In development · No installer yet

NowFocus for Windows

A tray app and background service that block distracting sites and apps during focus sessions, and make leaving early a decision instead of a reflex. Not available yet.

Coming soon Email me when it’s out

In development

There’s no installer yet, and the Windows version hasn’t been through testing on real PCs. This page describes what the app is built to do, and details may change before release.

Requirements (expected)

Version0.1.0, in development. No installer has been published.
WindowsWindows 10 (64-bit) or Windows 11, x64. There’s no ARM build.
PermissionsOne administrator approval at install to set up the NowFocus background service. The app itself runs without administrator rights.
NetworkNone. The app and its service talk over a local pipe on your PC, and no firewall rules are added.
PriceFree.

Install (expected)

There’s no installer yet. This is what installing is expected to look like once one is published.

  1. Download the NowFocus setup .exe. When a build is published, the button at the top of this page will link to it.
  2. Run it. Windows asks for administrator approval once, because NowFocus installs for all users and sets up a background service called “NowFocus Service”. Early builds won’t be code-signed, so expect a “Windows protected your PC” warning: choose More info, then Run anyway.
  3. NowFocus’s window uses Microsoft’s WebView2 runtime. It’s preinstalled on Windows 11 and most current Windows 10 PCs, and the installer may download it if it’s missing.
  4. Open NowFocus from the Start menu. A welcome screen appears once; click Get started.

There’s nothing to grant after installing. If the Devices screen ever says the service isn’t running, reinstall or repair NowFocus.

Every screen and how to use it

Every screen the app is built with, as it exists in the current source. Button names and messages are quoted from the app, and details may change before release.

Window and tray

A 1280 × 800 window (minimum 960 × 640) with its own title bar. The sidebar lists Focus, Profiles, Devices and Stats, then an “Always on” group with Commitment and Bedtime. Its footer says “This PC”. During a session the title shows the profile and time left, for example “NowFocus · Deep Work · 42:10”.

What’s on it

  • Close (X) hides NowFocus to the tray instead of quitting. Alt+F4 does the same.
  • Tray icon: hollow corner brackets when idle, with a red square in the centre while a session runs. It has light and dark versions.
  • Tray: left-click opens the window. Right-click shows “Open NowFocus” and “Quit NowFocus”.

How to use it

  1. Click the tray icon to bring the window back.
  2. Use Quit NowFocus from the tray to exit when no session is running.

Quit is refused while any session is running, including Bedtime, and just brings the window forward. Shutting down Windows isn’t blocked.

Onboarding

One welcome screen, shown once: “Welcome to NowFocus on this PC”. It explains that blocking runs as a Windows service so it holds when the app is closed, that Windows asks for administrator approval once, and that your browsing never leaves this PC.

What’s on it

  • A single “Get started” button. The screen is informational: it doesn’t install or check anything.

How to use it

  1. Read it, then click Get started.

Focus

The home screen. It says “This PC is ready.” or “Focusing right now.”, with a device strip (“Enforcing”, “Ready” or “Set up needed”) and three numbers: Today, Turned away and Sessions.

What’s on it

  • Profile: a list showing “N sites · M apps”.
  • Duration: 25m, 45m, 1h, 1.5h, 2h, 3h or 4h (default 1h).
  • If I want to stop early: Normal (“You can end any time”), Strict (“type a short sentence, then wait 30 seconds”) or Locked (“No early exit until the timer ends”).
  • The start button, for example “Start 1h”. While running, the panel shows the profile and mode, the timer, a progress bar, “Ends HH:MM” and “Open session”.

How to use it

  1. Choose a profile.
  2. Pick a duration.
  3. Choose how hard quitting should be.
  4. Click Start.

The first launch creates a profile called “Deep Work”. Only one session can run at a time.

Profiles

A rail of profiles on the left with a + button that creates “New profile”. You can create and rename profiles, but not delete them yet.

