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Getting Updates

SWAT+ Toolbox gets new features and bug fixes through updates. It checks for them itself, and you can check at any time from the About page.

Updated build of 4.0.1

An updated build of SWAT+ Toolbox 4.0.1 was published for Windows, Linux and macOS on 19 October 2026. It has the same version number as the earlier 4.0.1, so Check for Updates does not offer it to a copy of 4.0.1. If you installed or updated SWAT+ Toolbox before 23:40 CDT on 19 October 2026 (04:40 UTC, 20 October), install again as described on the Installation page:

  • on Windows, close SWAT+ Toolbox, then download the installer zip again and run the installer, or run the PowerShell command with -Force:

    & ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://install.swat.tamu.edu/spt.ps1))) -Force

    Without -Force the command reports that 4.0.1 is up to date. Both ways keep your settings, such as recent projects.

  • on Linux and macOS, run the install command (spt.sh) again. It checks every file against the published list and replaces the ones that changed.

A copy of 4.0.0 receives the updated 4.0.1 through the normal update.

Automatic check

Shortly after the main window opens, SWAT+ Toolbox checks whether a newer version is available. This check runs at most once every 24 hours. If it cannot reach the update server, nothing is shown. If a newer version is available, the update dialog opens.

Checking by hand

  1. Click About in the navigation bar.
  2. Click Check for Updates.

A manual check always runs, even if the program checked earlier that day, and always tells you the result:

  • You're up to date with the version you are running, when there is nothing newer
  • Could not check for updates when the update server cannot be reached; check your internet connection and try again
  • the update dialog, when a newer version is available

Update dialog

The dialog title shows the new version number. On Windows the Revision Notes area shows the release notes; on Linux and macOS it says that a new version is available. The dialog has three buttons:

  • Update downloads and installs the new version. A progress bar shows "Downloading Updates" with a percentage. Click Cancel to stop the download. When the download finishes, the dialog shows "Installing and restarting…", SWAT+ Toolbox closes, the new files are put in place and the program starts again.
  • Skip Version closes the dialog and stops the automatic check from offering this version again. A newer version is still offered, and Check for Updates still shows the skipped one.
  • Documentation opens this documentation in your browser.

Warning

Updating closes SWAT+ Toolbox. Any model run, sensitivity analysis or calibration that is going is stopped. Wait for it to finish before you click Update.

If the download fails, the dialog shows "Update failed. Please try again later." and you can try again.

Update installation by system

Updates are downloaded and applied by the installer that SWAT+ Toolbox was installed with. Only the changes since your version are downloaded where possible. The update replaces the program folder, %USERPROFILE%\SWATPlus\SWATPlusToolbox\current, as a whole.

Running the install command again in PowerShell does the same update by hand:

irm https://install.swat.tamu.edu/spt.ps1 | iex

SWAT+ Toolbox compares a list of the files in the new version with the list recorded when you installed. It downloads only the files the new version changed, checks each one, closes, swaps the files in, removes files the new version no longer includes, and starts again.

Running the install command again does the same update by hand:

curl -fsSL https://install.swat.tamu.edu/spt.sh | bash

The update works the same way as on Linux, inside SWAT+ Toolbox.app. After the files are swapped in, the app is signed again for this Mac and reopened.

Running the install command again does the same update by hand:

curl -fsSL https://install.swat.tamu.edu/spt.sh | bash

On Linux and macOS, an update keeps your changes to configuration files and bundled executables unless the new version changes the same file, and it never touches files you added. See Program files you can edit.

Added files on Windows

On Windows, files you edit or add inside the installation folder, for example extra SWAT+ executables in assets\executables, can be lost when SWAT+ Toolbox updates. Keep copies outside the installation folder and add them back after each update.

Note

In-app updates work only in a copy installed with the Windows setup, the official installer for SWAT+ tools or the install command. A copy extracted from an archive by hand, or built from source, cannot update itself. Check for Updates then shows "Updates run in installed builds only", or "Could not check for updates" if the update server cannot be reached. Install SWAT+ Toolbox as described on the Installation page to get updates.