Check this computer — local tools — Synaplan Desktop

Some skills need a local program — typically Python, Node.js, or LibreOffice. The Check this computer screen (the "doctor") finds these tools, reports the exact version and resolved path, and tells you when one is missing.

The current bundled skills need Python 3 only. If Python is missing and any skill is enabled, the Skills screen points you here.

Use Check again after you install a tool so the app picks up the new path.

How the doctor finds tools, per platform

  • Windows — the py launcher and python.exe (ignoring the Microsoft Store placeholder that opens the Store), node.exe, and LibreOffice under Program Files. It honours PATHEXT and stores the full resolved path.
  • macOS — Homebrew (/opt/homebrew and /usr/local), the Command Line Tools, and LibreOffice inside /Applications/LibreOffice.app.
  • Linux — the distribution's python3 / node, with a clear hint when python3-venv is missing or the environment is externally managed (PEP 668).

The app stores absolute paths, not bare names. A later change to PATH cannot silently swap in a different binary.

Safe by design — no shell

Synaplan Desktop never builds a shell command. There is no sh -c, cmd /c, or powershell -Command. A skill's tool call is always a specific program plus a list of arguments ({program, args[]}), launched only from the allowlisted interpreters the doctor resolved, with a constructed environment and a hard timeout that kills the whole process tree.

That environment does not inherit your Synaplan key, pairing code, or injection variables such as PYTHONPATH / NODE_OPTIONS. Output is size-capped before it is shown or sent back to the assistant.

That is what lets local skills be useful and safe.

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