[Feature Request] Automatically import roms

[marissa999]

Would it be possible to have EmuDeck automatically import ROMs once they got added to the corresponding ROM folders?

Now that steam ROM manager added a way to import ROMs through the CLI it shouldn't be necessary anymore to solely rely on the UI and to import games in the background (SteamGridDB/steam-rom-manager#58 (comment))

It feels like it should be possible to make use of a systemd Path unit (https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/systemd.path.html).

Maybe by combining those, a systemd Path unit that monitors the ROM collection folders, and a systemd service that triggers a rescan, it's possible to automatically detect changes to the ROM collection and to have those changes appear in the steam library?

┆Issue is synchronized with this Trello card by Unito

[Godsbane]

The biggest issue is that steam is still required to be closed. I do not think this can be fully automatic ever.

[cbartondock]

It's only required to be closed if the user cares about changing categories, in theory you could have an automatic mode where SRM never tries to change categories. But... your steam library would be a mess.

[marissa999]

It's only required to be closed if the user cares about changing categories, in theory you could have an automatic mode where SRM never tries to change categories. But... your steam library would be a mess.

What exactly counts as "changing categories"? Most importantly, if a new ROM gets added, does adding a category in the first time the ROM gets imported count as "changing a category" and could already result in a mess, or is the initial import and adding of the category an exception?

I would assume that background imports, one where the user does not even change any categories and just uses the last settings, would not be too much of an issue? And if a user wants
to rename/change/merge categories they would prob need to go through the UI anyway (or at least find a different way, that does not rely on an automatic background service)

[Godsbane]

The initial application of a category counts. @cbartondock is the main dev of steam rom manager so he has more knowledge than I do on this for sure. I will defer to him on what can and can't be done with it.