Release a Qt6-compatible version

Describe the new feature

sqlitebrowser is the last of my installed applications still depending on ye olde Qt5.

As sqlitebrowser-git from AUR already properly works with Qt6 backend, is there a chance to have a new release which incorporates the current git development and thus drops the dependency on Qt5?

Sorry if there are already plans to do this, I just haven't found any information on this and it would be sad to let main go stale.

Thanks for your work!

Does this feature exist in another product or project? Please provide a link

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Do you have a screenshot? Please add screenshots to help explain your idea.

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A new release probably would not drop support for Qt5 completely, but just provide the current compatibility layer which works with both versions. AFAIK there are no explicit plans for a release, but this would probably require fixing our Windows CI first (the old runner has been removed), with the new Windows runner requiring Qt6 anyway. Due to possibly limited time, resources and knowledge, this might take some time.

sqlitebrowser was fine on Debian 12, but it has problem in Debian 13. Fortunately, the appimage version and flatpak version have no problems.

Can you be more specific about the issues? Nevertheless, this rather sounds like something which should be reported to downstream as we do not do the Debian packaging ourself.

A QT6 build would be fantastic. QT5 is already old...

With Qt5 being EOL, more and more linux distros are scheduling it for removal so would be nice to have a release soon

I like to build sqlitebrowser with Qt6. My build machine has both versions Qt5 and Qt6. The cmake configure step will always select the Qt5 environment. How can I force cmake to use Qt6? -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 hasn't helped.

@cgrzemba

Hi @cgrzemba ,
That option still works for me. Could yu please provide more details on how you treid to build it?

There all paths provided for Qt6, but cmake still search for Qt5. It uses cmake version 4.2.3

/bin/rm -f -r /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/build/amd64 ;
/bin/mkdir -p /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/build/amd64
cd /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/build/amd64 ; 
/usr/bin/env -i CONFIG_SHELL="/bin/bash" CC="/usr/gcc/14/bin/gcc" CXX="/usr/gcc/14/bin/g++" F77="/usr/gcc/14/bin/gfortran" FC="/usr/gcc/14/bin/gfortran" CFLAGS="-m64 -O3 " CXXFLAGS="-m64 -O3 " FFLAGS=" -m64 -O3 " FCFLAGS="-m64 -O3 " LDFLAGS="-m64" PKG_CONFIG_PATH="/usr/lib/amd64/pkgconfig:/usr/lib/qt/6.10/lib/amd64/pkgconfig" PATH="/usr/gcc/14/bin:/usr/clang/21/bin:/usr/ruby/3.2/bin:/usr/jdk/openjdk21/bin:/usr/postgres/16/bin:/usr/mariadb/10.6/bin:/usr/openssl/3/bin:/usr/bin/amd64:/usr/bin:/usr/gnu/bin:/usr/sbin/amd64:/usr/sbin:/usr/lib/qt/6.10/bin/amd64:/usr/lib/qt/6.10"  /usr/bin/cmake 
-DCMAKE_C_COMPILER:STRING="/usr/gcc/14/bin/gcc" -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER:STRING="/usr/gcc/14/bin/g++" 
-DCMAKE_Fortran_COMPILER:STRING="/usr/gcc/14/bin/gfortran" -DCMAKE_C_FLAGS:STRING="-m64 -O3 " 
-DCMAKE_CXX_FLAGS:STRING="-m64 -O3 " -DCMAKE_Fortran_FLAGS:STRING="-m64 -O3 " 
-DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX:PATH=/usr -DCMAKE_INSTALL_BINDIR:PATH=bin -DCMAKE_INSTALL_LIBDIR:PATH=lib/amd64 
-DCMAKE_INSTALL_SBINDIR:PATH=sbin -DCMAKE_INSTALL_DATAROOTDIR:PATH=share 
-DCMAKE_INSTALL_DATADIR:PATH=share -DCMAKE_INSTALL_INFODIR:PATH=share/info 
-DCMAKE_INSTALL_LOCALEDIR:PATH=share/locale -DCMAKE_INSTALL_MANDIR:PATH=share/man 
-DLIBEXEC_INSTALL_DIR="/usr/libexec" -DLIB_INSTALL_DIR="/usr/lib/amd64" -DCMAKE_LIBRARY_ARCHITECTURE=amd64 -DLIB_SUFFIX="/amd64" "-DSYSCONFDIR=/etc" "-DCMAKE_POLICY_VERSION_MINIMUM=3.5" "-DQT_MAJOR=Qt6"
"-DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=/usr/lib/qt/6.10" /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/sqlitebrowser-3.13.1
  3 -- The C compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0
  4 -- The CXX compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0
  5 -- Detecting C compiler ABI info
  6 -- Detecting C compiler ABI info - done
  7 -- Check for working C compiler: /usr/gcc/14/bin/gcc - skipped
  8 -- Detecting C compile features
  9 -- Detecting C compile features - done
 10 -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info
 11 -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info - done
 12 -- Check for working CXX compiler: /usr/gcc/14/bin/g++ - skipped
 13 -- Detecting CXX compile features
 14 -- Detecting CXX compile features - done
 15 CMake Error at CMakeLists.txt:136 (find_package):
 16   By not providing "FindQt5.cmake" in CMAKE_MODULE_PATH this project has
 17   asked CMake to find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5", but
 18   CMake did not find one.
 19 
 20   Could not find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5" with any of
 21   the following names:
 22 
 23     Qt5Config.cmake
 24     qt5-config.cmake
 25 
 26   Add the installation prefix of "Qt5" to CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH or set "Qt5_DIR"
 27   to a directory containing one of the above files.  If "Qt5" provides a
 28   separate development package or SDK, be sure it has been installed.
 29 
 30 
 31 -- Configuring incomplete, errors occurred!
 32 gmake: *** [/code/github/oi-userland/make-rules/common-rules.mk:43: /code/github/oi-userland/components/

