unforge

A good start. A way back.

Install Unforge, save your first version, and give your work a recovery plan.

Install on Mac

Version 0.4.1 is a working alpha for Apple silicon Macs running macOS 13 or later. Git 2.30 or later is required.

  1. Download the ZIP from this page. Optionally confirm the checksum.
  2. Move Unforge.app into Applications.
  3. Open it from Finder, Spotlight, or the Dock. This build is signed and notarized, so it should open like other Mac apps.
  4. If macOS still blocks it, right-click the app, choose Open, then Open again, or use System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway for this build only. Do not turn Gatekeeper off.
  5. If Unforge says Git is missing, run xcode-select --install and reopen the app.
Download for Mac Checksums

No Terminal, Python, or Node setup is needed to open the Mac app. If Git is missing, Unforge explains how to install Apple’s command line tools. Projects you run may need their own tools.

Compatibility with every macOS release has not been tested. Keep macOS protections enabled; do not disable Gatekeeper system-wide.

Your first project

Start with a small project. Save a file, then Save a version to preserve that change in history.

  1. Create a project, copy a supported local folder, or import a supported Git bundle. If you copy a folder in, Unforge makes its own copy and leaves yours alone.
  2. In Project care → Your brief, describe what the project does and one thing that must keep working. Write the notes, then save a version.
  3. Write a request for your preferred coding agent. Optional direct Codex and Subscription Fleet proposals use tools already installed and signed in on this computer. They work in a separate checkout; review the changes before applying them.
  4. Run the project’s configured checks, review what changed, and save a named version. Saving a file and saving a version are separate steps.

Your projects remain ordinary folders with Git history. You can open them with other tools and export committed history as a Git bundle. You do not need a GitHub or Unforge account.

AI is optional and uses your own account. Unforge does not include AI credits. You can cap how often Unforge starts an AI job; that is not a spending limit. Your AI provider still bills you.

Back up your workspace

Keep active projects on local storage. Put completed encrypted recovery copies in the storage you choose.

  1. Open Backups & recovery. Choose a destination outside the active workspace: iCloud Drive, a Google Drive desktop sync folder, or another drive.
  2. Save your recovery passphrase somewhere you can access without this Mac, such as a password manager. A backup cannot recover a lost passphrase.
  3. Create a recovery point. Unforge restores it on this Mac first, then tells you it worked.
  4. Check whether the upload actually finished. A file sitting in iCloud or Drive on this Mac is not enough. The first time, allow Unforge’s iCloud Drive permission if macOS asks.
  5. For iCloud, use Test recovery from iCloud to pull the uploaded copy down and make sure you can open it. Turn on automatic backups if you want Unforge to save while the app is open.

Keep the entire .ufvault folder. The .ufpoint inside it identifies a recovery point; it is not a standalone backup. Unchanged contents are shared between points. Older standalone .ufbackup copies remain recoverable.

Automatic backups normally group changes no more than once every five minutes while Unforge is open. Quitting the app stops its automatic backups. No points are automatically pruned, so check available storage and upload results.

Workspace backups cover managed files, history, drafts, proposals, and managed local app data. Hosted databases, uploads stored elsewhere, Git LFS payloads, and external credentials need their own backup arrangements. Moving source code does not move or back up a hosted database.

A passphrase stored in the same cloud account as its backup can protect against losing your Mac, but does not protect against that account being compromised. An independent destination copy adds protection against damage to shared backup files.

Recover a separate copy

Test recovery before you need it. You can rehearse on the same Mac; you do not need to buy or borrow another computer.

  1. Install Unforge and download the complete .ufvault folder from your storage. Have your recovery passphrase ready.
  2. In Backups & recovery, select a .ufpoint inside the vault’s points folder. For an older backup, choose the .ufbackup instead.
  3. Choose Recover a separate copy and enter your passphrase. Restoration creates a separate workspace instead of overwriting the current one.
  4. In the Mac app, choose File → Open Workspace… and open the recovered folder.
  5. Check your files and history. Restore any separately backed-up hosted data or credentials when needed, then test the project’s important behaviors. Reconfigure the backup destination for the recovered workspace.

Recovery does not start your apps for you. Getting your files back is not the same as being signed in everywhere again. Trying this on the Mac you already have is not the same as knowing you could still get into iCloud if that laptop is gone.

Keep the installer, this guide, and your passphrase somewhere you can reach without this laptop. Don’t let two Macs write the same backup at once.

Source & requirements

Get Unforge from this site. You do not need GitHub to download, run, or ship an app. Version 0.4.1 is a working alpha. A public source copy exists so people can inspect it.

Download source from this site → · Public source copy

The source archive on this page is enough to inspect and build. GitHub is optional.

The built source release runs on macOS or Linux with Python 3.10+ and Git 2.30+. It includes the built interface, so running it does not require Node.

Download source Checksums

Extract the archive. In its folder, run:

./start.sh

Open the local address printed in the terminal and keep that terminal running. On macOS, you can also double-click start.command. The core runtime works locally without a cloud account.

Source users fetch the pinned backup tool once with:

python3 scripts/fetch_restic.py

Changing and rebuilding the frontend additionally requires Node.js 22.12+ with npm. The archive includes the README, contributor guide, API documentation, recovery details, and MIT license.

Check a download

Download the checksum file into the same folder as the archive. On macOS, calculate its SHA-256 checksum:

shasum -a 256 Unforge-0.4.1-macos-arm64.zip

Compare the result with the matching filename in SHA256SUMS.txt. A matching checksum checks file integrity. This Mac zip is Developer ID signed, notarized, and stapled.

Update without moving your work

Make a fresh backup, quit Unforge, then replace the app bundle. Workspace files are stored separately from the application. This alpha does not install an automatic updater.

What this alpha does

Unforge 0.4.1 supports local projects, named Git versions, draft recovery, optional outcome-first Codex and Subscription Fleet proposals, trusted local runs and checks, retained release artifacts, and encrypted workspace recovery points. A first-time user starts with an empty workspace and their own settings. Upgrading the app keeps the existing workspace outside the app bundle.

It does not yet provide live provider billing controls, peer collaboration, support for every repository type, hosted-database backup, or sandboxed execution of untrusted apps.

Project commands run with your Mac account’s permissions and can use the network. Only run code you trust. Practice buttons are fake receipts. They don’t switch your real app into a test account.

Unforge itself is free and MIT licensed. AI, hosting, and storage you connect still have their own limits and bills. Keep your current live setup until you’ve checked that the new one actually works.

This website has no forms, analytics, remote fonts, or third-party scripts. The app has no Unforge login, central workspace server, or telemetry service.