What’s on it

  • Blocked websites: “Add a site, e.g. youtube.com”. Pasted links are cleaned down to the bare domain. Each entry also covers the www., m. and mobile. variants.
  • Blocked apps: “Add application…” opens a file picker (“Choose an application to block”). You pick the .exe and NowFocus stores its full path.
  • Feeds only: four switches (YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels & Explore, X “For You” feed, YouTube home recommendations). They’re saved but not enforced yet, because they need a browser extension that isn’t available.

How to use it

  1. Click + to create a profile and give it a name.
  2. Add sites and apps.
  3. Start a session from Focus.

While a session runs on a profile, adding a site takes effect immediately. Removing a site or app is refused, but the screen doesn’t say so.

Active session

The profile and mode, then “You’re in it. Keep going.” with a large countdown, a progress bar and “Started HH:MM / Ends HH:MM”.

What’s on it

  • Side rows: “This PC: Protected” and “Distractions turned away”.
  • “End session early”. In Locked mode it reads “Locked until HH:MM”.
  • When the timer ends: “Done. That was all yours.” and “Back to Focus”.

How to use it

  1. Leave the PC’s distractions alone until the timer ends.
  2. Normal ends immediately when you click End session early. Strict and Locked open the End early dialog.

Ending early (Strict and Locked)

A dialog titled “End early?” with two steps: “1 · Say it” and “2 · Pause”.

What’s on it

  • Strict, step 1: type “I am choosing to end this focus session early.” exactly. It’s case-sensitive and pasting is blocked. “Start 30s pause” unlocks when it matches.
  • Strict, step 2: a 30-second countdown, then the button counts down (“End in 12s”) and becomes “End session now”. “Stay focused” or the ✕ cancels and resets the flow.
  • Locked: “This one’s locked, by you.” There’s no early exit; the only button is “Back to focus”.

How to use it

  1. Click End session early on the Active screen.
  2. Type the sentence and click Start 30s pause.
  3. Wait out the pause, then click End session now.

Block overlay (Shield)

When a blocked app comes to the front, NowFocus closes it and covers each monitor’s work area (the taskbar stays visible) with a full-screen overlay that names the app, for example “Slack can wait.”, and says how long is left in your profile’s session.

What’s on it

  • Rows for “Left in session” and “Tries today”.
  • “Back to work” and “I really need it”.

How to use it

  1. Click Back to work.
  2. If you truly need to end the session, do it from the Active screen.

In Strict or Locked mode “I really need it” may do nothing, so end early from the Active screen instead. Blocked websites don’t show this overlay. They fail to load.

Bedtime

Under “Always on”. Each night your chosen profile is blocked from wind-down until wake, as a locked session you can’t end early. Off by default.

What’s on it

  • An “On every night” checkbox, a profile to block and three times: Wind-down (default 22:00), Sleep (23:00) and Wake (07:00).
  • “Lock the screen at sleep time”, on by default. NowFocus locks the screen within about 90 seconds of your sleep time.

How to use it

  1. Choose a profile first. Without one, the screen warns that nothing will be blocked.
  2. Turn on “On every night”.
  3. Set your three times.

It only works while NowFocus is running, and nothing starts NowFocus at login. It won’t start if a focus session is already active. Bedtime sessions aren’t counted in Stats. Only the screen lock is implemented, with no Do Not Disturb or greyscale.

Commitment

Under “Always on”. Lock a set of websites for 14 days. Once started you get 60 seconds to change your mind; after that it can’t be cancelled from the app, even if you quit NowFocus. Websites only.

What’s on it

  • Add sites (“youtube.com”), then “Start 14-Day Commitment”. A confirmation asks “Are you sure?” with “Yes, commit” and “Back”.
  • During the first 60 seconds the tag reads “Grace period” with an “Undo commitment” button that counts down (“Undo commitment (45s)”). Then it reads “Locked in”, with a line like “12d left · ends Oct 14” and the list under “Blocked for the duration”.

