Flatpak

Table of contents

  1. Overview
  2. Install Flatpak
  3. How to use it
  4. Remove Flatpak

Overview

Flatpak is an open-source software utility that provides a sandboxed environment for distributing and running Linux applications.

Install Flatpak

  • Make sure Tails Autostart utility has been installed. See Tails Autostart.

  • Open a Terminal window: choose Applications ▸ Utilities ▸ Terminal

  • Clone Run-on-Tails GitHub repository: 
    $ cd ~/Downloads
$ git clone https://github.com/dutu/run-on-tails.git
  • Install flatpak software package: 
    $ sudo apt update
$ sudo apt install flatpak
    • Click Install Every Time, when Tails asks if you want to add flatpak to your additional software.
  • Configure persistence for flatpak applications: 
    $ chmod +x ./run-on-tails/flatpak/config-persistence.sh 
$ ./run-on-tails/flatpak/config-persistence.sh
    • Wait for the message Flatpak installation setup completed successfully.

How to use it

Flatpak is now installed and flatpak applications can be added with flatpak install.

You can launch your Flatpak application from the GNOME desktop using a menu item, which is represented by a .desktop file.

While flatpak install does generate a .desktop file, its location, along with the Icon and Exec fields, must be adjusted to ensure compatibility with Tails OS. This necessity stems from:

  • The unique architecture of Tails OS: It doesn’t define the XDG_DATA_DIRS environment variable, causing the Flatpak share directory (where the .desktop and icon files reside) to be omitted from the GNOME search path.
  • Tails OS’s practice of reinstalling additional software packages after each reboot, which takes a few minutes: This process inhibits the GNOME desktop from locating the flatpak run (command specified in the .desktop file) post-reboot, resulting in the .desktop file being overlooked.

By relocating the .desktop file to the appropriate directory and adjusting the Icon and Exec entries, the system will be able to display the correct menu item to launch your application.

We’ve developed three utilities to simplify these tasks:

  • flatpak-menu-item-copy.sh identifies the application’s .desktop file and copies it to the right location in persistent storage.
    The source .desktop file is first searched for in the persistent application directory and, if not found, in the Flatpak shared directory.
  • flatpak-menu-item-update-icon.sh finds the application’s icon file and updates the Icon entry with its path.
    The icon file is primarily searched for in the persistent application directory and, if not found, in the Flatpak shared directory.
  • flatpak-menu-item-update-exec.sh updates the Exec entry to point to flatpak-run.sh.
    This script creates the flatpak-run.sh script that launches the application based on the original .desktop file’s Exec entry.

Remove Flatpak

  • Open a Terminal window: choose Applications ▸ Utilities ▸ Terminal

  • Remove persistent configuration: 
    $ dotfiles_dir="/live/persistence/TailsData_unlocked/dotfiles"
$ rm $dotfiles_dir/.config/autostart/amnesia.d/flatpak-setup-persistent-apps.sh
$ persistence_dir="/home/amnesia/Persistent"
$ rm -fr $persistence_dir/flatpak/utils
  • Remove flatpak package: 
    $ sudo apt remove flatpak