Installation
Download Zshell, install it with Homebrew, keep it updated, and remove it cleanly.
Zshell is not notarized by Apple. The home page shows the minimum macOS version the current release needs, next to the download.
Download
Download the .dmg from the home page. The current 0.1.11 release provides
Universal, Apple Silicon, and Intel packages, with Gitee available as a mirror.
Open the disk image and drag Zshell into Applications.
On first launch, macOS may block the app. After trying to open it, go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway, then confirm opening Zshell. This also applies to Homebrew installations.
Homebrew
brew install wzz6423/tap/zshellThe cask lives in wzz6423/homebrew-tap and installs the ZIP for your Mac's
processor. Zshell uses Sparkle for updates after installation. To explicitly
update through Homebrew, or catch up when the installed version is behind:
brew upgrade --cask --greedy-auto-updates zshellUpdates
Both direct downloads and Homebrew installations use Sparkle. In mainland China, Zshell tries Gitee first, then GitHub; elsewhere, it tries GitHub first, then Gitee. It uses the network's IP country when available and falls back to the macOS region if the country lookup fails. A failed feed or download retries the other source once. The country lookup uses ipinfo.io/country, with a five-second timeout and a 30-minute in-memory cache. This request exposes the network's public IP to that service; Zshell does not save the IP. Turning off automatic checks also stops background country lookups.
Zshell verifies the signed feed and update package before installation and keeps the installed architecture; Intel apps running under Rosetta migrate to Apple Silicon.
Open Settings → Updates (Cmd+,) to control automatic checks and Automatically download updates. Downloads are on by default and require automatic checks. Enabling downloads reveals a separate Automatically install updates switch, which is off by default. With installation off, updates download in the background and install when you quit Zshell. With both switches on, prepared updates install and restart Zshell automatically. Running terminal processes stop during the restart; the workspace is restored when Zshell reopens. Turning downloads off hides the installation switch and prevents automatic restarts, while preserving its preference for the next time downloads are enabled. Both choices persist across app restarts. An update icon appears at the bottom of the project sidebar, to the left of the feedback button, when an update is available. Click it to open the update or its progress, or retry a pending restart. Choose Check for Updates… to check manually. The Homebrew command above remains available for an explicit update.
Recommended tools
Open Settings → Recommendations to browse terminal, network, development, utility, and desktop tools, including Zisla. The page detects installed tools and checks for available updates while it is open. Use a tool's Install or Update button, Install Missing for every missing recommendation, or Update All for available updates to Homebrew-managed tools.
Tool installation uses Homebrew. If Homebrew is missing, the page links to its
installation instructions. Checks do not install or update tools on their own.
Tools detected outside Homebrew are labeled Outside Homebrew. Use
Homebrew installs a Homebrew-managed copy; the existing copy may still take
precedence in your shell's PATH. Use Refresh to check again after changing
an installation. Zshell itself is managed in Settings → Updates.
Open a folder from Finder
Zshell registers a macOS service called New Zshell Project Here. Select one or more folders in Finder, right-click, and pick it from the Services submenu — each folder opens as a project with its terminal already started there.
If it's missing from the menu, turn it on under System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → Services → Files and Folders. macOS only lists a new service after the app has been launched once.
Uninstalling
If Settings → Automation → AI is enabled, turn it off before deleting the app so Zshell can remove the agent support it installed.
Delete zshell.app from Applications, then remove its settings if you want a
clean slate:
rm -rf ~/.config/zshellWindow layout, sidebar widths, and the session snapshot live in macOS's own preference store:
defaults delete sh.zshell