How to use it

  1. Add the sites you know you’ll cave on.
  2. Click Start 14-Day Commitment and confirm.
  3. Undo within 60 seconds if you change your mind.

The background service owns the commitment and refuses to clear it after 60 seconds. Its timer counts awake time within a boot, so clock changes can’t shorten it (and long periods of sleep can stretch it). You can’t add sites to a live commitment or start a second one. The only way out early is to uninstall NowFocus as an administrator.

Stats

“This week”, with your focused time today (for example “1h 05m focused today”), a Monday-to-Sunday bar chart with today in red, and cells for Sessions today, Completed (this week) and Streak.

What’s on it

  • “Most turned away this week”: your top three blocked apps, hidden if empty.

How to use it

  1. Open Stats in the sidebar after a few sessions.

Counted on this PC. Bedtime sessions aren’t counted, “Turned away” counts app launches only, and the streak allows one day of grace.

Devices

This PC only, for now. A disabled “Link a device” button (there’s no pairing yet) and a “This PC” card tagged “Active” or “Needs setup”.

What’s on it

  • NowFocus Service: Running or Not responding.
  • DNS filter: On or Off. Despite the name, this reflects hosts-file website blocking.
  • Browser extensions: Not installed. They aren’t available yet.
  • When the service isn’t running: “The NowFocus background service isn’t running, so website blocking is off. Reinstall or repair NowFocus to restore it.”

How to use it

  1. Check this screen if sites aren’t being blocked.

What it can’t do

A self-control tool, not a lock on your PC

  • Website blocking edits the Windows hosts file. It covers only the www., m. and mobile. variants of each domain. VPNs, proxies and any administrator can bypass it. There’s no browser extension yet.
  • App blocking closes a window when its app comes to the front, matching the exact .exe path. Apps that live in the tray (chat and music apps, for example) may just hide, and a path that changes after an update stops matching.
  • Feeds-only blocking isn’t enforced yet.
  • The app, not the service, clears session site blocks when the timer ends. If NowFocus isn’t running at that moment, sites stay blocked until you open it again.
  • Bedtime only works while NowFocus is running, and nothing starts it at login.
  • A Commitment can be ended early by uninstalling NowFocus as an administrator, and its 14 days are counted in awake time.
  • There’s no multi-device sync.

Uninstall (expected)

Uninstalling runs a cleanup that clears both hosts-file blocks (sessions and Commitment) and the saved commitment, then stops and removes the NowFocus Service. Uninstalling as an administrator is also the only way out of a Commitment early.

What it leaves behind

  • Your profiles and stats, in %APPDATA%\app.getnowfocus.windows\.
  • %ProgramData%\NowFocus and a backup of your hosts file, hosts.nowfocus.backup.

Delete these yourself if you want NowFocus gone entirely. The installer has never been run on a real PC, so this is what it’s built to do rather than what we’ve watched it do.

FAQ

When will NowFocus for Windows be available?

There’s no date yet. The Windows version is still being built and hasn’t been through testing on real PCs. Email us to hear when there’s a download.

Why does the installer need administrator approval?

NowFocus installs a background service so website blocking keeps working when the app is closed. Installing and starting a service needs administrator rights, once.

Will it block sites in every browser?

It blocks names in your Windows hosts file, which most browsers honour. VPNs, proxies and administrators can bypass it, and browser extensions aren’t built yet.

Is my data sent anywhere?

No. Profiles and stats stay on your PC, and the app doesn’t make network requests.

Can I quit NowFocus during a session?

Not from the tray. Quit is refused while a session is running. Closing the window only hides it to the tray.

What happens to a Commitment if I uninstall NowFocus?

A Commitment can’t be cancelled from the app after 60 seconds, but uninstalling NowFocus as an administrator removes it. That’s the only way out early, and it’s also the escape route: NowFocus is a self-control tool, not a lock.

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