solidcraft-upstream/docs/book/src/guide/updates.md

Updates and privacy

SolidCraft tells you when a newer release is out. It never updates itself without asking, and the check sends nothing about you or your designs.

What you see

When a newer stable release exists, an Update button appears in the title bar next to Report a bug. It opens a small window with the new version, its release notes and three choices:

• Download opens the file that fits your installation (see the table below) in your browser, or the release page when there isn't one.
• Skip this version hides the button until an even newer release comes out.
• Remind me later hides it for three days.

Preferences ▸ General ▸ Updates has Check for updates automatically (on by default) and Check now, which checks right away and shows the window even for a version you skipped.

Updating in one click

Where SolidCraft can replace itself safely, the window also has Update now:

Installed as	Update now does
AppImage	Downloads the new AppImage next to the old one, verifies it, renames it over the old file and offers Restart now
Windows installer (.msi)	Install (closes SolidCraft): downloads and verifies the .msi, closes SolidCraft (asking about unsaved designs first) and starts the installer
Windows portable .zip or .exe	Downloads and verifies the package, swaps in the new solidcraft.exe (and solidcraft-cli.exe) and offers Restart now; the old file is removed at the next start
macOS	Download and open: downloads and verifies the .dmg and opens it; drag SolidCraft to Applications to replace the old copy
Flatpak, Snap, .deb, .rpm, .tar.gz	Nothing: your package manager updates these (the window shows the command), or you unpack the new archive

Every download is verified before anything changes: its SHA-256 must match the release's SHA256SUMS.txt, fetched over HTTPS from the same release, and, once the project signs its releases, that list must carry a valid signature by SolidCraft's release key that names the release (see releasing). A download that doesn't verify is deleted and the installed copy is left as it was; Download still gets the package for a manual install. On macOS SolidCraft opens the disk image rather than replacing the app itself, because the app is ad-hoc signed and not notarized: replacing it in the background would install code macOS can't vouch for without you seeing it.

Update now needs write access to the installed file: an AppImage in a folder you can't write to fails with a message, and Download is the way to update it.

What is sent

One HTTPS request, at start and at most once a day while SolidCraft runs:

GET https://api.github.com/repos/bherbruck/solidcraft/releases/latest
User-Agent: SolidCraft-update-check
Accept: application/vnd.github+json
X-GitHub-Api-Version: 2022-11-28

Update now then downloads SHA256SUMS.txt (and its signature) and the one package from the release's own github.com/bherbruck/solidcraft/releases/download/… links, with the same User-Agent. That's all: no version number, no machine or user identifier, no usage data, no cookies. GitHub sees the request like any other visit to the API (your IP address, the time); see GitHub's privacy statement. SolidCraft compares the answer with its own version on your computer.

• Offline, or GitHub doesn't answer within 15 seconds: nothing is shown, and the check is tried again an hour later.
• GitHub's rate limit for anonymous requests (60 an hour per address) is respected: when GitHub says to wait, SolidCraft waits that long, Check now included.
• Turning off Check for updates automatically stops the checks; only Check now asks.
• Setting the environment variable SOLIDCRAFT_UPDATE_CHECK=0 turns all checks off, for example on managed machines.

Builds you compile yourself, the Flatpak and the browser app (which updates itself) never check.

Which file Download gets

Releases attach the main packages under fixed names (see releasing), and SolidCraft picks the one matching how it was installed:

Installed as	Detected by	Download	How to update
AppImage	APPIMAGE is set	solidcraft-linux-<arch>.AppImage	Replace the old AppImage with the new one
Flatpak	FLATPAK_ID is set	doesn't check (see below)	flatpak update ai.storyteller.solidcraft
Snap from the Snap Store	SNAP is set	release page	sudo snap refresh solidcraft (snapd also refreshes by itself)
Snap from a downloaded file	SNAP_REVISION starts with x	solidcraft-linux-<arch>.snap	sudo snap install --dangerous ./solidcraft-linux-<arch>.snap
.deb	under /usr, dpkg knows solidcraft	solidcraft-linux-<arch>.deb	sudo apt install ./solidcraft-linux-<arch>.deb
.rpm	under /usr, an rpm database exists	solidcraft-linux-<arch>.rpm	sudo dnf install ./solidcraft-linux-<arch>.rpm
.tar.gz	anywhere else on Linux	solidcraft-<version>-linux-<arch>.tar.gz	Unpack over the old copy
Windows installer	under Program Files	solidcraft-windows-<arch>.msi	Run the installer
Windows portable	solidcraft-cli.exe beside it	solidcraft-windows-<arch>-portable.zip	Unzip over the old copy
Windows .exe	anywhere else on Windows	SolidCraft-<version>-windows-x64.exe	Replace the old .exe
macOS	inside SolidCraft.app	solidcraft-macos-universal.dmg	Drag the new app to Applications

The window shows the command for Snap, .deb and .rpm installations, with a Copy button. The Flatpak has no network permission and Flatpak itself (or your software center) offers its updates, so it never checks. Release builds compare versions as semver: a nightly build counts as the release it was built after, so it's offered only a newer stable release, and release candidates are offered their final release.