Sign in and offline mode
The sign-in screen, signing in with your browser, what offline mode is and exactly what it turns off, and how to leave it.
When GitDB Desktop starts, it shows "Checking your GitDB sign-in…" for a moment. If you're already signed in, the app opens. Otherwise you see the sign-in screen, which offers two choices.
The sign-in screen
| Choice | What the screen says | Button |
|---|---|---|
| Sign in to GitDB | "Sign in with your GitDB account to open GitDB repositories and use every GitDB feature." | Sign in with browser |
| Offline mode | "No sign-in. Work in local folders and local git repositories only." | Continue in offline mode |
You need a gitdb.co account to sign in. If you don't have one yet, create it on gitdb.co first.
Sign in with your browser
- Click Sign in with browser. Your web browser opens the gitdb.co sign-in page.
- The app shows "Waiting for your browser" with a countdown: "Complete the sign-in in your browser. This sign-in link expires in" the time left. The link is valid for 5 minutes.
- Finish signing in in your browser. The app opens by itself.
While you wait, you can:
- Copy sign-in link — copies the link so you can paste it into a browser yourself ("Sign-in link copied — paste it into your browser's address bar.").
- Cancel — stops waiting and returns to the sign-in screen.
If the app couldn't open your browser, it says "Your browser could not be opened." and "Copy the sign-in link and open it in your browser to continue."
If the sign-in fails
The screen shows "Sign-in failed", the reason, and what it means — for example "No answer came back from the browser before the sign-in link expired." You can try again with Sign in with browser, or choose Use offline mode instead.
If your sign-in is blocked
When a saved sign-in can't be renewed, the screen shows "Sign-in blocked" with the reason, and a Retry button:
| Reason | What it means |
|---|---|
offline | "GitDB could not be reached, or did not answer, when this sign-in was renewed." |
revoked | "GitDB refused the stored sign-in — it was revoked or has expired." |
keyring | "The OS keyring could not provide the stored sign-in." |
server | "The GitDB server reported an error for this sign-in." |
The offline reason here is about reaching GitDB. It is not the same thing as offline mode, which you choose yourself.
If your computer can't store the sign-in
Your sign-in is kept encrypted with your operating system's keychain. If the keychain can't store it, you're still signed in, but only until you quit: the app shows "Signed in — but this machine cannot store the credential." and the status bar shows session only. The next launch asks you to sign in again.
Signing out
Click your initials at the top right of the window, then Sign out. Signing out revokes this sign-in, disconnects, and returns you to the sign-in screen.
Threads belong to the account that made them
Threads you start while signed in are listed only when you're signed in to that same account. Threads you start in offline mode are listed only in offline mode. The same goes for your own MCP server list.
Offline mode
Offline mode lets you use GitDB Desktop with no GitDB account. You work in local folders and their git repositories, and you can use both agent CLIs there.
To use it, click Continue in offline mode on the sign-in screen. The app asks again on every launch unless you tick Remember my choice first.
While you're in offline mode, the account button at the top right reads Offline, and the status bar shows Offline mode. Both explain: "Offline mode — no GitDB account. GitDB features are unavailable."
What works in offline mode
- Opening local folders, and the File view for them.
- The Git view on a local folder's git repository: Changes, Branches, History and Diff.
- Agent threads on local folders, with Claude Code and Codex CLI.
- Your own MCP servers and the Skills dialog, on local-folder threads.
- Desktop notifications.
What's unavailable in offline mode
Everything that needs GitDB is switched off, and each place says why:
| What | What you see |
|---|---|
| Connecting a GitDB repository | The workspace chip's GitDB item reads Sign in to GitDB to connect a repo… |
| Recent GitDB workspaces | Listed but disabled: "GitDB workspace — unavailable in offline mode" |
| Threads that work in a GitDB repository | Listed but disabled: "GitDB thread — unavailable in offline mode. Sign in to GitDB to open it." |
| The Memory view | "Memory lives in GitDB — unavailable in offline mode" |
| Pull Requests (Git view) | "Pull requests are GitDB only — GitDB is unavailable in offline mode." |
| Outline (Git view) | "The outline is GitDB only — GitDB is unavailable in offline mode." |
| Symbol outline (File view) | "The symbol outline is GitDB only — GitDB is unavailable in offline mode." |
Features that exist only in GitDB repositories — role sub-agents and GitDB's built-in MCP server — aren't available either.
If the last workspace you had open was a GitDB repository and the app starts in offline mode, it tells you so and suggests opening a local folder or signing in from the account menu.
Leaving offline mode
Any of these takes you back to the sign-in screen:
- the Offline button at the top right → Sign in to GitDB…
- the workspace chip → Sign in to GitDB to connect a repo…
- the Sign in to GitDB… button in the Memory view
If agents are running in offline mode, the app asks first — "Leave offline mode while agents are running?" — and lists them: "These local agent sessions are running. If you leave offline mode, they keep running but cannot be controlled until you return to offline mode; signing in to GitDB ends them." Choose Leave offline mode or Stay offline.
Signing in, or leaving offline mode, also clears a remembered "offline" choice, so the next launch asks again.
When offline mode isn't offered
Your organization can require everyone to sign in. In that case the sign-in screen offers only Sign in with browser, with the notice: "Your organization's policy requires signing in with your GitDB account, so offline mode is not available."
Install GitDB Desktop
Supported platforms, where to download the app, the agent CLIs you need to install, and the versions they must be.
Threads and sessions
How threads work in GitDB Desktop — workspaces, the three-session limit, Stop versus End session, rewinding and forking, queued messages, and switching CLIs.