Add server-side version checker (#878) (#880)

Tim020 · claude · web-flow · commit b6be4b835e24 · 2026-01-27T00:04:26.000Z
Adds functionality for the server to check whether it is running the latest version of DigiScript, displayed in System Config -> System tab. Backend: - New VersionChecker service that queries GitHub Releases API - Checks on startup and periodically (every hour) - Caches results for fast API responses - New /api/v1/version/status and /api/v1/version/check endpoints Frontend: - Version row in System Config showing current version with status badge - Green "Up to date", yellow "Update Available", red "Unable to check" - "Check Now" button for manual refresh - Link to release notes when update is available Also fixes circular import issues by adding `from __future__ import annotations` to settings.py and base_controller.py. Closes #878 Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
diff --git a/client/src/vue_components/config/ConfigSystem.vue b/client/src/vue_components/config/ConfigSystem.vue
@@ -38,6 +38,45 @@
             </b-button>
           </b-td>
         </b-tr>
+        <b-tr>
+          <b-td>
+            <b>Version</b>
+          </b-td>
+          <b-td>
+            {{ versionStatus.current_version || 'Unknown' }}
+            <b-badge :variant="getVersionStatusVariant()" pill>
+              {{ getVersionStatusText() }}
+            </b-badge>
+            <template v-if="versionStatus.update_available && versionStatus.latest_version">
+              <br />
+              <small class="text-muted">
+                Latest: {{ versionStatus.latest_version }}
+                <a
+                  v-if="versionStatus.release_url"
+                  :href="versionStatus.release_url"
+                  target="_blank"
+                  rel="noopener noreferrer"
+                >
+                  (Release Notes)
+                </a>
+              </small>
+            </template>
+            <template v-if="versionStatus.check_error">
+              <br />
+              <small class="text-danger">{{ versionStatus.check_error }}</small>
+            </template>
+          </b-td>
+          <b-td>
+            <b-button
+              variant="outline-success"
+              :disabled="isCheckingVersion"
+              @click="checkForUpdates"
+            >
+              <b-spinner v-if="isCheckingVersion" small class="mr-1" />
+              Check Now
+            </b-button>
+          </b-td>
+        </b-tr>
       </b-tbody>
     </b-table-simple>
     <b-modal
@@ -218,6 +257,17 @@ export default {
       ],
       clientTimeout: null,
       loading: true,
+      versionStatus: {
+        current_version: null,
+        latest_version: null,
+        update_available: false,
+        release_url: null,
+        last_checked: null,
+        check_error: null,
+      },
+      isCheckingVersion: false,
+      currentTime: Date.now(),
+      timeUpdateInterval: null,
     };
   },
   validations: {
@@ -254,10 +304,20 @@ export default {
     await this.getAvailableShows();
     await this.getConnectedClients();
     await this.GET_SCRIPT_MODES();
+    await this.getVersionStatus();
     this.loading = false;
+
+    // Start time update interval for reactive "time ago" display
+    this.timeUpdateInterval = setInterval(() => {
+      this.currentTime = Date.now();
+    }, 1000);
   },
   destroyed() {
     clearTimeout(this.clientTimeout);
+    if (this.timeUpdateInterval) {
+      clearInterval(this.timeUpdateInterval);
+      this.timeUpdateInterval = null;
+    }
   },
   methods: {
     async getAvailableShows() {
@@ -377,6 +437,93 @@ export default {
         this.isSubmittingLoad = false;
       }
     },
+    async getVersionStatus() {
+      try {
+        const response = await fetch(`${makeURL('/api/v1/version/status')}`);
+        if (response.ok) {
+          this.versionStatus = await response.json();
+        } else {
+          log.error('Unable to get version status');
+        }
+      } catch (error) {
+        log.error('Error fetching version status:', error);
+      }
+    },
+    async checkForUpdates() {
+      if (this.isCheckingVersion) {
+        return;
+      }
+
+      this.isCheckingVersion = true;
+
+      try {
+        const response = await fetch(`${makeURL('/api/v1/version/check')}`, {
+          method: 'POST',
+        });
+        if (response.ok) {
+          this.versionStatus = await response.json();
+          if (this.versionStatus.update_available) {
+            this.$toast.info(`Update available: ${this.versionStatus.latest_version}`);
+          } else if (!this.versionStatus.check_error) {
+            this.$toast.success('You are running the latest version');
+          }
+        } else {
+          this.$toast.error('Unable to check for updates');
+          log.error('Unable to check for updates');
+        }
+      } catch (error) {
+        this.$toast.error('Unable to check for updates');
+        log.error('Error checking for updates:', error);
+      } finally {
+        this.isCheckingVersion = false;
+      }
+    },
+    getVersionStatusVariant() {
+      if (!this.versionStatus.current_version) {
+        return 'secondary';
+      }
+      if (this.versionStatus.check_error) {
+        return 'danger';
+      }
+      if (this.versionStatus.update_available) {
+        return 'warning';
+      }
+      return 'success';
+    },
+    getVersionStatusText() {
+      if (!this.versionStatus.current_version) {
+        return 'Loading...';
+      }
+      if (this.versionStatus.check_error) {
+        return 'Unable to check';
+      }
+      if (this.versionStatus.update_available) {
+        return 'Update Available';
+      }
+      return 'Up to date';
+    },
+    formatTimeAgo(isoTimestamp) {
+      if (!isoTimestamp) {
+        return 'Never';
+      }
+
+      const timestamp = new Date(isoTimestamp).getTime();
+      const seconds = Math.floor((this.currentTime - timestamp) / 1000);
+
+      if (seconds < 10) {
+        return 'Just now';
+      }
+      if (seconds < 60) {
+        return `${seconds} seconds ago`;
+      }
+      if (seconds < 3600) {
+        return `${Math.floor(seconds / 60)} minutes ago`;
+      }
+      if (seconds < 86400) {
+        return `${Math.floor(seconds / 3600)} hours ago`;
+      }
+      return `${Math.floor(seconds / 86400)} days ago`;
+    },
     ...mapMutations(['UPDATE_SHOWS']),
     ...mapActions(['GET_SCRIPT_MODES']),
   },
diff --git a/docs/pages/user_config.md b/docs/pages/user_config.md
@@ -4,6 +4,25 @@ The **System Config** section, accessible from the top navigation bar, provides
 
