Deskifier for Windows

Turn any website into a Windows app

A real installed Windows application: signed .exe installer that passes SmartScreen cleanly, system tray icon, launch at startup, silent auto-updates, and a package for the Microsoft Store.

Create your app free →See a live example

The DIY routes, honestly

Edge and Chrome can both “install” a site as an app, and for personal use that is genuinely useful. As a way to ship your product, it falls short fast:

Browser-installed PWAs can’t sit in the system tray, can’t reliably run in the background, and depend on which browser each user happens to have. You also can’t hand anyone an installer: each user has to find the install button themselves.
Building it yourself means Electron plus a code signing certificate. Unsigned installers hit Microsoft Defender SmartScreen’s “Windows protected your PC” wall, and traditional OV certificates involve dongles or HSM requirements that are a project of their own.

Deskifier builds the installer, signs it with cloud-based Azure Trusted Signing so SmartScreen trusts it, and keeps it updated. You just share a download link.

What a real Windows app gets you

No SmartScreen scare screen

Installers are signed through Azure Trusted Signing, so users see your app’s name and publisher instead of “Windows protected your PC”.

System tray, done right

A tray icon with custom menus, minimize to tray, background running after the window closes, and launch at Windows startup.

Silent auto-updates

Updates download and apply in the background using the same update stack trusted by major Electron apps, from a feed Deskifier hosts for you.

Microsoft Store package

An .appx build ready for Microsoft Store submission, alongside the classic .exe installer for direct downloads.

Native Windows notifications

Action Center notifications with replies and click handling that work even while the app window is closed.

Native window control

Custom titlebar and button overlays, frameless windows, kiosk mode, taskbar badges and flash, protocol handlers and file associations.

Website to Windows app in three steps

1
Paste your URL
Any website or web app. No Windows machine, no Visual Studio, no certificate paperwork.
2
Configure the shell
Window style, icon, tray menu and startup behavior, all from the dashboard.
3
Build your installer
Deskifier compiles and signs a .exe installer on managed Windows infrastructure, plus an .appx for the Microsoft Store when you want it.

Frequently asked questions

No. Every Windows installer is code signed via Azure Trusted Signing, Microsoft’s own cloud signing service, which SmartScreen treats with established reputation. Users see a normal install prompt with your app’s name.

No. Signing is included in every Windows build. You don’t buy a certificate, manage a dongle, or touch an HSM.

Windows 7 and later for the .exe installer, with full feature support on Windows 10 and 11. The Microsoft Store package targets Windows 10 and later.

Yes. Launch at startup, minimize to tray, tray-only mode and custom tray menus are all point-and-click options, and your web app can control them at runtime through the SDK.

Deskifier produces the signed .appx package with your publisher identity. You upload it in Partner Center; the packaging, manifest and signing details are already handled.

Keep reading

5 ways to turn a website into a desktop app →Why your SaaS needs an app store presence →Turn a website into a Mac app →

Your site, in the taskbar.

Build a signed Windows installer from your website today. Free to try, no credit card required.

Create free account →