Simplify Portable Apps
Welcome to the FlowDeck documentation. Learn how to manage, install, and run Windows portable applications directly from external drives without any installation hassle.
What is FlowDeck?
FlowDeck is a smart portable application manager for Windows designed to keep your operating system completely clean. It allows you to organize, launch, and manage portable applications directly from your computer or external USB drives with zero registry clutter and zero leftovers. FlowDeck queries package repositories like Scoop and Chocolatey to fetch latest version info, official website links, and app metadata, while allowing you to easily run and manage portable applications without leaving system footprints.
1. Dashboard (Home Screen)
The Dashboard is your real-time control center. Every time you launch FlowDeck, it dynamically scans your environment, monitors system metrics, checks internet connectivity, and displays your pinned favorite applications.
Welcome back, User!
Monday, 29 June 2026
Recent Activity
Browser added to Favorites
51 minutes ago
Maintenance completed:
6 added, 0 removed
51 minutes ago
Checked for updates
52 minutes ago
FlowDeck News/Tips
You can add your most frequent apps to 'Favorites' to appear directly on the Dashboard.
Quick Launch
Browser
v152.0.3What is on your Dashboard?
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Recent Activity Feed: Tracks your recent updates, favorites adjustments, or system-checks so you always know what actions were completed.
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Live Storage Metrics: Monitor your active drive storage, calculating space usage dynamically so you never run out of space on external USB keys.
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Quick Launch Panel: Any program marked as a 'Favorite' inside the library automatically spawns here for ultra-fast, single-click access.
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Online Status Indicator: Displays your live internet connection status dynamically (Online/Offline) to ensure all cloud package downloads work seamlessly.
2. My Apps
The My Apps library is your personal sandbox. FlowDeck registers portable executables located within your dynamic drive path, allowing you to run software with zero configurations left behind on your host operating system.
My Apps Library
6 Applications Installed | 0.74 GB | 1 Updates Available
SQLite
Browser
Security
Mynetspeed
Notepad
Media Player
How to manage your applications?
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Instant Launch: Click the primary Launch button to run your app.
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Favorites System: Apps marked with a gold star (โญ) are set as Favorites. They immediately appear in your home Dashboard's Quick Launch area for convenience.
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Checking for Updates: Click Check for Updates on the toolbar. If an app is outdated, a clear yellow/orange warning label with the newer version number (e.g. "Update to v2.61.1") will instantly notify you.
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Application Options Menu: Click the small three-dot menu button (...) to reveal deeper parameters:Open Folder: Navigates straight to the app files on your active drive.Go to Site: Opens the official homepage URL in your browser.Edit & Repair: Manually change file names, absolute execution paths, or metadata.Uninstall: Completely wipes the app data and clean-removes the directories.
3. Installation Wizard
The Installation Wizard acts as your portable store interface. Instead of manual ZIP downloading, searching, and extracting, the Wizard coordinates downloads automatically.
Install & Update Applications
The application installation wizard
Application
Live Log / Console
Wizard Features Breakdown
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Manual Archive Installation (Left Panel): Drag and drop any local
.zipor.7zarchive directly onto the drop area, or browse manually. Customize the app name and category, then hit Install Application to unpack and register it portably. -
Application Information & Preview (Right Panel): Shows real-time preview data and branding for the application being installed. Includes a direct Official Site button so you can verify website authenticity or check vendor instructions.
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Live Output Console (Bottom-Left Panel): Live terminal log that streams ongoing extraction, moving operations, and setup steps in real time so you know exactly what the system is performing.
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Must-Have Scoop Presets (Bottom-Right Panel): One-click preset buttons for popular, essential software fetched automatically from official Scoop repositories.
4. Settings Guide
Customize your FlowDeck experience across four main tabs. Once you make changes, click the primary Save Settings button at the bottom of the window to apply your preferences.
System Settings
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๐ Installation
Folder:
Set or change the target directory where your portable applications reside (e.g.
D:/Apps). Use Browse... to pick a folder or Open Folder to view its contents in Windows Explorer. -
โ๏ธ System
Options:
- Start on Windows Boot: Automatically launch FlowDeck when Windows starts up.
- Minimize to System Tray on close: Keep FlowDeck running in the taskbar tray when pressing the close (X) button.
- Check for FlowDeck Updates on Start: Automatically check for new release each time you open FlowDeck.
- ๐ Application Language: Switch the graphical user interface language (e.g. English) from the dropdown selector.
Appearance Settings
- ๐จ Application Theme: Personalize the visual theme of FlowDeck. Choose between themes such as Modern Dark or Modern Light to adjust contrast and colors to your liking.
Updates Settings
- โฑ๏ธ Check Frequency: Configure how often FlowDeck checks for updates (e.g., Every 24 Hours).
- ๐ Silent Background Checks: Enable silent background checks to prevent popup notifications during regular update scans.
- ๐ Update Status & Manual Scan: View the timestamp of your last update check and click Check Now to perform an instant manual scan.
Maintenance Settings
- ๐งน Clear Activity Log: Wipe out all historical launch and event records displayed on your Dashboard.
- ๐ Reset to Factory Defaults: Restore all FlowDeck system preferences and settings back to their original installation state.
- ๐พ Create Backup of Applications: Export a backup file of your installed applications and database configuration.
- ๐ ๏ธ Auto-Maintain Applications (Scan): Scan your portable directory to verify application executables and automatically repair library links.
Minimize to Tray Mechanics
Closing the application via the standard window close button (X) behaves as a **background minimize action** rather than a full shutdown. This behavior guarantees background tasks and pending app runs operate without disruption.
Action Flow
โข To Exit Permanently: Right-click the small FlowDeck logo in your Windows system tray (bottom-right of your taskbar) and select Exit .
โข Auto Backup on Exit: Exiting via the system tray menu automatically creates a secure backup of all your customized databases before closing.
Under the Hood: FlowDeck Ecosystem
FlowDeck is built upon highly stable open-source components that coordinate silently to deliver application packages dynamically.
Fetches application metadata and version details, while powering the 6 quick-install preset apps in the Installation Wizard.
Used strictly for retrieving metadata and version information for update checking, without installing system packages.
Uses 7za.exe inside core service workers to extract multi-part application formats smoothly on external drives.