Add an in-app User Guide and standalone PDF

Adds docs/USER_GUIDE.md, a 10-section end-user guide (getting started, managing/organizing profiles, SSH and RDP connections, session management, settings, troubleshooting). It's embedded into the app binary via a Qt resource file and rendered by a new Help -> User Guide window: a topic sidebar plus content pane, not a single scrolling document, with cross-reference links between sections routed to sidebar selection rather than relying on Qt's Markdown importer's lack of heading anchors. A separate, non-shipped tool (tools/user-guide-pdf/) renders the same source to a standalone PDF via QTextDocument + QPrinter, wrapped by packaging/docs/build-user-guide-pdf.sh. Kept fully outside the main CMake target so Qt6::PrintSupport never becomes a runtime dependency of the shipped app (confirmed via ldd). The PDF itself isn't committed -- generated per release like the platform installers. Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-09-08 18:17:21 -06:00
parent 80bc50e54c
commit ce1e40a12d
12 changed files with 522 additions and 0 deletions
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
 /build/
 /dist/
 /.flatpak-builder/
+/build-doc-tool/
+/docs/USER_GUIDE.pdf
@@ -81,6 +81,9 @@ add_subdirectory(third_party/FreeRDP EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL)
 set(ORBITHUB_SOURCES
    src/about_dialog.cpp
    src/about_dialog.h
+    src/user_guide_dialog.cpp
+    src/user_guide_dialog.h
+    docs/user_guide.qrc
    src/app_icon.cpp
    src/app_icon.h
    src/main.cpp
@@ -25,6 +25,9 @@ Progress and milestone details:
 Latest release (installers for Windows, Linux, and macOS):
 - [v2026.9.8.2](https://git.darksingularity.org/DarkSingularity/orbithub/releases/tag/v2026.9.8.2)

+User Guide:
+- [docs/USER_GUIDE.md](docs/USER_GUIDE.md) (also available as a PDF attached to each release, and in-app via `Help -> User Guide`)
+
 ## Screenshots

 ![Profile list with folders](docs/images/screenshot-profiles.png)
@@ -140,3 +140,19 @@ right-click → **Open** to bypass Gatekeeper's unidentified-developer warning.

 Output path:
 - `dist/macos/OrbitHub-<version>.dmg`
+
+## User Guide PDF
+
+The in-app User Guide (`Help -> User Guide`) is built from
+`docs/USER_GUIDE.md` and embedded into the app at compile time — no extra
+step needed for that. A standalone PDF version is generated separately by a
+small tool (kept out of the main app's dependencies, since it needs
+`Qt6::PrintSupport`):
+
+```bash
+./packaging/docs/build-user-guide-pdf.sh
+```
+
+Output path:
+- `docs/USER_GUIDE.pdf` (not committed to git — a release asset, like the
+  platform installers)
@@ -0,0 +1,230 @@
+## Introduction
+
+OrbitHub is a native desktop application for organizing connection profiles
+and launching SSH and RDP sessions from one place, in a single tabbed
+window. It runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS.
+
+This guide covers everyday use: creating and organizing profiles,
+connecting over SSH and RDP, managing active sessions, and what to do when
+something goes wrong. It does not cover installation or building from
+source — see the project's `README.md` and `docs/BUILDING.md` for that.
+
+VNC support is planned but not yet implemented; profiles can be tagged for
+it, but connecting will show an "unsupported protocol" message for now.
+
+## Getting Started
+
+When OrbitHub opens, you land on the **Profiles** tab — a searchable,
+sortable list of every connection you've saved. Two toolbar controls in
+the top-right change how that list is presented:
+
+- **View**: `List` shows every profile in one flat table; `Folders` groups
+  them into the folder tree you've organized them into.
+- **Sort**: orders the list by Name, Protocol, or Host.
+
+Along the top of the window, a **Search** box filters by name, host,
+folder path, or tag as you type, and **Protocol**/**Tag** dropdowns narrow
+the list further. These filters, plus your last view mode and sort order,
+are remembered the next time you open OrbitHub.
+
+Along the bottom of the Profiles tab: **New**, **Edit**, and **Delete**
+buttons for managing the selected profile. The same actions are available
+by right-clicking a profile or folder, and from the **File** menu (`New
+Profile`, `New Folder`).
+
+To connect, double-click a profile, or select it and press the connect
+control — this opens a new tab for that session and connects
+automatically.
