Nanome v2, which nanome.ai now calls simply Nanome, is the current app and the one to install on a Quest 3 or 3S, Samsung Galaxy XR, Apple Vision Pro or a Windows PC over Meta Link. It's a ground-up rebuild whose cloud workspaces also open in a browser at app.nanome.ai, where MARA runs. Nanome Classic (v1.24) is the previous generation. It still runs, and it's the version for Stacks plugins and for headsets the current app doesn't target, such as Quest 2 and Quest Pro. The versions page lists 2.6.1 as the current release, a free download from the Meta Horizon Store, and because the two apps have separate store listings, one headset can carry both.
Both apps sign in to the same Nanome account. The setup guide lists one sign-in host for Classic and another for 2.6 and later, and home.nanome.ai handles accounts and licenses. When the current app opened to everyone on the Quest store, the announcement said paid license holders get it included during the early access period and log in with their existing credentials. Its store listing still carries the Early Access label.
Names that point at the same two apps
Store listings, docs and older blog posts use different names for the same pair, and the versions page files them under "Current Nanome" and "Previous generation".
| Name you see | Which app |
|---|---|
| Nanome, Nanome v2, Nanome 2.0 | The current app, 2.6.1 (versions) |
| Nanome Classic, v1, Nanome 1.x, v1.24 | Classic (1.x and 2.0 explained) |
| "Nanome v2" on the Meta Horizon Store | The current app (listing) |
| "Nanome" on the Meta Horizon Store | Classic, with its Python plugin system (listing) |
| "Nanome" on Steam, released 2018 | Classic for Windows PC VR (listing) |
The Steam listing is the easiest to misread, because it carries the plain name and the older date. It's Classic: the versions page lists Steam among Classic's stores and leaves it off the current app's.
Side by side
| Nanome Classic (v1.24) | Nanome (2.6.1) | |
|---|---|---|
| Where work lives | Workspaces saved by hand, plus the Vault plugin for cloud files | Cloud workspaces inside projects, saved as you go (technical foundations) |
| Sessions | Rooms led by a presenter (room controls) | Spotlight and follow, with no designated presenter (collaboration docs) |
| Without a headset | A Windows 2D mode that can spectate but can't edit (FAQ) | The full app in a browser at app.nanome.ai, in the same live session as headset users (web and XR together) |
| Tools | Stacks plugins (Stacks) | Built-in tools plus MARA's 300+ tools (integrations) |
| Headsets | Quest 2, Quest Pro and Quest 3, Pico and Vive standalones, and PC VR (Classic hardware) | Quest 3/3S, Galaxy XR, Vision Pro, plus PCVR through Meta Link (hardware page) |
The file side of that change has its own write-up in from Vault to workspaces.
Where each Classic plugin lives in Nanome
The Stacks page marks Stacks as compatible with v1.24 or below and sends v2 integrations through MARA. Most of the old plugins now have a built-in home, and the rest run as MARA tools. The last row, spatial recording, was built into Classic itself and has a new home as well.
| In Classic | Where it lives in Nanome 2.6.1 |
|---|---|
| Structure Prep | Cartoon is a built-in representation, and Secondary Structure is a color scheme (Main Panel). MARA's Clean Up PDB and PDB File Fixer tools handle messy files (integrations). |
| Minimization | Minimize in the Builder tool, on the molecule being built or edited, with MMFF94, MMFF94s or UFF (Tools Panel) |
| Chemical Interactions | Structure Actions, then Create interaction components (Main Panel) |
| Docking (AutoDock Smina) | MARA's Smina docking tools (integrations) |
| Superimpose Proteins and RMSD | Structure Actions, then Align proteins to this, which reports RMSD for each aligned entry (Main Panel) |
| Electrostatic Potential | ESP surface coloring with custom color ramps (v2.5 notes), and MARA's Run APBS tool (integrations) |
| Chemical Properties and Data Table | The Ligands tab, with RDKit properties and SDF metadata as columns (Main Panel) |
| Vault | Workspaces, from the Workspaces tab or app.nanome.ai (Vault to workspaces) |
| Spatial recording (built into Classic) | The Scenes panel (Scenes Panel), plus scene recording and playback (release notes) |
Why Cartoon or Minimize can be missing in Classic
On a standalone headset, Classic hands 2 jobs to Stacks that its PC build does on its own. The Classic hardware page strongly recommends the Structure Prep plugin for bonding and secondary structure on a Quest, where Windows needs no prep. Energy minimization runs through a cloud plugin on a Quest and on the CPU on Windows.
