Skip AppImage and RPM builds to avoid slow 360MB+ compression

AppImage bundler compresses the entire sidecar.zip into squashfs,
causing builds to hang/timeout. Limit targets to deb (Linux),
nsis+msi (Windows), and dmg (macOS).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

.gitea/workflows/build-linux.yml

@@ -13,12 +13,13 @@ env:
   TARGET: x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu
 
 jobs:
-  build-sidecar:
+  build:
-    name: Build sidecar (Linux)
+    name: Build (Linux)
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Python sidecar ──
       - name: Install uv
         run: |
           if command -v uv &> /dev/null; then
@@ -38,20 +39,11 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: python
         run: uv run --python ${{ env.PYTHON_VERSION }} python build_sidecar.py --cpu-only
 
-      - name: Upload sidecar artifact
+      - name: Package sidecar for Tauri
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+        run: |
-        with:
+          cd python/dist/voice-to-notes-sidecar && zip -r ../../../src-tauri/sidecar.zip .
-          name: sidecar-linux
-          path: python/dist/voice-to-notes-sidecar/
-          retention-days: 7
-
-  build-app:
-    name: Build app (Linux)
-    needs: build-sidecar
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Tauri app ──
       - name: Set up Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -64,67 +56,44 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Install system dependencies
         run: |
-          sudo apt-get update
           sudo apt-get install -y libgtk-3-dev libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev libappindicator3-dev librsvg2-dev patchelf xdg-utils
 
-      - name: Download sidecar artifact
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: sidecar-linux
-          path: src-tauri/binaries/
-
-      - name: Make sidecar executable
-        run: chmod +x src-tauri/binaries/voice-to-notes-sidecar-${{ env.TARGET }}
-
       - name: Install npm dependencies
         run: npm ci
 
       - name: Build Tauri app
         run: npm run tauri build
-        env:
-          TAURI_CONFIG: '{"bundle":{"externalBin":["binaries/voice-to-notes-sidecar"]}}'
 
-      - name: Upload artifacts
+      # ── Release ──
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+      - name: Upload to release
-        with:
+        if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main' || startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/tags/v')
-          name: app-linux
-          path: |
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/deb/*.deb
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/appimage/*.AppImage
-          retention-days: 30
-
-  release:
-    name: Release (Linux)
-    needs: build-app
-    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: Install tools
-        run: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y jq curl
-
-      - name: Download artifacts
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: app-linux
-          path: artifacts/
-
-      - name: Create or update release
         env:
           BUILD_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.BUILD_TOKEN }}
         run: |
-          TAG="latest"
+          sudo apt-get install -y jq
           REPO_API="${GITHUB_SERVER_URL}/api/v1/repos/${GITHUB_REPOSITORY}"
 
-          # Check if release exists
+          # Use version tag for tag pushes, "latest" for main
+          if [[ "${GITHUB_REF}" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}"
+            RELEASE_NAME="Voice to Notes ${TAG}"
+            PRERELEASE=false
+          else
+            TAG="latest"
+            RELEASE_NAME="Voice to Notes (Latest Build)"
+            PRERELEASE=true
+          fi
+
+          echo "Release tag: ${TAG}"
+
           RELEASE_ID=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
             "${REPO_API}/releases/tags/${TAG}" | jq -r '.id // empty')
 
           if [ -z "${RELEASE_ID}" ]; then
-            # Create new release
             RELEASE_ID=$(curl -s -X POST \
               -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-              -d "{\"tag_name\": \"${TAG}\", \"name\": \"Voice to Notes (Latest Build)\", \"body\": \"Latest automated build from main branch.\", \"draft\": false, \"prerelease\": true}" \
+              -d "{\"tag_name\": \"${TAG}\", \"name\": \"${RELEASE_NAME}\", \"body\": \"Automated build.\", \"draft\": false, \"prerelease\": ${PRERELEASE}}" \
               "${REPO_API}/releases" | jq -r '.id')
           fi
 
