WhatsNow 2.6.0

WhatsNow 2.6.0 release notes

WhatsNow is authored, created, and maintained solely by
Benedictus Reynaldo Hartanto (@benedictusrey).

Official Repository: https://github.com/benedictusrey/WhatsNow-for-WhatsApp
Copyright (c) 2026 Benedictus Reynaldo Hartanto (@benedictusrey). Released under the MIT License.

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What's in 2.6.0

Version 2.6.0 builds upon the four locked pillars established in v2.5.0 and introduces full WhatsApp-family link routing, dedicated calling windows, resolution-safe geometry, freeze-safe popup architectures, and restored official dark doodles:

1. Dark Doodles Restored Across Official Themes:
   • In 2.5.0, the Settings "Dark" theme was persisted as system, which inadvertently triggered the doodle kill-switch.
   • settings.rs now enforces an explicit deny-list of the 8 personality themes (midnight, forest, graphite, ocean, blush, lavender, candy, aurora). All official themes (System, Light, Dark) reliably render WhatsApp's doodle wallpaper.
2. Native WhatsApp Web Calling Windows:
   • WhatsApp Web Calling (2026) window.open requests now spawn a real, independent, resizable, and maximizable window set to always-on-top.
   • The call window shares the opener's webview session (with_environment on Windows, with_webview_configuration on macOS, with_related_view on Linux), keeping WebRTC media streams and per-account isolation intact.
3. Popup Media & Window Management Permissions:
   • Microphones, cameras, and window management (PiP / pop-out controls) are automatically granted for call popups created after startup.
4. Resolution-Safe Window Geometry Clamping:
   • Default dimensions for Chat (1100×800) and Settings (760×820) are automatically clamped to 96% of the primary display's work area, preventing off-screen controls on compact laptops (1366×768) and high-DPI scaling configurations.
5. Seamless WhatsApp-Family Link Routing:
   • 8 verified WhatsApp hosts (web.whatsapp.com, wa.me, chat.whatsapp.com, call.whatsapp.com, www.whatsapp.com, whatsapp.com, api.whatsapp.com, event.whatsapp.com, v.whatsapp.com) remain inside WhatsNow.
   • wa.me/<phone> navigates directly to the contact in place via trusted CDP click; chat.whatsapp.com group invites navigate in place; other family URLs open in the reusable wa-content popup; call URLs open in dedicated call windows. Foreign domains and look-alike hosts route to the external default browser.
6. Freeze-Proof Reusable Content Popup:
   • The reusable content popup is pre-created hidden at startup. Popup requests execute an instant location.replace and show command, eliminating synchronous WebView2 construction deadlocks inside NewWindowRequested.
7. Windows whatsapp:// Protocol Handler:
   • protocol.rs registers HKCU\Software\Classes\whatsapp at every launch (skipped in portable mode; safe no-op on macOS/Linux), allowing desktop-wide whatsapp://send?phone=... deep links to seamlessly raise WhatsNow and open chats.
8. Video/Audio Memory Target Guard:
   • WebView2's LOW memory target is strictly restricted to hidden or minimized states, preventing audio graph discard while watching videos in unfocused windows.
9. UI Fluency & Promo Coalescing:
   • Mutation observer rooted at document with coalesced sweep timers ensures zero UI stutter during rapid DOM changes.

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Complete Historical Changelog

For the complete chronological version history from v1.0.0 through v2.6.0, please refer to CHANGELOG.md.

WhatsNow 2.5.0

WhatsNow 2.5.0

WhatsNow is a calm, lightweight desktop client for WhatsApp Web — built for
focus, multi-account work, and a chat that feels like your own. It is an
independent project by @benedictusrey.

Same WhatsApp. Same account, same encryption, same conversations — with the
desktop ergonomics a browser tab simply doesn't have: click a toast and land
in the sender's chat, read your unread count at a glance, and pick a theme
that makes the chat yours.

