---
title: Install
description: Install qrate from GitHub Releases or Homebrew, with Windows package listings in progress.
---

## GitHub Releases

Choose the recommended base download for your platform. It installs optional tools when you first
need them. The download panel also lists the other packages:

* **Full:** a larger download with optional tools for computers that stay offline. On macOS,
  install ffmpeg separately for video previews.
* **Portable ZIP (Windows):** unpack and run qrate without an installer.
* **Managed MSI (Windows):** for IT deployment with Group Policy, SCCM, or Intune.

An installed qrate updates to the same type of download it came from. You can also add optional
tools later under **Settings ▸ Components**.

## Homebrew (macOS)

The [qrate tap](https://github.com/devnull03/homebrew-tap) installs the base app:

```sh
brew install --cask devnull03/tap/qrate
```

The tap can lag a prerelease. Use the GitHub download above for the newest beta; stable releases
update the tap automatically once that channel is enabled.

qrate offers to install optional components when you need them. For video previews, install
ffmpeg separately with `brew install ffmpeg`.

## Windows package managers

The WinGet package will use the per-machine MSI. Its first community manifest still needs to be
submitted and accepted. Once it is listed, install it with:

```powershell
winget install --id devnull03.qrate --exact
```

The Microsoft Store package is in preparation. Its first listing must be submitted and certified
before it can be installed from the Store. Use a GitHub Releases download until then.

## Run from source

Install Rust with rustup. Add the rustfmt and clippy components. Then clone the repository
and run it. The first build downloads the dependencies. Later builds use the Cargo cache.

```sh
git clone https://github.com/devnull03/qrate
cd qrate
cargo run
```

## Optional preview tools in a checkout

Common image formats work without extra tools. PDF previews use PDFium. Video frame previews
use ffmpeg. qrate links neither one. It loads PDFium dynamically and runs ffmpeg as a
subprocess. A checkout without them still builds and launches, but PDFs and videos show only a
type icon. qrate looks beside its own executable first, then for a copy it installed itself
(Settings ▸ Components), then on your PATH.

This script downloads PDFium for your platform, and ffmpeg on Windows. On macOS and Linux,
install ffmpeg with your package manager.

```sh
./scripts/fetch-binaries.sh
```

:::caution
Beta build. Keep backups of important collections, and report problems with steps that
reproduce them.
:::