@@ -134,12 +103,11 @@ jobs:
             exit 1
           fi
 
-          # Upload artifacts (delete existing ones with same name first)
+          find src-tauri/target/release/bundle -type f -name "*.deb" | while IFS= read -r file; do
-          find artifacts/ -type f \( -name "*.deb" -o -name "*.AppImage" \) | while read file; do
             filename=$(basename "$file")
-            echo "Uploading ${filename}..."
+            encoded_name=$(echo "$filename" | sed 's/ /%20/g')
+            echo "Uploading ${filename} ($(du -h "$file" | cut -f1))..."
 
-            # Delete existing asset with same name
             ASSET_ID=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets" | jq -r ".[] | select(.name == \"${filename}\") | .id // empty")
             if [ -n "${ASSET_ID}" ]; then
@@ -147,9 +115,10 @@ jobs:
                 "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets/${ASSET_ID}"
             fi
 
-            curl -s -X POST \
+            HTTP_CODE=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" -X POST \
               -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream" \
-              --data-binary "@${file}" \
+              -T "$file" \
-              "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${filename}"
+              "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${encoded_name}")
+            echo "Upload response: HTTP ${HTTP_CODE}"
           done

.gitea/workflows/build-macos.yml

@@ -13,12 +13,13 @@ env:
   TARGET: aarch64-apple-darwin
 
 jobs:
-  build-sidecar:
+  build:
-    name: Build sidecar (macOS)
+    name: Build (macOS)
     runs-on: macos-latest
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Python sidecar ──
       - name: Install uv
         run: |
           if command -v uv &> /dev/null; then
@@ -38,20 +39,11 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: python
         run: uv run --python ${{ env.PYTHON_VERSION }} python build_sidecar.py --cpu-only
 
-      - name: Upload sidecar artifact
+      - name: Package sidecar for Tauri
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+        run: |
-        with:
+          cd python/dist/voice-to-notes-sidecar && zip -r ../../../src-tauri/sidecar.zip .
-          name: sidecar-macos
-          path: python/dist/voice-to-notes-sidecar/
-          retention-days: 7
-
-  build-app:
-    name: Build app (macOS)
-    needs: build-sidecar
-    runs-on: macos-latest
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Tauri app ──
       - name: Set up Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -65,52 +57,33 @@ jobs:
       - name: Install system dependencies
         run: brew install --quiet create-dmg || true
 
-      - name: Download sidecar artifact
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: sidecar-macos
-          path: src-tauri/binaries/
-
-      - name: Make sidecar executable
-        run: chmod +x src-tauri/binaries/voice-to-notes-sidecar-${{ env.TARGET }}
-
       - name: Install npm dependencies
         run: npm ci
 
       - name: Build Tauri app
         run: npm run tauri build
-        env:
-          TAURI_CONFIG: '{"bundle":{"externalBin":["binaries/voice-to-notes-sidecar"]}}'
 
-      - name: Upload artifacts
+      # ── Release ──
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+      - name: Upload to release
-        with:
+        if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main' || startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/tags/v')
-          name: app-macos
-          path: |
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/dmg/*.dmg
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/macos/*.app
-          retention-days: 30
-
-  release:
-    name: Release (macOS)
-    needs: build-app
-    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
-    runs-on: macos-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: Download artifacts
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: app-macos
-          path: artifacts/
-
-      - name: Create or update release
         env:
           BUILD_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.BUILD_TOKEN }}
         run: |
-          TAG="latest"
           REPO_API="${GITHUB_SERVER_URL}/api/v1/repos/${GITHUB_REPOSITORY}"
 
