WannaCut Tauri Commands: Full Backend API Reference

WannaCut’s Rust backend exposes 27 Tauri commands called via invoke() from the React frontend. These commands handle every privileged operation the browser-based WebView cannot perform on its own: file I/O, FFmpeg/FFprobe subprocess management, font downloads, YouTube video fetching, and project data persistence. All commands are async (powered by Tokio) and return serialized JSON.

All invoke() calls use Tauri v2’s @tauri-apps/api/core package. Parameters are passed as a plain object (the second argument to invoke), and return values are typed generics:

import { invoke } from '@tauri-apps/api/core';

// Example: get video duration
const meta = await invoke<{ duration: number }>('get_duration', {
  path: '/home/user/projects/MyProject/videos/clip.mp4'
});
console.log(meta.duration); // e.g. 42.5 (seconds)

// Example: list projects
const projects = await invoke<Array<{ name: string; path: string; thumbnail?: string }>>(
  'list_projects',
  { rootPath: '/home/user/WannaCutWorkspace' }
);

Project Management Commands

These commands handle creating, loading, saving, renaming, and deleting projects. A WannaCut project is a directory on disk containing a project.json config file, a videos/ assets folder, an extracted_audios/ folder, and timestamped .project save files.

`list_projects`

Lists all projects in the workspace root directory. Each item in the returned array represents one project folder.

rootPath

string

required

Absolute path to the WannaCut workspace directory (e.g. /home/user/WannaCutWorkspace).

Returns: Array<{ name: string; path: string; thumbnail?: string }> Each object contains the project name, its absolute path, and an optional thumbnail path (points to the most recently generated frame PNG in the project directory, if available).

`create_project_setup`

Creates a new project directory structure on disk, including the videos/, extracted_audios/, and thumbnails/ subdirectories, and writes the initial project.json config file.

rootPath

string

required

Absolute path to the workspace root.

projectName

string

required

Name for the new project. Used as the directory name.

config

ProjectSettings

required

Initial project configuration object with name, width, height, fps, backgroundColor, and sampleRate.

Returns: string — The absolute path to the newly created project directory.

`load_latest_project`

Reads the most recently timestamped .project file from a project directory and returns its raw JSON content. Used when opening an existing project to restore the last editing session.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

Returns: string — Raw JSON string of the latest .project file. Parsed by the frontend to restore clips, assets, and tracks.

`save_project_data`

Saves the current project state (clips, assets, tracks) to a new timestamped .project file. Called automatically by the frontend with a 500 ms debounce whenever clips or assets change. This creates an incremental history of saves, which can be browsed via list_project_files and read_specific_file.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

data

string

required

JSON-serialized ProjectFileData object containing projectName, assets, clips, tracks, and lastModified.

timestamp

number

required

Unix timestamp in milliseconds. Used as the filename suffix for the saved .project file.

Returns: void

`load_project_config`

Reads the project.json file from a project directory and returns the parsed project settings (resolution, FPS, name, etc.).

path

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

Returns: ProjectSettings — Object with name, width, height, fps, backgroundColor, sampleRate.

`save_project_config`

Saves updated project settings to project.json. If the name field has changed, the project directory is also renamed on disk to match the new name.

path

string

required

Absolute path to the current project directory.

config

ProjectSettings

required

Updated settings object. If config.name differs from the current directory name, the directory is renamed.

Returns: string — The (potentially new) absolute path to the project directory after saving and any rename.

`delete_project`

Permanently deletes an entire project directory and all its contents (assets, audio extractions, thumbnails, save files). This action is irreversible.

path

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory to delete.

Returns: void

delete_project removes the directory recursively using fs_extra. There is no trash/recycle bin — the data is gone immediately.

`list_project_files`

Lists all .project history files in a project directory, sorted by timestamp. Used by the Settings modal to display the project’s save history for rollback.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

Returns: string[] — Array of .project filenames (e.g. ["main_1700000000000.project", "main_1700000500000.project"]), sorted oldest to newest.

`read_specific_file`

Reads the raw content of a specific .project history file. Used to load a previous version of the project for history rollback.

path

string

required

Absolute path to the .project file to read.

Returns: string — Raw JSON content of the file.

Asset Management Commands

These commands handle importing media files, reading metadata, and file operations within a project’s videos/ folder.

`import_asset`

Copies a media file from its original location into the project’s videos/ folder. This is the standard way to add assets to a project — WannaCut always works with local copies.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

filePath

string

required

Absolute path to the source media file to import.

Returns: void

`list_assets`

Returns the filenames of all files currently in a project’s videos/ folder.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

Returns: string[] — Array of filenames (e.g. ["clip1.mp4", "background.png", "music.mp3"]).

