Service management is supported on macOS, Linux, and Windows

Error message

Service management is supported on macOS, Linux, and Windows only

What it means

platform::service::install registers the background service per OS (launchd on macOS, systemd on Linux, the Windows service manager); every platform arm is #[cfg]-gated, and on any other target the trailing cfg(not(any(macos, linux, windows))) arm compiles to this bail. A runtime mock (OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK) short-circuits before the platform arms, which is the sanctioned way to exercise install in tests on any OS.

Source

Thrown at src/openhuman/platform/service/core.rs:49

    }

    #[cfg(target_os = "macos")]
    {
        macos::install(config)?;
        status(config)
    }
    #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
    {
        linux::install(config)?;
        status(config)
    }
    #[cfg(windows)]
    {
        windows::install(config)?;
        status(config)
    }
    #[cfg(not(any(target_os = "macos", target_os = "linux", windows)))]
    anyhow::bail!("Service management is supported on macOS, Linux, and Windows only")
}

pub fn start(config: &Config) -> Result<ServiceStatus> {
    if super::mock::is_enabled() {
        return super::mock::start(config);
    }

    #[cfg(target_os = "macos")]
    return macos::start(config);
    #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
    return linux::start(config);
    #[cfg(windows)]
    return windows::start(config);
    #[cfg(not(any(target_os = "macos", target_os = "linux", windows)))]
    anyhow::bail!("Service management is supported on macOS, Linux, and Windows only")
}

pub fn stop(config: &Config) -> Result<ServiceStatus> {

View on GitHub (pinned to 7491200858)

Solutions

Run service management only on the supported desktop OSes; gate callers with a cfg or runtime OS check.
For tests on any platform, set OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK=1 (optionally OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK_STATE_FILE) to route install to the in-memory mock.
For a genuine port, implement a platform module behind a new cfg arm rather than calling the stub.

Example fix

// before (running on an unsupported target)
service::install(&config)?; // bails

// after — tests on any OS: route to the mock
std::env::set_var("OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK", "1");
service::install(&config)?;

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

fn service_management_supported() -> bool {
    matches!(std::env::consts::OS, "macos" | "linux" | "windows")
}

Try / catch

Catch the bail and translate it to a UI 'not supported on this platform' notice; for tests, the OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK env var is the sanctioned way to exercise install on any OS.

Prevention

Expose service controls only on supported OSes.
Use OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK=1 (and OPENHUMAN_SERVICE_MOCK_STATE_FILE) for CI/tests on any platform.
Remember every service operation carries the same trailing bail when adding new call sites.

When it happens

Trigger: Compiling or running the service-install path on a non-macOS/Linux/Windows target — BSD, Android, wasm — e.g. cross-compiled CI binaries or porting efforts, without the mock env var set.

Common situations: Cross-compilation checks; ports to exotic targets; test binaries built for unusual targets where the author forgot the mock switch.

Understand the failure class

Background: "unsupported platform" / "not supported on this platform" errors: what they mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 47 libraries.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of tinyhumansai/openhuman@7491200858 (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/f82ec259133717b2. Report an issue: GitHub.