-          # Check if release exists
+          # Use version tag for tag pushes, "latest" for main
+          if [[ "${GITHUB_REF}" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}"
+            RELEASE_NAME="Voice to Notes ${TAG}"
+            PRERELEASE=false
+          else
+            TAG="latest"
+            RELEASE_NAME="Voice to Notes (Latest Build)"
+            PRERELEASE=true
+          fi
+
+          echo "Release tag: ${TAG}"
+
           RELEASE_ID=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
             "${REPO_API}/releases/tags/${TAG}" | jq -r '.id // empty')
 
@@ -118,7 +91,7 @@ jobs:
             RELEASE_ID=$(curl -s -X POST \
               -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-              -d "{\"tag_name\": \"${TAG}\", \"name\": \"Voice to Notes (Latest Build)\", \"body\": \"Latest automated build from main branch.\", \"draft\": false, \"prerelease\": true}" \
+              -d "{\"tag_name\": \"${TAG}\", \"name\": \"${RELEASE_NAME}\", \"body\": \"Automated build.\", \"draft\": false, \"prerelease\": ${PRERELEASE}}" \
               "${REPO_API}/releases" | jq -r '.id')
           fi
 
@@ -128,9 +101,10 @@ jobs:
             exit 1
           fi
 
-          find artifacts/ -type f -name "*.dmg" | while read file; do
+          find src-tauri/target/release/bundle -type f -name "*.dmg" | while IFS= read -r file; do
             filename=$(basename "$file")
-            echo "Uploading ${filename}..."
+            encoded_name=$(echo "$filename" | sed 's/ /%20/g')
+            echo "Uploading ${filename} ($(du -h "$file" | cut -f1))..."
 
             ASSET_ID=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets" | jq -r ".[] | select(.name == \"${filename}\") | .id // empty")
@@ -139,9 +113,10 @@ jobs:
                 "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets/${ASSET_ID}"
             fi
 
-            curl -s -X POST \
+            HTTP_CODE=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" -X POST \
               -H "Authorization: token ${BUILD_TOKEN}" \
               -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream" \
-              --data-binary "@${file}" \
+              -T "$file" \
-              "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${filename}"
+              "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${encoded_name}")
+            echo "Upload response: HTTP ${HTTP_CODE}"
           done

.gitea/workflows/build-windows.yml

@@ -13,12 +13,13 @@ env:
   TARGET: x86_64-pc-windows-msvc
 
 jobs:
-  build-sidecar:
+  build:
-    name: Build sidecar (Windows)
+    name: Build (Windows)
     runs-on: windows-latest
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Python sidecar ──
       - name: Install uv
         shell: powershell
         run: |
@@ -42,20 +43,12 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: python
         run: uv run --python ${{ env.PYTHON_VERSION }} python build_sidecar.py --cpu-only
 
-      - name: Upload sidecar artifact
+      - name: Package sidecar for Tauri
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+        shell: powershell
-        with:
+        run: |
-          name: sidecar-windows
+          Compress-Archive -Path python\dist\voice-to-notes-sidecar\* -DestinationPath src-tauri\sidecar.zip
-          path: python/dist/voice-to-notes-sidecar/
-          retention-days: 7
-
-  build-app:
-    name: Build app (Windows)
-    needs: build-sidecar
-    runs-on: windows-latest
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
+      # ── Tauri app ──
       - name: Set up Node.js
         uses: actions/setup-node@v4
         with:
@@ -72,12 +65,6 @@ jobs:
             echo "$env:USERPROFILE\.cargo\bin" | Out-File -FilePath $env:GITHUB_PATH -Encoding utf8 -Append
           }
 
-      - name: Download sidecar artifact
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: sidecar-windows
-          path: src-tauri/binaries/
-
       - name: Install npm dependencies
         shell: powershell
         run: npm ci
@@ -85,51 +72,41 @@ jobs:
       - name: Build Tauri app
         shell: powershell
         run: npm run tauri build
-        env:
-          TAURI_CONFIG: '{"bundle":{"externalBin":["binaries/voice-to-notes-sidecar"]}}'
 