@cgrzemba

@cgrzemba That's strange. Could you try running it using the following command?
cmake -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="OpenSSL, Qt, SQLCipher or SQLite PATH" -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 .

Is still providing Qt5 support desirable? I guess committing to one solution simplifies things a bit.

Dropping support for Qt5 would require an informed choice in my opinion, id est researching whether all relevant/larger Linux distributions already provide a suitable Qt6 in their non-EOL versions.

Quite a few distributions are seeking to drop Qt5 from their repositories, due to it being past its EOL. We’re way past the point of Qt6 being available, we’re at the stage of Qt5 being dropped. The main blocker are a few applications which still haven’t release Qt6 support.

@cgrzemba That's strange. Could you try running it using the following command? cmake -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="OpenSSL, Qt, SQLCipher or SQLite PATH" -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 .

the same result:
grzemba@oi-hipster:/code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/build/amd64$ cmake -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="OpenSSL, Qt, SQLCipher or SQLite PATH" -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/sqlitebrowser-3.13.1
-- The C compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0
-- The CXX compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0
-- Detecting C compiler ABI info
-- Detecting C compiler ABI info - done
-- Check for working C compiler: /usr/bin/gcc - skipped
-- Detecting C compile features
-- Detecting C compile features - done
-- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info
-- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info - done
-- Check for working CXX compiler: /usr/bin/c++ - skipped
-- Detecting CXX compile features
-- Detecting CXX compile features - done
CMake Error at CMakeLists.txt:136 (find_package):
By not providing "FindQt5.cmake" in CMAKE_MODULE_PATH this project has
asked CMake to find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5", but
CMake did not find one.

Could not find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5" with any of
the following names:

Qt5.cps
qt5.cps
Qt5Config.cmake
qt5-config.cmake

Add the installation prefix of "Qt5" to CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH or set "Qt5_DIR"
to a directory containing one of the above files. If "Qt5" provides a
separate development package or SDK, be sure it has been installed.

-- Configuring incomplete, errors occurred!

the same result: grzemba@oi-hipster:/code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/build/amd64$ cmake -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="OpenSSL, Qt, SQLCipher or SQLite PATH" -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 /code/github/oi-userland/components/desktop/sqlitebrowser/sqlitebrowser-3.13.1 -- The C compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0 -- The CXX compiler identification is GNU 14.3.0 -- Detecting C compiler ABI info -- Detecting C compiler ABI info - done -- Check for working C compiler: /usr/bin/gcc - skipped -- Detecting C compile features -- Detecting C compile features - done -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info - done -- Check for working CXX compiler: /usr/bin/c++ - skipped -- Detecting CXX compile features -- Detecting CXX compile features - done CMake Error at CMakeLists.txt:136 (find_package): By not providing "FindQt5.cmake" in CMAKE_MODULE_PATH this project has asked CMake to find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5", but CMake did not find one.

