Bug 441428 - Ability to easily install in homedir rather than systemwide
Summary: Ability to easily install in homedir rather than systemwide
Status: CONFIRMED
Alias: None
Product: Discover
Classification: Applications
Component: Flatpak Backend (show other bugs)
Version: 5.22.4
Platform: Other Linux
: NOR wishlist
Target Milestone: ---
Assignee: Dan Leinir Turthra Jensen
URL:
Keywords: usability
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2021-08-23 13:49 UTC by Emanuele
Modified: 2024-07-09 19:06 UTC (History)
5 users (show)

See Also:
Latest Commit:
Version Fixed In:
Sentry Crash Report:


Attachments
screenshot (104.03 KB, image/png)
2021-08-23 13:49 UTC, Emanuele
Details
GNOME Software (25.28 KB, image/png)
2021-08-31 23:01 UTC, Emanuele
Details

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Description Emanuele 2021-08-23 13:49:41 UTC
Created attachment 140977 [details]
screenshot

SUMMARY
When I install an application from plasma discover, source flathub, I have to be able to choose whether to install it with the "user" or "system" flags, at the moment plasma discover does not give me this information.

When I install from CLI, flatpak gives me the choice:
emanu@desktop ~> flatpak install ktorrent
Looking for matches…
Remotes found with refs similar to ‘ktorrent’:

   1) ‘flathub’ (system)
   2) ‘flathub’ (user)

Which do you want to use (0 to abort)? [0-2]: 

I hope to be of help in improving the KDE software and thanks for the work you do.
Comment 1 Nate Graham 2021-08-23 18:56:15 UTC

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of bug 405968 ***
Comment 2 Aleix Pol 2021-08-31 22:23:45 UTC
I'm not sure it's a duplicate. The duplicate Emanuele already showed in a separate bug report.

At the moment he is requesting wishes to be able to install as a user rather than system-wide. I'd like to understand a bit more what is the reasoning behind so we can implement it properly. I would not want to just add a dialog having the user decide, as it's not something I've ever seen anyone caring about.
Comment 3 Nate Graham 2021-08-31 22:35:54 UTC
I don't think we should ask for every Flatpak. Maybe it could be a persistent setting in the settings window.
Comment 4 Emanuele 2021-08-31 23:01:26 UTC
Created attachment 141202 [details]
GNOME Software
Comment 5 Emanuele 2021-08-31 23:02:31 UTC
The problem I'm having is that it doesn't show if I'm installing from flathub "system" or flathub "user", like on GNOME Software.

Normally "user" is not enabled and therefore it is not shown even by the CLI, only if set with the "- user" flag, and from that moment it is always shown.
The reasons for enabling it for a user are:
- Multi user system, install the application only on my user
- Separate house, with more space available
- Test an application
Flatpak manual details: https://docs.flatpak.org/en/latest/using-flatpak.html#system-versus-user

My use case is the ltest of some applications on uflathub, for example: https://github.com/flathub/flathub/pull/2489#issuecomment-909526528

Showing a setting on the GUI to be able to enable and choose the "user" installation would be an improvement.
Comment 6 WS 2022-01-31 02:27:31 UTC
Yeah, I'm also requesting this.

My arguments for this are:

— On multi-user system, this allows the installation of packages for only the current user, not everything should be accessible for every user.
— This should also prevent Discover asking for root, so not every user should need access or permission to install an app.
— If you have /home as a mounted partition, you could take all your Apps with you to your next distro
— The root partition could be significantly smaller than the /home partition, without the user needing to take as much care to not fill /root with junk
— Immutable Systems might become the future for one to two dot users, I'm unsure how Fedora Kinoite is handling this with Discover, but adding the option right now might simplify necessary work in the future