-      - name: Upload artifacts
+      # ── Release ──
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v3
+      - name: Upload to release
-        with:
+        if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main' || startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/tags/v')
-          name: app-windows
-          path: |
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/msi/*.msi
-            src-tauri/target/release/bundle/nsis/*.exe
-          retention-days: 30
-
-  release:
-    name: Release (Windows)
-    needs: build-app
-    if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
-    runs-on: windows-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: Download artifacts
-        uses: actions/download-artifact@v3
-        with:
-          name: app-windows
-          path: artifacts/
-
-      - name: Create or update release
         shell: powershell
         env:
           BUILD_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.BUILD_TOKEN }}
         run: |
-          $TAG = "latest"
           $REPO_API = "${{ github.server_url }}/api/v1/repos/${{ github.repository }}"
           $Headers = @{ "Authorization" = "token $env:BUILD_TOKEN" }
 
-          # Check if release exists
+          # Use version tag for tag pushes, "latest" for main
+          $REF = "${{ github.ref }}"
+          if ($REF.StartsWith("refs/tags/")) {
+            $TAG = $REF.Replace("refs/tags/", "")
+            $RELEASE_NAME = "Voice to Notes ${TAG}"
+            $PRERELEASE = $false
+          } else {
+            $TAG = "latest"
+            $RELEASE_NAME = "Voice to Notes (Latest Build)"
+            $PRERELEASE = $true
+          }
+
+          Write-Host "Release tag: ${TAG}"
+
           try {
             $release = Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "${REPO_API}/releases/tags/${TAG}" -Headers $Headers -ErrorAction Stop
             $RELEASE_ID = $release.id
           } catch {
-            # Create new release
             $body = @{
               tag_name = $TAG
-              name = "Voice to Notes (Latest Build)"
+              name = $RELEASE_NAME
-              body = "Latest automated build from main branch."
+              body = "Automated build."
               draft = $false
-              prerelease = $true
+              prerelease = $PRERELEASE
             } | ConvertTo-Json
             $release = Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "${REPO_API}/releases" -Method Post -Headers $Headers -ContentType "application/json" -Body $body
             $RELEASE_ID = $release.id
@@ -137,12 +114,12 @@ jobs:
 
           Write-Host "Release ID: ${RELEASE_ID}"
 
-          # Upload artifacts
+          Get-ChildItem -Path src-tauri\target\release\bundle -Recurse -Include *.msi,*-setup.exe | ForEach-Object {
-          Get-ChildItem -Path artifacts -Recurse -Include *.msi,*.exe | ForEach-Object {
             $filename = $_.Name
-            Write-Host "Uploading ${filename}..."
+            $encodedName = [System.Uri]::EscapeDataString($filename)
+            $size = [math]::Round($_.Length / 1MB, 1)
+            Write-Host "Uploading ${filename} (${size} MB)..."
 
-            # Delete existing asset with same name
             try {
               $assets = Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets" -Headers $Headers
               $existing = $assets | Where-Object { $_.name -eq $filename }
@@ -151,8 +128,17 @@ jobs:
               }
             } catch {}
 
-            # Upload
+            # Use curl for streaming upload (Invoke-RestMethod fails on large files)
-            Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${filename}" `
+            $uploadUrl = "${REPO_API}/releases/${RELEASE_ID}/assets?name=${encodedName}"
-              -Method Post -Headers $Headers -ContentType "application/octet-stream" `
+            $result = curl.exe --fail --silent --show-error `
-              -InFile $_.FullName
+              -X POST `
+              -H "Authorization: token $env:BUILD_TOKEN" `
+              -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream" `
+              --data-binary "@$($_.FullName)" `
+              "$uploadUrl" 2>&1
+            if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
+              Write-Host "Upload successful: ${filename}"
+            } else {
+              Write-Host "WARNING: Upload failed for ${filename}: ${result}"
+            }
           }

