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Command Line

All Zaparoo Core distributions ship with a common command line interface (CLI) that can be used to interact with the API. This interface is the same on every platform that Zaparoo works on, and can be safely used as a scripting target.

The name of the Zaparoo core binary may differ slightly on your platform. For example, MiSTer ships with a binary named zaparoo.sh, whereas Windows ships with a binary named Zaparoo.exe. Functionally they're the same, just replace the filename in the examples.

If a platform's binary displays a GUI when run without arguments, the GUI will not be display when at least one of these flags are enabled.

Common Flags​

These flags are available on all platforms:

Help​

  • Flag: -help
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -help

The most important one. This will output a list of all available command line flags along with a brief summary of each.

Version​

  • Flag: -version
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -version

Outputs this Zaparoo binary's build version (not the currently started API service).

API Request​

  • Flag: -api
  • Argument: string
  • Example: ./zaparoo -api 'launch:{"text":"**launch.system:menu"}'

Sends a single request to the Zaparoo API, waits for a response and then outputs the result body of that response. The format is method:parameters where parameters is a JSON string.

Run​

  • Flag: -run
  • Argument: string
  • Example: ./zaparoo -run "**launch.random:arcade"

Sends the string argument to the API via the run method, as if a token with that text on it was scanned.

Launch (Deprecated)​

  • Flag: -launch
  • Argument: string
  • Example: ./zaparoo -launch "**launch.random:arcade"
Deprecated Feature

This flag is deprecated and is an alias of -run. Use -run instead.

Write​

  • Flag: -write
  • Argument: string
  • Example: ./zaparoo -write "SNES/MyGame.sfc"

If a reader is physically connected to the device and has the capability to write to a token, try to write the given string to that token. Reports an error if the token couldn't be written and times out after 30 seconds.

Read​

  • Flag: -read
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -read

Print the next scanned token without running any actions. Useful for debugging or checking what text is stored on a token.

Config​

  • Flag: -config
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -config

Start the text-based user interface (TUI) to handle Zaparoo configuration.

Reload​

  • Flag: -reload
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -reload

Reloads the config file from disk and re-reads any mapping files from disk.

Platform-Specific Flags​

These flags are only available on certain platforms:

Linux, Bazzite, ChimeraOS, SteamOS​

Install​

  • Flag: -install
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -install

Configure the system for Zaparoo (system integration, permissions, etc.).

Uninstall​

  • Flag: -uninstall
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -uninstall

Revert Zaparoo system configuration and remove system integration.

Daemon​

  • Flag: -daemon
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -daemon

Run the service in the foreground with no user interface.

Mac​

Daemon​

  • Flag: -daemon
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -daemon

Run the service in the foreground with no user interface.

GUI​

  • Flag: -gui
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -gui

Run the service as a daemon with GUI (system tray).

MiSTer​

Service​

  • Flag: -service
  • Argument: string (start, stop, restart, or status)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -service start

Manage the Zaparoo service state.

Add Startup​

  • Flag: -add-startup
  • Argument: none (boolean switch)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -add-startup

Add the Zaparoo service to MiSTer startup if not already added.

Show Loader​

  • Flag: -show-loader
  • Argument: string (file path)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -show-loader "/tmp/loader.json"

Display a loading widget based on a JSON configuration file.

Show Notice​

  • Flag: -show-notice
  • Argument: string (file path)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -show-notice "/tmp/notice.json"

Display a notice widget based on a JSON configuration file.

Show Picker​

  • Flag: -show-picker
  • Argument: string (file path)
  • Example: ./zaparoo -show-picker "/tmp/picker.json"

Display a picker widget based on a JSON configuration file.