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# Marlin – Metadata‑Driven File Explorer
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*Version 2 – 12 May 2025*
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---
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## 1 Key Features & Functionality
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| Feature Area | Capabilities |
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| ----------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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| **Tagging System** | • Unlimited, hierarchical or flat tags.<br>• Alias/synonym support with precedence rules (admin‑defined canonical name).<br>• **Bulk tag editing** via multi‑select context menu.<br>• Folder‑to‑Tag import with optional *watch & sync* mode so new sub‑folders inherit tags automatically. |
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| **Custom Metadata Attributes** | • User‑defined fields (text, number, date, enum, boolean).<br>• Per‑template **Custom Metadata Schemas** (e.g. *Photo* → *Date, Location*). |
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| **File Relationships** | • Typed, directional or bidirectional links (*related to*, *duplicate of*, *cites*…).<br>• Plugin API can register new relationship sets. |
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| **Version Control for Metadata** | • Every change logged; unlimited roll‑back.<br>• Side‑by‑side diff viewer and *blame* panel showing *who/when/what*.<br>• Offline edits stored locally and merged (Git‑style optimistic merge with conflict prompts). |
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| **Advanced Search & Smart Folders** | • Structured query syntax: `tag:ProjectX AND author:Alice`.<br>• Natural‑language search (*"files Alice edited last month"*) with toggle to exact mode.<br>• Visual Query Builder showing live query string.<br>• Saved queries appear as virtual “smart folders” that update in real‑time. |
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| **User Interface** | • Sidebar: tags, attributes, relationships.<br>• Drag‑and‑drop tagging; inline metadata editor.<br>• Search bar with auto‑complete (Bloom filter backed).<br>• **Dual View Mode** – metadata vs traditional folder; remembers preference per location.<br>• **Interactive 60‑second tour** on first launch plus contextual tooltip help. |
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| **Collaboration** | • Real‑time metadata sync across devices via cloud or self‑hosted relay.<br>• Conflict handling as per Version Control.<br>• Role‑based permissions (read / write / admin) on tags & attributes. |
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| **Performance & Scale** | • Sharded/distributed index optional for >1 M files.<br>• Query cache with LRU eviction.<br>• Target metrics (100 k files): cold start ≤ 3 s, complex query ≤ 150 ms (stretch 50 ms). |
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| **Backup & Restore** | • Scheduled encrypted backups; export to JSON / XML.<br>• One‑click restore from any point‑in‑time snapshot. |
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| **Extensibility** | • Plug‑in system (TypeScript/JS) – see §2.4.<br>• Python scripting hook for automation and batch tasks.<br>• REST/IPC API for external tools. |
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---
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## 2 Technical Implementation
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### 2.1 Core Stack
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| Component | Primary Choice | Notes |
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| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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| File Manager | **Dolphin (KDE)** KIO‑based plug‑ins | GTK users can install a Nautilus extension (feature‑parity subset). |
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| Metadata Store | **SQLite + FTS5** (single‑user) → optional **LiteFS/Postgres** for replication & multi‑user scale. | Per‑row AES‑GCM encryption for sensitive fields; keys stored in OS keyring. |
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| Indexer Daemon | Rust service using `notify` (inotify on Linux, FSEvents on macOS). | 100 ms debounce batches, async SQLite writes. |
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| Cache | In‑memory LRU + Bloom filter for auto‑complete. | |
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### 2.2 Database Schema (simplified)
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```text
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files(id PK, path, inode, size, mtime, ctime, hash)
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tags(id PK, name, parent_id, canonical_id)
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file_tags(file_id FK, tag_id FK)
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attributes(id PK, file_id FK, key, value, value_type)
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relationships(id PK, src_file_id FK, dst_file_id FK, rel_type, direction)
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change_log(change_id PK, object_table, object_id, op, actor, ts, payload_json)
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```
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### 2.3 Sync & Conflict Resolution
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1. Each client appends to **change\_log** (CRDT‑compatible delta).
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2. Delta sync via WebSocket; server merges and re‑broadcasts.
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3. Conflicts → *Conflict Queue* UI (choose theirs / mine / merge).
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### 2.4 Plugin API (TypeScript)
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```ts
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export interface MarlinPlugin {
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onInit(ctx: CoreContext): void;
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extendSchema?(db: Database): void; // e.g. add new relationship table
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addCommands?(ui: UIContext): void; // register menus, actions
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}
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```
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Plugins run in a sandboxed process with whitelisted IPC calls.
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---
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## 3 UX & Accessibility
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* **Keyboard‑only workflow** audit (Tab / Shift‑Tab / Space toggles).
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* High‑contrast theme; adheres to WCAG 2.1 AA.
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* `Ctrl+Alt+V` toggles Dual View.
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* Generated query string shown live under Visual Builder – educates power users.
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---
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## 4 Performance Budget
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| Metric | MVP | Stretch |
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| ------------------------ | --------- | ---------- |
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| Cold start (100 k files) | ≤ 3 s | 1 s |
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| Complex AND/OR query | ≤ 150 ms | 50 ms |
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| Sustained inserts | 5 k ops/s | 20 k ops/s |
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Benchmarks run nightly; regressions block merge.
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---
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## 5 Security & Privacy
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* **Role‑based ACL** on tags/attributes.
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* Per‑change audit trail; logs rotated to cold storage (≥ 90 days online).
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* Plugins confined by seccomp/AppArmor; no direct disk/network unless declared.
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---
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## 6 Packaging & Distribution
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* **Flatpak** (GNOME/KDE) and **AppImage** for portable builds.
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* Background service runs as a systemd user unit: `--user marlin-indexerd.service`.
