Step-by-step installation on Windows

This page shows step-by-step how to install Ancestris on a Windows system.

The sections below are independent and do not all need to be done.

Screens shown might look different from those of the current Ancestris web site or the current Ancestris software version.

Knowing which Java version you use

Java Control Panel

Open the Windows Control Panel and then the Java Control Panel.

On its General tab, click 'About' to check the installed Java version.

On its Security tab, untick 'Enable Java content for browsers and Web Start applications' to improve security.

 

Command prompt

Alternatively, these steps let you identify which version of Java is running on your system.

1 - Open a Windows PowerShell window and enter CMD or open a Command Prompt window.

2 - Type java -version at the prompt. You will obtain a display as below, which shows that Java Version 8 (aka 1.8) 64-Bit is installed. Otherwise, it means java is not installed. Follow these instructions to install it.

java version "1.8.0_221"
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_221-b11)
Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.221-b11, mixed mode)

3 - Type exit once or twice to close the command window.

 

Install Ancestris version 10 or 11

Follow the instructions below from your Windows system.

1/6 - Download Ancestris

• Go to https://www.ancestris.org
• Click on 'DOWNLOAD' in the Menu
• Then click on 'Windows' to download version 10
• Or scroll down to the Daily version panel and click on the 'DOWNLOAD' button for version 11
• Downloading may take 2 to 3 minutes as it is about 78 MB

 

2/6 - Extract the Ancestris file

• Ancestris does not need to be installed as it runs directly from its .exe file.
• So right-click the downloaded ancestris-latest.zip file, choose 'Extract All' and select a destination folder where the .exe file can run.
• On Windows 7, unzip into the C:\Program Files folder otherwise Ancestris won't run.

 

3/6 - Check the Ancestris file to run

• In the destination folder, open the ancestris folder and then the bin folder; there the ancestris64.exe file will run Ancestris on a 64-bit system, while the ancestris.exe file will run it on a 32-bit system.

 

4/6 - Add an Ancestris shortcut

• Right-click on the ancestris64.exe or ancestris.exe file and choose 'Pin to Start' or 'Pin to taskbar' to add a shortcut to the Start menu or the Taskbar.

• Then set the icon of the resulting Ancestris shortcut. For that, you need to right-click on the shortcut and replace the icon with the ancestris.gif file.

 

5/6 - Click the shortcut and Ancestris then starts

 

6/6 - The Welcome screens then appears. You are now ready to use Ancestris.

 

If Ancestris does not start, it might be related to a Java version issue. You may have to swap the Java version.
Please follow these instructions.