Updating VolNinja

New versions of VolNinja bring fixes, improvements, and new features. Because VolNinja runs on your own machine, updates happen there — but you never have to go looking for them. When a new version is available, VolNinja tells you right inside the trading app, and updating is a single command.

This page explains how you'll know an update is waiting, the difference between a recommended and a required update, and exactly how to apply one on Mac, Linux, and Windows.

How you'll know

When the version you're running falls behind the current one, a banner appears across the top of the trading app — above your Dashboard and every other screen. There are two kinds, and they behave very differently.

Update available (recommended)

A quiet, informational banner:

Update available (1.0.3 → 1.0.5). Run volninja update on your machine — how to update.

This is a gentle nudge. Nothing is paused — your positions, templates, and strategies keep working exactly as before. You can update at your convenience; the next time you have a calm moment outside market hours is ideal.

Update required

A prominent, highlighted banner:

Update required (1.0.1 → 1.0.5) — new positions are paused until you update. Run volninja update on your machine — how to update.

A required update means your version has fallen below the minimum VolNinja supports, so opening new positions is paused until you update.

Important

A required update pauses only the opening of new positions. You are never trapped: closing a position, closing or rolling a single leg, and expiring or otherwise managing anything you already hold all keep working normally. If a strategy is running, it can still exit and manage existing positions — it just can't open new ones until you update.

The version numbers in both banners (for example 1.0.3 → 1.0.5) show what you're running now and what's available, so you can see how far behind you are.

Before you update

Applying an update briefly restarts VolNinja, so the calmest time is when the market is closed and you are flat (no open positions and nothing in the middle of being placed). If you start an update at a busier moment, VolNinja notices and asks you to confirm before going ahead — the decision is always yours, not an automatic block. This is true for every update, including a required one: VolNinja never restarts itself behind your back.

A required update is more urgent — new positions stay paused until you apply it — so don't put it off. But you still choose the moment: apply it as soon as you can do so safely.

Warning

If VolNinja warns that it may not be a safe moment (market open, an open position, or an order in flight) and asks you to confirm, stop and think before you say yes. Restarting mid-session while you hold live positions or have a working order is risky. Unless you have a good reason, answer no and update once you're flat and the market is closed.

How to update

Updating is the same one command on every platform — volninja update — run in a terminal on the machine where VolNinja is installed. It's the same volninja command you used to install and start VolNinja (see Installing & Starting VolNinja). If it looks like a busy moment, it asks you to confirm before continuing — type y to go ahead or n to stop. This applies to every update, required ones included.

Mac / Linux

Open the Terminal app (on a Mac: Applications → Utilities, or search "Terminal" with Spotlight).
Run:
```
volninja update
```
Wait for it to finish. When you see Update complete, reload the trading app in your browser — the update banner will be gone.

Windows

On Windows, VolNinja runs inside WSL, so run the command from your WSL terminal, exactly as you did when installing.

Open your WSL terminal — search the Start menu for Ubuntu (or WSL).
Run:
```
volninja update
```
Wait for Update complete, then reload the trading app in your browser.

Tip

Always run volninja commands from the WSL terminal, not from PowerShell or Command Prompt.

On a cloud server (VPS)

If you run VolNinja on a VPS, connect to the server over SSH and run volninja update there. It works the same way — see the VPS notes in the installation guide for connecting.

What happens during an update

You don't need to babysit the process, but here is what volninja update does for you, in order:

Checks whether it's a calm moment — market closed, no open positions, nothing in flight. If it looks busy, it asks you to confirm before continuing — for every update, required ones included.
Backs up your trading database before touching anything. (Backing up needs VolNinja running — if it can't be reached, VolNinja tells you so and asks whether to update without a backup.)
Downloads and applies the new version and restarts VolNinja.
Confirms it came back up healthy.
Rolls back automatically — restoring your backup and the previous version — if anything goes wrong, so a failed update never leaves you stranded.

Important

Your trading data always stays on your machine, and it's backed up automatically before every update, as long as VolNinja is running to create that backup. Nothing about your positions, templates, or strategies is sent to the cloud during an update — the cloud only tells your machine which version to move to.

The whole thing usually takes a couple of minutes, most of which is the new version downloading in the background.

After updating

Reload the trading app in your browser. The update banner should be gone, and if a required update had paused new positions, opening them works again immediately. Your positions, templates, strategies, and history are all exactly where you left them.

If an update doesn't go through

You chose not to proceed — if VolNinja warned it wasn't a calm moment and you answered no, it stops with nothing changed. Re-run volninja update when you're ready, and confirm the prompt to continue.
"Can't reach the appliance" — VolNinja isn't running, so it can't check whether it's a calm moment or back up your database. It warns you and asks whether to proceed without a backup. The safe answer is no: start it with volninja start, confirm with volninja status, then update normally so you get a backup first. Only say yes if you understand you'd be updating with no backup to fall back on.
The update rolled itself back — VolNinja restored your previous version and your data, so you're safe to keep trading. Try again later, and if it keeps happening, see Troubleshooting or contact support.

For anything else, the Troubleshooting & FAQ page covers the common issues.