Windows Native Build (Quick Start)

The Precision Bridge Native build for Windows is a standalone .exe that runs the full application directly on your machine — no Docker, no containers, no virtualisation, and no IT-approved runtime required. This is the recommended install path for trials, demos, and quick evaluations.

If you are deploying for production use, you may want the Docker install instead — see the trade-offs at the bottom of this page.

When to Use the Native Build

Pick the native build when:

You want to try Precision Bridge in under five minutes without installing Docker
You are running a proof-of-concept or demo on a Windows laptop
Your organisation does not permit Docker Desktop (licensing, sign-in policies, or background-daemon restrictions) and you want to avoid the Rancher Desktop / Podman setup
You only need to run migrations interactively — i.e. you click "Execute" yourself, rather than running on a schedule

Pick the Docker install when you need scheduled / unattended executions, multi-user server deployments, or anything other than a Windows endpoint.

Limitations of the Native Build

The native build runs the FastAPI backend and the Svelte UI directly on Windows. It deliberately omits the Docker-only orchestration stack, which means:

No scheduled procedures. Scheduling depends on a Prefect work pool that only runs in the Docker deployment. The Schedules page in the UI is disabled in native mode (the API returns Scheduling is not available in the native installation of Precision Bridge). You can still run procedures manually from the UI any time.
Single-user / single-machine. The native build serves the UI on localhost only — it is not designed to be reached by other users on the network.
No worker scale-out. Executions run in subprocesses on the same machine; you cannot move them to a separate worker host.

Everything else — connections, projects, procedures, every step type other than scheduling, the formula language, the filter language, table correlations, adaptor editor, scripts — is fully available.

If you start with the native build and later need scheduling or multi-user access, you can switch to the Docker install at any time. Project files are compatible between the two builds.

System Requirements

Operating system: Windows 11 or later, or Windows Server 2019 or later (64-bit)
RAM: 16 GB minimum, 32 GB recommended for larger projects
Disk: 2 GB free for the application and runtime files
WebView2 Runtime: Required to render the desktop window. Modern Windows installs ship with WebView2; if the installer prompts you to install it, accept and continue. You can also install it manually from Microsoft Edge WebView2.
Web browser (optional fallback): A modern browser is needed if you choose to run the native build with --browser instead of the desktop window.

No Docker, WSL, Hyper-V, or virtualisation features are required.

Download

The Windows Native installer is provided by Precision Bridge as part of your sign-up or trial activation. The file is named Precision-Bridge-Native-Setup-{version}.exe (for example, Precision-Bridge-Native-Setup-10.1.5.exe) and ships with a matching .sha256 checksum for integrity verification.

If you do not yet have the installer, contact help@precisionbridge.net to request access.

Make sure you have the right file. The Docker installer is named Precision-Bridge-Setup-{version}.exe (no "Native" in the name) — that is a different build. Installing both side-by-side is supported but unnecessary.

Install

Run the downloaded Precision-Bridge-Native-Setup-{version}.exe
The installer does not require admin privileges — it installs to your local user profile under %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Precision Bridge
Optionally tick "Start Precision Bridge with Windows" on the Tasks page if you want it to launch automatically at sign-in
Click Install and wait for the installer to finish (typically under a minute)
Leave "Launch Precision Bridge" checked on the final page and click Finish

The application opens in a dedicated desktop window. If WebView2 is missing, the window may not appear — install WebView2 (see System Requirements above) and relaunch from the Start menu.

First Run

On first launch, you will see the license request form:

Fill in Full Name, Email, Company, and Project Name.
Leave License Type set to Trial. Trial licenses include unrestricted access to all data sources and targets, so no further fields are required.
Click Generate Request, then Copy Encoded Request.
Email the copied request to help@precisionbridge.net.

You will receive a license key by reply. Paste it into the license input field in the application and activate it.

See Licensing and Setup for more detail — the same steps apply to both builds.

What's Installed

The native installer drops two things on disk:

Application files: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Precision Bridge\runtime\PrecisionBridgeNative.exe and its bundled dependencies
Application data: %LOCALAPPDATA%\PrecisionBridge\ — your projects, adaptors, templates, license, and logs

The data directory is preserved if you uninstall, so reinstalling or upgrading does not lose your work. To start completely fresh, delete %LOCALAPPDATA%\PrecisionBridge\ after uninstalling.

Upgrading

Download a newer Precision-Bridge-Native-Setup-{version}.exe and run it. The installer replaces the runtime in place and preserves your project data. You do not need to uninstall first.

Switching to the Docker Install

If you start with the native build and decide you need scheduling, multi-user access, or production-grade deployment, you can switch to the Docker install without losing data:

Install Docker Desktop (or your preferred runtime) — see Choosing a Container Runtime
Install the Docker build of Precision Bridge — see Download and Install
Copy your project files from %LOCALAPPDATA%\PrecisionBridge\ into the Docker installation's pb data volume (the data layout is identical)

You can keep both builds installed side-by-side; they use different installation directories and listen on different ports by default (7500 for native, 7502 for Docker).

Next Steps

With the native build running and your license activated, proceed straight to the migration workflow:

Create Connections — link to your source and target systems
Create a Project — set up a project from a template
Configure Procedures — review procedures and set input variables
Execute a Procedure — run the migration and review results

Or return to the Tutorial for the full guide.