CleanStart

CleanStart is an open-source, safety-first Windows maintenance app. It is built to be transparent and realistic: preview first, explain what will happen, require confirmation before cleanup, and avoid fake optimizer or antivirus claims.

The current main app is being developed with Tauri + React + TypeScript + Tailwind, with a Rust backend for safety-critical cleanup validation. The older PyQt6 MVP is preserved in legacy-pyqt/ as the v0.1.0 reference.

Why CleanStart Exists

Many cleanup tools use aggressive language, unclear deletion rules, or promises they cannot honestly prove. CleanStart is built as a safer alternative: preview first, explain what is being reviewed, require confirmation before real cleanup, and avoid fake speed boost, scareware, registry cleaner, RAM booster, malware removal, or antivirus claims.

Current Version

v0.2.0-alpha.1 adds a safety-first Temp Cleaner with real preview scan, dry run, and selected cleanup through Recycle Bin for approved temporary folders and browser cache locations.

This is still an alpha release:

• Temp Cleaner has real alpha cleanup behavior.
• Startup Analyzer and Disk Analyzer remain prototype screens.
• Activity Log and Settings are local/prototype state.
• Cleanup remains local-first with no login, telemetry, analytics, cloud sync, or external server calls.

Feature Status

Area	Status
Dashboard	Available UI with real navigation and local state.
Temp Cleaner	Real preview scan, dry run, selected cleanup through Recycle Bin, safe temp cleanup, browser cache cleanup for cache folders only. Alpha limitations apply.
Startup Analyzer	Prototype / not fully connected yet.
Disk Analyzer	Prototype / not fully connected yet.
Activity Log	Local/prototype entries.
Settings	Local/prototype settings.

Temp Cleaner Targets

CleanStart only scans approved temporary/cache locations:

• %TEMP%
• %LOCALAPPDATA%\Temp
• C:\Windows\Temp when accessible
• Microsoft Edge cache folders only
• Google Chrome cache folders only
• Brave cache folders only
• Firefox cache folders only

Approved root folders are not moved or deleted directly. CleanStart treats them as cleanup groups, enumerates safe child files/folders inside them, skips symlinks/reparse points/junctions, and moves selected accessible children to Recycle Bin when supported.

Browser Safety

Browser cleanup targets cache only.

CleanStart does not clean:

• cookies
• passwords
• history
• sessions
• autofill
• bookmarks

Some browser cache files may stay locked while the browser is running. Close the browser and run Preview scan again to clean more cache files.

Safety Principles

• Preview-first.
• Explicit confirmation before cleanup.
• Recycle Bin only.
• Permanent deletion is disabled.
• Rust backend validates selected cleanup paths.
• Personal folders are not targeted.
• Locked/protected files are skipped and reported.
• No automatic cleanup.
• No telemetry.
• No login or accounts.
• No cloud sync.
• No fake optimizer claims.
• No antivirus or malware-detection claims.

Known Limitations

• Locked files may remain.
• Permission-protected files may be skipped.
• Some browser cache files may require closing the browser first.
• Permanent deletion is disabled.
• Auto cleanup is not implemented.
• Startup Analyzer and Disk Analyzer are still prototype screens.
• Browser cleanup targets cache only, not cookies/passwords/history/sessions.

Screenshots

Use docs/screenshots/ for release screenshots and avoid exposing real usernames, personal paths, private files, tokens, emails, or account names.

Requirements

• Windows 10/11.
• Node.js 20+ recommended.
• npm 10+.
• Rust/Cargo with the Visual Studio C++ build tools for the full Tauri desktop runtime.

Install

git clone https://github.com/vladislavovicvlad10-spec/CleanStart.git
cd CleanStart
npm install

Run

Desktop development mode:

npm run tauri dev

This opens the CleanStart Tauri desktop window. It may also start a local Vite dev server in the background, but you do not need to open it in a browser.

Frontend-only browser preview, only if you explicitly need it:

npm run dev:web

Build

Frontend build:

npm run build

Tauri desktop build:

npm run tauri build

Windows helper script:

.\scripts\build_windows.ps1

Project Structure

src/                 React + TypeScript UI
src/components/      Reusable app shell and UI components
src/data/            Prototype data for non-connected modules
src-tauri/           Tauri v2 desktop shell and Rust cleanup backend
public/assets/       UI assets: background, hero, app logo
docs/                Screenshot notes and design references
legacy-pyqt/         Preserved PyQt6 v0.1.0 MVP/reference

Legacy PyQt Version

legacy-pyqt/ contains the old PyQt6 v0.1.0 implementation/reference. The current main app is the Tauri/React/Rust version at the repository root.

Roadmap

See ROADMAP.md. Future work should connect Startup Analyzer, Disk Analyzer, Activity Log persistence, and settings polish without changing the safety-first boundaries above.

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md. Keep UI components real and interactive. Do not replace screens with static screenshots, and do not add telemetry, login, cloud sync, fake optimizer claims, or antivirus claims.