Updates & versions

How updating works

OpenVoiceFlow uses Sparkle, the standard update framework for Mac apps distributed outside the App Store. With automatic updates on, it checks a signed feed hosted on openvoiceflow.com once a day at 3:00 PM Pacific — a Mac that was asleep or off at 3 PM checks as soon as it is back — downloads any newer version in the background, and installs it as soon as you are not mid-dictation, relaunching the app on the new version. Before 0.5.26 the install waited for the app to quit, which a menu-bar app rarely does; a Mac still on 0.5.25 downloads updates in the background as before and applies it the next time OpenVoiceFlow quits and reopens — or right away from Check for Updates….

How updates are verified

Two independent checks must pass before anything installs:

• EdDSA signature. Every update is signed with a private key held by the maintainers, and each shipped app pins the matching public key. An update that is not signed with that exact key is rejected.
• Apple notarization. The downloaded build must carry a valid Developer-ID signature and Apple notarization.

This is why the update path is safe to leave on: an attacker who compromised the download would still need the signing key, which never leaves the maintainers' control.

Updating manually

Choose Check for Updates… from the menu-bar menu, or use Check for updates now in Dashboard ▸ Settings. If a newer version exists you will be shown what changed before anything installs.

Turning automatic updates off

Dashboard ▸ Settings ▸ Automatic updates. With it off, no background checks are made and no update downloads — you can still check manually at any time.

Checking your version

The dashboard sidebar footer shows your version and whether it is current: Up to date when the latest release is the one you are running, or an Update link that installs the new version when there is one. Settings shows the version too, alongside the manual check button. This documentation describes 0.5.27.

Reinstalling or going back

To reinstall, download the current DMG from the download page and replace the copy in Applications; your settings, history, and personalization are stored separately and survive. There is no supported downgrade path — older builds are not hosted, and installing one would disable the fixes that came after it.