+
+## Managing Profiles
+
+A profile stores everything needed to reach one remote host. Open **New**
+(or **Edit** on an existing profile) to fill in:
+
+- **Name** — a label for the profile; shown on its tab and in the list.
+- **Host** — hostname or IP address.
+- **Port** — defaults to `22` for SSH, `3389` for RDP.
+- **Username** — the account to log in as.
+- **Domain** — Windows domain for RDP logins (leave blank for local/
+  workgroup accounts or SSH profiles).
+- **Tags** — free-form, comma-separated labels for filtering and grouping
+  (e.g. `prod, linux, db`).
+- **Folder** — where the profile lives in the Folders view.
+- **Protocol** — `SSH`, `RDP`, or `VNC` (VNC is accepted but not yet
+  connectable — see Introduction).
+
+Fields below Protocol change based on what you pick:
+
+**SSH**: **Auth Mode** (`Password` or `Private Key`), and if Private Key,
+a **Private Key** file path with a **Browse** button, plus **Known Hosts**
+policy — see [Connecting via SSH](#connecting-via-ssh) for what each
+policy means.
+
+**RDP**: **RDP Security** and **RDP Performance** — see
+[Connecting via RDP](#connecting-via-rdp).
+
+Passwords are never saved in the profile — OrbitHub asks for them each
+time you connect (unless you've set up private-key SSH auth, which needs
+no password to be entered per-connection if the key itself has none).
+
+## Organizing Profiles
+
+As your profile list grows, two independent tools keep it manageable:
+
+**Folders.** Switch the Profiles tab to `Folders` view to see profiles
+grouped into a tree. Create a folder from the **File** menu or by
+right-clicking in the tree (`New Folder`), and drag any profile onto a
+folder to move it there. Folders can nest inside other folders.
+
+**Tags.** Tags are independent of folders — a profile can be in one folder
+but carry several tags (e.g. `prod`, `linux`, `db` all at once). Use the
+**Tag** filter dropdown in the toolbar to instantly narrow the list to
+everything sharing a tag, regardless of which folder it's filed under.
+
+Combine both with the **Search** box (matches name, host, folder path, or
+tags) and the **Sort** control (Name / Protocol / Host) to find what you
+need quickly even with a large profile list.
+
+## Connecting via SSH
+
+Double-clicking an SSH profile opens a new tab with an embedded, fully
+interactive terminal — type directly into it as you would any terminal
+emulator. A **theme** selector lets you switch between `Dark`, `Light`,
+and `Solarized Dark`; your choice is remembered for future sessions.
+
+**Authentication.** Set in the profile itself:
+- **Password** — OrbitHub prompts for a password each time you connect.
+  It is never stored.
+- **Private Key** — point at a key file (via the profile's Browse button);
+  no password prompt unless the key itself is passphrase-protected.
+
+**Known Hosts policy.** This controls how OrbitHub reacts to a server's
+SSH host key — the mechanism that protects against a different machine
+silently impersonating a host you've connected to before:
+
+| Policy | Behavior |
+|---|---|
+| `Ask` | Prompts you to confirm trust the first time a host is seen, and on any later change. Recommended default. |
+| `Accept-new` | Silently trusts a host the first time it's seen, but still stops and warns if a previously-trusted host's key later changes. |
+| `Strict` | Never trusts an unknown host automatically — the connection fails until you've manually confirmed the host key some other way. |
+| `Ignore` | Skips host-key checking entirely. Only use this for throwaway/test environments — it removes protection against on-path attacks. |
+
+Trusted host keys are recorded in your system's normal SSH `known_hosts`
+file (the same one the `ssh` command line tool uses), so trust decisions
+made through OrbitHub or a terminal `ssh` session carry over to each
+other.
+
+## Connecting via RDP
+
+RDP sessions render in an embedded display surface inside the tab — no
+external RDP client window opens. Keyboard and mouse input go straight to
+the remote desktop while the tab has focus, and resizing the OrbitHub
+window renegotiates the remote resolution to match. Clipboard content
+syncs between your machine and the remote session automatically.
+
+**Authentication** uses the profile's Username/Domain fields; OrbitHub
+prompts for the password at connect time.
