_ARCH
  • Selects SDK architecture, for example x64 or arm64
• VCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET
  • Overrides the vcpkg triplet
• LINKS_ENABLE_LOCAL_RECORDING
  • Controls whether local recording is compiled in

Examples:

LINKS_SDK_ARCH=x64 ./build.sh release
LINKS_SDK_ARCH=x64 LINKS_ENABLE_LOCAL_RECORDING=OFF ./build.sh test

set LINKS_SDK_ARCH=x64
set LINKS_ENABLE_LOCAL_RECORDING=ON
build.cmd release

Platform Notes

• Local recording is enabled by default on Windows in the top-level CMake configuration.
• Local recording is disabled by default on non-Windows platforms unless explicitly enabled.
• The desktop capture implementation is platform-specific:
  • Windows: WGC / DXGI / GDI paths
  • macOS: ScreenCaptureKit-based path
  • Linux: X11 path
• The top-level CMakeLists.txt currently prepends a Windows Qt path (D:/Qt/6.10.0/msvc2022_64) when building on Windows. Adjust this locally if your environment differs.

Tests

The current test suite includes coverage for several core areas, including:

• Audio processing
• Microphone capturer
• Desktop frame / geometry logic
• Conference network stats aggregation
• Participant metadata parsing
• Recording core helpers
• Cross-platform capture code on supported Unix platforms

Tests are registered from tests/CMakeLists.txt.

CI and Packaging

GitHub Actions workflows live under .github/workflows:

• build.yml
  • Cross-platform build and test validation
• package.yml
  • Windows portable zip + installer
  • macOS app zip + DMG
  • Linux AppImage

Release packaging is currently triggered by tags matching:

v*

Development Notes

• QML files and backend sources must be registered in CMakeLists.txt.
• This repository uses Qt AUTOMOC and qt_add_qml_module, so missing source registration is a common cause of build errors.
• The fetch modules under cmake are part of the active build path and should be kept in sync with CI architecture settings.

License

See LICENSE and NOTICE.