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Desktop app

The desktop build wraps the Kubus server and UI in a native window. It runs the server in-process on a random localhost port, opens it for you, and remembers your window size and position between launches.

Download

Grab the installer for your platform from the releases page:

Platform File
Windows kubus-<version>-win-x64.exe
macOS (Apple Silicon) kubus-<version>-mac-arm64.dmg
Linux kubus-<version>-linux-x86_64.AppImage or kubus-<version>-linux-amd64.deb

Install & launch

  1. Run the .exe installer and follow the prompts.
  2. Launch Kubus from the Start menu.

Windows SmartScreen may warn that the publisher is unrecognised (the builds aren't code-signed yet). Choose More info → Run anyway.

  1. Open the .dmg and drag Kubus into Applications.
  2. Open Kubus from Applications, Spotlight or the Dock.

Choose the .dmg download. The .zip on the release page is used by in-app updates; you do not need to download or extract it.

Release builds are signed with Apple Developer ID and notarized. New releases require an Apple Silicon Mac (M1 or newer); Intel Macs are no longer supported.

chmod +x kubus-*.AppImage
./kubus-*.AppImage

sudo apt install ./kubus-*-linux-amd64.deb
kubus

Updating

The macOS app, Windows installer and Linux AppImage check GitHub Releases shortly after startup and every four hours. A notification offers Download update or Later. Kubus downloads the update only when you request it. Once downloaded, choose Restart to update and confirm to install it. Quitting normally does not install updates, even after downloading one. You can check, download, follow progress, or retry in Settings → About. After reopening Kubus, a requested download can reuse the verified cached update.

Save edits before restarting. All Kubus windows close and terminals, log streams and port forwards disconnect. Settings are preserved. On macOS, run the installed copy from Applications rather than directly from the disk image.

Microsoft Store installations use Store-managed updates. Settings → About → Check for updates opens Kubus's Store page.

Debian packages use your package manager or a newer .deb from Releases. Browser installs show a download link. Updating from older desktop versions requires installing the new release once manually, since they did not contain an auto-updater.

Update requests go to GitHub and its download CDN and include the installed version and platform as required by the updater. They do not include kubeconfigs or cluster data. There is no telemetry. See Releasing for signing and Windows distribution options.

Next steps

  • Quickstart

    Connect your first cluster and take the tour.

    Quickstart