Installation & setup guide

Up and running in a couple of minutes. Pick your platform, install, and start your first scan. One license covers all your devices.

macOS Windows Linux iPhone & Android 24/7 server Activate license

macOS notarized

Download the .dmg and open it.
Drag DeviceShelf into your Applications folder.
Open it from Launchpad or Applications. It's notarized by Apple, so it just opens — no security warning.

Requirements: macOS 12 or newer (Apple Silicon & Intel). Live per-device bandwidth needs elevated rights — see live bandwidth. Everything else works out of the box.

Windows

Download the installer (.exe) — x64 for Intel/AMD, or the ARM64 build for Snapdragon / Copilot+ PCs.
Run it. Windows SmartScreen may warn that the publisher is unverified (the build is unsigned): click More info → Run anyway.
Follow the installer and launch DeviceShelf.

For live bandwidth: install Npcap. Per-device bandwidth on Windows uses packet capture, which needs Npcap. The installer points you to it; you can also download Npcap and restart DeviceShelf. Scanning, ports, security report and everything else work without Npcap.

More: enabling live bandwidth.

Linux

DeviceShelf ships as an AppImage (runs anywhere, no install) and as native .deb / .rpm packages, for x86-64 and ARM64.

Installing the .deb? Use the terminal, not double-click — on Ubuntu 24.04 a double-clicked .deb opens in the App Center and can fail silently:

sudo apt install ./DeviceShelf-*.deb

Full Linux guide (AppImage, .rpm, capture rights): Install on Linux.

iPhone & Android

The mobile apps are in final testing — App Store and Google Play listings are on the way. Your license key works across desktop and mobile, so one purchase covers every device you own.

Run it 24/7 on a server beta

A headless server edition for continuous, always-on monitoring — no GUI, runs in Docker (or via the .deb) on a Linux box or VM — is now in beta. Point it at the networks you want watched around the clock. It's covered by your existing license: same key, no extra cost.

New in 1.5.3: the server includes a local MCP server — connect Claude, Cursor or any AI agent and ask about your network in plain language. Connection guide →

It's a beta — hit a bug or want a feature? See the release notes or get in touch.

Activate your license

After purchase you receive a license key by email.
In the app: Settings → License, paste the key, click Activate.
On iPhone/Android, open the license email on the device and tap the activation button — it activates automatically.

No account, no online check — activation is offline. The same key re-activates on all your devices. More: activating DeviceShelf.

Permissions at a glance

Feature	What it needs
Scanning, ports, security report, AI	Nothing — works everywhere, out of the box
Live per-device bandwidth	Windows: Npcap · macOS/Linux: elevated rights (`sudo` or BPF/`setcap`)
Passive DHCP fingerprinting	Elevated rights on macOS/Linux · not available on Windows

Without these, the app still runs — only the respective feature stays inactive.