`get_duration`

Uses FFprobe to read the exact duration of a media file (video or audio).

path

string

required

Absolute path to the media file.

Returns: { duration: number } — Duration in seconds (e.g. { duration: 42.5 }). For images, returns a fallback of 10.

`get_video_frame`

Uses FFmpeg to extract a single frame from a video at a specific timestamp and returns it as a base64-encoded PNG data URL. Used by the Source Monitor and for the preview fast-path.

path

string

required

Absolute path to the video file.

timeMs

number

required

Time position in milliseconds to extract the frame from.

Returns: string — A base64 PNG data URL (e.g. "data:image/png;base64,iVBOR...").

`get_asset_dimensions`

Reads the pixel dimensions (width × height) of a video or image file.

path

string

required

Absolute path to the video or image file.

Returns: { x: number; y: number } — Width (x) and height (y) in pixels.

`extract_audio`

Extracts the audio track from a video file and saves it as an MP3 to the project’s extracted_audios/ folder. Called automatically for every video asset on import. The MP3 is served by the tiny_http server for preview playback.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

fileName

string

required

Filename of the video inside videos/ (e.g. "clip.mp4").

Returns: void — The extracted audio is saved as <projectPath>/extracted_audios/<name>.mp3.

`generate_thumbnail`

Generates (or retrieves from cache) a thumbnail PNG for a video at a specific time. Thumbnails are stored in <projectPath>/thumbnails/ and cached to avoid re-generating on every scrub.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory.

fileName

string

required

Filename of the video inside videos/.

timeSeconds

number

required

Time in seconds at which to capture the thumbnail frame.

Returns: string — Absolute path to the generated or cached thumbnail PNG file.

`copy_file`

Copies a file from one path to another. Used internally for the “Separate Audio” feature, which copies an extracted MP3 from extracted_audios/ into videos/ to make it available as a timeline asset.

source

string

required

Absolute path to the source file.

destination

string

required

Absolute path to the destination file.

Returns: void

`rename_file`

Renames or moves a file on disk. Used when the user renames an asset in the media library.

oldPath

string

required

Current absolute path of the file.

newPath

string

required

New absolute path (or new name within the same directory).

Returns: void

`delete_file`

Deletes a single file from disk. Used when the user deletes an asset from the media library (along with removing it from the timeline state).

path

string

required

Absolute path to the file to delete.

Returns: void

Export Commands

These three commands work together to implement the three-phase export pipeline: render video frames, mix audio offline, then assemble the final MP4.

`save_export_frame`

Saves a single rendered PNG frame to a temporary directory during export. Called once per frame in Phase 1 of the export pipeline, with a base64-encoded PNG from the offscreen Three.js renderer.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory. The temp frames directory is created here.

frameIndex

number

required

Zero-based frame index (e.g. 0 for the first frame, fps * duration - 1 for the last).

pngBase64

string

required

Base64-encoded PNG data URL of the rendered frame (from auxCanvas.toDataURL("image/png")).

Returns: void

`assemble_exported_video`

Runs FFmpeg to combine the exported PNG frame sequence with the mixed WAV audio file into a final MP4 video. This is Phase 3 of the export pipeline and reports progress back to the frontend via Tauri events (export-progress).

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory containing the temp frames and WAV audio.

targetPath

string

required

Absolute output path for the final MP4 file (chosen by the user via the native save dialog).

fps

number

required

Frame rate of the export (must match the FPS used to render the PNG sequence).

duration

number

required

Total duration of the video in seconds.

width

number

required

Video width in pixels.

height

number

required

Video height in pixels.

Returns: void — Progress is emitted as Tauri events (export-progress, payload: number 0–100) during execution.

`cancel_export`

Kills the currently running FFmpeg export subprocess. Called when the user clicks “Abort Mission” during an in-progress export. Parameters: None Returns: void

After calling cancel_export, the partially assembled output file and temp frame directory may remain on disk. WannaCut resets renderStatus to 'idle' after cancellation but does not clean up the temp files automatically.

Font & Download Commands

`list_fonts`

Lists all font files in the WannaCut fonts directory. Font paths are used to dynamically load @font-face declarations into the WebView so fonts are available in text clips.

fontsPath

string

required

Absolute path to the fonts directory (e.g. <settingsFolder>/fonts).

Returns: string[] — Array of absolute paths to font files.

`fetch_cloud_fonts`

Fetches the WannaCut cloud font manifest from wannacut.app via Rust’s reqwest HTTP client. Returns a list of available fonts that can be downloaded. Parameters: None Returns: { fonts: Array<{ file: string; [key: string]: any }> } — The font manifest JSON from the WannaCut CDN.

`download_font_file`

Downloads a font file from a URL and saves it to a local path (typically the app’s fonts/ directory).

url

string

required

Full HTTPS URL of the font file to download.

path

string

required

Absolute local path where the font file should be saved.

