Dockli is designed to keep your whole fleet current with zero administrative effort. There are no patches to schedule, no update rings to build, and nothing for users to download. This page explains the mechanism and the handful of things worth knowing.
How updates work
Dockli checks its release feed in Azure Blob storage for a newer version each time the Dockli view is opened in File Explorer, and about every four hours while it’s running. When there’s a newer version, Dockli downloads it in the background using Velopack — only the changed files where possible — and gets it ready to install. Nothing changes on screen and the user isn’t interrupted.
The update then installs automatically the next time the user restarts their PC or signs in to Windows. It’s applied early in sign-in, before File Explorer loads Dockli, so it never closes the user’s windows or interrupts their work. Settings → About shows “Update ready — will install automatically the next time you restart your PC” while one is waiting.
If the feed is briefly unreachable or the network hiccups, the check is quietly skipped and retried later — an update problem never disturbs the user. A user’s sign-in, favourites and settings are kept across updates.
Why updates wait for a restart or sign-in
Dockli is part of File Explorer, and Windows keeps Dockli’s File Explorer component loaded while you work. Replacing it mid-session would mean restarting File Explorer — closing your windows and flashing the desktop. Installing at the next restart or sign-in avoids that entirely.
Per-user, so updates need no admin rights
Because Dockli installs per-user under the user’s own profile, updates apply in the user’s context with no elevation. The user doesn’t need to be a local administrator for updates to land — the same reason the initial install needs no admin rights.
Why there are no MSI update rings
Traditional MSI-based apps make you build deployment rings, stage releases, and push each update through your management tooling. Dockli doesn’t work that way. Because every client updates itself from the release feed, there is nothing to ring and nothing to push. You deploy the installer once (see Deploy to your tenant); from then on the app maintains itself.
This means you don’t repackage Dockli for each new version in Intune or Configuration Manager. Deploy it once and let it self-update.
Checking your version and what changed
Open Settings → About in Dockli to see the installed version. The What’s new link there opens the release notes, which list every version newest first — new features, improvements, fixes, and anything IT needs to know.
Getting an update sooner
To pick up a new version right away rather than waiting for the next check:
- In Dockli, open Settings → About and choose Check for updates.
- If a newer version is available, choose Install on restart. Dockli downloads it and shows Update ready.
- Restart your PC, or sign out of Windows and back in. The update installs as you sign in.
Simply closing and reopening File Explorer doesn’t install an update — it’s applied at the next restart or sign-in.
Version consistency across the fleet
Every client checks whenever Dockli is opened and every few hours, so a new release reaches each machine quickly and installs at that user’s next restart or sign-in — typically within a day for people who restart daily. Machines that were off or offline catch up automatically the next time Dockli runs and can reach the feed. The practical result is a fleet that converges on the current, supported version on its own — which also keeps entitlement and File Explorer behavior consistent for everyone.
Keeping the feed reachable
Updates depend on outbound HTTPS to Dockli’s release storage. If your network is locked down, make sure the Dockli update endpoints are allowlisted so clients can stay current. See Endpoints to allowlist.
The WebView2 dependency
Dockli’s interface renders inside Microsoft Edge WebView2, which ships with current Windows 10 and Windows 11 — so on a healthy, up-to-date Windows machine there is nothing extra to install. WebView2 itself is serviced by Windows and Microsoft Edge updates, not by Dockli, so keeping Windows current keeps the WebView2 runtime current too. On the rare machine where WebView2 is missing, install the Microsoft Edge WebView2 runtime once and Dockli will render normally.
Where to go next
- Release notes — what changed in each version
- Deploy Dockli to your tenant — the one-time rollout
- Installing Dockli — the per-user install and requirements
- Endpoints to allowlist — what to open for updates and Microsoft 365
- Uninstalling and offboarding — clean removal