What's new with WhatPulse?

Well, that was fast. Here's a tiny update to fix a few glaring bugs.

Bug Fixes 🐛

• The status bar will now hide application sync when Upload application info is turned off, as it should.
• Per-application uptime in the Uptime → Applications table is showing the correct values again. The collected data is good, the presentation just wasn't.
• Fixed an issue where stuck modifier keys could cause false key-combination counts. Yes, they really do get stuck sometimes.

A small follow-up to 5.11 that adds a new status bar, makes application syncing easier to understand, and packs in a lot of stability fixes.

macOS Note: You might need to reset the Accessibility permissions for WhatPulse after updating. Should take only a minute, and there's a step by step guide in our help center.

New ✨

• A status bar with..the status of WhatPulse.
  • Shows the collector status with a colored dot.
  • Shows a rich tooltip with last pulse stats.
  • Shows pending applications that need syncing. You can click it to open the Applications Sync Status window.
  • You can turn the status bar on or off in Settings → Appearance.

Improvements 🛠️

• Application syncing is now a lot less noisy and a bit faster, especially on macOS
• Smarter upgrade handling & clearer version messages
  • When your database version is too new for the app, the error message now points to the minimum required version, instead of the generic “install the latest version”.
  • After an upgrade, the app notifies the website, which helps keep things in sync.
• Geek Window behaviour on multi-monitor setups
  • The Geek Window’s position handling has been tightened up to use pixel-perfect geometry persistence. Avoids the slow “drifting” effect when you open/close it multiple times.
• Updated the macOS app icon resources to 1024×1024, so icons look sharper on newer macOS versions and high-DPI displays.
• Large upload/download pulses and other big values now display with the correct numbers instead of being cut off. This had an effect on very large upload/download numbers that were not represented correctly in the web dashboard.

Fixes 🐞

• Lots of crash and shutdown safety fixes
• This update includes a broad batch of defensive fixes based on real-world crash reports, mostly happening during shutdown or edge cases when opening/closing windows quickly.

In short: if you ever ran into a crash while closing WhatPulse, reopening the Geek Window, 5.11.1 should feel noticeably more solid.

The WhatPulse Dashboard has been completely redesigned!

You'll now find three new pages: Overview, Productivity, and Leaderboards, that give you a faster, cleaner view of your activity and insights.

The old customizable widgets are gone (sorry to the few who loved them!), but these new dashboards are built for speed and clarity — and they’re already available in your account.

Give them a try →

Version 5.11 introduces one of the biggest updates in a while. You'll now see how much of your uptime is actually focused time, and for the first time ever, Linux users get full network stats support through a brand-new companion service.

💡 New: Focused Uptime

Your computer's uptime now tells a more accurate story. Focused Uptime shows how long you've actively used your computer — not just when it was powered on. It's perfect for seeing how much true "hands-on" time you spend each day.

The dashboard on our website will be updated (very) soon to make the most out of the focused time stats.

🐧 New: External PCap Service for Linux

Linux users can finally track their network traffic and bandwidth usage, just like on Windows and macOS! To make this possible, WhatPulse now works together with a small background companion called the External PCap Service.

This lightweight service securely captures network traffic and passes it to WhatPulse, allowing detailed network tracking. It's open-source, and the releases and documentation is available on GitHub.

👉 Download the External PCap Service on GitHub

⚙️ Quality of life & performance upgrades

A batch of refinements for everyone, across all platforms:

• Big performance boost when opening the main window, as content is now only loaded when necessary
• Application lists load faster — icons are now cached
• Consistent font and theme alignment with the website
• Installer now styled to match the app
• Simplified setup wizard layout
• Grace period added for Premium subscription renewals
• Dozens of small visual, tooltip, and spacing fixes
• General backend improvements for stability, performance, and security

🛠 Other Linux improvements

On top of network tracking, Linux users will notice smoother performance and better reliability all around:

• The AppImage can now update itself 🎉
• Fixed detection of left/right modifier keys (Alt, Ctrl, Shift)
• Fixed numpad Enter tracking and visual alignment
• Data files now live in ~/.local/share/WhatPulse, with automatic migration
• Better tooltip placement, spacing, and color on Linux

🛠️ Linux polish, smoother updates & interface. Final beta before 5.11 general release!