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* CLI (`marlin-cli`) packaged for headless servers & CI.
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---
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## 7 Roadmap
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| Milestone | Scope | Timeline |
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| --------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------- |
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| **M1** | Tagging, attributes, virtual folders, SQLite, Dolphin plug‑in | 6 weeks |
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| **M2** | Sync service, version control, CLI | +6 weeks |
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| **M3** | NLP search, Visual Builder, distributed index prototype | +6 weeks |
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| **M4** | Plugin marketplace, enterprise auth (LDAP/OIDC), mobile companion (view‑only) | +8 weeks |
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---
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## 8 Branding
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* **Name**: **Marlin** – fast, precise.
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* Icon: stylised sailfish fin forming a folder corner.
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* Tagline: *“Cut through clutter.”*
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* Domain: `marlin‑explorer.io` (availability checked 2025‑05‑12).
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---
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## 9 Quick‑Win Checklist (Sprint 0)
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* [ ] Implement bulk metadata editor UI
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* [ ] Write conflict‑resolution spec & unit tests
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* [ ] Build diff viewer prototype
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* [ ] Keyboard‑only navigation audit
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* [ ] Establish performance CI with sample 100 k file corpus
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---
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---
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## 10 Development Plan (Outline)
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### 10.1 Process & Methodology
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* **Framework** – 2‑week Scrum sprints with Jira backlog, GitHub Projects mirror for public issues.
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* **Branching** – Trunk‑based: feature branches → PR → required CI & code‑review approvals (2).*Main* auto‑deploys nightly Flatpak.
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* **Definition of Done** – Code + unit tests + docs + passing CI + demo video (for UI work).
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* **CI/CD** – GitHub Actions matrix (Ubuntu 22.04, KDE Neon, Fedora 39) → Flatpak / AppImage artefacts, `cargo clippy`, coverage gate ≥ 85 %.
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### 10.2 Team & Roles (FTE‑equivalent)
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| Role | Core Skills | Allocation |
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| ----------------------------- | -------------------------------- | ---------- |
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| Lead Engineer | Rust, Qt/Kirigami, KIO | 1.0 |
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| Backend Engineer | Rust, LiteFS/Postgres, WebSocket | 1.0 |
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| Full‑stack / Plug‑in Engineer | TypeScript, Node, IPC | 0.8 |
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| UX / QA | Figma, accessibility, Playwright | 0.5 |
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| DevOps (fractional) | CI, Flatpak, security hardening | 0.2 |
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### 10.3 Roadmap → Sprint‑level Tasks
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| Sprint | Goal | Key Tasks | Exit Criteria |
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| ---------------------- | -------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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| **S0 (2 wks)** | Project bootstrap | • Repo + CI skeleton<br>• SQLite schema + migrations<br>• `marlin-cli init` & basic scan<br>• Hyperfine perf baseline | CLI scans dir; tests pass; artefact builds |
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| **S1–3 (M1, 6 wks)** | Tagging + virtual folders MVP | • Indexer daemon in Rust<br>• CRUD tags/attributes via CLI & DB<br>• Dolphin plug‑in: sidebar + tag view<br>• KIO `tags://` virtual folder<br>• Bulk‑edit dialog | 100 k‑file corpus cold‑start ≤ 3 s; user can tag files & navigate `tags://Urgent` |
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| **S4–6 (M2, 6 wks)** | Sync & version control | • Change‑log table + diff viewer<br>• LiteFS replication PoC<br>• WebSocket delta sync<br>• Conflict queue UI + last‑write‑wins fallback | Two devices sync metadata in <1 s round‑trip; rollback works |
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| **S7–9 (M3, 6 wks)** | NLP search & Visual Builder | • Integrate Tantivy FTS + ONNX intent model<br>• Toggle exact vs natural search<br>• QML Visual Builder with live query string | NL query "docs Alice edited last week" returns expected set in ≤ 300 ms |
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| **S10–13 (M4, 8 wks)** | Plug‑in marketplace & mobile companion | • IPC sandbox + manifest spec<br>• Sample plug‑ins (image EXIF auto‑tagger)<br>• Flutter read‑only client<br>• LDAP/OIDC enterprise auth | First external plug‑in published; mobile app lists smart folders |
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### 10.4 Tooling & Infrastructure
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* **Issue tracking** – Jira → labels `component/indexer`, `component/ui`.
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* **Docs** – mkdocs‑material hosted on GitHub Pages; automatic diagram generation via `cargo doc` + Mermaid.
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* **Nightly Perf Benchmarks** – Run in CI against 10 k, 100 k, 1 M synthetic corpora; fail build if P95 query > target.
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* **Security** – Dependabot, Trivy scans, optional SLSA level 2 provenance for releases.
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### 10.5 Risks & Mitigations
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| Risk | Impact | Mitigation |
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| ------------------------------ | ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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| CRDT complexity | Delays M2 | Ship LWW first; schedule CRDT refactor post‑launch |
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| File system event overflow | Index corruption | Debounce & auto‑fallback to full rescan; alert user |
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| Cross‑distro packaging pain | Adoption drops | Stick to Flatpak; AppImage only for power users; collect telemetry (opt‑in) |
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| Scaling >1 M files on slow HDD | Perf complaints | Offer "index on SSD" wizard; tune FTS page cache |
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### 10.6 Budget & Timeline Snapshot
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* **Total dev time** ≈ 30 weeks.
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* **Buffer** +10 % (3 weeks) for holidays & unknowns → **33 weeks** (\~8 months).
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* **Rough budget** (3 FTE avg × 33 wks × \$150 k/yr) ≈ **\$285 k** payroll + \$15 k ops / tooling.
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---
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