Howzer v2.5.5-DE: half the download, and the same install every single time
The self-hosting release. The first model download drops from around 20 GB to roughly 11.7 GB, every model is fixed to one exact version so two installs can never quietly differ, and when something does go wrong the installer now names the real cause instead of guessing at it.
By Howzer Team, Product · product ·
~20 GB~11.7 GB
Roughly 42 percent less to pull over the wire.
mostall nine
Two installs a month apart get identical models.
Setting up your own instance should be boring. Predictable in size, identical every time, and honest about what went wrong on the rare occasion something does. That is the whole of this release. Nothing about the analysis changed, so a running instance simply upgrades in place.
Where half the download went
Two of the language models were being pulled down whole, in every storage format their publishers happen to offer, while Howzer only ever runs a fraction of each. The installer now fetches that fraction and nothing else.
The optional local reply model is downloaded separately and can be skipped entirely.
The same install, every time
Every model Howzer uses is now tied to one exact published version. A model author releasing an update can no longer change what your installation receives, and the nine in-house and external models all take their version from the same place the running system reads it from, so there is a single source of truth instead of a list that can drift. If anything is missing or does not match, the installer stops right there with a clear message rather than handing you a system that only misbehaves weeks later.
An installer that names the real problem
- A dropped connection is reported as a dropped connection. It used to be reported as a login problem, which sent people hunting for credentials that were never needed.
- Error messages are shown in full. No more sentences that stop halfway through the useful part.
- A slow download of the optional reply model offers you choices instead of a wall of text.
- An existing database is never silently reused. You are asked first, or clearly warned.
- Downloaded files can be checked against their published fingerprints on Linux, exactly as the guide describes.
Sharper on the analysis side, too
Messages where someone states plainly that they are moving to a competitor are now recognised reliably, including the more roundabout German phrasings that used to slip past, and the list of recognised competitors grew. Generated reports are German from the title down to the last label.