What's in 2.5.0

• Emojis you type are visible in every theme. A verified regression had
  hidden typed emojis on the official Dark theme and every personality
  theme (only Light showed them). The doodle kill-switch was wiping
  WhatsApp's inline emoji sprites; it now spares them, and the same emojis
  render identically across all themes.
• Every toast is compact. Each banner and notification-center entry
  shows the small WhatsNow icon next to the "WhatsNow" name — the large
  left-side icon layout is gone for good, on the first toast of a session
  and every one after.
• Click a notification, land in the sender's chat. Toast and
  notification-center clicks reliably open the exact conversation — even on
  a cold start — verified live end-to-end.
• The Reply curtain is gone. WhatsApp now paints doodles as a CSS mask,
  so the reply/quote bar could still flash them on dark personality themes.
  The kill-switch neutralizes the mask layer and the newer composer surface —
  verified live on Graphite through Aurora, with typed emojis intact.
• The About dialog always reports the truth. The version shown in
  Settings > About is injected from the compiled binary at runtime, so it
  can't lag behind the release again.
• Themes and doodles stay a fixed contract. Official Dark/Light keep
  WhatsApp's doodle wallpaper; System and every personality theme stay
  clean, with instant reload-free switching.

These four behaviors are user-required and locked (see the private source
workspace's AGENTS.md): themes/doodle mapping, typing-area emoji, compact
float notifications, and click-to-chat routing.

Download

Platform	Asset
Windows 10/11 x64	WhatsNow_2.5.0_windows_x64-setup.exe — installer · WhatsNow_2.5.0_windows_x64-portable.exe — portable · WhatsNow_2.5.0_windows_x64_en-US.msi — MSI
Linux x64	WhatsNow_2.5.0_amd64.AppImage · WhatsNow_2.5.0_amd64.deb
macOS Apple Silicon	WhatsNow_2.5.0_aarch64.dmg · WhatsNow_2.5.0_aarch64.app.tar.gz
macOS Intel	WhatsNow_2.5.0_x86_64.dmg · WhatsNow_2.5.0_x86_64.app.tar.gz
Every platform	checksums.sha256 (combined) and checksums-windows.sha256 (Windows) — verify your download against them

Get started

1. Download the asset for your platform from this release.
2. Verify its SHA-256 checksum — see the
   verification guide.
3. Follow the installation guide.
4. Open WhatsNow and link your phone: WhatsApp → Linked devices → scan
   the QR code.

New or unsigned Windows builds may trigger reputation-based warnings; do not
bypass a warning unless the release source, checksum, and publisher are
verified.

WhatsNow is independent and unofficial — it is not affiliated with or
endorsed by WhatsApp LLC or Meta. This repository distributes documentation
and finished binaries only; the application source and Settings UI
implementation remain private.

WhatsNow 2.0.0

WhatsNow 2.0.0

WhatsNow is a calm, lightweight desktop client for WhatsApp Web — built for
focus, multi-account work, and a chat that feels like your own. It is an
independent project by @benedictusrey.

Same WhatsApp. Same account, same encryption, same conversations — with the
desktop ergonomics a browser tab simply doesn't have: click a toast and land
in the sender's chat, read your unread count at a glance, and pick a theme
that makes the chat yours.

What's new in 2.0.0

• Click a toast, land in the conversation. Notifications carry the
  sender's identity, so clicking one jumps straight into that chat — even
  when the app was fully closed.
• The WhatsNow icon on every notification. Every toast banner and every
  notification-center entry shows the small WhatsNow logo.
• A badge you can actually read. A big, high-contrast taskbar count that
  re-applies itself whenever the window returns to the taskbar.
• Doodles only on the official themes. Light and Dark keep WhatsApp's
  native doodle wallpaper; System and every personality theme stay clean.
• Themes that stay in the chat. Personality palettes color the
  conversation viewport only — the sidebar and contact list stay original.
• A seamless Settings pop-up. Frameless, custom title bar, no taskbar
  button, no flash — and it closes itself after 30 seconds of inactivity.
• Toast history that lasts. Alerts stay in the Windows notification
  center after the banner fades, so a missed message can be reopened.
• Calmer startup. Windows appear only after their first paint, and
  WhatsNow can launch with Windows, waiting quietly in the tray.
• Instant theme switches. No reloads — with a fixed contract: official
  themes keep the doodle wallpaper, personality themes never show it.
• Cross-platform. Windows, Linux, and macOS builds — all checksummed.