✨ New (Linux)

• Added support for the new batched packet protocol (from the external PCap service v1.2.0)
• Fixed detection of left/right modifier keys (Alt, Ctrl, Shift) on Linux
• AppImage can now update itself automatically 🎉

🐛 Bug Fixes (Linux)

• Fixed numpad Enter tracking and visual alignment
• Fixed a crash when closing the app with the window open

🪄 Improvements

• Linux data files are now stored in ~/.local/share/WhatPulse — old files are migrated automatically
• Improved tooltip visuals — fixed color, positioning, and placement on Linux
• Adjusted tooltip positions around the date range selector for better accuracy
• The app now gives you a short grace period after your Premium subscription expires to renew without interruptions
• Simplified setup wizard layout for easier navigation
• Small spacing and layout fixes in the uptime chart
• Under-the-hood performance and security improvements for a faster, safer app

External PCap Service v1.2.0

Alongside this update, version 1.2.0 of the external network capture service is now available! Find it on Github.

What’s new:

• Much more stable: no more random crashes on systems with multiple network interfaces
• A new, more accurate network measurement method for high-speed traffic
• Optimized communication between the service and WhatPulse for lower resource use and smoother operation

This version continues tightening up performance and polish, especially for Linux users, but everyone benefits from the smoother visuals and reliability improvements.

This beta brings a big step forward for Linux users: network stats are now included! 🎉

Because AppImage apps can't run with elevated privileges, we've introduced a small companion app called the Linux External PCAP Service. This service captures network traffic and securely passes it to WhatPulse, so you can finally see your bandwidth usage just like on Windows and macOS.

👉 Setup guides and details are available here

Other improvements in this version:

• Application tables load much faster – app icons are now cached instead of being read from disk every time.
• UI fixes – no more random tab switches when pulsing, and the setup wizard now looks correct when mixing dark/light themes.
• Linux updater improvements – updates now show in the main notification area, and clicking it takes you to the right place depending on whether you're using AppImage or not. This stops the website's download page from opening repeatedly.
• Future-proofing with metadata – application metadata is now stored in the database, paving the way for deeper website integration.
• Behind-the-scenes stability work – introduced a new EventBus system to replace older communication methods, making the app more modular, testable, and stable.

User profiles just got their big redesign! They've got all the same features as before, but now they're faster, easier to use, and finally friendly on mobile. 🚀

Here's what you'll see on your profile:

• Charts for the last few weeks
• Your computers, applications, badges, and pulses lists
• Easier profile text editing
• A polished layout to better showcase your stats

Your profile is your custom space on WhatPulse — now it's quicker to use and better to share. Go give yours a look! 👀

Meet Focused Uptime

We've always tracked how long your computer has been on and which apps have been active, but 5.11 introduces something new: Focused Uptime.

This new metric shows you how long you've actively used your computer. Not just when it was on in the background. It gives a clearer picture of the time you've truly spent in front of the screen. Perfect for anyone curious about their productivity or just how much focus time they're putting in.

🛠 Quality of life improvements

Alongside focused uptime, this release includes a batch of refinements:

• Significant performance boost when using the app, opening the window is now much snappier. We've done this by loading only the interface parts you need, when you need them - instead of everything at once (which was the case).
• More accurate application usage: we're not using milliseconds to count instead of seconds. This improves the precision with a few minutes per day.
• A fresh, unified look: the whole app now uses the same font as the website, making everything feel more cohesive.
• Small cleanup: fixed a typo in the setup wizard ("metwork" → "network"). Thanks, MischaP!

⚡ Upgrade to 5.11 and see how much of your uptime is really focused time.

To keep the leaderboards consistent and transparent, participation now requires a public profile. That means your username and main stats need to be visible.

If your profile was private but you were on the leaderboards, the "Include me in public rankings" setting has been turned off. Want back in? Just make your profile public again.

You can still use the privacy settings to hide specific parts of your profile if you’d like. Only the basics (username + main stats) need to stay public for leaderboard participation.

Another round of pages has made the jump to the new website look! You’ll now find the updated design on:

• All leaderboard pages (keyboard/mouse, network, uptime, referrals)
• Teams and Countries leaderboards, and their profile pages
• About, Privacy Policy, Grand Totals page, and other misc pages

With these updates, most of the public-facing stats are now polished up. Only a handful of pages are left before the full site is refreshed.