+
+**RDP Security** controls which transport-security layer is used to
+negotiate the connection:
+
+| Mode | Behavior |
+|---|---|
+| `Negotiate` | Lets the client and server agree on the strongest mutually-supported option automatically. Recommended default. |
+| `NLA` | Requires Network Level Authentication (credentials verified before a full session starts) — the modern standard for current Windows versions. |
+| `TLS` | Requires TLS-only security, without NLA. |
+| `RDP` | The legacy RDP-native security layer, for older servers that don't support TLS/NLA. |
+
+**RDP Performance** trades visual fidelity for responsiveness:
+`Balanced` (default), `Best Quality`, `Best Performance`, or
+`Auto Detect` (adapts based on the detected connection).
+
+**Server certificate verification.** The first time you connect to an RDP
+host, OrbitHub trusts and remembers its TLS certificate — the same
+trust-on-first-use model SSH uses for host keys. If that certificate ever
+changes on a later connection, OrbitHub refuses the connection rather than
+connecting anyway, since a changed certificate can mean either a
+legitimate server certificate renewal or an active
+machine-in-the-middle presenting a different one. The event log (see
+below) shows the specific fingerprints involved. If the change is
+expected — you rotated the server's certificate yourself — reconnecting
+after clearing the old entry from FreeRDP's certificate store will trust
+the new one.
+
+## Managing Sessions
+
+Every open connection lives in its own tab in the same window, alongside
+the Profiles tab. A tab's title and a colored state indicator show
+whether it's connecting, connected, disconnected, or failed. Closing a
+tab disconnects that session; opening a profile again starts a fresh one.
+
+Each session tab includes a collapsible **event log** beneath the
+connection surface — a timestamped record of connection state changes,
+warnings, and errors for that session. Controls above the log let you:
+
+- **Show/Hide Events** — collapse the panel when you don't need it.
+- **Filter** — a text box to search event text, and an `All` /
+  `Warnings` / `Errors` severity dropdown to narrow what's shown.
+- **Export Events** — save the current session's full event log to a
+  file, useful when reporting a connection problem.
+- **Clear Events** — empty the log for that tab.
+
+## Settings & Preferences
+
+OrbitHub remembers your preferences across restarts without any separate
+settings screen — they're saved automatically as you use the app:
+
+- Profile list: search text, view mode (List/Folders), Protocol/Tag
+  filters, and sort order.
+- Session tabs: terminal theme choice, and whether the events panel is
+  shown or hidden for new tabs.
+
+Profile data itself (names, hosts, tags, folder structure, and so on) is
+stored in a local SQLite database — see the README for its exact path on
+your platform. Passwords are never part of that stored data.
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+**"Host could not be resolved"** — the hostname in the profile can't be
+looked up by DNS. Check for typos, or try the host's IP address directly
+to confirm whether it's a DNS problem or something else.
+
+**SSH connection fails immediately, no prompt** — double-check the
+profile's Port (default `22`) and that a firewall or network path isn't
+blocking that port from your machine.
+
+**RDP: "Authentication failed. Check username and password."** — confirm
+Username and Domain are correct for the target server; some servers
+require the domain to be set explicitly even for local accounts.
+
+**RDP: "RDP security negotiation failed. Try a different RDP security
+mode."** — the server doesn't support the security mode selected in the
+profile. Try `Negotiate` first, or a more specific mode if you know what
+the server requires.
+
+**RDP: connection refused with a certificate-changed message** — see
+[Connecting via RDP](#connecting-via-rdp) above; this is expected,
+protective behavior, not a bug, whenever a previously-trusted server's
+certificate is replaced.
+
+**SSH: connection hangs at "Ask" waiting for host-key trust** — check
+that policy's behavior under
+[Connecting via SSH](#connecting-via-ssh); switching to `Accept-new` avoids
+the prompt for genuinely new hosts while still protecting against a later
+key change.
+
+If none of this covers what you're seeing, a session's exported event log
+(see Managing Sessions) is the most useful thing to include when asking
+for help or filing an issue.
+
+## About & Support
+
+OrbitHub is open source under the MIT license. Source code, issue
+tracking, and releases are hosted at
+[git.darksingularity.org/DarkSingularity/orbithub](https://git.darksingularity.org/DarkSingularity/orbithub).
+
+For a list of bundled third-party libraries and their licenses, see
+**Help → About OrbitHub** inside the app.
+
+To report a bug or request a feature, open an issue at
+[git.darksingularity.org/DarkSingularity/orbithub/issues](https://git.darksingularity.org/DarkSingularity/orbithub/issues).
