# Electron IPC Communication {#electron-ipc-communication}


Inter-process communication between Electron main and renderer processes.


## Overview {#overview}


The Gauzy desktop app uses Electron's IPC (Inter-Process Communication) for:

- Timer controls from renderer → main
- Screenshot capture from main → renderer
- Activity data collection
- Settings synchronization


## Architecture {#architecture}






```mermaid
graph TB
    subgraph Renderer Process
        UI[Angular UI]
    end

    subgraph Main Process
        IPC[IPC Handlers]
        Timer[Timer Service]
        Screenshot[Screenshot Service]
        DB[Local Database]
    end

    UI -->|ipcRenderer.send| IPC
    IPC -->|ipcMain.handle| Timer
    IPC --> Screenshot
    IPC --> DB
    Timer -->|BrowserWindow.send| UI
```






## Common IPC Channels {#common-ipc-channels}


| Channel            | Direction       | Description         |
| ------------------ | --------------- | ------------------- |
| `timer:start`      | Renderer → Main | Start timer         |
| `timer:stop`       | Renderer → Main | Stop timer          |
| `timer:status`     | Main → Renderer | Timer state update  |
| `screenshot:taken` | Main → Renderer | Screenshot captured |
| `settings:update`  | Both            | Settings changed    |
| `app:minimize`     | Renderer → Main | Minimize to tray    |


## Renderer → Main {#renderer--main}


```typescript
// In Angular component/service
const { ipcRenderer } = window.require("electron");

ipcRenderer.send("timer:start", {
  projectId: "uuid",
  taskId: "uuid",
});

ipcRenderer.on("timer:status", (event, data) => {
  // Update UI with timer state
});
```


## Main → Renderer {#main--renderer}


```typescript
// In Electron main process
ipcMain.on("timer:start", (event, data) => {
  timerService.start(data);
  // Send status back
  mainWindow.webContents.send("timer:status", { running: true });
});
```


## Related Pages {#related-pages}


- [Desktop Overview](https://sourcey-gauzy.pages.dev/desktop/desktop-overview/index.md) — desktop guide
- [Desktop Server Mode](https://sourcey-gauzy.pages.dev/desktop/desktop-server-mode/index.md) — embedded server