> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.atomscale.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Desktop App

> Install and use the Atomscale desktop app for Windows

The Atomscale desktop app is a native application for Windows. It includes the full Atomscale platform, plus capabilities that require running on the computer where your data lives:

* **[Integrations](/platform/reference/connecting-data/integrations)**: Install and supervise connectors that collect data from local instruments and folders.
* **Connection Sharing**: Let lab computers without internet access upload through another computer.
* **Background data collection**: Integrations keep collecting and uploading even when the app window is closed.
* **Application modes**: Run the full product, or a focused data-ingestion mode for instrument workstations.

## Installation

Installers are code-signed by Atomscale and are available for Windows (x64 and 32-bit). Contact Atomscale if you need the installer.

Run the installer. The app installs per user into `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Atomscale` and creates Desktop and Start Menu shortcuts. No administrator rights are required to install or update.

If Atomscale is already installed, the installer asks how to proceed:

* **Reinstall and keep my data**: Sign-in state, settings, downloaded integrations, and queued local data are preserved. This is the default.
* **Reinstall and erase all local data**: Permanently removes sign-in state, settings, downloaded integrations, and queued local data for the current Windows account.

## First-Run Setup

The first time you open the app, a setup assistant walks you through connecting the computer to Atomscale:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Connection">
    The app checks how this computer reaches the Atomscale platform. If the computer has no direct internet access, you can enter the address of another lab computer that shares its connection (see [Connection Sharing](#connection-sharing)) and test it here.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Purpose">
    Choose how the computer will be used: **Monitor and analyze growths** for the full application, or **Connect an instrument** for a focused data-collection setup. This sets the [application mode](#application-modes), which you can change later.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sign in">
    Sign in with your Atomscale account to connect the installation to your organization.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Integrations">
    Optionally add the integrations this computer will run. Adding an integration only downloads it; you configure and start it later from the [Integrations](/platform/reference/connecting-data/integrations) page.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sharing">
    If the computer has a working internet connection, you can optionally enable Connection Sharing so other lab computers can upload through it.
  </Step>
</Steps>

You can leave setup at any point with <Badge stroke color="blue">Exit setup</Badge>, and return to it later from your profile menu under **Onboarding**. Re-running setup does not change your current settings until you make new choices.

## Signing In

Sign-in with a social or SSO provider opens in your system browser, then returns you to the app automatically. Your session persists across app restarts.

Signing out does not stop data collection. Integrations keep collecting locally, uploads pause, and everything queued is uploaded automatically when you sign back in.

## Application Modes

The app runs in one of two modes, chosen during setup and changeable under **Application** in your account settings:

| Mode               | Description                                                                                                                                                   |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Full**           | The complete product for managing data, monitoring growths, and analyzing runs.                                                                               |
| **Data Ingestion** | A focused mode for workstations that only need to collect and upload data. The interface is reduced to the data catalog, integrations, and personal settings. |

Switching modes reloads the app. Installed integrations and queued uploads are unaffected.

## Connection Sharing

Many instrument workstations have no direct internet access. Connection Sharing lets one internet-connected computer running Atomscale act as a relay for others on the same local network.

```text theme={null}
 Instrument workstations                Internet-connected computer
┌──────────────┐
│   Outpost    │────┐
└──────────────┘    │  local network  ┌──────────────┐   HTTPS   ┌───────────┐
                    ├────────────────►│     Hub      │──────────►│ Atomscale │
┌──────────────┐    │                 └──────────────┘           └───────────┘
│   Outpost    │────┘
└──────────────┘
```

Each computer runs in one of three modes, configured in the **Connection Sharing** dialog (available from the Integrations page, or from the **Connection Settings** button on the sign-in screen):

| Mode        | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                             |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Normal**  | Connects to Atomscale directly, using the computer's own network settings. This is the default.                                                                                                                                         |
| **Hub**     | Also carries traffic for nearby Atomscale computers that can't reach the internet. The Hub listens on a local port (8484 by default) and shows the addresses to enter on the other computers, along with a list of connected computers. |
| **Outpost** | Reaches Atomscale through a Hub on the same network. Enter the address shown on the Hub computer and test it before saving.                                                                                                             |

A few things to know:

* Connection Sharing works between computers on the same local network.
* An Outpost never falls back to a direct connection. If its Hub is unreachable, uploads queue locally until the Hub is back or you point the Outpost at a different connection. This ensures traffic only ever flows through the route you configured.
* Enabling Hub mode prompts once for a Windows Firewall rule so other computers can reach it.

## Running in the Background

Closing the app window does not quit the app. It keeps running in the system tray so integrations, uploads, and Connection Sharing continue uninterrupted. Click the tray icon to reopen the window, or use its menu to quit.

The tray menu also includes an **Open at Login** toggle, which is enabled by default so data collection resumes automatically after a reboot.

If you quit while data collection or uploads are in progress, the app asks for confirmation first, since quitting stops collection and leaves queued data on disk until the app is opened again.

## Updates

The app checks for updates shortly after launch and periodically afterward, and downloads them in the background. When an update is ready, a notification appears with an <Badge stroke color="blue">Update</Badge> button. If integrations are running, the app lists them and asks for confirmation before restarting, since the restart briefly interrupts data ingestion. You can also check manually from **Help > Check for updates**. Updates install silently and never require administrator rights.

## Settings

Desktop-specific settings live in your profile menu, alongside your account settings:

| Page               | What it controls                                                                                                                                                        |
| ------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Application**    | The [application mode](#application-modes), and a **Open log folder** button for accessing application logs when troubleshooting.                                       |
| **Data Ingestion** | Upload bandwidth (50, 250, or 500 Mbps, or Unlimited) and the number of concurrent file uploads. Shared by all integrations on the computer; changes apply immediately. |
| **Onboarding**     | Re-opens the [first-run setup](#first-run-setup) assistant.                                                                                                             |

## Local Data

The app stores its settings, logs, and queued integration data in the current user's application data directory at `%APPDATA%\Atomscale`. Data queued for upload is kept until it uploads successfully, up to a 30-day limit. Application updates and reinstalls preserve this directory unless you explicitly choose to erase it.