Install the desktop app

Steps

1. Download Treehouse for Mac. You can also get it from the web app: open Dashboard, select Sync a folder, then Download the Mac app. It's offered after you accept an invite, too.
2. Open the downloaded file and drag Treehouse into Applications.
3. Open Treehouse from Applications. The first time, macOS asks you to confirm you want to open an app downloaded from the internet.
4. Sign in with your Treehouse account.
5. Under Which workspace comes home?, choose the workspace to sync. If you don't have one yet, you can name a new one here and select Plant it. If you opened the app from an invite, it already knows the workspace and skips this step.
6. When Choose a folder to sync opens, select Sync this folder to accept the suggested folder, or pick a different, empty one. The suggestion is ~/Treehouse/<workspace name>, with " 2", " 3" and so on added if that name is taken.
7. Confirm the workspace and select Connect to followed by its name.

Syncing starts straight away. The Treehouse icon appears in your menu bar, the folder fills with your workspace's files, and the workspace opens in the app's own window, already signed in.

Check it worked

• Open the folder in Finder: your workspace's files are there.
• Click the Treehouse icon in the menu bar. Your folder is listed with Up to date once the first sync finishes.
• Drop a file into the folder. Within a few seconds it appears in the workspace in the web app.

Choosing a folder

The folder you sync has to be empty. Treehouse uploads everything in it, so an existing folder full of your own files would be shared with the whole workspace. If you pick one that isn't empty, you'll see That folder isn't empty and be asked to choose another.

Avoid macOS's protected folders: Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Library, Movies, Music and Pictures. You can choose one, but you'll get a warning, and macOS may stop Treehouse syncing there until you grant access in System Settings. Keeping the folder outside iCloud Drive also avoids macOS offloading files to save space. The default ~/Treehouse avoids both.

Each workspace can sync to one folder on a Mac. To sync another workspace, use Add a Folder… from the menu bar icon (see manage synced folders).

Updates

The app checks for updates when it starts and every 6 hours. When one is ready you'll be asked to restart, with Restart Now or Later. If you choose Later, the menu bar menu shows Restart to update to followed by the version, so you can do it when it suits you. Your folders keep syncing throughout, because the sync engine runs separately from the app.

Self-hosted servers

If you use Treehouse on your own server, the app asks Connect to this server? before you sign in, and shows the address. Only continue if you recognise it. People using Treehouse at trytree.house won't see this step.

Troubleshooting

Setup stopped with "Setup didn't finish"

Something went wrong partway through, often a network problem. Select Retry to carry on from where it stopped. Nothing you've done so far is lost.

The app won't open on my Mac

Your Mac probably has an Intel chip. The desktop app doesn't support Intel Macs yet, so use the web app for now.

For anything else, see troubleshooting.