Setting up Orca on Windows
Two steps, about five minutes. Download, install, connect your accounts.
Orca for Windows
Installing on Windows: two warnings you will see
Orca is new, so few people have installed it yet and Windows has not built up a reputation for it. Until that reputation builds, both your browser and Windows itself will ask you to confirm the download. Nothing is wrong with the file. Here is what appears and what to press.
1 Your browser holds the download
- Chrome shows the download as blocked, with wording about the file not being commonly downloaded, and offers to delete it.
- Open the actions next to that item. It is a small arrow or menu beside the Delete or bin control, in the downloads bar or the downloads panel. Choose Keep.
- Chrome asks a second time to be sure. Choose Keep again, on whichever button confirms it.
Edge behaves the same way: open the … menu on the download and choose Keep, then confirm. The exact wording and button positions move between browser versions, so look for the two-step pattern of keep, then confirm, rather than an exact layout.
2 Windows blocks the installer opening
- When you run the file, a blue window appears saying Windows protected your PC. The only button showing is Don’t run.
- Click More info, the small link in the message text. This is the step people miss.
- A Run anyway button appears. Click it and the installer opens as normal.
Why this happens. Orca is a new application with a small number of installs so far, so Windows SmartScreen has no reputation history for it yet and warns by default. This will settle as more people install it. Please do not turn off SmartScreen or your antivirus: you only need the steps above, for this one file.
On a Mac instead? Get Orca for Mac.
Before you start
Download and run the .exe file directly. Your browser and Windows will each ask you to confirm the file before it opens, because Orca is new and has not built up a reputation yet. The steps for both are above.
Run the installer
Double-click the downloaded .exe file. If Windows protected your PC appears, click More info, then Run anyway. From there, click through the standard Next, Next, Install flow. Takes about a minute.
Once installed, launch Orca from the Start menu or desktop shortcut. The setup wizard walks you through connecting your accounts.
Connect your accounts
Launch Orca from the Start menu or desktop shortcut. The setup wizard will guide you through a few steps. Most are already pre-configured. Connect your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace account to get started. You can add up to five accounts total, so if you have multiple tenants, connect them all via Settings afterwards.
Connect Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace
Click "Microsoft 365" or "Google Workspace" to connect your first account. A browser window will open for sign-in. Once you see "Connected!", come back to Orca. To add more accounts, go to Settings after setup completes. The connect buttons stay visible until you reach the five-account limit.
All credentials are stored in an encrypted vault on your machine. Nothing is sent anywhere except to the services you are connecting to.
Install the Chrome extension
This enables LinkedIn automation. You only need to do this once.
Open Chrome using the Chrome (Orca) shortcut on your desktop
This shortcut enables the automation bridge Orca uses to interact with LinkedIn.
Go to chrome://extensions in the address bar
Enable Developer mode (toggle in the top right corner)
Click Load unpacked
Select the folder:
C:\Users\YourName\.orca\chrome-extension
Replace YourName with your Windows username
You should see "Orca LinkedIn Assistant" appear in your extensions list
This shortcut enables the automation bridge. The extension stays installed across Chrome restarts, but the bridge only works when launched through this shortcut.
The extension source code is publicly available. Find it on GitHub if you need to inspect it or reinstall.
Check it works
Once set up, try these four things to confirm everything is connected.
Calendar
Your today's meetings should appear in the left panel
Chat
Type "Hello" and press Enter. The AI should respond.
Command Palette
Press Ctrl+K. A search bar should appear.
Ask "Show me my recent emails" in the chat
If all four work, you are all set.
How Orca works day to day
Orca runs as a desktop application. While it is open (including minimised), it works in the background.
The scheduler only runs while Orca is open. Minimising is fine. Closing the app entirely stops scheduled jobs.
Troubleshooting
Orca shows a blank white window
Your Windows version may be too old. Orca requires Windows 10 version 21H2 or later, or Windows 11 (any version).
To check: press Win+R, type winver, press Enter.
If your Windows is up to date but Orca still shows a blank window, you may need to install the WebView2 runtime manually from Microsoft.
Calendar or email is not loading
Open Settings with Ctrl+, (comma). Check the Google Workspace section shows "Connected".
If it shows "Not configured", click "Connect Google Workspace" and sign in again. If the connection has expired, click "Reconnect".
"Git Bash not found" error
Download Git for Windows from git-scm.com, install with all default options, then restart Orca.
Automation features are not running
The scheduler only runs while Orca is open. Check that Orca is running (check the system tray / taskbar), then open Settings > Scheduler and ensure it is toggled on.