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+<RCC>
+  <qresource prefix="/docs">
+    <file>USER_GUIDE.md</file>
+  </qresource>
+</RCC>
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+ROOT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/../.." && pwd)"
+BUILD_DIR="${1:-$ROOT_DIR/build-doc-tool}"
+OUTPUT_PATH="${2:-$ROOT_DIR/docs/USER_GUIDE.pdf}"
+
+cmake -S "$ROOT_DIR/tools/user-guide-pdf" -B "$BUILD_DIR" -G Ninja
+cmake --build "$BUILD_DIR"
+
+QT_QPA_PLATFORM=offscreen "$BUILD_DIR/user-guide-pdf" \
+    "$ROOT_DIR/docs/USER_GUIDE.md" \
+    "$OUTPUT_PATH"
+
+echo "Created $OUTPUT_PATH"
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@

 #include "about_dialog.h"
 #include "profiles_window.h"
+#include "user_guide_dialog.h"
 #include <QApplication>
 #include "session_tab.h"

@@ -182,6 +183,14 @@ SessionWindow::SessionWindow(QWidget* parent)
    connect(quitAction, &QAction::triggered, this, []() { qApp->quit(); });

    QMenu* helpMenu = menuBar()->addMenu(QStringLiteral("Help"));
+    QAction* userGuideAction = helpMenu->addAction(QStringLiteral("User Guide"));
+    connect(userGuideAction,
+            &QAction::triggered,
+            this,
+            [this]() {
+                UserGuideDialog dialog(this);
+                dialog.exec();
+            });
    QAction* aboutAction = helpMenu->addAction(QStringLiteral("About OrbitHub"));
    connect(aboutAction,
            &QAction::triggered,
@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+#include "user_guide_dialog.h"
+
+#include <QApplication>
+#include <QDesktopServices>
+#include <QDialogButtonBox>
+#include <QFile>
+#include <QListWidget>
+#include <QSplitter>
+#include <QTextBrowser>
+#include <QTextStream>
+#include <QUrl>
+#include <QVBoxLayout>
+
+namespace {
+
+QString slugify(const QString& title)
+{
+    QString slug;
+    slug.reserve(title.size());
+    bool lastWasHyphen = false;
+    for (const QChar& ch : title) {
+        if (ch.isLetterOrNumber()) {
+            slug += ch.toLower();
+            lastWasHyphen = false;
+        } else if (!lastWasHyphen && !slug.isEmpty()) {
+            slug += QLatin1Char('-');
+            lastWasHyphen = true;
+        }
+    }
+    while (slug.endsWith(QLatin1Char('-'))) {
+        slug.chop(1);
+    }
+    return slug;
+}
+
+}
+
+UserGuideDialog::UserGuideDialog(QWidget* parent)
+    : QDialog(parent), m_sectionList(nullptr), m_browser(nullptr)
+{
+    setWindowTitle(QStringLiteral("OrbitHub User Guide"));
+    setWindowIcon(QApplication::windowIcon());
+    resize(900, 640);
+
+    auto* layout = new QVBoxLayout(this);
+    layout->setContentsMargins(16, 16, 16, 16);
+    layout->setSpacing(12);
+
+    auto* splitter = new QSplitter(Qt::Horizontal, this);
+
+    m_sectionList = new QListWidget(splitter);
+    m_sectionList->setMaximumWidth(220);
+
+    m_browser = new QTextBrowser(splitter);
+    m_browser->setOpenExternalLinks(false);
+    m_browser->setOpenLinks(false);
+
+    splitter->addWidget(m_sectionList);
+    splitter->addWidget(m_browser);
+    splitter->setStretchFactor(0, 0);
+    splitter->setStretchFactor(1, 1);
+
+    auto* buttons = new QDialogButtonBox(QDialogButtonBox::Close, this);
+    connect(buttons, &QDialogButtonBox::rejected, this, &QDialog::reject);
+    connect(buttons, &QDialogButtonBox::accepted, this, &QDialog::accept);
+
+    layout->addWidget(splitter, 1);
+    layout->addWidget(buttons);
+
+    loadSections();
+
+    connect(m_sectionList,
+            &QListWidget::currentRowChanged,
+            this,
+            [this](int row) { showSection(row); });
+    connect(m_browser, &QTextBrowser::anchorClicked, this, &UserGuideDialog::onAnchorClicked);
+
+    if (!m_sections.isEmpty()) {
+        m_sectionList->setCurrentRow(0);
+    }
+}
+
+void UserGuideDialog::loadSections()
+{
+    QFile file(QStringLiteral(":/docs/USER_GUIDE.md"));
+    if (!file.open(QIODevice::ReadOnly | QIODevice::Text)) {
+        return;
+    }
+
+    QTextStream stream(&file);
