Electron Auto-Update Patterns

Quick Guide: Use electron-updater (from electron-builder) for cross-platform auto-updates. It supports macOS (DMG), Windows (NSIS), and Linux (AppImage/DEB/RPM). Configure a provider (GitHub, S3, generic server) in your electron-builder config. The updater emits lifecycle events: checking-for-update -> update-available -> download-progress -> update-downloaded. Set autoDownload: false for manual download control. Use channels (latest/beta/alpha) for staged releases and stagingPercentage for gradual rollouts. Code signing is mandatory on macOS and strongly recommended on Windows.

<critical_requirements>

CRITICAL: Before Using This Skill

All code must follow project conventions in CLAUDE.md (kebab-case, named exports, import ordering, import type, named constants)

(You MUST guard update checks with app.isPackaged -- calling checkForUpdates() in development causes confusing errors and network calls to non-existent endpoints)

(You MUST handle the error event on the updater -- unhandled update errors crash the main process)

(You MUST code-sign macOS builds -- unsigned apps cannot auto-update and the updater silently fails)

(You MUST NOT call quitAndInstall() without confirming the user's intent -- forcing a restart mid-work causes data loss)