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Electron App Extractor

Unpacks an installed Electron desktop app and recovers its readable source code

Source Download skill
Repository
JimLiu/baoyu-skills
Stars
27,191
Licence
MIT
Files
3 files

What it does

Electron is the framework many desktop apps (like Slack, VS Code, or Discord) are built with, and their code ships inside an app.asar bundle. When this skill is installed, the agent can find that bundle on your computer, unpack it, and rebuild readable source files when the app includes source maps; otherwise it formats the minified JavaScript so it is easier to read. Results go to a folder in your Downloads directory by default.

Great for

  • Developers who want to see how a desktop Electron app is structured
  • Students or researchers studying how popular desktop apps are built
  • People auditing what code an installed app actually contains

Skip it if

  • Copying or redistributing proprietary app code, which may breach the app's licence or terms of service
  • Apps you do not have a legitimate reason to inspect, since the output is the app's full code and may expose internal logic or embedded secrets

Try asking

  • “Extract the Electron app Obsidian and show me its source structure”
  • “Inspect app.asar for /Applications/Slack.app and tell me what the main process does”
  • “Get the source code of Notion from my installed copy”
  • “Run a dry-run to find where the VS Code bundle is before extracting it”
Step-by-step guide: how to use Electron App ExtractorInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs

Install in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Download the skill

    The ZIP contains the 3 original files, the MIT licence and an attribution note.

    baoyu-electron-extract.zip
  2. 2

    Add it to your agent

    Claude Code (all projects)

    mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && unzip baoyu-electron-extract.zip -d ~/.claude/skills/

    Claude Code / Agent SDK (this project only)

    mkdir -p .claude/skills && unzip baoyu-electron-extract.zip -d .claude/skills/

    Claude apps (web/desktop): Settings → Capabilities → Skills → Upload skill, and choose the ZIP.

  3. 3

    Ask for the task

    No special command needed — the agent reads the skill's description and loads it when your request matches. Try one of the prompts above.

Get better results

  • Run with --dry-run first to confirm the agent found the correct app bundle before extracting
  • Read the restored/ folder first when it exists, since it contains reconstructed original sources
  • Use --output to choose a custom location if you do not want files in Downloads

What's inside

  • scripts/main.test.ts
  • scripts/main.ts
  • SKILL.md

Redistributed unmodified from JimLiu/baoyu-skills under the MIT licence. The assessment was drafted with AI from the skill's files on 2026-10-29. Skills can instruct your agent to run code — read SKILL.md and any scripts before installing.