Returns: void

`download_youtube_video`

Downloads a video from a given URL using yt-dlp and saves it to the project’s videos/ folder. yt-dlp must be available — it is bundled with WannaCut via the Node.js runtime.

projectPath

string

required

Absolute path to the project directory. The downloaded video is saved to <projectPath>/videos/.

settingsFolder

string

required

Absolute path to the WannaCut settings folder, used to locate the bundled yt-dlp runtime.

url

string

required

URL of the video to download (YouTube, or any URL supported by yt-dlp).

Returns: void

download_youtube_video requires a Node.js runtime to be present. If the runtime is missing, the command will throw an error. The frontend catches this and displays: “YT-DLP Error: Check your JS Runtime”.

Settings Commands

`read_settings_file`

Reads the raw content of the WannaCut settings JSON file. Called on startup to load the user’s workspace path, GPU preference, and keyboard shortcuts.

path

string

required

Absolute path to wannacut_settings.json (e.g. <settingsFolder>/wannacut_settings.json).

Returns: string — Raw JSON content of the settings file. The frontend parses this to restore wannacutSettings state (workspace, gpu, shortcuts).

Command Quick Reference

Command	Group	Key Return
`list_projects`	Project	`{name, path, thumbnail?}[]`
`create_project_setup`	Project	`string` (path)
`load_latest_project`	Project	`string` (JSON)
`save_project_data`	Project	`void`
`load_project_config`	Project	`ProjectSettings`
`save_project_config`	Project	`string` (path)
`delete_project`	Project	`void`
`list_project_files`	Project	`string[]`
`read_specific_file`	Project	`string` (JSON)
`import_asset`	Asset	`void`
`list_assets`	Asset	`string[]`
`get_duration`	Asset	`{duration: number}`
`get_video_frame`	Asset	`string` (base64 PNG)
`get_asset_dimensions`	Asset	`{x: number, y: number}`
`extract_audio`	Asset	`void`
`generate_thumbnail`	Asset	`string` (path)
`copy_file`	Asset	`void`
`rename_file`	Asset	`void`
`delete_file`	Asset	`void`
`save_export_frame`	Export	`void`
`assemble_exported_video`	Export	`void`
`cancel_export`	Export	`void`
`list_fonts`	Font	`string[]`
`fetch_cloud_fonts`	Font	`{fonts: [...]}`
`download_font_file`	Font	`void`
`download_youtube_video`	Download	`void`
`read_settings_file`	Settings	`string` (JSON)

Technical Reference

WannaCut Tauri Commands: Full Backend API Reference

Project Management Commands

`list_projects`

`create_project_setup`

`load_latest_project`

`save_project_data`

`load_project_config`

`save_project_config`

`delete_project`

`list_project_files`

`read_specific_file`

Asset Management Commands

`import_asset`

`list_assets`

`get_duration`

`get_video_frame`

`get_asset_dimensions`

`extract_audio`

`generate_thumbnail`

`copy_file`

`rename_file`

`delete_file`

Export Commands

`save_export_frame`

`assemble_exported_video`

`cancel_export`

Font & Download Commands

`list_fonts`

`fetch_cloud_fonts`

`download_font_file`

`download_youtube_video`

Settings Commands

`read_settings_file`

Command Quick Reference

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Technical Reference

Documentation Index

​Project Management Commands

​list_projects

​create_project_setup

​load_latest_project

​save_project_data

​load_project_config

​save_project_config

​delete_project

​list_project_files

​read_specific_file

​Asset Management Commands

​import_asset

​list_assets

​get_duration

​get_video_frame

​get_asset_dimensions

​extract_audio

​generate_thumbnail

​copy_file

​rename_file

​delete_file

​Export Commands

​save_export_frame

​assemble_exported_video

​cancel_export

​Font & Download Commands

​list_fonts

​fetch_cloud_fonts

​download_font_file

​download_youtube_video

​Settings Commands

​read_settings_file

​Command Quick Reference

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Project Management Commands

`list_projects`

`create_project_setup`

`load_latest_project`

`save_project_data`

`load_project_config`

`save_project_config`

`delete_project`

`list_project_files`

`read_specific_file`

Asset Management Commands

`import_asset`

`list_assets`

`get_duration`

`get_video_frame`

`get_asset_dimensions`

`extract_audio`

`generate_thumbnail`

`copy_file`

`rename_file`

`delete_file`

Export Commands

`save_export_frame`

`assemble_exported_video`

`cancel_export`

Font & Download Commands

`list_fonts`

`fetch_cloud_fonts`

`download_font_file`

`download_youtube_video`

Settings Commands

`read_settings_file`

Command Quick Reference