cURL Drop Companion

macOS companion application (Platypus with z-shell script) for curldropto share files on your Mac with other users in the local network or over the internet via direct download links.

Why? Because AirDrop only works between Apple devices, and few people have installed wormhole or SyncThing.

CDC is meant as an ad-hoc sharing solution, i.e. to only launch the curldrop sharing server when you actually want to share files with someone, and then stop the server again. However, you have the option to persist the curldrop server for either local or local & remote sharing using the CDC startup configuration. If you are looking for your own permanent solution to keep the sharing server running, you should persist curldrop by default at log-in, e.g. with a macOS LaunchAgent. (See below for full persistence.)

Note: the current release is at v1.0.3, but it has not been tested thoroughly, and only on macOS 11.2 (Big Sur).

Requisites

curldrop (install with python3 using pip3)
detox (install e.g. with Homebrew)
imagemagick (install e.g. with Homebrew)
miniupnpc (install e.g. with Homebrew)
python3 (install e.g. with Xcode, the Apple Command Line Tools, or Homebrew etc.)
qrencode (install e.g. with Homebrew)

Optional dependencies

sendEmail (install e.g. with Homebrew)
terminal-share (install with ruby using gem)

Install

Download the DMG of the latest release
dequarantine
copy app into any of your applications folders
double-click the workflow to install the Finder Quick Action

Setup

TCC

allow app to control your Mac (you might be asked several times)
allow notifications

Configuration

configure the basic network, sharing & persistence settings
optional: configure sendEmail settings (enter admin password to store credentials in your keychain)

Functionality

select files for sharing or send files to CDC (Finder Quick Action included)
select local or remote sharing
curldrop server will be started on localhost using the relevant ports (by default 8000 for local network sharing & 4747 for remote sharing)
the remote sharing port will be automatically opened as a redirect on your router/AP; if the router/AP is not supported or accessible, then you can only share files locally
file sharing information (domain-based download link, IP-based download link, file size, file hash) will always be copied to the pasteboard and written to an info file into the user-defined curldrop sharing folder
file information (together with QR code based on the sharing URL) can be shared using the following options:

Sharing options

sendEmail (background e-mail service)
new message in Apple Mail
new message in Apple Messages
QR code display
print

Notes

leave the curldrop server running until the shared files have been downloaded
stop the server (and if necessary close the redirect ports on your router/AP) by launching CDC without input and choosing "Clear Server" from the startup options
you can persist the curldrop server independent of any of CDC's persistence settings by touching a .persist dotfile in your curldrop sharing directory
if you start your curldrop server externally, e.g. with a LaunchAgent, you must ensure that CDC's network settings are in accordance
a verbose log file is written to /tmp/local.lcars.cURLDropCompanion.log

Known bugs

Sometimes the curldrop server will simply stop for unknown reasons immediately after CDC ends, so I assume it has something to do with the latter. An attempt to fix this by adding a sleep time of 3 seconds after a successful share was added in v1.0.4.

To-do

—

Uninstall

delete the main application and the user-defined curldrop sharing folder
delete the cURL Drop Companion keychain entry containing the sendEmail credentials
delete ~/Library/Caches/local.lcars.cURLDropCompanion
delete ~/Library/Preferences/local.lcars.cURLDropCompanion.plist
delete ~/Library/Services/cURL Drop Companion.workflow

JayBrown / cURL-Drop-Companion