Could not find a package configuration file provided by "Qt5" with any of the following names:
Qt5.cps
qt5.cps
Qt5Config.cmake
qt5-config.cmake

This very much looks like using something before commit d824554, which added support for Qt6, so it's not suprising at all. Please try again with current master.

@cgrzemba

@cgrzemba
You must change the value of -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH to the actual path. Additionally, since the build is being run in the ./build/amd64 directory rather than the top-level Repo directory, you must also change the path to the build configuration file.

For example, if the libraries are installed in the following location, you must run the following command:

OpenSSL: /home/user/openssl
Qt: /home/user/qt6
SQLCipher: /home/user/sqlcipher
SQLite: /home/user/sqlite

$ cmake -G "Ninja Multi-Config" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="/home/user/openssl;/home/user/qt6;/home/user/sqlcipher;/home/user/sqlite" -DQT_MAJOR=Qt6 ../../

@allergicapple

@allergicapple @WhyNotHugo
As @FriedrichFroebel mentioned, the decision to change the major version of the framework must be made with great care. However, as you pointed out, since support for Qt5 has already ended, I believe migrating to Qt6 is a reasonable suggestion.
We previously discussed this internally as a team and reached a consensus to release one final stable version using Qt5 and then migrate to Qt6.

That said, we currently lack the manpower to carry out this work.
We will continue to make efforts toward this goal, but we also welcome your interest and pull requests. :)

This very much looks like using something before commit d824554, which added support for Qt6, so it's not suprising at all. Please try again with current master.

I use latest release 3.13.1, which should have the commit:

$ git log --oneline | egrep -n "3.13.1|d824554"
133:702f7931 [skip ci] Fix typo in v3.13.1 release data
136:f50afc68 [skip ci] Release v3.13.1
146:e2fbdd69 [skip ci] Release v3.13.1 version
153:7fc89c49 sqlb_zh Translation v3.13.1 (#3761)
154:6100595b Update Indonesian translation for v3.13.1 (#3756)
157:e0f6aea0 Japanese Translation for v3.13.1 (#3755)
160:e49934fc Update translation files for v3.13.1
177:d8245548 Adding Qt6 support

I just found out myself, but commit d824554 on the v3.13.x branch is incomplete.
I fixed this a few days ago via commit 21dd3b8. Would you like to try rebuilding using the latest v3.13.x branch?

Ok, this works!

Hi,

Arch Linux maintainer here.

Quite a few distributions are seeking to drop Qt5 from their repositories, due to it being past its EOL.

We’re way past the point of Qt6 being available, we’re at the stage of Qt5 being dropped. The main blocker are a few applications which still haven’t release Qt6 support.

I support the above statement, we're also looking at dropping Qt 5 from our repository and Sqlitebrowser is one of the few applications that prevents us to do so (see the related issue on our side https://gitlab.archlinux.org/archlinux/packaging/packages/sqlitebrowser/-/work_items/2).

It seems like the commit that introduced Qt 6 compatibility sadly never made it to v3.13.1, it only made it to the related RC releases (d824554 - see also the related issue at #3910). Seeing that v3.13.1 is nearly 2 years old now, can we eventually expect a new release with d824554 (and maybe 21dd3b8 as well) being included?

I'm aware this might sound like "downstream expectations" but this would allow a bunch of Linux distributions to move forward regarding their current "dropping Qt 5" efforts.
Thanks for your consideration 🙏 🤗

I found an other problem with qt6. If I try to use filter in the DB browser, there is no reaction. I can write some expressions in the filter text field, in classic SQL style or regex, but leaving the text field, pressing Enter or refresh do not trigger any action. The shown DB content is still unfiltered.
I build sqlitebrowser 3.13.1 with QT6.10.3 and QT6.11.2, both the same behaviour.
Has anyone an idea what is happening - or not happening - here?

Sorry for the delay in the work.
I've been going through a busy period for a while (due to personal issues), and I expect it to be resolved by this weekend.
Starting next week, I will begin working on the related tasks and do my best to resolve the issue quickly.

A little while ago, I wrote a post internally within the team discussing the next release.
I'll let you know here if there's any further progress. Thank you.

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Release a Qt6-compatible version #3963

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Release a Qt6-compatible version #3963

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FriedrichFroebel commented on Jul 16, 2025

virtual-hand commented on Aug 30, 2025

FriedrichFroebel commented on Aug 31, 2025

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cgrzemba commented on Apr 13, 2026

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