PulseUninstalling and reinstalling
How to uninstall on macOS and Windows, and how to reinstall without carrying settings over.
Pulse normally updates itself to the latest version. Automatic updates can fail to work, for instance on a company-issued device with restricted permissions. This article covers uninstalling by hand and reinstalling the latest version, for macOS and for Windows.
The Pulse app is available for macOS and Windows. The web version runs in a browser and has nothing to install or remove.
Before you reinstall
Notes and transcripts are tied to your account and stored on the server. Deleting the app does not delete them. Reinstalling and signing in with the same account shows your existing notes exactly as before.
What is deleted is the settings and temporary data on the device. After reinstalling you will need to sign in and grant permissions again.
Notes that have not finished syncing can remain on the device, for instance just after recording a meeting offline. Before uninstalling, start the app, wait a while with an internet connection, and check the notes appear in the list.
When reinstalling helps
- Automatic updates are not working and it is stuck on an old version.
- It does not start, or crashes immediately after starting.
- The sign-in state is odd and signing out does not fix it.
- You want to grant microphone or screen recording permission again, but toggling it in settings has no effect.
Where notes are not being generated or transcription is not being captured, try the checks in Notes are not being generated and Transcription is not working before reinstalling. Most of those are settings or permission problems that reinstalling does not solve.
Uninstalling
- Finder — open it and show the Applications folder.
- Right-click the Pulse icon and choose Move to Bin.
- Finder — search for the product name and set the scope to This Mac. Check whether a copy remains anywhere outside the Applications folder, and move anything you find to the Bin too.
- Bin — open it, select the files concerned and choose Delete Immediately.
- Where the icon remains in the Dock, right-click it and choose Remove from Dock.
Removing settings as well
To reinstall from scratch without carrying settings over, delete the settings files left on the device as well as the app itself. Do this before reinstalling.
This removes settings stored on the device, such as template order, display settings and shortcuts. Settings stored on the server come back when you sign in again. If you cannot tell which is which, delete just the app first and reinstall, and only try deleting settings if the symptom persists.
- Finder — from its menu choose Go > Go to Folder.
~/Library/Application Support/— open it and move the folder named after Pulse to the Bin.- Do the same for
~/Library/Caches/and~/Library/Preferences/, deleting folders and files named after Pulse. - Empty the Bin.
~/Library and %APPDATA% folder names are derived from the app's bundle identifier. Add the actual folder names to this section, matching the identifier UNCHAIN, Inc. uses.
Reinstalling
- Download the latest version from UNCHAIN, Inc.'s website.
- Open the downloaded file and drag the Pulse icon into the Applications folder.
- Applications — open the folder and start it from there.
On first launch you are asked for microphone and screen recording permission. On macOS the app has to be restarted after screen recording permission is granted. For the permission steps in detail, see Initial setup guide.
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- You have signed in with the same account and your existing notes appear in the list
- Microphone and screen recording permission are granted
- The version shown in settings is the latest
On a company-issued device
On a device managed by an IT department, installing and uninstalling apps may be restricted. Where any of the following applies, talk to that team rather than doing it yourself.
- Uninstalling asks for an administrator password.
- Running the installer is blocked.
- It is automatically reinstalled some time after you delete it.
In environments rolled out through MDM or a distribution tool, version updates are normally managed on the distribution side too. Rather than reinstalling locally, ask for the latest version to be distributed. See Bulk installation and updates by an administrator for details.
Where automatic updates do not work, it is usually either that write permissions on the device are restricted or that traffic to where update files are fetched from is blocked. If updates stop again after reinstalling, check connectivity using Network and allowlists and ask your IT department to allow the destinations needed.
If something is not working
Q. My notes do not appear after reinstalling
A. Check you are signed in with the same account as before. If you use more than one account, you can switch from the icon beside the email address at the bottom left. The workspace may also have switched. See Notes are missing for details.
Q. The app is still there although I uninstalled it
A. A copy can remain somewhere outside the Applications folder. On macOS, set Finder's search to “This Mac”, find them and delete them all. On Windows, a non-default location may have been chosen at install time.
Q. The microphone is not captured after reinstalling
A. On macOS, an old version of the app can be left in the permission lists. In System Settings, under Privacy & Security, remove the Pulse entry from the Microphone and Screen Recording lists, then start the app and grant permission again. The detail is in Transcription is not working.
Q. Does uninstalling delete my notes?
A. No. Notes and transcripts are stored against your account, so reinstalling and signing in with the same account shows them exactly as before. To delete the data along with the account, use the steps in Deleting your account.