Get the app
We designed Shade to enable file sharing across platforms, including the web. Use Shade on web for quick browser based access, or download Shade for desktop for faster sharing and access to the Shade File System.
Using Shade in the Web
Shade offers a full web platform that allows you to easily and quickly search and share your files from anywhere. You have the full capability of Shade minus the real-time access file system and fast transfer that our desktop client provides. The web version is easy to access - simply head to app.shade.inc (opens in a new tab) or click on the Get Started tab on shade.inc (opens in a new tab)
Note: The web is unable to display catalog drives because they are tied down to the computer and folder structure of which that catalog drive has been created.
Downloading Shade to Your Desktop
You unlock the full power of Shade with the Shade desktop application. The Shade desktop app is a full featured app with powerful, low-latency search and sharing features, and most importantly, real-time access to all your files via the Shade File System that is virtually mounted to your computer. Our desktop application bundle also provides different ways to interact with Shade:
You can download the latest releases from here (opens in a new tab).
The Desktop UI
First is the core desktop UI - this is the main interface to interact with your Shade workspace and Shade drives. Understand the Structure
Native File Explorer Extension
We offer a native finder and file explorer extension to allow easy configuration and quick access to a wide variety of Shade components including adding items to drives, indexing folders within drives, quick access to link sharing, and more. This offers a direct connection with Shade no matter where you are.
Shade Mini (Coming Soon)
Shade mini is your opportunity to use Shade in a quick access fashion. Similar to Spotlight search, Shade mini offers the ease of use that enables you to quickly drag and drop into any application that you choose simply by pressing Ctrl (or CMD) + Shift + K and searching for what you need.
The Shade Topbar
Shade also provides a topbar icon (or tray icon on Windows) that shows you status updates such as uploading and transfer status, the current status of indexing jobs, and personal notifications such as shared files, comments, etc.
Updating Your Desktop App
Shade has a built in auto updater that runs for Mac, Linux and Windows. This will download the latest builds that we regularly release and will prompt you to update on your next app launch. Our AI models run locally, so you can expect some updates to take longer when we are updating the models on your machine.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the web work with the desktop?
The web is great for a few things - quickly viewing and sharing files, managing permissions, and uploading files on the go if you do not have Shade downloaded.
Shade desktop offers the full web experience and more with the Shade File System. The desktop is where ShadeFS shines, with the ability to access files before the whole file is downloaded. Mount a shade drive to your computer and start using files in your applications.
We highly recommended that you use the desktop application if you plan on transferring more than 5 GBs of data.
Why does the desktop app have more features than the web?
The desktop app has the capabilities to leverage your native operating system and computer hardware to accelerate many processes like video playback (including native playback of R3D and BRAW through our Shade video player), multithreaded uploading and downloading, and of course our virtual file system.
How often do you guys release? Do you guys give updates?
Yes, we are active in our discord (opens in a new tab) and post regular change log updates (opens in a new tab). We typically try to release every two weeks depending on the scope of the release.