Installation

DuoBolt runs on macOS and Windows. One license covers two machines, and you do not need a license to install it or to scan with it.

Requirements

macOS

	Minimum	Recommended
OS	macOS 11 (Big Sur)	macOS 14 or later
Processor	64-bit Intel or Apple Silicon, dual-core	Apple Silicon (M1 or newer)
Memory	4 GB	8 GB
Disk	Room for the app plus its scan index	SSD

DuoBolt ships as a Universal binary — one download runs natively on both architectures, with BLAKE3 using NEON acceleration on Apple Silicon. The interface is drawn on the GPU through Metal, and the app is signed and notarized by Apple, running with the hardened runtime enabled.

Everything works on the floor of macOS 11, AI curation included: the app picks the right engine for your Mac on its own, and does the same work on every supported version.

Windows

	Minimum	Recommended
OS	Windows 10 version 19041.0 or higher	Windows 11
Processor	64-bit x64 or ARM64, dual-core	Quad-core or better
Memory	4 GB	8 GB
Graphics	DirectX 11 capable GPU	Any modern integrated or discrete GPU
Input	—	Integrated keyboard and mouse

DuoBolt runs natively on both x64 and ARM64 — no emulation layer on Snapdragon or other ARM devices. The Store package is signed and needs no administrator privileges to scan folders you own.

The interface draws through Direct3D. On a machine that exposes no usable D3D adapter it still runs, on a software rasterizer — correct, just slower to paint. Hashing and matching are CPU work either way, so scan speed is unaffected.

Both platforms need free disk space for the scan index. A scan writes its working data under the app’s own data directory, not next to your files, and none of it leaves the machine.

---

Installing

macOS

1. Download the latest .dmg from the Download page. One file covers Apple Silicon and Intel.

2. Open the image and drag DuoBolt.app into Applications. Eject the image afterwards — running the app from the mounted disk image works, but updates will not.

3. Launch it. The app is notarized, so it should open straight away; if macOS still holds it back, open System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll to the bottom and click Open Anyway.

4. Grant folder access when asked. The first time a scan touches Desktop, Documents, Downloads, an external drive or your Photos library, macOS shows its own permission prompt — DuoBolt cannot read those folders until you allow it. If you dismissed a prompt by mistake, the switches live in Privacy & Security → Files and Folders.

Prefer the command line? The cask installs the same build:

Homebrew

brew tap rnine/duobolt
brew install --cask duobolt-desktop

Updates

The direct download and the Homebrew cask both update through Sparkle — DuoBolt checks for a new version and offers to install it in place. You can also check manually from Settings → About, or run brew upgrade --cask duobolt-desktop.

Windows

1. Open the Microsoft Store — or go straight to the DuoBolt listing.

2. Click Get. The Store picks the right build for your machine, x64 or ARM64; both are native, so nothing runs under emulation.

3. Launch it from the Start menu. No administrator privileges are needed to install it or to scan folders you own.

4. Add the two free image extensions below if you keep HEIC or AVIF photos — Windows does not always ship them.

Updates

Store installs update themselves in the background. To force a check, open the Store, go to Library and click Get updates.

Scanning system and network locations

Scanning another user’s profile, C:\Windows or C:\Program Files needs an elevated launch, and those locations are best left alone. Network shares (SMB) and external drives work with no extra setup — map the share to a drive letter or point DuoBolt at the UNC path.

---

Windows: HEIC and AVIF support

DuoBolt reads HEIC and AVIF on Windows, but it does so through the OS image stack — which needs two free Microsoft Store extensions that Windows does not always ship with.

HEIF Image Extensions Microsoft.HEIFImageExtension — free. Needed for iPhone HEIC photos.

AV1 Video Extension Microsoft.AV1VideoExtension — free. Needed for AVIF images.

Note

Both are published by Microsoft and cost nothing. Without them, HEIC and AVIF files are still found, hashed and grouped normally — you simply do not get thumbnails or previews for them.

macOS needs nothing installed: HEIC, AVIF and RAW decoding are part of the system.

---

Checking your version

Open Settings → About. It shows the version and the engine build — quote both if you report a problem.

---

Uninstalling

macOS

Drag DuoBolt.app from Applications to the Trash, or run brew uninstall --cask duobolt-desktop if you installed it with Homebrew.

Your data is not in the bundle, so removing it leaves both of these behind and a reinstall picks up where you left off:

• Scan history and index — ~/Library/Application Support/io.qoncept.duobolt/DuoBolt/
• Settings — a preferences entry under ~/Library/Preferences/

Delete the first one for a clean slate. It is also the folder to copy if you are moving to a new Mac.

Windows

Right-click DuoBolt in the Start menu and choose Uninstall, or remove it from Settings → Apps → Installed apps.

A Store install keeps its settings and scan index inside its own package folder under %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\, so uninstalling takes them with it — there is nothing left to clean up, but your scan history goes with it.

Uninstalling never touches your files, and it does not deactivate your license — deactivate it first in Settings → License if you want to free the seat for another machine.

---

First run

DuoBolt opens on the dashboard with both engines available. What it will never do is act on its own — scanning finds things, and nothing is removed until you have been through Review Selection.

Your first scan From an empty screen to reclaimed space, in six steps

Desktop Guide The app end to end

How matching works What DuoBolt means by 'duplicate'

Changelog See what changed recently