macOS client¶

The macOS client ships as an installer package (.pkg). It installs a system daemon plus a menu bar app, works on both Apple silicon and Intel Macs, and keeps itself up to date automatically after that.

Prerequisites¶

A running backend (Community or Pro).
Administrator rights on the Mac (once, for the install).
The .pkg — download it from your backend's public downloads page, https://vpn.example.com/downloads (it serves whatever you've published on Admin → Releases).
Your installation's API key, shown under Admin → Settings → Client connectivity.

Steps¶

1. Run the installer¶

Double-click the .pkg and follow the installer. It installs the daemon, the menu bar app, and starts both.

2. Configure the server address and API key¶

Open Terminal and edit the configuration file (administrator password required):

sudo nano "/Library/Application Support/Valenius/appsettings.json"

Fill in your backend URL and the API key from Admin → Settings → Client connectivity:

{ "Valenius": { "BackendUrl": "https://vpn.example.com", "ApiKey": "<your-api-key>" } }

Save with Ctrl+O, exit with Ctrl+X, then restart the daemon:

sudo launchctl kickstart -k system/com.stranto.valenius.daemon

3. Activate the machine in the admin panel¶

The Mac now appears in your admin panel as a pending client (the Overview page shows a Pending counter — click it). Open the new client, assign it to its customer, and click Activate. The client picks this up on its own within a few minutes.

Verify it works¶

The Valenius icon is visible in the menu bar (if not, launch Valenius from the Applications folder).
In the admin panel, the client shows as online (green) after activation.
Give it a VPN profile (see First steps) and connect from the menu bar — a green check appears when the tunnel is up and verified.

Common problems¶

macOS blocks the installer ("cannot be opened"). The package isn't signed/notarized — that only happens with self-built development packages. Use a properly signed release build for real deployments.

The Mac never appears as pending in the admin panel. Check appsettings.json for typos in the URL or API key, restart the daemon with the launchctl kickstart command above, and confirm the backend URL opens in Safari on that Mac.

No icon in the menu bar. Launch Valenius from the Applications folder once; it starts automatically at login from then on.

Updates: do I ever reinstall by hand? No. The daemon checks your backend hourly and updates itself — publishing a new version on Admin → Releases is all you do. Learn more →