Check for updates
Big Picture Money can tell you when a newer version is available. You can check any time from Help, and the app also checks in the background after you unlock — without uploading your financial data.
Prerequisites
- Big Picture Money is installed and unlocked.
- An internet connection is required to contact the update service.
Check for a newer version (manual)
- In the title bar, click the Help icon.
- Choose Check for updates.
- Read the result the app shows you.
When the app checks for you
After you unlock your data file, the app checks for updates in the background:
- About 10 seconds after unlock.
- Again every 6 hours while the app stays unlocked.
If a newer version is available, Update available appears in the title bar with a download icon, immediately to the left of Bank sync. The app does not open a dialog over your work.
Select Update available to open the same Check for updates dialog as the Help menu uses. You can install when you are ready, or choose Not now and keep working. Not now hides the title-bar notice until the next scheduled check.
Automatic checks do not interrupt you when you are already up to date, or when the check fails (for example offline). Use Help → Check for updates any time if you want to see those results explicitly.
What the result means
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| You are up to date | You are running the latest version available to you. |
| An update is available | A newer version can be downloaded and installed when you are ready. Most of these updates are relatively small — they refresh the app itself. The dialog also shows the version you are currently running. |
| A newer edition is available | A newer yearly edition exists; whether it is included depends on your license (see Upgrade your license). |
| Could not check (offline) | The app could not reach the update service. Your app keeps working normally — try again when you are online. |
Longer updates (improved merchant database)
Most updates download only what changed in the app and finish relatively quickly. Occasionally, an update also includes an improved merchant database (and related on-device matching assets). The app tells you when that is the case — expect a longer download than a typical update. The flow is the same: install when you are ready, or dismiss and keep working.
If the merchant catalog or matching assets are missing (for example after an incomplete install), the app steers you to download the complete installer from the download page — the same package used for a new install or reinstall. See Installing the app.
Checking for updates never uploads your financial data.
While an update installs
After you choose Download and install, progress appears as notifications in the bottom-left corner:
- Downloading update… while the package downloads.
- Installing update… while the app applies it.
- A short error message if the update cannot be installed. You can retry from Help → Check for updates or the Update available notice.
These notifications do not block the rest of the app. The app restarts after a successful install.
After the update
After the updated app restarts and you unlock a data file, a bottom-left notification confirms that the update was applied. The confirmation appears once for each data file because each file may need its own migrations. Unlocking the same data file again does not repeat it; unlocking another data file after the update can show it once for that file.
When release notes are available, the notification includes View the latest release notes. Some updates do not have published release notes, so the link is optional.
Expected result
- Choosing Help → Check for updates shows a clear result, including the version you are currently running when an update is available.
- After unlock, an available update appears quietly in the title bar instead of opening a dialog.
- Selecting Update available opens the existing Check for updates dialog; Not now hides the notice until the next scheduled check.
- Download and install progress appears in the bottom-left without blocking your work.
- After restart and unlock, Update applied appears once per data file, with an optional release-notes link.
- When you are online and current, a manual check tells you that you are up to date.
- When you are offline, a manual check shows a friendly message and the app keeps working.
- When an update includes an improved merchant database, the dialog makes clear the download may take longer.
- The check never uploads your financial data.