Download from GitHub Releases The easiest way to install nteract Desktop is to download the latest release from GitHub:
Download Latest Release Get the latest stable version for your platform
macOS Installation Download the DMG file for your architecture: Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3)
Intel
# Download nteract-darwin-arm64.dmg # from GitHub Releases
Installation steps:
Open the DMG file
Double-click the downloaded nteract-darwin-arm64.dmg or nteract-darwin-x64.dmg file.
Drag to Applications
Drag the nteract icon to your Applications folder.
Launch nteract
Open nteract from Applications. On first launch, you may need to right-click and select “Open” to bypass Gatekeeper.
Daemon auto-registration
The first launch automatically registers the runtimed daemon as a system service at ~/Library/LaunchAgents/io.nteract.runtimed.plist.
macOS builds are signed and notarized by Apple for security.
Verify Installation Check that the daemon is running: You should see output showing the daemon version, PID, and environment pool status. Windows Installation Download the installer: # Download nteract-windows-x64.exe # from GitHub Releases
Installation steps:
Run the installer
Double-click nteract-windows-x64.exe to start the installation wizard.
Follow the wizard
Accept the license agreement and choose your installation directory.
Launch nteract
The installer creates a desktop shortcut and Start Menu entry.
Daemon registration
The daemon is automatically registered as a Windows service.
Windows builds are not currently code signed. You may see a Windows Defender SmartScreen warning on first launch.
Verify Installation Open PowerShell or Command Prompt and run: Linux Installation Download the AppImage: # Download nteract-linux-x64.AppImage # from GitHub Releases
Installation steps:
Make executable
chmod +x nteract-linux-x64.AppImage
Install system dependencies
nteract Desktop requires GTK and WebKit libraries: # Ubuntu/Debian sudo apt-get install -y libgtk-3-0 libwebkit2gtk-4.1-0 # Fedora sudo dnf install gtk3 webkit2gtk4.1 # Arch sudo pacman -S gtk3 webkit2gtk
Run the AppImage
./nteract-linux-x64.AppImage
Daemon registration
The first launch registers the daemon as a systemd user service at ~/.config/systemd/user/runtimed.service.
Verify Installation runt daemon status # Check systemd service systemctl --user status runtimed.service
For easier access, move the AppImage to ~/bin or /usr/local/bin and create a desktop entry.
CLI-Only Installation If you only need the runt CLI without the desktop app, you can download the standalone binary:
macOS (Apple Silicon)
macOS (Intel)
Linux
# Download runt-darwin-arm64 from GitHub Releases curl -L -o runt https://github.com/nteract/desktop/releases/latest/download/runt-darwin-arm64 chmod +x runt sudo mv runt /usr/local/bin/
Python Bindings For programmatic access to the daemon from Python:
The Python package provides bindings for notebook execution, kernel management, and daemon control.
See the Python Bindings guide for detailed usage.
Release Channels nteract Desktop offers multiple release streams:
Stream Tag Pattern Update Frequency Purpose Stable v{semver}Manual releases Production use Weekly Preview v{version}-preview.{sha}Every Monday Test upcoming features Nightly v{version}-nightly.{sha}Daily Bleeding edge development
Weekly and nightly builds are published as GitHub Pre-releases. They’re less stable but include the latest features and fixes.
What’s Installed The desktop app installation includes:
nteract Desktop — The GUI applicationrunt CLI — Command-line interfaceruntimed daemon — Background servicesidecar — Output viewer (bundled with the desktop app)
Daemon Configuration The daemon runs as a system service and stores state in:
# Daemon state and logs ~ /Library/Caches/runt/ # Configuration ~ /.config/runt/ # LaunchAgent plist ~ /Library/LaunchAgents/io.nteract.runtimed.plist
Upgrading To upgrade to a new version:
Download the new release
Get the latest release from GitHub for your platform.
Install over existing
Installing the new version automatically stops the old daemon and replaces binaries.
Verify upgrade
Check that the version matches your download. Your notebooks, environments, and settings are preserved during upgrades. The daemon state directory is never deleted.
Uninstalling # Stop and unload the daemon launchctl bootout gui/ $( id -u ) /io.nteract.runtimed # Remove the app rm -rf /Applications/nteract.app # Remove daemon config (optional) rm ~/Library/LaunchAgents/io.nteract.runtimed.plist # Remove all data (optional) rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/runt rm -rf ~/.config/runt
# Stop the daemon service systemctl --user stop runtimed.service systemctl --user disable runtimed.service # Remove the AppImage rm nteract-linux-x64.AppImage # Remove daemon config (optional) rm ~/.config/systemd/user/runtimed.service # Remove all data (optional) rm -rf ~/.cache/runt rm -rf ~/.config/runt
Use the Windows “Add or Remove Programs” interface to uninstall nteract Desktop. To remove all data: rmdir / s % LOCALAPPDATA % \runt rmdir / s % APPDATA % \runt
Migrating from runt-notebook If you have an older installation from before the nteract rebrand:
Stop the old daemon
launchctl bootout gui/ $( id -u ) /io.runtimed
Remove old service config
rm ~/Library/LaunchAgents/io.runtimed.plist
Remove old settings (optional)
Old settings are recreated with defaults: rm -rf ~/Library/Application \ Support/runt-notebook
Install nteract Desktop
Download and install from GitHub Releases. The new daemon registers automatically.
Next Steps
Quickstart Learn how to open and run your first notebook
Settings Configure default runtime and environment preferences