Melocoton

A keyboard-driven, multi-platform database client for SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MySQL. Built with Elixir/Phoenix LiveView and packaged as a native desktop app with Tauri.

Melocoton (/me.loˈko.ton/) means "peach" in Spanish. It is a power-user tool designed for developers and DBAs who value speed, precision, and staying in flow.

Table of contents

• Features
• Installation
• Development
• Desktop builds
• AI assistant setup
• Keyboard shortcuts
• Tech stack
• Architecture overview

Features

• Keyboard-native — every action is reachable from the keyboard; shortcut hints shown inline
• SQL editor — CodeMirror-powered editor with syntax highlighting, auto-completion, and optional Vim mode
• Transaction support — interactive transactions with explicit commit/rollback control
• Table explorer — browse schemas, tables, indexes, columns, and foreign keys
• Multiple databases — connect to several databases and switch between them instantly
• Connection groups — organize databases by project, environment, or team with color-coded labels
• AI assistant — natural language to SQL with schema-aware chat; supports Anthropic, OpenAI, OpenRouter, MiniMax, and local models via Ollama
• Data export — export query results to CSV or Excel
• Query history — search and re-run past queries
• Cross-platform desktop app — native builds for macOS, Linux, and Windows

Installation

Download the latest release for your platform from the Releases page:

Platform	Installer
macOS	.dmg
Linux	.deb, .rpm, .AppImage
Windows	.msi, .exe (NSIS)

No additional runtime is required — the desktop app bundles the Elixir VM via Burrito.

Development

Requirements

• mise — manages Elixir, Erlang, and Node.js versions
• just — command runner (see justfile)
• Rust — required only for desktop builds (Tauri)

Quick start

# Install tool versions (Elixir, Node, etc.)
mise install

# Install dependencies and set up the local SQLite database
just setup

# Start the dev server at http://localhost:4000
just dev

Common tasks

just test              # Run the test suite
just ci                # Full CI check (format + audit + tests + coverage)
just fmt               # Format all code
just tauri-dev         # Tauri dev mode with hot reload
just db-migrate        # Run pending Ecto migrations
just db-reset          # Drop, create, migrate, and seed the DB
just release           # Full desktop app build (macOS / Linux)

Run just --list to see all available recipes.

Desktop builds

The desktop app is built with Tauri and packages the Elixir runtime via Burrito.

macOS / Linux

just release
# or directly:
bash build.sh

Windows

Requires zig and xz in your PATH (Burrito dependencies).

powershell -File build.ps1

AI assistant setup

The AI assistant can be configured from the in-app Settings panel.

Supported providers:

Provider	Required configuration
Anthropic	API key
OpenAI	API key
OpenRouter	API key
MiniMax	API key
Ollama	Base URL (e.g., http://localhost:11434)

Select your preferred provider and model, then start a chat from any database connection. The assistant is schema-aware — it can read your table definitions to generate more accurate SQL.

Keyboard shortcuts

Melocoton is designed to be used without leaving the keyboard.

Global

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl/Cmd + K	Open command palette
Ctrl/Cmd + ,	Open settings
Ctrl/Cmd + B	Toggle AI panel
Ctrl/Cmd + N	New window
?	Show keyboard shortcuts

SQL editor

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl/Cmd + '	Focus editor
Ctrl/Cmd + Enter	Run query (selection or all)
Ctrl/Cmd + S	Save query to file
Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + F	Format SQL
Tab	Accept autocomplete suggestion
Ctrl + N	Next autocomplete suggestion
Ctrl + P	Previous autocomplete suggestion

Databases page

Shortcut	Action
/	Focus search

Shortcut hints are shown inline throughout the interface. Press ? anywhere to see the full list.

Tech stack

Layer	Technology
Backend	Elixir, Phoenix LiveView
Frontend	LiveView, Tailwind CSS, CodeMirror 6
Desktop	Tauri (Rust)
Databases	Postgrex, Exqlite, MyXQL
Packaging	Burrito (embeds Elixir runtime)

Architecture overview

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Tauri Desktop Window (Rust)                 │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │  WebView → Phoenix LiveView UI          │ │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                    │
                    ▼
         ┌─────────────────────┐
         │  Burrito Sidecar    │
         │  (Embedded BEAM VM) │
         └─────────────────────┘
                    │
    ┌───────────────┼──────────────────────┐
    ▼               ▼                      ▼
┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐         ┌──────────────┐
│  SQLite  │  │   Pool   │         │  AI Models   │
│  (local  │  │  (lazy   │         │  (Anthropic, │
│   meta   │  │   per-   │         │   OpenAI,    │
│  store)  │  │  database│         │   Ollama...) │
└──────────┘  │   cache) │         └──────────────┘
              └────┬─────┘
                   │
    ┌──────────────┼──────────────┐
    ▼              ▼              ▼
┌────────┐  ┌──────────┐  ┌──────────┐
│SQLite  │  │PostgreSQL│  │  MySQL   │
│(user)  │  │ (user)   │  │  (user)  │
└────────┘  └──────────┘  └──────────┘

Melocoton is a desktop client — it does not host your data. The Elixir/Phoenix app runs as a Tauri sidecar and uses a local SQLite database only for its own metadata (saved connections, groups, query history, settings). User-configured database connections (SQLite, PostgreSQL, or MySQL) are reached through a lazily initialized connection pool.

License

MIT