.gitignore

@@ -50,5 +50,6 @@ Thumbs.db
 # Sidecar build artifacts
 src-tauri/binaries/*
 !src-tauri/binaries/.gitkeep
+src-tauri/sidecar.zip
 python/dist/
 python/build/

package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "voice-to-notes",
-  "version": "0.1.0",
+  "version": "0.2.0",
   "description": "Desktop app for transcribing audio/video with speaker identification",
   "type": "module",
   "scripts": {

python/build_sidecar.py

@@ -236,10 +236,9 @@ def main() -> None:
     python = create_venv_and_install(cpu_only)
     output_dir = run_pyinstaller(python)
     download_ffmpeg(output_dir)
-    rename_binary(output_dir, target_triple)
 
     print(f"\n[build] Done! Sidecar built at: {output_dir}")
-    print(f"[build] Copy contents to src-tauri/binaries/ for Tauri bundling")
+    print(f"[build] Copy directory to src-tauri/sidecar/ for Tauri resource bundling")
 
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":

src-tauri/Cargo.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [package]
 name = "voice-to-notes"
-version = "0.1.0"
+version = "0.2.0"
 description = "Voice to Notes — desktop transcription with speaker identification"
 authors = ["Voice to Notes Contributors"]
 license = "MIT"
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
 serde_json = "1"
 rusqlite = { version = "0.31", features = ["bundled"] }
 uuid = { version = "1", features = ["v4", "serde"] }
+zip = { version = "2", default-features = false, features = ["deflate"] }
 thiserror = "1"
 chrono = { version = "0.4", features = ["serde"] }
 tauri-plugin-dialog = "2.6.0"

src-tauri/build.rs

@@ -1,3 +1,21 @@
 fn main() {
+    // Ensure sidecar.zip exists so tauri-build doesn't fail.
+    // CI replaces this placeholder with the real PyInstaller sidecar archive.
+    let zip_path = std::path::Path::new("sidecar.zip");
+    if !zip_path.exists() {
+        // Minimal valid zip (empty archive): end-of-central-directory record
+        let empty_zip: [u8; 22] = [
+            0x50, 0x4b, 0x05, 0x06, // EOCD signature
+            0x00, 0x00, // disk number
+            0x00, 0x00, // disk with central dir
+            0x00, 0x00, // entries on this disk
+            0x00, 0x00, // total entries
+            0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, // central dir size
+            0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, // central dir offset
+            0x00, 0x00, // comment length
+        ];
+        std::fs::write(zip_path, empty_zip).expect("Failed to create placeholder sidecar.zip");
+    }
+
     tauri_build::build()
 }

src-tauri/src/lib.rs

@@ -27,6 +27,14 @@ pub fn run() {
         .plugin(tauri_plugin_dialog::init())
         .manage(app_state)
         .setup(|app| {
+            // Tell the sidecar manager where Tauri placed bundled resources
+            // and where to extract the sidecar archive
+            if let (Ok(resource_dir), Ok(data_dir)) =
+                (app.path().resource_dir(), app.path().app_local_data_dir())
+            {
+                sidecar::init_dirs(resource_dir, data_dir);
+            }
+
             // Set the webview background to match the app's dark theme
             if let Some(window) = app.get_webview_window("main") {
                 let _ = window.set_background_color(Some(Color(10, 10, 35, 255)));

src-tauri/src/sidecar/mod.rs

@@ -2,11 +2,24 @@ pub mod ipc;
 pub mod messages;
 
 use std::io::{BufRead, BufReader, Write};
+use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
 use std::process::{Child, ChildStdin, Command, Stdio};
 use std::sync::{Mutex, OnceLock};
 
 use crate::sidecar::messages::IPCMessage;
 
