Install swell on macOS

swell on macOS ships as a signed installer package that runs on both Intel and Apple silicon Macs. Download it from the Download Center, run it, then confirm the binary works and can reach Stairwell. Nothing else is required, and no other Stairwell software has to be present first.

What do I need before I install?

• A Mac on Intel or Apple silicon, and an administrator account to run the installer.
• Outbound HTTPS on port 443 to Stairwell. If you have not confirmed that from this network, install swell here and then run the checks in Pre-Deployment Check, which is exactly what swell is for.
• An auth token, which you get after installing with swell auth login.

Where do I get the installer?

From swell Downloads. Copy the macOS link from there, because the URL carries the release date and changes with every release.

swell downloads are date-pinned, so the URL carries the release date and changes with every release:

https://downloads.stairwell.com/swell/<YYYYMMDD>/

A link you saved months ago still works and still gives you that old build. That is convenient for reproducing something and a problem if you have forgotten it is pinned, so treat the date in any script as a version to review rather than a constant.

How do I install it?

1. Download the macOS package from the Download Center.
2. Open it and follow the installer.
3. Open Terminal and run swell version.

The package is signed by Stairwell, so Gatekeeper accepts it without any right-click-to-open workaround. If macOS refuses to open it, the download did not complete or it did not come from the Download Center; get it again rather than overriding the warning.

How do I confirm it worked?

Two commands. The first proves the binary runs, the second proves it can reach Stairwell.

$ swell version
$ swell verify connectivity

version prints the build you installed. Note it down: it is the first thing to check when behavior does not match the documentation.

verify connectivity probes each of Stairwell's endpoints from this Mac and prints a pass or fail per endpoint. Four passes and you are ready to authenticate. Anything else, read the DETAIL column and go to Pre-Deployment Check.

Then log in and confirm you can see your own data:

$ swell auth login
$ swell foundation getenvs

A table of environments means the install is complete. See swell Configuration for how to store the environment you work in so you stop passing it on every command.

What if it does not run?

• command not found. Open a new Terminal window. A shell started before the install does not pick up a newly installed path.
• The installer will not open. Get the package from the Download Center again. Do not bypass the signature check.
• A TLS or certificate error against Stairwell. Do not reach for --insecure. The error is the finding: something between this Mac and Stairwell is intercepting the connection, and Pre-Deployment Check explains what to do about it. On a corporate Mac this is the most common result, because the intercepting proxy's certificate authority is trusted locally and every browser on the machine looks healthy.
• A permission prompt when you upload. Recent macOS versions gate access to some directories. Grant Terminal, or whatever shell you use, access to the location you are uploading from.

What should I read next?

• swell Command Reference, for every command and flag.
• swell Configuration, for the auth token, the config file, and precedence.
• Pre-Deployment Check, for the two checks to run before a forwarder rollout.