Install Vaulterm

Vaulterm runs on Windows 10 or later, on macOS 13 Ventura or later, and on 64-bit Linux. Get the files from the download page.

Pick a download

System	File	Notes
Windows 10 or later (x64)	`Vaulterm-Setup-<version>.exe`	Installs for your user. No admin password.
Most Linux distributions, including Arch	`Vaulterm-<version>.AppImage`	One file. Nothing to install.
Debian, Ubuntu, Pop!_OS, Mint	`vaulterm_<version>_amd64.deb`	Installs with your package manager.
Fedora, RHEL, openSUSE	`vaulterm-<version>.x86_64.rpm`	Installs with your package manager.

On a Mac, download Vaulterm-<version>.dmg. It’s one file for Apple silicon and Intel Macs.

All three Linux files update themselves the same way (see Updates). Pick the AppImage if you don’t want to install anything, or a package if you want Vaulterm in your system’s app list and menus from the start.

Install on Windows

Run Vaulterm-Setup-<version>.exe. The installer doesn’t ask any questions: Vaulterm installs for your user account, adds a Start menu entry and opens.

The installer isn’t code-signed yet, so Windows SmartScreen may stop it with “Windows protected your PC”. Choose More info, then Run anyway.

Install on macOS

Open Vaulterm-<version>.dmg and drag Vaulterm onto the Applications folder beside it. Then open Vaulterm from Applications or Launchpad. You can eject the disk image afterwards.

The first time you open it, macOS checks the download and asks whether to open it. Choose Open. Vaulterm is signed and notarized by Apple, so macOS doesn’t warn about it.

Keep Vaulterm in Applications: it updates itself where it is, and it can’t update a copy running from the disk image.

On macOS 15 and later, the first time Vaulterm reaches a computer on your local network (connecting to a server there, or scanning the network), macOS asks whether it may find and connect to devices on your local network. Choose Allow. If you don’t, servers on your local network can’t be reached, though servers on the internet still can. You can change it later in System Settings, under Privacy & Security, then Local Network.

Install on Linux

AppImage

Make the file executable and run it:

chmod +x Vaulterm-<version>.AppImage
./Vaulterm-<version>.AppImage

You can also right-click the file in your file manager, open Properties, and turn on Allow executing file as program.

AppImages need FUSE 2. Ubuntu 22.04 and later don’t install it by default. If the AppImage exits with a message about libfuse.so.2, install it:

sudo apt install libfuse2t64   # Ubuntu 24.04 and later
sudo apt install libfuse2      # Ubuntu 22.04

Keep the AppImage somewhere it can stay, such as ~/Applications. Vaulterm updates the file where it is.

.deb

sudo apt install ./vaulterm_<version>_amd64.deb

The ./ matters: without it, apt looks for a package called that name online. The package pulls in what Vaulterm needs, including the sound library some minimal installs leave out.

.rpm

sudo dnf install ./vaulterm-<version>.x86_64.rpm

On openSUSE, use sudo zypper install ./vaulterm-<version>.x86_64.rpm.

Where Vaulterm keeps your data

Everything Vaulterm stores lives in one folder:

System	Folder
Windows	`%APPDATA%\Vaulterm`
Linux	`~/.config/Vaulterm`

On a Mac, it’s ~/Library/Application Support/Vaulterm.

The file that matters is vault.db. It holds your hosts, groups, identities, keys, passwords, snippets, tunnels, layouts and trusted host keys, all encrypted with your vault password. To back up Vaulterm, copy vault.db somewhere safe while Vaulterm is closed. The copy is as safe as your password: without the password or your Recovery Key, nobody can open it, you included.

Your preferences (theme, font, shortcuts and the rest of Settings) are kept in the same folder but outside the vault. They belong to this computer.

Updates

Vaulterm checks for updates 30 seconds after it starts, then every 6 hours. Each update is described by a manifest signed with Vaulterm’s release key. Vaulterm checks that signature, and the checksum of the installer it downloads, before installing anything. An update that fails either check is thrown away.

When an update has downloaded, a bar at the bottom of the window says Vaulterm 0.2.3 is ready, with Restart to update and Dismiss. If sessions are open, Vaulterm asks first, for example “2 sessions will close. Restart now?”.

If you dismiss it:

Windows and AppImage: the update installs the next time you quit Vaulterm.
.deb and .rpm: the update needs your admin password, so it never installs on its own. Use Restart to update when it suits you, and enter your password when asked.

On a Mac, a dismissed update installs the next time you quit Vaulterm, as on Windows.

Update settings

Open Settings → About. Under Updates:

The line under the heading says where things stand, such as Vaulterm is up to date. or Downloading Vaulterm 0.2.3… 40%.
Check now checks straight away.
Channel: Vaulterm is in beta until 1.0. Stable gets the tested builds of the beta. Beta gets each new update first, before it reaches Stable, and also takes newer Stable releases, so you never fall behind Stable. Switching from Beta back to Stable doesn’t downgrade you: Vaulterm waits until a Stable release is newer than the version you have.
Download updates automatically is on by default. Turn it off and Vaulterm shows Vaulterm 0.2.3 is available. with a Download button instead.

What the update messages mean

Message	What happened
Couldn’t reach the update server. Vaulterm will try again later.	No connection, or GitHub didn’t answer. Nothing to do.
This update couldn’t be verified and wasn’t installed.	The manifest’s signature didn’t match Vaulterm’s release key. Nothing was installed. Tell us at the address on the FAQ.
The download was damaged and has been deleted. Vaulterm will try again later.	The installer’s checksum didn’t match. Vaulterm tries again at the next check.
This copy of Vaulterm is updated by your package manager.	Vaulterm isn’t running from its installer, AppImage, .deb or .rpm, so it leaves updates to whatever installed it.

Uninstall

Windows: open Settings → Apps → Installed apps, find Vaulterm, choose Uninstall.
AppImage: delete the file.
.deb: sudo apt remove vaulterm
.rpm: sudo dnf remove vaulterm

On a Mac, quit Vaulterm and drag it from Applications to the Trash.

Uninstalling leaves your data folder in place, so reinstalling brings everything back. To remove your data as well, delete the folder listed in Where Vaulterm keeps your data.

Good to know

Vaulterm needs no account and doesn’t send your hosts or keys anywhere. The only thing it fetches on its own is the update manifest.
Settings → About shows the version and build number. Include both when you report a problem.
The link under the version number in Settings → About reopens What’s New for the version you’re running.