Installing and the first launch

What you need and what you download

Lumen runs on Macs with Apple Silicon and macOS 26 or later. Intel Macs aren’t supported.

You download one app. It creates the vault for its data on the first launch.

Installing

1. Move Lumen to the Applications folder.
2. Open it from there.

The folder matters for updates. If macOS runs the app from a temporary place or from a read-only disk, or if your user account can’t write to the app’s folder, an update can’t be installed - the Updates section of Settings says so. More in Updates.

Lumen keeps its data in your user account’s Library folder, not next to the app. Moving or replacing the app doesn’t touch it.

The first screen: the master password

On the first launch you see Create a master password. Under the title the app explains: “The master password encrypts the profile list, every profile’s settings, saved passwords, history, bookmarks and archived website data. It cannot be recovered - if you forget it, the data is lost.”

1. Type a password into Master password.
2. Type it again into Repeat master password.
3. Click Create Vault, or press Return.

The rules are simple: at least 10 characters, and both fields the same. Once you start typing, a hint appears under the fields - Use at least 10 characters. or Passwords do not match. Until both rules are met, the button can’t be clicked. There are no rules about letters, digits or symbols.

What happens next

The form gives way to a progress line and Creating the vault… while the key is derived from the password. Lumen sets up the vault: a folder on this Mac in which the profiles’ data is kept encrypted. How that works: The vault and the master password.

Then the Profiles window opens:

• on the left, All Profiles, Running, Proxies, and the filters Through a Proxy and Ephemeral; at the bottom, the sync state (Sync is off) and the Lock button;
• at the top, the Search field, the ⋯ menu and the New Profile button;
• in the middle, while there are no profiles, No profiles yet and the hint “Create your first isolated profile to start browsing.”

⌘, opens the Settings window.

Your first profile

1. Click New Profile (⌘N). The New Profile editor opens, subtitled “Its own cookies, identity and network”.
2. Give the profile a name, add a proxy if you need one, and click Save.
3. The profile appears in the list. Launch opens its window.

Everything in the editor is in Creating a profile; proxies are in Proxies: setup, and when one fails.

Later launches

From then on, each launch shows Vault locked. Type the master password and click Unlock.

The vault stays open until you click Lock or quit the app (⌘Q). Either way, every profile stops and its data is encrypted.