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Installing Diarist

Version 0.1.0-beta.1 (a beta pre-release). For which GPU and which models, see "Choosing your package and models" in the README.

1. Install

1. Download Diarist_0.1.0-beta.1_x64-setup.exe from the releases page.
2. Run it. Windows SmartScreen warns because the installer is not code-signed yet: choose "More info", then "Run anyway". It installs for your user only, without administrator rights, into %LOCALAPPDATA%\Diarist (you can pick another folder). It adds a Start menu entry and, if you tick it, a desktop shortcut. If WebView2 is missing (rare on Windows 10 and 11), the installer downloads it from Microsoft.
3. Start Diarist.

The installer is about 7 MB. The speech engine and the models are not in it; the app downloads them on first use.

2. First start: engine and models

A coding agent can do this step for you from a terminal, with hash checks: see SETUP-WITH-AN-AGENT.md.

The setup screen checks:

• GPU: name, memory, driver and the CUDA version the driver supports. The CUDA runtime needs an NVIDIA driver with CUDA 13 (R580 or newer). With an AMD or Intel GPU the Vulkan runtime is preselected; without a GPU, the CPU runtime. You can change the choice; Vulkan and CPU are untested by us.
• Disk: free space where the data folder is. The defaults need about 1.1 GB while downloading and 1 GB after.

Then press Install engine (98 MB) and Install recommended models (770 MB: the speaker model and the English speech model). Each item shows its progress. An interrupted download resumes where it stopped: press Retry, or install again later. Every file is checked against its published SHA-256 before it is used.

For other or mixed languages, add Nemotron 3.5 in Settings, Models, and select it there.

You do not have to finish the setup: Set up later opens the library, and Import and Record each say what is still missing, with a button that gets it.

If a download fails

Each item shows the address it comes from, its SHA-256, its size and the folder it goes to, with Retry, Copy link and Open folder; Copy all links copies every missing address. To fetch a file by hand:

1. Copy its link and download it with a browser.
2. Press Open folder on its row and move the downloaded file there (any subfolder of models\ works for models; for the runtime, put the zip itself into engine\).
3. Press Check again (setup screen) or Refresh (Settings). The app checks the hash, extracts a runtime zip, and marks the item installed.

Firewalls

Per-app firewalls such as simplewall ask for permission the first time each program connects. Two different programs do the downloading:

If the firewall prompt was missed or denied, allow both programs and press Retry; or fetch the files by hand as above. Diagnostics, "Why isn't it working?", names the program when a download failed for a network reason.

Some networks block certificate revocation checks. Windows' curl.exe then refuses the connection (CRYPT_E_REVOCATION_OFFLINE); fetching the model by hand always works.

Offline machines

Copy the runtime zip and the .gguf files from a machine with internet access (the addresses and hashes are on the setup screen and in manifests/ in the source), drop them in as above, and press Check again.

3. Using it

• Ctrl+O or drag files in: import a recording.
• R: record a meeting (microphone plus system audio). Ctrl+. stops (it asks first). Ctrl+Alt+R starts a recording from any app; pressed again it asks before stopping: the in-app question when the window is visible, otherwise press it a second time within 3 seconds.
• The window can be closed while recording; recording continues in the notification area.
• Settings: start with Windows (in the notification area), where audio is recorded from, how long audio is kept, the data folder, models and runtime.
• Diagnostics (Ctrl+Shift+D): "Why isn't it working?" and Copy diagnostics.

4. Low GPU memory and slow transcription

• Settings, "Low-VRAM mode": imports use Nemotron 3.5 when it is installed (peaks at about 1.8 GB instead of 2.6 GB).
• The live engine loads when you open the record sheet and unloads after 10 minutes without recording (Settings, "Unload the live engine after").
• When GPU memory runs out, the NVIDIA driver may move work to system memory ("sysmem fallback"), which makes transcription many times slower instead of failing. To get an error instead: NVIDIA Control Panel, Manage 3D settings, Program Settings, Add, choose nemo-speech.exe (in the data folder, engine\<runtime>\bin\), set "CUDA - Sysmem Fallback Policy" to "Prefer No Sysmem Fallback", Apply.

5. Where things are

Move data folder (Settings, Storage) copies everything to an empty folder, checks every file, restarts Diarist from there and then deletes the old copy.

Recordings are kept as lossless FLAC for 30 days (Settings, "Keep audio for"), then deleted unless the meeting is pinned (P); transcripts are never deleted. Re-processing a meeting needs its audio.

6. Updating

Settings, About, Check for updates reads https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ebt55/diarist/main/updater/latest.json (the newest release, beta pre-releases included), downloads the installer it names from GitHub and installs it after you confirm (updates are signed; the app checks the signature). Your data folder is not touched. You can also run a newer installer over the old one.

Coming from meet-assist (now Diarist). Diarist installs next to the version with the earlier name rather than over it. Its first start offers once to move that version's data (database, recordings, engine and models, including a folder you had moved it to) into Diarist's data folder, or to start fresh. Moving copies and checks everything, restarts, then deletes the old copy; starting fresh leaves the old folder as it is. Afterwards uninstall the old version (Windows Settings, Apps); its uninstaller never touches Diarist's folder.

7. Uninstalling

Use Windows Settings, Apps, Diarist, Uninstall (or uninstall.exe in the program folder).

• "Delete the application data" unticked (default): the program is removed and your transcripts and recordings stay. The uninstaller asks whether to remove the downloaded engine and models (about 1.6 GB); they can be downloaded again.
• Ticked: the data folder is removed too, including transcripts and recordings. For a moved data folder only Diarist's own items are removed (database, audio, engine, models, manifests, logs, the WebView profile), never other files you keep there.

Silent uninstall: uninstall.exe /S keeps everything; add /DELETEAPPDATA to remove the data folder, or /REMOVEMODELS to remove only the engine and models.