So a Quest without Stacks loses the plugin that adds the secondary structure Cartoon draws, and has nowhere to send a minimization. The same file opened in the PC build shows ribbons and minimizes locally.
The license can lock features too. Classic's 1.24.6 release notes list atom labels, surfaces, spatial playback and Duplicate Molecule as license-locked. In Nanome, Cartoon and Minimize are built in, so neither depends on a plugin.
Turning Stacks on in Classic
Plugin access belongs to the Nanome account, and Classic's release notes reflect that: 1.19.2 fixed a plugin-list bug in rooms created by a user without plugins. Getting Stacks working takes 2 steps, one on each side.
- Requesting it for the account. Plugin requests go to support@nanome.ai, along with the account email that signs in to Classic. Which licenses include Stacks, and what it costs, is covered in how much Nanome costs.
- Refreshing the headset. After support confirms, the headset needs a fresh session: signing out of Classic, closing the app completely rather than leaving it in the background, and signing back in. The plugins show up in Classic's plugin list after that sign-in.
If the list still comes up empty, the network is the next suspect. Classic reaches Nanome-hosted plugins over TCP 8888 to plugins.nanome.ai, listed with its network requirements, so a firewall that blocks that port keeps them from connecting.
Installing each app
Nanome comes from the Meta Horizon Store, where it's listed as Nanome v2, through an MDM, or as an APK from the setup page. On Vision Pro it installs through TestFlight. It targets Quest 3 and 3S, and Nanome's hardware page sends Quest 2 and Quest Pro to Classic, even though the Nanome v2 store listing still names those two headsets among its platforms.
Classic installs from the Meta Horizon Store, Vive Business or Steam, or as an APK or Windows installer from the versions page.
An original Quest, sold as the Oculus Quest, runs neither. It doesn't appear as a supported platform on any current Nanome store listing. The full device list is in which VR headsets work with Nanome.
Custom plugins
Plugins written for Classic's Python plugin system stay on Classic, since the Stacks page points v2 integrations to MARA, and the post on getting MARA covers building custom tools there.
Moving a course from Classic to Nanome
Because the apps install side by side, a course needs no hard switch date. A cohort partway through the term can stay on Classic with Stacks on, while the next activity runs as a pilot in Nanome.
Students without a headset can join that pilot from a browser, because a Free Web Seat can watch a session without editing and holds up to 3 workspaces. Classic workspace files aren't on the current app's supported formats list, so structures move across as PDB, mmCIF or SDF.
FAQ
Does my license cover the current Nanome app?
Yes for paid license holders while the current app is in early access, and its store listing still says Early Access. The announcement that opened it on the Quest store said v2 is included for them during that period and they log in with their existing credentials. New accounts start with a 14-day Full trial, and the current seats are on the pricing page.
Nanome opens but does nothing on our license. What should we check?
The headset first: the current app targets Quest 3 and 3S. Then the network: Nanome 2.6 and later sign in through api.nanome.com, while Classic uses api.nanome.ai (setup guide). A firewall that allows only the older host lets Classic sign in and keeps the current app from signing in. Last, the seat: the current app in a headset requires a Collab or Full seat.
Was docking removed?
No. It moved from a Stacks plugin into MARA, which runs Smina docking from the browser and, per the integrations page, from inside a headset too.
What replaced Vault, and who can see my files?
Workspaces replaced it in the current app (Vault to workspaces). Each workspace has Owner, Editor and Viewer roles (collaboration docs), and access by workspace code can be set to None, so only people invited by email get in (Users tab). In Classic, Vault stays a Stacks plugin.