 ![](../images/config_system/system_overview.png)
 
+### System Tab
+
+The **System** tab provides an overview of the current system state:
+
+- **Current Show**: Displays the currently loaded show name, with buttons to load an existing show or set up a new one.
+- **Connected Clients**: Shows the number of WebSocket clients currently connected to the server. Click "View Clients" to see details about each connected session.
+- **Version**: Displays the current DigiScript version and checks for available updates.
+
+#### Version Checker
+
+The version checker automatically checks for new DigiScript releases when the server starts, and periodically (every hour) thereafter. The version status shows:
+
+- **Current version**: The version of DigiScript currently running
+- **Status badge**: Indicates whether you're up to date (green), an update is available (yellow), or the check failed (red)
+- **Latest version**: When an update is available, shows the newest version number with a link to the release notes
+- **Last checked**: Timestamp of when the version was last checked
+
+Click the **Check Now** button to manually trigger a version check against the GitHub releases.
+
 ### System Settings
 
 The **Settings** tab allows you to configure system-wide settings that apply across all shows:
diff --git a/server/controllers/api/version.py b/server/controllers/api/version.py
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+from utils.web.base_controller import BaseAPIController
+from utils.web.route import ApiRoute, ApiVersion
+from utils.web.web_decorators import api_authenticated, require_admin
+
+
+@ApiRoute("version/status", ApiVersion.V1)
+class VersionStatusController(BaseAPIController):
+    @api_authenticated
+    async def get(self):
+        """
+        Get the current version status.
+
+        Returns information about the running version, latest available version,
+        whether an update is available, and when the last check occurred.
+
+        :returns: JSON response with version status.
+        """
+        version_checker = self.application.version_checker
+        if not version_checker:
+            await self.finish(
+                {
+                    "error": "Version checker not initialized",
+                    "current_version": None,
+                    "latest_version": None,
+                    "update_available": False,
+                    "release_url": None,
+                    "last_checked": None,
+                    "check_error": "Service not available",
+                }
+            )
+            return
+
+        await self.finish(version_checker.status.as_json())
+
+
+@ApiRoute("version/check", ApiVersion.V1)
+class VersionCheckController(BaseAPIController):
+    @api_authenticated
+    @require_admin
+    async def post(self):
+        """
+        Trigger a manual version check.
+
+        Forces an immediate check against the GitHub API, updating the
+        cached version status.
+
+        :returns: JSON response with updated version status.
+        """
+        version_checker = self.application.version_checker
+        if not version_checker:
+            self.set_status(503)
+            await self.finish(
+                {
+                    "error": "Version checker not initialized",
+                }
+            )
+            return
+
+        status = await version_checker.check_for_updates()
+        await self.finish(status.as_json())
diff --git a/server/digi_server/app_server.py b/server/digi_server/app_server.py
@@ -32,6 +32,7 @@
 from utils.exceptions import DatabaseTypeException, DatabaseUpgradeRequired
 from utils.mdns_service import MDNSAdvertiser
 from utils.module_discovery import get_resource_path, is_frozen
+from utils.version_checker import VersionChecker
 from utils.web.jwt_service import JWTService
 from utils.web.route import Route
 
@@ -60,6 +61,7 @@ def __init__(
         self._db: DigiSQLAlchemy = models.db
         self.jwt_service: JWTService = None
         self.mdns_advertiser: Optional[MDNSAdvertiser] = None
+        self.version_checker: Optional[VersionChecker] = None
 
         db_path: str = self.digi_settings.settings.get("db_path").get_value()
         if db_path.startswith("sqlite://"):
@@ -351,6 +353,7 @@ def _check_migrations(self):
     async def configure(self):
         await self._configure_logging()
         await self.start_mdns_advertising()
+        await self.start_version_checker()
 
     async def _configure_logging(self):
         get_logger().info("Reconfiguring logging!")
@@ -528,3 +531,16 @@ async def _toggle_mdns_advertising(self) -> None:
         else:
             # Stop advertising
             await self.stop_mdns_advertising()
+
+    async def start_version_checker(self) -> None:
+        """Start the version checker service."""
+        if not self.version_checker:
+            self.version_checker = VersionChecker(application=self)
+
+        await self.version_checker.start()
+
+    async def stop_version_checker(self) -> None:
+        """Stop the version checker service if it's running."""
+        if self.version_checker:
+            await self.version_checker.stop()
+            self.version_checker = None
diff --git a/server/utils/version_checker.py b/server/utils/version_checker.py
