Windows installation

Overview

Serial Studio ships three ways on Windows, all 64-bit (x64) builds of the same application. The MSI installer and the portable ZIP come from the releases page; the Microsoft Store edition installs and updates through the Store.

Channel	File name / source	Best for
MSI installer	`Serial-Studio-Pro-<version>-Windows.msi`	Standard install with a Start Menu entry
Portable ZIP	`Serial-Studio-Pro-<version>-Windows-Portable.zip`	Running without installation or administrator rights
Microsoft Store	Serial Studio Pro on the Microsoft Store	Automatic updates managed by Windows

All three require Windows 10 version 1809 or later. There is no 32-bit or ARM64 build.

Code signing

The MSI installer and the portable ZIP are not code-signed yet, so Microsoft Defender SmartScreen flags them as coming from an unknown publisher on first run. Click More info, then Run anyway to proceed; the downloads themselves are served over HTTPS from GitHub. The Microsoft Store package is signed by Microsoft as part of Store publishing, so Store installs start without a SmartScreen prompt.

MSI installer

Download Serial-Studio-Pro-<version>-Windows.msi from the releases page.
Double-click the file and follow the setup wizard; the license text is displayed during installation.
Launch Serial Studio Pro from the Start Menu.

Setup places the application under C:\Program Files\Serial Studio Pro and adds a Serial Studio Pro shortcut directly to the Start Menu. Installing a newer MSI upgrades the existing installation in place; two versions never sit side by side. Uninstall from Settings → Apps → Installed apps.

Portable ZIP

Extract Serial-Studio-Pro-<version>-Windows-Portable.zip anywhere (a USB stick works) and start the application with the Serial Studio Pro.bat launcher at the root of the archive, or run the executable directly:

Serial Studio Pro.bat                  launcher
License.rtf
Serial-Studio-Pro-v<version>\
  bin\Serial-Studio-Pro.exe            the application
  bin\ss-config.json
  plugins\, qml\, ...                  Qt runtime

Extraction writes nothing outside the folder and needs no administrator rights. Settings and license activation are still stored per user in the Windows registry, so moving the folder to another machine does not carry your configuration with it.

Microsoft Store

Install Serial Studio Pro from the Microsoft Store. It is the same application packaged as MSIX: Windows installs it without an elevation prompt and keeps it updated automatically through the Store.

Updates

Each package embeds a stamp identifying its format, and the built-in update check uses it to offer the matching package: an MSI installation is notified about new MSI releases, the portable ZIP about new ZIP releases, and Store installations update through the Store.

First launch

If the application fails to start on a fresh Windows installation, install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable (64-bit) and launch it again.

Devices that use a USB-to-serial bridge need the vendor driver before Windows shows a COM port: CH340, FTDI, or CP210x. Open Device Manager and check under Ports (COM & LPT) to confirm the device enumerates. More first-connection fixes are in Getting Started and Troubleshooting.