# Cannot launch Anki from desktop but it works when launched from CLI

**URL:** <https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180>\
**Category:** Help\
**Created:** [November 14, 2023, 7:30pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180 "2023-11-14T19:30:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![solid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7cd45c/32.png) [@solid](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/solid)\
**Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 7:30pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/1 "2023-11-14T19:30:23Z")

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Does anyone have any clue why this could happen or where to even begin troubleshooting?

P.S. Forgot to add I’m using Linux and I installed Anki from a deb package.

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**Author:** ![NameLessGO](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.ankiweb.net/namelessgo/32/34298_2.png) [@NameLessGO](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/NameLessGO)\
**Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 8:34pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/2 "2023-11-14T20:34:11Z")

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Did the CLI give you what the problem was? Could you start anki on console and screenshot or copy the logs?

strage situation, could you try running without add-ons enabled? (shift and hold + anki)

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**Author:** ![solid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7cd45c/32.png) [@solid](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/solid)\
**Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 8:57pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/3 "2023-11-14T20:57:04Z")

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When I launch it from CLI, it starts without any issues.

When I launch it from the launcher shortcut, it just exits silently.

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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:** [November 15, 2023, 3:36am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/4 "2023-11-15T03:36:29Z")

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Apps launched via the GUI may be logging their output somewhere. If you can find where, it may give you a hint as to what’s going on.

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**Author:** ![rtd101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rtd101](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/rtd101)\
**Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 9:28pm UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/5 "2023-11-15T21:28:29Z")

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I am having difficulty opening the desktop app from mac.

 ![Screen Shot 2023-11-15 at 4.27.24 PM](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/3X/9/4/94274e4c2ef002556b93a6079a41132d0a7a1246.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:** [November 16, 2023, 1:16am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/6 "2023-11-16T01:16:31Z")

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As the website was recently updated to reflect, the -apple version of Anki requires macOS 12+.

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/anki2/original/1X/8f1279ababc5879d54e4838989f606cfe55af8c7.jpeg) [@system](https://forums.ankiweb.net/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2023, 1:16am UTC](https://forums.ankiweb.net/t/cannot-launch-anki-from-desktop-but-it-works-when-launched-from-cli/37180/7 "2023-12-16T01:16:46Z")

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Closed on December 16, 2023, 1:16am UTC

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