Download

Platform	Asset
Windows 10/11	WhatsNow_2.0.0_x64-setup.exe — installer · WhatsNow_2.0.0_x64_en-US.msi — managed deployment · WhatsNow_2.0.0_portable.exe — portable
Linux x64	WhatsNow_2.0.0_amd64.AppImage or WhatsNow_2.0.0_amd64.deb
macOS (Apple silicon)	WhatsNow_2.0.0_aarch64.dmg or WhatsNow_2.0.0_aarch64.app.tar.gz
Every platform	checksums.sha256 — verify your download against it

Get started

1. Download the asset for your platform from this release.
2. Verify its SHA-256 checksum — see the
   verification guide.
3. Follow the installation guide.
4. Open WhatsNow and link your phone: WhatsApp → Linked devices → scan
   the QR code.

New or unsigned Windows builds may trigger reputation-based warnings; do not
bypass a warning unless the release source, checksum, and publisher are
verified.

WhatsNow is independent and unofficial — it is not affiliated with or
endorsed by WhatsApp LLC or Meta. This repository distributes documentation
and finished binaries only; the application source and Settings UI
implementation remain private. The release pipeline and publishing flow are
documented for maintainers in
docs/GITHUB_DESKTOP_PUBLISHING.md.

WhatsNow 1.1.0

WhatsNow 1.1.0

WhatsNow 1.1.0 is the WebView2 efficiency and cross-platform distribution
update by @benedictusrey.

It keeps the WhatsApp Web experience, multi-account sessions, native
notifications, themes, App Lock, drag-and-drop attachments, and productivity
controls while making background and secondary Windows accounts more
memory-conscious through WebView2's supported memory target.

Windows assets

• WhatsNow_1.1.0_x64-setup.exe — standard per-user installer
• WhatsNow_1.1.0_x64_en-US.msi — MSI deployment package
• WhatsNow.exe — portable application
• checksums.sha256 — SHA-256 integrity values

Before installation

Read the installation guide. Verify every downloaded
file using the published checksum. New or
unsigned Windows builds may trigger reputation-based warnings; do not bypass a
warning unless the release source, checksum, and publisher information are
verified.

The public repository intentionally contains documentation and distribution
helpers only. The application source and Settings UI implementation remain
private, while the release binaries retain the complete user-facing feature
set.

WhatsNow is independent and unofficial. It is not affiliated with or endorsed
by WhatsApp or Meta.

WhatsNow 1.0.0

WhatsNow 1.0.0

WhatsNow 1.0.0 is the first public distribution by
@benedictusrey.

It combines the official WhatsApp Web service with isolated accounts, focus
sessions, native desktop notifications, App Lock, global shortcuts, tray
behavior, direct attachments, and a selection of readable chat backgrounds.

Windows assets

• WhatsNow_1.0.0_x64-setup.exe — standard per-user installer
• WhatsNow_1.0.0_x64_en-US.msi — MSI deployment package
• WhatsNow.exe — portable application
• checksums.sha256 — SHA-256 integrity values

Planned cross-platform assets

Publish these only after they have been built and tested on the matching
platform:

• WhatsNow_1.0.0_amd64.AppImage
• WhatsNow_1.0.0_amd64.deb
• WhatsNow_1.0.0_aarch64.dmg
• WhatsNow_1.0.0_aarch64.app.tar.gz

Windows 10 memory-conscious build

This release now includes a separate Windows 10 build designed to reduce
background WebView2 memory usage while preserving messages, network
connections, native notifications, and existing WhatsNow features.

• WhatsNow_1.0.0_windows10_x64-setup.exe — Windows 10 installer
• WhatsNow_1.0.0_windows10_x64-portable.exe — Windows 10 portable version
• checksums-windows10.sha256 — SHA-256 verification values

The standard WhatsNow_1.0.0_x64-setup.exe remains unchanged and is still
recommended for Windows 11.

WebView2 may continue to display multiple browser, renderer, GPU, and utility
processes. The Windows 10 build targets lower combined background memory rather
than removing WebView2's security-oriented multi-process architecture.

These builds are currently unsigned. Windows SmartScreen or antivirus software
may therefore show an unknown-publisher warning. Verify downloaded files against
the published SHA-256 checksums before running them.

Before installation

Read the installation guide. Verify every downloaded
file using the published checksum. Initial
unsigned Windows builds may trigger reputation-based warnings; do not bypass a
warning unless the release source and checksum are verified.

WhatsNow is independent and unofficial. It is not affiliated with or endorsed
by WhatsApp or Meta.

Full Changelog: https://github.com/benedictusrey/WhatsNow/commits/v1.0.0