+    const QString content = stream.readAll();
+    const QStringList lines = content.split(QLatin1Char('\n'));
+
+    QString currentTitle;
+    QStringList currentLines;
+
+    auto flushSection = [this, &currentTitle, &currentLines]() {
+        if (currentTitle.isEmpty()) {
+            return;
+        }
+        Section section;
+        section.title = currentTitle;
+        section.anchor = slugify(currentTitle);
+        section.markdown = currentLines.join(QLatin1Char('\n'));
+        m_sections.append(section);
+    };
+
+    for (const QString& line : lines) {
+        if (line.startsWith(QStringLiteral("## "))) {
+            flushSection();
+            currentTitle = line.mid(3).trimmed();
+            currentLines.clear();
+        }
+        currentLines.append(line);
+    }
+    flushSection();
+
+    for (const Section& section : m_sections) {
+        m_sectionList->addItem(section.title);
+    }
+}
+
+void UserGuideDialog::showSection(int index)
+{
+    if (index < 0 || index >= m_sections.size()) {
+        return;
+    }
+    m_browser->setMarkdown(m_sections[index].markdown);
+}
+
+void UserGuideDialog::onAnchorClicked(const QUrl& url)
+{
+    if (!url.scheme().isEmpty()) {
+        QDesktopServices::openUrl(url);
+        return;
+    }
+
+    const QString fragment = url.fragment();
+    if (fragment.isEmpty()) {
+        return;
+    }
+
+    for (int i = 0; i < m_sections.size(); ++i) {
+        if (m_sections[i].anchor == fragment) {
+            m_sectionList->setCurrentRow(i);
+            return;
+        }
+    }
+}
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+#ifndef ORBITHUB_USER_GUIDE_DIALOG_H
+#define ORBITHUB_USER_GUIDE_DIALOG_H
+
+#include <QDialog>
+#include <QString>
+#include <QVector>
+
+class QListWidget;
+class QTextBrowser;
+class QUrl;
+
+class UserGuideDialog : public QDialog
+{
+    Q_OBJECT
+
+public:
+    explicit UserGuideDialog(QWidget* parent = nullptr);
+
+private:
+    struct Section {
+        QString title;
+        QString anchor;
+        QString markdown;
+    };
+
+    void loadSections();
+    void showSection(int index);
+    void onAnchorClicked(const QUrl& url);
+
+    QListWidget* m_sectionList;
+    QTextBrowser* m_browser;
+    QVector<Section> m_sections;
+};
+
+#endif
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.21)
+
+project(OrbitHubUserGuidePdf LANGUAGES CXX)
+
+set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
+set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED ON)
+
+find_package(Qt6 6.2 REQUIRED COMPONENTS Widgets PrintSupport)
+
+add_executable(user-guide-pdf main.cpp)
+target_link_libraries(user-guide-pdf PRIVATE Qt6::Widgets Qt6::PrintSupport)
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+#include <QApplication>
+#include <QFile>
+#include <QPageSize>
+#include <QPrinter>
+#include <QTextDocument>
+#include <QTextStream>
+
+#include <cstdio>
+
+int main(int argc, char* argv[])
+{
+    QApplication app(argc, argv);
+
+    if (argc != 3) {
+        std::fprintf(stderr, "Usage: %s <input.md> <output.pdf>\n", argv[0]);
+        return 1;
+    }
+
+    const QString inputPath = QString::fromLocal8Bit(argv[1]);
+    const QString outputPath = QString::fromLocal8Bit(argv[2]);
+
+    QFile input(inputPath);
+    if (!input.open(QIODevice::ReadOnly | QIODevice::Text)) {
+        std::fprintf(stderr, "Could not open %s\n", qPrintable(inputPath));
+        return 1;
+    }
+
+    QTextStream stream(&input);
+    const QString markdown = stream.readAll();
+
+    QTextDocument document;
+    document.setMarkdown(markdown);
+
+    QPrinter printer(QPrinter::HighResolution);
+    printer.setOutputFormat(QPrinter::PdfFormat);
+    printer.setPageSize(QPageSize(QPageSize::Letter));
+    printer.setPageMargins(QMarginsF(50, 50, 50, 50), QPageLayout::Point);
+    printer.setOutputFileName(outputPath);
+
+    document.print(&printer);
+
+    std::printf("Wrote %s\n", qPrintable(outputPath));
+    return 0;
+}