# Anki can’t create its own data folder

**URL:** <https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/anki-can-t-create-its-own-data-folder/31027>\
**Category:** Help\
**Created:** [June 9, 2023, 3:07am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/anki-can-t-create-its-own-data-folder/31027 "2023-06-09T03:07:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Pt32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b2d939/32.png) [@Pt32](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/Pt32)\
**Post date:** [June 9, 2023, 3:07am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/anki-can-t-create-its-own-data-folder/31027/1 "2023-06-09T03:07:04Z")

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I am trying to install anki, but I keep getting the error “anki could not create its data folder”. I’ve endured the location isn’t in read only but it still won’t work. Does anyone know how to solve this?

 ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/2X/1/13940275716143ed2767e652e353a53545c5f342.jpeg)

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**Author:** ![dae](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/dae/32/65_2.png) [@dae](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/dae)\
**Post date:** [June 9, 2023, 12:35pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/anki-can-t-create-its-own-data-folder/31027/2 "2023-06-09T12:35:00Z")

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I asked chatGPT to give you some hints on fixing the permissions:

**Step 1.** Press the **Windows Key + R** to open the Run dialog box.

**Step 2.** In the dialog box that appears, type in `explorer` and press enter. This will open up the File Explorer.

**Step 3.** In the File Explorer, copy and paste this location into the address bar at the top:

```auto
%APPDATA%

```

And press **Enter**. This should take you to the Roaming folder within the AppData directory.

**Step 4.** Within this folder, look for the `Anki2` folder. If it doesn’t exist, that’s okay. Right-click in the empty space inside the Roaming folder and select **New → Folder** to create a new folder and name it `Anki2`.

**Step 5.** Right-click on the `Anki2` folder and select **Properties**.

**Step 6.** In the Properties dialog box that appears, switch to the **Security** tab at the top.

**Step 7.** Click on the **Edit** button to change permissions.

**Step 8.** In the new dialog box that appears, you should see a list of user names and their corresponding permissions. Select the user name that’s having trouble (which is usually either the username of the person trying to run the program or “Users”) and check the box under the column labeled **Full Control** in the **Allow** row.

**Step 9.** Click **Apply** , then click **OK**. You’ll have to click **OK** again to close the Properties dialog box.

That should give the program (and the user trying to run it) the permissions it needs to create files within the `Anki2` folder.

If the problem persists, consider right-clicking on the Anki icon and trying to run as an admin.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/1X/8f1279ababc5879d54e4838989f606cfe55af8c7.jpeg) [@system](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/system)\
**Post date:** [July 9, 2023, 12:35pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/anki-can-t-create-its-own-data-folder/31027/3 "2023-07-09T12:35:37Z")

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