> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.celesto.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# smolvm update

> Upgrade SmolVM to the latest stable release with one command. Check for updates without installing, or pipe machine-readable JSON output into scripts.

`smolvm update` upgrades your installed SmolVM to the latest stable release from PyPI. You don't need to remember whether you installed SmolVM with `pip` or as a `uv` tool — the command detects how you installed it and runs the matching upgrade for you.

Run it any time you want to pick up the newest release, or use `--check` first to see whether an update is available before installing it.

## Synopsis

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
smolvm update [OPTIONS]
```

## Options

<ParamField path="--check" type="flag" default="false">
  Report whether an update is available without installing it. Exits successfully whether you're up to date or behind.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="--json" type="flag" default="false">
  Emit machine-readable JSON instead of formatted text. Useful for scripts and automation.
</ParamField>

## Examples

### Check for an update

See whether a newer release is available without changing anything:

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
smolvm update --check
```

**Example output when an update is available:**

```
Update available: 0.0.14 → 0.0.15. Run smolvm update to install.
```

**Example output when you're already up to date:**

```
smolvm 0.0.15 is up to date.
```

### Upgrade to the latest release

Run the upgrade. SmolVM picks the right package manager based on how it was installed:

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
smolvm update
```

If you installed SmolVM with `uv tool install smolvm`, this runs `uv tool upgrade smolvm`. Otherwise it runs `pip install --upgrade smolvm`. Output from the underlying package manager streams live to your terminal.

### JSON output for automation

Get a structured response you can parse from a script:

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
smolvm update --json
```

The response includes the previous version, the version now installed, whether an upgrade happened, and the raw output from the underlying package manager:

```json theme={null} theme={null}
{
  "command": "update",
  "exit_code": 0,
  "data": {
    "previous": "0.0.14",
    "current": "0.0.15",
    "upgraded": true,
    "pip_output": "..."
  }
}
```

Combine `--check` and `--json` to script update detection:

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
smolvm update --check --json | jq '.data.update_available'
```

The check response includes `current`, `latest`, and an `update_available` boolean.

## How install detection works

`smolvm update` looks for `smolvm` in the list returned by `uv tool list`. If it's there, the upgrade goes through `uv`. Otherwise it falls back to `pip install --upgrade smolvm` running under the same Python interpreter that started the CLI.

If the upgrade fails (for example, because the network is unreachable), SmolVM prints a recovery command you can run manually:

```bash theme={null} theme={null}
pip install --upgrade smolvm
```

## Exit codes

| Code | Description                                                                           |
| ---- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `0`  | Success — already up to date, update available (with `--check`), or upgrade completed |
| `1`  | Upgrade failed, or the installed version could not be determined                      |

## Related commands

* [`smolvm prune`](/smolvm/cli/prune) — reclaim disk space from older releases after an upgrade
* [`smolvm doctor`](/smolvm/cli/doctor) — verify your install after an upgrade