f7a261cb8a
This change has substantially bumped up the daemon's overall robustness, as the code now ensures that the controller will only start once the /dev/input/eventXX file is set up, which was causing all sorts of issues in the past. Additionally, this change enables the daemon to run as a proper background task that _doesn't_ constantly die / need to be restarted, which removes the need for any janky udev "on add" rules, and instead, a simple systemd user service will suffice.
152 lines
6.1 KiB
Markdown
152 lines
6.1 KiB
Markdown
# surface-dial-linux
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A Linux userspace controller for the [Microsoft Surface Dial](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/surface-dial/925r551sktgn). Requires Linux Kernel 4.19 or higher.
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**DISCLAIMER: This software is still under active development!**
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Things will change.
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Things will break.
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Things are probably buggy.
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Bug reports are appreciated!
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## Overview
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`surface-dial-daemon` is a background daemon which receives raw events from the surface dial, and translates them to various actions.
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The daemon uses FreeDesktop notifications to provide visual feedback when switching between actions.
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It would be cool to create some sort of GUI overlay (similar to the Windows one), though that's out of scope at the moment.
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## Implementation
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Core functionality is provided by the following libraries.
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- `libudev` to monitor when the dial connects/disconnects.
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- `libevdev` to read events from the surface dial through `/dev/input/eventXX`, and to fake input through `/dev/uinput`.
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- `hidapi` to configure dial sensitivity + haptics.
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- `notify-rust` to send desktop notifications over D-Bus.
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While the device-handling code itself is somewhat messy at the moment, it should be really easy to add new operating modes. Just add a new mode implementation under `src/controller/controls` (making sure to update `src/controller/controls/mod.rs`), and add it to the list of available modes in `main.rs`!
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## Functionality
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- [x] Interpret raw Surface Dial event
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- Operating Modes
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- [x] Volume Controls
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- [x] Media Controls
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- [x] Scrolling - using a virtual mouse-wheel
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- [ ] Scrolling - using a virtual touchpad (for [smoother scrolling](https://who-t.blogspot.com/2020/04/high-resolution-wheel-scrolling-in.html)) - **WIP**
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- [x] Zooming
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- [x] [Paddle](https://www.google.com/search?q=arkanoid+paddle) (emulated left, right, and space key)
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- [ ] \(meta\) custom modes specified via config file(s)
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- [x] Dynamically switch between operating modes
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- [x] Using a long-press activated "meta" mode
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- [ ] Context-sensitive (based on currently open application)
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- [x] Mode Persistence (keep mode when dial disconnects)
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- [x] Haptic Feedback
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- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/component-guidelines/radial-controller-protocol-implementation
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- https://www.usb.org/sites/default/files/hutrr63b_-_haptics_page_redline_0.pdf
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- https://www.usb.org/sites/default/files/hut1_21.pdf
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- _This was tricky to figure out, but in the end, it was surprisingly straightforward! Big thanks to [Geo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/geo-palakunnel-57718245/) for pointing me in the right direction!_
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- [x] Visual Feedback
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- [x] FreeDesktop Notifications
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Feel free to contribute new features!
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## Dependencies
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Building `surface-dial-daemon` requires the following:
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- Linux Kernel 4.19 or higher
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- A fairly recent version of the Rust compiler
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- `libudev`
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- `libevdev`
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- `hidapi`
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You can install Rust through [`rustup`](https://rustup.rs/).
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Unless you're a cool hackerman, the easiest way to get `libudev`, `libevdev`, and `hidapi` is via your distro's package manager.
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```bash
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# e.g: on ubuntu
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sudo apt install libevdev-dev libhidapi-dev libudev-dev
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```
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## Building
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`surface-dial-daemon` uses the standard `cargo build` flow.
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```bash
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cargo build -p surface-dial-daemon --release
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```
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The resulting binary is output to `target/release/surface-dial-daemon`
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## Running
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The daemon is able to handle the dial disconnecting/reconnecting, so as long as it's running in the background, things should Just Work:tm:.
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Note that the daemon must run as a _user process_ (**not** as root), as it needs access to the user's D-Bus to send notifications.
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Having to run as a user process complicates things a bit, as the daemon must be able to access several restricted-by-default devices under `/dev/`. Notably, the `/dev/uinput` device will need to have it's permissions changed for things to work correctly. The proper way to do this is using the included [udev rule](https://wiki.debian.org/udev), though if you just want to get something up and running, `sudo chmod 666 /dev/uinput` should work fine (though it will revert back once you reboot!).
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See the Installation instructions below for how to set up the permissions / udev rules.
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During development, the easiest way to run `surface-dial-linux` is using `cargo`:
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```bash
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cargo run -p surface-dial-daemon
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```
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Alternatively, you can run the daemon directly using the executable at `target/release/surface-dial-daemon`.
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## Installation
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I encourage you to tweak the following setup procedure for your particular linux configuration.
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The following steps have been tested working on Ubuntu 20.04/20.10.
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```bash
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# Install the `surface-dial-daemon` (i.e: build it, and place it under ~/.cargo/bin/surface-dial-daemon)
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# You could also just copy the executable from /target/release/surface-dial-daemon to wherever you like.
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cargo install --path .
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# IMPORTANT: modify the .service file to reflect where you placed the `service-dial-daemon` executable.
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# if you used `cargo install`, this should be as simple as replacing `danielprilik` with your own user id
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vi ./install/surface-dial.service
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# create new group for uinput
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# (the 99-uinput.rules file changes the group of /dev/uinput to this new group)
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sudo groupdadd -f uinput
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# add self to the new uinput group and the existing /dev/input group
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sudo gpasswd -a $(whoami) uinput
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sudo gpasswd -a $(whoami) $(stat -c "%G" /dev/input/event0)
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# install the systemd user service
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mkdir -p ~/.config/systemd/user/
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cp ./install/surface-dial.service ~/.config/systemd/user/surface-dial.service
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# install the udev rule
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sudo cp ./install/99-uinput.rules /etc/udev/rules.d/99-uinput.rules
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# reload systemd + udev
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systemctl --user daemon-reload
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sudo udevadm control --reload
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# enable and start the user service
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systemctl --user enable surface-dial.service
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systemctl --user start surface-dial.service
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```
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To see if the service is running correctly, run `systemctl --user status surface-dial.service`.
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You may need to reboot to have the various groups / udev rules propagate.
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If things aren't working, feel free to file a bug report!
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_Call for Contributors:_ It would be awesome to have a proper rpm/deb package as well.
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