Updates
Bottle Mail keeps itself up to date. New versions download in the background and install the next time you restart the app.
Windows appHow it works
Bottle Mail looks for a new version by itself: shortly after it starts, every hour, when your PC wakes from sleep, and when you come back to the window after a while. It often notices a new release within minutes.
When it finds one, the update downloads by itself in the background. Nothing pops up while it downloads, and you can keep working. If you want to see how far it is, open Settings, then Updates.
If a download doesn’t finish, for example because you went offline, Bottle Mail simply tries again later.
When the update is ready
You see one notice: “Bottle Mail 0.1.15 is ready. It will install the next time you restart the app.” If Bottle Mail isn’t the window in front, for example while it runs in the tray, a Windows notification says “Update ready — restart to install” instead.
- Restart now installs the update straight away.
- Later closes the notice. It doesn’t come back for that version. The update installs the next time you quit or restart the app.
After Later, a small Restart to update pill stays at the bottom of the sidebar. Select it whenever it suits you.
What happens when you restart
- Select Restart now in the notice, Restart to update in the sidebar, or Restart now in Settings → Updates.
- Anything you are writing is saved as a draft first.
- Bottle Mail closes, installs the update quietly, without installer windows, and opens again. Your mail, accounts and settings stay as they are.
If a message you just sent is still in its few seconds to undo, Bottle Mail asks first: “Send now and restart?” Select Send and restart to send it and go ahead, or Not now to leave everything as it was.
Quitting the app
If you quit Bottle Mail while an update is ready, for example from the tray, the update installs quietly and the app stays closed. Next time you open it, you have the new version.
When Windows shuts down, restarts or signs you out, Bottle Mail doesn’t start installing, so it never holds up your PC. The update waits and installs the next time you quit or restart the app.
Smaller downloads
Usually only the parts of the app that changed are downloaded, so an update is often just a few MB instead of the whole app. Some updates still download in full, for example the update from 0.1.14 to 0.1.15.
Important updates
Now and then an update fixes something that matters, such as a problem with sending mail. Its notice says Important update ready, with a short note about what it fixes.
Important updates are never forced. Later works as usual; the notice may come back once a day until you restart.
Update settings
Open Settings, then Updates.
- Check for updates automatically lets Bottle Mail look for new versions by itself. When it’s off, nothing is checked or downloaded until you select Check now.
- Download updates automatically: turn this off to choose when to download. Bottle Mail then tells you a new version is available, and you select Download now when it suits you.
- Get early updates: try new versions before everyone else. You still get every regular update.
Updates always install only when you restart or quit the app.
Not everyone at once
A new version doesn’t always reach everyone on the same day. Sometimes it goes to a few people first, then to more over the following days. Your PC gets it as soon as its turn comes, without you doing anything.
Questions
Why didn’t I get the update yet?
The update may still be rolling out, and your PC’s turn hasn’t come yet. Until then, Settings → Updates says “Up to date”. Bottle Mail keeps checking and gets it as soon as it can.
If Check for updates automatically is off, Bottle Mail doesn’t look by itself. Select Check now in Settings → Updates.
Can I go back to an older version?
There is no button to go back. If a new version causes a problem, we can publish a fixed version quickly, and Bottle Mail updates to it the usual way. If something isn’t working for you, let us know in Settings → Feedback.
I saw an installer window once.
That’s expected for the update from 0.1.14. The quiet install is part of 0.1.15, and an update is installed by the version you already have, so 0.1.14 still shows the installer one last time. Let it finish. From 0.1.15 on, updates install without any windows.
Does checking for updates send any personal data?
No. The app asks our update feed which version is the latest. The request contains no mail, no addresses and no account names. It does carry a random number made on your PC, which only decides when a gradual rollout reaches you. It isn’t linked to you or your accounts.
Will an update ever restart the app without asking?
No. An update installs only when you select Restart now or quit the app yourself.