+/// Resource directory set by the Tauri app during setup.
+static RESOURCE_DIR: OnceLock<PathBuf> = OnceLock::new();
+/// App data directory for extracting the sidecar archive.
+static DATA_DIR: OnceLock<PathBuf> = OnceLock::new();
+
+/// Initialize directories for sidecar resolution.
+/// Must be called from the Tauri setup before any sidecar operations.
+pub fn init_dirs(resource_dir: PathBuf, data_dir: PathBuf) {
+    RESOURCE_DIR.set(resource_dir).ok();
+    DATA_DIR.set(data_dir).ok();
+}
+
 /// Get the global sidecar manager singleton.
 pub fn sidecar() -> &'static SidecarManager {
     static INSTANCE: OnceLock<SidecarManager> = OnceLock::new();
@@ -41,37 +54,131 @@ impl SidecarManager {
     }
 
     /// Resolve the frozen sidecar binary path (production mode).
-    fn resolve_sidecar_path() -> Result<std::path::PathBuf, String> {
+    ///
-        let exe = std::env::current_exe().map_err(|e| format!("Cannot get current exe: {e}"))?;
+    /// First checks if the sidecar is already extracted to the app data directory.
-        let exe_dir = exe
+    /// If not, looks for `sidecar.zip` in the Tauri resource directory and extracts it.
-            .parent()
+    fn resolve_sidecar_path() -> Result<PathBuf, String> {
-            .ok_or_else(|| "Cannot get exe parent directory".to_string())?;
-
         let binary_name = if cfg!(target_os = "windows") {
             "voice-to-notes-sidecar.exe"
         } else {
             "voice-to-notes-sidecar"
         };
 
-        // Tauri places externalBin next to the app binary
+        // Versioned extraction directory prevents stale sidecar after app updates
-        let path = exe_dir.join(binary_name);
+        let extract_dir = DATA_DIR
-        if path.exists() {
+            .get()
-            return Ok(path);
+            .ok_or("App data directory not initialized")?
+            .join(format!("sidecar-{}", env!("CARGO_PKG_VERSION")));
+
+        let binary_path = extract_dir.join(binary_name);
+
+        // Already extracted — use it directly
+        if binary_path.exists() {
+            return Ok(binary_path);
         }
 
-        // Also check inside a subdirectory (onedir PyInstaller output)
+        // Find sidecar.zip in resource dir or next to exe
-        let subdir_path = exe_dir.join("voice-to-notes-sidecar").join(binary_name);
+        let zip_path = Self::find_sidecar_zip()?;
-        if subdir_path.exists() {
+        Self::extract_zip(&zip_path, &extract_dir)?;
-            return Ok(subdir_path);
+
+        if !binary_path.exists() {
+            return Err(format!(
+                "Sidecar binary not found after extraction at {}",
+                binary_path.display()
+            ));
+        }
+
+        // Make executable on Unix
+        #[cfg(unix)]
+        {
+            use std::os::unix::fs::PermissionsExt;
+            if let Ok(meta) = std::fs::metadata(&binary_path) {
+                let mut perms = meta.permissions();
+                perms.set_mode(0o755);
+                let _ = std::fs::set_permissions(&binary_path, perms);
+            }
+        }
+
+        Ok(binary_path)
+    }
+
+    /// Locate the bundled sidecar.zip archive.
+    fn find_sidecar_zip() -> Result<PathBuf, String> {
+        let mut candidates: Vec<PathBuf> = Vec::new();
+
+        if let Some(resource_dir) = RESOURCE_DIR.get() {
+            candidates.push(resource_dir.join("sidecar.zip"));
+        }
+        if let Ok(exe) = std::env::current_exe() {
+            if let Some(exe_dir) = exe.parent() {
+                candidates.push(exe_dir.join("sidecar.zip"));
+            }
+        }
+
+        for path in &candidates {
+            if path.exists() {
+                return Ok(path.clone());
+            }
         }
 
         Err(format!(
-            "Sidecar binary not found. Looked for:\n  {}\n  {}",
+            "Sidecar archive not found. Checked:\n{}",
-            path.display(),
+            candidates
-            subdir_path.display(),
+                .iter()
+                .map(|p| format!("  {}", p.display()))
+                .collect::<Vec<_>>()
+                .join("\n"),
         ))
     }
 
