Packet

A partial implementation of Google's Quick Share protocol that lets you send and receive files wirelessly from Android devices using Quick Share, or another device with Packet.

Installation

Nightly

Nightly Flatpak builds are available from here.

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Third-party packages are also available on the AUR and nixpkgs.

Requirements

Since only the Wi-Fi LAN medium is implemented, Packet requires Bluetooth to be enabled and the devices to be connected to a Wi-Fi network with mDNS.

Translations

Weblate is no longer available as the project was permanently deleted (#116), but you can still contribute translations locally:

1. Edit an existing translation in po/ (sync it with po/packet.pot using your editor's "Update from POT" feature if needed), or create a new one from the template using a gettext PO editor such as Poedit or Gtranslator.
2. Submit your changes by opening a Pull Request, or attach the .po file in a new issue and it will be committed on your behalf.

FAQ

Can't send to app from other devices

Your firewall may be blocking Packet's port. Enable Static Port in Preferences and allow it through the firewall. See issue #35.

"Couldn't open files"

This error occurs if the file is invalid (e.g. empty) or, on Flatpak, if you're sending files (via the Nautilus plugin) from a location Packet can't access.

Consider granting "All system files" access via Flatseal to allow sending from any location. See Downloads folder keeps resetting for details.

Downloads folder keeps resetting

In Flatpak, folder access is temporary and resets after a session restart because static access can't be requested. To set a permanent downloads folder, grant access in advance using Flatseal or run:

flatpak override --user io.github.nozwock.Packet --filesystem='/path/to/your/folder/here'

Plugin Requirements

To use the Nautilus plugin, install the required packages:

• Ubuntu/Debian:
  sudo apt install python3-dbus python3-nautilus
• Fedora:
  sudo dnf install python3-dbus nautilus-python
• Arch:
  sudo pacman -S python-dbus nautilus-python
• Fedora Silverblue (rpm-ostree):
  rpm-ostree install python3-dbus nautilus-python

Building

See CONTRIBUTING.md for instructions on how to build, and run the project.

D-Bus API

Packet exposes a session D-Bus interface for external integrations (e.g. desktop extensions, scripts), currently providing read-only configured device name and read/write device visibility:

• Service: io.github.nozwock.Packet.Api
• Object Path: /io/github/nozwock/Packet
• Interface: io.github.nozwock.Packet1

The interface can be introspected from a running instance of Packet using tools like D-spy.

Acknowledgments

• Dominik Baran for creating the icon and working on the app's design.
• NearDrop for reverse-engineering the closed-source Quick Share implementation in Android's GMS.
• rquickshare for their internal Rust implementation of the Quick Share protocol.

Code of Conduct

Packet follows the GNOME Code of Conduct.