Installation

Installation

SenseTree ships as a standard Windows installer. Nothing to configure at the OS level.

1. Download

From the Releases page:

File	Choose it if…	Notes
sensetree_x.y.z_x64-setup.exe (recommended)	You're an individual user.	NSIS wizard. Installs per-user in %LOCALAPPDATA%, no admin required. This is the target of the in-app auto-update.
sensetree_x.y.z_x64_en-US.msi	You manage many machines.	Windows Installer package, deployable via GPO / Intune / SCCM, silent install (msiexec /i sensetree_x.y.z_x64_en-US.msi /quiet). Usually per-machine → needs admin.

Same application, different packaging.

Pick one and stick with it across versions. NSIS and MSI track their installs separately; mixing them leaves two entries in Apps & Features.

2. Install

Run the installer. When done, SenseTree appears in the Start menu, in Settings → Apps → Installed apps, and optionally on your desktop.

Windows SmartScreen may warn on first run because the binary isn't signed with a paid code-signing certificate — More info → Run anyway. (The updates are cryptographically signed; see below. That's a different mechanism.)

3. First launch

1. The data directory is created at %APPDATA%\com.virgi.sensetree — config, SQLite metadata, LanceDB vectors, downloaded models.
2. A default settings.json is written (Configuration).
3. On the first index, ONNX Runtime and the local embedding model are downloaded automatically (a few hundred MB, once).

Then head to Getting Started.

Automatic updates

SenseTree updates itself. On startup it checks the release feed; if a newer version exists, a banner offers to download and install it, then relaunches. Nothing happens without your click.

• Updates are cryptographically signed (minisign). The app verifies the signature against its embedded public key and refuses anything that doesn't match, so a tampered or spoofed release cannot be installed.
• The feed is https://github.com/Eligrive/SenseTree/releases/latest/download/latest.json, published by the release workflow.
• If the endpoint is unreachable, or you're running a dev build, the check fails silently — no banner, no error.
• You can dismiss the banner and update later; manual reinstall still works exactly as before.

Requirements

• Windows 10/11, x64.
• For AI features, model endpoints. Two options, mixable per slot:
  • the built-in local embedding engine — no install, embeddings only; or
  • a model runner: Ollama or LM Studio for reasoning and vision, plus something like vLLM, speaches or whisper.cpp for transcription and video.
• A GPU is optional but strongly recommended for the LLM slots. Embedding runs fine on CPU.

See Models & Providers for what to install and which models suit your hardware.

Upgrading manually

Download the newer installer of the same type and run it. The app identifier (com.virgi.sensetree) is stable, so it upgrades in place — one entry, and your index and settings in %APPDATA% are preserved.

Uninstalling

Uninstall from Apps & Features like any app. That removes the program but not your data. To wipe everything, also delete %APPDATA%\com.virgi.sensetree.