The Web profile of DeepSeek Harness (DSH) relies on local services to run. In a Windows environment, starting these services and opening a browser usually requires terminal commands. The plugin system of DeepSeek Harness supports extensibility. The dsh-whale-desktop-launcher plugin addresses this pain point by creating a desktop shortcut that automatically starts the service in the background and opens the UI in Chromium application mode.

This is a Windows desktop launcher plugin maintained by 0QwQ0. It generates a DeepSeek Harness.exe on the desktop with a whale icon (whale-girl). When the icon is clicked, the plugin starts the DSH Web service in the background and opens a compact desktop window without tabs or toolbars using Chromium’s --app mode.

Core Features

  1. One-click launch and reconnect: Start or reconnect to dsh web without opening a terminal.
  2. Floating progress window: During startup, a floating window is displayed to show each stage (check service, start server, wait for readiness, open UI).
  3. System tray control: While running, a tray icon remains in the system tray. Hover to view the status, double-click to open the UI, and use the menu to restart the service or exit (exit stops the DSH service).
  4. Single-instance mode: If the desktop icon is double-clicked again while the program is running, only the UI window is reopened; the service is not started again.
  5. Chromium application mode: Provides a window experience similar to a native application.
  6. Resource bundling: Bundled with a whale-girl PNG and multi-resolution ICO icons.
  7. Parameter capture: When activated, it captures the current DSH executable path, arguments, and working directory, ensuring that npm checkout and source checks work correctly.
  8. Reuse existing service: If a healthy service is already running on the port, the plugin reuses it instead of starting a new instance.
  9. Readiness detection: It recognizes the dsh-ui-auth login page as a sign that the service is ready, and automatically handles redirects for unauthenticated requests.
  10. Automatic upgrade: During an upgrade, the old DeepSeek Harness.exe on the desktop is replaced.

Installation and Enablement

  1. Use the following command to install the plugin into the Web profile:
    dsh plugin --profile web add github:0QwQ0/dsh-whale-desktop-launcher#v0.3.0
  1. After installation, restart dsh web once so the plugin can be activated and write its configuration.

Typical Usage

After installation and service restart, DeepSeek Harness.exe appears on the desktop. Double-click the icon to launch the UI.

Notes and Use Cases

  • Environment requirements: Requires Windows 10 or 11. Requires Node.js 22.19 or higher. Requires the DSH Web profile to be installed. Requires Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome.
  • License: The whale-girl artwork uses the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license (non-commercial use only). The source code uses the MIT license.
  • Uninstall behavior: Uninstalling the plugin does not delete the DeepSeek Harness.exe file on the desktop; it must be deleted manually.
  • Lifecycle scripts: The preinstall, install, postinstall, or prepare scripts are not run during installation.
  • Use case: Suitable for developers who need quick access to the DSH Web interface from the Windows desktop, especially users who prefer Chromium application mode over standard browser tabs.

Conclusion

This plugin encapsulates the underlying service startup logic, lowering the barrier to using DSH on Windows and providing an operation experience similar to a native application.