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OTA updates

Loach has a built-in updater so you do not have to keep an eye on the releases page. New features, performance work and security patches arrive directly from the app on every install format Loach ships - with an optional check at launch that tells you when a new version is out.

By install format

• Windows (NSIS) - the updater downloads the signed installer and runs it in passive mode (a progress window, no questions), then Loach restarts. No re-download from a browser needed.
• Linux AppImage - same flow. The updater replaces the AppImage on disk.
• Linux .deb / .rpm - the signed package is downloaded and handed to dpkg -i / rpm -U through a pkexec prompt (falling back to zenity or kdialog plus sudo), so your package database stays consistent instead of a package install being silently overwritten. There is no apt or yum repository, so apt upgrade will not see new versions - updates are in-app only.
• macOS (.app) - the updater downloads a .app.tar.gz bundle and replaces the application in place. Apple Silicon only.

On Linux, a build the updater cannot patch - a development build or a plain binary - gets a different panel: just the current version, a note that in-app updates aren’t available for this install, and an Open releases button. There is no check button or auto-check switch there.

Checking and installing

Settings → Updates shows your current version and a Check for updates button, which works whether or not the auto-check is on:

• Up to date: You’re on the latest version., with a Check again button.
• A newer release: the new and current version numbers, that release’s notes under Release notes, and Install update / Re-check.
• Installing: a progress bar with the downloaded size and percentage, and the note that the app restarts automatically once the update is installed.
• Anything that goes wrong - a failed check, download, install or restart - shows Update failed: with the reason and a Try again button, and Settings can be closed again.

Once a download has started it can’t be cancelled: the update installs and Loach restarts on its own. Until then Settings can’t be closed or switched to another tab. The updater only offers the newest published stable release - drafts and pre-releases are never offered in-app.

Auto-check for updates

Off by default. Switch on Auto-check for updates in Settings → Updates and Loach asks the release server once per launch whether a newer version exists - locking and unlocking Loach doesn’t check again; the switch takes effect from the next launch. If a newer version exists, an Update available dialog opens with the current and new version numbers, that release’s notes, and Update now / Later - nothing is downloaded or installed until you pick Update now. The check is otherwise silent: no “up to date” notice, and a failed check is only logged. The dialog never appears over the lock screen or the onboarding wizard, and while an update downloads it can’t be closed. If the update fails, the dialog shows Update failed: with the reason, and Update now becomes Try again.

Release notes

Every release ships with a markdown notes file that populates the GitHub release body and, under Release notes, the in-app Updates panel and the Update available dialog when an upgrade is available. Skim it before clicking install if you want to know what is changing.

Signing

Update bundles are cryptographically signed. The updater verifies the signature against a key bundled with the app before replacing any binary on disk, so a man-in-the-middle on the download channel cannot swap in a tampered build.

This Ed25519 signature check is what guards in-app updates on every platform. It is separate from Apple notarization, which only gates the first launch of a freshly downloaded app on macOS. The Loach build is not Apple-notarized, so you will see a Gatekeeper warning once on first install (see Installation → macOS); subsequent in-app updates normally do not re-prompt, and if one ever does, the same workaround applies.

If an update fails or is never offered, see Troubleshooting → Updates.