Utilizing Ollama's newest application, integrating AI language models within your Windows 11 PC becomes effortless, eliminating the need for chatting in terminal commands.
Ollama, the popular AI LLM tool, has introduced a new Graphical User Interface (GUI) app, available for Windows 11 and other platforms. This development aims to make managing AI models easier, but it's important to note that the GUI app's model download capabilities are currently limited or not fully functional.
Model Download and Management
At present, the terminal command remains the primary method for downloading models from the official repository. The GUI app can display installed models, allowing users to delete or upgrade them, and even drag files into chat for additional context. However, downloading models via the GUI is not yet functional.
Users can search for models within the GUI's dropdown menu, but the download process still requires the terminal command. The GUI app does detect models already installed via the terminal command, but clicking on a model icon to pull it directly from the GUI does not currently work.
Key Terminal Commands for Model Download
Until the GUI's model download capabilities improve, users should familiarize themselves with the following terminal commands:
```bash ollama pull [model_name]
ollama pull llama3.3 ollama pull mistral ollama pull deepseek-r1:1.5b ```
Once models are downloaded, users can launch the Ollama GUI app to interact with the installed models seamlessly.
System Requirements and Recommendations
To ensure optimal performance, Ollama recommends an 11th Gen Intel CPU or a Zen 4-based AMD CPU with AVX-512 support and ideally 16GB of RAM. For the 7B models, a minimum of 8GB of RAM is required.
A Simplified User Experience
The new Ollama GUI app offers a more streamlined user experience, removing much of the need to use a terminal window. It allows users to type in a box and receive responses from designated models, interpret code files, and even support multimodal input, enabling users to drop images into the app and send them to models that interpret them.
While the GUI aims to simplify model management, it still relies on terminal commands for pulling/installing new models as of mid-2025. Users are encouraged to watch for updates to the Ollama GUI in the future or check their official documentation regularly for new features enabling direct model pulls in the app interface.
Web search is not available out of the box with the Ollama app, requiring additional tools. The app can be launched from the system tray, Start Menu, or terminal, and it offers offline usage, reducing reliance on web connections when using a local LLM with Ollama.
- Despite the new Graphical User Interface (GUI) app from Ollama for Windows 11, the primary method for downloading models remains using terminal commands like .
- The Ollama GUI app can display installed models and allow users to delete or upgrade them, but the GUI itself does not yet support model downloads.
- With the 11th Gen Intel CPU or a Zen 4-based AMD CPU with AVX-512 support, users can ensure optimal performance when using the Ollama GUI app.
- The Ollama GUI app offers a simplified user experience, allowing users to type in a box to receive responses, interpret code files, and support multimodal input.
- Although the Ollama GUI app offers a more streamlined experience, users should still check for updates or the official documentation regularly for features allowing direct model pulls in the app interface.
- The Ollama app can be launched from various locations, including the system tray, Start Menu, or terminal, and offers offline usage, reducing reliance on web connections for local LLM use with Ollama.
