Installation

Download the latest Row-Bot for your system from GitHub Releases and install it. You do this once: after that, Row-Bot downloads its updates in the background (see Updates).

System	Download	Size
Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit	Row-Bot-X.Y.Z-Windows-x64.exe	about 420 MB
macOS 14 (Sonoma) or newer, Apple silicon	Row-Bot-X.Y.Z-macOS-arm64.dmg	about 930 MB
Linux x86_64 (glibc)	the one-line installer, or Row-Bot-X.Y.Z-Linux-x86_64.tar.gz	about 790 MB

Ollama is optional; you only need it for models that run on your own computer.

Windows

1. Download the installer and open it.
2. It installs without questions and without administrator rights, for your Windows account only. When it finishes, Row-Bot opens.

Row-Bot installs into %LocalAppData%\Programs\Row-Bot and adds a Start menu shortcut (and, the first time, a desktop shortcut). While it runs, its icon sits in the system tray.

macOS

Row-Bot needs macOS 14 (Sonoma) or newer on a Mac with Apple silicon (M1 or later).

1. Open the downloaded DMG and drag Row-Bot to Applications.
2. Open Row-Bot from Applications. The first time, macOS asks whether to open an app downloaded from the internet: choose Open.

If you open Row-Bot straight from the disk image or the Downloads folder, it offers Move to Applications. Choose it, so Row-Bot always starts from the same place. While it runs, Row-Bot sits in the menu bar. The first time it uses the microphone or camera, macOS asks you to allow Row-Bot.

Linux

Install the latest release for your user with:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/siddsachar/row-bot/main/installer/install-linux.sh | bash

It checks the download's SHA-256, installs under ~/.local/share/row-bot, creates the row-bot command in ~/.local/bin and adds Row-Bot to your app menu. Run row-bot; it opens in your browser. To install a specific release, add its version: ... | bash -s -- X.Y.Z.

Or install the tarball by hand:

tar -xzf Row-Bot-X.Y.Z-Linux-x86_64.tar.gz
cd Row-Bot-X.Y.Z-Linux-x86_64
./install.sh
row-bot

A native window and tray icon need GTK or Qt and AppIndicator from your distribution; without them Row-Bot uses your browser.

Run As A Server

row-bot serve --port 8080 runs Row-Bot as an authenticated server, without a window or tray. Connect your browser with an invitation, as Remote Access And Server Mode explains.

To keep it running with systemd, create ~/.config/systemd/user/row-bot.service:

[Unit]
Description=Row-Bot server

[Service]
ExecStart=%h/.local/bin/row-bot serve --port 8080
Restart=always
RestartSec=5

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Then start it, and let it keep running after you log out:

systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now row-bot
loginctl enable-linger "$USER"

When Row-Bot restarts itself to install an update, it exits with code 75 and leaves the restart to systemd. Use Restart=always, or add RestartForceExitStatus=75 to your own restart policy. systemctl --user stop row-bot installs an update that is ready, and the next start runs it.

Browser Automation And Exports

No installer includes a browser. Browser Automation uses Chrome or Edge already on your computer (Edge comes with Windows). Exporting a design to PDF, PNG or PowerPoint needs Row-Bot's own browser runtime instead: the first time, the export says Exports need Browser Automation with Set up Browser Automation. Choose it, then Install the Browser runtime in Settings › System › Browser and computer use. It is a one-time download into your data folder, so updates keep it, and Row-Bot never downloads it by itself.

Where Row-Bot Keeps Things

System	App files	Your data
Windows	%LocalAppData%\Programs\Row-Bot	%USERPROFILE%\.row-bot
macOS	Row-Bot.app in Applications, and updates in ~/Library/Application Support/Row-Bot	~/.row-bot
Linux	~/.local/share/row-bot, and the row-bot command in ~/.local/bin	~/.row-bot

Your data folder holds conversations, memories, model and provider settings, workflows, designs, code folder records, documents, logs, skills, plugins, Buddy assets, channel settings and MCP settings. Keys and sign-ins are kept in Windows Credential Manager, the macOS Keychain or the Linux Secret Service. Updates, Repair and uninstalling never touch your data.

Advanced users can set ROW_BOT_DATA_DIR before launch to use a separate data folder for testing or portable runs. Row-Bot then treats that folder as its data for the whole run.

Moving From 5.1

Row-Bot 5.1 updates to 5.2 the way it always has, once, with the full installer. After that, updates download in the background.

• Windows: 5.1 was installed for all users in Program Files. The 5.2 installer moves Row-Bot to your account and asks once for administrator approval to remove the old copy. If you decline, or your account isn't an administrator, Row-Bot 5.2 installs and opens anyway, and Settings › Updates offers Remove the old Row-Bot later. That button appears only in the Row-Bot desktop app on that computer, because Windows asks for approval on its own screen.
• macOS: 5.1 opens the new DMG. Drag Row-Bot to Applications one last time and replace the old copy.
• Linux: nothing to do; 5.1 installs 5.2 by itself.

Your data, settings and sign-ins carry over. Repair can go back to an earlier 5.2 version, not to 5.1.

Uninstall

• Windows: open Windows Settings › Apps › Installed apps (Apps & features on Windows 10), choose Row-Bot and Uninstall. It asks you to quit Row-Bot first if it is running, and removes %LocalAppData%\Programs\Row-Bot.
• macOS: quit Row-Bot from the menu bar, drag Row-Bot from Applications to the Bin, and delete ~/Library/Application Support/Row-Bot, which holds the updates it downloaded.
• Linux: run ~/.local/share/row-bot/current/uninstall.sh. It removes the app files, the row-bot command and the app menu entry.

Uninstalling keeps your data folder, so reinstalling picks up where you left off. To remove your data too, delete the data folder after uninstalling (back it up first if you might come back), and remove Row-Bot's saved keys from the system's key store.

Run From Source

Use the source path if you are developing Row-Bot or testing changes:

1. Clone the repository.
2. Create a Python environment.
3. Install uv and sync the locked Python dependencies with uv sync --locked --all-extras --group test.
4. Install the docs-site dependencies only if you are working on documentation.
5. Run the app entry point from the repository.

requirements.txt is a generated pip export from uv.lock for installer compatibility. It is available as a fallback for environments that cannot use uv, but source dependency changes should be made in pyproject.toml.

Source runs use the same local data as the installed app and never update themselves. Keep test data separate from personal data when experimenting.

After Installing

Continue to First Launch: answer How should Row-Bot think? to choose your first model. You can finish optional setup later from the Setup Center and Settings.

The installed app starts a local Row-Bot process and opens it in a desktop window or your browser, depending on your system. If the usual port is busy, Row-Bot chooses another local port.

The standard desktop install stays on local loopback. To connect another trusted computer or phone, finish local setup first and then follow Remote Access And Server Mode. For a headless or container deployment, read that guide before publishing a port or creating the first owner invitation.