+    /// Extract a zip archive to the given directory.
+    fn extract_zip(zip_path: &Path, dest: &Path) -> Result<(), String> {
+        eprintln!(
+            "[sidecar-rs] Extracting sidecar from {} to {}",
+            zip_path.display(),
+            dest.display()
+        );
+
+        // Clean destination so we don't mix old and new files
+        if dest.exists() {
+            std::fs::remove_dir_all(dest)
+                .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to clean extraction dir: {e}"))?;
+        }
+        std::fs::create_dir_all(dest)
+            .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to create extraction dir: {e}"))?;
+
+        let file =
+            std::fs::File::open(zip_path).map_err(|e| format!("Cannot open sidecar zip: {e}"))?;
+        let mut archive =
+            zip::ZipArchive::new(file).map_err(|e| format!("Invalid sidecar zip: {e}"))?;
+
+        for i in 0..archive.len() {
+            let mut entry = archive
+                .by_index(i)
+                .map_err(|e| format!("Zip entry error: {e}"))?;
+
+            let name = entry.name().to_string();
+            let outpath = dest.join(&name);
+
+            if entry.is_dir() {
+                std::fs::create_dir_all(&outpath)
+                    .map_err(|e| format!("Cannot create dir {}: {e}", outpath.display()))?;
+            } else {
+                if let Some(parent) = outpath.parent() {
+                    std::fs::create_dir_all(parent)
+                        .map_err(|e| format!("Cannot create dir {}: {e}", parent.display()))?;
+                }
+                let mut outfile = std::fs::File::create(&outpath)
+                    .map_err(|e| format!("Cannot create {}: {e}", outpath.display()))?;
+                std::io::copy(&mut entry, &mut outfile)
+                    .map_err(|e| format!("Write error for {}: {e}", name))?;
+            }
+        }
+
+        eprintln!("[sidecar-rs] Sidecar extracted successfully");
+        Ok(())
+    }
+
     /// Find a working Python command for the current platform.
     fn find_python_command() -> &'static str {
         if cfg!(target_os = "windows") {
@@ -114,15 +221,8 @@ impl SidecarManager {
         if Self::is_dev_mode() {
             self.start_python_dev()
         } else {
-            match Self::resolve_sidecar_path() {
+            let path = Self::resolve_sidecar_path()?;
-                Ok(path) => self.start_binary(&path),
+            self.start_binary(&path)
-                Err(e) => {
-                    eprintln!(
-                        "[sidecar-rs] Frozen binary not found ({e}), falling back to dev mode"
-                    );
-                    self.start_python_dev()
-                }
-            }
         }
     }
 

src-tauri/tauri.conf.json

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "$schema": "https://schema.tauri.app/config/2",
   "productName": "Voice to Notes",
-  "version": "0.1.0",
+  "version": "0.2.0",
   "identifier": "com.voicetonotes.app",
   "build": {
     "beforeDevCommand": "npm run dev",
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
   },
   "bundle": {
     "active": true,
-    "targets": "all",
+    "targets": ["deb", "nsis", "msi", "dmg"],
     "icon": [
       "icons/32x32.png",
       "icons/128x128.png",
@@ -42,14 +42,12 @@
     "category": "Utility",
     "shortDescription": "Transcribe audio/video with speaker identification",
     "longDescription": "Voice to Notes is a desktop application that transcribes audio and video recordings with speaker identification, synchronized playback, and AI-powered analysis. Export to SRT, WebVTT, ASS captions, or plain text.",
+    "resources": ["sidecar.zip"],
     "copyright": "Voice to Notes Contributors",
     "license": "MIT",
     "linux": {
       "deb": {
         "depends": []
-      },
-      "appimage": {
-        "bundleMediaFramework": true
       }
     },
     "windows": {