Skip to main content

Install the desktop app

News Dashboard's Electron desktop app opens news.lihor.ro in a native window. It loads the live website and needs network access to the server; it is not a standalone offline reader. The published app connects to the public instance and does not offer a server-address setting.

What you need​

New desktop releases include installers for all three operating systems. Older releases may contain only the macOS installer; check the selected release’s assets.

Where to get the build​

  1. Open the GitHub Releases page.
  2. Find the newest Desktop App release, tagged desktop-v{version}. Android and server releases are separate.
  3. Under Assets, download the installer for your operating system:
Operating systemInstaller
macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon)news-dashboard-<version>-universal.dmg
Linux x64news-dashboard-<version>-x64.AppImage
Windows x64news-dashboard-<version>-x64.exe

The accompanying ZIP, YAML manifests (latest-mac.yml, latest-linux.yml, and latest.yml), and blockmaps support updates; they are not separate installers.

For an older example, Desktop App v1.171.0 provides News.Dashboard-1.171.0-universal.dmg. Its other asset, latest-mac.yml, is update metadata, not an installer. That release has no Linux AppImage or Windows installer.

How to install​

macOS​

  1. Open the downloaded .dmg file.
  2. Drag News Dashboard.app to Applications, then eject the disk image.
  3. Open News Dashboard from Applications.

The macOS build is unsigned, so Gatekeeper may block its first launch. After downloading it from the project's release page, Control-click the app in Finder and choose Open, then confirm Open if offered. If macOS still blocks it, open System Settings → Privacy & Security and use Open Anyway for News Dashboard after attempting to launch it. See Apple’s instructions for opening an app from an unknown developer.

If necessary, remove the downloaded app's quarantine attribute in Terminal:

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/News Dashboard.app"

This command applies only to that installed app. Open it again afterward.

Linux​

  1. Download the .AppImage for Linux x64.
  2. Make it executable in the file’s properties, or run chmod +x followed by the downloaded filename in a terminal.
  3. Open the AppImage to launch News Dashboard.

Windows​

Download the x64 .exe installer, open it, and follow the installation wizard. You can choose the installation directory when prompted. The installer is unsigned, so Windows may display an unknown-publisher warning; confirm that it came from the project’s GitHub release before continuing.

Verifying the installation​

Launch News Dashboard. It should open the public instance's sign-in page, or your news dashboard if you already have a session. External article links open in your system browser. In Settings → Updates, check Current version to confirm which desktop build is installed.

Updates​

The window loads the live website, so web features update with the server. The desktop wrapper has its own version: opening Settings → Updates checks for a newer build automatically. If one is available, choose Download update, then Restart and install when the download finishes.

If the updater fails, quit the app and install the newest desktop release over the existing installation. On macOS, download its .dmg and replace the copy in Applications. On Linux, replace the old AppImage with the new one and make it executable. On Windows, run the new installer.

Troubleshooting​

ProblemWhat to do
macOS blocks the appFollow the unsigned-build steps above for the copy downloaded from the project release.
Blank window or site does not loadCheck your network and open news.lihor.ro in a browser to confirm the server is reachable.
Update check or download failsChoose Try again in Updates, or download and install the latest desktop release manually.
No installer for your operating systemOlder releases may be macOS-only. Check a newer Desktop App release for Linux x64 or Windows x64 assets, or use the local build instructions.
You want to connect to a self-hosted serverUse that server in your browser. The published desktop app connects to news.lihor.ro.

Building the app yourself​

See the desktop development and build guide for local commands and packaging configuration.